OVERVIEW

The English for Business and Economics course (72 hours over two terms) deals with mainly macroeconomic topics touching on microeconomics. Those students who need to comply with the entry requirements (B1/PET English Certificate) can attend a 60-hour distance-learning course provided by CLAT (the university language centre). All students are required to sign up for the course on the Aulaweb (http://economia.aulaweb.unige.it/) both to gain access to all materials and get updates from lecturers. The lecturers’ course is an upper-intermediate one and is offered to undergraduates who already have a good knowledge of English. Credits: 9 credits. Available as a 5/6-credit course for Erasmus students only and upon agreement.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Course description The English course (72 hours over two terms) is made up of classes held by three lecturers. Those students who need to comply with the entry requirements (B1/PET English Certificate) can attend a 60-hour distance-learning course provided by CLAT (the university language centre) and supervised by a tutor. Click here www.economia.unige.it/doc/didattica/info_inglese.pdf for further information. All students are required to sign up for the course on the Aulaweb (http://economia.aulaweb.unige.it/) both to gain access to all materials and get updates from lecturers. The lecturers’ course is an upper-intermediate one and is offered to undergraduates who already have a good knowledge of English. Credits: 9 credits. Available as a 5/6-credit course for Erasmus students only and upon agreement.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims at strengthening participants' reading, listening and speaking skills providing them with the opportunity to focus on a range of macroeconomic and microeconomic areas. Another goal of the ESP classes is to encourage students to play an active role in classroom discussion and to devise and deliver presentations in class.

PREREQUISITES

Students can access the final oral exam only if they hold a B1 certificate or above. This does not apply to Erasmus students.

For further information about the B1 certifcate and how to obtain it through the university click here:http://www.economia.unige.it/info-esame-inglese-b1

TEACHING METHODS

To strengthen reading and listening skills and reinforce the communicative skills acquired during previous study of the English language. Focus will be put on understanding current English social, economic and political issues, working on different text types, to enable students to engage with native and non-native speakers in an English-speaking environment. In order to do so students will work on a folder containing selected texts (articles, essays, excerpts from books and manuals - all materials are available online on the Aulaweb course page). Emphasis will also be placed on critical reading (a closer text analysis for unveiling meaning at a deeper or metaphorical level within a text) and critical thinking (the ability to compare and contrast information and ideas from different sources). Course participants will also be encouraged to devise and deliver presentations as part of their continuous assessment. Students will be divided into 3 groups based on students’ surname initials (A-D; E-O; P-Z).

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

The course is divided into three topics listed by title - i.e. GDP and other measure of progress - Topic 1; The New Economy - The New Rules for the New Economy - Topic 2; Developing countries - Tools of economic empowerment for the world’s poor - Topic 3; 

 Under each heading, you have a list of numbered texts on which you will be tested at the oral exam. There are two more lists, namely “Background information” and “Further readings”. In the “Background information” list, you will find reference material supporting your reading comprehension skills. These materials offer reader-friendly descriptions of macroeconomic concepts and terminology as well as case studies. The “Further readings” section features texts expanding on the main topic. 

WHERE

All listed materials are available on the aulaweb - for most texts a reading comprehension or vocabulary activity is also offered and available on the aulaweb.

HOW

Each text should be read carefully more than once. First, you should make sure that you understand the main message by skimming the text, then, you should work further on the text and single out specific information or concepts through a scanning activity. Ideally, the skimming activity should enable you to say what the text is about. Scanning activities allow you to select details and data from the texts and enable you to report on phenomena by measuring and comparing them, taking into account different geographical locations, economic sectors, time, size, and other various figures and numbers - please see reading activities attached to most texts for reference. Ideally, you should grasp the full meaning of the text as well as the author’s intentions (critical reading. 

DOS AND DON’TS

Do not translate texts into your own native language. Use monolingual dictionaries as much as possible (see the aulaweb for reference to online English-to-English dictionaries). Do not work on anything else other than the original text. Working on summaries, will inevitably cause you to miss crucial information and will decrease your percentage of success. Do not sum up the texts, rather work on concept maps or tables to rearrange information and make a visual rendering of it. Do rehearse aloud or find a colleague to work with to test and improve your reporting skills. Do not forget that talking about economics in English is a demanding task, which requires the acquisition of sector-specific knowledge, appropriate use of terminology and a good training in language practice.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

All texts – i.e. newspaper and magazine articles, excerpts from books and manuals,

recommended reports and essays - are ready for download on the Aulaweb resources (http://economia.aulaweb.unige.it/)

Grammars

Raymond Murphy, English Grammar in Use. Intermediate, Cambridge

University Press (latest edition);

Michael Swan, Practical English Usage, Oxford University Press, (latest edition); an English learners' dictionary, e.g. Concise Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford University Press;

For online pronunciation, see amongst others  www.howjsay.com

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

ELGA NICOLINI (President)

SUSAN MARIE CAMPBELL

MONA NISHIZAKI

MONA NISHIZAKI (President)

SUSAN MARIE CAMPBELL

ELGA NICOLINI

LESSONS

LESSONS START

See aulaweb page and department's timetable.

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Oral exam following a written part assessing the students' entry level (see below for further details)

Assessment criteria: listening comprehension (the student understands the questions asked by the lecturer) effective reporting of content, critical reading skills, extensive knowledge and use of ESP (English for Specific purposes) terms, adequate pronunciation.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

Course entry requirements:

Students who do not comply with the entry requirements (B1/PET English Certificate) can  attend  a  60-hour  distance-learning  course  provided  by  CLAT  (the  university language                     centre)        and       supervised       by       a       tutor.       Click       here http://www.economia.unige.it/info-esame-inglese-b1  for further information. Students who comply with the entry requirements (ESOL certificate or CLAT B1 online course and test) have to enrol online using their UNIGE credentials for the final oral exam. On passing the final exam, students are awarded 9 credits and a mark out of 30 (minimum pass mark 18/30). Erasmus exchange programme students can choose to take a 5/6-credit exam but need to contact and get approval from lecturers first.

Exam schedule

FURTHER INFORMATION

Attendance is strongly recommended.