Dutch: advanced productive skills II (contrastive analysis and translation) [ LGERM1503 ]

Prerequisite: course LGERM1332 and LNEER1211 (or equivalent course of a level B2 CEFR).

A wide range of written texts and multimedia documents are used as a prompt for receptive and productive activities in both speech and writing. The focus is on vocabulary extension, grammatical accuracy and coherent argumentation. Special attention is devoted to intercultural communication. Lexical, grammatical and discursive differences between the target language and French are highlighted and practised through translation exercises.

To acquire advanced productive and receptive skills in both speech and writing (B2+ level - Common European Framework of Reference for Languages). At the end of the course, the student will be able to: - follow extended speech even when it is not clearly structured and when relationships are only implied and not signalled explicitly; - understand standard spoken language, live or broadcast; - easily follow complex interactions between third parties in group discussion and debate, even on abstract, complex unfamiliar topics; - understand spoken language displaying light regional varieties; - easily summarize lectures, conferences and talks (even on specialized topics) presented by native speakers; - understand a wide range of journalistic, literary or domain-specific texts; - appreciate stylistic differences between texts (written or spoken); - discover the structure of discourse; - recognize stylistic devices typical of the target language and provide equivalents in his/her mother tongue; - identify the targeted readership of a text; - have a good command of a broad lexical repertoire allowing gaps to be readily overcome with circumlocutions and avoidance strategies; - have a good command of idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms; - make no significant vocabulary errors; - consistently maintain a high degree of grammatical accuracy; errors are rare; - be able to vary intonation and place sentence stress correctly in order to express finer shades of meaning; - use consistent and accurate layout, paragraphing, spelling and punctuation; - produce clear, smoothly flowing, well-structured speech, showing controlled use of organizational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.

Permanent evaluation: written exercises in the 1^st and 2^nd semester; obligatory participation in the oral exercises.

Final examination: written and oral examination at the end of the academic year

The lecturing part of the course will focus on a systematic broadening of the lexical proficiency, the development of stylistic  and grammatical adequacy, use of different forms of discourse and the quality of translation. The exercise part of the course will especially focus on productive oral and written proficiency (correct pronunciation, adequate use of the code, variety in register, vocabulary and fluency in communication).

Vocabulary extension with particular focus on its appropriate use in context (collocations, register). Discursive and rhetorical techniques, typical of the target language.

Lexical and structural properties of written vs spoken discourse in the target language.

Material support: syllabus L. Beheydt (2010) Néerlandais : compétences avancées II and the handbook : W. Smedts & W. Van Belle : Taalboek Nederlands.  Ed. Pelckmans – Kapellen