ESOL 101A

This course is designed for non-native speakers of English who have good conversational English skills and wish to begin developing academic English language skills. Students work on improving listening, speaking, reading and writing skills using college level materials and begin to develop the language skills needed to undertake an academic program at an American college or university. Particular emphasis is placed on being able to write with good control of basic grammar. Substantial outside preparation and lab work are required. Prerequisite: Appropriate assessment test score including a speaking test or completion of ESOL 095B with a grade of C or better. 4 Cr. This course if offered in the fall and spring semesters.

Listening

Students will be able to

• Understand all discourse about personal situations and other everyday experiences spoken at normal conversation rates with limited need for repetition or rewording
• Understand informal discussions on basic academic subject matter
• In class discussions, listen actively and give appropriate verbal and non-verbal feedback
• Take notes including the main idea and supporting ideas on short, unadapted academic lectures with supplementary helps
• Note use of cohesive devices to organize ideas in lecture

Speaking

Students will be able to

• Demonstrate control of basic grammar and pronunciation when speaking in all discourse about personal situations and everyday experiences
• Clarify and elaborate on meaning when necessary
• Give information or state opinions about a wide range of topics with minimal interference from the native language and good control of basic grammar
• Participate fully in class discussions with good turn taking, interrupting and holding the floor skills, asking for and giving clarification or elaboration as needed
• Give short 3-5 minute oral presentations with good delivery techniques (rate, volume, eye contact, gestures, posture), clear organization, and good support

Reading

Students will be able to

• Understand unadapted prose, news items, business letters, and other materials encountered in daily life
• Recognize different genres such as fiction, journalism, expository and persuasive writing
• Respond to ideas expressed in reading materials in writing
• Read and understand unadapted academic texts with supplementary helps
• Take notes including the main idea and supporting ideas on academic readings
• Recognize rhetorical modes such as exemplification, process, and definition

Writing

Students will be able to

• Write dictations with 70% accuracy
• Write with good control of basic grammar, sentence structure and mechanics
• Write summaries that include a citation and a paraphrase of the main idea
• Write academic paragraphs in three different organizational patterns such as description, exemplification, process and definition
• Write topic sentences that have clear controlling ideas
• Include adequate support with examples and details
• Use a four-step process in writing, including pre-writing, drafting, revision, and editing
• Write in proper academic format

Grammar

Students will be able to

• Speak and write with good control of basic grammar, including verb tenses, noun usage and word order
• Use gerunds, infinitives, and participial adjectives
• Construct passive sentences
• Use noun and adverb clauses correctly
• Use all conditional forms
• Use appropriate transition words to join clauses and sentences
• Write legibly and in proper format

Pronunciation

Students will be able to

• Pronounce all consonants, blends and vowels correctly with correct word stress and intonation patterns

Vocabulary

Students will be able to

• Develop and use strategies for learning new vocabulary
• Avoid use of non-idiomatic or inappropriate word choices
• Make use of a monolingual English dictionary to improve vocabulary and writing

Academic Skills

Students will be able to

• Read and understand charts, maps and graphs
• Find main ideas
• Derive factual information from materials
• Use predicting, skimming and scanning strategies to improve comprehension
• Differentiate main idea from details
• Use underlining, highlighting and margin notes as study aids
• Interpret mood, tone, or intent of academic materials
• Distinguish fact from opinion
• Be aware of the issue of plagiarism
• Do self-evaluations on individual needs to become independent readers and writers in college-level work