English 2 follows English 1 to solidify the foundational skills for effective communication in English as well as to foster international awareness, as both are typically required in the globally expanding domain of scientific and technological research activities. It also prepares students to study or do research abroad in the future. Students are assigned training exercises that cover the four language skills — reading, writing, listening, and speaking. The reading and listening materials include topics such as international and intercultural issues as well as the fundamentals of science and technology. Practice exercises in writing and speaking are provided so that students can develop communication competence to participate in discussions and conferences where opinions are exchanged through both text and speech. TOEFL-type exercise problems are also used in the course.
This course aims to establish a solid base on which students can build toward a higher level of communication competence specifically in an English language environment. The base is, as mentioned in "Course description and aims" of English 1, composed of three elements: (1) identifying relevant information accurately, (2) exercising fair judgement to form a valid opinion, and (3) stating opinions clearly and persuasively.
Each student is assigned to a group led by an instructor. Instructors for each group conduct the course using the "Course description and aims" and "Student learning outcomes" as the basic framework. "Class direction," "Course schedule," and other information below explain the features of each class.
By the end of this course, students will:
・Strengthen practical English abilities that are required for learning at university and for research activities both in Japan and abroad
・Be able to accurately grasp the main ideas and arguments of written and spoken materials in diverse areas including international and intercultural issues, science, and technology
・Have increased their knowledge of effective vocabulary and expressions to actively communicate their ideas and opinions in English
・Be able to write their own short paragraphs with a clear purpose
・Be able to state their opinions with good organization
Four language skills, fostering international awareness, communication skills, studying abroad, TOEFL
Specialist skills | ✔ Intercultural skills | ✔ Communication skills | Critical thinking skills | Practical and/or problem-solving skills |
1. Students complete their answers to warm-up and vocabulary and submit them via Google Forms. 2. In class, students discuss questions in the Warm-up and listen to the follow-up on the Vocabulary exercises. 3. Students work on reading comprehension. 4. Students work on listening comprehension. 5. Students discuss on topics on the content of the chapter if times allows. 6. Students fill out a weekly feedback sheet (submission via Google Forms together with 1/the weekly assignment)
Course schedule | Required learning | |
---|---|---|
Class 1 | Review of Q1 English skill 6: How to make slides for the presentation | Students learn rules to make effective slides for their presentation in English. |
Class 2 | English skill 7: Practice your presentation with slides (peer-review) Chapter 7 | Students review their presentation skills. Students understand the content of chapter 7. |
Class 3 | Chapter 8 English skill 8: Paragraph writing | Students learn paragraph writing. Students understand the content of chapter 8. |
Class 4 | Presentation session | Students give their presentation to a large group. |
Class 5 | Chapter 9 English skill 8: Paragraph writing practice | Students understand the content of chapter 9. Students review paragraph writing. |
Class 6 | Chapter 10 English skill: review of the course for the final exam | Students understand the content of chapter10. Students review the English skills covered in the course. |
Class 7 | Review/Final exam |
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Exploring Landscapes of Culture and Communication(Shohakusha)
TBA in class
- Warm-up and vocabulary building + communication card (online): 30%
- Final exam: 40%
- Presentation video recording: 20%
- Participation in the presentation session : 10%
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