English through Politics

Syllabus by

Julija Safronava

Course Title

Political English in the Time of Political Turbulence

Delivery Mode

Online

Form of Learning

Asynchronous with 3 online sessions

Audience

• students with at least an intermediate level of English (B1 by CEFR)
• students who intend to develop their language and other proposed skills and whose interest lies in the area of politics

Prerequisites

General English (A2+)

Course Description

This course is primarily designed to help develop English language proficiency in speakers of English as their second or third language. The political context is used to provoke students’ interest and enable their engagement.

Course Objectives

1. to enrich active vocabulary up to at least 50 lexical units and put it into practice while speculating on certain political issues
2. to identify politically correct and appropriate language and apply it when presenting one’s own opinion
3. to define the key message in political speech and political articles
4. to develop both digital and information literacy regarding political issues
5. to assess the relevance of political issues to one’s political stance

Course Outline

Week 

Topic

Form of Learning

Deadlines

1

The Principles of the Government Operation in the US

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

2

Elections we have been through: Overview of the elections in the past years

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

3

Democratic vs. Authoritarian Elections

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

4

Role-play

Synchronous (online class)

-

5

Political

Leaders and their Rhetorics

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

6

Leaders in Exile

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

7

South Korea and North Korea: two polar regimes on one

peninsular

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

8

Debate

Synchronous (online class)

-

9

Politics in Dealing with Environmental Issues

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

10

Politics in Dealing with Racism

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

11

Politics inbetween LGBTQIAPN+ and Traditional Values

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

12

Topic by Students’ Choice

Asynchronous

1 week for give-in

13

Presentations of the Final Projects

Synchronous (online class)

-

Assessment

Weekly

Asynchronous

Timing

Assignments completed on time (before the deadline)

Assignments completed with a slight delay

Assignments not completed

3 points

2 points

0 points

Content

Assignments completed fully with a small number of mistakes

Assignments completed under 75% with mistakes

Assignments not completed

7 points

5 points

0 points

Synchronous

Engagement

Full engagement; active participation in class

3 points

Rare or zero practicipation in class

0 points

Clarity of Thought

Clear, understandable expression of thoughts

3 points

Struggles in thought expression

2 points

Unability to express thoughts

1 point

Vocabulary

Usage of active vocabulary

4 points

No active vocabulary present

2 points

Exam

Presentation of a project in a group of 2

Final

The final grade consists of the following components: individual (asynchronous) work throughout the course (70%) and the exam performance (30%).

Minimal Requirements

Completing 8 (eight) asynchronous assignments (out of 10) and participating in 1 (one) online session.