


	Jamaica Language Unit

MA in English Language

L61F - The Content of Tertiary Level English Language Courses

Credits:

Duration:

39 hours

Evaluation:

1 Short Research Paper (40%)
Final Examination (2 hours) (60%)

Rationale

In recent years, there has been a worldwide increase in the demand for English for Academic Purposes and related types of courses. This has been against a background of another tradition, that of the 'Use of English' type courses which sought to have students study and understand the wide range of uses and functions to which English is put as well as societal attitudes towards various types of English. Thrown into the mix within the Commonwealth Caribbean has been the relatively recently introduced Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE) Communications Studies examination which somewhat fuses both traditions. A further complication has been the development and introduction of Remedial English courses at the tertiary level for those students deemed to need these. What should constitute a tertiary level English Language course is, therefore, a subject of some contention.

Aims

This course seeks to help students become aware of the traditions and issues involved in identifying the course content for tertiary level English Language courses, as well as to equipping them to begin to make the appropriate choices in situations where they have to make decisions about constituting the content of such courses.

Content

Introduction to the Field — A coverage of the definition and scope, the historical origins and influences, the theoretical considerations and current directions associated with tertiary level courses of the type designated ‘Use of English’, ‘English for Academic Purposes’, ‘Remedial English’, ‘Communication Studies’ etc., particularly within the Caribbean.
The Institutional and Disciplinary Contexts — A survey of institutional attitudes and policies towards English Language competence and usage within the academy and the impact of sociolinguistic research on these
The General Linguistic Culture — An examination of issues surrounding the extent to which the study of attitudes to and the use of language varieties, both standard and non-standard, within societies, are of relevance to tertiary level English Language courses.
Academic Discourse — A survey of the cultural assumptions behind academic discourse, the nature of academic discourse, and academic discourse variation across disciplines.
Academic Reading — Teaching rhetorical modes, reading for information reading speed, reading comprehension and vocabulary, second language vocabulary acquisition, teaching/learning vocabulary, and catering to the ESL student.
Academic Writing — Teaching writing functions and forms, product and process approaches, basic academic rhetorical modes, writing from sources including summarising, paraphrasing and synthesising, reference/research skills, examination skills, the ESL student.
Lectures and Note-taking — Teaching about lecturing styles and lecture structure, listening cues, informal language, taking notes, lecture length, the ESL student.
Speaking for Academic Purposes — The preparation of students to deliver seminars and other oral presentations, as well as to verbalise data and cope with individual speech difficulties.
Teaching English for Specific Academic Purposes — The significance of the study of academic discourse and style, including register analysis, discourse analysis, genre analysis, appropriacy, subject-specific language.
Student/Course Evaluation — Evaluative criteria, modes of assessment including test types, writing assessment in the disciplines.

Reading List

Belcher, D & G. Braine 1995 Academic Writing in a Second Language, Ablex Publishing Corp., Norwood, New Jersey.
Campbell, C. 1996 'Writing with others' words: using background reading text in academic compositions' in Kroll, B. (ed.) Second Language Writing, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Cohen, A. 1994 'English for Academic Purposes in Brazil: the use of summary tasks' in Hill, C. & K. Parry From Testing to Assessment, Longman, London.
Devitt, A. 1996 'Genre, genres, and the teaching of genre', in College Composition and Communication 47 (4) 605-615.
Eblen, C. 1983 'Writing across-the-curriculum: A survey of a university faculty's views and classroom practices' in Research in the Teaching of English 17 (4) 343-348.
Fox, H. 1994 Listening to the World" Cultural Issues in Academic Writing, NCTE, Urbana.
Joliffe, D. 1988 Advances in Writing Research Volume Two: Writing in Academic Disciplines, Ablex Publising Corp., Norwood, New Jersey.
Jordan, R. 1997 English for Academic Purposes: A guide and Resource Book for Teachers, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Larson, R. 1992 'Three recent explorations of writing in the academic disciplines' in College English 54 (3) 343-351.
Parkinson McCarthy, L. 1987 'A stranger in strange lands: A college student writing across the curriculum' in Research in the Teaching of English 21 (3) 233-265.
Shaughnessy, M. 1977 Errors and Expectations, Oxford University Press, New York.
Wolcott, W & S. Legg 1998 An Overview of Writing Assessment, NCTE, Urbana.