Advanced 1 German (Intensive)

This course aims to deepen your competence in speaking and writing and to expand your vocabulary on a higher language level, with a focus on improving your communicative skills for increasingly academic discussions. The course material will help you acquire relevant and contemporary knowledge about the culture, politics, and history of Germany and other German-speaking countries. Furthermore, you will develop effective reading and listening strategies with regard to various literary genres and media. In-class discussions will be based on literary and non-literary texts, enabling you to exchange information, ideas, and opinions on an academic level. You will give a presentation and lead the ensuing discussion in class. Special attention will be given to your paper.

Textbook

Mittelpunkt B2 („Lehrbuch“ and „Arbeitsbuch“) by Albert Daniels et al., Klett Stuttgart 2012; Mittelpunkt C1 („Lehrbuch“ and „Arbeitsbuch“) by Albert Daniels et al., Klett Stuttgart 2013; authentic texts and literature in consultation with the course instructor

Topics

Positive and negative emotions
Living and working abroad
Nature and climate change
(Nonverbal) Language and the art of conversation
Networks and networking, Social Media, Crowdfunding
Generations and demographical change

Structures

Modal clauses – subjective use of modal verbs – adverbial/subordinate clauses – two-part coordinating conjunctions – participles as attributes – subjunctive I and reported speech – relative clauses – sentence structure – verbs with accusative/dative and prepositions