German beginner's level 2nd part (A1 - A2)

Teacher(s)

Klein Caroline (coordinator);

Language

Deutsch
> English-friendly

Prerequisites

Having met the requirements of the LALLE1101 (A1 level) course or being able to demonstrate that the student already has the prerequisite level through a certificate or an oral level test with the teacher.

The prerequisite(s) for this Teaching Unit (Unité d’enseignement – UE) for the programmes/courses that offer this Teaching Unit are specified at the end of this sheet.

Main themes

As far as the level is concerned, the students should reach the A2+ level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in terms of Listening and Reading skills, and the A2- level as far as Speaking and Writing skills are concerned.
The objective of the course is the development of the communication skills of the student in General German and building awareness about the cultures of German-speaking countries.
The communication contexts as well as the subjects are linked to everyday life: hobbies, travel, living conditions, invitations, family and friends, future projects, etc.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

Understand key information from short listening-comprehension passages about everyday life and grasp enough to be able to react to straightforward oral messages, on condition that the input be clear and the pace not too fast. Talk about themselves and their immediate surroundings; communicate during simple and common tasks that only require brief and direct interaction. Pronounce German sounds and master basic vocabulary and the key concepts of basic German grammar.

read short texts about everyday life (personal letters, etc.), find specific information in commonly-used documents (advertisements, etc.) and understand the gist of discursive texts or simple narrative. Write short and commonly-used documents (e-mail, postcards, etc.).

Content

The course is based on communication and the methodology is a blend between the communicative and the notional-functional approaches.
Notions of code are not acquired through the learning of vocabulary lists or an exclusively structural approach to grammar. These are integrated into meaningful contexts and grouped according to functional content (asking for and providing personal details, talking about everyday activities, spare time and tastes, describing a city, suggesting activities, etc.). They are subsequently practised in the form of excercises requiring the development of a global communicative competence.
The didactic materials include very detailed grammatical referencing and drilling exercises common to the structural approach, but the typology of the exercises and the basic materials are very heterogenous : songs, games, role-playing, authentic or abridged texts, advertisements, etc.

Teaching methods

The course follows the communicative notional-functional method.

This learning module is taught in the form of contact hours using the communicative, lexical and grammatical approach.
An A2-level book is used.  

Evaluation methods

1. Continuous assessment based on tests during the year (no certificative assessment).
2. Different marks are taken into account in the final mark: Oral (20%) and written exam (80%: grammar and vocabulary 30%, listening and text 30%, writing 20%) take place at the last courseweek. Chapter 5-8 of the book will be tested.

These modalities as well as teaching could be transposed to online teaching and evaluation according to the evolution of the health situation.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) must be used responsibly and in line with academic and scientific integrity.

Online resources

http://www.moodleucl.uclouvain.be

Bibliography

Manuel d'apprentissage DaF kompakt neu A1 (Klett, ISBN 978-3-12-676313-4)

Faculty or entity

ILV