Download ENGl 090 1 - University of Belize

University of Belize
Central Campus, Belmopan
Faculty of Education and Arts
Semester 1: August to December, 2008
Course:
Lecturer:
Schedule:
Room:
Developmental English (ENGL 090) Section 3
Ethnelda Paulino
12:30 – 1:45 Tuesday/Thursday
JAB –U1
Office Hours: T/H: 2:00 – 3:00
Telephone:
UB Extension 354
E-mail:
[email protected]
Course Description: This course will develop students’ proficiency in speaking and writing
English. It will emphasize practice in conversational and written English skills. Listening and
Reading/Comprehension, as aids to developing spoken and written English, will be based on the
students’ own language creations and interaction with text passages and local writings. Emphasis
is on the development of ideas in coherent, unified, and grammatically correct structures, first
into paragraph development, then into the essay. Outlining, Drafting, Proofreading and Editing
skills will be developed. Students’ confidence in using English to communicate will be
strengthened, through constant oral practice of English and through the inclusion of contrastive
analysis as applicable.
Rationale: Development of students’ knowledge and use of English is critical if they are to
function effectively in an academic environment. Therefore, this course is designed to develop
students’ proficiency in listening, speaking, reading and writing English, with a focus on building
their basic analytical, mechanical and expressive skills. As clear and coherent writing is a
primary means of academic and professional communication, paragraph development, leading to
essay writing, is emphasized.
Materials & Textbooks: For this class, you will need to purchase/rent:
 The course text
 Supplementary novel
 A good desk-edition dictionary of Standard English (such as- Webster’s College
English Dictionary)
 2-3 report covers
 Binder (to keep drafts, notes, papers or research materials).
Required Text:
 Etherton A.R.B., Baker Thelma.English Alive Bk 1. Cheltenham, Great Britain:
Nelson Thornes, 2004.
Supplemental Texts:
 Glazier, Teresa F. The least You should Know about English. Fortworth,
Texas: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1996.
Handouts: Application Package; Subject/Verb Agreement; Paragraphing; Presentation
& Essay Rubrics.
Course Objectives:
Upon completion of this course students will:
1. Improve whatever level of English competency they bring to the course.
2. Develop confidence in the use of spoken English and recognize that English is a
language distinct from the pan-Belizean Kriol language.
3. Recognize and use basic writing skills including, but not limited to, appropriate
identification and use of different parts of speech, subject-verb agreement,
pronoun-antecedent agreement, correct spelling and punctuation, use of complete
sentences, consistent verb tenses, mood and points of view.
4. Identify and apply the different sentence patterns making appropriate and
diversified use of them to meet the demands of coherence and pace.
5. Realize the qualities of effective paragraphs and forms of paragraph organization,
thus composing well-developed paragraphs of at least 9-10 sentences that include
specific topic sentence, supporting details, transitions, and a clear ending.
6. Identify and use appropriately varied supporting evidence and methods of
development such as definition, description, comparison/contrast and cause/effect.
7. Work through the writing process by narrowing a topic, composing a thesis
statement, topic sentences and supporting evidence, while effectively utilizing the
pre-writing, outlining, drafting, revising and proofreading stages.
Instructional Methodology:
 Lectures and Discussions
 Peer Critiques
 Oral Presentations
 Reading & Listening exercises
 Role Play
Evaluation Scheme:
Oral Tests (3)
Written Tests (3)
Essay Draft
Essay Re-write
15%
15%
5%
10%
Assignments/
Journals
Part & Attend
Exam
20%
Total
100%
5%
30%
*Course Guidelines
The only way to improve use of a target language is to USE it. Since English is our
target language, students are expected to use English in both their oral and written
communication, always aiming to improve whatever level they bring to the classroom.
Use of first language, where applicable, will be employed as a contrastive analysis and
translation tool in the teaching of English.
A strong desire to work and study hard is important if students wish to do well in any
course. The following steps are recommended to assist students in reading and
understanding text book, handouts, and other related materials:




Personally try to explain each one
Complete writing and reading assignments on due dates
Use discussion questions in the chapters as a checklist and in the revision process:
drafting, revising, editing, and effective peer workshops
Study/Practice two to three hours outside of class weekly.
* Deadlines for Class Work:
Essays, drafts, and other out-of-class assignments are due at the beginning of the class for
which they are assigned. Failure to turn in work when it is due impedes a student’s
progress and disrupts the instructor’s planning and evaluation of other student’s
work.
Please note that all work due on a particular day will be collected IN CLASS and not
after. If absent, you are still required to submit the assignment ON THE DUE DATE,
or BEFORE. No work is to be left on my desk or anywhere in my office. All work is to
be HAND DELIVERED.
In case you or your lecturer has a question about your work, keep any drafts, notes,
papers, or research materials that you produce during the course, until after you receive a
final grade. To help you keep track of all your papers, we suggest that you keep all
materials which you generate for this course in folder.
COURSE CONTENT
UNIT 1
Course Overview and Expectations:
 Activities: Reading Sessions, Oral presentations, Journals, Essays, Class
Discussions
 Disciplinary discussion: Attendance, Classroom conduct, Plagiarism, Deadlines
Assignment: History of English Language.
Discussion : Why do we speak English in Belize?
Parts of Speech: Identify and Define. Parts of speech will be identified within reading
material (articles, short stories, essays)
Sentence structure:
 Recognizing Verbs/ Subjects
 Clauses; Phrases
 Prepositions & Prepositional phrases
 Word Order
Free writing exercise. Peer review – Identifying errors, recognizing sentence
structure.
Guided Class discussion on piece by Marcus Garvey: School of African Philosophy
Journal 1: Free. This journal will be graded for organization and content; not grammar.
Weekly in-class reading sessions – discussing thoughts and ideas from short story.
Test 1: Written and Oral (Oral test 1 Topic : “Troubling thoughts”)
UNIT 2
Using verbs correctly:
 Verb forms
 Past/present tenses
 Participles
 Perfect tense
 Consistency in Tense
Use of Adjectives and Adverbs
Sentence Types: Declarative; Imperative; Exclamatory; Interrogative
Research Assignment: (10%)
History of English Language. Be able to discuss why we speak English in Belize/
Historical context of language use.
Assignments & Journals (20%)
Run through assignments
Journal 1: This journal will be graded for organization and content; not grammar.
Journal 2: Written on class discussion: Morality. Graded for content, organization,
and grammar.
Journal 3: Based on international issue. Graded for content, organization & grammar.
Journal 4: Free: On any topic/ subject of choice
Oral Exercises
Oral exercise done in pairs: Use of sentence types.
Oral exercise: Mock interview
Oral exercise Present content of Journal 4
Reading aloud and discussion of text.
Dictation and Listening Comprehension
Material will come from novels, short stories or articles
Written Tests: 15%; Oral Tests: 15%
Written Test 1: Unit 1
Written Test 2: Unit 2
Written Test 3: Unit 3
Oral test 1: “Troubling thoughts”- 3 minute presentation on a social issue that directly
impacts your life.
Oral test 2: Informal Debate. Topics to be chosen in groups of 4
Oral test 3: “Your place in the world”- 3 min presentation on prepared topic. Cue cards
can be used.
Essay (5%)
Take-home assignment: Write a paragraph on a subject discussed in class. To be
developed into 3 paragraph essay.
In-class Essay Draft #1
Take Home Essay- Revised version
Participation and Attendance: 5%