BALV3500 EU Law and Politics Course description

Emphasis is placed on problem-based student-active forms of learning with concrete practical tasks and analyses of judgments.  

The following coursework requirements must have been approved in order for the student to take the exam: 

• Coursework requirement 1: A written assignment with a scope of 1,000 words (+/- 10 %)  

The purpose of the coursework requirement is to practise writing legal texts.  

The required coursework must be completed and approved by the stipulated deadline in order for the student to take the exam. If the coursework is not approved, the student will be given the opportunity to submit an improved version once by a given deadline. 

After completing the course, the student should have the following overall learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student has knowledge of

• the European Union and the EEA: historical development, theories of European integration, Treaties, etc.
• topics of EU and EEA Law: legal sources, effects of EU legislation in the national systems, the EEA Agreement, free movement of people, etc.
• the functioning of the EU institutional framework: composition and competences of the institutions, procedures, inter-institutional relations and main political dynamics that characterize the decision-making processes
• topical issues: democracy, relationship between Norway and the EU, current issues in the European context

Skills

The student is able to

• demonstrate understanding of the European integration process
• solve basic legal questions of EU Law independently, identifying and utilizing relevant legal sources
• analyze and illustrate how the institutional structure and decision-making processes of the EU work

General competence

The student is able to

• understand and critically assess core issues in the European context
• use specialized terminology and write on the topics studied
• retrieve legal sources using international databases

The course is based on lectures, group work, assignments, and self-study.

The following coursework requirements must have been approved in order for the student to take the exam:

• Coursework 1: The students, working individually or in groups, are required to submit a written work of maximum 1200 words. The groups, topics and deadline will be decided by the lecturer and announced on Canvas during the course.

The purpose of the coursework is the development of skills specified under learning outcomes.

All required coursework must be completed and approved by the given deadline in order for the student to take the exam. If the coursework requirement has not been approved, the student will be given the opportunity to submit an improved version one time by the given deadline.  

The exam in the course is a home exam over a period of 3 hours.

The candidates can write their answers in English or Norwegian.

Pass/fail.

The exam papers are assessed by a national corps of examiners.

After completion of the course, the student will have acquired the following learning outcomes, defined as knowledge, skills and general competence.

Knowledge

The student

• can communicate in French and has oral and written skills corresponding to advanced B1 level of Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)
• is able to adjust the knowledge to the capacity of teenage learners
• can communicate about culture and society in French-speaking countries, including culture, history and geography,
• can communicate about French-speaking countries with the use of visual art, literature, music, cinema and cultural events.

Skills

The student

• is capable of using French corresponding to advanced B1 level : linguistic, sociolinguistic and pragmatic level
• is capable of selecting the elements of the everyday-life in France relevant to teach in a task-oriented approach, by using authentic materials including literature and art.
• can develop a course in French dedicated to pupils from class 5 to 10 following an task oriented approach
• is able to plan classes with of grammar, selecting basic grammar structures in French and teach these elements for a public of pupils (class 5-10)

General competence

The student

• is capable of integrating the basic skills in the French language subject for everyday life even in unexpected situations and related to multimodal artistic formats.
• is capable of assessing his/her own teaching practice
• is able to explain and justify own learning and communication strategies
• has developed multilingual competence
• has developed intercultural competence
• can develop multilingual and intercultural competence in own teaching practice

The teaching method will be based on a task approach, where a reflexive learning method will be the general working method. The session in Caen will be an intensive and immersive session during the second semester, and the students will be able to select and to identify on their own elements of cultural events, of everyday life that can be useful for the development of own teaching practice.

Every module is seen as having two goals that work together: learning and teaching French.

Collaborative work in groups is encouraged, not only during the sessions in Oslo and in Caen, but also by e-learning method: peer-learning, exchange of good practices moderated and supervised by a teacher, collaborative and individual digital portfolio. The group of in-service students is at that time constituted and the main goal is to allow efficient co-working and make sure that the new knowledge and skills will be transferred into the students’ own classrooms in lower secondary school.

The organisation is as follows:

• intensive course in Caen: courses in the classrooms of the university, school outings and investigations in the city
• online period with supervision: online courses, tasks on the platform, feedback from the peers and the teachers, digital portfolio consisting on an individual blog and an open forum moderated by the teacher; an online course delivered in synchronous time (frequency to be defined). The portfolio is a reflexive task allowing the teacher to ask questions about the way he/she learns French, which is why it is based on the language course. The didactics modules will help the teacher to develop his/her own grammar and other type of teaching material. The portfolio will also help the student to examine how he/she selects the material and to define how he/she will use it in the classroom.
• intensive course in Oslo: courses in the classrooms of the university