EFS 689E - STANFORD UNIVERSITY
Learning English on Your Own
EFS 689E - STANFORD UNIVERSITY
Learning English on Your Own
Syllabus
EFS 689E: Learning English on Your Own
Wednesdays, 3:15-5:05 in 50-51P
Phil Hubbard
260-302G; 725-1557
efs@stanford.edu
Course website:
www.stanford.edu/~efs/efs689e
Objective.
As the title says, Learning English on Your Own is designed to help you learn
how to continue your English learning without the benefit of a formal classroom
setting. Basically, you will be trained in fundamentals of independent
learning, of becoming your own language teacher. To do this you will need to
know some of the same things a teacher does about language learning, language
materials and resources, human psychology, and the individual strengths and
weaknesses of your student—yourself. I assume that you are taking this course
because the idea of becoming a more autonomous learner appeals to you.
The focus of the course will be on setting goals and objectives and using readily available materials efficiently to achieve them. These materials will include both those designed specifically to help you learn English and authentic materials aimed at native speakers. The majority of the course will involve computer-based materials, with some discussion of others, such as books, videos, newspapers, TV, and so on.
Requirements.
There are three critical requirements for this course. The first is to attend
regularly—you are expected to be at every class if you want to receive credit.
The second is to do the homework assignments which will be aimed at giving you
practice in trying out the principles and techniques. The final assignment will
be to prepare a plan for the what to do after the course is over: essentially,
you will be designing your own curriculum. The third requirement is individual
meetings. I will meet with you weekly during the course to help you plan,
answer questions and discuss your progress. Satisfying these requirements will
result in an S (Satisfactory) grade.
Class Schedule.
Week 1 will introduce the course, weeks 2-5 will cover specific skills, and week
5 will also include presentations on your individual learning plans and a course
conclusion.
The scheduled course time is 3:15-5:05; however, I will be out of the country during the final scheduled week of classes, so we will only meet five times. In order to cover all the material, we may go over a few minutes (to 5:15 or 5:20) during the first four weeks. Because the final meeting (July 30) includes student presentations, we will plan to have that one go 3:15-6:15.
Note that I will be updating the website (www.stanford.edu/~efs/efs689e) on a weekly basis. The material will remain there once the course is over so you will be able to refer to it later.
Topics by week (Subject to change)
1) Introduction - course overview; your language learning profile; learning on your own; the importance of motivation; what we know about second language learning; example websites.
2) Listening - listening for comprehension vs. listening for learning; listening techniques and procedures; learning resources on the web; authentic materials on the web.
3) Vocabulary and Reading - vocabulary range; building a better vocabulary; improving reading comprehension; improving reading speed; finding appropriate materials.
4) Pronunciation and Speaking - understanding pronunciation; pronunciation practice techniques and resources; keeping an oral journal; finding conversation partners; making your individual learning plan.
5) Grammar, writing, and presentations - building grammar awareness; grammar rules vs. grammatical forms; grammar resources; writing journals and blogs; writing resources on the web; individual learning plan presentations; course review
DISABILITY NOTICE: Students who have a disability which may necessitate an academic accommodation or the use of auxiliary aids and services in a class, must initiate the request with the Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC), located within the Office of Accessible Education (OAE). The SDRC will evaluate the request with required documentation, recommend appropriate accommodations, and prepare a verification letter dated in the current academic term in which the request is being made. Please contact the SDRC as soon as possible; timely notice is needed to arrange for appropriate accommodations. The Office of Accessible Education is located at 563 Salvatierra Walk (phone: 723-1066; TDD: 725-1067).