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FUBiS Term III: German Language Beginner 2
(Course # 3.05)
|
Type: |
A Track |
|
Language: |
German |
|
Contact hours: |
72 (6 contact hours per day) |
|
Credit Points: |
4 Credit Points |
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Capacity: |
15 |
Course description
Course Objectives
This course is designed to strengthen and expand your communicative competence in listening, speaking, reading, and writing and to deepen your understanding of German-speaking cultures. The textbook Delfin A2 in conjunction with current culture-rich supplemental materials offers a balanced approach to developing your individual language competencies. One of the foci of this course is Berlin and the region. Therefore, authentic material will be increasingly used in the course and during the weekly course-related excursions.
- By the end of the course you will be able to handle a variety of day-to-day needs in a German-speaking setting and engage in simple conversations about topics pertinent to you.
- You can expect to be able to order food and beverages, purchase things, and rent a hotel room.
- You will become familiar with the German university system, the Arts, media, and current social topics.
- You will begin to be able to talk about the past and the future, make comparisons, and describe people and things in increasing detail.
- Furthermore, you will be able to talk about your studies and about your dreams and aspirations.
- You will develop reading strategies that should allow you to understand the general meaning of articles and short literary texts.
- You will develop writing strategies allowing you to focus on self-correction and to incorporate nuanced vocabulary.
- In addition, you will feel more able to understand information when you hear German speakers talking about topics familiar to you.
Daily Lesson and Excursion
Monday, Wednesday and Thursday are lessons. Since the historical and cultural life of Berlin enriches the content of the course, two Wednesdays offer a course-related excursion.
Participation
Each class consists of six teaching modules (45 minutes each). If you miss eight modules your entire course grade will drop by one grade. We discourage late arrival. Coming late to class six times (up to 20 minutes) also will drop your course grade. Missing 20 modules result in failing the class.
Participation includes more than simply coming to class and arriving on time. Active participation reflects the quality of participation and includes consistent interest in learning the language, which involves participating productively in the excursions.
What is active participation?
- Being prepared for class including completed homework assignments,
- regularly volunteering with constructive comments (more isn’t always better),
- contributing productively to group work,
- sharing ideas
- and listening to and respecting the ideas and comments of your peers.
Evaluation
| Active participation and homework | 300 points |
| Oral presentation | 100 points |
| Essay | 100 points |
| Midterm | 100 points |
| Final exam | 200 points |
| Group project | 200 points |
| Maximum Score | 1,000 points |
Oral Presentation
You prepare a 5-minute oral presentation, in which you introduce and delineate a certain aspect about Berlin or the region. Focus and content of you presentation can be discussed during office hours. Most importantly, you will prepare a handout for your peers listing unfamiliar vocabulary and posing questions. You are practicing to speak freely and cannot read the oral presentation.
Essay
In this course you write one essay (150 – 225 words), which is initially returned by the instructor with suggestions for improvement and must be re-submitted. The first version of the essay is worth 80 points and the rewrite 20 points for a total of 100 points. Please submit your essay typed, double-spaced, and 12 font. Do not hand in rough drafts
When writing your essay you will strive first and foremost for clarity (organization and style) and accuracy (grammar and syntax). You are encouraged to incorporate complex constructions, but please concentrate on syntactic and grammatical accuracy. Proofread your essay to insure that you have not made careless errors. For example, you might look for:
- subject-verb agreement,
- tense of verb,
- gender,
- case,
- adjective endings,
- word order,
- and literal first-language translations.
Midterm and Final
You will write a midterm and a final consisting of the following sections: listening comprehension, vocabulary, grammar, reading comprehension and composition based on course themes.
Group Project
The creative group project is thematically linked to course content and includes a 10-minute oral presentation. You will work with peers and present the group’s work during the last week of instruction. Most importantly: you introduce and delineate a certain aspect about Berlin and share some of your impressions.
Possible ideas may include:
- course newspaper,
- sketch or parody,
- PowerPoint presentation,
- dance performance,
- song or poem,
- children’s book
- and game (Monopoly, Jeopardy, etc.)
Official FUBiS Grading scale
|
Freie Universität Berlin grading |
Recommended US grade |
Points (German classes only)* |
|
1,0 |
A |
1000 – 970 |
|
1,3 |
A |
969 – 920 |
|
1,7 |
A- |
919 – 900 |
|
2,0 |
B+ |
899 – 880 |
|
2,3 |
B |
879 – 830 |
|
2,7 |
B- |
829 – 800 |
|
3,0 |
C+ |
799 – 780 |
|
3,3 |
C |
779 – 730 |
|
3,7 |
C- |
729 – 700 |
|
4,0 |
D |
699 – 680 |
|
failed (> 4,0) |
F |
< 680 |
* The final grade in the German language classes is determined by the points achieved at the end of the course.
Student profile
Beginner 2
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