Improve Your English Language Skills

This module will guide you through improving your spoken communication skills. Regardless of your level, you will improve accuracy in English, and your ability to hold a conversation. You will develop an understanding of regional dialects, familiarising yourself with common English sayings and phrases. You will also improve your spoken presentation skills, learning to structure and deliver a presentation on a topic of personal interest or relevance. 

Using a variety of written media, including newspaper and magazine articles, fiction, and personal communications such as emails and letters, you will improve your understanding of written English. You’ll learn to understand information and inferred meanings, and demonstrate comprehension of, a range of written texts. You will be able to give summaries of the material and your own opinion where appropriate. You’ll also learn to skim-read texts for specific pieces of information, a crucial skill for examinations and other time-pressured reading assignments.

Over the duration of the programme, you’ll learn to write texts with simple and complex structures (as appropriate to your level of English) across a variety of genres, organising your ideas coherently. You’ll adapt your writing to formal and informal registers, and learn to manipulate grammatical structures of varying complexity to communicate effectively. You’ll learn to describe and narrate events, using sophisticated vocabulary to describe events and topics of personal interest. At more advanced levels, you’ll learn to respond to written prompts or concepts with cohesive, well-structured arguments. 

Throughout the course, you’ll advance your understanding of and response to a wide variety of spoken sources, including (but not limited to) broadcasts, podcasts, lectures, and dialogues, across a variety of topics and genres. You’ll learn to get the gist of a spoken source, as well as extrapolate specific information, main points, and context. Finally, you’ll practise providing responses to the material you have listened to in the form of summaries and critiques.

Over the course of the programme, you’ll aim to improve the clarity of your overall communication, expressing yourself with increasing ease and clear pronunciation. You’ll learn to respond to the contributions of other speakers; maintain and develop conversations; express, and respond appropriately to, a range of emotions; and put language into action outside the classroom. You’ll adapt to using devices and appropriate terminology effectively in communication and writing, varying your tone depending on the situation, and switching to more conversational language if appropriate.