DELF B2 French Course in Paris — Upper-Intermediate Level

As per the guidelines of CEFRL (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) these are the things learners are supposed to be able to do once they are at the B2 level.

Listening: ​​​They can understand extended speech and lectures and follow even complex lines of argument provided the topic is reasonably familiar. They can understand most TV news and current affairs programmes. They can understand the majority of films in standard dialect.

Reading: ​​​They can read articles and reports concerned with contemporary problems in which the writers adopt particular attitudes or viewpoints. They can understand contemporary literary prose.

Spoken interaction: ​​They can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible. They can take an active part in discussion in familiar contexts, accounting for and sustaining my views.

Spoken production: ​​They can present clear, detailed descriptions on a wide range of subjects related to my field of interest. They can explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

Writing: ​​They can write clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects related to my interests. They can write an essay or report, passing on information or giving reasons in support of or against a particular point of view. They can write letters highlighting the personal significance of events and experiences.

In short, learners with a B2 level :

Can understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in their field of specialisation.

Can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party.

Can produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

Administrative importance:

The B2 level is asked from students who are aiming to study in the French public Universities.

You have the B1 level of French language.

There will be an assessment of your current level of French, by one of our teachers, to ascertain that you can fit into this program.

Based on your performance during the test, we will suggest you a program that will best suit your situation.

Listening: To be able to understand extended speech and lectures and follow even complex lines of argument provided the topic is reasonably familiar. To be able to understand most TV news and current affairs programmes. To be able to understand the majority of films in standard dialect.

Reading: To be able to read articles and reports concerned with contemporary problems in which the writers adopt particular attitudes or viewpoints. To be able to understand contemporary literary prose.

Spoken interaction: To be able to interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible. To be able to take an active part in discussion in familiar contexts, accounting for and sustaining my views.

Spoken production: To be able to present clear, detailed descriptions on a wide range of subjects related to my field of interest. To be able to explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

Writing: To be able to write clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects related to my interests. To be able to write an essay or report, passing on information or giving reasons in support of or against a particular point of view. To be able to write letters highlighting the personal significance of events and experiences.

As per the guidelines of the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages), after completing the B2 level, learners can understand the main ideas of complex texts on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in their field. They can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party. They can produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and develop a viewpoint, giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

Course material: the programme follows Inspire 4 (Hachette FLE), level B2 — nine units, thirty-six lessons — supplemented with authentic documents.

1. Themes and what you will be able to do

• Happiness and personal development — define and qualify an abstract idea; examine received wisdom and recognise injunctions; qualify what you say; describe an uncertain plan.
• Appearance and discrimination — recount a case of discrimination and place it in time; imagine the human of the future and express possibility; describe an outfit, express an emotion, state a paradox and contrast two facts.
• The environment and the climate — condense information and avoid repetition; describe devices; warn about a risk and express regret; report speech and organise your ideas to propose solutions.
• Language and register — explain a historical change and narrate in the past; identify the features of each register and switch between them; talk about your relationship with French; report ideas and structure your argument.
• Citizenship and political life — define rights and duties; express obligation; report a news item; explain a citizens' initiative; compare voting systems and give your opinion.
• Technology and its uses — explain a technology and its limits; describe functions; take a position in a debate; specify characteristics; explain a concept and a contested practice.
• School and learning — reflect on your own learning profile; describe something uncertain; comment on a statistical table; describe an educational path; explain a calling and recount a learning experience.
• Work and its meaning — explain workplace trends; speak in generalities and about past facts; express condition and hypothesis; organise your ideas; give an opinion implicitly and account for it.
• Age and how we picture it — give explanations and put scientific terms into plain language; challenge injunctions; express restriction and call out stereotypes.

2. Grammar covered

• Tenses and moods: the past tenses, the passé simple, the passé antérieur, the past infinitive, the simple future and future perfect, present and past conditional, present and past subjunctive, present and compound participles, the gerund.
• Hypothesis, condition and consequence: hypothesis, condition, cause, consequence, purpose, opposition, concession, restriction.
• Pronouns and reference: simple and compound relative pronouns, double pronouns, object pronouns, pronominal and nominal reference, indefinites, relative clauses in the indicative and the subjunctive.
• Sentence structure: nominalisation, the passive and pronominal verbs with passive meaning, comparison and superlative, impersonal forms, subject inversion in a declarative sentence, "ne" used alone, negation, verb constructions.
• Reported speech and agreement: reported and indirect speech, sequence of tenses in the past, time markers, linking words, particular past-participle agreements, verb agreement with fractions and percentages, verbal adjectives.

3. Stylistic devices

• Accumulation, anaphora, metaphor, simile, metonymy, personification, the rhetorical question, connotation, irony and the implicit expression of an opinion.

4. Pronunciation

• Rhythmic groups; liaison and linking; emphatic stress; the [ə] pronounced or dropped; meaning-bearing intonation; expressiveness, tone and mood; spoken French and its grammar; reading aloud.

5. Written and spoken techniques, and mediation

• Presenting and recommending a film; taking part in a discussion; writing a petition; analysing and interpreting a literary extract; writing an administrative letter; chairing and taking part in a meeting; writing an argued article; succeeding at a job interview; writing a letter to the editor.
• Mediation: reaching agreement, correcting false information, handling a cultural misunderstanding, simplifying a text, working within a team, writing up minutes, collaborating to improve a text, explaining professional information, calling out cultural clichés.

How the course is delivered. This programme sets out the full range of content worked on during the course. The actual progression adapts to the group: depending on the needs expressed, the pace of learning and the richness of classroom exchanges, some points are explored longer than planned while others may only be touched on. The trainer adjusts that coverage to serve the level's learning objectives, which remain the commitment of the course.

At the end of our program, you will attend a test at our centre, to ascertain that you have reached the desired level for which you opten fo this program. Our tests are based on the DELF models.

Successfull candidates are given a certificate from our centre.

For students who are unable to sit on this exam, can attend the same later depending on his / her availabilities, and our scheduled dates for examiniations of the same level.

DELF (Diplôme d'études en langue française)

Centre Zenith is an official DELF-DALF examination centre — you can prepare and sit your DELF or DALF exam directly with us.

The DELF is a diploma by France Education International, for France's ministry of education.

Once you have enrolled, let us know if you would like to sit the DELF or DALF examination after your course. As an official examination centre, we hold the sessions ourselves — you register for your exam directly with us: Inscription DELF B2.

Places per session are limited, so book early — réservez votre session DELF B2.

Both DCL and DELF have life time validities and can be used for all official purposes, like for applying for the 10 years resident card or for applying for the French nationality.

For students who are paying through CPF or paid by the France Travail through us, appearing in the DCLEP examination after your program is mandatory.

DCLEP (Diplôme de Compétence en Langue Étrangère Professionnelle) — Français Langue Étrangère

The DCLEP is an official diploma issued by the French Ministry of National Education and Youth (Ministère de l’Éducation nationale et de la Jeunesse).

Unlike the DELF and DALF — where each level has its own exam and diploma — the DCLEP is a single exam: you sit it once and are awarded a level from A2 to C1 based on your performance.

More information can be found on the official website: www.francecompetences.fr.

In our Bezons centre, we are located on the 4th floor of a building that is easily accessible by wheelchair. The elevator is spacious and there are no stairs that need to be climbed to reach our center.

In our Gare de Lyon centre, we are located at the ground floor, and accessible by wheelchair.

If you have any other concerns, such as if you hear or see differently from most others and need special accommodations, please send a WhatsApp message to Sourav, our point of contact for disabled individuals at Centre Zenith, at 07 78 64 53 16.

You can also email us at formation@centrezenith.com or send us a direct message through our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/centrezenith.