This 10-week course is pitched at level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), and completion of the course will help you meet some of the level requirements. To help develop your fluency in the language, the course will focus primarily on speaking and listening skills, but will also include practice in reading and writing. You will have plenty of opportunities to practise the target language through hands-on class activities such as discussions, debates and role-plays.
Italian: Upper Intermediate - Part 1
This is an in-person course which requires your attendance to the weekly meetings which take place in Oxford.
Overview
Programme details
Course starts: 30 Sep 2025.
Our public programme is open access, and most adult language classes are mixed ability. To benefit from this course, participants will have done one of the following:
- completed our Italian 3: Intermediate,
- gained an AS Level (Grade A/A*) in Italian, or
- achieved B1 Level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in Italian.
The weekly course schedule below is intended to give an indication of the main topic(s) likely to be covered in each session. Please note that these may sometimes change according to the tutor’s discretion to reflect the interests of course participants.
Week 1: Il Grand Tour
Week 2: Geografia italiana: le due Italie
Week 3: Scienze e futuro
Week 4: Dal medico specialista
Week 5: Il sistema politico italiano
Week 6: Dibattiti e proposte
Week 7: Personalità: vizi e virtù
Week 8: Animali da compagnia
Week 9: Storia d'Italia
Week 10: Personaggi controversi
Recommended reading
All weekly class students may become borrowing members of the Rewley House Continuing Education Library for the duration of their course. Prospective students whose courses have not yet started are welcome to use the Library for reference. More information can be found on the Library website.
There is a Guide for Weekly Class students which will give you further information.
Textbooks
To participate in the course fully, you will need access to the following textbook:
- DIECI lezioni di italiano B2 (units 1-5) / C.M. Naddeo, E. Orlandino
Certification
Students who attend a minimum of 70% of classes will receive a Certificate of Attendance.
Fees
| Description | Costs |
|---|---|
| Course Fee | £300.00 |
Funding
If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. Please see the below link for full details:
Tutor
Dr Francesca Magnabosco
Francesca Magnabosco obtained her DPhil in Italian literature from the Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages, Oxford University. She has been teaching Italian language and culture at OUDCE for over a decade. She is also a lecturer in Renaissance literature at Pembroke College, Oxford.
Course aims
To help learners develop the language required to interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity in discussions in familiar contexts, accounting for and sustaining own views.
Course objectives
- To further develop the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing to enable students to interact in a range of contexts on both concrete and abstract topics
- To consolidate reading comprehension skills required for understanding a range of articles and reports in which the writer adopts particular viewpoints
- To widen the range of lexical repertoire, idioms and grammar structures required for understanding a range of news and current affairs programmes and writing clear texts to pass on information, narrate events, or express viewpoints.
- To further develop intercultural competence and appreciation of the role that values and beliefs play in communication between cultures and social groups
Teaching methods
You will learn through a communicative teaching approach with the emphasis on actively engaging in classroom activities in the target language. These are likely to include role-plays, pair- and small-group work, debates and discussions conducted in a supportive, collaborative and informal learning environment.
The course has been structured to help you primarily to improve your speaking and listening skills and to deepen your awareness of cultural nuances and customs in the target language. You will also learn and practise new grammatical structures in a communicative context and will be encouraged to develop your reading and writing skills in your own time.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be better prepared to:
- understand extended speech and follow lines of argument on familiar topics,
- participate in discussions and express viewpoints with a degree of fluency and spontaneity,
- read a range of articles, reports and news items with a degree of independence to obtain information, ideas and opinions, using reference sources selectively, and
- write clear and detailed texts to present own viewpoints, narrate events, and explain reasons.
Assessment methods
You will be set optional assignments to consolidate your learning and to allow you to progress at your own pace.
Application
Please use the 'Book now' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an Enrolment form for short courses | Oxford University Department for Continuing Education