PdF:RCSZ_AJC1 English for PhD Studies - C1 - Course Information

RCSZ_AJC1 English for PhD Studies - C1

Extent and Intensity

0/2/0. 7 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).

Teacher(s)

Mgr. Gabriela Hublová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Daniela Dvořáková (assistant)

Guaranteed by

Mgr. Gabriela Hublová, Ph.D.
Language Centre, Faculty of Education Division – Faculty Branches of University Departments – Faculty of Education
Contact Person: Jitka Autratová
Supplier department: Language Centre, Faculty of Education Division – Language Centre

Timetable of Seminar Groups

RCSZ_AJC1/01: Thu 12:05–13:45 učebna 12, G. Hublová

Prerequisites

Students enrolling in the course are expected to have reached the minimum CEFR level of B2.

Course Enrolment Limitations

The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with

there are 24 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display

Course objectives

The course is intended for doctoral students at the Faculty of Education (with the exception of students of the Didactics of a Foreign Language study programme). The course develops all four language skills (speaking, writing, listening comprehension and reading comprehension) while putting a special emphasis on genre-based academic writing and speaking. In developing writing skills, attention is paid to the academic writing style, writing an effective abstract/summary, expressing particualr communicative functions(evaluation, argumentation, comparison, contrast, etc.) and ppt presentation preparation. In terms of developing speaking abilities, instruction focuses on academic discussion and presentation of the dissertation research project and a conference poster. The course design incorporates principles of collaborative learning, which are put into action in providing constructive feedback and in tasks involving critical thinking. Finally, students will acquire general academic vocabulary and concepts needed for metadiscussion of the above-mentioned academic skills and principles. C1 student can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise implicit meaning. Can express him/herself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.

Syllabus

• MODULE 1 Academic writing style (degree of formality, degree of personality, degree of certainty – categorical and tentative statements, clarity of expression, economy of expression, unity, coherence and cohesion, objectivity, giving credit to other writers)
• MODULE 2 Writing an academic article: genre expectations (structure and organisation, section headings, organization of sections; unity, coherence and cohesion; quoting and paraphrasing; format and citation styles)
• MODULE 3 Writing an abstract; constructing an effective title (structure/content, information density, economy of expression, active and passive voice, economy of expression, coherence and cohesion)
• MODULE 4 Academic language I (noun and verb forms, lexical density, noun and prepositional phrase, key nouns and adjectives, homonyms in academic and general English)
• MODULE 5 Language of presentation and presentations skills A) poster presentation: genre identification, assessment of poster design in terms of its communication purpose and function, interaction with interlocutors, here professional audience; speaking. Lexico-grammatical units to achieve effective spoken poster presentation; B) Powerpoint presentation, individual and group presentation, visual data in presentation, title and full abstract for spoken presentation, signposting; speaking, writing. Reflection of conference paper drafting process.
• MODULE 6 Academic language II (key collocations – nouns, adjectives, adverbs, verbs, key quantifying expressions, phrasal verbs in academic English)
• MODULE 7 Academic language III (key expressions used in statistics, graphs and diagrams, cause and effect, describing trends, analysis of results)

Literature

required literature
• Study material posted in the course folder in the MU Information System.

recommended literature
• ŠTĚPÁNEK, Libor, Janice DE HAAFF, Alena HRADILOVÁ and David SCHÜLLER. Academic English – Akademická angličtina: Průvodce anglickým jazykem pro studenty, akademiky a vědce (Academic English: a guide for students, academics and scientists). Praha: Grada, 2011, 224 pp. ISBN 978-80-247-3577-1. info
• MCCARTHY, Michael and Felicity O'DELL. Academic vocabulary in use. First published. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008, 176 stran. ISBN 9780521689397. info
• Certificate in Advanced English. Cambridge University Press. 2009. ISBN 978-0-521-71443-3
• 3. Cambridge IELTS with answers. Cambridge University Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0-521-54462-7.
• 1. Cullen, Pauline. Vocabulary for IELTS. Cambridge University Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0-521-70975-0

not specified
• DE CHAZAL, Edward and Julie MOORE. Oxford EAP : a course in English for academic purposes. 1st ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013, 239 s. ISBN 9780194001793. info
• DE CHAZAL, Edward and Sam MCCARTER. Oxford EAP : a course in English for academic purposes. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012, 152 s. ISBN 9780194001786. info
• www.macmillandictionary.com

Teaching methods

Pair work, group work, class work, role plays, discussions, presentations, providing peer feedback, etc.

Assessment methods

Course completion requirements:
Active participation in course sessions (a minimum of 4 sessions depending on individual preferences of each student is required).
Completed ROPOT quizzes in MUNI.CZ ("Odpovědníky").
The written exam will have ONE of the following forms:
Student will submit an extended abstract of a specialist text fulfilling the genre conventions (original without citations) using between 500 and 800 words, students will be provided with discipline-specific guidelines. The structure is as follows: 1 topic, 2 status quo, identification of the gap in the status quo, 3 methodology, 4 results, 5 discussion, 6 references.
Student will submit theses of their dissertation work or a dissertation work proposal depending on the stage of their studies. The text will have between 1000―1500 words and will follow discipline-specific conventions provided by instructor. The theses may have the following structure: 1 topic, scope of the dissertation work, basic terminology, 2 theoretical bases, 3 the status quo including an overview of the most important references, 4 methodology, 5 preliminary results, 6 expected or final result, 7 discussion, 8 references.
Student will submit an essay written in a specialized course for doctoral students.
Student will submit a text which he has published or is expected to publish in a peer-reviewed academic journal (student needs to be the text's only author).
Student will submit a C1 CEFR level specialist or academic (not general) English certificate.
Student will submit a confirmation proving that he has a Master Degree in ELT, English language and literature or English Translation Studies.

The oral exam will have ONE of the following forms:
Presentation in front of a specialist audience (e.g. doctoral students attending the same study programme, supervisors, consultants, etc.) followed by an interview with an examiner where the dissertation thesis supervisor may be present or asked for relevant questions prior to the exam) – cca 30 minutes.
Interview with an examiner directed towards a specialist topic – cca 30 minutes.
Student will submit a certificate/confirmation that he has presented a paper (not a poster) in English at an international conference.
Student will submit a C1/C2 CEFR level specialist or academic English certificate.

Language of instruction

English

Further comments (probably available only in Czech)

Study Materials
Information on completion of the course: Zkouška podle podmínek pro doktorské studium MU.
The course can also be completed outside the examination period.
The course is taught each semester.
General note: Kurz je určen pro studenty doktorského studia PdF MU.
Information on course enrolment limitations: Kurz je určen pro studenty doktorského studia na PdF MU.

• Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2017, recent)
  
• Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/ped/autumn2017/RCSZ_AJC1