Overview

This module runs during the first semester and is aimed at students with some prior knowledge of German. The course is based on a communicative approach and helps students to enhance all the key language skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening. After each of the contact hours, students are expected to spend at least 30 minutes of self-study to revise and consolidate what they have learned in class.

Face to face and online groups are available. Foundation Year students will be registered in the Face to face groups, and they will be asked to complete two assessments.

By the end of this course students will reach level A2 Breakthrough as defined by the Common European Framework, Language Assessment Scales.*

Textbook: https://www.bangor.ac.uk/arts-culture-language/languages-for-all/text-books

*A2: Competent in a limited range of predictable and simple language tasks, using mainly set expressions and simple combinations of these. Capable of some rehearsed grammatical manipulations. This applies to all the 4 language skills: speaking, reading, listening and writing.

Assessment Strategy

Only Foundation Year students will be submitting two tasks in order to be assessed.

-Threshold -40-49%: For the award of credit, students should demonstrate a satisfactory comprehension of the various grammatical areas studied and an ability to implement them in specific situations at a basic level.

-Good -50-69%: For the award of higher grades, students should demonstrate a solid comprehension of the various grammatical areas studied and an ability to implement them in specific situations.

-Excellent -70+%: For the award of the highest grade, students should demonstrate a detailed comprehension of the various grammatical areas studied and an ability to implement them confidently in specific situations.

Learning Outcomes

• Communicate orally using a variety of grammatical and syntactical structures

• Grammar - Present tense: revision - Perfect tense: revision - Imperfect - Reflexive verbs - Modal verbs - Comparisons - Direct and indirect object pronouns - Order of pronouns - Time expressions

• Topics and functions - Talking about oneself and others: family; daily routine; preferences; likes/dislikes; hobbies and free time both in the present and in the past - Giving and understanding information about age, weight, height, appearance - Comparisons - Understanding descriptions of people and places - Recounting series of events

• Understand and respond orally to questions using a variety of grammatical and syntactical structures