Required:

-Vis-à-vis: Beginning French, 3^e édition (textbook)

-Vis-à-vis: Cahier d’exercices, 3^e édition (workbook)

-2 blank CD-Rs (above 32x)

Recommended:

-Any good French/English – English/French dictionary with IPA entries after each word (there are some available in the bookstore, as well as at places like Half-Price Books)

-A notebook for note-taking and quizzes

This class covers chapters 7 through 12 of the text. French is the principal language of communication in the class. FRENCH 1412, Beginning French II, is a four credit-hour course. It is part of the four-semester beginning and intermediate (1411-1412, 2311-2312) sequence.  The course transfers to universities as foreign language credit.  It also satisfies the cross-cultural and oral communication components of the HCCS core curriculum.

In French 1412 you will continue to listen to, speak, read and write French.  Vocabulary, language patterns and grammar are introduced and applied in the context of practical communication.  You will continue to learn French vocabulary, expressions and structures relating to travel, dining & shopping, leisure activities, media, technology, communication, getting around town, the arts, daily life, the work environment, etc.  You will also continue to learn cultural information about values, beliefs and practices related to the above situations and to speakers of French.  In a more general sense, you will deepen your understanding of cultural contexts of the French language. The class includes dialogues, video and audio recordings, oral and written exercises, role-playing, partner or group work, and computer exercises.

The LRC is our newly technologically upgraded Language Lab, and it is located at the northeast corner of the 3^rd floor of the Fine Arts Center (the building in which our class is held). Plan to spend anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half there per chapter. Moreover, we are fortunate enough to be using a text series with many online activities. These can be done anywhere you can get access to the Internet; therefore, you may be able to do much of the computer work from home. The people who work in the LRC are very helpful and friendly: ask them for help if you have any computer questions! If you don’t have Internet access at home, and you need a place to work, the LRC is where you can go for any work related to language learning.

The LRC has special Vis-à-vis software with exercises specific to our textbook. There are video and audio clips, grammar drills, and vocabulary exercises. You can also use the MHELT (McGraw Hill Electronic Language Tutor) for Vis-à-vis software for further practice. One of the most common causes of silly mistakes on tests is lack of practice: the computer work you do in the LRC will definitely improve your grade and reduce commonly made mistakes! In summary, for every chapter we cover, you are expected to do three types of computer exercises: those at the McGraw-Hill website, those in the MHELT, and those in the Vis-à-vis program itself. Complete instructions for students of French using the lab are posted on the department web pages and in the lab itself.

You will have two 2-chapter tests and a written 2-chapter final. Tests have a listening portion, along with reading and writing segments. Usually, a fourth of a point is deducted for each spelling error (accents included) on most written work like compositions and tests. Tests should be taken in pencil in order that the completed version be legible.

There are two oral exams in French 1412. For the first, you will recite from memory an assigned poem to your instructor to demonstrate your pronunciation skills. At the end of the semester, you will take an oral exam on grammar and communicative topics covered during the course: these two exams will count for 15 percent of your final grade.

You will be assigned three 1-2 page compositions this semester. All compositions should be typed in a size 12 font and double-spaced on 8.5” x 11” paper. You are encouraged to use spelling and grammar check on Microsoft Word: yes, later versions of Word can check spelling in French (you may need the installation CDs to add this feature). Accents are a part of spelling and must be included in any written French. For more information about typing in French and using the language lab for word processing, click here.

Class participation and attendance = 10%; Compositions and homework = 15%, Quizzes = 15%; Chapter tests = 25%, Oral exam = 15%; Final exam = 20%

All test dates and assignment due dates are in the course calendar above. You may want to mark your own calendars with these dates to help you remember. No make-up quizzes or late turning in of assignments allowed. If you miss a quiz, you get a zero. You may make up ONE written exam after having provided a reasonable explanation (death in the family, extreme illness, etc.) for having missed it. It is also preferable that you let your instructor know you will miss a test via e-mail or telephone beforehand. All students will take the final at the scheduled time and date, so arrange any end-of-semester travel for after the actual end of the semester.

As these make up 10 percent of your grade, you are expected to come to every class prepared and ready take on the day’s lessons. More than two absences will result in your final grade being lowered by one letter. Exchanging phone numbers with one or two other students for times when you miss a single class is a very good idea. It is not your instructor’s responsibility to ‘bring you up to date’ on what you missed during your absence, nor is it his job to tell you if you’ll be ‘doing anything important tomorrow.’

Class will begin at the scheduled time.  Please be on time, as coming and going disrupt the class.  Attendance is essential and daily records will be kept.  In accordance with HCCS official policy, a student may be dropped for excessive absences. Consult with the instructor in case of serious illness or business reasons for absence.  Students will lose points on the participation grade for every class missed over the allotted time. Absences will be counted from the first class day of the semester, no matter when the student registers or first attends.

The student who earns an ‘A’ in attendance & participation has come to every class on time, always done his/her assigned work (computer work, compositions, workbook exercises, etc.), participates actively, and interacts with other students in a positive, encouraging manner. Participation goes far beyond answering when called upon: it also includes an upbeat attitude and a genuine willingness to actually speak some French and help neighbors do the same during group work. Language is a social phenomenon: if you aren’t prepared to speak to others in small groups or even to the whole class, you may want to consider taking some other class that doesn’t require two to tango.

French 1412 students use CD-Rs (provided by the instructor) in any sound-ready computer with Windows Media Player to do workbook listening exercises. Alternatively, with the purchase of a new textbook, you are given a user name and password that allows you free access to all recorded *.mp3 versions of these same files at the textbook website. 

Any student with a documented disability (e.g. physical, learning, psychiatric, vision, hearing, etc.) who needs to arrange reasonable accommodations must contact the Disability Services Office, SJAC 102, 713-718-6164, at the beginning of each semester. Faculty are authorized to provide only the accommodations requested by the Disability Support Services Office.

90-100 %  A

80-89  % B

70-79 % C

60-69 % D

            59 & below F

Please have the common courtesy to turn off all cell phones and beepers before class. Their use disrupts the class and is QUITE RUDE.

Students are expected to do their own work, unless an assignment is made specifically as a group assignment. Plagiarism (handing in another person's work while purporting it to be your own), or cheating of any other kind will result in a grade of F for the assignment, quiz, or test in question. For a second offense, the student may receive a grade of F for the course.

This course satisfies the cross-cultural component of the Core Curriculum at HCCS. State Criteria for Cross-Cultural Component of Core Curriculum:

To establish broad and multiple perspectives on the individual in relationship to the larger society and world in which he or she lives and to understand the responsibilities of living in a culturally and ethnically diversified world.

To demonstrate knowledge of those elements and processes that create and define culture.

To understand and analyze the origin and function of values, beliefs, and practices found in human societies.

To develop basic cross/multi-cultural understanding, empathy, and communication.

To identify and understand underlying commonalities of diverse cultural practices.

To analyze the effects of cultural forces on the area of study.

These descriptions reflect what most students will be able to do by the end of the course.  The terms given in parentheses are descriptive terms of proficiency in foreign language based on a classification developed by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.

Listening Comprehension (Intermediate Low) Comprehend statements and questions in standard spoken language using recombinations of learned vocabulary and expressions. Understand conversations or comments on familiar topics relating to personal information, daily activities, and practical everyday situations and social exchanges. Students will be able to follow the course of the conversation without necessarily understanding everything said.

Speaking (Novice High) Speak using words, phrases, and short sentences to give information, ask and answer questions, initiate or participate in conversations.

Reading (Novice-High): Read and interpret language focused on high frequency and practical situations or subject matter. The language will consist mainly of vocabulary previously learned.  May be able to understand materials at a higher level where the material is contextualized.

Writing (Novice-High): Write short simple sentences using learned vocabulary and a limited number of grammatical structures.  Topics deal mainly with personal life and interests.

Cultural Awareness

Be able to identify regions of the world and name some countries where French is spoken. 

Demonstrate knowledge of a few basic facts about several French-speaking countries or regions, including France, Québec, and Senegal.

Show understanding of French customs relating to introductions and initial social contacts, interaction in public places, dining, and interaction between family and friends.

Show some understanding of issues in intercultural communication and cultural misunderstanding.

Demonstrate understanding of the interrelationship between culture and language.

You may wish to go to these sites as soon as possible and bookmark them all in your browser!

http://www.mhhe.com/visavis3 

This site houses the publisher’s pages for our textbook where there are exercises that go along with the text. Do these exercises regularly and faithfully, and you’re guaranteed to improve you general understanding of each chapter.

http://www.francophonie.hachette-livre.fr/

This site is an excellent online French – French dictionary. It’s a wonderful alternative to buying a printed one! When learning French, if you REALLY need to look up a word, try reading the definition in French, looking at it in a sentence, imagining a cognate, etc., instead of resorting to a dual-language dictionary! This might sound strange, but, trust me, it’ll do you good! English, bad… French, good! The quicker you become comfortable with and brave about dealing with French in an all-target-language environment, the better off you are.

http://www.frenchlesson.org/index.htm

This is a great site for grammar, and it includes online exercises. Cliquez-y!

http://www.afdehou.org/

The Alliance Française de Houston (427 Lovett Blvd.) is France’s official local outpost of francophone culture. They have a calendar of events (like exhibits, wine tastings, readings, presentations, etc.), and they also have a nice video and print materials library for members. Student membership is very affordable, and it grants you access to their great materials!

http://french.about.com/mbody.htm

This is an exhaustive site with information, exercises, explanations and links for all aspects of French language learning. Should you not understand or seek further information on a grammar explanation from Vis-à-vis, this is an excellent place to go when you cannot reach me.

http://www.lamc.utexas.edu/tex/

Austin’s University of Texas has created what amounts to be an entire first-year French text online. There are very easy to understand lessons, creatively deployed characters, and self-test quizzes on each lesson.

“I guess I’m just not good at languages.” Few utterances do as much damage to the language learner as that one. While any psycholinguist will tell you that it is certainly easier for a child to acquire language(s) than it is for an adult, there is no such thing, in my learned, professional opinion, as being ‘worse at languages’ than others unless parts of your linguistic apparatus (mouth, brain, ears, etc.) are somehow genuinely and severely malformed or injured. Even then, a little determination has taken people before you a long, long way.

Being ‘bad at languages’ is simply a frame of mind you should never allow yourself into. Ask anyone who has learned another language after childhood, and you’ll see that there are no smoke and mirrors involved – just dedication, perseverance, and a willingness to make mistakes and learn from them. There is no voodoo, magic spell, or incantation to offer you. The rewards of language learning, like any other important undertaking, are numerous. Learning French is your chance to go places! Whether you’re just fulfilling a language requirement this semester or quite interested in long-term continuation of the language experience you begin here today, I don’t expect you to be a Navajo code-breaker: I only expect you to keep trying and to do so with an open mind.

Please participate actively in this course: what you get out of it is in direct relation to what you put in! Learning a language is a serious commitment. Take the opportunity before you to surround yourself with French! Explore other ways to supplement what you do in class, especially by making French as present in your everyday life as possible. Rent a French movie once a week, and put paper on the screen to cover the subtitles. If you own a DVD player, change the language of your favorite movie to French. Check out your local Alliance Française and/or French consulate to see what kinds of other outlets are available to you. Label everything in your house in French with post-it notes! Change your web search engine to the French version, or use a French web-search service. Even better still, use the French language versions of programs you use often. Buy (or download!) some French language music, and listen to it in the car, at the gym, etc. Eat at a French restaurant like Café Rabelais and order in French! Use your listening comprehension audio cassette in the car, or do the activities several times.

Practice vocabulary and pronunciation in front of a mirror and watch what your mouth does when making those strange sounds! Try recording yourself as you read a passage aloud and listen to it while reading the text silently. Make flash cards with vocabulary words on one side and a picture of the meaning (as opposed to a translation) on the other. Learn the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) to know how to pronounce any word in any language with the aid of a dictionary with IPA entries! Although you shouldn’t always run to the dictionary, keep a log of every word you end up wanting to look up (especially those you encounter repeatedly), and review it periodically: this will increase your vocabulary tremendously. Try guessing the meaning of unfamiliar words & phrases through context: your mind is capable of some very fancy detective work if you just let it.

Yes, HCC-Central does have a library (!!!) on the second floor of the SJAC building (that’s the old San Jacinto High School building with the columns in the center of campus). If you don’t have an HCC student ID, you should get one and make use of the library materials your tuition and taxes pay for. Aside from numerous circulating titles you can check out to help you in your studies of French, I have placed many items on reserve, such as a copy of the text, workbook, the Vis-à-vis CD-ROM with MHELT (the same programs available in the language lab), and J. Morton’s English Grammar for Students of French. To access these and other materials, give my name and the course number to someone at the circulation desk. You can also see a list of the materials I have placed on reserve for you by searching online.