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22 Ratings
Hours/Week
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— Students
This class is designed to correct your bad pronunciation habits through constant oral repetition of a native French speaker model. Tapes are used extensively for this purpose, and Mme. Saunders supplements by explaining phonological theories. A lot of the class is memorizing phonemic symbols and rules, as well as doing transcriptions. In the end, it will make you more aware of French sounds and your own pronunciation. Do not expect to be able to converse better--this is not a conversation class.
Mme Saunders is very thorough and precise, as well as extremely fair and flexible. She tends to grade holistically on exams. I loved this class, but it is taught from a strongly linguistic standpoint and will not improve or give you opportunity to practice your French; it will only improve your pronunciation.
Pros: There is minimal work required, and the grading/exams are fair--if you actually take this class seriously.
Cons: It’s pretty difficult to take this class seriously.
If you enjoy being humiliated for 75 minutes, twice a week, this class is for you. Class was often redundant and mainly consisted of listening to strange recordings or watching your peers go up to the board to complete exercises. While my awareness of French sounds has exponentially increased, there is no discernable improvement in my pronunciation. FREN 3030 is largely theory based; tests were all written, and you don’t really get to practice your oral skills.
If you’re into linguistics, you may enjoy this class. As far as improving your pronunciation goes, there are far more effective and worthwhile ways (that don’t come at the expense of your dignity) to do so.
I felt like I needed to be exorcised after taking this class.
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