No final exams, less homework, ‘asynchronous’ classes on Fridays
In a move to make its courses “less daunting,” the Yale University French Department is working to “reduce the workload demands of some of its courses.”
The changes came about after student input and “departmental reviews,” according to Maurice Samuels, chair of the French Department.
Samuels led the formation of a “commission” this past spring, which then created a web-based questionnaire for students who take French.
“We decided to make some key changes that we hope will alleviate the perception that French is a more difficult language to study at Yale,” Samuels said.
The dept. chair told the student paper Yale Daily News “many students” felt that while the department’s classes “were rigorous and effective, they were too difficult in terms of workload and grading.”
This semester, “L1 through L4” French courses don’t have final exams, operate on a four-day in-class week with “asynchronous” classes on Fridays, and have less homework.
There also is less emphasis on “just French culture” and more on those of the “Caribbean, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Maghreb” (central and western North Africa).
French Language Program Director Constance Sherak told the YDN “rigor doesn’t mean an unsurmountable degree of work,” and it shouldn’t “discourage students from pursuing a language they want to study for their own personal reasons.”
Sherak said the department’s changes are in line “with those of other language departments at Yale and French courses at other institutions.”
Student reaction was mixed:
Luke Parish ’28 expressed concern that “you lose a lot in doing an asynchronous day.” Parish said that he averaged 10 to 15 hours of work per week in his intensive L3/L4 course last semester. …
“I don’t think you’d be able to learn in general language without it being this rigorous,” Julia Niemiec ’28 said. “French is a difficult language. There’s a lot of grammar structures. There’s a lot of nuances.”
Other students appreciated the additional free time that came with the lighter workload.
“I have an assignment on the asynchronous day, but it normally takes a little bit less time, and it’s just nice to have a day off of having to go to class” Ella Benedetto ’29 said.
Hopefully the department’s modifications don’t include a required reading of “Dysphoric Modernism: Undoing Gender in French Literature.” The book, by trans Ithaca College French professor Mat Fournier, argues “gender and […] modern gender definitions prevent freedom and individual difference,” and that gender dysphoria “is relevant to everyone.”
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