Course Goals and Objectives
The main goal of this course is to help you improve your spoken English skills to enable you to communicate more effectively in English.
Native English speaker proficiency and expression are not expected of OEPP students. The general expectation for certification is the ability to communicate in English without great effort or misunderstanding for all parties involved. Our goal is to assist the student in developing skills in the goal areas (intelligibility, vocabulary, grammar, presentation and interactive communication) so that any deficiencies in skill or practice do not interfere with communication.
The language skills necessary for effective communication include:
- intelligible pronunciation, stress and intonation patterns;
- listening comprehension skills;
- vocabulary beyond that of the subject matter;
- control of English grammar;
- paraphrasing and elaboration skills;
- coherent organization of information at sentence and discourse levels;
- interactive skills to enhance comprehension.
Effective communication in the academic setting also requires an awareness of and sensitivity to:
- the values inherent in the American educational system;
- American students' expectations of instructors;
- verbal and non-verbal behavior appropriate for students and instructors;
- interaction between students and instructors;
- differences in styles and organization of classroom activities when the international students' educational contexts are compared to those at Purdue.
Course Assignments
Major assignments for this course include: 1) four presentations; 2) three interpersonal conversation assessments; 3) participation in one undergraduate roundtable discussion; and 4) informal reports on TA assignments in your program or department. Additional assignments will be determined by your instructor and may include lexical work, leading group discussions, or other assignments based on students’ needs and interests.
Individual Tutoring and Conferencing
An important and valuable component of ENGL 620 is the individual meeting time students have scheduled with their course tutor and classroom instructor each week. In addition to 4 hours of class time each week, each student will also arrange a weekly 50-minute appointment with their course tutor and a 30-minute conference time with the classroom instructor.
By working individually with their tutors, students have the opportunity to expand upon what is learned in class. The course tutor works with each student to set individual goals and to develop skills to meet these goals.
Conference times with the course instructor are often spent preparing for class activities such as oral presentations and to review the student's progress in ENGL 620.
Course Grade
The course grade is based upon 1) course attendance and participation; 2) conference attendance and participation; 3) attendance and participation at weekly tutoring appointments. Given your attendance and participation, a grade of "S" (satisfactory) or "U" (unsatisfactory) will appear on your transcript. "Satisfactory," however, does not necessarily mean you have been certified for English proficiency (see the next item).
English Proficiency Certification
At the end of the semester, the OEPP Director determines whether or not students will be certified for English proficiency. The factors that determine this decision are 1) the classroom and tutorial instructors' evaluations of each student; 2) student performance in the course; 3) a review of the student's files; and 4) a review of the student's performance in classroom presentations. Students not certified at the end of the course may be directed to re-enroll in ENGL 620. The course may be taken up to 3 times.