Nepa School of Social Sciences and Humanities

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Academic English II 2010 Syllabus

Introduction to Academic English II
Second Semester 2010
Graduate Diploma in Social Sciences
Nepā School of Social Sciences and Humanities
 

Instructor: Wayne Redpath

Course Description and Objectives

This course will build on the foundations of the first semester and continue the emphasis on creating a fluid and cumulative learning experience. Moreover, the second semester will also continue working from the academic vocabulary Word List developed by Averil Coxhead at Victoria University of Wellington. The course will become increasingly focused on all aspects of academic English language usage and advanced grammar and composition and will run concurrently with the other course subjects by sourcing tasks and writing and reading exercises from these subjects. This will make it classes more realistic, practical and cognitively engaging for the students. A generative approach will be encouraged, where the students will consistently apply the English they are learning on a regular basis and incorporate the skills into their daily work. At the completion of the course the students will display the ability to write clearly, logically and fluently in academic prose and be able to critically analyse academic texts. Furthermore, they will be able to construct an argument and display proficiency in presenting their ideas and data in formal academic discourse that demonstrates a high level of competence in writing in a cohesive and coherent academic style.

Course Requirements

Students should remember that the key to learning any language is practice, and therefore the course requirements for this particular course are strict.

Class Attendance and Participation: Classes will meet for 90 minutes twice a week. Students should be present and engaged in class every day. Participation in classroom discussions is mandatory, and in addition to attendance, accounts for 10% of the final grade. Students will be expected to give occasional presentations. The presentations scores will be considered part of each student’s participation grade.

Writing Journal: Students will be expected to keep a writing journal where they must write a short entry each and every day. The journal will not be graded based upon the quality of the students work, but will instead be used as a means to provide students with a way to practice writing freely. Successfully completing all required entries in the journal will account for 20% of the students’ final grade.

Writing Assignments: Students will receive one graded writing assignment a week. This will account for 40% of the final grade.
 
Vocabulary and Grammar Exercises: Students will be provided with exercises to improve their understanding of important vocabulary and grammar structures in academic English. These exercises will account for 10% of the final grade.
 
Final Paper: A 3000 word research paper will be due at the end of the semester. Students work will be graded based upon their understanding and use of all previously taught concepts and the content of the paper. The final paper will account for 20% of the final grade.

Note: Students will also be able to meet with the instructor during office hours when extra assistance is needed.
    

Detailed Course Outline

Week 1

Class 1: Class Introduction, Critical Reading: Advanced Strategies 1, Assignment of first vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 6 A
 
Class 2: Grammar Review: Nouns Phrases, Critical Reading: Advanced Strategies 2, Student Mini – Presentation, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 6 B
 
Week 2

Class 3: Grammar Review: Verb Phrases, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Research Skills (Locating, Evaluating, and Synthesizing Sources), Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 6 C

Class 4: Grammar Review: Prepositional/Adverbial Phrases, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Theory – Data Relationship, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 6 D

Week 3

Class 5: Grammar Review: Subject – Verb Agreement, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Exams, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 7 A

Class 6: Grammar Review: Independent and Dependent Clauses, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Mock Exam, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 7 B

Week 4

Class 7: Grammar Review: Relative and Non – Relative Clauses, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Book Review/Critiques, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 7 C

Class 8: Grammar Review: Parallel Structures, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Bibliographies, Citations, and Referencing, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 7 D

Week 5

Class 9: Grammar Review: Elliptical Structures, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Cause and Effect Essays, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 8 A

Class 10: Grammar Review: Transitions, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Introductions and Thesis Statements, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 8 B

Week 6

Class 11: Grammar Review: Stock Academic Phrases, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Classification Essays, Vocabulary Review

Class 12: Grammar Review: Academic Collocations, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Conclusions (Closing Statements), Vocabulary Review

Week 7

Class 13: Grammar Review: Verb Tenses in Academic Writing, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Compare and Contrast Essays, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 8 C

Class 14: Grammar Review: Lexical Verbs (Textual Meaning and Implications), Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Editing 1 (Sentence Level, Using slots, Noticing), Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 8 D

Week 8

Class 15: Grammar Review: Participle Adjectives and Adverbs, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Analysis Essays, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 9 A

Class 16: Grammar Review: Gerunds and Nominalisations, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Editing 2 (Paramedic and Reverse Paramedic Method: Removing Redundant Words/Phrases – Writing Concisely), Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 9 B

Week 9

Class 17: Grammar Review: It Cleft Constructions, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Argumentation Essays, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 9 C

Class 18: Grammar Review: Hedging, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Review of all written academic styles and genres, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 9 D

Week 10

Class 19: Grammar Review: Lexical Substitutions, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Research Proposals, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 10 A

Class 20: Grammar Review: Sentence Transitions and Idea Connectors, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: University and Funding Applications, Assignment of vocabulary list: AWL Sublist 10 B

Week 11

Class 21: Grammar Review: Complex Prepositions, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Research Paper (Literature Review), Vocabulary Review

Class 22: Grammar Review: Punctuation, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: The process of writing research papers and articles, Vocabulary Review

Week 12

Class 23: Review of all grammar lessons, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Research Paper (Structure), Vocabulary Review

Class 24: Review of all grammar lessons, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Abstracts, Vocabulary Review

Week 13

Class 25: Final review of all grammar lessons, Student Mini – Presentation, Writing: Presentations, Vocabulary Review
 
Class 26: Student Presentations

Week 14

Class 27: Student Presentations

Class 28: Research Paper Due, In Class Wrap Up