Undergraduate Student Learning Initiative (USLI)

Jumpt to Detailed Outline of Learning Goals and Path(s)

General Information

The Undergraduate Student Learning Initiative (USLI) is a campuswide project that has been under development at Berkeley since fall, 2007. This initiative is designed to promote and facilitate learning for undergraduates across campus.

As part of this initiative, the French Department faculty has articulated learning goals in the French major and suggested pathways to reach those goals. In connection with these goals and pathways, a system of course designation has been introduced to our current major curriculum. These learning goals and the ways to reach them are described in sections I (Learning Goals) and II (Path(s) to Learning Goals) . The two types of courses, which are designed to help students 1) focus on their writing skills and 2) develop research skills in French literature and culture, are described in section III (Writing-Intensive and Research-Oriented Courses).

These adjustments do not constitute additional requirements to the French major: they simply articulate the coherency of the course sequence of our existing program.

I -- Learning Goals for the French Program: 
The faculty in French have articulated these learning goals so that all of our undergraduate majors may better understand what they can learn in their French courses and how they can learn it. It is our hope that this statement of learning goals will not only make our students more aware of what is expected of them, but also more capable of making the best of our program as it now stands.

In the detailed outline below, you will find a copy of the goals that the French Department faculty agreed upon in June 2008. These goals distinguish knowledge (i.e. content) from skills (i.e. specific know-how) and describe what we would like all of our undergraduates in the French major to know and be able to do when they leave the French program.

II -- Path(s) to Learning Goals in the French Program:
The detailed outline below also contains a recommended sequence of classes (that we have labeled "path(s) to goals") that indicates where in the French major program we expect you will best be able to master the various types of knowledge and skills we hope all of our graduating seniors will possess.

This lay-out of existing classes in French should help you in planning the sequence of classes in our upper division course offerings that will be most beneficial to your learning. We encourage you to study it carefully and to use it, in conjunction with the counseling provided by our staff undergraduate advisor, Carol Dolcini, to map out an academic itinerary that will insure that you acquire the knowledge and skills highlighted in our learning goals.

III -- Writing-Intensive and Research-Oriented Courses in the French Program:  
Each semester, on a rotating basis, one or two classes in French upper division course offerings will be designated as writing-intensive (with specific emphasis on grammar and composition skills) and one or two others will be designated as research-oriented (with specific emphasis on crafting research topics and acquiring bibliographical skills).

Writing-Intensive Courses

These courses are labeled "W" in our on-line departmental course listings and will offer students the opportunity to perfect composition skills in French and to acquire knowledge in French literature and culture. Writing assignments in these classes will be progressive (from 2-3 pages to 10 pages or more), promote peer-editing, offer ample opportunities for rewrite and emphasize coherency in argument as well as grammatical skills in French.

In the Fall 2011 semester, in addition to all sections of French 102 ("Writing in French"), Professor Sanyal's French 103A ("Itinéraires du désir") and Professor Guerlac's French 150B ("Women in French Literature ") will be taught as "W" courses.  

In the Spring 2012 semester, in addition to all sections of French 102 ("Writing in French"), Professor Tlatli's French 103B ("Language and Culture ") and Professor Sanyal's 180C ("French Civilisation") will be taught as a "W" course.

Research-Oriented Courses

These courses are labeled "R" in our on-line departmental course listings and will be taught as introductions to research in French literature and culture. In these courses, professors will work with students to help them learn how to design a research topic. They will also show them how to find books and articles related to their research, how to read, use and cite this material in their papers, and how to design a bibliography on a given subject.

In the Fall 2011 semester, Professor Tlatli's French 151A ("Francophone Literature: la révolution et le role de la littérature") will be taught as an "R" course.

In the Spring 2012 semester, Professor Paige's French 117A ("17th Century French Literature") will be taught as an "R" course.

We strongly recommend that all students in the French major use this new labeling to select their classes according to the type of skills they need to perfect or develop. As a rule of thumb, it is suggested that students take an additional "W" class in the major sequence (beyond the mandatory French 102 class) before enrolling in an "R" class. In addition, students planning to write an honors thesis in French are strongly advised to complete a class labeled "R" prior to enrolling in the Honors sequence (French H195A-H195B.) Finally, it is highly recommended that any student planning to continue their studies at the graduate level (in French or any other discipline) take at least one class labeled "R" before graduating.

We hope that these newly articulated learning objectives and course designations ("W" and "R") will help you excel in our upper division French classes, while making it easier for you to acquire the knowledge and skills that will accompany you throughout your life in the career(s) you will engage in.

If you have any questions regarding these learning goals and suggested pathways in the French major, please feel free to contact either Professor Susan Maslan, the Undergraduate Faculty Advisor, or Carol Dolcini, the Undergraduate Major Advisor.

Learning Goals and Path(s)

Learning Goals in French

Knowledge

• Attain solid (though not flawless) proficiency in reading, writing, understanding, and speaking French.
• Possess some understanding of the history and sociology of the French language.
• Be aware of a variety of ways in which the histories of French and Francophone literature and culture have traditionally been accounted for within French studies.
• Recognize and understand features of a variety of genres and modes in French and Francophone writing (the novel, poetic forms, short fiction, autobiography, film, etc.), as well as of the vocabulary commonly used to describe them (i.e. narratology, vocabulary of versification or of film studies, etc.).
• Have some familiarity with key rhetorical terms.
• Acquire a basic familiarity with some of the techniques of cultural analysis within French and Francophone studies.
• Be able to articulate specific connections between texts and cultural, artistic, social, and/or political contexts
• Gain an understanding of literature and of other written texts in interdisciplinary and multicultural contexts.
• Be aware of debates about the nature of literature.
• Be widely read in French literature.

• Develop the ability to interpret and analyze any given text from the French and Francophone domains using a variety of methods, both in isolation and together (such as close reading, linguistic analysis, theoretical analysis, historical and cultural contextualization, etc.)Be capable of interpreting culture and cultural artifacts in the French and Francophone domains.Formulate a well-organized, well-supported argument both orally and in writing.Write essays in standard academic French, using appropriate vocabulary whenever needed to discuss precise examples in specific texts.Begin to acquire independent research skills on a given topic or text and know how to make use of secondary sources (for instance: know how to read and analyze a scholarly article or how to compile a bibliography).
• Observe ethical, precise and accurate citation practices in both oral and written work.

Path(s) to Learning Goals within the French Major and Minor

Introductory Classes (taught in English):

• French 24 (Freshman Seminar)French 39 (Sophomore Seminar) French 43 (Aspects of French Culture)French 84 (Sophomore Seminars)French 140 (French Literature in English Translation)
• French 141 (French Studies in an International Context)

Gateway(s) to the major : learning to read and write in French

• FR 102 (Reading and Writing in French)
• FR 103 (Language and Culture)

Foundational courses in the literature of France and Francophone countries:

• French 112 (Medieval Literature)
• French 114 (Late Medieval Literature)
• French 116 (Sixteenth Century Literature)
• French 117 (Seventeenth Century Literature)
• French 118 (Eighteenth Century Literature)
• French 119 (Nineteenth Century Literature)
• French 120 (Twentieth Century Literature)
• French 140 (French Literature in English Translation – taught in English)
• French 151 (Francophone Literature)
• French 185 (Literature and Colonialism)

Foundational courses in the history and culture of French and Francophone culture:

• French 141 (French Studies in an International Context – taught in English)
• French 142AC (Cultures of Franco-America – taught in English)
• French 145 (History of the French Language)
• French 150 (Women in French and Francophone Literature)
• French 151 (Francophone Literature)
• French 160 (French Historical Writing)
• French 161 (A Year in French History)
• French 162 (Perspectives on History)
• French 171 (A Concept in French Cultural History)
• French 180 (French Civilization)
• French 183 (Configurations of Crisis)
• French 184 (French Literature in its Cultural Context)
• French 185 (Literature and Colonialism)

Courses on specific literary themes, genres and structures:

• French 121 (Literary Themes, Genres and Structures)
• French 122 (Literary Criticism)
• French 123 (Prose Fiction)
• French 124 (Theatre)
• French 125 (Poetics and Poetry)
• French 170 (Films)
• French 177 (History and Criticism of Film)
• French 178 (Studies in French Film)

Courses on language history, in linguistic analysis and in the practices of the French language:

• French 35 (Practical Phonetics)
• French 130 (Writing in French)
• French 131A (Translation and Debate)
• French 136 (Scientific French)
• French 137 (French for Politics, Economics and Business)
• French 138 (French for Future Teachers of the Language)
• French 145 (History of the French Language)
• French 146 (Introduction to French Linguistics)
• French 147 (Special Topics in French Linguistics)
• French 148 (French Dialectology)
• French 173 (Linguistics and Literature)

Courses dealing with specific cross-disciplinary issues:

• French 172 (Psychoanalytic Theory and Literature)
• French 173 (Linguistics and Literature)
• French 174 (Music and Literature)
• French 175 (Literature and the Visual Arts)

Capstone experiences:

• French 126 (Senior Seminar)
• French 195 (Honors Sequence)
• French 199 (Supervised Independent Study and Research)
• French 112-185 labeled "R" (Any research oriented upper division class)