Spoken English for Nonnative Speakers (380-0-21)
Topic
Conversation and Fluency
Instructors
Kenneth Leon Konopka
847/491-4533
2016 Sheridan Rd. Room #304
Office Hours: By appt
Meeting Info
Annenberg Hall G29: Mon, Wed 5:00PM - 6:20PM
Overview of class
This course focuses on developing the communication skills necessary for academic presentations at a graduate level. Students will work on improving their delivery of oral presentations to large groups using PowerPoint and other visual aids, as well as their ability to effectively communicate academic concepts to smaller groups and individuals. Over the course of the class, students will also have considerable opportunities to improve their sociolinguistic and strategic competence, as well as practice American English pronunciation, stress, and intonation patterns. The class will be focused on the observation, creation, and practice of multiple academic presentations. Active participation and evidence of progress towards proficiency must be demonstrated in order to achieve a satisfactory grade in the course. Work on these skills will be helpful to students in a variety of academic contexts, including making class presentations, reporting on research at lab meetings, engaging in job interviews, and presenting papers and posters at conferences and colloquia. Work in this class will also hone skills applicable to teaching positions, such as giving lectures, leading discussion sections or lab sections, and interacting with American undergraduates.
Registration Requirements
Students must complete an online form from English Language Programs in order to be eligible for the class and obtain a permission number. Contact elp@northwestern.edu for specific registration instructions.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course, students will be able to
•Identify personal strengths and weaknesses in their communicative competence in American English (i.e., linguistic competence, sociolinguistic competence, discourse competence, functional competence and strategic competence) from the use of data from self-assessments and instructor feedback.
•Demonstrate progress toward proficiency in using English for academic purposes for academic purposes:
•Improve verbal communication skills required for academic presentations in both casual settings (e.g., office-hour consultations) & formal settings (e.g., job talks) •Improve written communication skills required for academic presentations, e.g., organization and composition of posters, slides, and handouts.
•Utilize various skills required for clear and effective communication across these modalities, e.g., use of conjunctions for smooth flow of verbal and/or written ideas; appropriate use of focus and emphasis in exposition; strategies for responding to questions.
•Identify and employ different strategies needed for successful communication in different situations, e.g., understanding differences between formal and casual register and terms of address; use of acronyms and jargon for expert audiences vs. plain English for lay audiences.
•Express themselves in American English more comfortably and confidently.
Teaching Method
Lecture, discussion, small group activities, peer feedback, and homework
Evaluation Method
You are expected to complete regular asynchronous assignments each week. The concepts introduced in these assignments will form the basis for synchronous classroom work, so it is important that you complete them in advance of the class for which they are assigned. You will also be assessed on attendance and participation.
Class Materials (Required)
The textbook will be supplemented with handouts distributed in class and other documents available on Canvas. It is highly recommended to use a folder to keep all the material together.