Syllabus for French 1134, Elementary French, fall semester 2014 Dr. Stuart McClintock Office: Bea Wood 110. Telephone: 397-4857. Please leave your number with your message so that I can return your call. You can e-mail to stuart.mcclintock@mwsu.edu Office Hours: T, Th, F 9-11am and T/Th 1:30-3:30, and by appt. Further, I am often in my office outside of office hours, and you are welcome if I am there. Required Texts: Vis-à-vis, 4th edition and accompanying 4th edition workbook Goals and Language of instruction: There are three interrelated objectives for this course. The first goal is to begin to be able to speak, understand, write, and read the French language. We gradually move towards total immersion in French as the semester progresses. The second goal is to study francophone (French-speaking) cultures. We will focus on French culture but also become familiar with the unique cultures and modes of expression of many other francophone countries. While learning about francophone cultures, you will be encouraged to compare your own culture with those of francophone societies. The third goal is to tie language and culture together by learning to use the French language appropriately in a variety of cultural contexts in the francophone world. Assessment: Your grade is made up of the following components Lab (1 per chapter) 10% Attendance 10% Quizzes 10% Homework, personal journals (1 per chapter), oral work 10% Tests (1 per chapter) 40% Final 20% Absence policy: Attendance is mandatory. A student can be dropped after four unexcused absences. Only an excused absence, defined as a university-sponsored event, is not counted as an absence. After second absence, attendance grade is lowered ten points, then five points per absence for the next three absences. Each absence after your fifth s ten points off your attendance per absence. Repeated late arrival will count as an absence as well. You are responsible for knowing how many absences you have. A student with perfect attendance or one absence is given an extra ten points on his/her attendance grade. Homework: Homework is due at the beginning of class; no work is accepted after class. If you are absent, turn in assignment the day you return. Please submit neat work that is legible, without cross-outs, and on one side of paper. Sloppy work will be returned with a zero. Quizzes: Quizzes are administered at the beginning of class. No make-up quizzes are given for late students. Quizzes are usually announced; however pop quizzes will also be administered. If you are absent, you may make up your quiz, but you must be ready to do it at the beginning of the class to which you return. It is your responsibility to follow through on making up the quiz. Lab homework: Each chapter has a lab assignment made up of two parts to be done in the language lab in Moffett Library . (It is not the lab assignment in the workbook.) The two parts must be completed in one seating because you hand in your work when you leave. The first part is a dictation (dictée). You listen to the tape and write in French the paragraph that is spoken. The second part of the lab tape is made up of questions or prompts. You write the answers to these questions/prompts in full sentences in French. You may listen to the tape as many times as you like. When you have finished, recopy your paragraph and answers neatly and hand them in to the lab assistant. The lab assistant is instructed to only accept work done in the lab. You should do the lab at the end of the second week of the chapter. I collect the lab work at noon following the day of the chapter test, which is the day we start the next chapter. (Chapter 1 lab is due 9/1.) You do not consult with anyone about any part of the lab when you are in the lab. Schedule: There is a test for each chapter of three to four pages. It is always on the last day of the chapter as listed below. 8/27-9/10: chapitre 1 10/23-11/5: chapitre 5 9/1-9/24: chapitre 2 11/6-11/20: chapitre 6 9/25-10/8: chapitre 3 11/26--12/7: chapitre 7 10/9-10/22: chapitre 4 final exam: December 12, 1-3 Notes: Extra Credit: You can do something related to French for extra credit to replace a poor grade for homework, quiz, or lab. It can be just about anything such as going to a museum with French art, reading a French novel, or watching a French movie. Write up what you've done and submit it. The bigger the project, the more it's worth. You may do a maximum of two extra credit projects. Clear your project with me before you do it. Academic honesty: Any work that you submit that is not your own is reason for censure for all parties involved. Procedure for censure follows the academic dishonesty policy in the student handbook. Students with disabilities: MSU provides students with documented disabilities academic accommodations. If you are a student with a disability, please contact me. Electronic communication: Turn off all cell phones and refrain from any electronic communication while in class. If you have something urgent that requires your being in touch with someone electronically, please let me know before class starts. Words of advice for success in this class and in French: 1. A beginning language class is different from most college classes because of the pace and the amount and kind of homework assignments. We meet three times a week. There is usually both written work and memorization required for every class. Memorization is fundamental to learning a new language. You make progress slowly. You must keep up on a daily basis to succeed. 2. Arrive in class with enough time to get yourself ready. Always bring both of your course books. Be prepared when class begins. This means that you should have your books and homework out and your book turned to the page we’ve most recently covered. 3. Pay attention to the professor and to those around you. A good language learner is a good listener. I will consistently repeat many phrases. Try to pick up on them and be able to say them to yourself. 4. Force yourself to use the language as much as possible. The more this becomes a habit, the more natural it will become. Do not worry about errors; your effort will result in increased confidence, a prime ingredient in using language. The more you force yourself to use the language, the more self-reliant you are and the prouder you will feel. Pretend that the speaker does not speak English , and you must communicate. 5. Remember that each language is a unique system. You must adapt to that system. Try not to filter French through English unless you see a similarity that helps you. 6. Remember that 25% of your daily grade is based on your speaking skills. Homework rules and procedures 1. Arrive in class with work completed. Do not do your homework in class or start doing your homework just before class starts! 2. Head your paper with your name, section (8am or 11am), and assignment (page and exercise numbers). 3. Write out everything in an assignment. For example, the whole paragraph or sentence in a fill-in-the-blank exercise should be written in full. 4. We go over homework each class, and you are responsible for properly grading your own paper. Bring a red pen to mark errors and/or make corrections. 6. You should keep a French folder into which you put your returned homework assignments, quizzes, and test study sheets. You can refer to these at test times, and you have a record of your work in case there is some discrepancy between a grade I have for you and what you have as the actual grade. French at Midwestern: 1. There is a French Club open to anybody interested in francophone culture. 2. There is a French minor and a French area of concentration at Midwestern. You must take the four introductory semesters of language instruction and then a minimum of four advanced courses for the minor and six advanced course for the area of concentration. Those interested in teaching should do the area of concentration. If you are interested, see me for details. 3. There is a 2,000 dollar scholarship given every year for a French minor to study/travel in a francophone country. 4. We have a chapter of Pi Delta Phi, the French National Honor society. To qualify for membership, you must have completed one advanced French course with an average of 3.00. Scholarship money is available from the society. 5. There are possibilities for studying French in another country over the summer. See me. 6. Midwestern participates in a program in France at which you can study for a full semester every spring. Courses are in English and cover a wide range of subjects. The program is open to all majors because courses are part of the core curriculum.