B2710 - ENGLISH FOR INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Learning outcomes

The course introduces students to English for International Organizations. By the end of the course students are able to: understand the main ideas and structure of different types of texts related to the activity of governmental and non-governmental international organizations; use the language effectively to produce clear and incisive texts and documents related to international issues, policies and affairs; expand their ability and accuracy in communicating effectively in English on topics related to international and transnational current-affairs, politics, economics, and social issues.

Course contents

The course will focus on the analysis of political discourse in the media. Students will work in two interwoven areas:

Critical reading of journalistic discourse: newsworthiness, persuasion techniques, information bias, framing and misinformation in a multimodal context.

Writing skills: the structure of written English, titles and leads. The course will provide an overview of relevant grammar with reference to examples from the media; students, however, are expected to have a good command of English and work on their own to fill in possible gaps in their knowledge of grammar structures.

At the end of the course, students will develop their own project work and write articles to be published in the Compass blog (https://compassunibo.wordpress.com/).

To meet the objectives of the course, the classes will be conducted as an interactive workshop; attendance is therefore strongly recommended. For students that cannot attend, alternative readings and assessment are indicated below.

Students with SLDs or temporary or permanent disabilities: we suggest that you contact the relevant university office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) and your professor immediately to work together to find the most effective strategies for attending classes and/or preparing for exams. Any requests for accommodations must be made at least 15 days before the date of the exam, by sending an email to the lecturer and copying (Cc) the email address [disabilita@unibo.it](mailto:disabilita@unibo.it) (in case of disability) or [dsa@unibo.it](mailto:dsa@unibo.it) (for students with Specific Learning Difficulties).

Readings/Bibliography

Compulsory bibliography

• Durant, A. and Lambrou, M. (2009). Language and Media. Routledge (all chapters in section A; chapters B1, B2, B5, B7)
• Foley, M. and Hall, D. (2012). MyGrammarLab Intermediate. Pearson (or any other B2 grammar book)
• Simpson P., Mayr A. & Statham S. (2018) (2nd ed.) Language and Power. A Resource book for students, London: Routledge (section A)
• Hicks, W. (2013). English for Journalists. Routledge
• Williams, P. (2018). Advanced writing skills. English Lessons Brighton

Additional teaching material will be uploaded on the Virtual Learning platform.

Complementary bibliography

• Gandon, M. (2013). English for International Journalists. Routledge
• Hall, S., Evans, J., & Nixon, S. (Eds.). (2013). Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices. London: SAGE Publications, Ltd. (Chapters 1 and 4).
• Machin, D. and Mayr, A, (2012). How to Do Critical Discourse Analysis: A Multimodal Introduction, SAGE Publications Ltd

NON-ATTENDERS

• Simpson P., Mayr A. & Statham S. (2018) (2nd ed.) Language and Power. A Resource book for students, London: Routledge (sections A, B and C1-C5)
• Foley, M. and Hall, D. (2012). MyGrammarLab Intermediate. Pearson (or any other B2 grammar book)
• Material on Virtuale

Teaching methods

The course will adopt a very interactive approach: students are expected to participate actively in the discussion of case studies, manage their own projects in groups and give presentations.

Students are also expected to work individually (compulsory reading, exercises and study) to prepare for the final assessment.

Assessment methods

For all students, in particular the students of English for Journalism, attendance is recommended for at least 70% of teaching hours. The characteristics of the course lead to a continuous assessment model, based on active participation in group discussions, project work and article production.

During the course students are expected to prepare a project plan (group work) for the article they are going to hand in (deadline to be defined, usually 2 weeks after the end of the course). The project plan will be presented to the class before the end of the course; students will take turns to present their group project and will be assessed individually (oral exam). The article will be assessed as group work (written exam). The two assessment will contribute to the final grade as follows: 1/3 for the oral presentation (individual), 2/3 for the written article (teamwork).

NON-ATTENDERS

Students are expected to have a good command of the compulsory readings and submit an essay at the end of the course (final assessment). The essay will focus on the discourse analysis of a given text from an international organisation. Further instructions on Virtuale.

Teaching tools

Classes will develop around presentations, audio-visual material and handouts.

Office hours

See the website of Valeria Reggi