Part I

WHAT TO STUDY?

WHERE?

CHAPTER 1

Italian language learning

·        Studying Italian in Italy

·        Studying Italian in Vietnam

If you wish to learn Italian and study Italian culture you have many opportunities, either in Italy or in Vietnam.

Studying Italian in Italy

ü      Courses in Italian universities

Courses in Italian are offered to international students in each academic institution, and include both language and literature[1]. They are organised by University Language Centres (Centro Linguistico), which provides a fundamental support service by facilitating learning processes and encouraging students to keep on improving their language competencies.

ü      Universities for Foreigners

The two state universities of Perugia and Siena are specialised in courses in Italian Language and Civilisation for foreigners.

1)      University of Perugia for Foreigners (Università per Stranieri di Perugia), www.unistrapg.it

The University of Perugia for Foreigners is the oldest Italian institution involved in teaching and research activities as well as in the diffusion of Italian language and civilisation.

It consists of a Faculty of Italian Language and Culture and Departments of Science of Language and Comparative Cultures.

The University of Perugia for Foreigners organizes the following Italian language and culture courses:

-         Basic courses: consisting in 5 levels (elementary, pre-intermediate, intermediate, advanced, superior). First level courses are specifically designed for students with no previous knowledge of Italian. An entrance exam is required for students enrolling to second, third, fourth and fifth levels. Students having successfully passed examinations on the course attended are automatically admitted to the next level.

Successful passing of examinations qualify students for the following:

a)       Italian Language Certificate, showing final grade, for the 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd levels;

b)      Italian Language and Culture Certificate showing final grade, personal study course and grade average for the 4^th level course;

c)       Italian Language and Culture Diploma showing final grade, personal study course and grade average for the 5^th level course.

-         Intensive courses: there are five levels of intensive courses which last a month and are offered from July through September. They include additional class hours per week and limited enrollment to ensure a small number of students in each class. Regular attendance of two months qualifies students to enroll in the third month of the equivalent Basic Course level and to have the opportunity to sit the final exams.

-         Courses in the Study of Italian Vocal Music: this course is reserved for opera singers, orchestra directors, set-designers, film directors and substitute directors and concentrates on the study of Italian Opera music scores. All students regularly enrolled in courses of Italian Language and Culture have free access to this course.

-         Special Integrative courses for Chinese and Japanese students: these are a series of lessons given by native-speaker teachers in which the linguistic themes are approached with a contrastive method to give valid support to attendance of the ordinary courses.     

-         Refresher courses for Teachers of Italian abroad: these courses are open to foreign and Italian teachers living abroad and they offer in-depth study of topics such as language teaching and contemporary Italian culture. 

-         Advanced courses in Humanities: they are open to foreign and Italian citizens offering an opportunity for in-depth study of a variety of cultural fields, such as Contemporary Italian Language, History of Art, Etruscan Studies and Italic Studies.

-         Special courses and refresher courses in Linguistics, Language teaching and Italian Literature, History and Civilization: special courses covering topics of specific interest are organized at the request of both public and private, Italian and foreign Institutions, for groups of students, teachers or scholars. 

Besides Italian Language and Culture Courses, the University carries out the following five 1^st level degree courses, open to foreigners and Italians:

·        Teaching of the Italian Language and Culture to Foreigners (ILIS)

·        Promotion of the Italian Language and Culture throughout the World (PLIM)

·        Advertising Techniques

·        International Communication (COMINT)

·        Italian Language and Culture for Foreigners, connected by network in convention with the Universities belonging to the ICON consortium. For further information, please visit the website www.italicon.it.

The University also carries out the following 2^nd level degree courses:

·        Italian Culture and Language in Situations of Contact (LISCON)

·        Italian for Cultural and Enterprise Intermediation (ItICI)

·        Publicity Communication and Strategic Design

·        Communication Systems and International Relations

Also including the one-year Postgraduate courses (at 1^st level) in Teaching Italian to non-Native Speakers and in Radio-Programme Speaker, and also the one-year Postgraduate course (at 2^nd level) in Internationalisation and Communications in Mediterranean Production Systems.

2)      University of Siena for Foreigners (Università per Stranieri di Siena), www.unistrasi.it  

The University of Siena for Foreigners is a public institution with a special mandate for undertaking research and instruction in the fields of Italian language and culture.

Teaching and research activities at the university are carried out by the Faculty of Italian Language and Culture, the Department of Humanities, the Language Centre and the Centre for Diplomas in Italian as a Foreign Language.

The Faculty of Italian language and Culture has set up three-years degree courses in Italian Language and Culture/Teaching of Italian as a Foreign Language, and in Linguistic and Cultural Mediation. The Faculty also offers Specialisation Degrees in Textual Competence for Publishing and the Media and in Linguistic Sciences for International Communication.

Among postgraduate courses, we have to remember the School of Specialisation in Teaching Italian as a Foreign Language, the Doctorate in Italian Literature, History of Italian Language and Philology, the Doctorate in Linguistics and Teaching Italian as a Foreign Language. Also to remember is the Advanced Course in Teaching Italian as a Foreign Language. 

Furthermore, the Language Centre of the University of Siena for Foreigners offers a broad and varied range of language instruction. In addition to the regular language courses, through which students can obtain a 1^st and a 2^nd level diploma, the Centre also offers intensive courses for those who wish to learn over a few weeks on full-immersion courses:

-         Regular Italian Language and Culture Courses: they last seven weeks and consist of 120 hours of lessons and five hours of tests; they consist of six levels (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2) corresponding to the European classification.

On completion of level five, students who have passed the final exams in Italian language and culture as well as the two culture courses chosen obtain the First Level Diploma in Italian language and culture. On completion of level six, students who have passed the final exams in Italian language and culture as well as the two culture courses chosen, may obtain the Second Level Diploma in Italian language and culture.

-         Intensive Italian Language Courses: they permit students to attend 60 hours of teaching with four hours and a half of tests at initial, intermediate and final levels.

-         Language Courses for Specific Purposes: the Language Centre offers courses focusing on Italian for specific purposes for those who wish to improve their language skills relevant to specific areas and disciplines. Each course consists of 20 hours of lessons held in the afternoon; the specific language areas are Medicine and Natural Sciences, Architecture and History of Art, Law and Business and Commerce.

-         Training and Refresher Courses in Linguistics, Language Instruction and Literature

-         CILS Preparatory Courses and DITALS Preparatory Courses

The Siena University for Foreigners is particularly important for its Permanent Linguistic Observatory of the Use of Italian among Foreigners and of Immigrant Languages in Italy (“Osservatorio Linguistico Permanente dell’Italiano diffuso fra Stranieri e delle Lingue Immigrate in Italia”), whose aim is to systematically observe the mutations appearing in the Italian language caused through contact with other languages. The Centre of Excellence organizes advanced training programmes, open to postgraduate students, researchers, specialists, researchers in linguistics and cultural operators; in 2004, the Centre held the course on Theory and Methodology of Field Research in Linguistics.

ü      Società “Dante Alighieri” (“Dante Alighieri” Society), http://www.ladante.it, & other private schools

The Dante Alighieri Society is officially authorised by the Italian Ministry of Education. It is active not only abroad but also in Italy, where it acts through a number of local committees in towns such as Bologna, Florence, Milan, Naples, Palermo, Pietrasanta (Lucca), Rome, Siena, Trieste, Urbania (Pesaro-Urbino) and Venice. It offers different courses such as:

·        Standard and Intensive Italian

·        Italian language and Culture

·        Professional Italian

·        Course of Italian-Language teachers

·        Preparation courses for University Studies in Italy

·        Art and Fashion courses

Studying Italian in Vietnam

1. Since 2002, there is a Department of Italian Language at the Hanoi University of Foreign Studies – Dai Hoc Ngoai Ngu, where it is possible to take a 4-years Degree in Italian Language and Culture (Italian as First Foreign Language). At the Hanoi University of Foreign Studies, it is also possible to study Italian as Second Foreign Language.

Following here are the degree courses you will take:

-         Italian Language Courses: History of Italian Literature; Italian as First Foreign Language: Advanced; Italian as First Foreign Language: Elementary Level; Italian as First Foreign Language: Intermediate Level; Italian as First Foreign Language: Upper Intermediate I; Italian as First Foreign Language: Upper Intermediate II; Lexicology; Linguistics; Morphology Phonetics and phonology; Phonetics; Syntax; Theory of translation; Translation and Interpreting I; Translation and Interpreting II; Translation and interpreting III;

-         General courses: Applied Information Technology; Civilization; Economics; History of civilizations; History of the Communist Party; Ho Chi Minh’s thought; Information technology (theory); Law; Linguistics workshop (essay); Linguistics; Marxist-Leninist economics; Philosophy; Socialism; Vietnamese culture; Vietnamese Language;

From your third year, you will have to study a Second Foreign Language. During your last year, you will attend a Linguistic workshop and a Translation workshop, as well as profit of a working experience.

For further informations, please contact:

Hanoi University of Foreign Studies – Dai Hoc Ngoai Ngu

Km. 9, Nguyen Trai Road, Thanh Xuan - Hanoi
Tel. 04-8547453

Fax. 04-8544550

Website: www.hufs.edu.vn

2. At the University of Social Sciences and Humanities - Đai hoc Quoc gia Thành Pho in Ho Chi Minh City it is possible to attend courses in Italian Language as Second Foreign Language. It is also possible to attend evening classes.

For further informations, please contact:

University of Social Sciences and Humanities - Đai hoc Quoc gia Thành Pho
10/12 Dinh Tien Hoang St, Dist.1 – Ho Chi Minh City
Tel. 08-8221904

Fax. 08-8221903

Website: www.hcmussh.edu.vn 

3. The Italy-Vietnam Friendship Association – Huu Nghi Viet Nam - Italia, in collaboration with the Italian Embassy, organizes Italian language courses. They are held in the evening twice a week for about six months, and are open to everyone, without age limitations. There are three levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced.

For further informations, please contact the Embassy of Italy in Hanoi (culturale.hanoi@esteri.it) or:

Italy-Vietnam Friendship Association – Huu Nghi Viet Nam - Italia

105A Quan Thanh – Hanoi

Tel. 04-8044057

Fax 04-8452007

4.From September 2005, at the Thang Long University - Đai hoc Thang Long in Hanoi it is possible to attend courses in Italian Language as Second Foreign Language.

For further informations, please contact:

Thang Long University - Đai hoc Thang Long

Phuong Khuong Trung – Quan Thanh Xuan – Hanoi

Tel. 04-8587346; 04-8584490

Fax: 04-8587347

E-mail address: thlong_u@hn.vnn.vn

5. From October 2005 the Comitato “Dante Alighieri” (Dante Alighieri Committee) in Hanoi will organize courses in Italian Language, Italian culture (literature, art, music, cinema, theatre, gastronomy, etc.) and other special courses, such as intensive language courses, language courses for children, etc.

For further informations, please contact the Comitato “Dante Alighieri” at the following e-mail address: dantealighierihanoi@yahoo.it.

Certificates of Proficiency in Italian Language

There are several different certificates of proficiency in Italian Language that you can apply for:

ü      Certificate of Italian as a Foreign Language (CILS): it is the official title that denotes the degree of linguistic competency in Italian as a foreign language. The CILS is awarded by the University of Siena for Foreigners and is recognized by the Italian State on the basis of an agreement with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The CILS covers six levels (A1, A2, ONE-B1, TWO-B2, THREE C-1, FOUR-C2), each of which represents a progressively higher level of linguistic and communicative ability. To obtain the Certificate at one of the six levels, it is necessary to pass an exam consisting of five sections with tests in listening comprehension, reading comprehension, analyses of the structures of communication, writing skills and speaking skills.

For further information, to see or request the CILS guidelines, and to obtain a list of exam locations, consult the website www.unistrasi.it.

ü      Certificate of knowledge of the Italian language (CELI): it assesses the candidates’ fluency in Italian language. The CELI covers 5 levels (A2, B1, B2, C1, C2) from elementary to advanced levels. The five different levels are defined by the Council of Europe on the basis of the Common European Framework. The exams usually take place twice a year, in June and November.

For further information, please visit the website www.unistrapg.it.

ü      Certificate of knowledge of Italian for business (CIC): it is issued by the University of Perugia for Foreigners. The exams take place once a year, usually in June. It is divided in an intermediate and advanced level, according to the Common European Framework defined by the Council of Europe.

For further information, please visit the website www.unistrapg.it.

ü      Certificate of Italian (IT): it is issued by the University “Roma Tre”. It consists of 4 different sections with tests in listening comprehension, reading comprehension, analyses of the structures of communication, and writing skills.

For further information, please visit the website www.uniroma3.it.

ü      Certificate for Teaching Italian to Foreigners (DITALS): it is issued by the University of Siena for Foreigners, and uses written and oral tests to evaluate theoretical and practical knowledge in the field of teaching Italian to foreigners. The exam has four sections nad requires five hours written examination (sections A, B and C) and approximately 10 minutes for the oral element (section D):

-   Section A: analysis of didactic materials

-   Section B: construction of didactic materials

-   Section C: knowledge of theory (20 questions)

-   Section D: oral language teaching ability (an audio recording of the candidate, who will be asked to undertake communicative tasks relevant to the role of a teacher of Italian to foreigners).

For further information, please visit the website www.unistrasi.it.

ü      P.L.I.D.A. Certificate (Progetto Lingua Italiana “Dante Alighieri”): it is issued by the “Dante Alighieri” Society and is recognized on the basis of an agreement with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It consists of 6 levels (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2) on the basis of the Common European Framework defined by the Council of Europe. It consists of 4 different sections with tests in listening comprehension, reading comprehension, writing and speaking skills. The “Dante Alighieri” Society issues two different certificates, the P.L.I.D.A. Juniores and the P.L.I.D.A. Business.