TEACHING EAP Academic vocabulary www thesaurus com

TEACHING EAP

Academic vocabulary www. thesaurus. com Lex. Checker http: //www. lexchecker. org/

Academic word list The list (definition & visual thesaurus) http: //www. uefap. com/vocab/select/awl. htm Exercises http: //www. academicvocabularyexercises. com/ For teachers http: //www. nottingham. ac. uk/~alzsh 3/acvocab/

KINSHIP SYSTEMS AND FAMILY TYPES Kinship systems are mechanisms that link conjugal families (and individuals not living in families) in ways that affect the integration of the general social structure and enhance the ability of the society to reproduce itself in an orderly fashion. Kinship performs these social functions in two ways. First, through relationships defined by blood ties and marriage, kinship systems make possible ready-made contemporaneous networks of social ties sustained during the lifetimes of related persons and, second, they enable the temporal continuity of identifiable family connections over generations, despite the limited lifespan of a family's members. Variations in norms governing the structure of contemporaneous networks and the modes of temporal continuity compose the basis for the typologies of kinship systems described in this article. In conceptualizing connections between kinship systems and family types, social scientists have applied either of two approaches. Some have developed typologies from historical analyses (and evolutionary schemes) that depict the transition of Western societies from ancient or medieval origins to modern civilizations. Other social scientists construct typologies that cut across diverse historical periods. Each historical era then constitutes a unique medium in which the structural typologies are expressed.

Developing critical reading skills

What do students need to read? o o o Articles from academic journals Academic books; chapters from books Research papers and reports Book reviews Bibliographies Items from extensive reading lists NOT: selected, abridged, annotated texts

What are their reading aims? o o Exploring specific topic areas Clarifying thinking on a range of issues related to the topic Unpacking problematic concepts Collecting evidence to support claims that they wish to put forward in their writing NOT JUST: processing information. You read each text for a reason not as an end in itself

Key problem areas o o o Quantity vs quality Selection vs rejection Managing reading time Critical vs non-critical reading Keeping meaningful records Linking your own ideas with those obtained from reading

Level 1 of reading & note-taking 1. Reading to understand and/or to summarize content. This can include: o Looking at the main arguments or identifying the writer’s stance on a particular issue Looking at more specific information, such as the reasons or evidence underpinning a particular argument Providing brief summaries of key texts o o

Level 2 of reading & note-taking o o o o Identifying a writer’s underlying agenda Locating a writer’s perspective within an established paradigm Considering the validity of claims made by a writer Identifying and commenting on the assumptions underlying claims Considering arguments arising from the principal claim(s) Questioning generalizations made from the principal claim Examining the evidence on which a claim is based to see whether it is faulty, too strong etc. Considering the validity of a writer’s conclusions

Students ESP projects

PROJECT-BASED LEARNING TASKS o o relevant research problem clear stages and time frame autonomous work visible outcome of the project

Stages of an individual project o o o Articulating a research topic Collecting research materials Outlining the report Designing a Power Point presentation Presenting the report Assessment and evaluation

Project work objectives o o develop a ‘performance competence’ develop a strategic competence (which is understood as “a means that enables language knowledge and content knowledge to be used in communication” (Basturkmen, 2006: 139) facilitate the acquisition and development of a range of language skills (using different reading strategies; summarizing; reporting findings from various sources; paraphrasing and using direct quotations; formulating questions; oral presentation skills) develop extra-linguistic skills

POSSIBLE PITFALLS o o o language problems Web research use of Power. Point techniques

OBJECTS OF ASSESSMENT o o o o the level of the materials studied; the structure and logic of the report; the ability to summarize; the ability to refer to and cite different sources; the ability to draw conclusions; the ability to use Power Point presentation techniques; oral presentation skills (the ability to speak using the notes, to catch and hold the audience’s attention); the ability to interact with the audience.

OBJECTS OF ASSESSMENT o o o Presentation skills Linguistic Features Interactive skills

PEER ASSESSMENT “The capacity for private reflection grows out of the practice of public, interactive reflection, and the capacity for self-assessment develops partly out of the experience of assessing and being assessed by others” Little, D. (2003). Learner autonomy and public examinations. In Little, D. , Ridley, J. & Ushioda E. (eds. ), Learner autonomy in the foreign language classroom. Teacher, learner, curriculum and assessment