Course/Syllabus Compilers: Louise Wheeler, Marco Vasquez
Date:
Approved by:
Dean of GEF N.B.Nurshatayeva
Head of the English Language Department Louise Wheeler
Almaty 2015
Approved
Dean of General Education Faculty
N.B.Nurshatayeva
August, 2015
SYLLABUS Advanced English (ENG)
Credits – 3
Personal Information on the instructor
Time and place of classes
Contact information
Lessons
Office Hours
Tel.
e-mail
Monday, Wednesday, Friday
Prerequisite: IELTS 6.0 or above
Post-requisite: Advanced English
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The course is offered to students who have achieved 6.0 or above on the IELTS test. It is designed to respond to the particular needs of advanced learners who already have a good grasp of grammatical structures, have a wide active lexicon and who are relatively and competent communicators in English. However, while advanced learners are likely to have a deep understanding of the language they often have a tendency to rely on more basic structures and lexis with which they feel comfortable, to persistently make the same mistakes and to lack an awareness of the finer nuances of English such as register, collocation, strength, style and flexibility, as well as the ability to use the aspects when expressing themselves. This course aims to develop these areas in each of the four skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) by creating a context in which learners are encouraged to push themselves to and beyond their limits and learn to express themselves more fully and precisely. Furthermore, by engagement with course topics, learners will be encouraged to develop their critical thinking skills and to become more reflective about their own learning and use of language.
COURSE AIMS
This course aims to:
Develop learner’s communicative competence, especially in relation to discussion to speaking and discussion skills
Extend learners lexical resource
Develop learners’ abilities to use more complex grammatical structures for effective communication
Improve learners’ accuracy in regard to use of grammar of vocabulary
Deepen learner’s awareness of the finer nuances and subtleties of English (including features such as style, register, contextual meanings etc)
Develop effective skills and strategies for reading and listening, even when the topic or language may not be familiar.
Make learners more aware of certain features of pronunciation in English and how they contribute to effective communication.
Encourage learners to become more ambitious, confident and reflective users of English.
LITERATURE
Required:
Jones. C. and Bastow. T. (2001) Inside Out Advanced: Student’s Book. Macmillan. Oxford
Jones. C. and Stannard. R. (2001) Inside Out Advanced: Work Book. Macmillan. Oxford
Supplementary: (Internet resources – available on Class Teachers Intranet page)
Coxhead (2000) The Academic Wordlist- http://www.uefap.com/vocab/select/awl.htm
Idioms Wordlist: (2015) The Idioms Connection
http://www.idiomconnection.com/mostfrequent.html
Zwier. Lawrence. (2009) Inside Reading- The Academic Wordlist in Context. Oxford University Press
Vince. Michael. (1994) Advanced Language Practice. Macmillan Heinemann.
Cox. K. Hill. D. (2011) EAP Now- English for Academic Purposes 2nd Edition. Pearson Longman.
French. A. (2003) CAE Testbuilder- Tests that Teach. Macmillan.
COURSE CALENDAR
*Please note that although your instructor(s) will make his/her best effort to adhere to the course calendar, adjustments may be made for a variety of reasons, including holidays, technical problems, and student performance.
Week
Module
Speaking and Writing
Reading and Listening
Grammar, Lexis and Pronunciation
TSIS
SIS (Project)
1 (drop/add week)
0/1
Explain syllabus, course expectations, academic policy etc.
Speaking, writing, reading, listening tasks to assess students level (add/drop if required) and for needs analysis purposes
Ice breaking activities
Zero Unit Quiz (Teacher’s book)
Zero Unit Student Profile (Teacher’s book)
Writing task – hopes and expectation of the course
Explain Newspaper Project
1 Identity
Speaking:
Discussing what gives you identity
Interviewing
Stressing importance
Strategies for when you don’t know what else to say.
Anecdote: I am who I am
Writing:
Writing up an interview into a magazine article
Practice reporting speech
Using and selecting notes for article writing.
Writing Academic:
Note Taking
Reading:
Considering gender differences
Jigsaw reading and discussion
Prediction skills
Reading for detail
Inside Reading
Clicks and Cliques Reading activity
Listening:
Active listening skills.
Listening to people describe themselves.
Listening for detail.
Note-taking skills
Grammar:
Adverbials (types and position)
Vocabulary:
Personal values
Word-building
Pronunciation:
Focus on ‘th’ sounds (Okanagan Unit 1/2)
Submit Newspaper Project StageProposal, outline and list of roles
1 Identity
Speaking:
Telephone English
Interpreting an ambiguous situation
Speculating
Describing photographs
Story-telling
Writing (WB):
Writing a personal profile
Being concise and engaging.
Writing Academic:
Paragraph Structure
Reading:Students choose an online newspaper article in English and come prepared to summarise and discuss it in class.
Listening:
‘My Girl’ (song)
Predicting
Identifying and inferring the meaning informal expressions from context.
A telephone argument
Identifying tone
Following a conversation
Workbook:
Grammar 4,5
Vocabulary 3,4,5
Writing 1,2, 3
TSIS#2
CAE Testbuilder
English in Use
Submit Newspaper Project Stage 1:Interview Write Up
Module 1 Assessment
Taste
Speaking:
Talking about food preferences and associations
Expanding sentences
Expressing enthusiasm and reservations
Writing (WB):
Writing a formal letter of complaint
Being tactful
Writing Academic:Paraphrasing and Referencing
Reading:
A restaurant review
Scanning and reading for detail
Jigsaw reading and discussion
Listening:
People talking about food associations.
People describing food experiences
Listening for gist
Identifying tone and opinion
Grammar:
Describing nouns
Order of adjectives
Review of narrative tenses
Vocabulary:
Descriptive vocabulary for food, situations and feelings.
Pronunciation:
Intonation to convey tone and opinion
Workbook:
Grammar 1, 2
Pronunciation 1
Vocabulary 1, 2, 3
Listening and Reading
Writing 1, 2, 3, 4
TSIS #3
CAE Testbuilder
English in Use
Taste
Speaking:
Talking about a favourite restaurant
Anecdote
Discussing good taste and acceptable behaviour
Agreeing and disagreeing
Writing:
Writing a (restaurant) review
Planning, preparing, structuring
Reading:Students choose an online newspaper article in English and come prepared to summarise and discuss it in class
Inside Reading-Brain Food,
Reading activity
Listening:
Friends discussing ‘good’ taste
Following informal conversations
Listening to definitions
Note-taking
Listening for details
Grammar:
Review of narrative tenses
Fronting
Vocabulary:
Collocations with ‘taste’
Expressions for agreeing and disagreeing
Pronunciation:
Intonation for agreeing and disagreeing
Showing certainty
Speaking:
Talking about towns and cities
Describing places
Discussing newspaper stories
Writing:
Writing a travel guide
Focus on style
Peer editing
Writing Academic: Essay Writing
Reading:
Reading extracts from guidebooks
Skimming
Reading for detail
Unit 7 Inside Reading- Roving Continents. Reading exercise
Listening:
A radio quiz
Listening for specific information
Listening to friends discussing the news
Listening for gist
Grammar:
Hedging: language of certainty and uncertainty.
Negative and limiting adverbials
Vocabulary:
Descriptive vocabulary and collocations
Pronunciation:
Focus on pronunciation of ‘ed’ endings
Speaking:
Anecdote – A city that made an impression
Discussing safety in cities
Interpreting a painting/poem
Using informal vocabulary
Retelling a story
Writing (WB):
Cohesion in texts
Discourse markers
Describing possible changes and effects
Writing a persuasive newspaperarticle
Reading:
A text about Leicester Square
Reading for detail
Inserting words into a text
Reading, reordering and interpreting a poem
Reading for gist
Listening:
Friends discussing the dangers of cities
Following conversations
Listening for detail
Listening to a poem
Grammar:
Negative and limiting adverbials
Modifiers
Vocabulary:
Informal vocabulary
Describing city life
Pronunciation:
Adding emphasis
Stress and intonation
Workbook:
Grammar 5, 6
Vocabulary 6
Writing 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Study for Midterm))
Module 3 Assessment + pre Mid-term Review
MID - TERM
MID - TERM
MID - TERM
MID - TERM
MID - TERM
MID - TERM
Talk
Speaking:
Find someone who (conversation)
Talking about conversations
Developing conversation skills and styles
Writing: BBC ‘How to Converse’’ ( Home task- see additional material)
Conversation in different cultures
Summary writing
Formal reflection and analysis
Reading:
Conversational styles article
Matching paragraph headings
Reading for gist
True. False, Not given questions
Inside Reading: Machines that recognize faces
Reading activity
Listening:
What makes a good conversation
Listening for gist
Predicting
Note taking
Eavesdropping
The importance of contextual information
Grammar:
Review of Wh words and question formation
Vocabulary:
Differentiating different verbs for ‘talking’
Collocations with conversation
Expression to describe conversational style
Idiomatic expressions
Pronunciation:
Question intonation and sentence stress
Workbook:
Famous quotes
Expressions
Vocabulary 1,3
Listening and Reading 1,2,3, 4, 5
TSIS#6
Inside Reading:
p.35, 39
Talk
Speaking:
Anecdote – talking about a member of your family
Being diplomatic
Telling funny stories and jokes
Development of pace and timing
Writing (WB – in class):
Developing a funny story from pictures
Planning, developing, improving, editing
Peer feedback –writing circle
Reading:
Reading, editing and proof reading another person’s work
Suggesting improvements
Listening:
Listening to a monologue on family
Listening for specific information
Predicting and listening to a story
Listening to check details
Grammar:
General tendencies
Tendencies in the past
Using modal verbs
Countable and uncountable abstract noun (talk)
Vocabulary:
Collocations and meaning of ‘talk’
Describing habits and behaviour
Talking about humour
Pronunciation:
Stress, timing, pace and telling jokes
Workbook:
Grammar 1,2,3,4
Vocabulary 4,5,6
TSIS #7
CAE Testbuilder English in Use
Reflection
Submit Newspaper Project Stage
3: News Stories
Module 4 Assessment
Luck
Speaking:
Talking about luck
Intercultural discussion
Using verbs descriptively
Discussing issues raised by fiction
Writing:
Diary writing
Creative writing
Using linking devices
Speaking Academic:
Presentations
Reading:
Lottery winner article
Reading for gist and specific information
Inferring meaning from context
Inside Reading:How could they do that. Reading activity
Listening:
Listening to a discussion
Listening to a story (Day of the Triffids)
Entended listening skills
Listening for detail
Grammar:
Unreal conditionals
Substituting ‘if’
Describing consequences
Vocabulary:
Cultural items
Descriptive verbs
Pronunciation:
Using stress and intonation to make stories more interesting and to convey emotion
Speaking:
Telling a story from pictures
Talking about wishes
Anecdote – An event which has influenced your life
Writing (WB):
Writing a film review
Summarizing skills
Developing ideas in paragraphs
Reading:Students choose an online newspaper article in English and come prepared to summarise and discuss it in class
Listening:
Predicting a story from pictures
Checking predictions
Grammar:
Wishes and regrets
Vocabulary:
Uses and collocations of ‘wish’
Pronunciation:
Focus on i/I (Okanagan Unit 4)
Speaking:
Quiz – speculating and justifying
Discussing the 5 senses
Discussing Pets
Talking about psychological issues
Writing (WB):
Writing a personal letter
Making tactful suggestions n writing
Structuring a letter
Writing Academic:Essay writing argumentation and critical thinking
Reading:
Extracts from ‘The Man who Mistook his Wife for a Hat’
Reading for gist and detail
Inferring meaning from context
Listening:
Informal conversation about the 5 senses
Listening for detail
Note taking skills
Grammar:
Verbs of the senses
Dynamic and stative verbs
Can, could, be able to
Vocabulary:
Distinguishing between verbs for seeing
Senses lexis
Pronunciation:
Focus on schwa (Okanagan Unit 9)
Speaking:
CAE Testbuilder
Practice Speaking Test
Writing:
Summary writing
Being succinct and precise
Use of descriptive language
Reading:
Humorous pet psychology
Reading for detail
Examining style
Listening:
Work related conversation
Song - ’m Going Slightly Mad (Queen)
Listening for detail
Interpreting images and metaphors
Grammar:
Participle clauses
Vocabulary:
Psychological vocabulary
Mind and its collocations
Metaphors and images
Pronunciation:
Word linking in connected speech
Group Presentation of Newspaper project(End of Term Assessment)
FINAL
FINAL
FINAL
FINAL
FINAL
FINAL
SYLLABUS EXPLANATORY NOTES
Speaking: All the speaking components of the course aim to provide an opportunity for students to develop their fluency, conversation and discussion skills in English. Furthermore, during speaking tasks, teachers should encourage risk-taking in the students, as this is essential for the lexical and grammatical development of advanced learners.
Writing:WB indicates that this material is found in the workbook, rather than the students book. Unless otherwise indicated, the preparation for such tasks should be done in class, but the actual writing is to be completed by the student at home.
Reading:The majority of reading texts can be found in the Inside Out Student’s book, but on occasion students will be asked to independently choose an online newspaper article in English and be prepared to summarize and discuss this in class. A list of suggested sites will be available on the class teacher’s intranet page. This not only develops the students’ independent reading skills, but will provide valuable input for the Newspaper project.
Reflection:Approximately once every two weeks, students will be asked to write a 1 page reflection on their learning. Guidance will be given by the teacher (Guidelines also available on the intranet).
Pronunciation:Addition focus on particular phonemes that Kazakhstan students may find challenging will make use of materials produced by Okanagan University (these will be available to students on the intranet).
SIS Project: Students will work in groups to produce a student Newspaper (guidelines will be made available). Students will make a group presentation on their project for the End of Term Assessment.
EVALUATION
Attestation period I (30%)
Attestation period II (30%)
Examination (40%)
In-class participation and attendance
Homework (T/SIS)
Module Assessments
10%
5%5%
In-class participation and attendance
Homework (T/SIS)
Module Assessments
10%
5%5%
Listening
Reading
Writing
Speaking
10%
10%
10%
10%
Mid-term
10%
Project Portfolio and Presentation(end of term assessment)
10%
Total
30%
Total
30%
Total
40%
Gross Total
In Class Participationrefers to active involvement in all class activities and effort. Students will be given a mark from 0-5 for each class and an average will be calculated for each attestation period.
Homeworkincludes TSIS assignments, written reflections and SIS stages. Each assignment will be given a mark from 0-5 and an average will be calculated for each attestation period.
Module Assessments will be conducted at the end of each unit, approximately every two weeks. An average will be calculated for each attestation period.
Project Portfolio and Presentation(end of term assessment) will include the final newspaper and a group presentation of the project. Although these are group tasks, each student will be given an individual mark based on his/her contribution.
Deadline schedule
¹
Type of evaluation
Week
Score
16-17
Class work
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
TSIS
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
SIS
*
*
*
*
*
Mid-term and End-of-term assessment
*
*
Final exam
*
Total
COURSE POLICIES
Academic honesty is expected of all students. Cheating and plagiarism are violations of academic honesty any student found violating the academic policy will receive an automatic “ZERO” for the assignment.
Cheating is the act of obtaining information and data improperly or in a deceitful or dishonest way. Examples of cheating are copying from another student’s paper, obtaining information illegally on tests, and using crib notes or deceitful practices. This will not be tolerated and will result in an automatic “ZERO” for the assignment or exam, or in the student being withdrawn from the course – at the teacher’s discretion.
Late work: All assignments, homework and project stages must be submitted at the beginning of class on the day they are due. There will be a deduction of points. (10% per day). It is the student’s responsibility to print material well in advance.
Absence:If a student is absent from class, it is his/her responsibility to inform the teacher of the reason for this. Failure to do so will result in a 0 mark for participation in that class (which will affect the overall average mark). In the case of longer absences, students will be required to produce a certificate (ñïðàâêà) for the class teacher.
Make-up work following an absence:The student is responsible for obtaining all notes and assignments from the classes missed (deadlines to be agreed with the teacher). Any missed assessments will need to be completed.
ACADEMIC POLICY
Students are required:
· to be respectful to the teacher and other students;
· to switch off mobile phones during classes;
· not to cheat. Plagiarized papers shall not be graded and may be grounds for failing the course;
· to meet the deadlines. Late work is subject to deduction.
· to come to classes prepared and actively participate in classroom work
· to attend all classes. No make-up tests are allowed unless there is a valid reason for missing them;
· to follow KBTU academic policy regarding W, AW, I, F grades.
A student must earn not less than 30 points in the two attestation periods. If the sum of the two attestation scores is less than 30 points, the student gets the unsatisfactory mark “Fail” (F) and will not be admitted to the final examination.
