Sophomore English Guidelines
September 2008 -- June 2009
Language Center
語言教學中心
College of Foreign Languages and Cultures
Soochow University
(http://www.scu.edu.tw/language/index.htm)
Prepared by Karen Cisney
Revised by Colleen Chen
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Sophomore English for Non-English Majors
Soochow University
2008-2009
I. General Goals of Sophomore English for Non-English Majors
This course is designed to help students better understand spoken and written English and
to express themselves confidently, accurately and fluently in both speaking and writing
English. Students are required to demonstrate their ability in passing the English
Proficiency Test specially designed for Soochow University students after completing
Sophomore English. In compliance with the Ministry of Education’s policy of assessing
students’ English abilities, an important goal is to help Soochow University students meet
the requirement for graduation – passing GEPT(General English Proficiency Test)
Intermediate second stage test （全民英檢中級複試）.
II. Administrative structure of the Sophomore English Program
A. Duties of Sophomore English teachers:
a. Required to attend Sophomore English meetings.
b. Be responsible for showing professionalism toward students and teaching duties
(arriving in class on time, making up missed classes, giving valid test questions for
mid-term and final exams, and proctoring examinations.)
c. Clearly specify the guidelines for evaluation, dates for the exams, lessons to be
covered, ways of giving assignments as well as all the other details in their syllabi.
d. Upload their syllabi as required by school. A hard copy of the syllabus should be
submitted to the office of the Language Center during the first week of the
semester.
e. Proctor midterm and final exams of their own classes.
f. To give presentations or workshops on ESL/EFL teaching at the request of the
Center.
B. Coordinators
We have one Head Coordinator and three Level Coordinators for each of the three levels
of Sophomore English. There is one specific TA in the Language Center who works for this
program. If your contact information changes, please update this information with the TA
because she may need to contact you for important information. If possible, please let her
know the best time to contact you.
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Joyce Lin 林香美 (# 6479)
joyce_lin@comcast.net
Head Coordinator
Level Coordinators:
Level 1 Coordinator(advanced)
Gina Yeh 葉靜娥 (# 6476)
ginatony@ms65.hinet.net
Level 2 Coordinator (intermediate)
Joyce Lin 林香美 (# 6479)
joyce_lin@comcast.net
Level 3 Coordinator (low-intermediate)
Grace Chao 趙佳音 (# 6474)
gracec@scu.edu.tw
(# 6466)
Teaching Assistant (TA)
@scu.edu.tw
During the spring semester, the Level Coordinators for the upcoming school year will write
the test timetable for the coming year. The TA will then give you the test timetable at the
end of the spring semester. Please refer to your test timetable for the names and contact
information of the level coordinator and the teachers who will be teaching, writing and
reviewing questions for your level.
III. Curriculum Design
Students taking Sophomore English are placed into three levels according to their midterm and final scores in Freshman English.
A. Course objectives for each level
This course should contain: 70% of Listening and Speaking and 30% of Reading and
Structure (writing included). Basic course objectives for each level are shown below.
Sophomore English
Levels of Mastery
Students will be able to
Level
1
(Advanced)
Conversation
Comprehend
and
participate in
conversation
on all topics.
Comprehension/c
ommunication
Oral
presentation
Make
presentations
on personal and
professional
topics
Exchange and
express
viewpoints on all
topics.
Reading skills
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
3
Skimming & scanning
Predicting
Identifying topic sentences
Summarizing
Deriving word meaning from
context
Developing critical thinking
skills
Vocabulary expansion
•
2
(Intermediate)
Comprehend
and
participate in
daily
conversation.
Exchange and
express
viewpoints on
topics of personal
interest.
Make
presentations
on familiar
topics.
3
(low
intermediate)
Comprehend
and
participate in
basic daily
conversation.
Express personal
interests.
Make
presentations
on personal
related topics
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Guessing meaning from
context
Scanning for specific
information
Identifying what to read first
Comparing and contrasting
Vocabulary expansion
Comprehend main ideas
Get specific information
Infer information even
without knowing every word.
Vocabulary expansion
Grammar structure
B. Required Textbooks
Level
Level 1 (Advanced) –
Summit 2
Lessons to be covered
Fall 2008-09
Midterm: Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3(~p.31)
Final: Unit 3(p.32~), Unit 4, Unit 5
Spring 2008-09 Midterm: Unit 6, Unit 7, Unit 8(~p.91)
Final: Unit 8(p.92~), Unit 9, Unit 10
Fall 2008-09
Level 2 (Intermediate) –
World Pass / UpperIntermediate
Spring 2008-09 Midterm: Unit 7, Unit 8, Unit 9
Final: Unit 10, Unit 11, Unit 12
Fall 2008-09
Level 3 (Low intermediate) –
Top Notch 2
Midterm: Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3
Final: Unit 4, Unit 5, Unit 6
Midterm: Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3(~p.31)
Final: Unit 3(p.32~), Unit 4, Unit 5
Spring 2008-09 Midterm: Unit 6, Unit 7, Unit 8(~p.91)
Final: Unit 8(p.92~), Unit 9, Unit 10
For teachers’ books and related materials, please contact the TA. If you have any
suggestions regarding the textbooks, please contact your level coordinator. If the level
coordinator contacts you to review and select new textbooks, please respond to the
coordinator by the deadline you have been given. You may also refer to the test timetable
for textbooks for each level and the chapters to cover for the midterm and final
examinations.
C. The Sophomore English Test
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The standardized test consists of a 40% multiple-choice with 20 questions for listening + a
30% reading test. The remaining 30% is freely to be designed by each teacher on any
materials instructed in individual classes.
Level
-
Reading 30%*
Reading comprehension
Short answer question
Vocabulary in context
Vocabulary matching
Paraphrasing
Sentence structure
Translation
Part I. Statements #1-6
Part II. Short conversation #7-14
Level 2
Part III. One passage & one long
(Intermediate)
conversation # 15-17; #18-20
-
Reading comprehension
Short answer question
Vocabulary in context
Vocabulary matching
Paraphrasing
Sentence structure
Translation
Part I. Question/response #1-6
Part II. Short conversation #7-14
Part III. One passage & one long
conversation # 15-17; #18-20
-
Reading comprehension
Short answer question
Vocabulary in context
Vocabulary matching
Paraphrasing
Sentence structure
Translation
Level 1
(Advanced)
Level 3 (Lowintermediate)
Listening 40%
Part I. Statements #1-6
Part II. Short conversation #7-14
Part III. One passage & one long
conversation # 15-17; #18-20
* 1-2 reading passages with related topics are included in reading test. Teachers can
include at least two types of questions mentioned above. Sample questions will be
provided in timetable for each level. Each teacher should give a copy of the reading part
of their exams to their level coordinator within one week after the exam.
The 40% listening is conducted as standard test, and two sets of test questions will be
compiled and recorded prior to midterm and final respectively. Teachers will receive
questions one week before the test and the CDs will be distributed by the Curriculum
Office during the test week. Please review your test timetable very carefully and also read
the following related guidelines for writing test questions and giving exams.
(1) Writing/reviewing test questions:
It is extremely important that you meet the deadlines listed on the test timetable. Many
things need to be done to produce the midterm and final exams. If just one deadline is not
met, the entire schedule is threatened and many people are inconvenienced. No one likes
to be kept waiting. Problems arising from missed deadlines put pressure on the level
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coordinators and the TA. If you have any difficulty at all with the test timetable please do
not hesitate to contact your level coordinator as soon as possible.
(2) Giving the standard listening test:
The Sophomore English listening test is given in various classes during the entire week of
midterm or final exam. Therefore, you must not give students answers to the exam
questions during the week of the exam. The exam CD should be played only once and
students cannot be shown the questions or the answers. The 20 multiple-choice listening
questions, which are a standard part of midterm and final exams, should take up 40% of
the total grade. Each teacher should give a copy of the reading part of their exams to their
level coordinator within one week after the exam. The TA will give you a copy of the
listening questions one week before the exam and the exam CD during the week of the
exam. You are required to give the exam on the dates shown on the Soochow University
schedule. You can download the schedule from this university website or ask the TA for a
copy. http://www.scu.edu.tw/reg/schedule.htm#951
D. Classroom
(1) You are not allowed to exchange classrooms because it may cause confusion to
students who already have reviewed the official classroom schedule announced by the
university.
(2) In order to understand how to use the equipment in your classrooms, you may have to
attend a workshop before semester begins. You will receive a notice from the Language
Center about the workshop information, classroom policies and related regulations.
E. Students
Students must attend the class for which they are registered. Teachers must call roll at the
beginning of the semester to ensure that students are in the correct class. If there are
students in your class who are not on your class list make sure that they attend the class
for which they are registered. You are not allowed to transfer students to different levels or
different class times. The university may penalize students if they attend the wrong class.
Seating charts for your classrooms are available at the Language Center.
F. Syllabus
List your grading criteria and your attendance policies clearly on your syllabus. Make sure
to upload your syllabus to school website before deadline. Please note that if your student
receives a grade below 60 for the semester, they fail and must repeat the course. If their
grade for the fall semester is between 50 and 59, they may take your spring semester
class but they must repeat the fall semester in the future.
G. Teacher Evaluation
At the end of each semester, the school will administer a class survey to check each
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teacher’s teaching. Teacher whose teaching performance is found to be less than
satisfactory will not be given classes to teach again.
H. Grade reports
The university requires teachers to key in their grades on the Internet. Please be aware of
the deadline for handing in your grades. See the TA for more information.
I. Finalizing Levels
Students are classified by midterm and final exam grades of Freshman English. And
according to all the grades, students will be placed in Sophomore English level 1, 2, or 3.
After the TA receives the grades of all, a meeting is scheduled by the level coordinators to
determine the number of levels and the number of students in each class. All teachers are
welcome to this meeting scheduled during the spring semester.
J. Signing up for classes
Having a teaching schedule that is convenient is very important. Each Spring, the
Language Center secretary will ask you to indicate which classes you would like to teach
the following year. Teachers who are often late for classes or simply don’t show up for
classes will not be given classes to teach the following year.
K. The website
For your information, here are the websites that may provide you with additional
information about sophomore English.
http://www2.scu.edu.tw/foreign/epower/sophomore/object.htm
http://epower.idc.scu.edu.tw/ (Ask TA for your personnel code)
Level 1 Summit 2: wps.pearsonlongman.com/summit2/
Level 2 World Pass Upper-intermediate: elt.heinle.com/asia/en_us/
Level 3 Top Notch 2: wps.pearsonlongman.com/topnotch2/
L. Important tips for new teachers
A. Teachers will be able to download the name list of the students in their classes after
the add-and-drop week. Students must attend the class for which they are registered.
Teachers must call roll at the beginning of the semester to ensure that students are in
the correct class.
B. In order to understand how to use the equipment in classrooms, new teachers must
attend a workshop. They will receive a notice from the Language Center about the
workshop information, classroom policies and related regulations.
C. Teachers have to list grading criteria and attendance policies clearly on the syllabus
and upload their course syllabus to the university administration webpage before the
deadline set by the University.
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D. At the end of each semester, the school will administer a class survey to check each
teacher’s teaching, the teacher whose teaching performance is found to be less than
satisfactory will not be given classes to teach again.
E. Teachers will receive a Soochow account number to upload or download necessary
documents.
F. Do not give students answers to the exam questions during the week of the exam.
Make sure you proctor and grade midterm and final exams of your own classes.
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