Ankara, 2015

ENG 201
ADVANCED COMMUNICATION SKILLS
COURSE MEMO
Welcome to ENG 201 Advanced Communication Skills
This course memo is prepared to inform and guide you about the course you will follow.
ENG 201 is a must course for the sophomore students studying at the Faculty of Engineering, the Faculty of Management and the Faculty of Arts and Science. The freshman students who have scored 85 or 85+ on the Proficiency Exam also take this course. ENG 201 is offered 3 hours a week (3 ECTS). ENG 102 is a prerequisite to this course.
The common aim of the course is to familiarize students with the elements of reading the given texts critically. Developing their argumentative essay writing skills following the critical reading part is the other aim of the course. Also, this course aims at developing use of technology by providing online practice materials.
In summary, the course aims to help students in their academic and future professional lives by providing them with the necessary background knowledge and skills to analyze situations or texts, with situations in which they can take personal stands and express opinions orally and/or in a written persuasive way, and also with opportunities to improve their IT skills.
Course Objectives
By the end of this course, you will specifically be able to:
 find out the purpose of a given text or situation,
 ask related key questions to get the message,
 discover the point of view of the author,
 produce implications and overall conclusions,
 categorize the concepts related to the issue,
 take a stand in class activities /debates freely,

 state ideas clearly and strongly in class activities ,
 summarize the main ideas of the reading texts, write a proper introduction paragraph, that is interesting to the reader and a thesis
 statement that is debatable and guiding the whole essay, write the body paragraphs that will support the thesis statement with sufficient proof, data and information,

 write an impressive concluding paragraph that will give the summary of all the
 covered ideas in the introduction and the body part with a striking personal comment,
 exhibit self evaluating and development skills, study course materials online,
 comprehend lecture notes by watching the class videos on Moodle.
 contribute to the class discussions and activities using their impressions about the contents of the videos on Moodle.
Specific activities
To achieve the aims mentioned above, the following are the activities you will join.
Throughout the semester, you are expected to:
1.
participate in critical reading activities through the texts that deal with interesting topics,
2.
take part in discussions stating their ideas on a specific situation or topic,
3.
put forward arguments on given issues in a critical way after doing the necessary study and preparation,
4.
summarize reading passages,
5.
examine model outlines of argumentative essays,
6.
write their ideas in a persuasive way in argumentative essays,
7.
work on online given assignments.
Course Book – Materials
During ENG 201, the following materials will be used:


ENG 201 Supplementary Pack
Course Book:
prepared by DFL instructors and
Q: Skills for Success by Margot F. Gramer and Colin S. Ward - Oxford


University Press. 2011
Lecture Videos on Moodle
Oxford Online Practice Material
Course Assessment
Throughout the semester, you will be evaluated as follows:
Quiz:
Portfolio:
15%
10%
IT Study: 5%
ERS (Extensive Reading Study): 5%
FLP (Flipped Learning Performance): 5%
Exams:
Midterm:
Final:
Total:
25%
35%
100%

The quiz will test you in terms of critical reading skills.
The portfolio covers your writing products in which you keep the corrected versions of;
1. A summary of a text
2. An introduction paragraph
3. Body paragraphs
4. A conclusion paragraph
5. A full argumentative essay
IT Study covers online practice materials assigned to you.
ERS covers the questions of the extra readings that are to be answered in class.
FLP aims at helping students take responsibility for their own learning outside of class by providing them with lecture videos on Moodle. Students are expected to watch these videos before the lessons so that they come to class prepared and valuable class time is used for more practice and feedback on written work of the students. The performance and effort of students regarding the viewing and utilizing of the lecture videos will be appreciated and evaluated through in-class discussions (giving feedback on the videos and answering questions related to the content of the videos).
The midterm exam covers both the critical reading and thinking skills together with incomplete argumentative essay writing.
The final exam covers critical reading and argumentative essay writing together with all the other issues which will be dealt with throughout the semester. Details related to the procedure will be shared during the term.
Grading Scale
The following letter grade system will be employed. DFL reserves the right to announce a Catalogue or Curve.
AA
BA
BB
CB
CC
DC
DD
FD
FF
90-100
85-89
80-84
75-79
70-74
65-69
60-64
50-59
0-49

Expectations from the students
1.
Attendance is required for this course. Those who exceed 30% of absenteeism limit will not be allowed to take the final exam, regardless of the reason for absenteeism, whether it is due to health or disciplinary issues. Attendance is taken at the end of each class hour. Students are required to keep track of their own attendance. The instructor is not responsible for supplying regular attendance figures to them.
2.
Medical reports are only accepted to give students a chance to take the exams they miss and only if the reports are submitted to their departments in due course and with proper attribution to the regulations of the university. Medical reports will not be counted as an excuse for absenteeism, unless otherwise stated by the university management.
3.
Students must attend and be prepared to become an active and successful participant of the course. To do this: a.
They have to come to class with the relevant course material. (Notebook, pen, course book, reading material, etc.). b.
They should keep the deadlines of assignments and tasks. c.
They should actively participate in the classroom discussions.
d.
They are not allowed to activate mobile phones during class. e.
They should use the IT and do the activities assigned by the instructor in due time.
4. Students need to keep a portfolio* as a requirement of this course. The instructor will ask them to put some documents in this portfolio. They need to hand in the portfolio to the instructor at the end of the term and will receive a grade for it. Therefore, starting from the beginning of the term, students should keep their portfolio as it should be.
5.
Students have to be punctual to all lessons.
6.
All classroom discussions are in English.
7.
Students are required to watch the lecture videos on Moodle before they come to the class and take notes for classroom discussions.
8.
To receive additional assistance, an appointment for tutorials must be arranged.
What is a Portfolio?
A portfolio is a purposeful collection of your work that shows your efforts, progress, and achievements in an area. This portfolio aims to represent a collection of your best work and efforts, and selected samples of written outcomes being assessed. You will be asked to keep some of your written work in a file (dossier) during the term and submit it to your instructor on a date announced. Please be aware of the instructions and deadlines.

Why Use a Portfolio?
A portfolio
 encourages self-directed learning,
 shows you what you have learnt,
 helps you learn about learning,
 shows your improvement,
 provides a way for you to evaluate yourself and your performance.
Format:
Beware of these points while preparing your portfolio:

Your materials should be in a file in which your written outcomes are collected.

Each of your written pieces of work will be on A4 sheets of paper.

All your written pieces of work should be neat and well organized.
Content:
Your portfolio should include the following:
 a cover page
 table of content
 portfolio studies
- one summary
- one argumentative essay introduction paragraph
- one argumentative essay body part
- one argumentative essay conclusion paragraph
- one argumentative full essay
Portfolio Assessment Criteria
ATILIM UNIVERSITY
DFL
ENG 201 2015-2016 Fall
Portfolio Assessment Criteria
Student’s Name:
Fulfillment : 2,5 /_____
Quality : 7,5 /_____
Total : 10 /_____
Comments :
Instructor’s Name & Signature:

Plagiarism Policy for ENG 201 Advanced Communication Skills
Plagiarism is using another person's ideas, words, and style without citing its source. This is stealing and will not be tolerated. Plagiarized work will receive a failing grade.
Reference is made to the following paragraph from the University Senate Action on Academic
Honesty:
In an effort to raise greater awareness of the serious ethical issue of plagiarism the
University Senate voted to add the following paragraph to the University's Disciplinary
Regulations:
" The use of someone else's ideas, viewpoints, findings or words in a paper, project report or any similar document which is presented as part of a course requirement, without proper acknowledgment of the source, is punishable by suspension from the University for one week to one month.
To submit any homework, project, report, term paper or thesis which has been prepared by someone else as one's own work with or without amendments, and to present in a thesis someone else's ideas or findings without the acknowledgment of the source is punishable by suspension from the university for one or two semesters."

The 15-Week Tentative Plan of ENG 201 / 2015-2016 Fall will be as follows:
WEEK 1
14-18.09.2015
Orientation & Meeting New Students
Introduction to the Course Material and Syllabus

Video 1 – Flipped Classroom

Video 2 – Course Memo
WEEK 2
21-25.09.2015
BAYRAM HOLIDAY
WEEK 3
28.09.2015-
02.10.2015

Video 2A – Some General Strategies For Critical Reading &
Application of the Techniques and Strategies
Study the text “Middle Children and Their Position in the Family”
WEEK 4
05-09.10.2015
WEEK 5
12-16.10.2015
WEEK 6
19-23.10.2015
WEEK 7
26-30.10.2015
Text Analysis for Summary Writing (Having a Second Life)
ERS 1 - How to Make a Strong First Impression

Video 2B – Summarizing Steps
Text Analysis and Discussion (Cars That Think)
Portfolio Study 1 - Summary Writing (Cars That Think)
Text Analysis and Discussion (Finding Balance in Food)
ERS 2– Finding Balance in Food

Video 3 – General Essay Outline

Video 4 – Thesis Statement

Video 5 – Introduction

Video 6 – Body and Conclusion
QUIZ

Video 7 – Introduction to Argumentative Essay

Video 8A – Argumentative Essay: Introductory Paragraph
Portfolio Study 2 - Introductory Paragraph Writing
WEEK 8
02-06.11.2015
WEEK 9
09-13.11.2015
WEEK 10
16-20.11.2015
WEEK 11
23-27.11.2015
WEEK 12
30.11.2015-
04.12.2015
WEEK 13
07-11.12.2015
WEEK 14
14-18.12.2015
WEEK 15
21-25.12.2015
Text Analysis and Discussion (Practice Makes ... Pain?)
ERS 3 – A Question of Numbers

Video 8B – Argumentative Essay: Body and Concluding Paragraphs
Portfolio Study 3 - Body Paragraphs Writing
Text Analysis and Discussion (Happiness Is in the Shoes You Wear)
ERS 4 – Happiness Is in the Shoes You Wear
MIDTERM
Portfolio Study 4 - Concluding Paragraph Writing
Text Analysis and Discussion (Fear Factor: Success and Risk in Extreme
Sports)
Text Analysis and Discussion (Money Makes You Happy)
ERS 5 – Fast Cars Big Money
Portfolio Study 5 - Full Essay Writing
Feedback on previous drafts
Text Analysis and Discussion
(Social Networking Sites: Are They Changing Human Communication?)
ERS 6 – Social Networking Sites: Are They Changing Human Communication?
Revision