RC Lang 191:Dt. I/ Herbst '08
About the instructors Karein Goertz (goertz_at_umich.edu), 114 Greene/Office hours: Mon.3-4 & Th. 11-12
Janet Hegman Shier 112 Greene/ Office hrs: Mon. 5-6, Fr. 11-12 and by appointment
Welcome to Intensive German I!
This handout provides information about the course and explains course policies. You should read this carefully and ask any questions you have regarding the course at any time during the semester.
Textbooks & materials: The textbook is Themen aktuell (Kursbuch, Workbook) Available at Ulrich's. Please buy a good dictionary, as well. You will be asked to buy some additional materials (under $10) later in the semester. Some course materials will be delivered to you via Course Tools or from the syllabus page on-line. Finally, we will occasionally send you materials via email. You are expected to check the Ctools site on a daily basis (You need it to do your homework!) in case we have important announcements or materials to send.
Media: Some audio materials will be made available to you in class. You will be asked to explore many links that you'll find built into the syllabus. Please explore the sites and jot down new vocabulary you discover on them in your journal in the vocab section and try to write about these (once you are able to) in your journal/Tagebuch.
In addition to the above, we ask you to subscribe to two E-Newsletters and to explore the English and German sites that are posted as links from the syllabus and to journal about these in your Tagebuch at least once/ week. To subscribe to the E-Newsletters, fill out the information through the secure links. These are both free and they are a great way to keep current on events in Germany. Spiegel E-Newsletter . The other one is at signandsight.com
LEARNING TIPS:
• Don't miss class. Most of the teaching/ learning in an intensive language class occurs spontaneously in the classroom. Please be on time, plan to speak German as soon as you walk through the door (even before class starts "officially"); We expect that you will turn off your cell phone (please no text messaging or ringers on) , put away your Ipod, and unpack course materials before class starts.
• Stay/become organized. Keep all notes, quizzes and assignments together so you can refer to them easily. Many students keep everything together in one notebook or portfolio. You will be asked to turn these in at the end of the semester.
• Develop throughout the term effective study habits and keep up with assignments. Work with me, work with cassettes, work alone and work with each other. Try to deal with learning German in German !
• Be aggressive about learning. In order to do well, you must do much more than what is indicated on the syllabus. The key is study and review; read through new material and review old material many times to master it. Materials in a new chapter may trigger better of understanding of old material and vice versa .
• Take advantage of the RC living/learning environment. Many students in the past have admitted that they really learned to speak the language at the lunch table and coffee hours.
• Work hard, but remember, everyone has a different learning pace. Seek help from instructors to figure out the best way for you to learn.
• Find ways to challenge yourself to keep up with course materials, but also to learn about areas of language and culture that interest you the most. Use the class web site as a starting point for learning German in German.
• Remember, you are learning a foreign (!) language; you are expected to make mistakes in order to learn how to say things. As adult learners, some of you will need to work at feeling comfortable taking the risks and making the mistakes that are an inevitable part of the language learning process. If you are apprehensive about participating actively in this class, work with us to increase your level of comfort participating.
PARTICIPATION and PRACTICE are major factors contributing to language learning and class participation is a major consideration in the evaluation.
o Always try to use German in class and out when speaking with classmates and teachers. It is better to fill in German sentences with English words (or ask: "Wie sagt man...?") than to use English.
o In class, you will be asked to participate in many types of activities. Some will involve the whole group others will involve students working in small groups, with a partner or individually. Each type of activity helps you learn, so you should try to participate actively on all types of assignments.
o Some assignments require memorization (e.g., skits) whereas others will require you to "think on your feet".
Your goal should be to be familiar enough with assignments to respond spontaneously, without heavy reliance on the book.
ATTENDANCE In an intensive foreign language course it is easy to fall behind, so students should attend class even if they don't feel prepared. It is always better to be in class, even if you do not feel prepared to participate actively on a given day. Your attendance in class and at co-curricular activities is critical to learning.
1. According to RC language program policy, students who have missed more than a total of 4 hours risk receiving reduced credit for the course. Students who miss 8 class periods will automatically lose 4 credits. Students who miss 18 or more classes will automatically lose all 8 credits. Your attendance will be reflected in your work and detailed in the evaluation (or in your grade, if you are non-RC).
2. If you miss class, you are still responsible for the material presented that hour and for the homework. You should not assume that we only covered what was on the syllabus for that day and should contact someone in the class or an instructor to find out what you missed. If you must miss two sessions in a row, please contact a teacher. It is always better to come to part of a class than to miss all of it, although coming in late will be considered an absence.
HOMEWORK. At http://www.umich.edu/~jshie is a link to the course web site where you will find the syllabus. Topics for classes, major quizzes, and homework is posted there. The site also contains links to German radio a German-English dictionary, grammar explanations and exercises, handouts, and relevant sites. If you are uncomfortable/ inexperienced using the Internet, please ask an instructor for help. If there is a mistake or discrepancy on the on-line syllabus, please message Janet about it. If you are pulling up the wrong syllabus, you may need to "reload" the page to get an updated version. Normally, if a change is made to the syllabus (an update or correction), an email will go out to the whole class.
A course outcome is for you to get used to exploring German web sites as you study.Towards that end, you should also follow the Spiegel-International site through the E-Newsletter to which you should subscribe ASAP (It's free.). You should look through a newsletter (that will come regularly to your email) at least once a week, following stories that interest you most. We encourage you to look up the articles in German and to compare the German and English articles. Also, we ask that you journal about some of the materials you find. This site will keep you up-to-date on German media coverage and on culture in Europe. Finally, you are encouraged to write about discoveries on German web sites in your journal and to send us URLs for good sites you find on your own that would be of interest to others. We encourage you to use the CTools drop box to submit written assignments that are typed.
Please note. . .Whereas it is possible to get a hard copy of the syllabus, you need to use the syllabus on-line, because this is the only syllabus that is current and it is the only way to access links to sites you are expected to explore. Occasionally, changes are made to the syllabus to accommodate the class' learning pace. Whenever possible, changes in the on-line syllabus will be noted. Please read the syllabus carefully and in a timely manner (i.e., look ahead) so that you can avoid conflicts with studying for other classes. Since you are responsible for all assignments and announcements on the syllabus, be sure to ask about anything you don't understand and be aware of updates that are made to the online syllabus. The syllabus is in German which will seem strange to some of you at first but will become second-nature to you in a couple of weeks. If anything is unclear to you, send an email (there is a link for asking questions), ask about it in class or at office hours.
Please turn in written homework on time. We expect you to turn it in automatically (place it on the teacher's desk at the end of class). Please don't wait for us to ask you to turn it in. If you need to turn in an assignment late, it is best to arrange to do so in advance. You should do some written work each day, including journal entries and workbook exercises. In general, try to keep up with the workbook while we are working on a given chapter. If you are unable to do an exercise (including times, when an exercise is on some-thing we haven't covered in class, for example), just leave it blank and move on. Answers to workbook exercises are in the back of the manual so always check your own answers and make corrections with a different color pen/ pencil. If there is a particular section you had trouble with, put an asterisk by it or ask your questions in the margin and we will clarify whatever you didn't understand. You may turn in the workbook at the end of each chapter. There are days specified in the syllabus when you are expected to turn in the workbook.
For any foreign language class, it is a good idea to fall into a regular routine for studying. You should expect to spend up to 4 hours studying for this class for every two hours in class. This includes: work with language tapes, completion of all workbook exercises, preparation of assignments and review of notes from class (including vocabulary which is stressed in class but not in the book), visits to the lunch table and coffee hours. That said, there will be times when you probably won't need to spend that much time studying for the class, and there may be times when it would be good to spend more than 4 hours (though this would certainly be rare!). Don't limit yourself to doing work that is assigned in the syllabus (the minimum required work) or you will find yourself unduly stressed out at the end of the semester. You should do some workbook assignments and some written and aural work every day and should vary your work, being sure to do some grammar review each day. If you are not challenged enough by the workbook (This will be the case for some of you in the first couple of weeks...), then devote more of your studying to exploration of web sites in German, practice with new vocabulary and written Tagebuch entries.
Some homework assignments may require you to use a museum, library, or the Internet. As you get more advanced, we will expect you to spend more time exploring website links to practice using German in context. At a minimum, you should do all reading, writing, studying, and dialogue preparation, and follow links on-line, noting new vocabulary, etc. In all cases, we will be happy to work closely with you to make sure that you are clear about what is expected and you know how to approach assignments and learning to attain proficiency. We hope that each student will collect German language materials of personal interest and work with them in a more sustained way.
Spending an innordinate amount of time studying for a foreign language class can be frustrating and unproductive. If you have been keeping up and have already worked for several hours and cannot finish assignments spelled out in the syllabus, set a limit and STOP! Feel free to talk with us about problems you are having keeping up so that we can work toward a solution together. We recommend that you attend office hours a few times during the semester to talk with teacher about your progress, how you study, etc.
MAIN QUIZZES. Our program uses quizzes as a learning tool. An original copy of each quiz can be found in an envelope on a teacher's door. If you receive a score of lower than "P" ("Pass") , you should always pick up the original quiz from 112 Greene, make a photocopy of it and re-take the quiz when you feel you have mastered the material. Please turn re-taken tests within one week of getting your quiz back or before the next quiz (whichever comes first.) You may slip re-taken quizzes under either teacher's door. There will be a quiz on each chapter in Themen aktuell! (usually approx. 25- 30 minutes); quizzes will often contain one section reviewing material from previous chapters. It is common for absolute beginners to make many mistakes in the very beginning. We expect that and you should too! Students should not be concerned in the early weeks, as long as they are working hard and working closely with us. In our experience, new learners have adjusted to the pace of the class within a few days. Please note: NO MAKE-UP QUIZZES will be given without a doctor's excuse unless arrangements are made with an instructor in advance. You should take quizzes you have missed for your own practice, and to see if you have mastered material. (You will need to make a copy of the original if there is not more than one copy in the envelope.)
Expect a SHORT UNANNOUNCED QUIZ at the beginning of each hour (usually graded +, P, -). These quizzes are given to let you know what areas you do not yet understand, and what areas you need to work on. There will also be regular unannounced Hör- and Leseverständnisse (listening and reading comprehension exercises)to give you continual practice in those areas and to gauge your progress.
GRADES. Please identify yourself by the end of the first week if you need to receive a letter grade for the course, i.e., if you are NOT an RC student. RC students receive an evaluation for RC intensive language courses.
1. Scores (for LSA, Engin., Art, Music students, i.e., anyone not "RC") are kept on a straight 10% scale(90%-100%= A, 80% - 90% =B, etc.). As noted above, RC students receive "P" once they have mastered material being tested. Non "RC" students have the same requirements for the course as RC students and should pay close attention to the policies listed on this handout regarding lunch table, quizzes, attendance, etc. Grades for LSA students will be based on the following:
25% Participation (includes unannounced quizzes, attendance & quality of participation, homework, attendance and active participation at lunch table, coffee hours; attendance at office hours);
10% essays; journal entries, collection of German language materials related to student's area of interest (including web materials), comments on these, as appropriate, in Tagebuch or portfolio;
20% Main Quizzes (Lowest quiz score will be dropped automatically; if you miss a quiz, that one that is dropped!);
15% Midterm;
30% Final Exam (tests your level of proficiency in speaking, listening, reading, writing, and grammar).
Letters of Recommendation:
Many of our students request letters of recommendation from us. Please request any letters you need with at least one month in advance of the date it is needed. We cannot generally do letters of recommendation on short notice due to the number of requests we get.
Co-Curricular activities. . . All students in intensive language study are required to attend any combination of the Mittagstisch and Kaffeestunde at least 3 times/ week. This is a critical component of the program since it is at these activities that you really learn to speak! You will do poorly and may not pass the course if your attendance at these activities is inadequate.
MITTAGSTISCH (Grm. lunch table) meets in 122 Corridor from 12-1 on M T TH F
KAFFEESTUNDE (German coffee hour) will meet on Mon. from 4-5 in Greene Lounge. Sometimes we will show a film at the Kaffeestunde. Incidentally, food contributions to the Kaffeestunde are always welcome!
RC "Deutsches Theater" has staged annual productions since 1985. If you are interested in helping with an aspect (minor role or tech crew) in Winter 2009, let Janet know.
Tutorials and Office hours: Please make use of our office hours. All students should visit a teacher's office hour at least once each month during the semester, but in addition to this, students should make it a point to come in to go over any problems or concerns, to get feedback on progress in the course or just to chat.
IMPORTANT: Please keep this handout for your reference.
For more information about the RC German Program, check our web site at: