COURSE SYLLABUS LAN 101

Course Title: Academic English

Course Code: LAN 101 Instructor: Angela Kleanthous

Semester: Spring 2024 Office: SP018

Lecture Room: *** Office Hours: ***

Type of Course: Compulsory/Optional Phone Number: 22 892907

Mode of Delivery: Face to

Face/Online**
Prerequisites: LAN 100 or equivalent Email: [email protected]

Day/Time: *** Website: www.ucy.ac.cy

Number of ECTS Credits Allocated: 5 Language Center Website:

http://www.ucy.ac.cy/langce/en/

**The mode of delivery may change in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Course Overview

This LAN 101 Academic English course is designed to build upon the English
language and skills covered in LAN 100 General Advanced English. Students
will further develop their proficiency in written and spoken academic
communication in English. They will investigate the writing process, in
particular, how to plan, structure, draft and revise an essay. Students will
also learn how to improve the quality of their academic presentations in
English by looking closely at the preparation process and practicing
techniques to help them deliver with more confidence.

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Students will be helped to comprehend and critically engage with written and
spoken materials by learning specific skills such as recognizing tone, making
inferences and detecting author bias. Particular attention will be given to
targeted listening practice as well as overall speaking proficiency. All core
skills incorporated in the course will assist students to better function in both
their daily academic life as well as the future world of work.

The language proficiency level is aligned with the B2+ level of the Common European Framework of
Reference for Languages (CEFR).

Course Learning Objectives:

The objectives of this course are to enable students to:

 Develop academic vocabulary using the Academic Word List
 Use effective strategies in the reading and comprehension of academic English
texts
 Recognize tone and bias in spoken and written language
 Create appropriate questions and formulate clear opinions on a wide variety of
topics
 Enhance speaking and listening skills
 Distinguish and construct inferences in spoken and written language
 Develop critical thinking, team building, collaboration and problem-solving
 Prepare a 5-paragraph opinion essay using effective strategies

Course Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this course, students should be able to:

 Employ relevant academic vocabulary in speaking and writing
 Employ reading strategies to comprehend academic English texts
 Identify and apply tone, bias, and fact/opinion in persuasive readings and
written texts
 Demonstrate increasing competence in speaking and listening skills
 Develop critical thinking, team building, collaborative, and problem-

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 solving through the development and production of oral presentations and
other tasks
 Compose a 5-paragraph opinion essay using effective strategies

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 Required Textbook(s):

A pack of course materials will be made available by each instructor.

This course is common across all departments that take it. Therefore,
thematic units covered are bound to differ depending on the respective
department.

Indicative thematic topics:

• The environment
• Racism /Xenophobia
• Education
• Social/Current topics
• Famous speeches
• Psychology
• 21st century technologies

Assessment Percentage (%)

Listening task 15%

Persuasive Presentations 10%

Written Mediation Task 10%

Participation 5%

Final Exam 60%

100

Minimum Passing Grade* 50%

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Important Dates:

The Final Exam will take place during the reading week: TBA

Academic Calendar: HYPERLINK

"https://www.ucy.ac.cy/aasw/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/10/Academic-Calendar-2023-
24-en_.pdf"https://www.ucy.ac.cy/aasw/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/10/Academic-
Calendar-2023-24-en_.pdf

Course Regulations and Policies:

Attendance and Punctuality:

In conformity with University of Cyprus regulations, class attendance is compulsory

(see point 1.13, Study and Examination Regulations, UCY: http://ucy.ac.cy/legislation/volumeb/5.1.html).

Exams, tests, assignments: Students are eligible to take the Final Exam only upon completion of all required
assignments and tests. They must attend all sections of examinations and tests. Failure to do so will result in
a zero (0) grade for the entire exam/test. There are no make-up exams, except for very exceptional
circumstances and after consultation with the instructor.

The Language Certificate

The Language Certificate is awarded to any student who achieves an overall score of

7/10 (70%) and above in the specified course (Assignments, Participation & Final
Exam).

Academic Integrity: Academic integrity assures honest conduct in and out of the classroom when dealing with
academic issues. It avoids any kind of plagiarism and relies on the truth that students submit original work.

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 Tentative Course Outline

Topics/Week/ Lesson Content Materials* Assessme

Lesson nt/
Homewor
k*
Introduction to course Reading 1
Week 1 syllabus In praise of
Icebreaker the ’F’ word
Writing Sample

Revision of LAN 100

skills
Revisiting the AWL –
Academic Word List
Distinguishing Reading 2
Week 2 between fact & The 2000 year
opinion old wonder
drug
Fact & Opinion Listening & speaking
for intercultural
competence

Tone
Identify tone in
speaking & AWL collocations:
writing https://
www.eapfoundation.
Introduction to AWL com/vocab/
collocations academic/acl/

Reading 3
Week 3 Detecting & Extra large
understanding please
inferences in written
Inferencing and spoken language
 Identifying
overall topic
theme
 Activating prior
knowledge of

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 the subject
 Understanding
context clues

Pronunciation Focus:
common mistakes
Cypriot students
make

ASSIGNME
Week 4 Understanding the NT 1: (%)
writing process
 Plan
The writing  Structure
process  Draft
 Revise
 Proofread
Comprehend the
question
Plan the essay
Compose a clear
thesis statement and
topic sentences
Incorporate
transitions within and
between sentences &
paragraphs

Week 5 Reading 4
Introduction to Anxiety:
persuasive strategies Challenge
Persuasive Oral by another
presentations Use of persuasive name
language

Oral presentation
Guidelines
 Structure &
content
 Delivery
 Voice & Body
Language
 Audience
engagement

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 Speaking skills
Building
 Pronunciation
Vocabulary
 Intonation
https://
Vocabulary building: www.eapfoundation.
prefixes/suffixes/roots com/vocab/affixes/

Roots (Greek &

Latin):
https://www.eapfoun
dation.com/vocab/aff
ixes/roots/

Week 6 Introduction to the

opinion essay Reading 5
-Structure & Just walk on
The Opinion Coherence by: Black
Essay -Expressing opinions men and
in writing public space
-Writing introductions
& conclusions
-Proofreading:
spelling/grammatical
accuracy/repetition of
vocabulary/punctuatio
n & spelling
Word
Connotations Positive and negative
connotations

Week 7 Reading 6
The
Detecting Bias in Introduction to bias environment
Writing & Detecting & al issue from
Speaking understanding bias in hell
written & spoken
language

Politically correct
language & how to
avoid
sexist/racist/ageist
language
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Week 8 Listening for gist & ASSIGNME
details NT 2: (%)
Taking notes on
Listening Skills spoken language
Reading 7
Further AWL
vocabulary building
for opinion essay
writing

Express opinions
Week 9 through interactive
group speaking tasks

Oral presentations Using the APA

-Critically evaluate Style of
sources Referencing (in-
-Synthesize sources text
into spoken and citations/bibliogra
written elements of phy)
presentation
-Avoiding plagiarism
Reading 8
Week 10 Collaborative task: Emotional
Integrated 21st Intelligence
century skills in
practice

Workshop (Eg.
Writing and/or
Vocabulary)

Week 11 Persuasive Oral Self-review &

Presentations: peer review task
Tutorials

Speaking Workshop
ORAL
Week 12 Oral Presentations: PRESENTA
Interactive Peer TION
Review & Discussions ASSIGNME
NT (15%)

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 Will be
changed
according
to each
instructor’s
breakdown
and
assessed
tasks

Week 13 Final Exam

revision/Class review

Week 14 Final Exam (60%)

*Indicative: The instructor will select the most appropriate method, materials and
task type.
The order in which materials are covered is at the discretion of the instructor.