Italian

Overview
This is a course for either complete beginners or for those who already have GCSE Italian. As well as coursebook texts, you will work on video and audio materials, and a number of Internet and other interactive sources. All language work is firmly linked to contemporary issues and life in Italy. To help develop authentic Italian, you will have small group conversation sessions with our Italian assistant, and you are also encouraged to take part in the regular exchange with our Italian partner school in the Veneto, and/or to take up the opportunity of a week’s work experience placement in Italy.

Course Outline

Those students who have already done GCSE Italian will go straight onto the AS Level, while beginners will start with the GCSE and then move onto AS Level in Year 12.

GCSE (Yr 12 beginners only)
Unit 1: Listening and Responding (Higher Tier)
Unit 2: Speaking (Higher Tier)
Unit 3: Reading and Responding (HT)
Unit 4: Writing (HT)

AS (Year 12)
Unit 1: Spoken Expression and Response in Italian: Developing speaking skills on a range of topics including youth culture, lifestyle, travel, tourism, the environment, education and employment.
Unit 2: Understanding and Written Response in Italian: Developing comprehension and writing skills in the same topic areas.

A2 Level (Year 13)
Unit 3: Understanding and Spoken Response in Italian:
Developing speaking skills (including debate) on a range of topics including those listed for AS, plus customs, traditions, beliefs, past and present national and international events, literature and the arts.
Unit 4: Research, Understanding and Written Response in Italian: Developing comprehension, translation and writing skills in the same topic areas.

Assessment
No Coursework
Examination (100%)
Examining Board – EDEXCEL.
Beginners will take GCSE Italian at the end of Year 12, while post-GCSE students take the AS exam. Either way, you can go on to complete the full A Level by the end of Year 13; if you do the full A Level course from scratch, we normally expect you to achieve GCSE A or A* at the end of Year 12 in order to progress to Year 13.

Special Entry Requirements
• Beginners: There is no requirement for Modern Foreign Language experience at GCSE.
• If you have taken another language to GCSE, then a grade B in that language and at least a C in English Language is required. If you have not taken another language to GCSE, then a grade B in English Language is required.
• Beginners take GCSE at the end of Year 12 but can still do the full A level in two years; post GCSE students of course take AS at the end of Year 12. Beginners intending to complete the full A level course must achieve at least grade A in the Year 12 GCSE exam in order to progress to Year 13.
• Post-GCSE applicants: Grade C in Italian is required.

Prohibited Options
Students do not normally study more than two languages to AS Level.

Career and Progression Opportunities
Joint degree combinations are very popular, for example combining Italian with another language, or Law, English, Business, Tourism, or indeed a wide range of other disciplines. Students going on to employment or training progress into areas such as retail and leisure and tourism.

Teaching Methods
You will develop language skills in a wide variety of ways, making full use of our two Multi-Media Language Labs and drawing on a range of sources from course books to Internet and satellite TV. In class you will carry out a lot of pair and group work designed to build up your communicative skills. Our VLE also has a range of interactive exercises including vocabulary learning and listening work. Each week, in addition to mainstream lessons, you will have contact with a native speaker through small group conversation sessions. Note that, if you start the course as a beginner, you will take GCSE Italian at the end of Year 12; you can then proceed to full A Level at the end of Year 13.
 
Course Activities
We have a well-established link with the Istituto Einaudi in Marostica (Veneto) with whom we run an exchange trip in alternate years. Students can also undertake a work experience placement in Italy via Halsbury Work Experience .

Cost Implications
Approximately £12 for a good bilingual dictionary. Our exchange trip costs approximately £250 and a work experience placement starts from about £500.

Complementary Subjects or Enrichment Courses
We also run beginners’ language short courses in Spanish and Italian.

This information is correct for September 2012 entry.