Sumários
Presentation of programme and evaluation criteria
19 Setembro 2016, 08:00 • Cecília Maria Beecher Martins
Learning outcomes of the curricular unit
By course completion students will be able to use argument and social discourse effectively, with a more developed awareness of discourse skills such as conversation management and the competent use of coherence/cohesion devices in written discourse. In addition, students will be expected to demonstrate the ability to negotiate using persuasive language and simple arguments.
Syllabus
Particular emphasis will be given to in-depth analysis of contemporary texts, ranging from academic texts, a contemporary novel to newspaper and magazine articles. Students will be expected to convey a solid understanding of complex language structures and devices, to question and interpret specific cultural references, and to be capable of transmitting such skills through spoken and written discourse. Argument construction and organisation will be developed and practiced through classroom debates, freeform discussions, and discursive writing. Students will also practise more technical writing forms such as simple film reviews, blog posts as well as presentation letters and emails.
Themes explored in the set novel Paul Torday’s The Hopeless Life of Charlie Summers (2010), the set films Charlie Ferguson’s Inside Job (2011), Clint Eastwood’s Invictus (2009) and John Carney’s Begin Again (2014), as well as the academic and newspaper texts in the course manual will form the basis of class discussion and students’ more formal oral presentations.
Demonstration of the syllabus coherence with the curricular unit's objectives
Students will be instructed in all tasks to be performed as they will be presented with authentic materials in this area and given the opportunity to discuss these in class. The syllabus aims at giving students practice in different forms of writing: in particular discursive essays, simple film reviews, blog posts as well as covering letters and emails. Students will be presented with models of each type of writing and have opportunities to discuss the different forms and presentations. Times has been allotted to writing practise essays in class so that students will have the opportunity to practise the methods under supervision. The subjects covered will be discussed sequentially giving students time to get used to one subject before moving onto the next. Methods and applications will be compared and contrasted as the work proceeds. Care has been taken in the selection of the bibliography and in the progression of the presentation of topics so that students will be able to achieve the desired outcomes.
Teaching methodologies (including evaluation)
The methods used in this CU will be student-centred and task based with a progressive development of the difficulty of the exercises applied to encourage the development of active listening, speaking, reading and writing skills up to a B2.2.
Evaluation:
Written Assignments (essays, blog posts/film review) 20%
Oral Presentation on Themes Presented During the Semester 20%
Attendance and Participation in set class activities 20%
Final Written Test 40%