Ateneo - UPO

French Language for Tourism. In line with the educational objectives of the Master's Degree Course in Languages, Cultures, Tourism (LM-49), the course aims to support students in acquiring linguistic, communicative, and intercultural knowledge and skills useful for working in the tourism sector (oral interaction; written comprehension and production; translation).

For the language course, see the documents published on the courses's DIR page. For the linguistics course: Domitille Hatuel, Tourisme en action : théorie, pratique, itinéraires, Recanati, ELI-La Spiga, 2015; complementary documents uploaded on DIR by the lecturer.

The course aims to develop students’ skills in oral interaction and written comprehension and production in French, particularly in the field of tourism. The French Language module will explore aspects related to phonetics, morphosyntax, and grammar, with the goal of achieving Level C1+ in the various skills in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR); the Linguistics module, on the other hand, will be dedicated to the study of specialized vocabulary, communication strategies, and the most appropriate linguistic registers for addressing different contexts and audiences in the field of tourism. Classes for both courses will be conducted 50% in a lecture format and 50% in an interactive format and will be worth 3.8 CFU (language) + 1.2 CFU (linguistics); the remaining 2.2 + 4.8 CFU will correspond to self-study.

C1 language proficiency level according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR: https://europass.europa.eu/it/common-european-framework-reference-language-skills).

Lectures (delivery-based teaching: approximately 50%); group work (text analysis, text production, translations) and interaction between participants and the lecturer (interactive teaching: approximately 50%). The course’s DIR page features exercises to be completed independently, as well as supplementary and in-depth teaching materials, which form an essential complement to the activities carried out in class.

The DIR platform will provide the detailed course syllabus, instructions and sample written exam questions, worksheets, and supplementary teaching materials. If you have any questions regarding the course programme, teaching materials, lecture content or the conduct of the examination, please contact the lecturer. Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request specific services and tools via reference office consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/services-students-physical-or-learning-disabilities. Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, can refer to the lecturer to define the examination modalities.

For the evaluation of the integrated course, the grades for the two modules will be taken into account equally and jointly. For full details regarding the administration of the two exams (one for the Language module and one for the Linguistics module), please refer to the course descriptions for the respective courses. Please note that, for both exams, students with disabilities, Specific Learning Disorders, and Special Educational Needs will be provided with dedicated tools and services.
The examination consists of two written papers and an oral component. First written paper (duration: 3 hours): a written essay based on a thematic dossier provided at the examination centre, relating to one of the topics covered during the course. Marked out of 30. Second written paper (duration: 3 hours): translation of a text from Italian into French (translation of a non-fiction text or an article). Marks are awarded out of 30. The written examination is considered passed if a mark of at least 18/30 is achieved in each of the two parts. Marks for the essay are awarded as follows: 5 marks for the appropriate application of essay-writing technique (dissertation sur dossier); 10 marks for coherence (clarity of thought, critical and analytical skills); 15 marks for correct spelling and morphosyntactic structure, as well as lexical richness and appropriateness. Oral examination (15 mins): To sit the oral examination, candidates must have achieved at least 18/30 in both written examinations. Format of the oral examination: presentation and critical commentary on a non-fiction or journalistic text taken from a dossier prepared individually by the student. A maximum of three points may be awarded in relation to the mark for the written test (one point will be awarded for the congruence of the presentation; one point for grammatical correctness and language property; one point for expository fluency and phonological correctness, based on the objectives set). The oral test will be held with the lecturer in charge of the integrated module Specialised French Language A.
The linguistics exam will consist of two components, a written exam (written comprehension-production and translation: graded out of 30 points, passing score at 18 points) and an oral exam (presentation of the translation projects carried out in groups and answering 3 theoretical and methodological questions from the professor regarding the course syllabus: graded out of 30 points, passing score at 18 points). The two components may be taken in different exam sessions, but no more than 12 months apart from each other. To validate the exam, it is necessary to achieve a passing score in both components. The evaluations will be divided into 5 bands:(1) Excellent (30 with honors/30): excellent knowledge of all course content and full mastery of all expected skills; precision, accuracy, and effectiveness in written and oral expression and in translation.(2) Very good (30-28/30): very good knowledge of all course content and achievement of all expected skills; absence of significant errors in written and oral expression and in translation.(3) Good (27-24/30): good knowledge of course content and satisfactory achievement of all expected skills; overall correct written and oral expression and translations.(4) Sufficient (23-18/30): acceptable knowledge of course content and sufficient achievement of expected skills; presence of some errors in expression and translation.(5) Insufficient (less than 18): partial and superficial knowledge of course content and failure to achieve the expected skills; written and oral expression and translations flawed by numerous errors.

The course aims to guide and support students in acquiring the linguistic, metalinguistic, and cultural knowledge and skills necessary to communicate and work in the tourism sector. Language instruction is based on the study of French grammar (CEFR Level C1+), the development of written and oral production and comprehension skills at Level C1+, the acquisition of idiomatic expressions, and the translation of sentences from Italian to French. Linguistics instruction, on the other hand, will be based on the analysis of tourism communication materials and the completion of practical activities (written and oral production; translation) using real tourism and informational materials (texts produced by the Drôme Department’s regional promotion agency and by various public institutions in the Vercelli area); Ample attention will be devoted to studying the sector’s vocabulary and relevant communication strategies for interacting in various contexts and with different audiences.

For the language module, the expected learning outcomes can be summarized as achieving level C1+ of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) in the various skills (https://europass.europa.eu/it/common-european-framework-reference-language-skills). For the linguistics module, the learning outcomes can be divided into basic outcomes (the ability to communicate effectively in French in everyday situations relevant to professionals in the tourism sector; the ability to produce accurate and relevant translations and texts) and advanced outcomes (the ability to use vocabulary, idioms, and linguistic register appropriate to different types of contexts and target audiences).