2020 Faculty Courses Liberal arts and basic science courses English language courses
Oral Expression in English G III
- Academic unit or major
- English language courses
- Instructor(s)
- Jon Mitchell
- Class Format
- Exercise
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - Intensive
- Class
- -
- Course Code
- LAE.E435
- Number of credits
- 020
- Course offered
- 2020
- Offered quarter
- 2Q
- Syllabus updated
- Jul 10, 2025
- Language
- English
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
The objective of this short-term intensive program is to train students in such a way as to increase their abilities in English oral expression, to the point where they can participate in tertiary education in the English-speaking world and play an active part in research community in the near future.
Course description and aims
By the end of this course, students will be able to speak for several minutes by themselves or in dialogues on a range of topics, paying attention to their own pronunciation issues.
Student learning outcomes
実務経験と講義内容との関連 (又は実践的教育内容)
An instructor with work experience as a journalist, author and editor will provide hands-on education in writing and presenting, based on practice in a field that features critical thinking and logical ways of communicating information to audiences.
Keywords
Speaking, listening, discussion, presentation
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
Studying – and living – overseas is a remarkably rewarding experience which can provide a wealth of new opportunities; also, it can bring many challenges. During this course, students will explore how others have adapted to their new lives abroad – including building a sense of confidence, community and cooperation – and provide students with linguistic skills to help them prepare and live overseas. All four skill areas – listening, speaking, reading and writing – will be covered, but the emphasis will be on oral expression via group discussions and presentations.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Introduction + Class survey | This initial class will give students the opportunity to learn about each other while the instructor assesses the needs of the class. |
| Class 2 | Nature and nurture: How personalities are formed. | Students will read how our personalities are created via a combination of factors; the academic article will also introduce students to vocabulary related to the subject. |
| Class 3 | Our personalities: A short presentation | Based on the concepts from Class 2, students will reflect on their own identities and prepare a short presentation exploring their thoughts on the “nature and nurture” issue. |
| Class 4 | International relationships | Students will read an academic article which explores how sociologists, anthropologists and psychologists advise people on forming successful international relationships. |
| Class 5 | Case study: A dilemma | Students will apply the concepts – and vocabulary – from Class 4 to offer advice related to a dilemma faced by people from different cultural backgrounds. |
| Class 6 | Building a sense of community | All around the world, immigrants face the challenge of how to retain a sense of identity while adapting to their new lives overseas. This class will explore how the mural movement has enabled new arrivals to the United States to build a notion of belonging. |
| Class 7 | Proposal: Building a sense of community overseas (1) | Students will apply the theories from Class 6 to propose a mural for a community in their own country or overseas. After researching the issue, they will write a proposal, debate its merits and demerits, then select the most suitable proposal. |
| Class 8 | Proposal: Building a sense of community overseas (2) | This class will be a continuation of Class 7. |
| Class 9 | Immigration in the United States | Students will explore how cities in the United States have been shaped by immigration; and how a better awareness of this history can help them to locate themselves in these milieux as international students. |
| Class 10 | Immigration in students’ own countries | Developing the themes from Class 10, students will investigate how immigration has shaped communities in their own countries – and prepare a short guide for classmates. |
| Class 11 | Studying abroad: An introduction | People choose to study abroad for a variety of reasons – for example, economic mobility – so in this class, students will explore their own goals and motivations to help them to select a potential destination. |
| Class 12 | Studying abroad: Some similarities and differences | Students will research how universities operate overseas and compare them with their own country to better understand how to prepare for study abroad and how to help international students to adjust to studying in Japan. |
| Class 13 | Studying abroad: Presentations | Students will present their research from Class 12 and engage in a Q&A session with classmates. |
| Class 14 | Course feedback | Students will receive final feedback from the instructor, reflect on their own performances and provide feedback on the course. |
Study advice (preparation and review)
Textbook(s)
Catalyst - Writing from Reading 1 (Steve Jones and Suzanne Kalbach), Cengage, ISBN 0618474781.
Reference books, course materials, etc.
N/A
Evaluation methods and criteria
Two presentations (20% each) – Two reaction papers (20% each) – One essay (20%)
Related courses
- LAE.E431 ： Oral Expression in English 13
- LAE.E432 ： Oral Expression in English 14
- LAE.E433 ： Oral Expression in English 15
- LAE.E434 ： Oral Expression in English 16
- LAE.E436 ： Oral Expression in English G IV
Prerequisites
Intermediate to advanced level of English
Other
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