Contemporary English Language 1

Course Overview: Segments: Integrated skills (grammar, vocabulary, reading & listening), Writing skills, Translation skills (English-Serbian), Speaking skills Coursebook: PIONEER, level B1+, material posted on the course page, readers

Aims and objectives To develop students’ productive (speaking and writing) and receptive skills (reading and listening), and enhance their ability to use the language communicatively and effectively; To revise and deepen students’ linguistic knowledge and vocabulary; To enhance students’ knowledge and understanding of grammar rules/concepts; To improve students’ ability to apply the acquired rules correctly To enrich students’ vocabulary (related to various topics, both academic and general) To make students confidently write various forms (some of them being, but not limited to: emails, brochures, short stories, compositions, letters, essays…) on various topics, and for a wide range of purposes To make students aware of the ways in which the intended message could be translated, and enable them to translate texts/text segments, respecting the rules of the target language To help students express their own attitudes on different topics (freely & fluently) To present the language through the integrated skills approach To activate students passive knowledge and make it functional and purposeful

Grading: Test 1, 30 points Test 2, 30 points Attendance, 10 points Final exam, 30 points

Test 1 Integrated skills: written test, max. 13 points; reading comprehension, listening comprehension, grammar, vocabulary Speaking skills: oral exam, max. 5 points Translation (English-Serbian), written test, max. 5 points Writing skills: writing a text (max. 5 points)+dictation (max. 2 points)

Test 1: Integrated skills GRAMMAR Present Simple, Present Progressive, Stative verbs (Unit 1) Present Perfect, Present Perfect Progressive, Comparison of adjectives and adverbs (Unit 2) Past Simple, Past Progressive (Unit 3) VOCABULARY (Units 1-3: words (definitions, synonyms, explanations), collocations, phrases, idioms, prefixes non-, un-, in-) READING (Units 1-3, students get a text based on vocabulary and topic from these three units, and they have task(s) to do, relating to the understanding of the text. Types of exercises: circle the correct sentence, choose the best answer, finish the sentences, answer the questions. LISTENING (Units 1-3, students listen to a text based on listening exercises, vocabulary and topics from these three units. Their task(s) is to do some exercises relating to the understanding of the text. Types of exercises: circle the correct sentence, choose the best answer, finish the sentences, answer the questions.

Test 1: Speaking Students get two questions to discuss: One of general topics discussed in the class (Units 1-3) Various topics relating to the book The Phantom of the Opera. Note: Students are expected to be fluent, and able to produce several meaningful sentences, giving answers to the questions they are asked. It is also important to use appropriate vocabulary, syntax and grammatical structures. The level of proficiency shown in terms of these aspects influences the points student can get.

Test 1: Writing Dictation. The teacher dictates a text (app. 150-180 words) which relies on the vocabulary and topics covered in the first three units. Writing assignment. Students write an article/ informal email or a story, topics are those from the first three units. Students are advised to read carefully the instructions from the coursebook: p. 16-17, 28-29, 40-41.

Test 1:Translation Students translate a text from English into Serbian; the topics, vocabulary, grammar and syntactic structures are those found in the first three units.

Advice Units 1-3 (integrated skills approach) Contact each teacher before the test, either write an email or come to the faculty for consultation. Ask for a task from your teachers: a translation sample, grammar/ vocabulary sample, a writing task. Teachers will give you the task, and upon completing it, you will get the feedback – what to improve, what to work on, what has been achieved. This feedback can help you prepare better, be more efficient in your preparation, and it can save you time and unsuccessful attempts. Visit the course page regularly.