COURSE SYLLABUS
Course Title: Speaking 1
Course Code: ENG 111
Number of credit hours: 4
Instructor: Mr. Mohammad A. Al-Dajani
Office phone:
Office hours: 8-2 5 days a week
E-mail: Mdajani2001@gmail.com
I- Course Description:
This course aims at training students how to develop speaking skills in both formal and
informal situations. Role-plays, surveys, questionnaires and discussions are all used to
practice various language functions. Considerable stress is put on practicing pronunciation
at this level to raise student awareness about its importance.
II- Rationale:
Students beginning the course at level one usually have a very low level of spoken English and consequently the course is geared towards them. Students majoring in the English Language must build a strong foundation in spoken English as it is the medium for all the other subjects in the undergraduate program. Speaking is a fundamental skill that is required to communicate one’s thoughts, needs, and feelings. Therefore, speaking is one of the most important skills in which the students must obtain a good foundation.
The underlying principle is to build a strong foundation, which will allow the students to develop further during the undergraduate program. Without this foundation, the students will not have the tools or the motivation to build upon their communicative skills. In order to motivate the students, the course will combine communicative activities with skill-building exercises to boost students' academic success.
III-Course Objectives:
By the end of this course, English majors are expected to be able to:
1. Identify and converse about day-to-day topics and areas of special interest.
2. Converse on a limited range of topics.
3. Compare and contrast verbally.
4. Answer questions using complete sentences
5. Use reductions in spoken English
6. Identify and pronounce stressed sounds and words
IV-Calendar, Course Contents and Assignment Specifications:
|
Time |
Topic |
Assignments |
|
1st week |
· Introduction and overview of the course.
· Discussion of students’ needs and expectations. |
Students are to:
· Practice some warm up activities to break the ice.
· Introduce and talk a little about themselves. |
|
2nd week |
School life around the world
· Introducing yourself and others
· Using body language
· Making telephone reservations |
Students are to:
· In pairs, practice introducing themselves and others.
· Assignment: Prepare role-play, making telephone reservations for various purposes.
· Understand the use of body language and gestures and practice in small groups. |
|
3rd week |
Experiencing Nature
· Storytelling
· Talking about seasons
· Describing sports
· Talking about weather |
Students are to:
· Talk about likes and dislikes as pairs and then as a whole class.
· Talk about their abilities
· Assignment: comparing the weather between different cities of the world.
· Practice the pronunciation of can vs. can’t. |
|
4th week
|
Living to Eat or Eating to Live
· Ordering food in restaurants
· Refusing food politely
· Interviewing techniques |
Students are to:
· Compare eating habits in small groups.
· In pairs, practice ordering in a restaurant and refusing food politely.
· Talking about regional foods.
· Assignment: Interview people about eating and shopping habits. |
|
5th week |
In the Community
· Describing locations
· Asking for and giving directions
· Reading a map
|
Students are to:
· Assignment: Describe your neighborhood.
· Role-play community scenarios.
· In pairs, use maps to give directions and describe locations. |
|
6th week |
Home
· Making requests
· Answering requests |
Students are to:
· In pairs/small groups, ask for information about apartments.
· Prepare questions and interview potential roommates.
· Assignment: Revise for midterm test |
|
7th week |
Midterm Test
The students are given an oral test based on the previous weeks of work. A handout will be given to students detailing chapters to be revised. |
Students are to:
|
|
8th week |
Cultures of the World
· Apologizing
· Understanding culture
· Customs |
Students are to:
· Talk about customs as a whole class.
· In small groups, discuss cultural differences.
· Assignment: Research on various different dining habits. |
|
9th week
|
Health
· Asking for and giving advice |
Students are to:
· Discus health issues as a whole class.
· Role-play doctor – patient scenarios and making appointments.
· Assignment: Interview on stress. |
|
10th week
|
Entertainment and the Media
· Expressing opinions, agreeing, and disagreeing. |
Students are to:
· Discuss about favorite movies and television programs.
· In small groups/pairs, prepare a broacher for entertainment available in Riyadh.
· Assignment: Look at newspapers /magazines to discuss advertisements. |
|
11th week |
Social Life
· Giving and accepting compliments |
Students are to:
· Discuss entertainment in Riyadh.
· Assignment (continued): In small groups/pairs, prepare a broacher for entertainment available in Riyadh. |
|
12th week |
Customs, Celebrations, and Holidays
· Making invitations
· Refusing invitations |
Students are to:
· Plan a party (e.g. birthday, graduation) in pairs.
· In small groups, discuss about holidays.
· As small groups, and then as a whole class discuss wedding customs.
· Assignment: Individual students to research about marriage customs in different countries. |
|
13th week |
Science and Technology
· Giving and understanding instructions. |
Students are to:
· Discuss the various technologies used in the home.
· Assignment: Make a group presentation about technology used in the home. |
|
14th week |
The Global Consumer
· Bargaining |
Students are to:
· Talk about returning items and getting refunds.
· Inquiring about adverts.
· Assignment: Make an advert. |
|
15th week |
Revision for Final Examination
This session will be used to prepare the students for the final exam. A handout will be given to students detailing chapters to be revised. |
Students are to:
Revise the work covered and prepare for the oral exam. |
V- Evaluation:
Class Assessment and Participation |
20 marks |
|
Homework assignments and Quizzes |
20 marks |
|
Midterm Test |
20 marks |
|
Final Oral Examination |
40 marks |
|
Total Marks |
100 marks |
VI- Required texts:
Interactions 1 Listening/Speaking, 4th Edition. By Judith Tanka, Paul Most and Lida R. Baker.
VII- Instructional Procedures:
The course will integrate authentic speaking situations such as pair work, group work, role-plays, interviews, surveys and debates. This will allow the students to use the language in a realistic context.
During class time, the instructor walks around the classroom listening to the students, answering questions and correcting mistakes appropriately. This is usually followed by a whole class discussion about the topic.
VIII- General Course Requirements:
· Attendance
Students must attend all lectures. Any absences must be accompanied by a written excuse. Students absent for more than 20% of lectures will be prohibited from taking the final exam.
· Materials
Students are responsible for bringing into class all materials required for study. This includes the textbook, notebook and all writing utensils.
· Assignments
All assignments should be submitted on the specified due date. Assignments handed in late are subject to mark reductions.
· Midterm test and final exam
Students must attend and complete a midterm test and the final exam in order to pass the course.
IX- Internet sites for teaching English as a second or foreign language:
· http://www.usingenglish.com
· http://www.askoxford.com
· http://www.topenglishteaching.com
· http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk
· http://www.bbcworldservice.com/learningenglish
· http//www.britishcouncil.org
· http//www.English-to-go.com/eslresources.htm
X- References
· Klippel, F. (1991) Keep Talking: Communicative fluency activities for language teaching. Cambridge University Press.
· Judith Tanka, Paul Most and Lida R. Baker (2004) Interactions 1 Listening/Speaking, 4th Edition. McGraw Hill.
· Harmer, J. (2001). The Practice of English Language Teaching. (3rd ed.). Harlow, UK: Pearson Education.
· Gammidge, M (2004). Speaking Extra. Resource Books of Multi-level Skills Activities (Cambridge Copy Collection).