Curricula

Objectives

In the course English for Working Life you will learn to operate in English in situations related to international working life.

You will also increase your self-confidence in speaking and writing in professional contexts. In addition, you will learn to follow the developments in your field locally and globally.

After taking the course, you will have learned to write texts related to your future profession in an appropriate style. You will also have gained confidence in spoken interaction and acquired vocabulary that will benefit you later in your career.

Communication and Team-working: You are able to function effectively in a national and international context and you are able to cooperate effectively with specialists in your own field as well as with other groups of professionals.

Content

The central contents of the course are:
- telling about your studies and looking for employment
- oral and written communication in working life, for example meetings, small talk, customer service, telephoning and emailing, and expressing your own opinion
- producing formal text, such as reports, instructions or summaries
- field-specific terminology
- presentations, workshops, group discussions

Learning materials and recommended literature

Teacher’s material on Moodle.
In addition, the students need to search information and material relevant to their field of study.

Extra material: any school book in English. The better if it is related to the student's own field.

Teaching methods

THIS IMPLEMENTATION IS ALREADY FULL. NO NEW ENROLLMENTS ARE BEING ACCEPTED.

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Online implementation between 11 March - 19 May 2024

Kick-Off Webinar on Zoom on Tue 12th February at 8:30 - 9:30am. Attending this sole webinar is highly recommended; alternatively watch its recording within three days. The link to the Zoom meeting is sent to the enrolled students by the webinar day. The workspace on Moodle will be opened when the course starts if not a couple of days before. Thank you for your patience.

REMINDER: Good time management skills and solid B2-level in English required (see 'Further information for students' or 'Lisätietoja' below).

You study mostly independently on Moodle. You need basic computing skills, for example, for making and sharing videos online. A web camera and microphone are necessary.

The course is divided into four parts or units, and they are timetabled. It means that you need to finish each part in the given order and by their deadline.

You will have both written and oral learning assignments. The oral assignments are videos. There is also one major group assignment (group discussion) and an exam at an Exam Studio during the last 10 days of the implementation. An Exam Studio can be found at most universities in Finland.

The topics include:
- studies
- work and looking for employment
- communication in working life
- professional and academic writing
- field-specific terminology
- presentations

Exam dates and retake possibilities

Assignments on Moodle according to the course timetable (about 1-4 weeks/part).
EXAM at an Exam Studio during the last 10 days of the implementation.

Two possible re-sit exam times most likely in August/September 2024, dates to be decided.

Student workload

Estimated student workload in this course:

- Kick-off webinar, 1-2 hours
- Familiarization with online course environment, self-study and learning assignments: ~100 hours
- Group assignment: 5 hours


Total 108 hours (one credit equals 27 hours of student work)

Further information for students

Grades, evaluation criteria, lecturer's feedback, tasks and exercises on Moodle, self-assessment, peer-assessment

The level of this course is B2 (https://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/sites/default/files/cefr-fi.pdf). If your English skills do not reach that level in most parts, it is recommended to take 'Englannin tukiopinnot' or 'Improve Your English' first.

Besides the exam, the course includes several assignments that contribute to the course grade. Not following the instructions and the given deadlines lowers the mark and thus, most likely, the course grade. It may also lead to failing the whole course.

Evaluation scale

0-5

Evaluation criteria, satisfactory (1-2)

1 The students are able to communicate understandably both in speech and writing in simple and routine work tasks and other situations. They can understand the central content of speech and writing dealing with familiar topics. They have a sufficient command of the basic structures of the language for the delivery of their message. The level of their pronunciation is sufficient for the delivery of the main content of their message. The students act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

2 The students are able to communicate understandably both orally and in writing in routine and familiar work duties and situations although their language use is at times slow and incoherent. They understand clear speech and writing with familiar content. They have an adequate command of the basic structures of the language. Their vocabulary is sufficient for every-day situations and reasonably adequate for basic field-specific situations. The level of their pronunciation is sufficient for the delivery of content.The students act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

Evaluation criteria, good (3-4)

3 The students can manage well both oral and written situations in working life and every-day life. The students can write a text with coherent content. They understand speech with a normal tempo, but unusual topics and language deviating from standard use cause difficulties. They can understand demanding written content related to their own field, although some details may remain unclear. They can use the grammatical structures of the language in a versatile way, and their mistakes do not hinder communication. The students’ command of the vocabulary of the language is sufficient for communicating the central content even in demanding tasks and situations. Their pronunciation is adequate. The students act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

4 The students are able to communicate fluently in different situations and produce clear and fluent language with adequate style. They have no difficulty in understanding and producing speech and writing needed in working life although expressions deviating from the standard use of the language cause problems to some extent. The students have a good command of the language and its use, but occasional problems may arise. The students act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

Evaluation criteria, excellent (5)

5 The students are able to communicate with great fluency and active participation in a wide variety of situations. They also portray considerable versatility and an appropriate sense of style in their ability to apply the learning content of the course to demanding working life situations. They have no difficulties in understanding different kinds of language users although fine nuances and speech deviating significantly from standard language can sometimes be challenging. The students can understand and produce demanding content in both speech and writing. Their language use is practically flawless. The students act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

Prerequisites

The course is on level B2 in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. If the course Improve your English was recommended to you at the beginning of your studies, please take it before enrolling for English for Working Life.

In this course you will need the basic ICT-skills, such as word processing and creating audio and video files.