French 2602 (J. MacLean)

COURSE GUIDE (Winter 2017)

Friday, January 20: First submission of vocabulary-grammar notebook assignment (for inspection only)
Wednesday, February 8: Term exam (30%)
Monday, February 13: Second submission of vocabulary-grammar notebook, for marking (15%)
Wednesday, March 29: Final submission of vocabulary-grammar notebook, for marking (15%)

A. PREPARATION OF READINGS FOR CLASS STUDY

As part of your preparation for class (and later, as a review exercise), you should read the assigned passages aloud. You will find this helpful for remembering new vocabulary and the major ideas of the reading. For the first assigned text, your reading aloud can follow listening to passages from the play performed in the online video recordings provided for this course in the dossier for Le bourgeois gentilhomme .

In addition, you should master where applicable the "active vocabulary" found on the "Vocabulaire Actif" Web page. A selection of items will be taken from this page for your final exam.

In class you will be expected to be able to answer questions, both orally and on the blackboard, concerning ALL of the vocabulary in the assigned readings, and to explain the grammar and construction of all the sentences in these passages. If you do not fully understand an expression or construction you should prepare questions to ask the instructor in class.

You will also be assigned questions on the content, structure, and techniques of the texts studied, frequently from the study editions of these texts which have been assigned for the course. In class it will be expected that you have prepared these questions. See the "Exercices" page for exercises you should prepare before class. These exercises will be either (i) discussed in class orally, (ii) discussed orally in small groups, or (iii) answered in writing on the blackboard. You should come to class prepared to answer the assigned exercise questions in any of these three ways.

NOTE ON CLASSROOM ETIQUETTE

Students attending class are requested to respect all members of the class and to refrain from distractive behaviour such as sudden, unexpected departures and entries in the classroom. For this reason, cellphones should be deactivated during class.

3. Will I be able to learn everything I need from class discussion?

You will not benefit from class discussion unless you have prepared the reading assignment and questions before coming to class. Requiring such preparation is intended to allow you to make the most efficient use possible of your time, and is based on the observation that students profit from textual study only when they have diligently worked through the text themselves before class discussion. Experience has shown that students who attempt to garner from class discussion bits of information concerning an unfamiliar text derive little benefit from their efforts. (See the last paragraph of the answer to question 17 and question 23 on the matter of time management.)

RETOUR à la page Français 2602

B. PERSONAL VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT (NOTEBOOK)

See the picture of a steno notebook here. Notice that there is a vertical line down the middle of each page, which will allow you to put your newly learned vocabulary and a short quotation from your reading on the left-hand side, and your translation or comments on the right-hand side. The notebook can be easily carried in a purse or backpack, and easily placed beside a computer when you are working. Please purchase an 80-page, 120-page, or 160-page steno notebook: larger ones are too bulky to be easily transported, either by yourself or by your instructor.

If your mother tongue (first language is not English) you may give in the right-hand column translations in your own first language. Note : Different instructors require different formats for notebook assignments, depending on the nature of the course. For your assignment to be credited for French 2602, it must be prepared in the format stipulated for this section of French 2602. See below "Important Note" to Question 15.

5. What do you mean by "contextualized" vocabulary?

Giving a short direct quotation of a few words (sentence fragment, or very short sentence), taken from your readings or dictionaries, that illustrate how the word is used, and which help you remember the word (see the model distributed in class). Do not make up the illustration yourself.

6. How many items should I include in my notebook?

About twenty a week, leading to a total of about 250 (but a maximum of 300) items at the end of the term. Each item or entry must be numbered, from 1 to 250 (or more).

7. Is it difficult to learn that many items in one term?

No, providing you learn two or three every day, testing yourself immediately after entering them in your notebook and reviewing what you have learned at the end of each week. But do not try to learn thirty or thirty-five new items all at once!

8. What are the advantages of learning vocabulary this way?

The principal advantage is that you yourself make the decisions and take responsibility for determining what you need to and should learn, rather than simply having the instructor tell you. In choosing outside readings you will be able to build up vocabulary in areas that interest you personally, and you will be rewarded for this in receiving marks for your work.

Another advantage is that it will help you master the vocabulary of texts studied in class, which in turn will lead to higher marks on your examinations.

9. From what readings should I find material to put in my Vocabulary and Grammar Notebook?

You should include vocabulary and grammar items from both readings discussed in class and from your own choice of out-of-class readings in French. A wide variety of readings in French is made available on the course Web site (click on "Lectures sur Internet" near the top of the main French 2602 Web page), and others are available in the university library.

10. May I include in my Vocabulary and Grammar Notebook material from notebooks prepared in other courses or from old periodicals?

No. The entries in the notebook must not include entries used in similar notebooks for any other course taken by the student. For this reason entries taken from periodical literature (including newspapers and magazines published on the Internet) may be taken only from periodicals published between December 2016 and March 2017.

IMPORTANT NOTE ON COPYING FROM ANOTHER ASSIGNMENT:

Academic Offences defined in University Regulations 4.11.4 of the Calendar include "plagiarism", "copying from another student's work or allowing another student to copy from one's own work", and "submitting work for one course which has been or is being submitted for another course." Penalties range from reprimand and reduction of marks to suspension or expulsion from the university. Consult the university Calendar.

11. How do I distinguish between words and grammar points I want to be able to use myself, and those I want only to be able to recognize?

Vocabulary items that you wish to assimilate into your active (productive, as opposed to simple recognition) vocabulary (normally no less than 25% of items in the notebook) should be marked with an asterisk (*) beside the English (or French) equivalent of the term in the right-hand (or both) column(s) of the steno notebook.

12. How will my instructor know exactly how many and what readings I have used for this notebook?

At the back of the notebook, starting on the very last page, there must be a numbered bibliography of all the readings you will have used in the preparation of your notebook, including publication data for each item. The information should be clear enough that your instructor can easily find the readings cited if he wishes to check them. Note that the numbering of entries will indicate the number of separate readings you have used; do not put the title of any given reading into your bibliography more than once. References to Web pages should include the title (including the name of the site) and date of the page and it should include URL address of the site (but not the long URL address of the specific page). For example:

"Facebook accusé de monnayer les messages privés de ses utilisateurs" (Radio-Canada), le 3 janvier 2014, http://www.radio-canada.ca/

13. Will there be questions from my personal notebook on the final exam?

In this Winter 2017 section of French 2602 there will be no questions taken directly from your personal notebook, but a major part of the term and final examinations will comprise vocabulary studied in the assigned readings. Their inclusion in your notebook will be beneficial for exam results.

14. When will I have to pass my notebook in, and how much is it worth?

The notebook will be submitted three times: on Friday, January 20 (with 40-50 entries) for inspection and advice; on Monday, February 13 (with 125-150 entries) for a mark of 15%; and on Wednesday, March 29 (with 250-300 entries) for a further 15%.

DEDUCTION FOR LATE SUBMISSION:

In order to ensure fairness to all students, 0.3% of the final mark will be deducted each day beyond the deadline that the notebook assignment is not submitted.

Note: If a student so wishes, this assignment may be replaced with an extra thirty questions (=30%) on the final examination dealing with the student's general knowledge of French vocabulary. In this case there will be 20 vocabulary items to be translated from French to English, and 10 from English to French. The level of difficulty will be representative of the level of difficulty in students' notebooks, and normally will be chosen from those notebooks. Since usually students earn higher marks on the notebook assignment, which they can prepare at their leisure on their own time, than on examination questions testing vocabulary, this substitution is not recommended by your instructor, who must be informed in writing by February 19th if you wish to choose this option.

15. How will the notebook be marked?

Four criteria will be used in determining the mark of the notebook, namely:

(a) the care with each entry has been prepared, especially evidence of work with a dictionary showing different meanings of the word in question and, importantly, examples of contexts in which the word is used (quotations of short sentences or phrases);

(b) inclusion of paradigms and explanations of grammatical points encountered in reading;

(c) the number and variety of readings done by the student;

(d) the number of entries in the notebook (about 250 at the end of the coursefor normal "B" level work, to a maximum of 300, or 125 to a maximum of 150 for the first submission).

IMPORTANT NOTE: Notebook assignments not prepared according to the specific instructions for this section of French 2602 will not be accepted and credited. For example, notebooks in which adjectives are not listed in the masculine singular form, verbs not listed in the infinitive form or not labelled as transitive, indirect transitive or pronominal, and notebooks without a bibliography at the back or without labelling of personal active vocabulary, will not be credited.

CHECK LIST for submission of notebook assignment:

1. Are all items numbered consecutively, without restarting the numbering for new dates or new sources?

2. Is there a numbered bibliography at the very back (starting on the last page, at the back of the notebook), indicating what source(s) you have used (even if for the time being there is only one)?

3. Are all the entries facing the same way when you open your steno pad flat, displaying two pages?

4. Do all or most entries include in the left-hand column a quotation of a short sentence (or a few words from part of a sentence), found in your readings or your dictionaries, which illustrate the meaning or meanings of the word?

5. Is every verb entry in the infinitive or dictionary form (ending in -er, -ir or re)?

6. Is every verb entry clearly labelled "vt" (transitive verb, taking a direct object), "vti" (indirect transitive verb, taking an indirect object), "vi" (intransitive verb, never taking a direct object), or "vpr" (pronominal verb), according to the labels used in your unilingual or bilingual dictionary?

(There is some variation between, for example, the labelling system of the Petit Robert and the most recent edition of the Collins Robert dictionary; the latter no longer uses the indirect transitive category, but simply gives the verbal expression with the preposition. You may use either in your notebook.)

7. Is every noun entry given in the singular, with irregular plural forms noted when necessary?

8. Is the gender of every noun clearly indicated either by an article (le or la, un or une) or by a label?

9. Is every adjective entry given in the masculine singular form, with irregular feminine or plural forms noted when necessary?

10. Have you marked with an asterisk in the righthand (or both) column(s) of the steno pad about a quarter of your entries to indicate that you will learn these items as part of your active, productive (and not just recognition) vocabulary?

11. Have you included some grammatical explanations or paradigms of new grammar points you have encountered in your reading?

12. Is there an appropriate number of entries (40-50 for January 20; 125-150 for February 13; 250-300 for March 29)?

C. ATTENDANCE AND EXAMINATIONS

About half of each exam will test your ability to understand the literal sense of the readings you will have studied. For this half of the exam you are responsible for being able to recognize and identify all the French vocabulary and grammar constructions in all of the readings you will have done during the semester. In addition there will be a selection of items in English from the "Vocabulaire Actif" Web page for which you will have to give the correct French equivalent taken from your readings.

The rest of the exams will consist of questions on such matters as the theme and argumentation of the works you will have studied.

On the final exam you will be responsible for everything studied during the whole of the course, but greater emphasis will be placed on material studied since the term exam. To prepare for the term and final exams you should (i) reread each passage studied with your notes on vocabulary and grammar, (ii) study notes you have taken on the content of the readings, (iii) study your answers to the exercises assigned for class discussion, (iv) be sure you can give the French equivalent for each item in the "Vocabulaire Actif", and (iv) know all the vocabulary in your personal Vocabulary and Grammar Notebook drawn from the course readings. You should spend an hour at the end of each week reviewing this material, and several hours before the final exam studying the material covered throughout the term.

More precisely, the examinations will include the following questions.

I. Dictée (3% of final mark for the term exam and 4% for the final exam). A short dictation of two or three sentences taken from one of the readings studied during the term in class.

II. Grammaire (5% of term exam and 6% of final exam)

Five or six questions on the grammar of the readings, each discussed in class. Will require answers such as replacing a verb in the passé simple by a verb in the passé composé, choosing the grammatically correct sentence from a choice of five sentences, and explaining the meaning of certain pronouns and conjunctions in a sentence.

III. Vocabulaire (compréhension) (4% of term exam and 6% of final exam). Four or six questions. "Vous donnerez l'équivalent exact en anglais (ou en français) du mot ou de l'expression en italique." (Your answer must be in the same tense, number, person, etc., as the original. Will be taken from passages discussed in class.)

IV. Vocabulaire actif (5% of term exam and 6% of final exam). Five or six questions. "Vous donnerez l'équivalent exact en français du mot ou de l'expression en anglais en italique." (Your answer must be exactly the same French word or expression as in the original, and in the same tense, number, person, etc.)

All words or expressions will be chosen from the the French 2602 Vocabulaire actif page.

V. Questions sur les lectures. Répondez en français aux questions suivantes (13% for the term exam and 18% for the final exam). Thirteen or eighteen questions concerning significant details of the themes and argumentation of all the readings studied during the semester. Most will require one-word answers; a few more than one word.

See above section A on preparation of readings.

20. What will happen if I am prevented by illness or bereavement from attending the term examination or the final examination?

University regulations published in the university Calendar stipulate that "A student who is prevented from writing a test or mid-term examination or completing assigned work by the deadline, by illness or bereavement or other acceptable cause, duly authenticated in writing, may apply, in writing and with supporting documents, for an alternate evaluation. Normally, this application must be made within one week of the original date of the examination or deadline to the course instructor."

In the event a student is prevented from attending the term exam, the 30% assigned to this exam will be prorated from the final exam.

In the event a student is prevented from attending the final exam, arrangements will be made for the student to write a special final exam.

21. Is there anything else that I will be responsible for in each class?

Yes. You will be responsible for all announcements made in class concerning assignments, examinations, etc., as well as for any documents that might be distributed in class.

RETOUR à la page Français 2602

D. LEVEL AND WORKLOAD OF COURSE

French 2602 can be considered an intermediate university level French course. Students at the French 2602 level should be able to understand and express themselves in carefully spoken oral French, and, with the help of their bilingual and unilingual dictionaries and a good reference grammar (see "Livres obligatoires" in the course outline), should be able to read the passages assigned for study and write short essays and examination answers with accurate grammar, vocabulary and spelling.

23. How many hours per week of out-of-class work will this course require?

French 2602 is not a "heavy" course with respect to workload, but it is important to keep up with the work on a daily basis. The different assignments in this course overlap considerably. For example, much of the work for the Vocabulary Notebook is in fact synonymous with preparation and review of your readings.

Typically you will need to spend about an hour a day on out-of-class work; for example: 3 hours per week studying the assigned reading (finding all new vocabulary in your dictionaries, checking grammatical forms and constructions in your reference grammar, taking notes on the content of the passage, reading the assigned passage aloud), 1.5 hours preparing the assigned exercises for each reading, a total of about 1.5 hours making 20 entries (3 per day) in your Vocabulary and Grammar Notebook, 1 hour reviewing for exams. Planning and budgeting your time are important ingredients to success in this course.

24. What has led to success and what has led to problems in this course in the past?.

Students who have done well in this course in the past (70%+) have usually attended every class, have prepared every assigned reading and exercise thoroughly before class, have read aloud the assigned readings two or three times, have carefully checked over their written work (including answers to assigned exercises), have spent time at the end of every week testing themselves on the vocabulary studied and reviewing the passages read, exercises completed, as well as class notes, and they have availed themselves of every opportunity to speak, read and listen to French (on radio and television, for example).

The difficulties experienced by a very small number of students can be attributed to different factors. The most common cause is not keeping up with the work on a daily basis and missing class: this is often a simple problem of time management (see answers to questions 17 and 23).

Another difficulty that can occur at this level is an erroneous assumption by the student that she or he already has an excellent command of French and therefore needs to make only a minimal commitment to the work in French 2602. This difficulty often arises with students, such as ex-French Immersion or ex-Frecker Programme students, who do indeed have good comprehension and communication skills but whose command of such matters as the use of tense and mood, agreement, accurate vocabulary, and spelling and other aspects of written expression, are insufficient for 2000-level university French. Such students usually do very well once they make a commitment to an hour a day of out-of-class work in French 2602.

25. Are there any opportunities for extra help outside of class?

Yes. First, if you have any questions or difficulties, and especially if there are any sentences in the assigned readings you do not completely understand, you can see your instructor during his office hours (Monday/Wednesday 2:00-4:00, or by appointment in Winter 2017). In addition, the student assistants in the French Help Centre , although employed to work mainly with 1000-level students, may occasionally be able to answer questions for French 2602. Extra help is under no circumstances to be a substitute for regular class attendance, and it will not be available to students who are absent from class without cause.

RETOUR à la page Français 2602