The assessment for this module consists of four parts.

You have to attempt all assessment elements and achieve a minimum of grade point one in all elements to be considered for a pass. Here are the details:

Listening Assessment (45 mins, 25%, Learning Outcome 1)

Your listening test will last about 45 minutes. It will normally comprise various types of test, for example, multiple choice, comprehension questions, summaries of what you have heard, sentence completion, etc.

Speaking Assessment (25%, Learning Outcome 2)

The speaking assessment consists of two parts. The first is an assessment of your seminar participation over the course of the module. This will normally take the form of seminar discussions on academic and topical themes. It accounts for 12.5% of the total marks for your speaking performance.

The second part is an end-of-semester test which accounts for 12.5% of the total marks for your speaking performance. This test lasts about 10 minutes in all. Your performance is based on five aspects: how grammatically you speak, how appropriate your vocabulary is, how well you manage the speaking situations, how good your pronunciation is, and how well you interact with the person you are speaking to. There are three parts: (1) a general warm-up conversation with the examiner; (2) a discussion of visual materials; (3) discussion of a prepared topic.

Reading Assessment (1 hr 30 mins, 25%, Learning Outcome 3 & 5)

The reading test lasts 1 hour 30 minutes. We will use a range of different methods to test your reading comprehension, for example, multiple choice, comprehension questions, summaries, responses to what you have read and so on. This test will also include a section on the use of English.

Writing Assessment (2 hrs, 25%, Learning Outcome 4)

There are two parts. In the first part, you?ll write about 250 words in one of the text styles we study in the module. In the second part, you?ll write a second text of about 250 words in another of the text styles we study (e.g. an article, a review, a report, an essay or a letter, etc).

This level of language practised in this module is advanced level (roughly equivalent to IELTS 6 ? 6.5 upwards). This level of language achievement is demonstrated by a competent non-native speaker across varied social and professional situations in the four language skills (listening, reading, writing and speaking).

Listening skills
You?ll be hearing spoken English in a variety of situations, improving your ability to listen for general and detailed understanding. You?ll also be developing sensitivity to context and the attitude of the speaker.

Speaking Skills
You?ll work on a range of oral skills. For instance, you will develop your competence at exchanging information and views with others in social and professional situations. You?ll also look at how to negotiate and collaborate in a pair or as a part of a team.

Reading Skills
The development of your reading skills will involve reading a wide variety of texts (e.g. magazines, newspapers, leaflets). You?ll also be practising reading techniques such as skimming, scanning, deducing meaning from context and selection of relevant information to complete a given task.

Writing Skills
You?ll produce various types of written English (short reports and essays, letters, articles, etc.). Clear instructions will help you to develop your ability to adapt your material and style to the audience and the purpose of your writing.

Finally, you?ll be learning how to analyse English grammar and syntax in use by carrying out regular English in use exercises.

This is an active course! You?ll be actually practising the skills you will need to succeed as a proficient speaker of English. Don?t expect to sit back and let the teacher do all the work! You can only learn a language fully if you use it actively by listening, speaking, reading and writing yourself. So you?ll be using English a lot during this module, sometimes working on your own (e.g. reading or listening to a text), sometimes collaborating with a partner (e.g. discussing ideas or drawing up a plan for an essay or report) and sometimes working as part of a team (e.g. preparing a team presentation or having a seminar discussion). Your teacher will help you to carry out these activities as a facilitator. S/he will also provide tutorial support. But you?ll be doing the actual work yourself. That?s the way to learn!

So expect a range of learning activities: individual reading and writing, group discussions, role-plays, pair-work, individual and group presentations, listening exercises, etc. And be ready to take part and be enthusiastic!

There is a lot of material to get through, and you need as much practice as possible. That?s why class contact time is 4 hours a week.

You should have an IELTS score of at least 6 - 6.5.

The library
A PC with MS Office and Internet
Individual and group study space
A good advanced learner?s English dictionary
Multimedia equipment (DVD player, listening station)

The tutor will supply the materials you need.