Course Syllabus

JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "IT 101-3"
COURSE NAME: "Introductory Italian I"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2025

SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Alberto Lo Pinto
EMAIL: [email protected]
HOURS: MW 10:00 AM 11:15 AM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: This course carries 3 semester hours of credit.
OFFICE HOURS:

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course is designed to give students basic communicative ability in Italian. By presenting the language in a variety of authentic contexts, the course also seeks to provide an introduction to Italian culture and society. Students work on all four language skills: speaking, listening comprehension, reading, and writing.

SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
This course is designed to give students basic communicative ability in Italian. By presenting the language in a variety of authentic contexts, the course also seeks to provide an introduction to Italian culture and society. Students work on all four language skills: speaking, listening comprehension, reading, and writing.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
This course is designed to give students basic communicative ability in Italian. By presenting the language in a variety of authentic contexts, the course also seeks to provide an introduction to Italian culture and society. Students work on all four language skills: speaking, listening comprehension, reading, and writing.

TEXTBOOK:

Book Title	Author	Publisher	ISBN number	Library Call Number	Comments	Format	Local Bookstore	Online Purchase
New Italian Espresso_Textbook_Beginner and pre-intermediate Updated edition Textbook+ebook	italiaidea	alma edizioni	978-88-61827240			Hard Copy
New Italian Espresso_Workbook_Beginner and pre-intermediate_UPDATED EDITION ebook	italiaidea	alma edizioni	978-88-61827301

REQUIRED RESERVED READING:

NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:

NONE

GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:

Assignment	Guidelines	Weight
Tests	The two tests are designed to evaluate the student's knowledge of the grammar, vocabulary coverd, their reading and listening comprehension and written ability.	30%
Final Exam	The final exam is designed to evaluate the student's knowledge of the grammar and vocabulary covered,their reading and listening comprehension, and the written ability.	30%
Oral Exam	The oral presentation will be in pairs and will take place at the end of the course. Further instructions are to be followed.	20%
Class participation and Homework	Students are expected to come prepared to class and participate in all activities. Active participation is crucial since the learning process requires considerable practice. All homework assignments must be completed before class.	20%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.

-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:

-A student may be absent from class for a maximum of two times without penalty. Each subsequent unexcused absence will result in a two-point reduction in the Final grade. Failure of the course will result from any number of unexcused absences exceeding five.

-Absences due to other meaningful conflicts, such as job interviews, family celebrations, travel difficulties, student misunderstandings or personal convenience, will not be excused.

-Absences from class due to the observance of a religious holiday will normally be excused. Individual students who will have to miss class to observe a religious holiday should notify the instructor by the end of the Add/Drop period to make prior arrangements for making up any work that will be missed.

-Students who will be absent from a major exam must notify the Dean’s Office prior to that exam. Also, you cannot make-up a major exam (midterm or final) without the permission of the Dean’s Office. The Dean’s Office will grant such permission only when the absence was caused by a serious impediment, such as a documented illness, hospitalization or death in the immediate family (in which you must attend the funeral) or other situations of similar gravity.

-The Dean's Office will be responsible for excusing your absence. Please avoid sending me doctor's notes.

ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.

STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.

SCHEDULE

Week 1

First Class

Competencies: Introducing yourself and a friend.

Grammar: Present tense. Alphabet. Pronunciation. Numbers from 0 to 20.

Vocabulary: Idiomatic expressions with Avere or Essere.

UNIT 1 Primi contatti

Competencies: Introducing a person (formal and informal). Greeting people. Asking about pronunciation and spelling. Asking and giving phone number.

Grammar: First conjugation verbs. Preposition di, in.

Vocabulary: Greetings. Classroom objects. Adjectives of nationalities.

Culture: Saluti.

Week 2

UNIT 1 cont.

UNIT 2 Buon appetito!

Competencies: Ordering in a café and in a restaurant. Asking in a polite way. Asking for the bill. Asking for price.

Grammar: Plural and singular nouns. Interrogatives che cosa?,quanto?. Definite articles. Indefinite articles. Numbers from 20 to 100.

Vocabulary: Food and beverage. Meals.

Culture: Gelato che passione

Week 3

UNIT 2 cont.

Week 4

UNIT 3 Io e gli altri

Competencies: Introducing someone. Describing people’s activities. Asking for age and profession. Telling dates.

Grammar: Singular forms of present tense. Prepositions in, a, per. Formal.

Vocabulary: Professions. Days of the week. Workplaces.

Culture: Donne e lavoro in Italia

Week 5

UNIT 4 Tempo libero

Competencies: Talking about free time. Talking about how often one does something. Talking about people’s interests. Expressing preferences.

Grammar: Plural persons of present tense. Adverbs of frequency. Interrogatives. Present tense of irregular verbs.

Vocabulary: Leisure activities. Parts of the day. Expressions with the verb avere.

Culture: Ristorante, trattoria o…?

Attività 1

Week 6

UNIT 5 In giro per l’Italia

Competencies: Describing a city. Following and giving directions. Asking and telling time.

Grammar: Present tense of irregular verbs. Prepositions a, in. C’è, ci sono. Adjectives. Noun-adjective agreement.

Vocabulary: Street directions. Shops and stores.

Culture: Quanta Italia c’è in te?

Week 7

Week 8

UNIT 6 In albergo

Competencies: Describing one’s favorite hotel. Describing a room. Asking for information on accommodation. Talking about one’s holiday activities. Describing a perfect vacation.

Grammar: Present tense of modal verbs. Preposition a + time. Compound prepositions.

Vocabulary: Time expressions. Home furniture and features. Months and seasons. Holiday activities.

Culture: Mancia e scontrino, che cosa sono

Week 9

UNIT 6 cont.

Week 10

UNIT 7 Un finesettimana

Competencies: Describing a perfect weekend. Talking about past actions. Understanding descriptions of past events. Specifying when a past event took place.

Grammar: Past tense passato prossimo .Forms and agreement of past participle. Irregular past participle. Ci vuole, ci vogliono.

Vocabulary: Weather conditions. Time expressions.

Culture: Dove Andiamo in vacanza?

Week 11

UNIT 7 cont.

UNIT 8 Vita quotidiana

Competencies: Describing one’s work habits. Describing and asking about someone’s daily routine. Congratulating someone on special occasions and holidays. Saying the date.

Grammar: Prepositions da, a. Present tense of reflexive verbs. Possessive adjectives mio, tuo.

Vocabulary: Everyday actions. Congratulations and wishes.

Culture: Cosa regalano gli italiani.

Attività 2

Week 13

ORAL PRESENTATION

Week 14

Final Examination

Absences: Frequent absences automatically lower your participation grade. Three unexcused absences (those not officially cleared with the Dean’s Office) will result in your final grade for the course to be lowered by one full letter grade. Anything above five unexcused absences will result in failure of the course.

Lateness: Arrive on time. Students more than 10 minutes late are marked as absent. Late arrival (less than 10 minutes) is marked as such, and 3 late arrivals are counted as one absence.

In-class: Remain in class during the duration of class time. If you must leave, do not leave right at the start of class (when important announcements are being made), during student presentations (if relevant), during film screenings and or clips and lectures. In general, the rule should be: once you’re in class, barring emergencies and/or exceptions you should avoid leaving class.

Email: Professors maintain regular working hours and have office hours. Do not email on the weekend or the night before class and expect an immediate response. When emailing, please include something in the email text. Do not just send an email with a subject line and attachment.

Phones and computers: Phones and computers are strictly forbidden in class. If you use one, you will be counted as absent. Make sure you turn off (and not just muted) your phones at the start of class. Notes are to be taken by hand.

Assignment extensions: Under special circumstances extensions are given, but you must first ask for permission. If you submit an assignment late without first asking for an extension, your grade will be affected by the normal penalty. The granting of extensions is determined by the Professor.