ENGLISH FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL STUDIES A - L

The course aims at consolidating and deepening students’ linguistic skills, particularly concerning the morphological, syntactical, and lexical aspects of language (B1 level of the Common European Framework), the receptive and productive oral and written skills, and the comment on specialized texts belonging to the field of psychological studies.

Entry level: A2.

Achievement level: B1.

Following the Dublin Descriptors, the expected learning outcomes are the following:

Knowledge and understanding (DD1)

-          Knowledge of theories and translation models in the English linguistics

Applying knowledge and understand (DD2)

-          Link the theoretical and methodological contents learned to the interpretation of specialized texts

-          Being able to research dictionaries and corpora through the use of technology

Making judgments (DD3)

- Being able to interpret and formulate the learning demand

Communication skills (DD4)

- Being able to talk, negotiate and argue using the specialized lexicon

- Being able to write texts of various genres.

Learning skills (DD5)

-          Being able to identify one’s learning needs

It is to underline that attendance, both in the laboratory activities and in the lectures, is

highly recommended, given the communicative language teaching approach.  It is also necessary to access the in-progress tests.

Morphological, syntactical, and lexical analysis of different texts types; reading comprehension activities with a focus on the scientific lexicon of Psychology and particularly on the following topics:

- A brief history of psychology (Psychology/Psychologies)

- Clinical and abnormal psychology (Types of psychotherapy)

- General psychology (IQ testing, Memory, Stimuli, Cognitive Psychology)

- Developmental Psychology (The Strange Situation, Erikson, Piaget)

- The Health Benefits of journaling 

- Film analysis of "Freedom Writers' Diary"

- The Popularization of Psychological Discourse 

By the end of the course students will be able to:

- Identify and properly use the grammatical and syntactical structures dealt with during lessons.

- Recognize and properly use the most frequently recurring elements of the specialized lexicon.

- Read, translate, and comment on texts about psychological sciences and techniques.

- Sum up information found in texts/films.

Grammar and Language skills

- Grammar: M. Swan, C. Walter, D. Bertocchi, The Good Grammar Book for Italian Students, Oxford U.P., Oxford 2007 (only for reference, 318 pp)

- Language Skills: handouts will be provided (about 20 pp.)

Monographic course

1. S. Porro, English for Psychological Studies, Celid, Torino 2013, pp. 7- 42 (33 pp.)

2. M. Purcell, The Health benefits of journaling, www.psychcentral.com (2 pp.)

3. P.C.Leotta, “The transportation of British, American and Indian cultures to Italian-dubbed films. Conventionality and creative solutions”, in V. Bonsignori, G. Cappelli, E. Mattiello (eds), Worlds of Words: Complexity, Creativity, and Conventionality in English Language, Literature and Culture, Vol. 1 (Language), Pisa University Press, Pisa, 2019, pp. 187-201. (only the paragraph on "Freedom Writers' Diary"), (2 pp.)

Written test, oral test (interview with a native speaker + interview with the Professor), in-progress assessment for attending students.

The evaluation criteria used for the examination are:

Adequacy of expression about content and method

Ability to re-process knowledge

Ability to organize knowledge according to specific objectives

Orderliness of essay

The breadth of thematic awareness and vocabulary accuracy

Ability to study critically

The final mark of the entire course (7 ECTS) will be derived from the average of the marks obtained in the three parts (written test, interview with the native speaker, and interview with the Professor).

The written test focuses on the B1 level of the CEFR.

The oral exam is focused on the discussion of the topics dealt with in the laboratory and lectures 

Students will read, translate, answer comprehension questions, summarize, and comment.

 The exam is based on the knowledge of specific lexicon.