English : Communicating Sciences Effectively (level B1 and above) [SELVB203]
- 3 credits
- 30h
- 1st and 2nd quarter
Language of instruction: EnglishTeacher: Trefois Cindy
Learning outcomes
The course aims at achieving level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in the following skills:
Reading comprehension
Understanding documents related to one's field of interest and discipline, especially scientific popularization articles : identifying the structure, main idea, and the article's main theme/thread (problem-solution, cause-and-effect relationships, etc.), distinguishing main ideas from details, understanding technical information, inferring the meaning of a word from its context.
Oral/ Audio-visual comprehension
Understanding audiovisual materials related to one's field of interest and discipline: understanding the main ideas of complex presentations, both in terms of content and form, on concrete or abstract subjects and in standard language, including technical discussions in one's specialization area.
Reception Strategies
Recognizing cues and making deductions (both orally and in writing): using various comprehension strategies, including highlighting key points and verifying understanding through contextual clues.
Written Production
Confidently summarizing in a formal register a popular science article on common and uncommon topics within one's specialization area, connecting discrete elements into a linear sequence.
Oral Production (delivering information, describing experiences, expressing feelings, arguing) Presenting the content of popular science articles related to one's specialization field in a clear and detailed language, with sufficient precision in both language and content; explaining the main points of an idea or problem with adequate accuracy.
Clearly expressing one's opinion and/or feelings regarding the content of scientific articles related to one's field of interest. Describe in detail how the subject/content of the article affects him/her personally.
Oral Production in Interaction
Communicating with some fluency on familiar or unfamiliar topics related to one's interests and professional field; following a clearly articulated discourse intended for them in everyday conversation, occasionally asking for repetitions of certain words or expressions.
Objectives
The ultimate goal of this course is to enable the student to progress from level B1+ to level B2 in the selected skills, aligning with the Bachelor's degree exit profile: written, oral, and audio-visual comprehension; written and oral production (individually and in interaction).
Content
Course materials posted on WebCampus.
Table of contents
See course programme on WebCampus.
Exercises description
Additional exercises on WebCampus.
Prerequisites
Introduction to Scientific English (level B1 and above) [SELVB103]Teaching methods
The course is conducted in-person through interactive seminars in English. Regular attendance in class is essential and necessary for progress. Opportunities for practicing oral and written production are provided in every class.
The objectives and activities are designed in accordance with the philosophy of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Language communication is worked on, taking into account linguistic skills (vocabulary, syntax, phonology), sociolinguistic aspects (markers of social relations, etiquette rules, etc.), and pragmatic aspects (organization, adaptation, discourse structure) required for the target tasks. The course goes beyond mere linguistic knowledge considerations.
Special attention is paid to the student's workload, including the distribution of hours in class and the credits allocated to the course. Approximately one-third of the course credits (= 1 credit/3 = +/- 30 hours) will be conducted in-person with the instructor, while the remaining credits (= 2 credits = +/- 60 hours) will be completed remotely using the resources available on the WebCampus platform.
In practice:
Students review the texts (videos and/or articles) scheduled in the program and complete the assigned tasks before coming to class.
Evaluations
The final grade for the course is calculated as follows:
-
Continuous assessment in Q1 (10%):
- Module 1: GVP 1 (grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation test)
- Module 2: GVP 2
-
Continuous assessment in Q2 (10%):
- Module 3: GVP 3
- Module 4: GVP 4
-
June session exam (80%):
- GVP (10%)
- Listening and reading (20%)
- Writing (30%)
- Speaking (20%)
-
August session exam (100%):
- GVP (30%)
- Listening and reading (20%)
- Writing (30%)
- Speaking (20%)
There is no exam in the January session. The January grade reflects the continuous assessment of the first semester (10%).
The written exam (60%) consists of three parts and assesses:
- Linguistic competence (10%): material of the whole year (GVP).
- Oral and written reception skills (20%): questions on materials (video + article) not covered in class.
- Written production skills (30%): writing a summary of a popular science article (not covered in class).
The oral exam (20%) assesses oral production skills and consists of two parts:
- Oral production - monologue (10%): presentation of three articles from a reading file, based on a visual aid (PowerPoint or PDF). The oral exam can only be taken if the reading file (including the three articles and their summaries) has been posted on WebCampus before the exam, by the date set by the teacher. The quality of the reading file will impact the oral exam grade. Summaries can be improved based on teacher feedback, provided they were posted on WebCampus during the academic year, within the deadlines announced at the beginning of the course.
- Oral production in interaction (10%): discussion on one of the topics covered in class or related to course themes.
Absence or attendance grade in any part of the exam will result in an absence or attendance grade for the whole assessment.
In case of failure in any of the 4 parts (GVP, Reception, Oral Production, Written Production), the final grade will be capped at 8/20.
For the August session, the student retakes the part(s) for which they did not achieve a grade of 10/20. Each part is then weighted as follows:
- Linguistic skills (vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation; material the whole year): 30%
- Oral and written reception: 20%
- Written production (article summary): 30%
- Oral production (reading file presentation + interaction): 20%
Continuous assessment will no longer be considered.
Absence or a non-passing grade in any part to be retaken will result in an absence or non-passing grade for the entire evaluation.
In case of a subsequent failure, all parts of the exam must be retaken the following year; there will be no partial deferral of exam grades from one academic year to another.
Warning : please note that the success of this teaching unit does not lead to certification.
Recommended readings
- Syllabus: course documents are available on the Webcampus platform
- Recommended grammar and vocabulary books : Bled Anglais Tout-en-un, B. Lallement, N. Pierret-Lallement, Hachette-Educ, 2014 (or reprint)
- Additional materials on WebCampus
Language of instruction
EnglishLocation for course
NAMUROrganizer
Faculté des sciencesRue de Bruxelles, 61
5000 NAMUR
