Arts, Literature and Communication (ALC) Program

In St. Lawrence’s Arts, Literature and Communication (ALC) Program, you will study courses in English, French, Spanish and German.

OUR PROGRAM

Why choose the ALC Program (500.AL)?

  • Develop proficiency in both Spanish and German
  • Master both written and spoken English and French
  • Gain insight into national cultural issues from both English and French perspectives
  • Acquire confidence and effective public-speaking skills in large and small groups
  • Develop advanced academic research skills
  • Develop critical thinking through the study of Western culture and pop fiction
  • Establish personal networks by meeting significant people from universities, colleges, and the world of arts

At St. Lawrence, you will have unique opportunities.

  • Experience an intimate setting and a small student-teacher ratio
  • Work with native-speaking teaching assistants to ensure your success
  • Gain access to extra help from our language workshops and peer tutors
  • Form lifelong memories and friendships through exchanges, student trips, and frequent ALC get-togethers
  • Benefit from cultural excursions in the Quebec City area
  • Enjoy dynamic and unique guest speakers
  • Participate in our annual cultural day and in our theatre productions

The ALC program at St. Lawrence has been designed with special features in mind.

  • Literary works as a starting point for exploring culture: Your teachers will often use literature as a starting point for introducing you to cultural traditions and issues. Other areas of culture will help you understand what you are reading, and the readings will also lead to exploration of other forms of culture.
  • National cultural issues: Given its position at the crossroads of English and French cultural influences, St. Lawrence covers national cultural issues in two courses: Canadian Arts and Literature and Qu'est-ce qu'un classique québécois?, which are taken in the second semester. This allows you to explore two perspectives of the crucial issue of identity at same time.
  • Second-language level: French courses have been planned so that anglophones, allophones and francophones can improve their level in their second language at St. Lawrence, French. St. Lawrence also offers additional services for those who need more help. For example, tutoring and various exercises prepared by teachers are available.
  • Third and fourth languages: St. Lawrence has built an expertise in two languages which are central to the Western cultural tradition: Spanish and German. We aim to bring you to a level of independence in both languages. This is helped by the presence of fluent professors and language monitors, as well as library resources and software in the language lab.
  • Cultural diversity: In your final semester, you have the opportunity to explore contemporary cultural diversity through two courses. The Pop Fiction course addresses diversity through contemporary English-language literature. The Exploring Cultural Diversity course deals with diversity in countries associated with the foreign languages in the program (Spanish and German). Teachers and students may consider examining common themes in the various societies covered in the two courses.

 

OUR PROFILE

The Languages Option that we offer allows you to study in English, French Spanish and German. Our two profiles are based on whether you are ready for Spanish I or Spanish II. Course credit beyond Spanish II may also be given, depending on our assessment of your level (as explained below).

All students will be sent a language questionnaire about prior knowledge of Spanish and German. If you indicate prior knowledge, you will then be sent a placement test for Spanish and/or German. Based on the results of the placement test(s), you will be placed in one of two profiles.

Languages without Prior Spanish: Consult Courses

This profile takes you through college-level courses I, II and III in both Spanish and German.

Languages with Prior Spanish: Consult Courses

This profile takes you through college-level courses II, III and IV in Spanish, and through college-level courses I, II and III in German.

Based on the placement test, students who have at least a level II knowledge of Spanish or a level I knowledge of German will be given the opportunity to request an equivalency for their prior knowledge. Each request will be processed for a fee of $25. The procedure for equivalencies is as follows:

  1. Fill in a Request for Equivalency Form and send it to Betty Ableson at bettya@slc.qc.ca with your payment of $25 per language course. Include any documents for courses already taken elsewhere. If your language knowledge is not based on courses, you can submit a request without supporting documents.
  2. The test for credit will normally take place during the Welcome Days in the week before the semester starts.
  3. Once the College has your results, they will be transmitted to you and you will be placed in the level indicated in your test for credit. You will be given credit for any lower level Spanish courses beyond level I and for any lower level German courses.
  4. If you have any questions, please contact the Academic Advisor.

OUR GRADUATES

All college programs in Québec have a graduate profile. This describes their graduates' competencies. In addition, there is a comprehensive assessment (CA) which evaluates whether students have met the expectations of the graduate profile. In some programs, the comprehensive assessment is linked to a course with an integrative activity (IA), building on what was learned in past courses.

Consult the ALC Graduate Profile

Graduates of the St. Lawrence Arts, Literature and Communication Program shall be knowledgeable about the arts, grounded in literature and equipped to communicate in four languages. Graduates shall be able to

  • Approach questions of literary and aesthetic culture with the help of an understanding of Western classics and of English Canadian and Québec cultural contributions
  • Demonstrate intellectual curiosity and rigour in planning and conducting research activities, such as identifying appropriate sources and techniques, reading critically and presenting the results of critical reflection in oral and written form
  • Give expression to the creative process
  • Function with native-level proficiency in English, a high level of proficiency in French and a degree of independence in Spanish and German, supported by an understanding of grammatical structure and phonetics
  • Use appropriate information technology
  • Assess decisions with consideration for one's own health and wellbeing and for the effect on others and the environment

Consult the ALC Comprehensive Assessment

What will be assessed?

The comprehensive assessment is linked to three courses that involve analytical and creative work in the various languages of the program: Pop Fiction, Projet créatif and Exploring Cultural Diversity. The comprehensive assessment has two components of equal weight.

1) The first component is a portfolio. Your portfolio will include the following elements:

a) The Pop Fiction final essay in English
b) The Projet créatif course project in French
c) The final summative project(s) from the Exploring Cultural Diversity course in Spanish and German
d) A 400-word essay on the role of English, French, Humanities, and Physical Education general education courses in a college education, written in English, to demonstrate attainment of the General Education Graduate Profile

The instructions for structure and content of the 400-word essay are below.

  • In your introductory paragraph, explain how the general education objectives reflect what you have done in the program. What have you learned about yourself in general education courses?
  • In the second paragraph, explain what you have learned about each General Education Graduate Profile element. Do you feel that the general education courses at St. Lawrence have helped you attain each of those elements?
  • In the third paragraph, describe specific examples that demonstrate that you have achieved the General Education Graduate Profile objectives. You may wish to provide samples of your work.
  • Your conclusion should assess how your knowledge will affect you in the future, in terms of your university studies or your career choice.

The 400-word assignment will be submitted to the Pop Fiction teacher during the last week of classes.

2) The second component is an interview on the contents of the portfolio. You will be asked to explain your portfolio to a panel of teachers who are able to assess it collectively and discuss the contents with you in each teacher’s discipline language. You will be invited to focus on a project of your choice from the Pop Fiction, Projet créatif, or Exploring Cultural Diversity courses. You will also be expected to use the four languages to answer questions about how you have met the expectations in the ALC Graduate Profile and the General Education Graduate Profile.

Your explanation of the portfolio should show evidence of reflection. This self-reflection may include answers to such questions as:

  • What have I learned from my projects and my program?
  • Have I changed since I started studying at St. Lawrence and in what way?
  • How does my learning relate to my future goals?

The interview will take place during the final exam period at the end of the semester. If done individually, the interview will last 30 minutes. You will also have the option of giving your individual explanations concurrently in the presence of another student. If done concurrently, the interview will last 60 minutes.

How will it be assessed?

The comprehensive assessment will be assessed as pass or fail by a panel of teachers based on the correspondence you have established between the portfolio and the elements of the ALC Graduate Profile and the General Education Graduate Profile. If there is disagreement among panel members, each member shall mark the two components individually out of 100. You will pass if the average of the members’ marks is at least 60% for each component. Otherwise, you will be required to address the component(s) below 60% for reassessment based on the panel’s feedback.

Is your portfolio complete?

Ask yourself whether your portfolio

  • Approaches questions of literary and aesthetic culture with the help of an understanding of Western classics and of English Canadian and Québec cultural contributions
  • Demonstrates your intellectual curiosity and rigor in planning and conducting research activities, such as identifying appropriate sources and techniques
  • Presents the results of critical reading and reflection in oral and written form
  • Gives expression to the creative process
  • Shows you function with native-level proficiency in English
  • Shows you function with a high level of proficiency in French
  • Shows you function with a degree of independence in Spanish and German
  • Demonstrates your understanding of grammatical structure and phonetics (French, Spanish, and German)
  • Includes the use appropriate information technology
  • Demonstrates that you assess decisions with consideration for your own health and well-being and for the effect on others and the environment

YOUR FUTURE

Your studies can lead to a wide range of careers, such as those below. Be sure to check employer expectations or university pre-requisites, since they vary. St. Lawrence students can see the Guidance Counsellor to discuss these options further.

  • Classical and ancient studies
  • Communication studies
  • Creative writing
  • English studies
  • Ethnology
  • French studies
  • German studies
  • Hispanic studies
  • International relations
  • Journalism and broadcast media
  • Linguistics and languages
  • Literature
  • Professional writing
  • Public relations
  • Teaching at the elementary or secondary levels
  • Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL)
  • Translation

  

APPLYING

You must satisfy the college general admission requirements.

Apply for Admission

Photos

Testimonials

Mary-Lee Picknell

Actress

Quand je me suis inscrite au cégep St. Lawrence, c’était d’abord et avant tout pour relever de nouveaux défis, étudier dans une institution où le corps professoral est accessible et améliorer mon anglais. Ces objectifs ont été remplis haut la main. Ce que je n’avais toutefois pas prévu, en m’inscrivant dans le programme ALC, ce sont les précieuses rencontres que j’allais y faire. Je n’étais pas non plus au courant de la vie culturelle, encore naissante à l’époque, du cégep St. Lawrence. C’est en m’inscrivant dans la troupe de théâtre de l’école, et à travers un cours d’écriture et création, que j’ai trouvé ma voie. Celle des arts. Suite à ma sortie en 2007, je me suis inscrite au Conservatoire d’art dramatique de Québec, et cela fait maintenant quatre ans que je pratique mon métier, qui est également ma plus grande passion.

Ogden Ridjanovic

Fondateur, organisateur et animateur du Punch Club

In the Creative Arts, Literature and Languages program at Champlain – St. Lawrence College, you get the chance to meet passionate teachers, and it is the resulting proximity which makes the experience so memorable. The time you spend in class holds nothing impersonal, and there lies its depth. Here, we really get to know each other. Moreover, during my studies, it is definitely at St. Lawrence that I first had the opportunity to explore subjects, themes and projects that were more closely related to what I really wanted to do and learn. You can feel that the teachers believe in your ideas and efforts, and that they trust your personal initiatives. At Saint-Lawrence, success is something that is shared between students and teachers.

Membre du groupe Alaclair Ensemble

Conférence en ligne : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVVFy4QFeFM

Anne-Marie Dufour

Enseignante d'anglais

Selon moi, ce qui distingue le programme ALC des autres programmes est qu’il permet non seulement aux élèves de découvrir le monde, mais aussi de se découvrir eux-mêmes. D’adolescente un peu perdue, je suis devenue une jeune adulte consciente du monde qui m’entourait et, à force de l’analyser, j’ai rapidement compris la place que je voulais y occuper. Une occasion en or de rencontrer des gens qui te ressemblent ; qui ont soif de connaître, de dépasser les frontières d’une langue ou d’une société, et surtout de créer. De ces deux années, je garde tout d'abord un bagage impressionnant de connaissances dans un domaine qui me passionne, mais surtout un côté créatif qui ne demandait qu'à éclore et qui me permet à chaque jour d'imaginer des concepts originaux et des idées nouvelles.