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Introduction
AS ITALIAN (EDEXCEL)
This is a one-year course for students who have studied Italian to GCSE level and who would like to improve
their language skills and widen their knowledge of the language and culture of Italy. It may also be possible for
students with a background in the language to take the AS level without having a GCSE qualification, subject to
an initial assessment. At the end of the year they take the two AS Italian units of the Edexcel examination.
Entry Criteria
Standard College entry requirements including a minimum of:
GCSE Italian: grade B
or fluent speakers who pass an initial assessment.
Course Content
There are six lessons a week and you are expected to devote 4/5 hours a week to homework and private study.
There will be a weekly conversation class with an Italian Language Assistant.
You are
provided with a vocabulary book for weekly learning. Most other resources are provided as hand-outs or
electronically. Basic GCSE grammar will be revised and further grammatical structures will be introduced to
enable you to speak and write effectively and accurately in Italian. The Library and department stock a range of
course books, grammar practice books, Easy Readers (simplified versions of Italian classics) and Italian plays
and novels.
There is a bank of interactive resources available on the College’s student intranet (Moodle). You
will also be shown how to access Italian material on the Internet for research and interest.
The four topic areas specified by Edxcel are: • Youth culture and concerns:
music, fashion, technology, relationships, drugs/alcohol
• Lifestyle, Health & Fitness:
sport ,exercise, food and diet, health issues, health services
• The world around us:
travel, tourism, environment, the Italian-speaking world
• Education and employment:
schooling, higher education, the world of work
Speaking:
As far as possible, lessons will be conducted in Italian. You must be prepared to participate in oral work in class
and are encouraged to express your opinion on a range of contemporary issues, as well as present factual
information
that you have researched. After October half term you will begin to research the topic you will present
for the oral examination. You are also required to attend a compulsory session once a week with the Italian
Assistant.
Language
Listening:
In lessons you will be trained to understand the gist of recordings by native speakers of Italian. We also
encourage you to take responsibility for improving your listening skills by undertaking regular independent
listening. Listening exercises are set for homework.
Reading:
You will read texts on a variety of topics, following the broad subject areas specified by Edexcel. These will be
taken both from the textbook and from newspapers and magazines. We encourage you to read widely in order to
build up your vocabulary and to gain an awareness of issues which affect Italy.
Writing:
Written work on the set topics is set regularly and assessed for both content and language.
2016
AS Italian
The Sixth Form College Colchester
AS Italian
The Sixth Form College Colchester
Assessment
These are the two AS modules taken at the end of the course:
Unit 1:
Spoken expression and response in Italian 8-10 minutes
30% of total AS marks
Section A: You choose a topic area and talk about a stimulus related to it.
Section B: You will discuss other related subtopics within the topic area.
Unit 2:
Understanding and Written Response in Italian 2hrs 30
70% of total AS marks
Section
A:
You
will
answer
questions
on
a
range
of
Italian
recordings.
Section B: You will answer questions on a range of Italian texts.
Section C: You will write 200-220 words in Italian on a short printed Italian-language stimulus.
Further
Information
The Modern Languages Department also offers AS and A2 courses in French, German and Spanish. There is in
addition a one-year GCSE course in Spanish leading to an AS course in the second year. The College periodically
organises
trips for all languages, and Italian groups have previously visited Emilia Romagna, Sicily, Perugia and
Venice. The department has information on language courses in this country and in Italy. The department holds a
wide range of Italian-language films which students can borrow. Visits to see Italian films and other cultural events
are also sometimes organised.
Progression
Students with near-native proficiency in Italian can take the two A2 Units in addition to the AS units, allowing them to
gain a full A Level qualification in Italian in one year.
The two A2 Units taken at the end of Year 2 (or year 1 for fully proficient students) are as follows:
Unit 3:
Spoken expression and response in Italian 11-13 minutes 35% of total A2 marks
Section A: You choose an issue for debate and present it for 1 minute, followed by further debate of
this issue for 4 minutes.
Section B: You will discuss at least 2 other unpredictable issues for a further 6-8 minutes.
Unit 4:
Understanding and Written Response in Italian 2hrs 30
65% of total A2 marks
Section A: A short written translation exercise from English into Italian.
Section B: A creative or discursive essay from a choice of 7 questions linked to the prescribed
general topic areas, of 240-270 words.
Section C: A research-based essay of 240-270 words on a cultural or historical topic.
It is not necessary to have the full A Level qualification to continue Italian at University. Most University Italian
departments
accept students with an AS in Italian. Students often choose to study Italian in combination with
another foreign language or with a subject such as English, Art History, European Studies, Business Studies,
Marketing,
Law, Internal Relations, Politics or History.
Italy is a popular tourist destination and has a thriving economy. It is a language that few English people speak, so
acquiring a qualification in Italian puts you at an advantage over other job applicants.
2016