Working English for Engineers (3 cr)

Objectives (course unit)

Students
- know how to act in working life communication situations (e.g. telephone and e-mail communication)
- know the basic business terminology and can give a presentation of a chosen company
- know the most important vocabulary of their field of study

Content (course unit)

• working life communication situations
• business life English
• terminology of the students’ own field of study
• grammar as required

Prerequisites (course unit)

Basic language studies in English completed or equivalent skills

Exam schedules

The dates for the written tests and oral presentations will be announced later. Resit dates can be booked through Pakki on the set dates provided by the Language Services.

Evaluation methods and criteria

Assessment plan:
• Vocabulary Tests (throughout the course) – 20% of total course marks
• Written Exam (end of course) – 30% of total course marks
• Oral Assessment (presentation or group discussion) – 20% of total course marks
• Active Participation (participate in class activities, contribution to discussions, home assignments) – 30% of total course marks

To pass a written test, the student must obtain at least 50% of the marks available.

Assessment scale

0-5

Teaching methods

Contact teaching, presentations, classroom activities, pair and group work, collaborative online activities, self-study.

Learning materials

• K. Tillander, J. Sallila, Protocall Toolkit, Tammerteknikka, 2008
• http://www.promentor.net/pmweb/login.html Choose: Promentor Web - kirjautuminen korkeakouluille
• Other materials in Tabula or given during the lessons

Student workload

Contact lessons – 14 x 2 h = 28 h
Independent study – 53 h (3-4 hours per week over the duration of the course)

Content scheduling

Oral skills (presentation, discussion, social interaction)
Writing skills (e-mails, reports)
Grammar revision as needed

Completion alternatives

If the student has completed corresponding studies at another university of applied sciences, the student may apply for credit transfer through Hyvähot system.
Such cases have to be discussed with the course teacher, and the student may be required to complete additional assignments to demonstrate their knowledge and skills.

Further information

Mandatory attendance - 80%.

Assessment criteria - fail (0) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student failed written tests and oral assessment; did not participate in class activities.

Assessment criteria - satisfactory (1-2) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student:
• speaks inaccurately but understandably
• expresses himself/herself using limited vocabulary and basic grammatical structures
• can communicate essential messages using basic but understandable professional terminology appropriate to the situation
• understands the main points of professional materials in his/her technical field and is able to obtain basic information from these materials
• all the aspects of the course have been completed

Assessment criteria - good (3-4) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student:
• speaks clearly and understandably but with some mistakes
• expresses himself/herself clearly, using sufficient vocabulary and a range of grammatical structures
• can communicate messages clearly, using a variety of terms appropriate to the situation
• understands most points of professional materials in his/her technical field, is able to obtain the required information and convey it in an understandable manner
• all the aspects of the course have been completed

Assessment criteria - excellent (5) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student:
• speaks fluently, with only occasional mistakes
• expresses himself/herself clearly and naturally, using wide vocabulary and a good range of grammatical structures
• can communicate messages professionally and effectively, using a variety of terms appropriate to the situation
• understands most points of rather demanding professional materials in his/her business field, is able to convey the obtained information professionally, and apply the acquired knowledge
• all the aspects of the course have been completed