Language and Culture in Contemporary France-Lyon- Paris
DialogueLyon, Paris France, Paris Summer II, 2025
Courses
France has been witnessing a constant wave of immigrants for over a century, sparking debate over immigration policies throughout the country. Most immigrants come from French colonies and North Africa. The in?ux of immigrants played a signi?cant role in France’s development as well as its laws throughout generations. Before the First and Second World War, and after the decolonization in Africa, many immigrants came to France to seek employment and a new life. Nowadays, France’s immigration policy has changed, with European workers becoming more accepted and preferred over Africans. Because of xenophobic views and conservatism from the right wing (Le RN), the French government has gradually modi?ed its laws regarding immigration and citizenship. In this course we will examine the major periods of immigration during the 20th century and after decolonization. We’ll discuss policies of assimilation and integration and engage in debates regarding multiculturalism and secularism. We will examine the di?erent barriers North Africans experience when integrating to life in France, and the challenge that France is facing every day. This course will be conducted in French.
Goal of this program: The Dialogue of Civilizations Program is an immersion of five and a half weeks in France both from its heart ‘Lyon’ to the metropolis ‘Paris’, providing students the opportunity to learn, improve, and use French in everyday situations. Concentration on developing all four language skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing, will be the emphasis of this program. Through language and culture courses, interactive activities with the locals, field trips, and student centered classroom discussions, students will be fully immersed and exposed to the contemporary usage of French, along with its rich culture. Students will learn about France through its historical events in Art, Cinema, Fashion, Science and Technology, as well as developments in Laws and Immigration. The North African Immigration will be the main focus including the troubled history of assimilation and the challenge of French diversity.
Designed for individuals whose language skills are at an advanced level and who seek specially focused language instruction. Such instruction might be the use of the language in specific settings, or it might be focused on specific conversational nuances of the language. Requires at least an advanced level of competence in the language. May be repeated without limit.
This Dialogue of Civilizations program takes place at the Université Catholique de Lyon, a university in the heart of France, followed by a cultural visit to Paris. In this program, students will be taking courses and participating in cultural excursions and events in the beautiful city of Lyon. The program ends with a visit to the city of lights: Paris. The dialogue provides a total immersion in the language, interactions with the locals, and an understanding of ongoing social, cultural and political events. Students are housed in individual rooms in Lyon at a university residence, and in a hotel in the heart of Paris. The summer language course will include 20 hours of classes per week in addition to cultural and historical immersion. The classes will cover different levels of French in order to satisfy the students’ level. Classes are taught in French and provide students with the opportunity to improve their oral and written skills. Students will be able to take part in a variety of cultural activities in Lyon and visiting historical site and cities such as La Vallée du Rhone, Geneva (Switzerland), Annecy, Le Beaujolais, and various museums: le Musee de la Miniature, Le Musee des Beaux Arts, Musee Gallo-Romain, etc. and in Paris visiting Chateau de Versailles, le Louvre, le Musee de l’immigration and more
