Oral English
Mr. Kevin GLADNEY
Fall Semester, 2012
Course Syllabus
Welcome to our oral English class! My name is Kevin Gladney. I prefer to be called “Kevin,” but if you are not comfortable with this, 高老师 is fine. There are two purposes to this class. First, and most importantly, I want to help you improve your confidence in speaking English. Your English is better than you think it is, and you have everything you need to speak English well. My hope is to help you realize and achieve that goal. Secondly, many of the lessons in this class are designed to make your English more natural. Chinese speakers of English often make the same, very common mistakes, and my courses are designed to help you sound more like a native speaker. You can do it! I believe in you!
Grading System:
I have found that a fair and equitable way to assign grades in this class is by splitting the class into roughly four groups. Roughly 25% of the students in this class will receive a 4.0, 25% will receive a 3.7, 25% will receive a 3.3, and 25% will receive a 3.0. Only lazy students and those who barely try will receive a lower grade than this. I am a fair and easy grader because I want you to worry about improving your English, rather than improving your scores. This said, the top student in the class will receive a grade of 100. Your place in the class ranking will be determined by an average of four grades:
1. Class participation: You will be graded on how often and competently you contribute to our discussions in class. I want to encourage you to speak English as much as you can; those who speak in every class will receive high marks for this grade. If we reach the end of the semester and I still don’t know who you are, well, you should have participated more.
2. Midterm: We will have an oral examination at the midpoint of the semester that will test the skills you have learned up to that point in the semester.
3. Presentation: You and your friends will perform a short presentation, for which you will be graded on your English speaking abilities.
4. Final: We will have a written final exam that comprises all of the course material.
Cheating:
Cheating or plagiarism of any kind will absolutely not be tolerated. If you cheat, you are not learning and are only hurting yourself and your education. I know that some students regard cheating as a natural part of being a student, and I know that some teachers pretend not to notice. I do not think it should be normal, and I will do everything I can to catch and stop cheating in my classes. Students caught cheating will receive a zero in the class and will be turned in to the university for further punishment. No exceptions. I define cheating as follows, and my definition and no other will be the rule of this class.
-Memorizing information from books or the internet and writing it on your exam when you are asked to give your own opinions or to tell what you know.
-Using an electronic device during the exam. This means no cell phones or electronic dictionaries will be permitted. If you touch your cell phone during an exam, even to answer a message from your mother, you will fail the class.
-Looking at any written notes during the exam.
-Looking, even for a moment, at another student’s exam paper.
Course Outline:
Class 1: Introduction
During this first class, I would like to spend our time introducing myself and explaining the objectives of the course. My primary goal in this class, as I mentioned, is to improve your confidence in using spoken English. I therefore want us to become comfortable with each other as early as possible. During the second period, if we have time, I would like to meet with each of you individually to learn a bit about you.
Classes 2 -5: Pronunciation
These four weeks will focus on what is the largest technical problem for Chinese speakers of English: pronunciation. There are a few particular sounds with which many speakers have trouble, so we will spend these weeks focusing on these sounds. This is the largest portion of the class, and for good reason; the best, easiest thing that you can do to make your English sound better and to give the impression that you are competent at the language is to speak English clearly and with proper pronunciation.
Classes 6-7: Register and Tonality
A second important element of the language with which many Chinese learners of English have difficulty is the proper use of register (how high or low your voice is) and tone (changes in the pitch of your voice). While the Chinese language uses changes in the pitch of the voice to create meaning (妈 vs. 马, for instance), in spoken English, these changes are primarily used to express feeling and emotion. In these classes, we will focus on using register and tone properly to show our feelings.
Class 8: British and American English
In this lesson, we will focus on some of the major differences between spoken British English and spoken American English, with the goal of enabling you to distinguish between them and understand both. We will study five of the major vowel shifts, along with three of the major consonantal differences. If we have time at the end of the class, we will look into some of the differences in vocabulary between these two main varieties of English.
Class 9: Midterm
The midterm examination will take place during the ninth period.
Class 10: Break
The week following the midterm, we will take a break from serious study and play a few English language games.
Classes 11-13: Difficult Words and Common Mistakes
Weeks five and six will be an opportunity to remove some of the more Chinglishy elements from your vocabulary. There are many words and phrases that Chinese students learn in their textbooks which are simply not used in real English. We will spend these classes learning to avoid them. We will also spend a significant amount of time exploring my blog, which I hope can be a continuing resource for you as you continue to study English.
Class 14: Etymologies
An “etymology,” simply put, is the history of a word. Words are inventions, and like all inventions they change over time. During week seven, we will study the origins of some English words and learn a bit about the history of the English language in general. Being familiar with the history of English will contribute to a fuller comprehension of the language and enable you to better learn how to understand and remember new and unfamiliar words you may encounter.
Class 15: Slang
Our final class on new English material will concentrate on a few of the more commonly used slang words in English, with a goal of helping you to become more comfortable with their use. Overall, the main thrust of this class will not be in learning a long list of slang words, but more in learning a comprehensive theory of slang usage so that you can best determine the proper times to use slang, and when it would be best to avoid it.
Class 16: Group Presentations
Group presentations will occur during week fifteen.
Class 17: Final
The final exam will take place during this week.
Mr. Kevin GLADNEY
Fall Semester, 2012
Course Syllabus
Welcome to our oral English class! My name is Kevin Gladney. I prefer to be called “Kevin,” but if you are not comfortable with this, 高老师 is fine. There are two purposes to this class. First, and most importantly, I want to help you improve your confidence in speaking English. Your English is better than you think it is, and you have everything you need to speak English well. My hope is to help you realize and achieve that goal. Secondly, many of the lessons in this class are designed to make your English more natural. Chinese speakers of English often make the same, very common mistakes, and my courses are designed to help you sound more like a native speaker. You can do it! I believe in you!
Grading System:
I have found that a fair and equitable way to assign grades in this class is by splitting the class into roughly four groups. Roughly 25% of the students in this class will receive a 4.0, 25% will receive a 3.7, 25% will receive a 3.3, and 25% will receive a 3.0. Only lazy students and those who barely try will receive a lower grade than this. I am a fair and easy grader because I want you to worry about improving your English, rather than improving your scores. This said, the top student in the class will receive a grade of 100. Your place in the class ranking will be determined by an average of four grades:
1. Class participation: You will be graded on how often and competently you contribute to our discussions in class. I want to encourage you to speak English as much as you can; those who speak in every class will receive high marks for this grade. If we reach the end of the semester and I still don’t know who you are, well, you should have participated more.
2. Midterm: We will have an oral examination at the midpoint of the semester that will test the skills you have learned up to that point in the semester.
3. Presentation: You and your friends will perform a short presentation, for which you will be graded on your English speaking abilities.
4. Final: We will have a written final exam that comprises all of the course material.
Cheating:
Cheating or plagiarism of any kind will absolutely not be tolerated. If you cheat, you are not learning and are only hurting yourself and your education. I know that some students regard cheating as a natural part of being a student, and I know that some teachers pretend not to notice. I do not think it should be normal, and I will do everything I can to catch and stop cheating in my classes. Students caught cheating will receive a zero in the class and will be turned in to the university for further punishment. No exceptions. I define cheating as follows, and my definition and no other will be the rule of this class.
-Memorizing information from books or the internet and writing it on your exam when you are asked to give your own opinions or to tell what you know.
-Using an electronic device during the exam. This means no cell phones or electronic dictionaries will be permitted. If you touch your cell phone during an exam, even to answer a message from your mother, you will fail the class.
-Looking at any written notes during the exam.
-Looking, even for a moment, at another student’s exam paper.
Course Outline:
Class 1: Introduction
During this first class, I would like to spend our time introducing myself and explaining the objectives of the course. My primary goal in this class, as I mentioned, is to improve your confidence in using spoken English. I therefore want us to become comfortable with each other as early as possible. During the second period, if we have time, I would like to meet with each of you individually to learn a bit about you.
Classes 2 -5: Pronunciation
These four weeks will focus on what is the largest technical problem for Chinese speakers of English: pronunciation. There are a few particular sounds with which many speakers have trouble, so we will spend these weeks focusing on these sounds. This is the largest portion of the class, and for good reason; the best, easiest thing that you can do to make your English sound better and to give the impression that you are competent at the language is to speak English clearly and with proper pronunciation.
Classes 6-7: Register and Tonality
A second important element of the language with which many Chinese learners of English have difficulty is the proper use of register (how high or low your voice is) and tone (changes in the pitch of your voice). While the Chinese language uses changes in the pitch of the voice to create meaning (妈 vs. 马, for instance), in spoken English, these changes are primarily used to express feeling and emotion. In these classes, we will focus on using register and tone properly to show our feelings.
Class 8: British and American English
In this lesson, we will focus on some of the major differences between spoken British English and spoken American English, with the goal of enabling you to distinguish between them and understand both. We will study five of the major vowel shifts, along with three of the major consonantal differences. If we have time at the end of the class, we will look into some of the differences in vocabulary between these two main varieties of English.
Class 9: Midterm
The midterm examination will take place during the ninth period.
Class 10: Break
The week following the midterm, we will take a break from serious study and play a few English language games.
Classes 11-13: Difficult Words and Common Mistakes
Weeks five and six will be an opportunity to remove some of the more Chinglishy elements from your vocabulary. There are many words and phrases that Chinese students learn in their textbooks which are simply not used in real English. We will spend these classes learning to avoid them. We will also spend a significant amount of time exploring my blog, which I hope can be a continuing resource for you as you continue to study English.
Class 14: Etymologies
An “etymology,” simply put, is the history of a word. Words are inventions, and like all inventions they change over time. During week seven, we will study the origins of some English words and learn a bit about the history of the English language in general. Being familiar with the history of English will contribute to a fuller comprehension of the language and enable you to better learn how to understand and remember new and unfamiliar words you may encounter.
Class 15: Slang
Our final class on new English material will concentrate on a few of the more commonly used slang words in English, with a goal of helping you to become more comfortable with their use. Overall, the main thrust of this class will not be in learning a long list of slang words, but more in learning a comprehensive theory of slang usage so that you can best determine the proper times to use slang, and when it would be best to avoid it.
Class 16: Group Presentations
Group presentations will occur during week fifteen.
Class 17: Final
The final exam will take place during this week.