The Lectures and the 'lettorato' modules consolidate and extend academically oriented language skills at the level of B2/C1 of the CEFR, in order to assist the students in becoming competent participatory members of the academic community. In addition, familiarity with the cultural context of Anglophone countries is fostered by the content of the courses in order to demonstrate the essential reciprocal link between language and culture.
The principal reference texts for the Lectures with Christine Richardson are: Fowler, Hodge, Kress & Trew, Language and Control,( Routledge, 1979); Fowler, Language in the News: Language and Ideology in the Press (Routledge, 1991); Fairclough, Language and Power, 2nd edn. (Pearson, 2001); Thomas et al, Language, Society and Power, 2nd edn. (Routledge, 2004); Mooney et al, The Language, Society & Power Reader (Routledge, 2011).
The reference texts for the lettorato modules are given in the Extended Programme section.
Learning Objectives
The Lectures and the 'lettorato' modules consolidate and extend academically oriented language skills at the level of B2/C1 of the CEFR, in order to assist the students in becoming competent participatory members of the academic community. In addition, familiarity with the cultural context of Anglophone countries is fostered by the content of the courses in order to demonstrate the essential reciprocal link between language and culture.
Prerequisites
B2 level of the CEFR There is no admission test, but students not in possession of evidence of this level will have to take an internal B2 level test in order to complete the course.
Teaching Methods
The Lectures with the 'titolari' follow the conventional university lecture style while the 'lettorato' lessons are held in small groups and involve a more active participation on the part of students. There may be work in groups or pairs, discussion, presentations research projects.
Further information
In order to achieve the 6 credits for the course, students are required to:
attend Lectures with Christine Richardson (1st Semester) and with John Gilbert (2nd Semester);
present (an acceptable) short research paper written in English for the Lectures followed with Christine Richardson and pass a test for the Lectures followed with John Gilbert;
attend and complete the work for, including the final assessment, four semesters of 'lettorato' modules;
pass the internal B2 level language test, if not already in possession of certification of this level.
Attendance at at least two thirds of the lessons is required according to the University regulations. While for students who register for the part-time course of study it is possible to have a non-attender programme for the Lectures with the 'titolari', attendance at the 'lettorato' remains compulsory, as specified in the regulations of the Corso di laurea..
Type of Assessment
For the Lectures with the titolari, a short individual research paper related to the content of the Lectures, to be written in English, and a test forms the Assessment. For the 'lettorato' mocules, assessment depends on the individual 'lettorato', but will be continuous assessment or continuous assessment with end-of-course written or oral exam, in English. Details available on Moodle and in the Programma esteso section. The overall mark for the Laboratorio di Lingua Inglese is in the form of ‘idoneità', taking into account the results of the 'lettorato' modules (given out of 30) and the paper and test written for the Lectures.
For those not in possession of certification of B2 level (CEFR), an internal test must be taken.
Course program
Language and Ideology (Christine Richardson) The Lectures, held in the 1st semester of the academic year, offer an investigation of the ways in which linguistic forms and choices in a variety of non-literary text types can communicate and perpetuate ideologies. Assessment is by means of attendance and a short final paper involving practical individual research on one of the aspects (individual choice) covered in the Lectures.
Detials of the Lectures to be held by John Gilbert in the 2nd semester will be available here and on the Moodle page Laboratorio di Lingua e Traduzione Inglese B029173 (B074) 2018-19 before the beginning of the 2nd semester.
Students are also required to atttend four semesters of ‘lettorato’ modules which they usally do by choosing two modules in the 1st semester ane two modules in the 2nd semester,
The following ‘lettorato’modules are available for the 2018-2019 academic year.
Narrative Translation, Italian-English (John Gilbert) - thìs two-semester module involves the translation of narrative Italian texts into English. Particular attention is given to contrastive grammatical analysis, issues of lexical choice, dictionary usage, questions of style, and the concepts of equivalence and cultural untranslatability. The texts for translation and selected theoretical works are made available by the teacher. Assessment is by means of continuous assessment with weekly translations, tutorials and end-of-semester written tests.
Dramatic Adaptation (Elizabeth Sainsbury) - the 2 modules focus on techniques for the adaptation of a variety of texts for public reading. Attention is given to the expressive use of the voice and body but also to music and image. Work in class begins with a careful phonological and linguistic analysis of the texts and wide discussion of the themes, in order to underline in a faithful and expressive way the particular characteristics of each text. At the end of each semester, the students are also given the task of organising a public reading, which involves drawing up a programme and publicising the event to other students.
This course aims to refine the students’ critical abilities in analysing different texts, develop their sensitivity to the expressive and performative potential of the material, perfect their writing skills, improve their practical abilities in organising work groups and events. These aims are achieved through group work in class, the writing of brief reports after each lesson and the production of a final paper. All the work is evaluated for the final grade.
Conceptual Metaphor (Scott Staton) - this one-semester module held in the 2nd semester introduces Coceptual Metaphor Theory through the analysis of language. The reference texts are G. Lakoff & M. Johnson, Metaphors We Live By (Chicago: University of Chicago, 1980) e Z. Kovecses, Metaphor: A Practical Introduction, 2nd ed. (Oxford: OUP, 2010). Students gain an understanding of the main categories and underpinnings of the theory, test the theory against corpus data, and have ample opportunities to check their analyses collaboratively with fellow students. The basis for assessment is an in-class test and a short corpus-based term paper, wirtten indivudualy or collectively.
Cognitive Grammar - Prepositions (Scott Staton) – this is a one-semester module held in the 1st semester which focuses on the troublesome area of prepositions and phrasal verbs and at the same time serves as an introduction to Cognitive Grammar. The main text is S. Linstromberg. English Prepositions Explained (Amsterdam: John Benjamin’s, 2010), integrato da capitoli tratti da F. Boers, Spatial Prepositions: A Cognitive Semantic Journey along the UP-DOWN and the FRONT-BACK Dimensions (Tubingen: Gunter Narr Verlag, 1996). The course aims to increase students’ understanding of the basic meanings of prepositions and their figurtive extensions, to guide them in the analysis of raw corpus data, and to offer them opportunities to work collaboratively with fellow students. These abilities are verified by means of an in-class test and a short corpus-based term paper, written individually or collectively.
Translation English-Italian (Christine Richardson) – this one-semester module (held in the 1st semester) covers the problems of translation between English and Italian from both a linguistic and a cultural point of view. Particular emphasis is placed on the possible manipulations and strategies required with respect to maintaining or modifying the relationship between text and reader according to the constraints of both the target culture and the intended function of the translated text. A series of texts will be analysed, translated and revised during the course, and readings will be given with respect to topics and theories of translation. The nature of the module will be learning by doing and group discussion of variants. Initial individual texts will be edited following collective discussion, enabling students to consider how their own work relates to alternative solutions.
Final assessment will be made up from the texts translated during the module along with a written translation under exam. conditions at the end of the module. Material is available in form of dispense and will be supplemented during lessons.
Full details of lessons, timetables, didacticimaterials, tests, etc. are available on the Moodle page Laboratorio di Lingua e Traduzione Inglese B029173 2018-2019.