Winter 2013
De Anza College
ESL 251.61 High Intermediate Listening and Speaking
Room: L33
Time: Monday 6:30pm-9:15pm
Instructor: Gretchen Himes
Email: himesgretchen@fhda.edu
Website: http://faculty.deanza.edu/himesgretchen/
Telephone: 408-239-3069
Office hours: you may talk to me after class and by appointment. Also feel free to email, call, or text with
questions.
I am here to guide you and help you the best I can. I will do my best to create an interesting and studentcentered atmosphere with many opportunities for learning and practicing English, but you are ultimately
responsible for what you learn. You will get out of this class what you choose to put into it.
Prerequisites: Successful completion of ESL 244 or qualifying score on the ESL placement test.
Course Description: The purpose of this class is to improve your English speaking and listening skills in
a variety of contexts. Help you develop vocabulary appropriate in both formal and informal situations and
guide you in discussions and analysis of topics in American culture and cultural differences.
Required Materials:
 Internet access (available at De Anza College)
 A good monolingual learner’s dictionary such as Newbury House or Longman.
Grading Criteria: Your grade will be decided by the following criteria.
Class Participation
CCP Assignment
Quizzes
Midterm
Final
Presentations
CNN
LSL Workshops – Extra Credit
5%
10%
10%
15%
15%
20%
25%
3%
Grading Scale:
A= 90%--100%; B= 80%--89%; C= 70%--79%; D= 60%--69%; F= 59% and below
Attendance: If you wish to improve your English, it is important that you come to every class. Students
who miss class anytime in the first two weeks of class without contacting the instructor will be dropped.
After 3 absences, you may be dropped or receive a failing grade in the class. Remember that it is your
responsibility to drop the class if you stop attending. I mark anyone late who arrives more than 15 minutes
late or leaves more than 15 minutes early.
Class Participation: Class participation is extremely important because it gives you the opportunity to use
and practice your English skills. The class will also be more interesting for everyone if you participate.
Participation and behavior are all a part of your class participation grade. Multiple times throughout the
quarter I’ll assign a grade from 100 points based on the following factors (in no special order):
1. Did you come to class prepared to participate, meaning your work was done before class?
2. Did you participate in class activities?
3. Did you talk only when it was your turn and follow the class rules?
4. Did you volunteer answers to the teacher’s questions and answer when called on?
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5. Did you help create a positive learning atmosphere by encouraging your fellow
classmates/group members to take turns expressing their opinions and offer positive and
supportive feedback?
6. Did you do your share of group work?
7. Were you considerate to your classmates and the teacher?
8. Did your phone not interrupt the class?
9. Were your assignments turned in on time?
Assignments: Assignments are extremely important in this class. You can expect an average of at least 6
hours of homework and study each week in order to keep up with the assignments, which may include the
text, recordings, presentations, and current events. Some homework will be turned in for credit and some
will be used to prepare you for class participation and your own improvement.
I will accept late written assignments (not quizzes) up until the 10th week of class as long as no more than
3 assignments are turned in at once. If you are absent, it is your responsibility as soon as you return to
class to turn in any assignments due on the day you were absent. Failure to do so will result in 0 for the
assignment. Please contact a classmate, NOT YOUR INSTRUCTOR, to find out everything you missed if
you are absent or late.
Classmate #1___________________________Contact info:_____________________________
Classmate #2___________________________Contact info:_____________________________
♦CNN Online News Videos: Five times during the quarter you will watch one of the videos from
the CNN website at www.cnn.com/video. For the first two or three summaries I will give you a
choice of stories on my website. Later you will choose from the list of “Top Stories.” You must
choose a video that is at least 2 minutes long. Watch the video several times until you understand
the story. As you listen, take notes. Write the title of the video and the date you watched it at the
top of the page. Write a summary of the story in your own words. In class, you will explain the
story to your classmates. Turn in your summary each week. Tips for a good summary: A proper
summary is in your own words and shorter than the original. Do not try to quote all the people who
tell their experiences in the story, just tell the main idea. Also, change any first person pronouns,
(I, we…) to third person pronouns (she, he, they…). If you shorten names, use last names when
possible because these people are not your personal friends (e.g. refer to Bernie Madoff as
Madoff not Bernie).
♦Contact Assignment: For this assignment you will need to find a person from another culture
and from a different language background to work with. You will meet with this person for at least
5 hours throughout the quarter during which time you will practice your English and learn about
the other culture and share your own. Some of you will be able to find a partner through the Cross
Cultural Partners Program where you will be matched with a speaker of a language different from
yours.
For your instructor you will write a journal about your meetings in which you summarize your
discussions and your thoughts about the encounters. For full credit you should turn in about 2 to 3
pages double spaced, with 12-point font and one-inch margins. I will not grade any paper that is
plagiarized or does not a summary of a conversation.
If you go through CCP, you the journal entries should also be made at the CCP website. The
journals will be due Week 11 near the end of the quarter. For CCP sign up at
www.deanza.edu/ccpartners and make sure you register under HIMES:ESL251-61. You will also
find a link to it on my web site.
♦Presentations: You will give two presentations in this quarter. If you are absent on your
assigned presentation day, you will most likely have to miss your presentation and you will receive
a 0 for the assignment.
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♦LSL Workshops: You may earn up to 3% extra credit for attending one workshop at the
Listening and Speaking Lab. You may choose from the Pronunciation Workshop, the Presentation
Skills Workshop or the Listening Skills Workshop for credit.
Quizzes: We will have several announced and unannounced quizzes that will test items covered in the
homework and in the previous class. Quizzes allow me to test to make sure you are doing your homework
and measure what you are understanding in class. Any missed in-class quizzes cannot be made up. Outof-class quizzes can only be made up if the answers have not yet been given to the class. I will drop the
lowest quiz score.
Exams: The midterm and final will include class material and material from the text, listening
comprehension, summarizing, paraphrasing, and vocabulary. Missed exams can only be made up at the
teacher’s discretion. Students may not take the final exam early. If you are planning on going out of town
and missing the final, then drop this class now.
Cheating: Some examples of cheating follow: communicating in any way with any person other than the
instructor during a quiz or a test; using any written materials other than the exam or quiz; using an
electronic device such as a phone or electronic dictionary. If a student cheats while taking a quiz or exam,
the first time he/she will receive a zero on the assignment. The second time somebody is caught cheating
will result in the student's final grade in the class being lowered one grade. After that a student may be
dropped from the class and receive an F for the course.
Plagiarism: When you turn in an assignment with your name on it, you are saying that it is your work. If
you copy words or phrases from someone, you must cite it (say who wrote it). Any copied material that is
not cited is plagiarism, a form of cheating. I can usually tell when work has been copied, so don't do it. If I
suspect that your assignment is plagiarized, you will be asked at my discretion to redo it for a lower grade
or receive a 0 on that assignment. Further, you may be asked to leave the class and receive an F for the
course.
Important Dates
Last day for non-resident and foreign students to drop for a refund.
Last day for Residents to drop with a refund
Last day to add
Last day to drop a class with no grade
Last day to request Pass/No Pass grade
Memorial Day Holiday
Last day to drop with a “W”
Final exam
Saturday, April 14
Saturday, April 21
Saturday, April 21
Saturday, April 28
Friday, May 4
Monday, May 28
Friday, June 1
Thursday, Dec 6
6:15-8:15 pm
If you are worried you may not pass and need any help in class,
please come see me for help right away! The earlier you come see me
the better I can help you.
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