Course will commence once the minimum capacity is reached
Courses
Step into Maltese – A beginner’s course for non-native speakers
Course Offer: Self-paced course
Course Duration: 30 Hours (completion by 31/05/2024)
Certification: Letter of attendance
Prerequisites: Internet connection and a digital device
Price: €34.94
Course Description
The Maltese language, marked by an evolutionary socio-political process which goes back centuries, is certainly very challenging to learn – but also very rewarding. Although Malta is officially a bilingual country where the English language is widely used in virtually all social spheres, amongst which academic and professional fields, a basic knowledge of Maltese is an absolute asset in developing and fostering a sound sense of community within the various local contexts.
This 30-hour course will not only focus on the basic phonetic, lexical, and grammatical notions of the Maltese language, with its unique traits, but will also help potential students familiarise with interesting idiomatic challenges which strengthen further one’s communication skills. This course will be offered asynchronously, providing extensive flexibility within the learners’ busy schedules. That said, commitment and dedication are key factors for successful outcomes and like any other language, continuous exposure to Maltese, in terms of reading, listening, writing and speaking, will help one overcome beginners’ barriers and achieve enough self-confidence which will lead to further improvement.
The course which targets mainly non-native speakers will entail practical activities that will help them stay engaged and motivated. All material and presentations will be uploaded on our Virtual Learning Environment. Regardless of the asynchronous nature of the course, students will be still availing of tutorial contact for delivery and also in case of any rising necessities and clarifications.
The self-paced course will commence from October 2023 onwards and once the required number of learners have enrolled. It offers 30 hours of self-paced learning, including instructional materials, online resources, lesson explanations, discussion forums, assignments, and recommended readings. Registration is open until 15 March 2024. Upon reaching the minimum number of participants, you will be notified. You will have until 31 May 2024 to complete the course at your own pace regardless of the commencement date.
Course Outline
- Learning the Maltese alphabet and its phonetic aspect (pronunciation) through explanations and reading. The Maltese alphabet is very important because its structure is used in everyday conversation; the better the pronunciation, the more understood one will be in speaking the language.
- Learning basic grammatical and lexical concepts 1: articles and pronouns. Articles and pronouns are very important to the language. Maltese articles combine with nouns to indicate the type of reference. Maltese pronouns include personal and other types of pronouns which help one specify reference to persons, objects and themes in any given context.
- Learning basic grammatical and lexical concepts 2: numbers; nouns and adjectives – the singular and plural; the masculine and feminine. Learning numbers is important because these show quantity and sequence order. Nouns and adjectives are words used to name and describe a persons, animals, places, things and abstract ideas. While the singular and plural of nouns and adjectives indicate quantity, the masculine and feminine indicate gender.
- Learning grammatical concepts 3: verbs and tenses. Verbs convey actions and states of being, and agree with the subject, object, gender, number and the time of action (present, past and future).
- Familiarising with commonly used vocabulary and idioms. Vocabulary and popular expressions usually increases with time and exposure, and serve as an indispensable tool for communicating, learning and integrating. However, this course will accelerate the process by helping prospective learners acquire a variety of lexicon and idioms used on a daily basis.
- Putting theory into practice – gaining momentum while overcoming common language barriers. Language barriers can be challenging, but working and dealing with people of different cultures and backgrounds drives innovation, creativity, and success. Common communicative barriers and how to deal with them will be tackled in this course section.
