A. Conversational English: Participants build on their current level of English by immersing themselves into English coursework relevant to conventional communication in a professional context. The participants were required to practice speaking interactively in English and to demonstrate improved diction. Listening exercises were included to improve pronunciation and to sharpen understanding of various accents and situations.
B. Business English Writing: The effective writing component included principles needed to draft a variety of documents related to management or business. The course also touched on written elements of postgraduate studies so that participants would gain confidence in organizing and presenting information and ideas.
The results of the 100-hour course were:
- Learning the meaning of new words and how to use them correctly in context.
- Gaining understanding of spoken discourse commonly used in a professional context, both by native and non-native English speakers.
- Engaging in dynamic conversation practice drawing on a range of contemporary issues.
- Learning to communicate effectively in various formal and informal contexts including one-to-one contacts (for example, telephone calls) and group encounters (presentations, for example).
- Listening to, viewing and reading English in various contexts and to practicing paraphrasing or summarizing messages conveyed.
- Ability to review sentence grammar and to expand into paragraph and document writing to enable more effective communication.
- Understanding of written discourse commonly used in a professional context, both by native and non-native English speakers.