Thank you for your interest in Georgetown Summer Sessions. We are actively planning for a safe and rewarding student experience for Summer 2021. Please check back in January for more information and to submit an enrollment form.
Join us this summer for an accelerated immersion into language and culture. Offered in Spanish, German, and French, our Language Institutes provide an opportunity to explore a new culture while honing your reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. You'll have the opportunity to participate in cultural activities, practice your conversational skills in real-world scenarios, and gain a deeper understanding of the history of a language.
See below for a sample of events and activities for each Language Institute:
Introductory French I (FREN 001) is the first course in the non-intensive Introductory French sequence and is intended for students with little to no previous background in French. This course covers the basics of French grammar and conversation through lectures, cultural readings, pronunciation drills, oral and written exercises, and conversational practice. Course materials include the Introductory French textbook, En Avant (Third Edition) as well as various French-language audio, visual, and written materials.
Introductory French II (FREN 002) is the continuation of Introductory French I (FREN 001) and is aimed at preparing students for the Intermediate French sequence. Students who enroll in this course have typically taken Introductory French I (FREN 001) or have placed into this course by means of the Department of French & Francophone Studies' online French Placement Exam. This course continues with the basics of French grammar and conversation through lectures, cultural readings, pronunciation drills, oral and written exercises, and conversational practice. Course materials include the Introductory French textbook, En Avant (Third Edition) as well as various French-language audio, visual, and written materials.
This course is the second half of the two-part course sequence at Level II. The course is organized topically to familiarize students with contemporary life in the German-speaking world. In Intensive Intermediate, students explore the following themes:
• Nature, people, environment
• Fairy tales
• The German-speaking world from a view of a foreigner
The primary text type that is used at this level to explore each theme is the story, — personal, public and literary stories. Students typically encounter each text first in class and then engage it further out of class in preparation for subsequent in-depth thematic discussions in class. Class discussions often involve role play and/or group work as a way to enhance conversational and negotiating abilities. The course’s emphasis on improving students ability to narrate, compare and contrast, express opinions, and establish causal relationships in speaking and writing lays the groundwork for the historical treatment of stories and histories in Level III.
By the end of the level II students
• will have a good understanding of contemporary life in the German-speaking world with some in-depth knowledge of major social, political and cultural issues;
• will be able to comprehend authentic materials (video, native speaker conversation) with global comprehension and some fine point knowledge analysis;
• will be able to produce spoken and written discourse from description to narration, to formulation of argument and/or hypothesis, incorporating an increasing variety of style and complexity.
Visiting students and students who have not taken German at Georgetown must take placement test prior to registering. Please contact Director of Curriculum, Prof. Marianna Ryshina-Pankova, at ryshinam@georgetown.edu for instructions on completing the placement exam. This course is the second half of the two-part course sequence at Level II. The course is organized topically to familiarize students with contemporary life in the German-speaking world. In Intensive Intermediate, students explore the following themes: • Nature, people, environment • Fairy tales • The German-speaking world from a view of a foreigner The primary text type that is used at this level to explore each theme is the story, — personal, public and literary stories. Students typically encounter each text first in class and then engage it further out of class in preparation for subsequent in-depth thematic discussions in class. Class discussions often involve role play and/or group work as a way to enhance conversational and negotiating abilities. The course’s emphasis on improving students ability to narrate, compare and contrast, express opinions, and establish causal relationships in speaking and writing lays the groundwork for the historical treatment of stories and histories in Level III.
This course is for students with some prior high school knowledge of Spanish. Students will fulfill their needs to 1) develop their ability to communicate satisfactorily in Spanish in everyday practical situations that may occur either here in the U.S or abroad, 2) to acquire some of the skills necessary for effective reading in Spanish, and 3) to write Spanish with a satisfactory level of accuracy. Students will be exposed to aspects of Hispanic culture via videos and written texts. Three key components that will assist students to attain these three goals are vocabulary, language awareness, and practice/participation.
This course is a continuation of SPAN 001/003 in which students will further fulfill their needs to 1) develop their ability to communicate satisfactorily in Spanish in everyday practical situations that may occur either here in the U.S or abroad, 2) to acquire some of the skills necessary for effective reading in Spanish, and 3) to write Spanish with a satisfactory level of accuracy. Students will be exposed to aspects of Hispanic culture via videos and written texts. Three key components that will assist students to attain these three goals are vocabulary, language awareness, and practice/participation.
Along with Intensive Intermediate Spanish, this course was originally developed for FLL students and therefore assumes a certain level of motivation to learn languages. The course aims to develop students' ability to communicate in Spanish and to help them acquire the skills necessary to understand oral and written texts. Different aspects of Hispanic culture will be introduced in reading passages and videos. Grading criteria are based on lexical breadth, grammatical accuracy, reading and listening comprehension skills, and a basic knowledge of Spanish-speaking areas.
In this intermediate course, students will reinforce their knowledge of the first year courses and further develop their ability to 1) communicate satisfactorily in Spanish in everyday practical situations that may occur either here in the U.S or abroad, 2) continue acquiring some of the skills necessary for effective reading in Spanish, and 3) write Spanish with a satisfactory level of accuracy. Students will be exposed to aspects of Hispanic culture and literature via movies and written texts. Three key components that will assist students to attain these three goals are vocabulary, language awareness, and practice/participation. Some seats in this class are reserved.
Students who have not previously taken a Spanish class at Georgetown must take a placement test prior to registering for this course.The Spanish Placement Test is available online in Canvas. Please contact Prof. Morales-Front (morales@georgetown.edu) if you have problems finding or accessing the test.
This course is a continuation of SPAN 021 that further develops students’ ability to 1) communicate satisfactorily in Spanish in everyday practical situations that may occur either here in the U.S or abroad, 2) continue acquiring some of the skills necessary for effective reading in Spanish, and 3) write Spanish with a satisfactory level of accuracy. Students will be exposed to aspects of Hispanic culture and literature via movies and written texts. Three key components that will assist students to attain these three goals are vocabulary, language awareness, and practice/participation.
Students who have not previously taken a Spanish class at Georgetown must take a placement test prior to registering for this course.The Spanish Placement Test is available online in Canvas. Please contact Prof. Morales-Front (morales@georgetown.edu) if you have problems finding or accessing the test.
Continuing from Intensive Basic Spanish, and designed for highly motivated students who seek daily contact with the language, this course is designed to further develop students' ability to communicate satisfactorily in Spanish in everyday situations and to help you acquire skills necessary for effective speaking and writing in Spanish. A second goal is to develop your cross-cultural competence and awareness, i.e., your ability to critically understand, analyze, and reflect on a broad spectrum of narratives (biographies, news, interviews and reports, historical narratives, music) in written and visual forms (television news, newspaper articles, interviews and reports, and cinema) with Spanish as the primary communication tool. Class time is devoted to active and constant communication with your classmates and the instructor. Prior to every class meeting, you are expected to complete independent work, either to consolidate the knowledge and linguistic skills developed during class time or to prepare for in-class discussions. Independent work includes active reading and listening to multimedia materials as well as a number of computer-based assignments; in the classroom, personal computer/cell phone use is reduced to a minimum. Our third goal is to promote awareness of questions of normativity and deviance, stigma and power, and specifically how Spanish-speaking communities grapple with physical and mental differences. This course counts towards the minor in Disability Studies. Assessment: three written tests, one cumulative final exam, compositions, oral exams, and daily tasks.
Students who have not previously taken a Spanish class at Georgetown must take a placement test prior to registering for this course.The Spanish Placement Test is available online in Canvas. Please contact Prof. Morales-Front (morales@georgetown.edu) if you have problems finding or accessing the test.
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