Syllabus
Course Description
A content-based English language skills course which focuses on vocabulary, reading, writing and speaking advanced texts in a variety of areas.
Prerequisites
Being enrolled in one of the English levels at the school (I through V)
Materials
· Porter, David. Check Your Vocabulary for Academic English, 3rd Edition. (Digital version available in the Readings section, in the Further Reading sub-section)
Expected Outcomes
By the end of this course students should be able to: Understand, analyze and assess advanced level reading materials in English; discuss these in class and write reports on them. Students are also expected to acquire the relevant academic vocabulary and be able to write at an upper intermediate grammar level.
Assessment
Vocabulary Quizzes
There will be 10 (ten) vocabulary quizzes during the semester. Quizzes will be given during the two-hour block each week (starting in week 2 of the course). The quizzes will be based on the readings and materials/lectures given in class. Each quiz will be worth 10 points (15% of final grade).
Participation
Students are expected to come to class and participate in the class by engaging in discussions about the weekly topics. In addition, students will be asked to occasionally contribute to discussions on the class website. (15% of final grade).
Short Writings
There will be 9 (nine) short writing assignments during the course. The schedule of the writing assignments can be found in the syllabus. The nature and length of the assignments will vary, as will the points given for each. The purpose of the short writings is to help students grow progressively more proficient in their academic writing, while also working toward their research paper. (30% of final grade)
Research Paper
This 1500-word assignment (5 pages) will be broken into three assignments: Outline; Draft 1 (15% of final grade); Final Draft (10% of final grade). The nature of the research paper will be discussed in class. Most writing assignments will work toward your successful completion of this project.
Final Exam
Short-answer questions that are related to topics discussed in class. (15% of final grade).