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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "IT 102-2"
COURSE NAME: "Introductory Italian II"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2025
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Alberto Lo Pinto
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: MW 8:30 AM 9:45 AM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: This course carries 3 semester hours of credit. Prerequisite: Placement or IT 101(As of Fall 2022: Placement or IT 101 with a grade of C or above)
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
A continuation of IT101. This course aims at developing and reinforcing the language skills acquired in Introductory Italian I, while placing special emphasis on oral communication.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
A continuation of IT101. This course aims at developing and reinforcing the language skills acquired in Introductory Italian I, while placing special emphasis on oral communication.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
A continuation of IT101. This course aims at developing and reinforcing the language skills acquired in Introductory Italian I, while placing special emphasis on oral communication.
TEXTBOOK:
Book TitleAuthorPublisherISBN numberLibrary Call NumberCommentsFormatLocal BookstoreOnline Purchase
New Italian Espresso_Textbook_Beginner and pre-intermediate Updated edition Textbook+ebookitaliaideaalma edizioni978-88-61827240      
New Italian Espresso_Workbook_Beginner and pre-intermediate_UPDATED EDITION ebookitaliaideaalma edizioni978-88-61827301      
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
testsThe two tests are designed to evaluate the student's knowledge of the grammar, vocabulary covered, their reading and listening comprehension and written ability.30
Final ExamThe 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
Attendance/Participation/ Class DiscussionStudents are expected to come prepared to class and participate in all activities. Active participation is crucial, since the learning process requires considerable practice. It is mandatory to complete the homework 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

SCHEDULE


COMMUNICATIVE FUNCTIONS/VOCABULARY

GRAMMAR

CULTURE

 

Week 1

 

 

UNIT 1-6

 

Introducing yourself.

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

.



Review of Present tense Irregular verbs and agreement

 

 

 

Italy's most visited cities

Week 2

 

UNIT8

Describing a typical day

Describing your daily routine

Everyday actions

 

Talking and writing about one’s family

 

 

Present tense of

reflexive verbs

Position of reflexive

 

ITALIAN Public Holiday

I gesti italiani

Italian gift-giving habits

Week 3

 

UNIT7

 

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

.Past Tense review and use. Past participle regular\irregular . Use of auxiliary essere\avere

 

 

 

Video corso 6 “In vacanza”

Holidays in Italy

Week 4

 

 

UNIT 7 cont.

 

 

Descriptions in the past. Telling past events

Time expressions: stamattina,

ieri, l’altro ieri, scorso, fa, già,

appena, non ancora

Present tense of reflexive verbs Past tense of regular verbs. Transitive\intransitive verbs.

Jobs in Italy

Week 5

 

UNIT 9

.
Talk about family members\relations

 

Possessive adjectives

• past tense: passato prossimo

form of reflexive verbs

Video corso 8 "L'agenda di Laura

 

Week 6

 

UNIT 10

talking about one’s eating habits

• talking about typical Italian recipes

• describing one’s favorite recipe

• doing grocery shopping

• indicating quantities

• organizing a picnic

• food and dishes

• measurement units: grammo,

chilo, etto, litro

• food packaging

Direct Pronouns forms and position

Direct pronouns and use of NE

Indefinite Pronouns

 

 

Video corso 10 "Il panino perfetto"

 

•History of pasta

Week 7

 

Unit 11

 

• talking and asking about events

that will occur in the future

• writing a short article on future

fashion styles

 

Future tense regular and irregular forms
Indirect pronouns

Video corso 11 Come mi stà?

 

Week 8

 

Unit 11

 

• shopping for clothes and shoes

• making a polite request

• describing one’s look on special occasions

• colors, fabrics and fabric

patterns

• clothing and shoe sizes

 

Direct and indirect pronouns
Verbs+ indirect pronouns- Piacere+ indirect pronouns

Clothing- Fashion in Italy

Week 9

 

UNIT 12

 

 

 

• describing past situations

and actions that occurred

repeatedly

• talking about one’s childhood

 

 

 

Past tense: Imperfetto regular and irregular forms

 

Animals and metaphors in Italian

Week 10

 

Unit 12

• writing a short news story

 

 

.• passato prossimo vs. imperfetto

• agreement between direct

pronouns and past participles

 

Week 11

 

Unit 13

.understanding and giving

physical descriptions

• describing one’s personality

• reading one’s horoscope

• making, accepting and refusing

an invitation

• describing actions which are

going on right now

• writing a short fiction story

avere with cominciare andfinire

• superlativo assoluto with molto +

adjective or suffix -issimo

• molto (adjective and adverb)

• progressive form with stare +

gerundio

• present gerund forms of regular

and irregular verbs (dire, fare,

bere)

Famous Italians

Week 12

 

Unit 15

• understanding travel brochures

and travel blogs

• understanding and giving

orders, recommendations and

instructions

imperativo informale singolare and imperativo plurale

• position of direct and indirect pronouns with imperativo

• contracted forms of imperative (va’, da’, di’, fa’, sta’)

• irregular forms of imperative (abbi, bevi, sii)

Italians habits and traditions

Week 13

 

Unit 15 cont

• writing a short article on the

do’s and don’ts for tourists

coming to your country

• underlining cultural differences

• contracted forms of imperative (va’, da’, di’, fa’, sta’)

• irregular forms of imperative (abbi, bevi, sii)

 

 

Week 14

 

 

ORALPRESENTATION

 

 

Week 15

 

Final exam

 

 

 

 

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.