Basic English course: 1 month duration

(150 hours: 5 hours each day)

Objectives
To understand and use simple sentences
To build vocabulary
Conversations in different situations
To introduce idiom and phonetics
To develop fluency in reading, speaking and writing

I: Oral Communication. Instructor: Dominic Wang, Lecturer, English for Foreign Students Program at Stanford.
This course will focus on helping students improve their oral communication skills for academic and daily life.
Emphasis will be on increasing confidence and fluency through realistic and practical activities both in and out of
class. Content will include such topics as pronunciation, idiom and slang usage, active listening skills, and
conversation strategies. Students will be encouraged to bring in real or hypothetical situations which they are not
quite sure how to handle. Students will also receive individualized instruction (in pairs) during two additional 30minute tutoring sessions with the instructor.
Course topics:
Conversations in formal and informal settings: what to say and how to say it
Skills and strategies for effective listening and improving pronunciation
Verbal skills and strategies for participating in group situations
Understanding cultural cues and expectations in oral communication
By the end of the course, participants are expected to:
Gain skills to improve conversational fluency
Apply techniques to improve pronunciation
Develop active, and interactive, listening skills
Articulate ideas more clearly and confidently
Use more sophisticated verbal skills in negotiation, persuasive or awkward situations
II: Writing. Instructor: Phil Hubbard, Director and Senior Lecturer, English for Foreign Students Program at
Stanford.
The course is designed for those who are proficient and use English on a daily basis but would like to refine their
writing skills. The course focuses on academic writing for publication, with particular attention to learning to write
coherently, clearly, and concisely. It will also include some practice in writing effective emails, letters, and short
proposals. The course includes two 30-minute individual tutorials with the instructor.
The required textbook is Williams, J. & Colomb, G. Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace (current edition).
By the end of the course, participants are expected to:

Understand cultural conventions in written communication (emails, etc.)

Develop an awareness of reader expectations within their field

Recognize their most common individual language and stylistic problems

Show progress in developing ways to overcome those problems

Write more efficiently and confidently

See improvement in their overall writing effectiveness

III: Oral Presentation. Instructors: Andrea Kevech, Lecturer in English for Foreign Students, Stanford University;
and Connie Rylance, Lecturer in English for Foreign Students, Stanford University.
Oral Presentation is the last of the three-quarter advanced curriculum for postdoctoral scholars who are non-native
speakers of English. The course is appropriate for those who are proficient in English. The course focuses on
building effective presentation skills with attention to pronunciation and rhetorical considerations, impromptu speaking
skills, use of visuals and managing Questions & Answers from an audience. Participants will practice in small and
large groups. Presentations will be video-recorded for analysis and instructor feedback. In addition to in-class
activities, assignments will include pronunciation exercises, review of self-recorded presentations, self-evaluations,
and meeting with course assistant four times during the quarter for a review of pronunciation and presentation
feedback. The course includes three 30-minute individual tutorials with a course assistant.
Topics include:

Word stress and intonation patterns

Elements of effective delivery styles

Rhetorical considerations in organizing content

Effective visuals

Impromptu speaking skills

Audience awareness and rapport, and

Q/A management

By the end of the course, participants are expected to:

Have recognized their own presentation style and seen improvement in their delivery

See improvement in pronunciation, word stress and word choice

Learn the common strategies used by public speakers to engage an audience and manage Q&As

Use visuals effectively and employ other rhetorical techniques