a.y. 2013‐2014 Class contents and exam requirements Code 30129 English Language – First and Second Exam Module P2 Program Degree course Teaching activity Final Exam Objective Head Teacher Bachelor CLEAM, CLES, CLEF, CLEACC (course taught in Italian) 2° year, 2nd semester ,“P2”; (total classroom teaching hours 48). The course is activated if there is a sufficient number of participants  Bocconi internal exam ( B2 level*) or an international certification among those recognized by the University  3 credits, 2nd semester CLEAM, CLES, CLEF, CLEACC To acquire the language skills required for academic purposes with a preliminary knowledge of business English Dermot Costello
* To classify language levels, Università Bocconi follows the CEFR, Common European Framework of Reference for Languages Index Course program Textbook Exam content and description Additional points Resources page 2 page 2 page 3 page 5 page 5 1
Course program Objectives At the end of the course, the student should be able to  understand the main ideas and detail of complex texts regarding both concrete and abstract subjects, including most technical discussion in business contexts  interact fluently and spontaneously with native speakers, using the appropriate register  write a clear and fairly elaborate text on a wide range of subjects, using a formal or other appropriate register for e.g. essays, reports and letters  argue for and against a point of view Contents The teaching will consist of the following activities  grammatical revision: use and control of grammar and structure  vocabulary extension: reading authentic pieces from the course book, newspapers, internet, with particular focus on academic English for university purposes  written assignments: individual essays or group work with presentations to the class, explaining the strong and weak points of various opinions  reading comprehension: analysis and presentation in class of written pieces as indicated by the teacher  oral interaction: formal discussion of current affairs or academic questions  mock exams and testing: exercises from past exams corrected in class Set Textbook L.Clanfield &F.Watkins Global Upper Intermediate, Macmillan Ed, 2011 Recommended textbooks R.Murphy, English Grammar in Use, Cambridge University Press, 2008 Organisation Skills Seminar Presentation skills Individual presentation Traits and characteristics Using five adjectives to project your personality Topics Grammar Activities Introduction Personality and individual out look on life Optimistic/pessimistic Can do/ can’t do syndrome Agreeing and disagreeing with people and on issues Supporting opinions Making and generalizations and exceptions Alive and Well Present and future aspects Expressing certainty Expressing doubts Right and Wrong etc. Question words and forms Interpreting data, graphs and tables Land and Sea Prefect aspects Seminar Facts, Figures and The language of Social and economic trends and tendencies in a changing world Planning paragraph writing / topic and supporting sentences Academic English Writing an essay : Introduction Arguments in favour Arguments against Conclusion Communication strategies Email expressions Academic English Be persuasive using data, 2
Commanding information Presenting clear topics Interpretation
graphs Verbs of increase/decrease Dealing with cycle, trends and tendency Speculating about probably in the Impersonal passive present and past Talking about past habits using: used to, would, to be used to, to get used Expressing certainty and doubt Magic and Mystery … Talking about your upbringing Developing your speaking skills Parents and Children Giving and describing consequences Granting and refusing favours Power ad Money Examination strategies Life experiences Using repetition Conditional forms Dreams and Reality Expressing regrets And hopes Using the passive voice facts and figures Connecting ideas and opinions Writing an article for a magazine or a website: features of a good article, giving examples Writing and delivering a speech Complaining about issues A formal letter of complaint On the e‐learning platform you will find the materials provided in class by the professor and the assignments to be carried out while you are attending the course (up to a 5 hours a week). This study method allows a constant improvement in your language skills and an adequate preparation for the exam Exam content and description Objectives The exam is scored out of a maximum of 30 points, which will go into the calculation of your grade point average, and evaluates your ability to  understand fairly long and complex listening passages, making notes and reworking the information heard  write structured texts in various formats according to instructions  oral interaction: presentation, discussion and debate  demonstrate your knowledge of the language, by correctly using a range of vocabulary and grammatical structures Contents The exam consists of a written paper and an oral exam. Both need to be passed for the grade to count towards the final average. In order to take the oral exam, it is necessary to:  pass the written exam (minimum mark 18/30)  have a test score that hasn’t expired, i.e. that is still valid (see Written Exam, Validity) Students can choose to retake the written exam before the taking the oral exam but must remember that handing in their paper annuls any previous grade given. The oral exam is compulsory and the score is added to the written grade. We would like to remind students that, in order to take the exam, they must register for the exam session in question at the Punto Blu. The exam is the same for both attending students and non‐attenders. 3
Organisation Written Exam The written exam consists of two parts. Each part is worth assigned a mark and the sum of these marks is converted into thirtieths to give the final grade First part Listening Objective Check students' ability to understand the information contained and the point of view expressed in a brief listening passage Skill Listening to news items, announcements, surveys, radio broadcasts Test Sentence and/or table completion, true/false questions, multiple choice answers Second part Objective Skill
Reading comprehension
Checking candidates' understanding of written pieces and ability to rework information contained therein in a structured format according to instructions given Reading comprehension of one or more authentic texts, possibly also containing graphs, tables, images Test Writing a document (e.g. Letter, brief report, memorandum) Duration 130 minutes Dictionary Dictionaries are not allowed Validity it is valid for the 3 subsequent oral exams, and it is also valid for the subsequent 12 months but there is a penalty that must be paid (see Oral Exam, Validity) Oral Exam Objective Explain and discuss a topic, answering examiners' questions Skill Presentation and discussion Test Choose five topics from the course book and select one article per topic area taken from English‐language newspapers or the internet (length 1000 words each) Duration 15 minutes Dictionary Dictionaries are not allowed The oral exam can only be taken once you have passed the written exam. Students will be assessed in terms of their practical ability to communicate. During the oral exam marks can be added to or subtracted from the written exam result in the following way: Validity  by +4 or ‐4, if the oral exam is passed within the 3 oral exams subsequent to the written exam;  by +1 or ‐4, if the oral exam is passed after the first 3 subsequent oral exams, but still by 12 months subsequent to the written exam (this option is possible only for students who take the written exam after 1st June 2013) As an alternative to the Bocconi exam, students may choose to register one of the international certifications recognized by the University. The achieved result is converted into a number grade out of a possible thirty and is registered in their academic record 4
Additional Points The assessment of language skills depends both on the result of the final exam and on marks awarded during the year: 1.
Positive participation in the course and completion of self‐study activities 2.
The exam passed the first time it is taken Points are registered at the same time the oral exam is passed 1. Positive participation in the course and completion of self‐study activities Objective Maximum awardable To encourage constant and active improvement in the language  1 thirtieth for attending at least 70% of the classroom lessons  1 thirtieth for completing the self‐study program as indicated by the teacher of Defined by professor at the end of the course on the basis of quality of work performed and respected due dates as indicated the professor in the classroom and also online From June to the December immediately following the course. These months are included points Assignment points Validity 2. The exam passed the first time it is taken Objective Reward students who sit for the exam only when really well prepared Maximum points  1 thirtieth awardable Assignment of Automatically, when the student registers for the written exam and hands in the points exam for the first time, and passes it (minimum 18/30) and take the oral exam on the first available date subsequent to the written exam Resources Materials prepared by professors Self‐study programme Past exams Extra teaching materials Language tutors Office Hours for Bocconi teachers International certificates recognized 5