Italian Level 1
A beginner’s introduction to Italian
Module details
- Offered to 1st and 2nd Years
- Monday or Tuesday 16.00-18.00 (depending on year of study)
- Planned delivery: On campus (South Kensington)
- Two-term module, worth 7.5 ECTS
- Not available as part of I-Explore
- Extra Credit, or Degree Credit where your department allows
A communicative module for absolute beginners, offering an introduction to the language and culture of Italy.
- To give students with no previous knowledge of Italian an introduction to the everyday language spoken in the Italian-speaking countries, including a fairly-wide range of vocabulary and basic structures
- To develop all the fundamental language skills, i.e. reading, writing, listening and speaking
- To offer students insight into culture and daily life in Italy
By the end of the module, students should have reached approximately the A1+ level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR).
To be eligible for this module, you need to have no previous experience in learning Italian.
Please note: The information on this module description is indicative. The module may undergo minor modifications before the start of next academic year.
Information blocks
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of this module, you will be able to:
- Respond to and produce a basic range of spoken language in very familiar contexts
- Respond to and produce simple written texts
- Demonstrate the relevant level of intercultural awareness in your handling of everyday social interactions in Italian and your use of language
- Engage with a basic range of digital language-learning tools to support your production
Indicative core content
In this module, you will cover the following linguistic structures:
- Present tense
- Present perfect tense
- Articles
- Regular and irregular verbs
- Negatives
- Possessive adjectives
- Prepositions and articulated prepositions
- Adjectives and adverbs
- Modal and reflexive verbs
- Comparative forms
- Introduction to direct and indirect object pronouns
- Impersonal verbs and expressions
Topics include:
- Making contact
- Everyday objects
- Eating and drinking
- Leisure
- The home
- Sickness and health
- Everyday life
- In the town
- Italian culture, art and history
Learning and teaching approach
In line with MFL communicative and active learning methodology, in-class activities cover all four skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) and include: pair work and group work (dialogue practice, information gap exercises, discussion); individual tasks; discovery and formulation of rules; critical evaluation of texts, audio and video material. Homework tasks give you the opportunity to revise and consolidate knowledge and skills. This approach not only ensures you engage with a wide range of tasks, but also supports different learning styles.
Your coursework will be marked and returned within two weeks. Rubrics and revision guidance (how-to guides) will be included as needed with each coursework. You will receive detailed feedback alongside suggestions for improvement and an overall percentage showing your provisional grade for that assessment.
Assessment
- Coursework (20%): Four skills task-based: listening, guided speaking, reading and writing (approx. 100 words).
- Examination (20%): In-class test, on the virtual learning environment (bring your own device). This 1-hour test will take place at the end of autumn term. It will include a grammar/lexicon quiz, a reading comprehension and a writing task (100-120 words).
- Coursework (20%): Integrated skills, task-based listening, speaking and writing (approx. 180 words).
- Examination (20%): Comprehension and questions. Grammatical structures. Composition (180 words).
- Practical (20%): 10-minute oral exam: including graded, open conversation on topics seen in class and describing an image.
Key information
- 7.5 ECTS points awarded on successful completion of the module.
- Available to take for credit towards your degree where your department allows. Also available for extra-credit.
- You must be prepared to attend all classes and and undertake approximately 3 hours of private study each week in addition to the assessment.
Coursebook
Title: Nuovo Espresso : Libro studente 1
ISBN: 9788861823181
Publisher: Alma Edizioni
Publication Date: 2014
NB The Italian Bookshop offers a 10% discount to Imperial Horizons students.
"Good start to Italian. The workload is such that we cover a good amount of content without the work being difficult to balance alongside Mathematics."