Module LZG-3030:
Gegenwartssprache II

Module Facts

Run by School of Arts, Culture and Language

30.000 Credits or 15.000 ECTS Credits

Semester 1 & 2

Organiser: Dr Sarah Pogoda

Overall aims and purpose

  1. To consolidate key areas of advanced grammar.
  2. To further develop advanced test translation skills into and out of the target language.
  3. To develop oral and aural skills to a high standard through exposure to a wide range of audio visual material.
  4. To promote appropriate use of style and register in written and oral work.
  5. To develop and refine advanced skills in structured formal essay writing and paraphrasing tasks.

Students on this module will be working towards achieving C1/C2 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)

Course content

This 30 credit module running throughout the year promotes appropriate use of style and register in all written and oral work and ensures that students can deal with variations in register and idiomatic expression in a confident and accurate manner. Through exposure to selected texts, complex grammatical structures and audiovisual materials, students acquire reading, writing, aural and oral skills which match the required standard of final year linguists.

Key Texts Davies, Winifred V. (1997) Essay-writing in German – A students’ guide, Manchester and New York: Manchester University Press. Clemmetson, Christa and Rod Hare (1998) Aufsatz! 2000 : German language essay writing, London : Hodder & Stoughton.

Websites SMLC offers a link list for all language students that covers the most important resources (newspapers, TV channels, online grammar and dictionaries, etc.) in the language(s) that they study: http://www.bangor.ac.uk/ml/links-german.php.en (German online resources) http://www.bangor.ac.uk/ml/links-welsh.php.en (Welsh medium resources) Additionally, students are encouraged to consult: English-German Context Dictionary: http://www.linguee.com/

Other Learning Resources Students are provided with separate dossiers that contain all the necessary materials for their translation, applied language and conversation classes at the beginning of each semester.

Assessment Criteria

threshold

40-49%: A limited knowledge of vocabulary and grammar and a limited ability to translate and paraphrase the prescribed range of texts. Basic oral and aural competence.

good

50-69%: A good knowledge of vocabulary and grammar and a good ability to translate and paraphrase the prescribed range of texts. Good oral and aural competence.

excellent

70+%: An excellent knowledge of vocabulary and grammar and an excellent ability to translate and paraphrase the prescribed range of texts. Excellent oral and aural competence

Learning outcomes

  1. Display an ability in oral work to present in fluent German arguments that could be followed by native speakers of German with comparative ease.

  2. Reflect and explain where necessary those differences between British and German society.

  3. Demonstrate a high level of grammatical accuracy in oral and written work.

  4. Demonstrate in essay and translation work a sophisticated command of both German and English/Welsh that is alive to the rhetorical range of both languages.

  5. To understand and process complex texts and audiovisual materials varying in style, tone and register and comment on these texts in a concise and fluent manner.

Assessment Methods

Type Name Description Weight
Essay 13.34
Listening Comprehension Test 13.33
Summary/Paraphrasing test 13.33
Oral Exam 30.00
Translation Exam (1 Ger-Eng/Welsh + 1 Eng-Ger) 30.00

Teaching and Learning Strategy

Hours
Private study 234
Seminar

1 x 1 hour translation class per week for 11 weeks per semester 1 x 1 hour applied language skills class per week for 11 weeks per semester 1 x 1 hour conversation class per week for 11 weeks per semester

 66

Transferable skills

  • Literacy - Proficiency in reading and writing through a variety of media
  • Self-Management - Able to work unsupervised in an efficient, punctual and structured manner. To examine the outcomes of tasks and events, and judge levels of quality and importance
  • Inter-personal - Able to question, actively listen, examine given answers and interact sentistevely with others
  • Presentation - Able to clearly present information and explanations to an audience. Through the written or oral mode of communication accurately and concisely.
  • Teamwork - Able to constructively cooperate with others on a common task, and/or be part of a day-to-day working team
  • Argument - Able to put forward, debate and justify an opinion or a course of action, with an individual or in a wider group setting
  • Self-awareness & Reflectivity - Having an awareness of your own strengths, weaknesses, aims and objectives. Able to regularly review, evaluate and reflect upon the performance of yourself and others

Subject specific skills

  • The ability to use the target language creatively and precisely in sophisticated written assignments in the target language. (Benchmark statement 5.14)
  • The ability to translate sophisticated passages into and out of the target language. (Benchmark statement 5.3, 5.4)
  • Fully proficient to skilful oral communication and presentation skills (including delivery and argument development, discussion and defence) in the target language through individual and/or group discussions. (Benchmark statement 5.3, 5.4)
  • The ability to use the target language creatively and precisely in oral assignments, showing adroitness with a very wide range of topics and registers in formal and informal situations. (Benchmark statement 5.3, 5.4)
  • Further develop aural comprehension skills in the target language, supported by a wide range of appropriate materials in different media. (Benchmark statement 5.3, 5.4)
  • The ability to read, understand and summarise more sophisticated written texts in the target language. (Benchmark statement 5.3, 5.4)

Resources

Pre- and Co-requisite Modules

Courses including this module

Compulsory in courses: