Instructor(s):
Short Description of the Course:
The course must be seen as a direct continuation of Beginners’ Hungarian Course I. The students go on studying the elements of the particularly rich Hungarian morphology, and their functions in the use of the language. The teaching material includes some more complex syntactic structures, certain parts of the inflectional system, and provides the students with the knowledge of the basic means of composing texts in Hungarian. The material also covers topics of everyday life and a vocabulary/stock phrases belonging to them, which will help students to communicate in various conversational situations.
Culture is an organically integrated part of the course. There are several things we do throughout the semester to introduce the culture of the country to the students.
- Cooking a Hungarian dish together
We prepare the food together. In the process the students learn about traditioanl Hungarian cuisine, the different ways of preparing food and the most traditional ingredients Hungarians use.
- A visit to a typical Hungarian ’cakes and coffee’ shop
This is a unique experience because the students can’t really find this kind of places back home. The students have to order cakes and drinks in Hungarian.
- Preparing a performance in Hungarian for the closing ceremony
The students learn and act out a short play (approx.15 min.), which is based on a Hungarian tale or folk tale. The language of the play is adapted so that it can be a summary of the grammar structures and functions the students have learnt throughout the semester.
Apart from the above mentioned we always celebrate the holidays: Easter in the spring semester and Santa Claus and Christmas in the fall. In this way the students can have some insight into how Hungarians celebrate these international or typically Hungarian holidays. We learn songs and the vocabulary of the holidays.
The topic list of the course book covers the following:
- Greetings, introduce yourself
- Place of living (country, city, home)
- At the doctor’s
- Shopping for food
- Shopping for clothes
- Seasons and activities
- Free time
- Getting around town
- Sightseeing
These topics inevitably present the opportunity to discuss different aspects of Hungarian culture. Among other things we try to bring the topics close to our students by putting special emphasis on aspects that might be really interesting for young people. For example in connecrion with free time activities we include music and food festivals and so called ’ruin pubs’, which are very popular with young Hungarians.
Aim of the course:
The course is designed to develop the students’ language skills and knowledge of Hungarian they acquired on the previous level. This second phase of the Beginners’ Hungarian Course is also intended to meet the language needs of students in making themselves understood with native Hungarians.
Prerequisites:
Completing Beginners’ Hungarian Course I. or meeting the requirements of a similar language course
Detailed Program and Class Schedule:
- Reviewing types of adverbs of place; the inflection of ‘ik’-verbs
- Verbal prefixes indicating directions; form and function of the dative
- Adverbs of time; word-order positions of verbal prefixes; the possessive construction
- Possessive suffixes, singular; the infinitive and its constructions
- The Hungarian substantive verb expressing possession; verbs formed with the suffix -hat, -het (= can, may)
- Causal clauses; possessive suffixes, plural
- Grammar summary – reviewing the material
End-term test
Method of instruction:
Means and ways of communicative language teaching
Coursebook:
Erdős József – Prileszky Csilla: Halló, itt Magyarország! I. Budapest, Akadémiai Kiadó 2000.
Supplementary material: Kaleidovox. Computer-aided exercises by Erdős József
Grading:
Grading is based on student performance in three areas: a) homework done regularly; b) performances at the classes; c) written test closing the course.
Instructors' bio:
Katalin Bakonyi Berényi is a language teacher in the Centre of Modern Languages at BME, since 1978; graduated from Kossuth Lajos University, qualification: teacher of Hungarian and English language and literature. Teaching activity: Hungarian as a foreign language to foreign students studying engineering in Hungarian or English; to Erasmus/Study Abroad exchange students; teaching general, technical and business English to Hungarian students; Hungarian literature and film courses to Erasmus/Study Abroad students. Publications on teaching Hungarian as a foreign language, the methodology of teaching languages and cultural topics; co-author of the Coursebook for Advanced Learners of Hungarian.
Márta Magasi graduated from Eötvös Lóránd University, Budapest in 1982 with a degree in Hungarian language and literature. She has been a teacher at BME in the Centre of Modern Languages for 14 years, where she teaches Hungarian language courses to foreign students studying engineering. In addition, she is involved in university language training programs abroad and in editing and writing university publications (e.g. Readings in Technical English; Language Tests for Foreign Students, etc.). Recently she has been working as a teacher and coordinator of language trainings for leading multinational companies.