Unit FRENCH FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
- Course
- International relations
- Study-unit Code
- A005402
- Curriculum
- In all curricula
- Teacher
- Francesca Piselli
- Teachers
-
- Francesca Piselli
- Hours
- 60 ore - Francesca Piselli
- CFU
- 8
- Course Regulation
- Coorte 2025
- Offered
- 2026/27
- Learning activities
- Caratterizzante
- Area
- Formazione linguistica
- Sector
- L-LIN/04
- Type of study-unit
- Opzionale (Optional)
- Type of learning activities
- Attività formativa monodisciplinare
- Language of instruction
- French
- Contents
- The course offers activities in written and oral comprehension and production in the field of French for International Relations. It provides specific entraînement focused on réalisation de tâches in professional and institutional situations.
Part of the course focuses on the textual, lexical and discursive analysis of documents relating to international relations, diplomacy, international organisations and institutional communication. Students will work on authentic written, oral and audiovisual documents, such as press articles, notes, letters, e-mails, reports, presentations, debates, meetings and materials produced by Francophone international organisations and institutions.
The activities aim to consolidate students’ linguistic and communication skills and to develop their ability to understand, summarise, reformulate, present and discuss content relating to international relations in French. - Reference texts
- Attending students
All materials required for exam preparation will be made available on the UniStudium platform – Lingua francese per le relazioni internazionali / Français des relations internationales at the beginning of the course.
For activities involving summary, oral presentation and discussion, interdisciplinary articles may be proposed on topics related to international relations, institutional communication, political-diplomatic language and discourse analysis. The specific articles will be indicated by the lecturer and will also be made available on UniStudium.
Further reading:
• Claudie Bassi, Anne-Marie Chapsal, Diplomatie.com, CLE International, 2005.
• Christine Guyot-Clément, Apprendre la langue de l’argumentation, Paris, Belin, 2012.
• Edmond Pascual, La communication écrite en diplomatie, Perpignan, Presses Universitaires de Perpignan, 2004.
• Christian Plantin, L’argumentation. Histoire, théories, perspectives, Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, 2005.
• Gilbert Rist, ed., Les mots du pouvoir. Sens et non-sens de la rhétorique internationale, Genève/Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, 2002.
• Laurence Riehl, Antoinette Zabardi, Objectif Diplomatie 2. Le français des relations européennes et internationales, B1-B2, nouvelle édition / 2e éd., Paris, Hachette FLE, 2026.
• Constanze Villar, Le discours diplomatique, Paris, L’Harmattan, coll. « Pouvoirs comparés », 2006.
Recommended dictionaries
• Il Boch. Dizionario Francese Italiano - Italiano Francese, Bologna, Zanichelli, latest edition.
• DIF. Dizionario Francese Italiano - Italiano Francese, Turin, Paravia, latest edition.
• Le Petit Robert. Dictionnaire de la langue française, Paris, Dictionnaires Le Robert, latest edition.
Non-attending students
The programme for non-attending students is the same as that for attending students. All materials required for exam preparation will be made available by the lecturer on the UniStudium platform – Lingua francese per le relazioni internazionali / Français des relations internationales at the beginning of the course.
Non-attending students are also required to study chapters 3, 4 and 5 of:
Claudie Bassi, Anne-Marie Chapsal, Diplomatie.com, CLE International, 2005.
The volume contains exercises that can be used for self-study and for exam preparation. The answer key is available at the end of the volume. The text is available at the Library of Historical and Political Studies.
Non-attending students are invited to consult UniStudium and to contact the lecturer well in advance of the exam in order to agree on the preparation methods, any units to be studied in greater depth, and the topic of the oral presentation.
Working students, students with disabilities and/or students with specific learning disorders are invited to contact the lecturer at the beginning of the course, or in any case well in advance of the exam, in order to receive specific guidance on their study path and exam preparation methods, in compliance with current regulations and University guidelines. - Educational objectives
- The course aims to consolidate higher-intermediate language competence in French for International Relations and to develop students’ ability to carry out professional communication tasks, both written and oral, in French.
In line with the learning objectives of the Degree Programme in International Relations, the course helps students develop the ability to understand, analyse and produce foreign-language texts and discourse relating to international communication, institutions, diplomacy and international organisations. The course also aims to strengthen the communication skills required to interact in professional, intercultural and international contexts.
By the end of the course, students will have acquired:
• consolidated knowledge of the main lexical, syntactic and grammatical structures of French;
• knowledge of the basic and intermediate vocabulary of French for International Relations;
• knowledge of the vocabulary of diplomacy, international organisations and institutional communication;
• knowledge of the main features of expository, argumentative, professional and institutional texts;
• knowledge of elements of lexical and discourse analysis applied to documents relating to international relations.
The main skills acquired, namely the ability to apply knowledge and understanding, will be:
• to understand the essential elements of informational, professional and institutional documents in French;
• to understand and summarise written, oral and audiovisual texts relating to international relations;
• to write simple professional documents, e-mails and formal letters in common communication situations;
• to interact in communicative exchanges in professional and institutional contexts;
• to present an institution, an international organisation, the situation of a country or a mission;
• to explain, argue or negotiate relevant aspects of an activity in the international field;
• to convey the main ideas of a speech or text;
• to develop autonomous learning and self-study skills.
The course also contributes to the development of independent judgement, through the critical analysis of authentic texts and documents, and of communication skills, through presentation, discussion, reformulation and argumentation activities in French. - Prerequisites
- In order to attend the Français des relations internationales course offered by the Department and, in any case, to take the exam, students must hold a B2-level certificate issued by the University Language Centre (CLA) of the University of Perugia, or one of the following international certificates: DELF B2 or DALF. The ESABAC diploma is also recognised.
The CLA certificate is valid for 24 months, while international certificates and the ESABAC diploma are valid for 36 months, with reference to the date on which the Department exam is taken. A copy of the international certificates or of the ESABAC diploma must be submitted to the teacher during the first year or, in any case, by the first day of class in the Department.
The language prerequisite requiring students to hold a B2-level certificate applies to both attending and non-attending students. - Teaching methods
- The course consists of classroom lectures supported by written and audiovisual materials, such as slides, videos, audio recordings and authentic documents. Classroom exercises and simulations will be carried out individually, in pairs and in groups.
Activities include language exercises, reading and listening comprehension tasks, simulations of professional situations, role plays, oral presentations, discussions, debates, summary and reformulation exercises. These activities are designed to develop linguistic, communicative, textual and discourse skills in French for International Relations in an integrated way.
Students will also give presentations and take part in debates in order to develop oral presentation, argumentation and interaction skills. UniStudium will be used to share teaching materials, autonomous study guidelines and the documents to be analysed. - Other information
- Teacher’s contact details: e-mail address: francesca.piselli@unipg.it; office phone: 075 5855436.
Students are invited to consult UniStudium – Lingua francese per le relazioni internazionali / Français des relations internationales for information concerning the course, office hours, syllabus, teaching materials and communications from the teacher.
All students, whether attending or non-attending, are reminded that registration for the exam must be completed exclusively through the SOL platform: https://unipg.esse3.cineca.it/Home.do
Working students, non-attending students and students with disabilities and/or specific learning disorders are invited to contact the teacher at the beginning of the course in order to receive guidance on the syllabus, materials and exam preparation. Information on University support services for students with disabilities and/or specific learning disorders is available on the dedicated University webpage: http://www.unipg.it/disabilita-e-dsa.
Any seminars, meetings with experts or scientific events connected with the course may be indicated by the teacher during classes. Any participation requirements and possible recognition for assessment purposes will be communicated in class and on UniStudium. - Learning verification modality
- Assessment methods differ depending on whether students attend the course or not.
Attending students
For attending students, assessment is based on three continuous assessments, or contrôles continus, and on the mark obtained in the CLA language test or in the recognised language certification.
The first continuous assessment consists of an oral presentation in class, based on one of the activities introduced in the first part of the course, such as the presentation of an international organisation or NGO, or a thematic revue de presse. The topic of the activity must be agreed in advance with the teacher, and students are required to carry out background research autonomously. Each presentation will last approximately 20 minutes.
The second continuous assessment consists of one of the communication activities covered during the course, such as an informative compte rendu on a fact or event, or participation in a débat on topics related to the field of international relations. The expected duration is approximately 10-15 minutes. The topic must be agreed in advance with the teacher. The activity may be followed by a short discussion.
The third continuous assessment consists of an oral summary and discussion of an interdisciplinary article relating to international relations, institutional communication, political-diplomatic language or discourse analysis. The teacher will provide a list of articles available on UniStudium, from which students must choose one. Students must inform the teacher of their choice at least one week before the assessment date. The expected duration is approximately 10 minutes and the assessment may be followed by a short discussion.
The three continuous assessments are designed to assess: the ability to understand and summarise documents in French; knowledge of the vocabulary of international relations, diplomacy and institutional communication; the ability to apply the acquired skills to professional communication situations; grammatical and lexical accuracy; appropriate use of language; the ability to organise a coherent presentation; and the ability to interact, argue and discuss a point of view in French.
The average mark of the three continuous assessments counts for 60% of the final grade. The remaining 40% is based on the mark obtained in the CLA test or in the recognised language certification, according to the procedures indicated by the teacher and the Degree Programme.
Non-attending students
For non-attending students, assessment is based on an oral exam lasting approximately 20-25 minutes and on the mark obtained in the CLA language test or in the recognised language certification.
The first part of the interview consists of an oral production task lasting approximately 10 minutes, chosen from the following formats: presentation of an international organisation or NGO, exposé, compte rendu or revue de presse. The topic must be agreed in advance with the teacher and students are required to carry out background research autonomously. Useful preparation materials will be made available on UniStudium.
The second part of the interview covers the contents of the course books and the materials indicated in the programme and available on UniStudium. Students must demonstrate knowledge of the main lexical, textual and discursive features of French for International Relations and the ability to apply them to the analysis of the documents studied.
The third part of the interview consists of an oral summary and discussion of an interdisciplinary article relating to international relations, institutional communication, political-diplomatic language or discourse analysis. The oral assessment lasts approximately 10 minutes. The teacher will provide a list of articles available on UniStudium, from which students must choose one. Students must inform the teacher of their choice well in advance of the exam date.
The oral exam is designed to assess the same learning outcomes as those required of attending students, with particular attention to autonomous study skills, completeness of preparation on the indicated materials, the ability to connect the different thematic units of the programme and accuracy in the use of French.
Assessment, for both attending and non-attending students, takes into account the following criteria: grammatical and lexical accuracy; comprehension of documents; ability to summarise and reformulate; lexical, textual and discourse analysis skills; completeness and relevance of answers; clarity and coherence of presentation; appropriate use of language; interaction skills; and the ability to argue a personal point of view in French.
For non-attending students, the oral exam counts for 60% of the final grade. The remaining 40% is based on the mark obtained in the CLA test or in the recognised language certification, according to the procedures indicated by the teacher and the Degree Programme.
Attendance is not compulsory, but it is strongly recommended. If students intend to take the exam in a year prior to the one scheduled in their study plan, they are advised to attend the course and to take the exam at the first available session after the end of classes, in accordance with the semester in which the course is scheduled.
Students with disabilities and/or specific learning disorders may request compensatory and/or dispensatory measures in accordance with University procedures, by contacting the teacher well in advance of the exam date. - Extended program
- The course offers activities in written and oral comprehension and production in the field of French for International Relations. It provides specific entraînement focused on réalisation de tâches in professional and institutional situations.
The textual, lexical, grammatical and discursive features of international discourse in French will be analysed. The activities, which require students’ active involvement, are based on authentic written and audiovisual documents produced by Francophone international organisations and institutions or relating to international communication.
The main types of documents studied during the course will include newspaper articles, notes, letters, e-mails, reports, press releases, institutional documents, presentations, debates and working meetings. These documents will be used to develop comprehension, analysis, summary, reformulation, oral presentation and discussion activities in French.
The course is organised around the following areas of work:
• consolidation of higher-intermediate linguistic and communication skills;
• vocabulary of international relations, diplomacy, international organisations and institutional communication;
• analysis of the textual and discursive features of professional and institutional documents;
• production of simple professional documents, such as e-mails, letters, notes and short reports;
• oral presentation of institutions, international organisations, countries or current international issues;
• compte rendu, revue de presse, oral summary and discussion of interdisciplinary articles relating to international relations, political-diplomatic language and discourse analysis;
• oral interaction, debate, argumentation and negotiation activities in professional and international contexts.
For non-attending students, the programme is the same as that for attending students. In addition, non-attending students are required to study chapters 3, 4 and 5 of Diplomatie.com, which includes exercises useful for autonomous study and practice in preparation for the exam. All materials available on UniStudium are an integral part of the exam programme. - Obiettivi Agenda 2030 per lo sviluppo sostenibile
- Relevant Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda: Goal 4 - Quality Education; Goal 5 - Gender Equality; Goal 10 - Reduced Inequalities.
The course contributes in particular to the development of linguistic, communication and intercultural skills that support informed participation in international and multilingual contexts.