Catalog Description
Basic German grammar, with special attention to characteristics of formal expository style, and illustrative readings. Study of extracts from scholarly publications in students’ areas of research. Prepares students to take the graduate foreign language certification exam.

Course Objectives
Successful students will be able to::
• recall the meaning of basic, high frequency vocabulary and idiomatic expressions of the German language
• recognize the linguistic structures of the German language
• translate, with the help of a dictionary, a scholarly German text in their area of research, with reasonable accuracy, into English

This course trains you in the reading proficiency of German so you can meet your department’s graduate foreign language requirement. We will systematically cover the grammatical material in the textbook, read and translate excerpts from scholarly publications, take practice exams, and take an end of the semester certification exam.

Required Materials
Hubert Jannach and Richard Alan Korb, German for Reading Knowledge, 5th edition (Thomson-Heinle, 2005), and its companion website: http://www.heinle.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&product_isbn_issn=1413003702&discipline_number=305
A good, fair-sized German-English dictionary. Langenscheidt is an excellent dictionary publisher, e.g. their New College German Dictionary (about $25-35); a smaller size is the Langenscheidt Standard German Dictionary (about $14-20). Please consult German for Reading Knowledge, p. 298-99 for more advice on choosing a good dictionary.
You can also use online dictionaries: http://dict.leo.org, http://dict.tu-chemnitz.de/, http://www.dict.cc/, http://wolfram.schneider.org/dict/, and http://www.linguadict.de. However, the use of electronic (online or CD-ROM) translation programs is NOT allowed and will violate academic integrity, i.e. be considered cheating (see below for details). It may also inhibit your learning progress.
A folder for your class notes, homework assigments and tests will be helpful.
Time. Make sure to have an adequate amount of time for studying the grammar and vocabulary and for preparing the translations.

Recommended Materials
Henry Strutz, 501 German Verbs
Cecile Zorach and Charlotte Melin, English Grammar for Students of German (The Olivia and Hill Press)
Gerda Dippmann and Johanna Watzinger-Tharp, A Practical Review of German Grammar (Prentice Hall)
Mark Twain's essay on the German language (very funny and instructive, too!): http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/jod/texts/twain.german.html

Attendance
Regular attendance is highly advisable. Absences in excess of two are inadvisable. The key to success in mastering the material in one semester and successfully pass the certification exam is consistency, so keep up with the assignments and attend class regularly.
For more information on attendance regulations consult http://www.ncsu.edu/provost/academic_regulations/attend/reg.htm.

Class Work and Homework
Class time will be spent clarifying the grammatical material, doing reinforcement exercises, and translating reading passages. Assignments are to be prepared before coming to class for the day shown. We will also work with texts you will find yourself in your specific field. The weekly take-home tests are supposed to be an assessment tool for yourself. Each covers two chapters. You will also get some longer take-home practice translations.

Evaluation and Grading
You should register for the course as “audit” or “credit only.”
Each of the 14 take-home tests and each of the 6 practice translations will count 5%. The main purpose of grades in this course is for feedback about your progress and for determining if you get credit (if you have registered for “credit only”).
For information on the NC State grading policy, consult http://www.ncsu.edu/provost/academic_regulations/grading/reg.htm.
At the end of the course we will take the certification exam. Graduate certification is given on passing the exam, not passing the course. I will work with your individual abilities and difficulties to help you master the material.

Students with Disabilities
Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. You first need to register with Disability Services for Students at 1900 Student Health Center, Campus Box 7509, 515-7653. For more information consult
http://www.ncsu.edu/provost/offices/affirm_action/dss/.

Academic Integrity
Students are expected to work within the letter and spirit of the NC State University Code of Student Conduct. For more information please consult http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/student_services/student_discipline/POL11.35.1.php. Academic integrity extends to all work done in a course, including homework, class work, take-home tests, and exams. You may study together with classmates, but everybody needs to turn in their individual homework assignment. The use of internet or CD-ROM translating programs is forbidden and will be considered cheating. If an academic integrity violation is detected, your assignment or test carries an automatic F and the incident will be reported to the NC State Office of Student Conduct. If you have any questions about what is permitted or forbidden, e.g. with regard to getting help from tutors or friends, please discuss it with me. Use of internet dictionaries is fine and may be quite helpful.

The Certification Exam
The certification exam consists of translating: (1) sentences containing fundamental grammatical structures, verb tenses, idiomatic expressions, and vocabulary; (2) a portion of a scholarly article in your general research area. You are not expected to do a polished translation, but to demonstrate reading proficiency through reasonably accomplished translation. You may use dictionaries, which you provide yourself.

Near the end of the semester, we will determine whether you are ready to take the certification exam at the scheduled exam time, in our regular classroom. The exam generally takes between 2-3 hours and has a time limit of 3 hours. After you have taken the exam, I will notify you within 2 to 3 days only if you have not passed the exam, in which case there will be a consultation, the setting up of a plan of study, and a new exam date. Otherwise, I will send a letter of certification to the necessary offices, also within 2 to 3 days, and your record will be adjusted accordingly. General information on the graduate certification exam can be found here: http://sasw.chass.ncsu.edu/fl/gradcert.htm

Semester Schedule
Prepare each chapter by going over the grammar explanations and vocabulary. Learning the grammar rules is most important, but picking up some high-frequency vocabulary from the "Grundwortschatz" (Basic Vocabulary) is also very useful - it will save you time while translating. Then translate the chapter text, following the suggestions on the textbook companion site.
You can use the textbook companion site for an answer key to the sentences (use it wisely, to check your own work!), for grammar charts, and especially for helpful suggestions on preparing the reading comprehension task (chapter text translation): http://www.heinle.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&product_isbn_issn=1413003702&discipline_number=305

Class Period and Date	In Class (have this prepared)	Turn in
1 - Th, Aug. 24	Introduction to the Class; Kapitel 1
2 - Tue, Aug. 29	Kapitel 2
3 - Th, Aug. 31	Kapitel 3	Test 1-2
4 - Tue, Sep. 5	Kapitel 4
5 - Th, Sep. 7	Kapitel 5 and read Mark Twain's essay for fun: http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/jod/texts/twain.german.html	Test 3-4
6 - Tue, Sep. 12	Kapitel 6	Wiederholung 1, pp. 56 - 59
7 - Th, Sep. 14	Kapitel 7	Test 5-6
8 - Tue, Sep. 19	Kapitel 8
9 - Th, Sep. 21	Kapitel 9	Test 7-8
10 - Tue, Sep. 26	Kapitel 10
11 - Th, Sep. 28	Kapitel 11	Test 9-10
12 - Tue, Oct. 3 - Tag der deutschen Einheit	Kapitel 12	Wiederholung 2, pp. 107 - 109
13 - Th, Oct. 5	Kapitel 13	Test 11-12
14 - Tue, Oct. 10	Kapitel 14
------ Th, Oct. 12	Fall Break
15 - Tue, Oct. 17	Kapitel 15	Test 13-14
16 - Th, Oct. 19	Kapitel 16	Wiederholung 3, pp. 155 - 157
17 - Tue, Oct. 24	Kapitel 17	Test 15 - 16
18 - Th, Oct. 26	Kapitel 18
19 - Tue, Oct. 31	Kapitel 19	Test 17-18
20 - Th, Nov. 2	Kapitel 20
21 - Tue, Nov. 7	Kapitel 21	Test 19-20
22 - Th, Nov. 9	Kapitel 22	Wiederholung 4, pp. 202 - 204
23 - Tue, Nov. 14	Kapitel 23	Test 21-22
24 - Th, Nov. 16	Kapitel 24
25 - Tue, Nov. 21	Kapitel 25	Test 23 - 24
------ Th, Nov. 23	Thanksgiving Holiday
26 - Tue, Nov. 28	Kapitel 26	Wiederholung 5, pp. 243 - 245
27 - Th, Nov. 30	Kapitel 27	Test 25 - 26
28 - Tue, Dec. 5	Kapitel 28
29 - Th, Dec. 7	Kapitel 29 and 30 (selections TBA)	Test 27-28
30 - Th, Dec. 14, 1 - 4 p.m.	Graduate Certification Exam	bring your dictionary

Viel Spass beim Übersetzen!