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HAVERGAL COLLEGE
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Course Calendar 2017–18
Havergal College teaches languages to young women so
they will excel beyond mere linguistic competence and
expression and begin to think about, imagine, participate
in and understand the complex and diverse world beyond
their own linguistic community. The learning of languages
is not just central to establishing a more civil, just and
equitable world; it is the essential golden key that will help
prepare young women to make a difference, to become
leaders who strive to fulfill the school’s values of courage
and compassion, inquiry and integrity.
Enduring understandings for language learners:
1.
Learn a Language.
Learning a new language links
us to the larger world, opens our minds and helps
us to know ourselves and express ourselves in a
richer way. The department’s aim is for students to
acquire new language skills for them to function in a
community of native speakers of the language.
2.
Encompass the World.
Students will be able to
make connections between the language they are
learning and other disciplines of study, whether
in the Arts or the Sciences. They will begin to
understand that in our increasingly interconnected
global community, language is the only way we have
of speaking across the divide. The lack of language
skills limits our ability to understand, respond,
participate, work and play in today’s world. A person
who learns a new language becomes engaged in
new parts of a cultural mosaic from which she was
previously excluded.
3.
Expand your Mind!
Language is a source of
personal enrichment, both cultural and mental.
Students will experience for themselves how the
study of a new language fulfills, satisfies and
completes their humanity. Students develop a wide
range of higher-order thinking skills: processes
of alertness, attention to detail, memory, logic
and critical reasoning. As a result, they become
more aware of English grammar, strengthen their
English vocabulary and are more able to learn other
languages—all key skills in the development of self-
knowledge and self-expression. The values of self-
knowledge and self-expression are the cornerstones
upon which human beings may grow, develop and
flourish.
FRENCH
French is the language of instruction at all levels of Core
French at Havergal College. Teachers speak only in French
to students in class and students are required to express
themselves in French when speaking to classmates as
well as to the teacher. Support for students is available
through extra-help sessions with the classroom teacher
and through peer tutoring. The department’s commitment
to helping students acquire a strong oral foundation in the
French language, to understanding the value of learning
another language and to developing lifelong communication
skills, allows students to interact effectively with increasing
confidence and competency in a variety of social settings at
different levels of the French program.
While the knowledge of any language has value, French is
not only a global language but the mother tongue of many
Canadians and an integral part of the Canadian identity.
Learning French allows students to communicate with
French-speaking Canadians and millions of French speakers
around the world and helps prepare them for their roles
as active and engaged citizens in today’s bilingual and
multicultural Canada. Learning an additional language not
only challenges a mind, it also teaches understanding,
encourages patience and fosters open-mindedness. Indeed,
students in the French curriculum develop increased mental
flexibility and problem-solving skills, a better understanding
of other people and cultures, a greater awareness of global
issues and expanded career opportunities.
Enduring ideas throughout the entire French curriculum
focus on the development of skills that are also necessary
as a basis for lifelong language learning and include
authentic oral communication, development of language
learning strategies, interdependence of language and
culture, emphasis on critical and creative thinking skills
and making real-world connections.
GRADE 7
Grade 7 French
Students continue to develop the four language skills -
listening, speaking, reading, writing - with an emphasis on
the first two. Vocabulary and basic language structures
are acquired through the practice and completion of
a number of specific tasks based on a wide variety of
themes. Intercultural understanding extends to include
French in the Americas outside Canada. The final
evaluation includes an oral interview as well as an exam
including reading comprehension and written production.