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Grado en Estudios Clásicos y Románicos

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Comunicación Oral y Escrita en Inglés I

Código asignatura
GESCLR01-1-010
Curso
Primero
Temporalidad
Primer Semestre
Materia
Idioma Moderno (F. Básica)
Carácter
Formación Básica
Créditos
6
Pertenece al itinerario Bilingüe
No
Actividades
  • Prácticas de Laboratorio (42 Hours)
  • Clases Expositivas (14 Hours)
Guía docente

This first-year course is taught in the first semester. It belongs to the area Modern Language, within the Formación Básica module for all philological degrees in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. From  a starting level A2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (http://cvc.cervantes.es/obref/marco/), students are expected to acquire a consolidated B1 level by the end of the course.

It is a practical course, intended to reinforce students’ communicative competence in multilingual, multicultural environments, and enhance their ability to function in academic contexts that may require the use of English as a working language. It is also intended to help students develop the necessary cognitive, linguistic and metalinguistic strategies to help them through their learning process.

Students will practise the necessary reading skills to find, analyse and understand general and academic information in English. Students will also plan, structure and complete brief academic summaries and essays about general topics in English, effectively and with an acceptable degree of fluency and correctness. The course will also address oral comprehension and speaking skills to help students understand, present and exchange ideas and opinions in an academic setting.

In the case of students in the English Studies degree, the course’s learning outcomes will serve as a starting point for the course Oral and Written Communication in English II, and will be considered as acquired for the six courses of the English Language area in the English Studies Major.

Aside from fulfilment of the regular admission criteria established for all degrees in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, success in the course requires communicative competence in English at an A2 level according to the CEFR.

Students are expected to demonstrate receptiveness towards learning English as a vehicle of intercultural communication and as a complement to their education. They will also be expected to demonstrate a strong personal commitment to their learning process, both in in-class and autonomous activities.

It is finally recommended that students attend the orientation course held by the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters in order to familiarise themselves with the facilities and resources offered (library, audiovisual library, practice room, etc.).

A. COMPETENCIES

BASIC

CB4 – Students will be able to convey information, ideas, problems and solutions both to a specialist and a non-specialist audience.

CB5 – Students will have developed the necessary learning skills to undertake further education with a high degree of autonomy.

GENERAL

CG9 – Develop planning, learning and self-evaluation skills to undertake further learning within the degree with a high level of autonomy and effectiveness.

CG21 – Appreciate the use of foreign languages as a means of international and intercultural communication.

CGING3- Demonstrate curiosity and ability to learn languages as a vehicle of intercultural communication in social, academic and professional environments.

CGING7 – Compare, share and counter different viewpoints in the appropriate tone and register, respecting the principles of equality, tolerance towards diversity, and the values of democracy and a culture of peace.

CGING15 – Communicate in English, both orally and in writing, with appropriateness, efficiency and precision in various academic and professional contexts.

CGFB3 – Develop curiosity, a positive attitude and basic skills to communicate in multilingual, multicultural environments.

CGFB10 – Find, analyse and understand general and academic information in English, both in bibliographical sources and the Internet.

CGFB11 – Plan, structure and develop brief summaries and essays about general and academic topics in English, effectively and with an acceptable degree of fluency and correctness.

SPECIFIC

CEING2 – Ability to communicate orally and in writing, with fluency, correctness and adequacy to context and situation.

CEFB41 – Understand and synthesise the main ideas in general and academic/informational texts, (whether oral, printed or audiovisual) of limited length and degree of abstraction.

CEM6 – Know and be able to manage different types of dictionaries (bilingual and monolingual, general and specialised, printed, multimedia and on-line), reference and practice grammar books, and other support materials, in both printed and digital form.

 CEM11 – Distinguish and correctly use diverse styles and registers in English.

B. LEARNING OUTCOMES

RAFB40 – Command of the English language in multilingual and multicultural environments, mainly but not exclusively limited to known topics related to work or study.

RAFB43 – Knowledge of the main features of pronunciation and rhythm in English.

RAFB44 – Knowledge of the main structures and grammatical rules of the English language.

RAFB45 – Oral and written command of a sufficient lexical corpus in English to function in multilingual contexts and exchange impressions on their work or academic interests, current affairs, etc.

  • B1 level grammar structures:
    • Verb tenses: present simple/continuous; past simple/continuous; present perfect, present perfect continuous; past perfect; future (going to, will & shall)
    • Modal verbs: ability, permission, possibility, obligation; past modal.
    • Verb forms and structures: infinitive/-ing; passive voice (in its present, past, future and modal forms); phrasal and prepositional verbs; reported speech (statements, questions, orders, request); zero, first and second conditionals.
    • Nouns, pronouns and determiners: countable and uncountable nouns; articles; noun phrases; possessive adjectives and pronouns; demonstratives; quantifiers.
    • Adjectives and adverbs: comparative and superlative forms; too and enough; adverbs.
    • Prepositions.
    • Building sentences: connectors; relative clauses; expressions of time, place and reason; leaving out words.
  • Identification and use of simple and complex sentences in academic texts.
  • Identification of main information in written and spoken academic contexts: definitions and explanations.
  • Comprehension and production of descriptions, explanations and use of linking words.
  • Identification and use of stance expressions: argumentation and counter-argumentation.
  • Identification and use of hedging expressions and their contrast with assertive language.
  • Paraphrasing and summary skills: emphasis on the use of discursive markers.
  • The paragraph and its internal structure; text placement: introduction, development, conclusion.

The instrumental nature of the course requires a practical approach to the teaching/learning process, with active and sustained participation on the students’ part both in in-class and off-class activities proposed. The course’s 6 ECTS credits are divided into 60 class hours distributed as follows:

  • 42 hours in small groups (“aula de idiomas” or “AI”)
  • 7 hours in general groups (“clase expositiva” or “CEX”)
  • 11 hours in assessment sessions

This is to be complemented by 90 hours of autonomous work carried out by the students, including the tasks assigned by their respective tutors for each session.

The course contents and activities are distributed into several units which are focused on comprehension and production skills, grammar practice, vocabulary and pronunciation, as well as the development of learning strategies and intercultural communication. Each of these units entails a measure of in-class work that will be carried out in “aula de idiomas” sessions, through practice activities complemented with theoretical explanations where necessary. Nevertheless, it will be the student’s responsibility to consolidate their learning by studying the relevant bibliography autonomously.

The in-class portion of the course will be completed with large-group sessions dedicated to the completion of Model A tasks (see below).

Check the Filosofía y Letras website for information on schedules and classrooms: https://fyl.uniovi.es/infoacademica/horarios

MODES

Hours

%

Total

In-class

Lectures (“Clases Expositivas”)

7

4,6

60

Language Class (“Aula de Idiomas”)

42

28

Assessment

11

7,3

Off-class

 Individual work

90

60

90

Total

150

 

The number of in-class sessions may be modified according to the University’s academic calendar and the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters’ official schedules.

Students taking the course Comunicación Oral y Escrita en Inglés I will opt for one of two assessment models, termed A and B. In both models, in order to obtain a passing grade for the course students must obtain an overall average mark of 5/10 across all separate skills tests, and a mark of 5/10 in the Use of English test.

REQUIREMENTS FOR BOTH ASSESSMENT MODELS A AND B

  • A minimum grade of 4/10 in each of the following skills tests: reading comprehension, written production, oral comprehension, oral expression and interaction.
  • A minimum grade of 5/10 in the Use of English test.

MODEL A

Required attendance and participation in tests and activities carried out in small-group (AI) sessions throughout the semester. Students must participate in at least 80 percent of these monitoring activities before each of the skills tests detailed below.

Skills tests (to be carried out during large-group CEX sessions)

  • Use of English (30%)
  • Reading comprehension (20%)
  • Writing (20%)
  • Oral comprehension (15%)

As stated above, students who have not obtained a grade of 5/10 in the Use of English test will automatically fail the course, regardless of the grades obtained in all other tests.

Once students have been assessed for 50% of the final grade, they are automatically assigned to Model A, and no transfers to Model B are permitted.

MODEL B

Final test, consisting of the following parts and percentages of the final grade:

  • Final written test: Use of English (30%); reading comprehension (20%); writing (20%); oral comprehension (15%)

Since a grade of 5/10 in the Use of English test is a  prerequisite, this will be the first part to be graded. Students who have not reached the 5/10 mark will not have the rest of their written tests marked, or be called to do the oral test.

RELEVANT TO ALL EXAMINATIONS AND ASSESSMENT MODELS:

Students whose grades have fallen below 5/10 in the Use of English test and/or 4/10 in any of the other tests will receive a mark of 4/10 or lower, regardless of the overall average grade obtained.

RESIT EXAMINATIONS

Choice between Model A and B is only effective for the ordinary December-January examination. Resit examinations will be conducted according to Model B.

DIFFERENTIATED ASSESSMENT

Students who have been granted differentiated assessment according to Article 7 of the Regulations for the Assessment of Learning Outcomes and Competences Acquired by Students (Reglamento de Evaluación de los Resultados de Aprendizaje y de las Competencias Adquiridas por el Alumnado (BOPA 1-6-2010) will be assessed according to Model B.

Check the Filosofía y Letras website for information on exam schedules:

https://fyl.uniovi.es/infoacademica/examenes

Compulsory textbooks:

Coe, N. (2014): Oxford Living Grammar. Intermediate. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Dummett, P. & Hird, J. (2015): Oxford EAP: Pre-Intermediate / B1: Student's Book and DVD-ROM Pack. Oxford University Press, Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-400207-3.

Complementary bibliography (skills)

Blackwell, A. & Th. Naber (2006): Open Forum 1: Academic Listening and Speaking. Oxford University Press, Oxford. ISBN: 978-0-19-455714-6.

Hancock, M. & S. Donna (2007): English Pronunciation in Use. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

Hogue, Anne (2007): First Steps in Academic Writing, 2nd Ed. Pearson Longman, London.

Sarosy, P. & K. Sherak (2006): Lecture Ready 1: Strategies for Academic Listening, Note-taking, and Discussion. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Solorzano, H. & L. Frasier (2009): Contemporary Topics 1: Academic and Note-Taking Skills. Pearson Longman, London.

Dictionaries

Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary (2006). Cambridge University Press Cambridge.

Online Oxford Dictionary of Collocations: http://www.freecollocation.com/#.UulRy_l5Nps

Gran Diccionario Oxford Inglés-Español Español-Inglés (2008). Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (2006). Longman, London.

Oxford Student's Dictionary (2008). Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Smith, C., Bermejo Marcos & E. Chang-Rodríguez (2003): Diccionario Collins Universal Inglés-Español Español-Inglés. Grijalbo Mondadori, Barcelona.

E-Learning Materials

ESL Podcasts:

http://thewordnerds.org/

http://www.eslpod.com/toefl/

http://www.eslpod.com/website/index.php

ESL Websites:

Australian Centre for Languages (Communication): http://www.aclenglish.com/

Bellenglish (First Certificate): http://www.bellenglish.com/

English for Everybody (First Certificate and others) (fee): http://www.english-online.org.uk/

English Outlook Academy of English (IELTS) (fee): http://www.englishoutlook.com/

English Page (General): http://www.englishpage.com/

http://a4esl.org/

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com

http://www.elliesenglish.com/

http://www.englishclub.com

http://www.manythings.org/

http://www.okey-dokey.co.uk

http://www.parasaber.com/formacion/aprender-ingles/

http://www.usingenglish.com

The English Language Centre Oxford (First Certificate): http://www.elcox.co.uk/

The Internet TESL Journal: http://iteslj.org/

The Oxford Learning English Resource (Upper intermediate-Advanced) (fee): http://www.learningenglish.net

Grammar books

Hashemi L. & B. Thomas (2008): Cambridge Grammar for First Certificate. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

Torres-Gouzerh, R. (2008): Intermediate English Grammar for ESL Learners. Mcgraw Hill, New York.

Vince, M. (2008): Macmillan English Grammar in Context. Intermediate. Hueber Verlag GmbH & Co K.

Vocabulary

Manser, Martin (2010): 1001 Words You Need to Know and Use. An A- Z of Effective Vocabulary. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Olsen, Amy E. (2009): Academic Vocabulary. 4th ed. Longman Pearson, London.

Redman, Stuart (2008): English Vocabulary in Use: Pre-Intermediate and Intermediate. 2nd edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.