French
FREN1000 FRENCH I (Course Outline)
As the first in a series of six language courses, this course invites students WITHOUT PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF FRENCH to explore the basic features of the French language. Supported by audiovisual aids, students will receive intensive practice in spoken and written French through interactive class work, homework and online exercises. They will become familiar with the basic concepts of French grammar and learn how to interact in some simple everyday situations. Note: if you have studied French before, please contact the teacher.
FREN1100 Made In France (Course Outline)
This course is designed to present the French society and culture from a cross-cultural perspective. We will particularly examine the aspects of behavior, attitudes and customs of the French in modern France, as well as their image in the world.
FREN2000 FRENCH II (Course Outline)
Building on the knowledge acquired in FREN1000, this course aims to further develop students’ ability to communicate in French in various everyday situations. It also seeks to give students a taste of French culture and invites them to explore cultural differences. Through intensive practice students will develop more confidence in interacting in French while further expanding and solidifying their understanding of the basic grammar and pronunciation patterns.
Prerequisites: FREN 1000 or equivalent competence.
FREN2001 FRENCH III (Course Outline)
This course aims to further enhance students’ communication skills in the four language domains listening, speaking, reading and writing. Students are expected to communicate confidently in a wider range of social interactions including more formal situations and simple professional contexts as well as reporting past events and sharing experience. At the end of this course, students will have completed a proficiency level comparable to level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).
FREN2020 Sounds of French (Course Outline)
This course is an introduction to the phonetic system of the French language. Illustrations and examples will be taken from modern spoken French. Similarities and differences to other languages will also be examined when appropriate. Students learning French are encouraged to take this course.
FREN2050 French I & II (Course Outline)
This is a summer intensive French language course, which invites students without prior knowledge of French to explore the basic features of the French language. Supported by audiovisual aids, students will receive intensive practice in spoken and written French through interactive class work, homework and online exercises. This course aims to further develop students’ ability to communicate in French in various everyday situations. It also seeks to give students a taste of French culture and invites them to explore cultural differences. Through intensive practice students will develop more confidence in interacting in French while developing their understanding of the basic grammar and pronunciation patterns.
This course covers the full syllabus of FREN1000 and FREN2000.
Not for students who have taken FREN1000 or FREN2000. Please read the Study Scheme Note.
FREN2100 Exploring French Literature (Course Outline)
This course introduces students to some landmarks in the history of French literature from the 16th to the 20th century. The historical, intellectual and literary context of each century will be explored in class, together with literary texts. This course will engage students in the reading and analysis of literary works from a range of genres including the novel, poetry, and drama. Emphasis will be put on literary context and the analysis of literary works. Since this is an introductory course, no specific knowledge is required.
FREN3000 FRENCH IV (Course Outline)
This course aims at increasing students’ communicative fluency in oral and written French. Using a variety of classroom activities and multimedia, students will build up their competence in the four language domains listening, speaking, reading and writing. Through intensive practice they will be able to communicate in a wide range of social situations with the appropriate awareness of the pragmatic rules involved. Students receive guidance in the process of composing longer texts displaying a range of registers and styles relating to past, present and future events.
Prerequisite: FREN2001 or equivalent competence.
FREN3001 FRENCH V (Course Outline)
This course focuses on the further development of communication skills in French with emphasis on the expression of personal views and the training of argumentative strategies. The course will also engage students in critical reflections on various aspects of life in French-speaking countries and their own social environment. Students will be guided to analyze various types of data to support their views. They will learn how to express their wishes and aspirations using the appropriate registers.
FREN3002 FRENCH VI (Course Outline)
This course builds on the knowledge acquired through previous French language courses. It aims at leading students to a proficiency level comparable to the threshold from A2 to B1 of the Common European Framework for Languages (CEFR), becoming “independent users” of French. To achieve this goal, students will be encouraged to work project-based through independent or collaborative work with their peers. At the end of this course students will have mastered the most important grammar features of French and be able to communicate effectively in a wide range of everyday situations and a number of professional contexts. They will be able to use their oral and written language skills to relate to, reflect on and analyze past and current issues involving the French-speaking societies.
Prerequisite: FREN3001 or equivalent competence
FREN3021 French Conversation I (Course Outline)
This course aims to enhance students’ oral communication skills in French. Through selected student-oriented stimuli and topics related to everyday situations, students will practice to react spontaneously in social interaction and acquire conversational techniques commonly used in a French-speaking environment. Classroom activities may include dialogue, role-play, narration, speech and discussion in direct approach or using multimedia. Lively oral practice and an interactive learning environment will help students to build language confidence and fluency.
Prerequisite: FREN 3000 or FREN 3050 or equivalent competence.
FREN3031 French Reading and Creative Writing
This course is designed for students who study French and want to enhance their reading and writing skills through literary texts and excerpts. The emphasis will be placed on the reading of French texts and poems which lead to creative writings in French. The objective of the course is to equip students with language keys to comprehend the texts and subsequently produce creative texts in French. All texts are in French.
FREN3041 Business French I (Course Outline)
This course is designed to introduce and train in active practice in a wide range of business related dialogues, as well as to acquire the basic skills of business terminology through the reading of short commercial documents.
FREN3042 Business French II
This course aims at training in business correspondence through the reading of business related documents, as well as in acquiring better business conversation and editorial skills.
FREN3050 FRENCH III & IV (Course Outline)
This is a summer intensive French language course, covering the full syllabus of FREN2001 and 3000. This course aims at increasing students’ communicative fluency in oral and written French. Using a variety of classroom activities and multimedia, students will build up their competence in the four language domains listening, speaking, reading and writing. Through intensive practice they will be able to communicate in a wide range of social situations with the appropriate awareness of the pragmatic rules involved. Students receive guidance in the process of composing longer texts displaying a range of registers and styles relating to past, present and future events.
Prerequisite: FREN2000, FREN1010/2050 or equivalent competence (Not for students who have already taken FREN2001 or FREN3000).
FREN3051 FRENCH V & VI (Course Outline)
This course builds on the knowledge acquired through previous French language courses. It aims at leading students to a proficiency level comparable to the threshold from A2 to B1 of the Common European Framework for Languages (CEFR), becoming “independent users” of French. To achieve this goal, students will be encouraged to work project-based through independent or collaborative work with their peers. At the end of this course students will have mastered the most important grammar features of French and be able to communicate effectively in a wide range of everyday situations and a number of professional contexts. They will be able to use their oral and written language skills to relate to, reflect on and analyze past and current issues involving the French-speaking societies
Pre-requisite: FREN2002 or 2010 or 3000 or equivalent competence (Not for students who have taken FREN3001 or 3002).
FREN3060 French through Short Films (Course Outline)
This course aims to strengthen and expand students’ language skills like speaking, listening, writing and reading. This will allow students to have better understanding of French culture and current French societal tendency. It places special emphasis on conversational fluency, grammatical accuracy and vocabulary acquisition. The course is mainly designed from several awarded shorts films and one movie. TV commercials and short videos will be used as supplementary materials. These pedagogical resources will provide the basis for interactive class activities that will help students to develop their language skills and to build language confidence. The course also aims to enhance students’ critical analysis on popular beliefs like clichés about France.
Prerequisite: FREN 3000, 3001, 3002, 3050 or 3051
FREN3100 Special Topics in French (Course Outline)
This course aims at furthering students' understanding of selected area(s) of French language, literature or culture. Topics will vary from year to year. Offerings with different subtitles can be taken up for credit, up to a maximum of two times.
FREN3110 French through Literature (Course Outline)
This course aims at enhancing the student’s command in reading and writing of French through the study of French literary works. Through activities such as creative writing, drama performance, role-playing and group discussion, students will familiarize themselves wi