SYLLABUS

GENERAL COURSE OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this course are to develop the necessary skills to perform tasks outlined below. It is designed to correspond to level C 2.1, as defined by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Relation to the Certificate of Proficiency in English
In taking this course students will start to become familiar with The Cambridge Proficiency examination tasks found in text books. The focus however will not be explicitly exam orientated. The course could be considered as the first module of a two-year block of instruction. Advanced 3 aims to develop the language level necessary to embark on Advanced 4, a more exam orientated second block.

READING: Read most forms of the written language. Develop strategies for approaching abstract, structurally or linguistically complex texts such as manuals, specialised articles and literary works, appreciating distinctions of style.
LISTENING: Understand almost all spoken language without too much effort, whether live or broadcast. Understand extended speech even when not clearly structured and when relationships are not signalled explicitly.
WRITING: Write clear, well-structured texts, expressing points of view at some length. Write about complex subjects in the following genres: discursive, proposal, review or article. Select appropriate style. Highlight salient issues or present a case with an effective logical structure. Write summaries and reviews.
SPOKEN INTERACTION: Use language flexibly, effectively, fluently and spontaneously for social and professional purposes, with little obvious searching for expressions. Formulate ideas and opinions with precision and relate individual contributions skilfully to those of other speakers. Take part, with little effort, in any conversation or discussion. Have a certain familiarity with idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms.
SPOKEN PRODUCTION: Present a clear, reasonably smooth description or argument in a style generally appropriate to the context and with an effective logical structure which helps the recipient to notice and remember significant points. Give detailed descriptions of complex subjects integrating sub-themes, developing particular points and rounding off with an appropriate conclusion.

SPECIFIC COURSE OBJECTIVES

Listening
Type
Interviews
Discussions
Conversations
Talks
Lectures
Documentaries
Instructions
News Programmes
Developing skills of
Identifying main points and selecting relevant details.
Understanding overall function and message.
Inferring underlying meaning, attitude, feelings and opinions.
Recognising relationship between speakers and detecting agreement and disagreement.

Reading
Sources and Genres
Books (fiction and non-fiction), non-specialist articles from journals, magazines and newspapers, including editorials, reports and other informational materials.
Developing awareness of
Idioms, collocations, fixed phrases, complementation, phrasal verbs and semantic precision.
Detail, opinion, attitude, tone, purpose, main idea, supporting detail, implication, text organisation features (exemplification, comparison, reference).
Cohesion, coherence, structure, development, and global meaning of a text.

Speaking
Activities
Description
Narration
Comparison and contrast
Commentary
Exposition
Explanation
Persuasion
Developing usage of
- Discourse structuring: Opening and closing gambits, turn-taking, thematic development, planning moves, co-operating.
- Presentation Skills: Audience awareness, structuring: stating themes, logical development of subthemes, transition between themes, exemplification, rounding off.
- Expression:
Factual - agreement, disagreement
Knowledge - certainty, probability
Modality - necessity, obligations
Volition - intentions, preferences
Emotions - interest, lik
- Pronunciation and intonation

Use of English
Grammar
Noun phrases: determiners, pre-modifiers (adjective phrase, and participles), post-modifiers (non-finite clauses and complementation).
Verb phrases: mood, tense, modality, aspect, voice. Focus on inverted conditional patterns and reported speech.
Sentence patterns: Clause subordination - relative and adverbial clauses. Cleft sentences and negative inversion.
Vocabulary
Academic fields of study (in line with interests of course participants)
Art
Advertising
Consumerism
Food
Cinema and TV
Language
Learning and Memory
Lifestyles
Novels
Psychology
Politics
Relationships
Science and Technology
The Media
The Natural World and the environment
Travel / tourism
Wildlife
Work

Writing
Type
Articles
Discursive
Proposals
Reviews
Developing skills of
Presenting and developing arguments, expressing and supporting opinions, evaluating ideas.
Describing, persuading, narrating, evaluating, making recommendations, giving information, summarising from different sources.
Formatting texts in different genres, using different registers, demonstrating awareness of audience.
Using cohesive devices appropriately, organising texts at sentence, paragraph and text level.

MATERIALS

Course book: Your teacher will tell you which course book you will be using.

Supplementary materials:

A good ENGLISH dictionary: Oxford Advanced Learners, Cambridge International Dictionary of English, or Collins Cobuild.
A Spanish/Catalan-English; English-Spanish/Catalan Dictionary: for example, the Diccionario Oxford or the Enciclopèdia Catalana

ASSESSMENT

(a) Continuous Assessment - 40%
10% based on participation in class and other work done during the course.
20% based on written work done during the course.
10% based on Oral level shown during the course.

(b) FINAL EXAM - 60%

(c) PASS MARK:
In order to pass the course, it is necessary to achieve a minimum mark of 50% in the written and oral examinations and 60% in the overall combination.