68008 - English Language Lab 3 (G.G)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the Laboratory the student will be able to understand texts (level B1+/B2) on a variety of topics mainly concerning the teaching of English to young learners. He/she will be able to interact in English (level B1/B2), especially using simple language suitable for interaction with pupils in the classroom. The student will also have learnt how to write clear and simple texts (level B1+/B2) in English, and will be able to understand the main standard accents of several varieties of English. As for the student’s teaching skills, he/she will have learnt how to design and propose classroom activities for the teaching of English to young learners, especially activities concerning the teaching of pronunciation.

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Course contents

The third-year Laboratory has a twofold objective. On the one hand, it aims to help students improve their proficiency in English by means of activities designed to consolidate both their receptive (listening and reading) and their productive (writing and speaking) skills at a B1+/B2 level. Particular attention will be paid to the consolidation of pronunciation, taking the standard British accent (General British, GB) as a reference point. The features of GB will be presented and compared with those of other accents. On the other hand, the Laboratory aims at introducing students to some methodologies for the teaching of English in nursery school/kindergarten and primary school. For this purpose, students will be provided with practical examples of activities suitable for the teaching of English to very young learners, with a focus on the teaching of pronunciation.

The difficulty of the activities proposed for the achievement of both goals will be geared for each group, depending on the group’s level, bearing in mind that groups are formed according to the results obtained by students in the exams of the previous years. For the weaker group(s), there will be more emphasis on the consolidation of language skills, and the methodological part will be secondary to the linguistic focus.

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Readings/Bibliography

Any texts, websites, articles, and other bibliographical materials that may be useful for the purposes of the Laboratory will be suggested by the Laboratory teacher during the sessions.

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Teaching methods

The Laboratory sessions will be based almost exclusively on teacher-guided exercises and practical activities. The tasks will be carried out individually, in pairs, in small groups or as a class. During the Laboratory there may be some lecturing concerning those theoretical aspects whose knowledge may be necessary for the performance of the practical tasks.

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Assessment methods

The ORAL exam at the end of the third-year Laboratory can be of two different types.

For the advanced group(s), the exam consists in the presentation of an activity that is suitable for the teaching of English in nursery school/kindergarten and primary school and designed according to a grid provided by the Laboratory teacher. The presentation will have to be delivered in English, and to be accompanied by all the materials the student wants to use with his/her pupils to carry out the activity. The student’s assessment will be based on both his/her linguistic performance (fluency, pronunciation, use of appropriate technical lexicon) and his/her teaching skill (overall suitability of the proposed activity for the pupils’ target age and for the teaching objective).

For the weaker group(s), the exam consists in the description of a picture that the student will be shown during the exam. The description will have to include details about the people, the relationships, the place, the activities etc. portrayed in the picture. The student’s assessment will be based on his/her linguistic performance, specifically on fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary range, grammatical accuracy.

In both cases, and therefore for all groups, at the beginning of the exam the student will be asked a couple of questions (also about theory) concerning pronunciation-related aspects and notions learnt during the Laboratory. The student will have to answer in English.

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Teaching tools

The teaching tools will be mainly slides, videos, texts in the original language, handouts with exercises.

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Office hours

See the website of Paola Maria Caleffi