All students are required to take French. Language classes are held in the
morning, Monday through Friday. Session 1 usually also has classes on Tuesday and
Thursday afternoons.
Language level placement is determined by a test taken prior to arrival in Paris
and an oral test taken upon arrival regardless of previous French
study. Students should consult with their university advisors prior to participating in the
program to have course credit pre-approved.
Recommended credits are shown in parentheses.
French Language Courses (Mandatory)
Session 1 courses carry 5 credits and Session 2 courses carry 4 credits.
The Beginner classes introduce students to the rudiments of the French language.
They learn to introduce themselves, to give and respond to simple greetings, to
express their nationality and age. Vocabulary work focuses on color, clothes, the
family, the calendar and items encountered in the home. Working in the present
tense, students learn to buy, order and pay for things as well as to express their
likes and dislikes.
The Elementary French classes aim to teach students to understand simple
phrases that they will encounter in daily life. They learn to answer basic questions
and to ask for information on familiar subjects. Students discuss their habits, daily
activities and personal experience and learn to give opinions. They are able to make
comparisons and use both the simple future and simple past tenses.
At this level students learn to grasp the meaning of more detailed information
through discussion of topics such as their studies, family ties, the work
environment and social relationships. They are able to use the conditional as well
as more complex future and past tenses, including the subjunctive. They can give
orders, express doubts and feelings, relate what someone else has told them and
discuss hypothetical situations.
At this level students learn to grasp the meaning of more
detailed information through discussion of topics such as
their studies, family ties, the work environment and social
relationships. They are able to use the conditional as well as
more complex future and past tenses, including the subjunctive.
They can give orders, express doubts and feelings, relate what
someone else has told them and discuss hypothetical situations.
Superior French furthers and develops upon the material covered in Advanced
French.
French Language and Culture Program Electives (taught in English)
Electives are held in the afternoon. Students choose one elective taught in
English. Each elective course is recommended for 2 semester credits. A minimum
enrollment of 10 students is needed to confirm an elective course.
With a focus on modernity and through visits to significant sites in the city,
students learn to classify architectural function and style. Through discussion of
the social and economic conditions in which various buildings were constructed,
students acquire an understanding of the historic conditions that defined the
changing Parisian landscape of the 17th to 20th centuries.
The French Republic is a complex web of institutions and
administrative bodies that can seem quite impregnable to
the outsider. Through examination of the French Revolution
and analysis of the values it upheld, students are able to
untangle the French political system and achieve a better
understanding of the workings of the State. Through study
of the trade unions, the media, and the educational system
and in comparing these apparatus to those of other European
countries, students learn to place France as a distinct socio/
political entity on the European and indeed global map.
