UCL CENTRE FOR LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION Course Units 2015-2016 Italian for Academic Purposes II Prerequisite for entry Successful completion of Italian Current Affairs and Culture (Social, Historical and Political) at the UCL CLIE, or equivalent qualifications/experience. Course duration 20 x 2-hour classes. Self-Study 80 hours in total. Course codes LCIT6807, LCITG807, LCITM807. Aims and Objectives The course is designed for very advanced level students requiring the language for academic purposes. The course comprises knowledge and understanding both of the structure of the Italian language and its use in academic environments, such as lectures, seminars and conferences. The course covers academic development, academic culture and conventions, critical thinking, reading and writing academic texts (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 within Italy. 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 Suggesting and expressing specialised opinions, critical topic-related comments; describing, defining; debating, commenting, critical thinking; suggesting; composing written pieces of information for academic purposes (essay work, synthesis, summaries, reports); conducting oral presentations on complex academic topics; conference skills (simulating conference and academic discussions – academic oral registers); summarising academic information from English to Italian (and vice versa); note taking; reading specialised texts; Interviewing. Course Content Main topics/themes to be covered university system/professional qualifications applications and interviews; seminar papers/presentations; group debates; conference papers; project management. Skills Reading reading for gist, scanning for specific information in academic sources; in-depth analysis of academic topics in relevant publications. Writing formal academic letters; analysis and review of articles; note-taking from presentations; writing up presentations; professional reports and conference papers; journal articles; reports. Listening radio, TV, audio- and video-tapes; presentations; academic debates. Speaking formal and informal discussions, debates, round table; seminars; presentations; conferences. Linguistic Structures Discourse Strategies analysing/comparing texts from various professional sources (different text types, styles and registers); preparing oral contributions for different audiences; spoken versus written professional communication. Main Aspects of These Strategies structuring (logical structures); linking devices (lexical, grammatical); stylistic levels and their usage; professional vocabulary. Application of Complex Grammatical Features and Registers Learning Resources There is no textbook for this course. Dizionario dell’uso dei verbi (Guerra Edizioni) 2004 – ISBN: 9788877157294 Il Ragazzini 2015, Dizionario Inglese-Italiano/Italiano-Inglese (Zanichelli) – ISBN: 9788808600820 – - please check with tutor first. Materials for the course will be drawn from: Authentic written material from various sources to be advised by tutor; 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.