Mastering Speaking 1
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Level
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Intermediate/Advanced
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Term
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Fall
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Class Time
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Mon Period 3 & Thu Period 3
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Instructor
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O'Neill
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Description
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English ability is often evaluated as one of three stages: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. However, few people realize that for the majority of English learners, there are only two stages: beginner and intermediate. This is because the intermediate stage is a very dangerous place for learners in terms of motivation to continue improving their English. Most students who make it to the intermediate stage have developed sufficient skill to express most of their needs, wants, and ideas and, therefore, are not pushed to improve beyond that point. This tendency to stall at the intermediate stage has been acknowledged by the splitting of the intermediate stage into lower intermediate and upper intermediate; a split not deemed necessary for the beginner and advanced stages. This course teaches students how to drive their skills in speaking beyond the intermediate stage and into the advanced stage. In this course students will learn the skills and techniques needed for their speaking skill to progress to a level comparable to native speakers. This course will include training in using advanced grammar in spoken communication, pronunciation and intonation, and rhetorical schemes. Classes will consist of training through explanation and practice and spoken performances by students. This course is best suited to students with intermediate level English skills, especially in speaking – but all are welcome.
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Schedule
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1. Introduction: Course requirements and speaking diagnostic
2. Advanced grammar: Hypotheticals for indirect speech 3. Pronunciation: Stress in English 4. Rhetoric: Parallelism – isocolon parallelism, tricolon parallelism 5. Assessment 1: Short speeches 6. Advanced grammar: Digressions 7. Pronunciation: Stress and rhythm 8. Rhetoric: Antithesis 9. Assessment 2: Debate 10. Advanced grammar: Alternative sentence structures 11. Pronunciation: Intonation 12. Rhetoric: Antimetabole 13. Final assessment: Longer speeches 14. Final assessment: Longer speeches (& Debate) |
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Homework
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Students will be expected to prepare some speeches and debate ideas as homework and to attend the self-access center to practice what they have learned in class.
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Materials
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All materials provided by instructor
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Grading
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Grading will be based on three assessments during term in lessons 5, 9, and 13 & 14
Assessment 1: 25% Assessment 2: 25% Assessment 3: 35% Self-access attendance: 10% Class participation: 5% |