Friday, January 10, 2014

Class 1: 9/1/14 LIS1 Tourism Introdcution and Syllabus



Syllabus Semester II LIS 1 Tourism 2013-2014

Important Information
Instructor:             Annika Gielen
Email:                     annika.gielen@univ-angers.fr           OR           amgielen@gmail.com
Class Blog:             englishclassdesk.blogspot.fr
Office Hours:        Room #503 IMIS-ESTHUA building  (by appointment)


Class Expectations and Grading Policy
·         Attendance – 5 %
Attendance is mandatory in accordance with the University of Angers standards as well as the IMIS-ESTHUA policy.  No absence is excused without a valid doctor’s note, transportation strike, or emergency.  You will lose points for not coming to class or for consistently arriving late.
·         Participation – 10 %
Participation, specifically speaking, is extremely important to learning English.  The more effort you put into your class the more you will get out of the class.  Participation includes individual and in-class assignments (both written and oral), your efforts pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary and syntax, displayed level of comprehension and your ability to express yourself.
If you miss any classes*, be sure to check the blog to get the information!
*N.B. If you do not come to class it is likely that you will not pass this class, you will not have the information needed to answer test questions and you will lose automatically 15% of your grade.
·         In Class Quiz– 20 %
To ensure that you are attending class, one in class written quiz will be given. This quiz will cover all topics covered until that moment.  It will be shorter than the final.
·         In Class Group Presentation –30%
                        Together with a group you will prepare an oral presentation that will be presented in class.                              You will have some time in class to work on this.
·         Final Exam  – 35 %
This exam will cover all the subjects that we have learned in class throughout the semester and will be on 10/04/2014.

Class Objectives
Purpose: Each class will have an introduction that will layout the goal of each course and the important points you should try and learn from the class.

Grammar and Vocabulary: Each class will cover some specific grammar points and vocabulary that will help you to complete the in-class activity or to discuss a topic.  This is not a grammar class so all grammar will be to help you to build on your existing knowledge. 

Expression and Conversation: The overall goal of this class is to improve your ability to express yourself correctly and with confidence.  It is important to participate as much as possible to improve your speaking abilities so that in your future job you will have the confidence to succeed.

Topics Covered
·         Tourism: this includes the traditional ideas of tourism as well as new ideas such as ecotourism and trekking.  We will also go a little bit into food and wine cultures.

·         Technology: today the tourism world is extremely technological.  We will explore the use of the internet and tourism including travel websites, blogs, etc.  We will also cover this topic on a broad scheme.

·         Culture: tourism is about sharing cultures so I will try and explain some of the interesting aspects about my own culture, the American culture.  We will use culture to learn about grammar and correct ways of speaking. 




English Resources
Anglophone Places in Angers
·         English Language Library / Bibliotèque Anglophone
60 rue Boisnet 49100 ANGERS    /   www.ellia.org     /  02 41 24 97 07   /   Tues – Sat: 1:00pm – 6:00pm
Library with a wide variety of materials in English including manuals to study for the TOEIC exam, bulletin board for language exchanges, tutors, private lessons and other various activities in English.  Sign up for the monthly news letter.  First year university students and foreign students – free / students L2 and up – 12€
·         My Favorite Place
4 rue l’Espine 49100 ANGERS   /  06 63 06 52 78
Café owned by an Irish woman in Angers.  Hosts weekly English conversation groups for students on Tuesdays from 5:00pm – 6:00pm

Dictionaries
www.dictionary.com   /  www.thesaurus.com : English-only resources
www.urbandictionary.com : modern slang dictionary for American English
www.wordreference.com : multi-language dictionary with forums for idiomatic phrases.  Extremely helpful resource complete with verb conjugations. 

Translators
N.B. DO NOT USE THESE FOR ASSIGNMENTS OR PROJECTS, I CAN TELL
http://translate.google.com

Finding Information
When looking for English-language resources on the internet, be sure to use websites in English or the English version of a website.  Ex: instead of using google.fr use google.com or google.uk. 

Wikipedia is not a reliable source; it is a good place to start.  In university assignments and projects, Wikipedia should not be your only source, you should have at least two other sources!  Remember: you are not allowed to copy and paste information from any website and use it as your own in your projects, this is plagiarism and is not expected.  For questions concerning plagiarism please feel free to ask me at any time.

Article databases and scholarly databases are a great and reliable way to find information. 
http://www.npr.org/collections/articles-databases
http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat

Listening Resources
Free streaming information on the radio is a great resource to boost your oral skills:
www.npr.org – National Public Radio of the United States that covers all topics. (Podcasts, downloads and streaming)
www.bbc.co.uk/radio/ - Same idea but with the British accent and cultural aspects, the choice is yours!

Reading Resources
Blogs are an excellent and interesting way to practice your comprehension skills because you can find one about anything these days so there is sure to be one that interests you such as art, fashion, celebrity gossip, travel, politics, music, etc.   If you are really motivated you can even start your own!  I recommend following some blogs, if you aren’t already.   Don’t forget the class blog!

Video Resources
Watch your favorite television shows and movies in V.O.  Every bit helps, if you don’t know any shows I have some tourism based recommendations: No Reservations, An Idiot Abroad, or Globtrekker
These can be watched on:
www.natgeo.com
www.travelchannel.com
www.PBS.org 






Getting to Know Someone

Knowing and correctly using English questions is an important skill.  Knowing the vocabulary is not the only step!

I hear this all the time in the streets: "ello! 'ow are oo?"   correct: Hello! how are you?
Dropping the H seems little but it is important.  Imagine if I said to you:
"BonGOUR! Ka va Been?"

Some simple questions/responses to practice, make sure you concentrate on pronunciation:

                Where do you live/come from?                       I am from...  I live in...
                How old are you?                                                 I am...(age).  I am (age) years old.
                What do you do?                                                 Do you study?  Do you work?
                Do you have brothers or/and sisters?             Yes, I have... No, I do not...
                How do you like it here?                                    It is...
                What kind of music/food/movies do you like?
                Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?

Although you can not always use these types of questions in a professional setting, they are good for really getting to know someone.  With a partner, select 3-5 questions to ask.  Then switch roles.

Questioner: read the question, practice it, and then ask again without looking!  Write down your partner's response, and make up a second follow-up question if you can.
Responder: Respond to each question, and give a reason why.
Presenting:   Tell us your partner's name, age, and years studying English plus be ready to tell us some interesting things you learned about them while doing your interview. 

Questions
What did you do this summer?
Have you ever been abroad?  In Europe?  Farther?
What is your favorite memory?  Best travel experience you have had?
How do you like to spend your free time?
What's your dream car?  What color is it?
If you were to die tomorrow, what would you do today?  What would you eat for your last meal?
What is your biggest fear?  What is the scariest thing you have ever experienced?
What is your favorite movie?  What is your favorite type of movie?
What is something that you really would like to do?
Where do you dream of travelling to?  Where would you like to live?
What's your dream job?  Which company would you like to work for?




Vocabulary:
                        to hope - espèrer
                        already - déjà
                        dream - rêve
                        switch -  changer

No comments:

Post a Comment