Mr Florian Fischer

Students are expected to

• demonstrate commitment to regular attendance, completion of homework and all assessments
• dedicate at least two hours per week for coursework in addition to classes.

All students must take the online aptitude test and gain permission of the tutor to take this course after attending the Needs Analysis Interview.

Course aims:

• To retain, enhance and expand previously acquired communicative skills;
• To increase the ability to use German effectively for the purposes of advanced communication and comprehension in a variety of everyday, academic, and professional contexts;
• To develop an advanced understanding of German grammar;
• To develop the ability to communicate confidently in German about a wide range of subjects related to the field of Social Sciences;
• To bring course participants to level C1 of CEFR.

Communicative Content: 

• Discussing and analysing contemporary social, politic and cultural issues and developments in German-speaking countries and societies;
• Keeping up-to-date about developments in German-speaking countries by using German print and audio-visual media;
• Talking and writing about people and their professions in greater detail;
• Talking and writing about future research/study plans;
• Reading and discussing a variety of texts, e.g. literary, journalistic, academic etc.
• Expressing your opinion freely in discussions and arguments;
• Agreeing and disagreeing, negotiating;
• Speaking about events, explaining circumstances, causes and consequences;
• Debating and interacting confidently in a discussion.

Structural Content: 

• In the context of the topics outlined above: revision of the most important grammatical structures and introduction to the lexical-grammatical characteristics of different registers and literary styles;
• Focus on forms and structures related to German for Academic Purposes.

16 hours of classes in the MT. 22 hours of classes in the LT. 2 hours of classes in the ST.

This is a 40 hour-course. Please refer to the LSE timetable for course teaching arrangements.

There is no set textbook for this course. The tutor will provide material from a variety of print, audio and electronic sources. Please make use of the online resources provided by the course Moodle site. Students might want to acquire the following printed resources recommended for the advanced study of German:

• Wolski, Werner (2012). Pons Kompaktwörterbuch Deutsch als Fremdsprache, Stuttgart: Klett Verlag
• Durrell, Martin (2011). Hammer's German Grammar and Usage, Fifth Edition, London: Hodder Education

Continuous assessment (70%) in the MT and LT.
Oral examination (30%) in the LT.

Some departments have produced short videos to introduce their courses. Please refer to the course selection videos index page for further information.