Mises au point: advanced French
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This course follows on from Envol: upper intermediate French (L211). It continues to develop your knowledge and understanding of the society and culture of contemporary France and to extend the practical skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. The study resources include online authentic audio and video, comprising interviews, documentaries and reportages, and illustrated printed materials. You will also develop your academic writing, critical and analytical skills, and intercultural competence. The course has six themes that give both broad and focused coverage of different aspects of historical and contemporary France and French-speaking countries.
Fees 2012
See fees and funding options for study from September 2012.
Course facts
An undergraduate course in Environment, Development and International Studies and Languages.
| About this course: | |
|---|---|
| Course code | L310 |
| Credits | 60 |
| OU Level | 3 |
| SCQF level | 10 |
| FHEQ level | 6 |
| Course work includes: |
|---|
| 5 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) |
| End-of-module assessment |
| No residential school |
Register for the course
This course is available for study in the countries shown. Fees and financial support may vary by country.
What you will study
Most of the materials for this course are delivered online via the course website, and you will spend a considerable amount of time carrying out interactive online activities.
Each theme is studied over five weeks, has online activities through the course website, associated video and audio documentary material together with listening and speaking exercises, reading and writing exercises based on longer texts from a full-colour printed anthology of texts (Francosphères).
The themes in detail are:
- History: The end of the French Empire; a profile of General de Gaulle; Revolution and republicanism.
- Multicultural France: Interviews with the writer Azouz Begag; an exploration of secularism (Laïcité) and its role in French identity; immigration and identity through the prism of literature.
- The media: The regional daily Sud Ouest – production and presentation of the news; French radio, listener participation, consumer issues; television, the internet, globalisation, and celebrity culture.
- The arts in France: The influence of la bande dessinée in France; the national Fête de la musique; the State of the Arts.
- Science and technology: The Cité des sciences et de l'industrie, science and the public; a profile of two French oceanography museums; scientific endeavour the French way
- Expression and identity in the French-speaking world: The literatures of Québec; the Caribbean and French-speaking Africa; the French-speaking world.
This course is designed to enable you to achieve a level of language proficiency equivalent to level C1 of the Council of Europe Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.
Entry
This is a Level 3 course for students who have successfully completed Envol: upper intermediate French (L211) or who already have an equivalent knowledge of French.
If you have not studied a language with The Open University before or you have any doubt about the standard of your French, you are advised to ask your regional or national centre for further advice and/or samples of material.
If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
Preparatory work
Before the course begins, we suggest that you continue to use your French in any way you can. You could do this by: redoing some of the activities in Envol: upper intermediate French (L211); listening to French radio or internet TV broadcasts and podcasts; borrowing French books and films from the local library; or reading French newspapers and blogs online. Anything you can do to keep practising your French will be helpful.
You should ensure that you have access to dictionaries and grammar books, either in print or online, both monolingual and bilingual for your own first language.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
Please note that this course makes substantial use of audio and visual materials. Full transcripts of the audio-visual materials are provided, except for those used for assessment purposes. The written and spoken elements you will be asked to complete as part of your assessment may use audio and possibly visual stimuli.
The study materials are available in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). Some PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader and foreign language materials may be particularly difficult to read in this way. Comb-bound versions of the printed study materials can be provided on request. Other alternative formats of the study materials may be available in the future. Our Services for disabled students website has the latest information about availability.
You’ll need to make extensive use of a personal computer throughout the course as most of the study materials are delivered online. If you use specialist hardware or software to assist you in operating a computer or the internet and have any concerns about accessing this type of material you are advised to talk to the Student Registration & Enquiry Service about support which can be given to meet your needs.
If you are a new student, or new to courses using a computer or the internet, you will need to inform us of your particular needs as soon as possible, as some of our support services may take several weeks to arrange. Details of how to do this and our range of support services are described in our publication Meeting Your Needs.
You can also find information about accessible study materials, financial support and the Disabled Students' Allowance, equipment and other services, on our Services for disabled students website. It also includes our contact details for advice and support both before you register and while you are studying.
Study materials
What's included
Books, DVD and a website which is the focal point of your study with access to a range of electronic tools including real-time conferencing and asynchronous tools such as forums.
You will need
You will need a headset with a microphone and earphones to take part in online tutorials, record spoken TMAs, complete the speaking activities on the course website and to take part in the online speaking test at the end of the course. You will also need to be able to play DVD-video.
Please also check the Computing Requirements and Assessment sections.
Computing requirements
This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave.
You will need internet access and a computer. If you have purchased a new computer since 2005 it should meet your course computing requirements. Check our Technical Requirements section if your computer is older than this or is otherwise unusual.
Teaching and assessment
Support from your tutor
You will have a tutor to help you with the study material and mark and comment on your written and spoken tutor-marked assignments (TMAs). You can also ask your tutor for advice and guidance. This course usually includes a mix of face-to-face and online tutorials. Please note that depending on where you live, the mix will vary and in some places face-to-face tuition may be replaced by telephone conferencing. Although you are not obliged to attend any of these, you are strongly encouraged to take part as they will provide you with plenty of opportunities to speak and listen to French. The online tutorials will give you practice in using the conferencing tool needed for your end-of-module speaking test. How tutorials are held will depend on the distribution of students taking the course in your area.
Contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service if you want to know more about study with The Open University before you register.
Assessment
The assessment details for this course can be found in the facts box above.
You can choose whether to submit your tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) by post or online through the eTMA system. You may want to use the eTMA system for some of your assignments but submit by post for others. This is entirely your choice, but please note that the written part of the end-of-module assessment (EMA) must be submitted online. The EMA also includes a speaking test which is carried out online.
If you wish to submit your TMAs on paper by post, please ensure you have an audio cassette recorder (full size, not mini format) with microphone and at least one blank cassette to record and submit your speaking test.
Professional recognition
The Chartered Institute of Marketing now recognises this course under their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
The details given here are for the course that starts in February 2013. We expect it to be available once a year.
Fees 2012
See fees and funding options for study from September 2012.
Course facts
An undergraduate course in Environment, Development and International Studies and Languages.
| About this course: | |
|---|---|
| Course code | L310 |
| Credits | 60 |
| OU Level | 3 |
| SCQF level | 10 |
| FHEQ level | 6 |
| Course work includes: |
|---|
| 5 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) |
| End-of-module assessment |
| No residential school |
Study explained
- Financial support
- - find out if you qualify for support with your fees with our eligibility checker.
- Study explained
- - all you need to know about distance learning with the OU.
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