Introduction to the semester's work

19 Fevereiro 2018, 14:00 • Paula Alexandra Carvalho Alves Rodrigues Horta

Programme: topics and compulsory reading (See the Course Book)

Syllabus

19 Fevereiro 2018, 12:00 • Rui Vitorino Azevedo

General introduction to the course: reviewed the syllabus and assessment criteria.

Introduction to B2.1 English

19 Fevereiro 2018, 10:00 • Hilda Alexandra Prazeres Eusebio

Students were introduced to B2.1 English.
Learning Objectives

The aim of this B2.1 English class is to develop the students’ reading, writing and oral expression skills in several scenarios. Thus, the objectives and competencies to be acquired are: understand extended speech and complex factual or literary texts; speak fluently and effectively; and write clear, well-structured texts. In order to achieve these objectives we will attempt to give you the necessary confidence to express your views and improve fluency. Another focus will be a more detailed look at some of the fundamental basics of the language, i.e. grammar, in order to obtain more accuracy. Finally, there will be a particular emphasis on developing your reading (interpreting and discussing) and writing skills along with vocabulary acquisition.

By the end of the semester, students should be able to:

·         understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialisation;

·         interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party;

·         produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

Course Content

GRAMMAR

• REVISION:
• VERB TENSES:
• present perfect and present perfect continuous;
• past perfect and past perfect continuous;
• future perfect and future perfect continuous;
• PHRASAL VERBS:
• ‘to bring’ + preposition, ‘to check’ + preposition, ‘to look’ + preposition, ‘to pass’ + preposition;
• MODAL VERBS:
• Can, Could, May, Might, Must, Ought to, Shall, Should, Will, Would;
• ADVANCED ARTICLE USAGE;
• ADJECTIVE AND PREPOSITION COMBINATIONS followed by GERUNDS;
• ‘BE’ + ADJECTIVE COMBINATIONS FOLLOWED BY INFINITIVES;
• the CONDITIONAL:
• to understand and be able to implement the PAST/PRESENT/FUTURE REAL and UNREAL CONDITIONALS and CONTINUOUS CONDITIONALS;
•  the SUBJUNCTIVE:
•  a.k.a. the SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD;
•  PHRASAL VERBS:
•  to understand and be able to implement phrasal verbs such as:
•  ‘to get’ + preposition;
•  ‘to go’ + preposition;
•  ‘to keep’ + preposition;
•  ‘to take’ + preposition;
•  ‘to turn’+ preposition;
•  etc.;
•  IRREGULAR VERB USAGE.

COMPREHENSION:

·         reading and analyzing texts;

·         listening to and analyzing audio and film clips;

WRITING:

Genre	Purpose	Possible Activities
Descriptive Writing	Students observe carefully and choose precise language. They take notice of sensory details and create comparisons (metaphors and similes) to make their writing more powerful.	Descriptive fiction Journals Poetry
Persuasive Writing	Persuasion is winning someone to your viewpoint or cause using appeals to logic, moral character, and emotion. Students present their position clearly and support it with examples and evidence.	Advertisements Persuasive letters Political speeches
Narrative Writing	Students retell familiar stories, develop sequels for stories they have read, write stories about events in their own lives, and create original stories. They include a beginning, middle, and end in the narratives to develop the plot and characters.	Original short stories Personal narratives
Expository Writing	Students collect and synthesize information. This writing is objective; reports are the most common type. Students use expository writing to give directions, sequence steps, compare one thing to another, explain causes and effects, or describe problems and solutions.	Biographies Autobiographies Essays Reports Summaries Etc.

SPEAKING:

·         in-class reading;

·         Q&A;

·         Group oral presentations;

·         end of semester oral presentation;

·         etc.

Grading Policy and Course Requirements

GRADE PERCENTAGES

• Attendance and class participation – 10%
• Midterm – 30% (5% listening comprehension; 25% written exam)
• Oral presentation – 20%
• End of Term Test – 40% (10% listening comprehension; 30% written exam: grammar, comprehension, composition.)

Should you FAIL the course, you can sit the Final Exam (Época Especial) which will be in July 2018.

Homework

ALL HOMEWORK MUST BE EMAILED TO ME at hilda.eusebio@campus.ul.pt on the day that it is due.

In addition to the in-class writing exercises, there will be three OPTIONAL writing assignments to be completed at home.  All homework must be emailed to the email address above on the date that it is due.  If it is more than two dats late, it will not be marked.  There will be no marks deducted if the assignment is one or two days late.  Grammar homework will be marked by the student as the answers are in the back of the books.  All students are entitled to a MAXIMUM of three tutorials to look at marked work and any grammar issues.

Homework assignments must have the following on the front page:

• student's name;
• student's class (turma).

Homework documents must be saved in the following manner:

• first and last name - descriptive writing;
• first and last name - narrative writing;
• first and last name - writing project.
• e.g. Hilda Eusebio - descriptive writing

Extra supportIf a student wants support with their writing assignments, they can get help from the WILL Lab (Writing Innovation, Learning and Language Laboratory), located in room 1.23.  To book a session with the WILL Lab, you must email them in advance at WillLab_UL@letras.ulisboa.pt.

Optional Major Writing Project

 Your writing project can be one of the following:

–      A descriptive writing piece

–      A persuasive writing piece

–      A narrative writing piece

–      An expository writing piece

It must be a minimum of 250 words and a maximum of 350 words.

It must be double-spaced, Arial, size 12.

It must be emailed me to me no later than 23:59 on 9^th of May.

Oral Presentations (Oral Exams) – Expository Pieces

• Oral presentations are worth 20% of your final grade.
• You must speak for a minimum of 4 minutes and a maximum of 8 minutes
• anyone who speaks less than the 4 minute minimum will get an automatic fail.
• You can do the presentation on your own or in a group but each person must speak a minimum of 4 minutes and a maximum of 8.
• The presentation will be on a novel of your choice.
• Please inform me of your date and novel of choice as soon as possible – only a few people can present any given novel, and no more than 9-10 people can present on any given date, so novel and date allocation will be done on a first-come-first-served basis.
• You may use visual aids such as the whiteboard (I can give you a marker) or use a PowerPoint to make your presentation more interesting.
• You can use video or audio clips in your presentation but these do not count towards your 4 minute minimum yet must be within the 8 minute maximum.
• Do not plagiarize – I can always tell.
• Do not read your presentation - this will result in a 0.
• Do not memorize your presentation word for word - this will result in a 0.
• It is recommended that you not write out a full speech as there will be the temptation to read/memorize - bullets or topics on cards or sheets of paper are best and will remind you of what you're supposed to say.
• Students may be asked questions at the end of their presentation - if asked questions by the teacher or by other students, try to answer these in long answers and avoid 1-2 word answers.
• Your notes may be requested at the end of the exam - if this happens, you must hand them over to the teacher.

ADVICE ON HOW TO PREPARE FOR YOUR ORAL EXAM

• Find a student/friend in a higher level, e.g. C1.1 and practice delivering your oral presentation to them.
• Have them ask you questions at the end – you won’t be able to prepare for this in advance, so you’ll be able to see how you deal with answering questions under pressure.
• You might want to record everything on your phone for future reference.
• If you have no one to practice in front of, practice on your own in your room while recording yourself.  Listen to the recording.  Make a note of the mistakes you think you’ve made – repeat the sections that you did incorrectly, correcting yourself, if you can.
• Get someone in a higher level, e.g. C1.1 and have them listen to your recording.  Ask them to be honest – did they understand everything?  Which sections did they not understand.
• Practice over and over again – otherwise you will be really nervous on the day!

Resources

You will need:

• Hilda Eusébio’s B2.1 English Course Book which will be emailed to you;
• Grammar books (see course book for list);
• www.englishpage.com is an excellent website to learn and practice English grammar for free;
• One of the following novels:

·         Margaret Atwood’s The Edible Woman ·         Jeffrey Eugenides’ The Virgin Suicides ·         Miranda July’s The LastFirst Bad Man ·         George Orwell’s Burmese Days

·         David Sedaris’ Me Talk Pretty One Day ·         Kurt Vonnegut Jr.’s Cat’s Cradle ·         Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway ·         S. E. Hinton’s The Outsiders

 Students are to check their emails regularly and come to class prepared.

Important Dates

These are dates that no one can miss - not even worker students.  (Obviously, worker students need not come to ALL of the oral presentation dates - they need only come on the date they have selected to give their oral presentations.)

11th April - Midterm (Listening)

16th April - Midterm (Written)

14th May - Final (Listening)

16^th, 21^st, 23^rd, 28^th of May - Oral Presentations.

30th May - Final (Written)