French Courses

Please see the Timetable Builder for the courses offered in the current session. To narrow your search, filter for "UTM - French" in the Department / Subject Area field (Step 2). For the full listing of all French courses, please see the Academic Calendar

French Studies Program Coordinator Contact: fre.pc.utm@utoronto.ca 

 

The Department of Language Studies is excited to introduce new French courses for the 2023-24 academic year! 

FRE389H5 • Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition

This course examines the effects of cognitive (e.g., aptitude, working memory) and affective differences (e.g., motivation, L2 anxiety) on second language acquisition. Students will come to understand the nature of these differences via empirical studies on learners of French and the use of assessment instruments including questionnaires and on-line tests. Particular emphasis is placed on students' ability to discuss between-learner differences in comprehension and production, identify relevant individual differences capable of explaining such variability, and conduct their own individual differences research.

FRE354H5 • Teaching French in a Plurilingual Context

This course allows students to explore innovative pedagogical approaches such as the Action Oriented and Plurilingual & Pluricultural Approaches, building on knowledge and skills acquired in FRE227H5 Teaching and Learning a Second/Foreign Language. This is accomplished through the examination of the linguistic and cultural diversity observed in French Language classes today, and the discovery of innovative and current teaching approaches followed by the creation of pedagogical materials. Particular emphasis is placed on students’ abilities to transfer knowledge into practice.   

See below for the topic of FRE487H5 this year!

FRE487H5 • Advanced Topics in Experimental French Linguistics - Second Language French Pronunciation

This course reviews the learning, teaching & assessment of French pronunciation including vowels, consonants, and prosodic phenomenon such as liaison and fluency. Themes including learning phenomena (first language-based crosslinguistic influence, common learning challenges and developmental patterns, individual differences); the effects of classroom instruction and training including the use of technology (automatic speech recognition, ultrasound); and best practices in assessing learners’ pronunciation.

 

The following new French courses will also be offered in upcoming academic sessions.

FRE377H5 • The Phonetics & Phonology of French Foreign Accent

This course explores the phonetic and phonological properties of second language French learners' speech. Particular emphasis is placed on students' ability to summarize typical characteristics and phenomena of second language speech learning, identify segmental and prosodic features of nonnative French including inter-learner variability, and conduct acoustic analyses of real learner speech.

FRE385H5 • Decoding French Language Games

This course explores the phonological properties of French language games such as Verlan and Loucherbem. Adopting a comparative approach with standard French, particular emphasis will be placed on students' ability to identify and model phonological patterns of segmental and syllable structure modification using both descriptive and theoretical phonological tools.

FRE395H5 • Francophone Media and Global Culture

This course explores media and culture in the Francophone world through textual, graphic, musical and cinematographic content. Students will apply previously acquired knowledge in cultural studies, and their oral and written competences in French to the study of multiple cultural and mediatic forms including movies, graphic novels and songs. Particular emphasis will be placed on extending attentive reading skills as ways of thinking about texts, images and music, and on deploying these skills to better understand the relationship between different Francophone cultures within our contemporary world.