2020-2021 / LANG8032-1

English for political science

Common core

Consolidation

Duration

Common core : 22h Th
Consolidation : 23h Th

Number of credits

 Bachelor in political sciences : general3 crédits 

Lecturer

Common core : Amaël Verbeure
Consolidation : Stéphane Ghijsen, Julien Stevens

Language(s) of instruction

English language

Organisation and examination

All year long, with partial in January

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

Common core

The objectives for this grammar course are : 
- Revising all the units from the bloc 1 grammar course
- Improving grammar skills by studying new units 

Consolidation

This course has a B2 CEFRL level. The aim of the course is to consolidate and extend the students' vocabulary & writing skills, and the specific features of the language related to politics. Concretely, for LANG8032B students will deal with:

  • vocabulary exercises
  • writing exercises (formal argumentative essays)
  • selected articles & documents

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

Common core

By the end of the year, students will have reached the B1+ / B2 level for grammar skills. 

Consolidation

The dual purpose of the course is:

  • to consolidate and extend the students' general language understanding and use
  • to develop and consolidate students' mastery of the specific features of the language related to politics
  • to introduce to academic English
This is done in the four language skills, namely speaking, listening, writing and reading.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

Common core

Having passed the bloc 1 grammar course

Consolidation

  • Intermediate level, B1 CEFRL level
Access to the LANG8032B-LANG8033 courses is possible if the student has validated LANG8030 and achieved a mark of at least 8/20 for LANG8031.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Common core

Theory and grammar exercises with a lot of live questions with Wooclap. 

Consolidation

In addition to regular preparation work, students will have to write several essays. Some of these will be taken into account and will make up 5% of the final grade.

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Common core

1st semester at university
2nd semester remotely

Consolidation

1h/week with writing and vocabulary exercises on themes linked to LANG8033.
Weekly preparation work is expected, the workload this represents is variable and depends on the students' level of competence.
We strongly advise students to read articles about the themes discussed in class, on their own and to practice their listening skills at home.
We might have to move our classes online because of the COVID-19 pandemic. We might therefore transition to a mix of in-person, hybrid, and online classes.

Organisational adjustments related to the current health context

Common core

- ORANGE CODE: Whether face-to-face or online (eCampus), the exam will include grammar questions in the form of 4-choice MCQs and possibly more open-ended short answer questions. The examination (as a whole, not just the grammar questions) will last 1 hour. If the examination is organised online, a detailed document will specify the organisation and connection modalities.
- RED CODE: The exam organised online on eCampus would include grammar questions in the form of MCQs with 4 possibilities and possibly more open questions with short answers. The exam would be organised on eCampus and would last 1 hour. If the exam is organised online, a detailed document will specify the organisation and connection modalities.

Consolidation

In case of code red due to Covid, the sessions will be taught online. In case of code orange due to Covid, the LANG8032 sessions will be taught online or face-to-face provided the context allows this. All information will be send by mail if this should be the case. If necessary, the exam will be organized online but priority will be given to in-class assessment. Details will be communicated in due course. 
 
January 2021 exam:
- CODE ORANGE:Whether online or on campus, the written exams of LANG8032-1 will consist of grammar & vocabulary MCQ questions with 4 choice options. If the exam is organized on campus, it will also include close-ended questions. A detailed document will be available in due course.
- CODE RED: Whether online or on campus, the written exams of LANG8032-1 will consist of grammar & vocabulary MCQ questions with 4 choice options. A detailed document will be available in due course. 
Exam length: +- 1 hour.

Recommended or required readings

Common core

- English Grammar in Use with Answers - Fourth or Fifth Edition
Raymond Murphy
Cambridge University Press
 
- Wooclap feedback to be downloaded after each class

Consolidation

Workshops, lecture notes and other useful documents will be available on eCampus.

Assessment methods and criteria

Below you will find information on the evaluation methods planned for in-person and remote exams as well as those planned for hybrid sessions. Depending on how the health crisis evolves, the chosen method will be communicated to you no later than one month before the start of the exam session.

Common core

Any session :

- In-person

written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire, open-ended questions )

- Remote

written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire, open-ended questions )

- If evaluation in "hybrid"

preferred in-person


Additional information:

Written exams in January and May/June with open questions and multiple-choice questions. 

Consolidation

Any session :

- In-person

written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire, open-ended questions )

- Remote

written exam

- If evaluation in "hybrid"

preferred in-person


Additional information:

The students will have to take two exams (one written exam is held in January and will make up 15% of the final grade of LANG8032-1, while the other is held in May/June and will make up 30% of the final grade of LANG8032-1). The written exam in June is composed of several papers (vocabulary and and writing exercises).
Continuous assessment of progress (class participation and tasks) accounts for 5% of the final grade.
Essays done during the year and the exams will be assessed according to a number of criteria including their content and internal cohesion, the accuracy of grammar, vocabulary, spelling and punctuation, and the range of vocabulary and structure.
To pass this course, students will have to obtain a real 10/20, which means that grades between 9,5 and 9,99 will not be rounded up. 

Work placement(s)

Consolidation

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Organizational remarks

Consolidation

The vocabulary and writing topics seen within the context of LANG8032-B are linked to the activities of LANG8033.

Contacts

Common core

Amaël Verbeure - amael.verbeure@uliege.be

Consolidation

  • Stéphane Ghijsen - s.ghijsen@uliege.be
  • Julien Stevens - julien.stevens@uliege.be