Screen Requirements:
A laptop or desktop with a minimum of 13-inch screen. Net books with Windows XP also compatible
Processor Requirements:
Intel or AMD processor or a minimum requirement of Dual Core 2.0GHz or faster
RAM requirements:
At least 1 MB GB RAM, if Vista 2GB RAM
Operating System:
Windows 2000 or XP 32-bit (SP3), 2003 or Vista 32-bit/64-bit or Windows 7 32-bit/64-bit
Browser Requirements: Supports: Internet Explorer 6/7/8/9,
Firefox 3.x or 4 (32 bit) ,
Google Chrome 9/10
Other Requirements:
Recommend ActiveX be enabled for Internet Explorer
Preferred HD Web cam
Head phone with Microphone
Minimum internet Bandwidth for 2Mbps broadband per location
A minimum of 2 hours of Power back up
French is the second most influential language in the world, and more than 175 million people all over the world understand, speak, read or write French. It is the most widely taught second language after English and the mostly frequently used language on the Internet. Numerous international organizations and agencies have adopted French as an official language. Above all, French is the official language in 41 countries. Increase your Business and Employment opportunities
Your gamut of business and employment opportunities increase with appropriate French skills, you become a potential resource in the fields of International Business, International agencies, Tourism and hospitality industry, diplomatic service, post office, French research institutes, teaching translation and interpretation in government agencies. Ability to speak French will increase one’s job opportunities and salary potential! A Knowledge and skill base
Over 50% of English words have their origins in French! France has made significant contribution in the field of Humanities and social sciences and hence, ideologies have been originally written in French. France has won more Nobel Prizes for literature than any other country in the world, and is one of the top producers of international films!
Gateway of Business, Technology, Entertainment, Art and Sports.
France is Europe's foremost investor abroad! It is one of the world's major foreign tourist destinations with close to 75 million tourists every year! Learning French will develop one’s critical and creative thinking skills! French is the lingua franca of culture, including art, cuisine, dance, and fashion! French opens up an entire world of sporting events to aficionados! France is renowned for the quality of its technology! It has the world's fastest commercial train, the TGV, the Channel Tunnel, and is a leader in aerospace, engineering and physics among others!
French Language History
The prehistory of the French language begins with the colonisation of Gaul by the Romans. The Celts who inhabited Gaul when the Romans came were Indo-Europeans, related to the Greeks, Romans and Germanic peoples in both culture and language.
They appear to have lived originally in central or eastern Europe, but began to move westwards around 500 B.C and settled in Gaul some two hundred years later, displacing the other peoples whom they found there, notably the Iberians, who were driven towards
the south-east. By this time there were also important Greek settlements on the Mediterranean coast at such places as Marseilles, Nice and Antibes, which
have preserved their Greek names. In the second century B.C these Greek settlers, harassed by the Gauls, asked for Roman campaign in Gaul, a campaign which, spread over thirty years from 154 to 125 B.C,. led to the conquest of what the Romans then called the Provincia or province, a name which survives today as Provence. At first the Roman colony extend from the Alps to the Rhone, to the eastern Pyrenees, taking in what is today Roussillon. In 57 B.C., Julius Caesar undertook the conquest of the rest of Gaul, a process which was virtually complete by 52 B.C., for the Gauls, essentially a loose confederation of tribes, lacked political unity.
In the newly conquered territory, Gauls of any rank who had anything to do with administration and supply soon found that they had an incentive to learn Latin. Moreover, the only kind of education available was the Roman one: indeed, the Gauls could not write at all until they learned the art from the Romans, and this explains why those few monuments of the Gaulish tongue which have come down to us are mostly written in the Roman alphabet. Even so, Romanisation and Latinisation were a very gradual process. The bestowal of Roman citizenship on all free-born inhabitants of the Empire by Caracalla in A.D. 212 probably made no very great difference to the linguistic situation in Gaul, and it would not be unreasonable to suppose that in the second or third century A.D., in areas remote from Roman supply routes, Latin would be seldom heard and even more seldom understood, and Gaulish the normal language used. For this very reason, perhaps, Gaulish eventually lost much of its former prestige, and came to be looked down on as the speech of rustic underlings. Even so, it seems to have lingered on in places until as late as the fifth century; while in the Rhone delta Greek was used as well as Latin in Christian worship until as late as the sixth century.
In Gallo Roman France, a split occurred between north and south, assisted by incursions of Germanic speaking Franks whence the name "France" into the north. Here, too, further dialectalization occurred throughout the Middle Ages, resulting in a multitude of speech forms such as Francien, Picard, Norman, Lorrain, and Walloon. Southern French, or Provençal, split into Languedocien, Auvergnat, and many other dialects. The dialect of Paris gradually became the national language, however, because of the political prestige of the capital and today is accepted as the model for the French language.
French leveled the verb paradigms to such an extent that subject pronouns became mandatory (contrast French je chante, "I sing," with Italian canto); but in general the Latin paradigm has remained intact.
Notable in phonology was the loss of opposition between Latin long and short vowels, the voicing of intervocalic voiceless consonants, and in some languages the loss of syllable- and word-final s. The emergence of accentual patterns led to the reduction or loss of many unstressed vowels in the more heavily accented languages such as Gallo-Roman and Old French, and to the diphthongization of some stressed vowels in most of the Romance languages. Only in French and Portuguese, however, did vowels before a nasal consonant undergo nasalization--compare French main, "hand," with Portuguese mao and Spanish and Italian mano.
However, the history of the French Language is the history of the emergence and standardisation of a particular variety of northern French and its spread to the whole of what is now France, and beyond.
French Culture
Cultural Identity: France is today the melting pot of diverse cultures. However, it still retains its own unique appeal when it comes to ethnicity, geography and the French language. The once segregated local customs arising out of regional differences have matured to become a cultural identity that is unique to the heterogeneity. The culture of France has been largely influenced by mandatory defense service, the Franco-
Prussian feud and World War I and World War II. The two world wars were responsible for the influx of cultural influences and centralized market forces.
Today, the people of France symbolize collective identity. The culture is characteristic of 'chauvinism', a term widely used all over the orient and occident, integrated politics, universalism and the popular French grandeur. The latter offers a distinctive identity to the world of fashion and cuisine. Most modern French people prefer to relate to the term 'French' as a nationality and their language and not a measure of ethnicity, specific to the nation. Immigrants from Africa, Asia and other European countries had made France their home with diverse ethnic ascendancies, resulting in interracial relationships.
Customs and Traditions: The slight regional differences in modern France are displayed in colorful linguistic tradition, religious tolerance, fashion, family structure, industries and cuisine. This lap of the Renaissance is now distinct in social, cultural and political scene of belonging. The modern urbanization and mass media have engraved French culture in regional autonomy and the phrase 'la France profonde', which means 'heartland'. Traditions followed in the overseas and metropolitan departments are specific in culture and language. Their acceptance of lesbianism, homosexuality and gay marriages speaks volumes for the broad-mindedness of the French. In fact, Paris' mayor Bertrand Delanoë, makes no attempt to hid his gay identity.
The traditional family structure has evolved from the joint family to nuclear. The French culture has been promoted and supported via education and the economic government policies. Current cultural policies focus on the preservation of French food and language, as symbols of national identity. Secular and non-secular educational institutions organize education to cater to the independent intellectual and not a rote product. National museums exhibit architectural, theatrical and literary from the archives of 'maisons de culture'. France today, is committed to cultural democracy, and laws like the Toubon Laws preserve culture and language. Compulsory military service for young men has only just changed, in 1996.
Language and Religion: French movies, music and literature are vibrant and multicultural. The language follows a predetermined official 'originality' standard that may not be mandatory in application everywhere, but sure has enthusiastic advocates. French is widely spoken across the globe, inspite of repression of regional and foreign languages in certain countries. It is part and parcel of the education forum and a popular option in many bilingual educational institutions. As far as religion goes, France is secular and dedicatedly adheres to the principle of 'freedom of religion', a political dictate that was enshrined in the Declaration of the Rights of Man, 1789. A fine blend of followers of Catholicism, Protestants, Muslims, Jews and atheists live in France and add quality to the essence of French character.
Cuisine: Traditionally, French culture specifies on the importance of haute cuisine. Cheese and wine are vital components of French food. Entrées with preplated appeal, inclusive of croissants and fruit yogurt are distinctive to French meals. France produces some of the finest wines in the world. Bordeaux, Champagne and Bourgogne French wines are essential components of French culture.
Sport: The national sport of France is soccer, which is colloquially referred to as 'le foot'. The French also enjoy basketball, tennis and sailing. Tour de France is an annual cycling race held in France, while the Grand Slam French Open is the nation's tribute to another favorite sport – tennis. Grand Prix racing, fencing, Parkour and babyfoot are hugely promoted by the Ministry for Youth Affairs and Sports.
Fashion: Paris is the 'Fashion Capital of the World'. The presence of dedicated couturier houses, fashion shows and dedicated media like 'Elle' dominate the fashion industry. France's very own designers like Yves Saint Laurent, Claude Montana, Pierre Cardin, Sonia Rykiel, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Paco Rabanne and Christian Lacroix are world renowned fashion designers.
Art: The Lascaux cave paintings have made the little village by the same name, a tourist hot spot, to view the paintings that are more than 10,000 years old. French painters such as Nicolas Poussin, Claude Lorrain, Antoine Watteau and Jean-Honoré Fragonard have immortalized neoclassicism and subsequently, French culture. French music includes folk, Latin American, hip hop, rock and techno-funk genres.
Our faculty and trainer in French Ms. Superrna Sankaran, comes with an overall experience of 11 years in various disciplines of educating French.
Having taught French in some of the top schools, colleges and corporate houses she has also trained personnel who wish to join the United Nations. Her extraordinary knowledge on the language and innovative teaching methods engage the learner interactively. Her experience in translation, writing and editing in French contributes to the wholesome learning experience of the student.
Course Highlights
Live interactive classes by experts
Classroom experience at home
Audio – Video Enabled Interactive Virtual Classroom
Interact with your peers while learning
No travel, save time - Study in the comfort of your home
