Explore UCD

UCD Home >

GER10120

Academic Year 2025/2026

Spoken German for Beginners (GER10120)

Subject:
German
College:
Arts & Humanities
School:
Languages, Cultures & Linguis
Level:
1 (Introductory)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Ms Sherry Ishak
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

This module focuses on oral and aural language skills and is intended primarily (but not exclusively) for students taking GER10100 (German Beginners A). Using a variety of exercises, audiovisual material and role play, students will learn to comprehend sentences and short dialogues in German, and practice the production of phonetic patterns specific to the German language.
Students who have achieved at least a B grade in this module are deemed to have attained CEFR level of A1 in the area of oral performance and listening comprehension.
Attendance at classes is extremely important in order to progress in this module, and assessment will often take place during classes.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

On completion of the module students should be able to:
 pronounce simple German words and sentences correctly
 engage in simple conversations relating to everyday situations in a German-speaking environment
 understand simple sentences in German


For more information please view the CEFR* description for qualitative aspects of spoken language use for different levels in the Brightspace page of this module.

(*): Common European Framework of Reference for Languages

Indicative Module Content:

The module is recommended for students who have little or no German, or who have started learning German at level A1 of the CEFR. Accordingly, the module is not suitable for students who studied German before.
It introduces basic phenomena of German pronunciation and focuses on speaking and understanding basic German in everyday situations. Students will practise their listening, pronunciation and speaking skills by communicative tasks that ask for collaboration in the classroom.
The module builds on the module GER10110 (German Language for Beginners), but it is not essential to take GER10110 in conjunction with this module.

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Small Group

24
Specified Learning Activities

46
Autonomous Student Learning

30
Total

100

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
This is a highly active/task-based module which focuses on communicative skills. The students are asked to work collaboratively and will soon learn to lose their fear of speaking a foreign language.

In-class work will include:
• small group and partner work
• listening comprehensions
• speaking/pronunciation exercises.

Independent work outside of class will include:
• Brightspace quizzes
• listening to own recordings and improving the pronunciation
• learning vocabulary and grammatical structures

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations
Learning Exclusions:

Students who have engaged in prior formal study of the German language are not eligible to take this module.
Students who are unsure of their eligibility for this module should consult with the module coordinator who may facilitate transfer between Beginner and Non-Beginner modules in the early weeks of the semester.

Learning Recommendations:

We recommend that students who register for German Beginners A also sign up for this course.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Incompatibles:
GER10010 - German Language I a, GER20060 - German Language II a, LANG10100 - German Gen Purp 1, LANG10130 - German Gen Purp 2


 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Participation in Learning Activities: Demonstration of participation in classroom activities and completion of homework Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12 Pass/Fail Grade Scale No
15
 No
Practical Skills Assessment: Aural Test Week 4 Graded No
20
 No
Practical Skills Assessment: Short Conversation in Pairs Week 9 Graded No
25
 No
Practical Skills Assessment: Role Play in Pairs in Week 13* Week 12 Graded No
40
 No

Carry forward of passed components
No
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment
• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Online automated feedback
• Peer review activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

In order to practise speaking skills in a foreign language, the students have to lose the fear of speaking the language. Hence, in this module, students will learn how to produce sounds that are not used in their native language(s) as well as understand and have short conversations. Feedback will be given throughout the semester by the tutor but also by fellow students. You will be asked to record yourself and self-assess but you will also be given feedback on group activities by your tutor. Furthermore, homework assessments include online quizzes consisting of vocabulary and grammar exercises as well listening comprehension tasks. Feedback will be given automatically on Brightspace. Last but not least, students will have two speaking assessments. Feedback will be given individually in written form and in class.

Name Role
Ms Sherry Ishak Lecturer / Co-Lecturer

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Autumn Seminar Offering 1 Week(s) - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12 Thurs 15:00 - 16:50
Print this page
Fill in the following details:
Enter the body of your query here.

From time to time UCD would like to send you further information that we feel, based on your enquiry, would be of interest to you.