Italian

Italian is one of the world’s most important languages strongly influencing languages and cultures around the world. A knowledge of Italian opens up access to a wide range of areas, including history, art, music, as well as to other languages, such as French and Spanish. The overall objective of the Italian Studies program is to teach students to process information from a wide variety of materials in Italian, both written and spoken, and to produce accounts and discussions of that information in a variety of forms. In subjects at all levels, you will be guided towards undertaking independent research projects into areas including language, literature, politics, cinema, theatre, travel writing, food and wine, immigration and identity.

Italian language subjects are organised in a progressive sequence (of units) from Italian 1 through to Italian 6 and beyond. Entry and exit points are determined by the student’s background in the language, placement testing if required, prerequisites, or at the discretion of the Italian Program. Students normally progress through the subjects in consecutive order. Mid-year entry is also possible into subjects with even numbers, subject to appropriate prior experience and approval from the head of the Italian program. Accelerated progression is possible on advice from the Italian Program.

Students who complete this major will:

• Interpret a range of different genres and texts relevant in Italian-speaking social and cultural contexts;
• Communicate effectively in a variety of oral and written formats, comprehending and producing Italian discourse with fluency (relative to entry level) and appreciate its cultural contexts;
• Specialize in at least one of the five core areas of modern Italian literature, linguistics, history, cinema, and cultural studies;
• Apply relevant research and analytical skills combined with a strong sense of intellectual integrity and the ethics of scholarship;
• Appreciate Italian-speaking cultures and history in a differentiated and informed way;
• Engage critically and constructively in cultural and identity issues as a bicultural and bilingual person and global citizen;
• Independently apply a wide range of learning techniques (in Italian and English) as autonomous, motivated, self-directed and well-organised learners;
• Act confidently in Italian-speaking milieus and target culture, and work effectively in a cooperative way using Italian and English as media.

A 100-point major and 75-point minor sequence is available. The sequence is as follows for the three most common entry points for the Major and Minor:

• Italian 1 entry point: for students who have little or no knowledge of Italian.

• Italian 3 entry point: for students who have undertaken four or five years of secondary school Italian (or equivalent).

• Italian 5 entry point: for students who have completed Year 12 VCE Italian (or equivalent)

Students will have their appropriate entry point determined by the Italian Program, based on evidence of prior learning and/or results of a placement test as required. Please refer to the following link for further information: http://languages-linguistics.unimelb.edu.au/italian/italian-placement-test

Students completing a major in Italian will usually undertake 25 points at level one, 37.5 points at level two and 37.5 points at level three. Students completing a minor will usually undertake 25 points at level one, 25 points at level two and 25 points at level three.

For an example of a typical Italian major structure for each of the three entry points, please visit: http://arts.unimelb.edu.au/lcr/

ITALIAN 1 ENTRY POINT:

Italian 1 entry point - Level 1

Students completing the Italian major or minor with an Italian 1 entry point are required to complete two of the following Level 1 subjects (25 points).

Italian 1 entry point - Level 2

Students completing the Italian major with an Italian 1 entry point are required to complete the following subjects (37.5 points). Students completing the Italian minor are only required to complete Italian 3 and Italian 4 (25 points).

Italian 1 entry point - Level 3

Students completing the Italian major or minor with an Italian 1 entry point are required to complete the following subject (12.5 points). Students completing the major are required to complete two additional elective subjects (25 points), one of which must be from Group A (see elective list below).

Students completing the Italian minor are required to complete one additional elective subject (12.5 points) from Group A (see elective list below).

ITALIAN 3 ENTRY POINT:

Italian 3 entry point - Level 1

Students completing the Italian major or minor with an Italian 3 entry point are required to complete the following subjects (25 points).

Italian 3 entry point - Level 2

Students completing the Italian major with an Italian 3 entry point are required to complete the following subjects (37.5 points). Students completing the minor are only required to complete Italian 5 and Italian 6 (25 points).

Italian 3 entry point - Level 3

Students completing the Italian major or minor with an Italian 3 entry point are required to complete the following subject (12.5 points). Students completing the major are also required to complete two additional elective subjects (25 points), one of which must be from Group A (see elective list below).

Students completing the Italian minor are also required to complete one additional elective subject (12.5 points) from Group A (see elective list below).

ITALIAN 5 ENTRY POINT:

Italian 5 entry point - Level 1

Students completing the Italian major or minor with an Italian 5 entry point are required to complete the following subjects (25 points).

Italian 5 entry point - Level 2

Students completing the Italian major with an Italian 5 entry point are required to complete the following subjects (37.5 points). Students completing the minor are only required to complete Italian 7 and Italian 8 (25 points).

Italian 5 entry point - Level 3

Students completing the Italian major or minor with an Italian 5 entry point are required to complete the following subject (12.5 points). Students completeing the major are also required to complete two additional elective subjects (25 points), one of which must be from Group A (see elective list below).

Students completing the Italian minor are also required to complete one additional elective subject (12.5 points) from Group A (see elective list below).

Group A electives

Group B electives