31150 - English Language and Linguistics 2 (P-Z)

Learning outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be versed in metalanguage; they will have obtained some knowledge of various aspects of one of the analytical and descriptive models of the English language. They will also have reached the B2 level of all four skills

Course contents

This course includes the following parts:

1. Lezioni frontali in linguistics. These are taught by the prof. titolare . This component is made up of a total of 30 hours during the first semester ( 4 hours per week).
2. Esercitazioni pratiche di lingua. These are taught by Dr. David McAllister and Dr. Corinne Robinson. Students will be divided in groups according to the mark they received in the esercitazioni exam in the first year. Through the esercitazioni students will reach the level B2 in all language skills.

Readings/Bibliography

1. Lezioni frontali: G. Thompson (2004) Introducing Functional Grammar. Second Edition. London, Hodder Education. Chapters 9 and 10 and pp. 35-44; 69-85; 124-140; 149-178; 213-218. Power Point presentations available in "materiali didattici" in this course. See also Alma Campus (http:// campus.unibo.it)
2. EsercitazioniThe primary text depends on the group (see also programma): either Ready for CAE, Macmillan or Premium at B2 or C1, Longman

Teaching methods

Lectures and language classes

Assessment methods

The exam is divided into two parts, one on English linguistics and one on English language, as reflected in the structure of the course and in its name.

The linguistics part of the exam is written, and the language part of the exam is both written and oral; the oral part is called SAT (Speaking Ability Test).

Exam structure

The exam consists of 3 components:

(1) A linguistics written, based on the contents of the lectures held by the teacher of the course. This tests the students' capacity to recognize, understand and analyze the discursive and communicative strategies deployed in a short text in English, by applying their knowledge of Systemic Functional Linguistics. This exam component consists of 25 multiple-choice cloze questions, and 2 open ended questions, one of which on evaluative language. The text type may vary, within the scope of standard British or American English and topics of current general culture. The time allowed is 55 minutes.

(2) A language written, based on the contents of the language classes held by native English language experts. This tests the students' capacity to analyze, understand and use the English language at level B2 (higher threshold) of the Common European Framework for Languages. This exam component is divided into specific sections on (a) Use of English (50 minutes), (b) Reading (45 minutes) and (c) Writing (75 minutes). The final mark is the mean of the scores obtained in the three sections. The text types used for this component of the exam are general interest and popular science texts (e.g. newspaper articles, reviews, interviews).

(3) A SAT, which tests the students' listening and speaking skills, and their capacity to communicate fluently and effectively in English, with a good command of grammar and a wide vocabulary, on a variety of general topics, including complex ones. This component of the exam lasts 10-15 minutes.

The specific skills and knowledge tested in each part of the exam are detailed in a document entitled “format” which will available in the section "materiali didattici"

Marking criteria and levels

Each part of the exam is evaluated separately. The final mark is calculated as follows: the score obtained in the language written is multiplied by 2, and added to the score obtained in the SAT. This figure is divided by 3, added to the score obtained in the Linguistics written, and finally divided by 2. Students who pass the written exam components with a score of at least 18/30 may not reject their mark and take the exam again. At present, marks obtained in written exams remain valid for 6 exam sessions.

The written language exam (based on the content of the language classes must be passed before the SAT: only after passing the written language exam can students take the oral.

Written exams take place once for each exam session; SATs are held twice for each exam session, once before and once after the writtens. It is not obligatory to pass the three components of the exam in the same exam session, but it is not possible to register the final mark for this course until all three exam components have been passed. Students enrolled in the degree course in “Foreign Languages and Literatures” must also have passed the preceding year's literature exam.

Students who show a solid (Upper Intermediate -Proficient User) command of the English language and an equally good awareness of its metalinguistic aspects receive an excellent mark. Students with a lesser degree of linguistic competence and metalinguistic awareness receive a lower mark. Students who apply their grammatical knowledge mechanically, without showing an adequate awareness of the connections between grammar, meaning and context, who have not acquired the capacity to analyze a text from the perspective of Appraisal Theory (evaluative language) and whose language level is below the higher B2 threshold of the CEFR do not pass the exam.

Additional information

The exam is the same for:

(1) attenders and non-attenders;

(2) students enrolled according to the old (509) and new (270) ordinamento.

Students who have chosen English as their third language are not obliged to take the SAT, but may do so if they wish.

Teaching tools

Audio-visual devices; particularly presentations in Power Point for lezioni frontali and listening comprehensios exercises

Links to further information

http://www.unibo.it/docenti/monica.turci2

Office hours

See the website of Monica Turci