Cindy Walter-Gensler

Course Description

Welcome to German 506! German 506 is a first semester course for students with a) no prior knowledge of German, or b) no more than one year of high school German, or c) authorization from the German Department based on your UT German Placement Test performance. See your instructor if you are in this course for any other reason. In this course you will begin to learn how to read, listen, write and speak German. You will learn to ask and answer questions; name and describe persons, things, places, and events; deal with a variety of situations; narrate orally and in writing; write letters and postcards; fill out forms; and comprehend a variety of texts. You will also expand your knowledge of the cultures of the German-speaking countries. We hope you will be willing to contribute to the class discussions what you already know. German 506 meets for five hours Mondays - Thursdays. In addition, you should, on average, plan to spend at least 1-2 hours each day studying German: completing written homework, reviewing, reading, and building your vocabulary.

Grading Policy

All German 506 students are evaluated according to the same criteria: A. 5 chapter exams = 50% B. 2 Oral examinations = 10% Each oral exam is worth 5% of your grade. The first one will be administered during the first half of the semester, the second one during the second half of the semester. The best preparation for these exams is regular and active participation in class. The more you participate in class, the more fluently you will speak. C. Brief Quizzes = 15% These quizzes are given in class and can be announced or unannounced. D. Class participation and homework = 25% This grade includes participation and attendance (5%), hand-in homework, attendance at the German Film Series (at least twice / semester), assignments from the Kurspaket, the WebQuests, from Grimm Grammar, etc. (15%). There is no final exam during the final exam period in GER 506 due to the cumulative nature of all of the tests you take. If you show up late for a test, you will still have to finish the test at the same time as the other students. If you do not show up for an exam without having obtained permission from your instructor in advance of the test, you will not receive any credit for the test. Emergencies that can be substantiated to the satisfaction of your instructor will be treated as exceptions. There are no Incompletes given in German 506.

Texts

Robert Di Donato, Monica Clyde, Jacqueline Vensant: Deutsch: Na klar! An Introductory German Course (Student Edition). 6th Edition. McGraw-Hill.

Course description:
Welcome to German 612! German 612 is a second-year accelerated course for students who have completed GER 507 at UT Austin (with a grade C or better) or who have been advised to take it as a result of the UT German Placement Exam.  This course continues where GER 507 left off.  The course will help you to further develop reading, writing, listening and speaking skills and strategies with activities both inside and outside of class.  It will also guide you further into learning about the cultures of the German-speaking countries. German 612 is a six-credit course that meets Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. 

Grading Policy:
A.   40% - 4 fifty-minute tests based on “Stationen”-chapters and readings.  Each test is 10% of the final grade.
B.    15% - Quizzes.  Regular quizzes will accompany the texts we read and the topics from Stationen and/or assess your vocabulary learning. Some of these quizzes will be in-class, pencil & paper quizzes, while others may be posted in Blackboard and you must complete them before coming to class on the day we discuss the materials. 
C.    30% - Class participation & homework.  This grade will include participation and attendance, hand-in homework, and other assignments.  Be prepared to volunteer in class during every meeting.  Homework is due on the day indicated; no late homework will be accepted. DAILY PREVIEW AND REVIEW OF THE MATERIALS OF THE CURRENT CHAPTER IS MANDATORY. 
D.   15% - Essay.  During the semester you have to write three essays in German, each 1-2 pages long.  In each reaction paper, summarize the materials we interacted with, incorporate what you learn during in-class discussions and your homework assignments.  Describe how the texts relate to your experiences; compare the main arguments or themes in the stories to similar topics in the United States. 

There is no final exam during the final exam period in GER 612 due to the cumulative nature of language learning.  Each written test is 50 minutes long.  The tests start and end for all students at the same time.  Even if you show up late for a test, you have to finish it at the same time as the other students.  If you fail to show up for an exam without prior permission from your instructor, you will not receive credit for the test.  Emergencies that can be substantiated to the satisfaction of your instructor will be treated as exceptions.  There are no Incompletes given in German 612.

Required text: 
(1)     Prisca Augustyn & Nikolaus Euba (2008). Stationen: Ein Kursbuch für die Mittelstufe. Thomson-Heinle.
(2)     Prisca Augustyn & Nikolaus Euba (2008). Workbook/Lab Manual for Stationen: Ein Kursbuch für die Mittelstufe.        Thomson-Heinle.
(3)     Lab Audio CD's for Augustyn/Euba's Stationen: Kursbuch für die Mittelstufe, 1st Edition
Individual chapters and books for rent are available at www.ichapters.com.
(4)     Additional materials distributed via Blackboard

Description:

This course will introduce some of the most famous war films, and some less familiar ones, from the US and Europe-- from Grand Illusion through Saving Private Ryan.   Each war has developed its own kinds of war movies, from World Wars I and II, through the Korean police action, and the Vietnam conflict. 

These films will  be used to introduce how to “read” films as part of cultural history and think critically about their content.  Scenes from each war will be compared to the "real history" behind the film, to pose questions about how history  can be written and rewritten in films.    Take a trip through cinematic battlefields, to see how films have helped their audiences think about the roles of the world's superpowers in world contexts!

Topics to be addressed include:

                                    -cultural stereotypes of heroes, villains, and victims

                                    -different countries’ takes on the same war experience (Stalingrad, Enemy at the Gate)

                                    -adaptations (book to film= King Rat, play to film = Hart’s War)

                                    -the politics of war films

                                    -rewriting history through war movies

                                    -anti-war films

                                    -documentary, docu-drama

                                    -how to read point of view and cultural perspectives out of movies.

Readings: 

James Monaco, Nick Drjuchin (Illustrator), David Lindroth (Illustrator).  How To Read a Film: Book (3rd ed.) and DVD-ROM.  Harbor Electronic Publishing; 2000;  ISBN: 0966974492

Text on twentieth century history (TBD)

Films  to be viewed outside of class;  some with text analogues for reading

Fact sheets on each film

Assignments and grading:

40% completion of  online quizzes that correspond to issues in class

30% each-midterm and final -- short answer/identification plus essay

Course Description

Welcome to German 507! It is a 2nd semester course that continues where GER 506 left off. If you earned an A or B in 506, you have a good foundation for GER 507. If you earned a C, you have some deficiencies you need to address. There is a review period during at the beginning of the semester, and you should use it to full advantage. If you earned a D in GER 506, you are not eligible to take this course. If you did not take GER 506 at UT, see your instructor soon; you will need to familiarize yourself with the material covered in GER 506. As GER 506, this course also emphasizes equally listening, speaking, reading and writing. The primary goal of instruction in 507 is to help you develop your ability to communicate in German. German 507 is a five-credit course that meets Mondays through Thursdays. How much time you should spend studying outside of class depends on a number of individual factors such as your linguistic aptitude, self-discipline, your desire to learn a foreign language, etc. You should, on average, plan to spend at least 1-2 hours each day studying German: completing written homework, reviewing, reading, and building your vocabulary. Your instructor can offer some tips on how to study effectively.

Grading Policy

All German 507 students are evaluated according to the same criteria: A. 5 chapter exams = 50% B. 2 Oral examinations = 10% Each oral exam is worth 5% of your grade. The first one will be administered during the first half of the semester, the second one during the second half of the semester. The best preparation for these exams is regular and active participation in class. The more you participate in class, the more fluently you will speak. C. Brief Quizzes = 15% These quizzes are given in class and can be announced or unannounced. D. Class participation and homework = 25% This grade includes participation and attendance (5%), hand-in homework, attendance at the German Film Series (at least twice / semester), assignments from the Kurspaket, the WebQuests, from Grimm Grammar, etc. (15%).

There is no final exam during the final exam period in GER 507 due to the cumulative nature of all of the tests you take. If you show up late for a test, you will still have to finish the test at the same time as the other students. If you do not show up for an exam without having obtained permission from your instructor in advance of the test, you will not receive any credit for the test. Emergencies that can be substantiated to the satisfaction of your instructor will be treated as exceptions. There are no Incompletes given in German 506.

Texts

Robert Di Donato, Monica Clyde, Jacqueline Vensant: Deutsch: Na klar! An Introductory German Course (Student Edition). 6th Edition. McGraw-Hill.

Course Description

Welcome to German 506! German 506 is a first semester course for students with a) no prior knowledge of German, or b) no more than one year of high school German, or c) authorization from the German Department based on your UT German Placement Test performance. See your instructor if you are in this course for any other reason. In this course you will begin to learn how to read, listen, write and speak German. You will learn to ask and answer questions; name and describe persons, things, places, and events; deal with a variety of situations; narrate orally and in writing; write letters and postcards; fill out forms; and comprehend a variety of texts. You will also expand your knowledge of the cultures of the German-speaking countries. We hope you will be willing to contribute to the class discussions what you already know. German 506 meets for five hours Mondays - Thursdays. In addition, you should, on average, plan to spend at least 1-2 hours each day studying German: completing written homework, reviewing, reading, and building your vocabulary.

Grading Policy

All German 506 students are evaluated according to the same criteria: A. 5 chapter exams = 50% B. 2 Oral examinations = 10% Each oral exam is worth 5% of your grade. The first one will be administered during the first half of the semester, the second one during the second half of the semester. The best preparation for these exams is regular and active participation in class. The more you participate in class, the more fluently you will speak. C. Brief Quizzes = 15% These quizzes are given in class and can be announced or unannounced. D. Class participation and homework = 25% This grade includes participation and attendance (5%), hand-in homework, attendance at the German Film Series (at least twice / semester), assignments from the Kurspaket, the WebQuests, from Grimm Grammar, etc. (15%). There is no final exam during the final exam period in GER 506 due to the cumulative nature of all of the tests you take. If you show up late for a test, you will still have to finish the test at the same time as the other students. If you do not show up for an exam without having obtained permission from your instructor in advance of the test, you will not receive any credit for the test. Emergencies that can be substantiated to the satisfaction of your instructor will be treated as exceptions. There are no Incompletes given in German 506.

Texts

Robert Di Donato, Monica Clyde, Jacqueline Vensant: Deutsch: Na klar! An Introductory German Course (Student Edition). 6th Edition. McGraw-Hill.