Form C4
Heriot-Watt University - Course Descriptor
1. Course
Code
C47FH
2. Course
Title
Introduction to French History and Culture
3. SCQF 7
Level
6. Course
Fanny Chouc
Co-ordinator
4. Credits
15
5. School
Management and Languages
7. Delivery:
Location &
Semester
Edin
SBC
Orkney
Dubai
IDL
Collaborative Partner
Approved Learning Partner
Sem 2.
Sem…….
Sem………..
Sem……..
Sem….
Name…………………….....Sem..…...
Name …………………………………Sem………..
8. Pre-requisites
9. Linked Courses
(specify if synoptic)
10. Excluded Courses
C47EH - Introduction to European History and Culture
11. Replacement Courses
Code:
12. Degrees for which
this is a core course
Date Of Replacement:
13. The course may be
delivered to:
UG only
PG only
UG & PG
French and Applied Language Studies
14. Available as an Elective?
Yes
No
15. Aims



To provide students with an overview of the nineteenth and twentieth century history of France and other European French-speaking countries.
To complement their historical understanding through the study of selected written and audio-visual material in the FL.
To familiarise students with the main developments in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries as they have shaped France (and other European Francophone
countries) in their present form.
 To enable students to consolidate and broaden this historical knowledge by engaging with a variety of sources from selected historical periods.
 To provide a framework of understanding for students’ work in French.
 To consolidate students’ ability to construct an argument in line with academic text conventions.
 To provide students with the opportunity to research and write self-directed essays
 To provide students with the opportunity to research and present a short presentation
16. Syllabus





Weekly lectures will outline the major events and changes which have shaped the history of France.
The lectures will be complemented by a prescribed programme of self-study which includes a variety of illustrative materials.
A series of seven workshops will address specific historical and cultural issues in greater detail and practice critical engagement with these issues. A list of topics
and source materials will be provided at the start of the Semester.
These tutorials will be based on written and audio-visual material which reflects the history of the country of study. Classes will be dedicated to a discussion of this
material and provide students with practice and guidance on how to analyse these sources and how to construct a coherent written argumentation on a question
relating to them. Students will prepare for classes by reading texts of a historical or literary nature as well as viewing films. Classes will involve group and pair work.
Detailed reading lists will be provided by individual lecturers at start of the academic year
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Form C4
Heriot-Watt University - Course Descriptor
17. Learning Outcomes (HWU Core Skills: Employability and Professional Career Readiness)
Subject Mastery
Personal Abilities
Understanding, Knowledge and Cognitive
Scholarship, Enquiry and Research (Research-Informed Learning)
Skills
 Demonstrate a broad knowledge and understanding of
 Acquire an awareness of the changing nature of history.
French (Belgian and Swiss) history and culture.
 Develop the ability to apply a systematic and critical assessment to historical texts
 Show critical understanding of key historical theories.
and movies.
concepts and principles.
 Develop the ability to identify and analyse historical problems and issues and to
 Use a wide range of routine skills and some advanced
evaluate related arguments.
skills associated with academic essay writing
(data selection, argumentation, referencing, editing).
Industrial, Commercial & Professional Practice
Autonomy, Accountability & Working with Others
Communication, Numeracy & ICT
 Work with others, taking account of own
 Exercise initiative and independent thinking.
and others’ roles.
 Participate in teamwork, peer conversation
 Demonstrate ability to gather and sort information.
and group activities (lectures and tutorials).
 Structure and make simple presentations.
 Self-management skills fostered by the need to be
 Learn appropriate historical register and vocabulary. committed to a purpose, to manage self-study
effectively and to work to deadlines
 Present information, complex
ideas and arguments in a wellstructured and coherent form
(written/oral).
 Use presentation software to
make simple presentations.
 Demonstrate the ability to
understand and use appropriate
diagrams and charts.
19. Re-assessment Methods
18. Assessment Methods
Method
Duration of Exam
Weighting (%)
Synoptic courses?
Method
(if applicable)
(if applicable)
Summative Assessment: 2 Written
essays.
30% and 30%
1 presentation
10%
Summative Assessment: Written
examination
1.5 hours at end of
the semester
Duration of Exam
30%
If the student’s final mark
falls below a D the Exam
Board will identify elements
that have been failed and
ask the students to resit the
appropriate elements.
Students must obtain an
average grade of D or more
in their resits in order to
pass.
1.5 hours
20. Date and Version
Date of Proposal
Date of Approval by
School Committee
Date of
Implementation
Version
Number
2/2
Diet(s)