Discovering Florence: Secret Language Walks

This course seeks to offer an overview of the Italian culture through the exploration of the city of Florence. Students will become familiar with the main Italian and Florentine cultural aspects through the observation of street names, studied as an intangible cultural heritage. In particular, students will learn about Italian social dynamics and traditions related to education, business, social life, healthcare, politics, religion, and sports. The course is held entirely outside as it makes use of the city as its learning environment. Students are therefore encouraged to observe the sites through active participation and develop a critical gaze. The course is further enriched by basic notions of Italian language, with exercises based on grammar, vocabulary, and communicative functions. The approach of this course is based on experiencing the city of Florence as the academic space for learning and engagement. Classes are not held in a traditional, frontal-style setting; each lesson is carefully mapped for curricular content and featured locations: lectures, observations, exercises, analysis, and reflections on presented topics are held in relevant sites that are accounted for in the academic planning, syllabus, and related course material. Coursework and submissions will be regularly assessed on the MyFUA platform through daily assignments in addition to exams, papers, and projects. Learning through the on-site classroom approach fosters a deeper understanding of the cultural environment of Florence and how it is related to the subject of study represented by the course, and allows the overall experience to contribute to the students' academic and personal enrichment.