Contemporary Germany is economically and politically the leading country in the European Union, with a dynamic multicultural society. More Europeans are native speakers of German than of French, Spanish, or English, and after English German is the most-used language on the Internet. A knowledge of German provides access to foundational texts in many fields, from philosophy and psychology to history, art history, musicology, the natural sciences, religious studies, literature, and more. The culture and history of the German-speaking countries is extraordinarily rich and varied, and in the days of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, German was the lingua franca in much of Eastern Europe.
This course covers the most important features of German grammar, building the four primary skills - speaking, listening, reading, and writing - while developing the participants' awareness of life in the German-speaking countries. Learning German will also enhance students' understanding of the close relationship between English and German and their sensitivity to language as a form of human expression. After completing German 101&102 and German 211, students will be prepared for study abroad in a German-speaking country. |