Latin Language 1

CX115/CX215/CX315

Depending on year of study.

Module convenor: Dr Joe Watson (joe.l.watson@warwick.ac.uk)

Module weight: 15 CATS

Introduction

This module offers the opportunity to learn the basics of the Latin language and is designed for students who have little or no previous experience of the language. This is an intensive course and designed to build into Latin II (CX110/CX210/CX310), although Latin I may be taken on its own. In Latin I, students will cover the major points of Latin accidence (that is, the forms of Latin words).

All Latin students will be required to have access the coursebook Classical Latin: An Introductory Course by JC McKeown (2010). For more information on books which are relevant to the course (but are not required), please see this PDF , which contains further information about dictionaries etc..

Because this is an intensive course, students are required to undertake a significant amount of independent study outside the classroom. There are four hours of teaching each week: three hours of lecture, and one hour of consolidation and revision. Each session should be followed up with at least three hours of personal study afterwards and there needs to be significant consolidation and revision in the Christmas and Easter vacations.

The Department welcomes enquiries from students outside the Classics Department, although in some years numbers may dictate that the module be limited to members of the Classics department. Postgraduates from other Departments who are interested in taking the module should email the module co-ordinator to signify their interest.

Main points

For 2023-2024, there will be four hours of classes per week. We will use the course book Classical Latin: An Introductory Course by JC McKeown. We ask that students ensure that they have access to this book before the start of Term 1.

You should expect to:

spend at least 3 hours between each class on independent study
- I.e. at least 12 hours of independent study per week
revise for exams over the Christmas and Easter vacations,
set aside time for 300 hours of study over the year in total.

Attendance

Attendance is required at all classes, unless there is a very good reason you cannot attend. If you have appointment you cannot miss, please discuss this in advance. If you are ill, you should email as soon as possible (on the day) giving a brief explanation of why you could not attend. In the absence of any such email, attendance will be noted as unauthorised in the register.

Our experience is that regular attendance is the single most important factor for success on this module.

In the event that you have to miss classes for more than one week due to illness, university regulations usually require you to submit a medical certificate from your GP or similar healthcare professional to the departmental office. You will be informed if there are different arrangements for 2023-2024.

More importantly, you should be in email contact with the module tutor and your personal tutor since it is easy to fall behind in such a situation and catching up becomes progressively harder.

Drop-in sessions

Drop-in sessions are an important part of the module, offering students the opportunity to sort out areas of uncertainty as the module progresses. Often a quick, well-directed question can sort things out quickly and put your mind at rest. Drop-in sessions are particularly important where you have missed a class. You are expected to do the work which is always set out on-line, but you should use a drop-in session to check on anything you have not understood.

Drop-in sessions for Term 1 (October-December 2023): times tbc.