German, Introductory Course: Oral and Written Proficiency

The course TY1119 is given as a freestanding course. This course, together with the courses TY1116, TY1118 and TY1121, corresponds to the introductory course TY1110.

In this module, students develop their language proficiency both through their own text and speech production and through analysis of their own texts and those of others. The module contains exercises to help understand spoken German and to communicate in German in different situations and in different subject areas. Strong emphasis is also placed on students' actively practicing vocabulary, phraseology and pronunciation. In the module, written production is practiced through exercises where the goal is grammatical correctness and idiomaticity as well as the adaptation of the language to different text types. The students work with a broad spectrum of different types of texts.

On successful completion of the course the student will be able to:

Knowledge and understanding

• both orally and in writing use knowledge of the structure of different text types and lexical distinctive features;

Competence and skills

• use correct, varied and idiomatic German in speech and writing as well as demonstrate skills in reading and listening comprehension, conversation/oral and interaction at a level that corresponds to B1 - B2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages;
• analyse the grammatical structures of the German language in order to achieve correctness in written and oral language production;

Judgement and approach

• critically reflect on the reference material used in the course and on his/her own learning process.

The course is given either as an on-campus course or as an online course. The teaching on the on-campus course includes lectures and seminars. The teaching on the online course includes web-based activities on virtual learning platform and web-based seminars.

Language of instruction: German and Swedish

Examination takes place continuously during the course in the form of oral and written presentations. For components of assessing type, compulsory attendance applies.

Students who have failed any part of the course are given the possibility of a new test. In connection with written assignments, supplementary assignments may be offered in order for the student to achieve a Pass grade. Such a supplementary assignment should be done within the stipulated time (normally five working days after the result has been posted). Otherwise a Fail grade will be reported.

A student who has passed a subtest may not do a new test for a higher grade. Nor do students have the right to withdraw a submitted test and in such a way avoid being graded.

If a student who has failed the same examined component twice, wants to change examiner before the next examination, they should submit a written request to the department responsible for the course. The request shall be granted unless there are special reasons to the contrary (Chapter 6, Section 22 of Higher Education Ordinance).

If the University of Gothenburg has decided that a student is eligible for special study support, the examiner may, provided it is compatible with the aim of the course and it can be done within the scope of available resources, decide to offer the student an adjusted examination or a different examination format.

If the course has been discontinued or substantially revised, a student should be guaranteed to sit the examination on at least three occasions (including the ordinary examination occasion) during a period of at least one year, but not later than two years after the course was discontinued or revised. As regards internships/placement the same as above applies, with the exception that examination is offered on only one occasion.

The grading scale comprises: Pass with Distinction (VG), Pass (G) and Fail (U).

To be awarded the grade of Pass, students have to fulfil the requirements for a Pass grade such as stated in the expected learning outcomes. To be awarded the grade of Pass with distinction, students also need to be able to to generalise more independently the skills and knowledge acquired in the course when used in new contexts and situations, i.e. more independently make analyses and syntheses; For the grade of Pass with distinction, it is also required that students have a linguistic ability to express more complicated argumentation patterns without making too elementary linguistic errors regarding pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar.

The students are given the opportunity to make a written evaluation of the course. The results of the evaluation are published digitally.

The course may be included in a Bachelor's Degree with German as the main field of study but not together with the introductory course in German, TY1110.

In case the student follows the web-based specialisation of the course, the student is expected to have access to a computer with Internet connection as well as a headset with a microphone and headphones.

Equality aspects should be taken into consideration in content, literature, teaching and evaluation.