Listening comprehension and specialised (business) English oral exercises

http://moodleucl.uclouvain.be

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

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.

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.
• make a presentation based on a subject related to one of the themes covered in class (group presentations).

Speaking Skills - Interactive:

At the end of this course students can participate fluently and effectively in discussions in class.

Emphasis is on:

• content management
• spoken fluency
• coherence and cohesion
• vocabulary range
• grammatical accuracy
• phonological control
• presentation techniques

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.
• 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”.

Group presentations in December = 25 %

Students will make a presentation based on a subject related to one of the themes covered in class (group presentations). Students will be assessed on the basis of accuracy (grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, stress etc.) and fluency (communication skills, building up an argument, interaction etc.) and presentation techniques.

The oral exam (group presentations) will take place in the last week of class in December. 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 zero, unless they can provide their teacher with a valid official document to justify their absence e.g. a medical certificate.

Written exam in January = 75%

• 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 - the following files will be tested:  'Expressions idiomatiques de base', 'Fautes de grammaire les plus fréquentes' et 'Fautes de vocabulaire les plus fréquentes'.

The written exam will take place during the exam session in January. Once the date has been fixed, it cannot be changed. Students who are absent for the written exam will get zero, 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:

1. Oral exam = 25%
   This part will have the same format as the oral exam in December i.e.  presentation of a subject related to one of the themes covered in class.     
2. Written exam = 75%
   The written exam will have the same format as the exam in December:
   Listening comprehension, vocabulary and grammar.
   Le Répétiteur - The following files will be tested: 'Expressions idiomatiques de base', 'Fautes de grammaire les plus fréquentes' and 'Fautes de vocabulaire les plus fréquentes'.

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.

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

1. Course notes
2. Textbook
3. Le Répétiteur
4. Moodle