Listening comprehension and specialised (business) English oral exercises - Part 2

Teacher(s)

Knorr Sabrina; Starrs Colleen (coordinator);

Language

English

Prerequisites

B2 level of the 'Common European Framework for Languages'.

Main themes

The main aim of this course is to improve students' listening comprehension skills and to develop their knowledge of (specialised) vocabulary.
The course also aims to improve students' oral skills, in addition to revising certain grammatical points.

Aims

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	Listening Comprehension At the end of this course students can follow recordings of interviews, discussions, presentations, documentaries etc. featuring both native and non-native speakers with various accents talking about complex business topics (e.g. training, finance and banking, strategy etc.) and are able to take notes, select relevant information, understand specialised terminology and answer questions based on the recordings. Level C1 of the "Common European Framework for Languages Speaking Skills - Individual: At the end of this course students can give their opinion on the topics in the recordings and texts covered in class. Speaking Skills - Interactive: At the end of this course students can participate fluently and effectively in discussions. Emphasis is on: content management spoken fluency coherence and cohesion vocabulary range grammatical accuracy phonological control Level B2+ of the "Common European Framework for Languages " Reading Comprehension At the end of this course students can read specialised business texts and are able to select what is important or relevant for a specific task or to answer a specific question. can understand specialised terminology in texts e.g. business vocabulary, idiomatic expressions etc. Level C1 of the "Common European Framework for Languages "

The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.

Content

The course covers listening comprehension, reading comprehension, vocabulary, grammar and oral skills. All of the material covered relates to a specialised field (business).

Teaching methods

Class time is used for listening and reading comprehension activities, lexical activities, grammatical activities and activities to practise students' oral skills. There is also a Moodle page with additional resources.

Evaluation methods

25 % - Oral exam in May/June

Students will be divided into groups and will be given questions to discuss based on the topics covered in class. Students will be given preparation time (individual preparation) and then they will discuss the topic they have chosen.
Students will be assessed on the basis of accuracy (grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, stress etc.) and fluency (communication skills, building up an argument, interaction etc.) as well as knowledge of the topic.
The oral exam will take place either in the last week of class in May or during the exam session in June. Both the date of the exam and the schedule are arranged in consultation with the students. All students are expected to be present on the day of the exam.
Students who are absent for the oral exam will get "absent" for the whole exam (oral and written), unless they can provide their teacher with a valid official document to justify their absence e.g. a medical certificate.

75% -  Written exam in June

• Listening comprehension questions based on the material covered in class and other unseen material.
• Vocabulary questions based on the material covered in class.
• Grammar questions based on the material covered in class.
• Le Répétiteur - "Specific Vocabulary" - "Economics".

The written exam will take place during the exam session in June. Once the date has been fixed, it cannot be changed. Students who are absent for the written exam will get "absent" for the whole exam (oral and written), unless they can provide their teacher with a valid official document to justify their absence e.g. a medical certificate.

September (Repeat exam)

The exam will consist of the following parts:

• 25 % - Oral exam
  This part will have the same format as the oral exam in May/June (see above)  i.e. discussion questions based on the topics covered in class.

• 75% -  Written exam
  The written exam will have the same format as the exam in June (see above):
  Listening comprehension, vocabulary and grammar.
  Le Répétiteur - "Specific Vocabulary" -  "Economics".

Online resources

http://moodleucl.uclouvain.be/

Bibliography

1. Notes de cours
2. Manuel
3. Le Répétiteur
4. Moodle

Faculty or entity

ILV