Towards an integrated curriculum for French: a case study

Abstract

Within the new education context in South Africa, French has to re-invent itself in
order to demonstrate its relevance in a multicultural and multilingual society.
Traditionally the teaching of language at tertiary institutions has been inward-focused
and the language itself has been the emphasis. But in an environment in which the
integration of theory and practice is stressed, particularly with the creation of
comprehensive institutions, it is necessary for languages, and in this case French in
particular, to interrogate the integration of their curricula into the broader programme
framework. In so doing, the emphasis shifts from language-specific knowledge to
transferable skills applied within the linguistic context. Our article will therefore focus
on a particular theme-based project that seeks to improve linguistic competence in
an applied context and therefore demonstrate the potential to integrate the teaching
of French into a discipline-specific programme.

Journal for Language Teaching vol Vol. 41 (2) 2007: pp. 85-98