UCL CENTRE FOR LANGUAGES
& INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION
Course Units 2015-2016
German for Academic Purposes I and II
Prerequisite for entry
Successful completion of German Business and Current Affairs at the UCL CLIE, have completed some post-‘A’ level
training or spent some time in the country actively using the language
Course duration
40 x 2-hour classes.
Self-Study
160 hours in total.
Course codes
LCGE6867, LCGEG867 and LCGEM867.
Aims and Objectives
The course is designed for advanced level students requiring the language for academic purposes.
The course comprises knowledge and understanding both of the structure of the German language and its use in
academic environments, such as lectures, seminars and debates. The course covers academic development, academic
culture and conventions, critical thinking, reading and writing academic (i.e. in the students main degree subject, e.g.
history) as well as other related topics to prepare students for further academic study/research in German speaking
countries. This will be related back to the student’s degree subject.
The course will enhance knowledge and use of linguistically complex structures (a variety of styles and registers from a
range of authentic academic material).
Various transferable skills will also be further developed.
Functions
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Suggesting and expressing specialised opinions, critical topic-related comments;
describing, defining, explaining complex content;
debating, commenting, critical thinking;
formally suggesting, proposing, arguing and defending one’s position;
composing written pieces of information for academic purposes (essays, summaries, reviews, reports, critical
responses to texts, etc.);
preparing and giving oral presentations on complex academic topics;
debating skills (simulating academic and conference discussions – academic oral registers);
summarising and translating academic information from English to German (and vice versa);
note-taking from written and audio sources;
reading specialised texts, building subject-related and general academic vocabulary;
Interviewing and questionnaires.
Course Content
Main topics/themes to be covered
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university system/academic qualifications
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applications and interviews;
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current scientific and socio-political topics and debate in the German-speaking countries;
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seminar papers/presentations related to student’s academic subject(s);
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group debates;
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academic essays;
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lectures and online materials;
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project writing and management.
Skills
Reading
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reading for gist, scanning for specific information in academic sources;
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in-depth analysis of academic and related topics in relevant publications.
Writing
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formal academic letters (e.g. ‘Motivationsschreiben’);
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analysis and review of articles;
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preparing presentation and essay/project outlines;
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essay structures;
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writing up notes from presentations and other audio sources;
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journal articles;
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summarising.
Listening
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radio, TV, audio and video, various online formats;
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presentations;
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academic debates, forum discussions.
Speaking
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formal and informal forum discussions, debates;
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seminar skills, e.g. turn-taking, commenting, moderating;
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presentation skills.
Linguistic Structures
Discourse Strategies
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analysing/comparing texts from various academic sources (different text types, styles and registers);
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preparing oral contributions for different audiences;
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spoken versus written academic communication.
Main aspects of these strategies
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structuring (logical structures);
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linking devices (lexical, grammatical);
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stylistic levels and their usage, academic register;
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subject-related specialist and/or academic vocabulary
Application of Complex Grammatical Features and Registers
Learning Resources
Handouts of advanced grammar and lexical materials will be given as necessary.
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Monolingual and bilingual dictionary (not pocket size).
Materials for the course will be drawn from:
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Authentic written material from various sources, on the advice of the tutor;
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Authentic audio and audio-visual material.
In addition there is a wide range of language learning materials available for self-study in the Self-Access Centre.