French - Upper Intermediate Level (B2) - Written expression

Teacher(s)

Neuenschwander Valérie (coordinator);

Language

French

Prerequisites

To take this class, the student must be enrolled during the same semester in the general course B2 LFRAN 1401, or having achieved previously a minimum mark of 10/20 on the course LFRAN1401.
Any request for derogation should be made to the Head of French Department.

Main themes

Students produce a wide range of texts: letters, newspaper article, fantastic short-story, critical review, message on a forum. The different types of texts are related to acts of speech (to tell, to describe, to explain, to advise, to inform, to convince).

Learning outcomes

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

At the end of this course, students can : write a review of a film, book or play; write clear, detailed texts on a variety of subjects related to his/her field of interest, synthesising and evaluating information and arguments from a number of sources; write an essay or report which develops an argument, giving reasons in support of or against a particular point of view and explaining the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

Content

Each course is divided in two parts:

• a phase of discovery in which students listen, read or watch a document they discuss in small groups.
• The second part of the course focuses on writing a production that is related to the situation of communication seen previously.

Students adopt the technique of rewriting, which means that they have a text of reference that helps them to make their own production. All the texts produced in class can be corrected and improved at home with the help of grid before they hand out their final copy the following week. The teacher alternates technical and creative sessions with varied material. The different types of texts are related to acts of speech (to tell, to describe, to explain, to advise, to inform, to convince) and go from easy to the more complex productions.

All the students are invited to complete a 'roadmap' on which they indicate all the corrections they've made on their copies.

Teaching methods

Each course is divided in two parts: a phase of discovery in which students listen, read or watch a document they discuss in small groups. The second part of the course focuses on writing a production that is related to the situation of communication seen previously.

Students adopt the technique of rewriting, which means that they have a text of reference that helps them to make their own production. All the texts produced during the course can be corrected and improved at home with the help of grid before they hand out their final copy the following week.

All the students are invited to complete a "cahier de route" (roadmap) in which they do their homework and indicate all the corrections they've made on their copies.
Some of the activities could be organized remotely depending on the evolution of the sanitary situation.

Evaluation methods

During the semester (50%)

•   written productions  completed during the semester  (40%)
• " Cahier de route" : corrected text, exercises, and specific structures counts for the final evaluation (10%).

The final exam (50%)

• Language test (10 %)
• A written production (40%).

An absence (justified or not) for the final exam (or one of its parts) will result in a final mark of absence.
The student who represents the final exam in August has the choice of representing the failed competency(ies) OR the entire exam if he/she wishes to improve his/her grade. He/she must explicitly communicate his/her choice to the professor no later than the first day of the session.

Other information

This course corresponds to B2 level of the common European Framework of reference
 

Online resources

https://moodle.uclouvain.be 

Faculty or entity

ILV