L'email al docente straniero: errori di interferenza e una regola da capire

(1) «I am writing to ask for information about the course.» The purpose of writing is expressed with to + infinitive. «For asking» is not idiomatic here: for introduces a purpose only before a noun or a gerund in limited patterns (e.g. for information, for further details). The Italian per chiedere pushes the learner towards for asking, which is the interference.

(2) «If I had known about the deadline, I would have applied.» This is the third conditional: if + past perfect, then would have + past participle. Two errors are possible here; the one in the sentence is putting would inside the if-clause. English does not use would in the conditional clause, whereas Italian uses avrei saputo - hence the interference. (If I would have known is common in informal speech but is not accepted in written academic English.)

(3) «I look forward to hearing from you.» In look forward to, to is a preposition, not part of an infinitive, so it must be followed by a noun or a gerund. The same happens with be used to, object to, in addition to. The test is simple: if you can replace the word after to with a noun (I look forward to the reply), then to is a preposition and a gerund is required.

Register note: all three corrections keep the email formal, which is appropriate when writing to a professor for the first time.

Obligation. The notice says: «students who miss them must complete a short written assignment before the third week». So a student who missed the first session must complete a short written assignment before the third week.

Does missing the second session change it? No. The relative clause is students who miss them, where them refers to the first two sessions. The trigger is missing either or both of them; missing both does not create a second, separate assignment, and it does not remove the first one. The obligation is stated once, with one deadline.

What the notice does not say - and this matters. It does not state a penalty for non-attendance, and it does not say the student is barred from the course. The word compulsory signals that attendance is required, but the only stated consequence of missing a session is the written assignment. A careful reader should not invent a sanction that the text does not contain.

Useful phrasing for the email: «I missed the first session and understand that I must complete the short written assignment before the third week. Could you confirm the submission procedure?» This states the obligation correctly without over-apologising.

Correct answer: attended.

Attend is a transitive verb: it takes a direct object with no preposition - attend a lecture, attend a meeting, attend a course. This is exactly the structure Italian learners need (frequentare / assistere a).

Why the others fail:

• participated requires in: participated in the lecture. It also shifts the meaning towards taking an active part, which is not what the sentence says.
• took part also requires in: took part in the lecture.
• assisted is the classic false friend. In English assist means to help (assist the professor), not assistere a (= to attend). «I assisted the lecture» means something quite different and slightly absurd.

The interference pattern: Italian assistere a looks identical to English assist, but the meanings diverge; Italian partecipare a has a preposition that learners often drop in English. Both traps come from translating word by word instead of learning the verb with its grammatical frame.

Rule to memorise: learn each verb together with what follows it - attend something, participate in something, take part in something, assist someone (with a person).