Università di Pittsburgh                                           Autunno 2008 (2091)
Intermediate Italian II                                              ITAL 0004
Lunedì, mercoledì e venerdì 11.00-11.50                  CL 237

Lorraine Denman                
Ufficio: 1328 F CL
Ore di ricevimento:  lunedì e martedì 13:00-13:50
Telefono: 412.624.6268
E-mail: denman@pitt.edu

Intermediate Italian II
Scopo del corso:

In questo corso, gli studenti hanno la possibilità di sviluppare la loro padronanza dell’italiano e di aumentare le funzioni comunicative e le competenze grammaticali ottenute durante i primi tre semestri del programma di Italiano all’Università di Pittsburgh.  Con l’aiuto di un’antologia di testi sulle realtà e attualità culturali e sociali in Italia, il corso fornirà agli studenti le strategie necessarie da applicare alla lettura dell’italiano di vario livello, registro, genere, lunghezza, e complessità.

Obbiettivi del corso:
•    Leggere e capire diversi testi sulle realtà culturali e sociali dell’Italia d’oggi
•    Discutere il contenuto di questi testi in diversi modi: oralmente in aula, su Courseweb e in forma scritta
•    Sviluppare diverse strategie in modo da capire un testo scritto o visivo
•    Ripassare gli aspetti grammaticali, della sintassi e del lessico italiano più essenziali all’uso d’italiano
    
Testo:
Il seguente libro è necessario per il corso ed è disponibile al Book Center:

Andrea Fedi and Paolo Fasoli. Mercurio.  An Intermediate to Advanced Reader in Italian
    Language and Culture.  New Haven: Yale University Press, 2005.

Il testo Mercurio fornisce degli aspetti utili e interessanti a uno studente d’italiano.  Con una varietà di generi letterari (romanzo, novella, articoli, poesie, canzoni, letture online, ecc.) si può aumentare e sviluppare le strategie necessarie per capire un testo.  Inoltre, utilizzo altri materiali visivi e orali (canzoni, film, video clip, ecc.) in modo da discutere la cultura italiana.

Un secondo testo facoltativo (cioè, non-obbligatorio) è disponibile al Book Center.  Using Italian: A Guide to Contemporary Usage (Cambridge University Press, 2004) è una guida utile alla lingua italiana d’oggi per gli studenti al livello intermedio- avanzato.  


Programma delle lezioni:
**These dates are subject to change at the discrection of your instructor.

settimana          unità/ contesto                                            obbiettivi

1                       introduzione al corso                                  presentarci, fare un ripasso grammaticale, fare un’introduzione al testo

2                       bici: vocaboli nuovi, “Città ciclabili”          parlare dei vocaboli della bici, discutere i temi principali dell’articolo

3                       lettura supplementare                                 capire l’uso del registro e il tono in inglese e in italiano, discutere l’uso del dialetto in Italia

4                       bici: “Prodi in bici”                                    capire chi e’ Romano Prodi (uomo politico), discutere i temi principali del testo, ripassare gli    
                                                                                           articoli e i sostantivi plurali

5                       bici: “Io non ho paura”                               capire chi e’ Niccolo Ammaniti (autore), fare un’analisi visiva di una scena del film, ripassare il
                                                                                            passato prossimo, l’imperfetto e il trapassato, tema #2

6                       case: vocaboli, articolo supplementare         sviluppare il vocabolario della casa, discutere i temi principali dell’articolo, progetto #1
                                                                                             (scritto)

7                       case: Jovanotti- “Questa e’ la mia casa”       discutere la filosofia di Jovanotti (musicista), ripassare il congiuntivo

8                       case: “Ikea”                                               capire chi e’ Aldo Nove (autore), discutere il capitolo del suo romanzo, ripassare la voce
                                                                                           passiva e si impersonale, tema #3

9                       case: “Le fate ignoranti”                             capire chi e’ Ferzan Ozpetek (regista), discutere le case nelle scene, ripassare il congiuntivo e la
                                                                                            concordanza dei tempi, tema #4

10                     case: “La finestra di fronte”                        visione del film in classe, parlare dei vocaboli nuovi presentati nel film, progetto #2 (orale)

11                     città: vocaboli,  articolo supplementare       paragonare le città americane e italiane, parlare dell’italiano medio, ripassare il congiuntivo e la
                                                                                           concordanza dei tempi

12                     città: “Caro Diario”                                     capire chi e’ Nanni Moretti (regista), imparare strategie per ascoltare l’italiano parlato, progetto
                                                                                             #3 (scritto)

13                     città:  TBA                                                 tema #5 (in classe)

14                     presentazioni/progetto finale                       presentare gli articoli scelti dagli studenti, progetto finale


 Sistema di votazione:

Frequenza (attendance) e Partecipazione          25%
Compiti scritti e grammaticali                         25%
‘Temi’ scritti                                                 20%
3 progetti scritti/orali                                      20%
Progetto finale                                               10%
________________________________________________________________________


Course and Departmental policies:

Cell phone policy:
All cell phones and other electronic communication devices are to be turned to the off setting during class.

Participation: Since participation is a large component of your final grade in this course (25%), your daily efforts to arrive punctually, come to class prepared, and participate in all class activities are essential. Outstanding participation is defined as habitually arriving for class on time, listening attentively when others speak, asking pertinent questions, participating in all activities with enthusiasm, and responding to questions from others. Average participation is defined as occasionally arriving late to class, sometimes listening to others when they speak, sometimes asking questions, participating in all activities, occasionally contributing to group activities, and occasionally responding to questions. Unacceptable participation is defined as often arriving late to class, not listening when others speak, seldom asking questions, not contributing much to group work, and seldom responding to questions. I will keep track of your participation and will keep you informed of your progress in this area by using Courseweb’s gradebook feature to post these grades. You will receive a participation grade every two weeks.  You may earn extra credit toward your participation grade by going to the conversation hour of the La Tavola Italiana which meets on Thursday from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. In addition, there will be several announced extra credit events during the semester such as Italian movie nights and lectures.

Compiti: In addition to regular homework assignments, this semester you will also have a bi-weekly oral or written assignments (called ‘temi’.)  The “temi” portion of the grade allows students to practice and apply what they learn in class.  All “temi” assignments will be due in class.  Oral assignments can be completed in the Language Lab (G17 CL.)  Please note their weekly schedules at www.polyglot.pitt.edu and please plan ahead to ensure that you can complete your assignments on time.  Homework assignments and written tasks must be handed in on time- I will not accept late work unless there are extenuating, documented circumstances. All homework assignments will be posted on Courseweb.  If you are unable to come to class, it is your responsibility to check Courseweb to see what will be due for the next lesson.  


Attendance:  Because of the communicative nature of this course, it is essential to come to class regularly. You are allowed up to two absences during the semester. There are no excused or unexcused absences for these three absences. On your third absence you will lose 5 points from your final grade and each subsequent absence will result in one additional point off the final grade for any classes missed. A documented medical condition or family / personal emergency will constitute the sole exception to this rule.

Voti:

A+ 98%    B+ 88%     C+ 78%      D+ 68%
A  93%    B  83%        C  73%         D  63%
A- 90%    B- 80%     C- 70%        D- 60%


Plagiarism: "To present, as one's own work, the ideas, representation, or words of another" is to plagiarize no matter the source: books, magazines, the Internet as well as seeking help from someone else. As everyone knows, plagiarism is a form of cheating. At the University of Pittsburgh, such cheating may be punished by failure in a course as well as by suspension or dismissal from the University. In your take-home compositions, plagiarism will always result in an automatic F for that paper. To allow someone else to pass off your written work as their own is another form of the same crime, punishable in the same way. Because the charge of plagiarism is so serious, it is important you learn how to work with the ideas of other people responsibly.

We wish to stress, however, that plagiarism is not to be confused with the sharing of ideas. We strongly encourage you to talk to your friends or classmates about what you are doing and to ask them to read and comment on your work. In most cases, we encourage you also to exchange papers with another student and copy-edit each other's work for errors. This does not mean however, that you may ask native speakers or other students who are studying Italian to translate your work into Italian for you. The use of artificial or human translators is strictly prohibited. Those students using either computer translators or human translators for their compositions or homework will always result in an automatic F.

If you have any questions regarding the University’s and/or the Dept. of French and Italian’s policy on plagiarism, please see our website (www.frenchanditalian.pitt.edu) or me.
       
Students with disabilities
If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are encouraged to contact both your instructor and the Office of Disability Resources and Services, 216 William Pitt Union, (412) 648-7890/(412)383-7355 (TTY) AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE IN THE TERM. DRS will verify your disability and determine reasonable accommodations for this course.




Participation rubric:  Below is the participation used for this course.  You will be given a participation grade every two weeks.  Other grading rubrics can be found on Courseweb.  All rubrics are subject to change at your instructor’s discretion.  
________________________________________________________________________
dip.to di francese e italiano
voto di partecipazione

nome:    ____________________________        mese: _________________

criteria*                        punti

active and relevant contributions to the class        3    2    1    0

punctuality/ classroom behavior                3    2    1    0

asking and answering questions voluntarily        3    2    1    0

consistent use of Italian in class                3    2    1    0

alertness and ability to focus on tasks            3    2    1    0

progress in communicative skills            3    2    1    0

                        totale:         /18

*see the syllabus for a full explanation of our participation policies.
3= outstanding participation
2= average participation
1= below average participation
0= unacceptable participation