The
English
Language
Centre’s
philosophy
is
underpinned
by the
greater
School
community’s
Christian
ethic of
service
and
concern
for
others.
The
pastoral
aspects
of The
school
experience
are of
paramount
importance
in a
context
where
International
Students
are far
from
home and
their
affective
support
systems.
International
Students’
Programme
staff
work
collegially
to
monitor
and
promote
the
wellbeing
of each
individual
student.
At the
pedagogical
level,
the
Intensive
English
Course
is
focused
on
constructivist
notions
of
student-centred
instruction
and
learning
where
individual
variables
inform
and
temper
the
teachers’
approach.
Teachers
in the
English
Language
Centre
acknowledge
that
learners
can feel
alienation
in the
process
of
learning
a second
language,
alienation
from
people
in their
home
culture,
the
target
culture,
and from
themselves.
Staff,
in
teaching
an
‘alien’
language,
are
sensitive
to the
fragility
of
students
and
adopt
techniques
and
approaches
that
promote
cultural
understanding.
The
methodological
rationale
of the
Intensive
English
Programme
is
informed
by
principles
of
language
learning
and
teaching
such as:
intrinsic
motivation
is a
powerful
incentive
for
learning;
a
moderate
to high
level of
risk-taking
behaviour
is
important;
language
and
culture
are
inextricably
intertwined;
successful
learners
make a
strategic
investment
in their
learning,
and;
self-confidence
is an
important
precursor
to
success.
Course
Objectives
The
principal
objective
of the
Intensive
English
Course
is to
prepare
students
for
classes
in the
main
school.
Students
are
taught
specific
academic
skills
such as
essay
writing,
grammar,
spoken
English
strategies
and
reading
comprehension,
all
vital to
their
success
in
mainstream
classes.
While
each of
the four
macro-skills
are
exercised
within
the
curricular
framework,
emphasis
is
placed
on
writing,
reading
and
their
attendant
analytical
aspects.
This
emphasis
acknowledges
the
important
role
taken by
these
two
skills
during
the two
years of
the
Victorian
Certificate
of
Education.
The
course
also
recognises
the need
for
students
to
function
successfully
within
an
English-speaking
community
and, to
this
end,
seeks to
develop
within
the
students
the oral
and
aural
skills
necessary
for both
academic
and
social
purposes.
Further,
study of
Australian
history
and
culture
enables
the
students
to
develop
social
and
cultural
literacy,
allowing
them to
gain a
greater
understanding
of their
own
culture
and an
appreciation
of the
cultural
differences
they
experience
here in
Australia.
Students
are
encouraged
to take
responsibility
for
their
own
learning
and
there is
an
emphasis
on
learning-how-to-learn
skills.
The
course
seeks to
enable
students
to
develop
skills
to
understand
and
express
opinions,
attitudes
and
feelings,
as well
as to
process
information
analytically
and to
think
and
respond
creatively.
Below is
a brief
description
of the
activities
and
methodologies
relating
to each
of the
learning
areas:
Grammar
-
Grammar
studies
consolidate
the
students’
structural,
syntactic
and
semantic
skills
through
a study
of verb
tenses,
verb
types
(i.e.
modals,
passive
and
active
voices
etc.),
articles,
prepositions,
and a
focus on
lexical
expansion.
Grammar
is
taught
in
context
and with
an
understanding
that
communicative
competence
is the
ultimate
goal. To
this end
an
integrated
approach
is
adopted
with
structural
studies
‘flowing
on’ from
listening
and
viewing
activities.
Grammar,
in the
Intensive
English
Course,
is
taught
consistently
as a
means to
improving
mastery
of the
language,
not as
an end
in
itself.
Reading
-
Reading,
in the
Intensive
English
Course,
means
‘reading
and
understanding’,
not
merely a
process
of
decoding.
Students
are
actively
encouraged
to
engage
in wide
reading
and
assistance
is
provided
through
regular
trips to
the
library
and
advice
on
borrowing
choices.
Reading
for
pleasure
is
actively
encouraged
with a
focus on
‘efficient’
reading,
i.e.
reading
where
the
language
of the
text is
comprehensible,
and the
content
accessible,
to the
students.
In
class,
students
read a
variety
of short
stories
and
abridged
novels
in order
to
strengthen
their
comprehension
skills
and to
consolidate,
in
context,
their
vocabulary.
Acknowledging
that
each
macro-skill
cannot
be
taught
in
isolation,
the
reading
programme
also
involves
the
learning
of
summarizing
skills
with
each
chapter
being
duly
summarized
in a
dedicated
workbook.
As well,
students
are
asked to
complete
oral
exercises
at the
end of
each
chapter
and to
discuss
the
implications
of the
narrative
flow.
Further,
there is
an
emphasis
on
reading-comprehension
tasks
and the
analytical
aspects
of the
reading
process.
A
variety
of
reading
skills
such as
scanning,
skimming
and
reading
for
specific
information
are
developed.
Issues
are
examined
as part
of the
reading
programme
with a
flow-on
to
written
and oral
analytical
responses.
As well,
dictionary
skills
are
developed
with
students
being
encouraged
to use
monolingual
dictionaries
in
class,
rather
than
electronic
translators.
Writing
-
The
principal
focus of
this
learning
area is
essay-writing
skills.
Strategies
such as
brainstorming,
planning,
drafting
and
editing
are
explored.
Students
learn to
develop
their
ideas
logically
and
cohesively
as well
as
learning
the
appropriate
style
and tone
for a
range of
contexts.
Emphasis
is
placed
on the
production
of
well-structured
paragraphs.
The
Intensive
English
Course
acknowledges
the
permanent
and
explicit
nature
of the
written
text and
the need
therefore
to make
clear
the
context
and all
references.
At the
‘micro’
level
students
practise
specific
written
forms at
the
level of
word or
sentence
(handwriting,
spelling,
punctuation);
at the
‘macro’
level
the
emphasis
is on
content
and
organization.
Written
exercises
often
combine
purposeful
and
original
writing
with the
learning
or
practice
of some
other
skill or
content.
For
example,
a
written
response
to the
reading
of a
controversial
newspaper
article
combines
both
reading
and
writing.
Students
keep a
journal
as part
of their
regular
homework
routine.
This
encourages
a
reflective
approach
both to
their
writing
and to
their
experience
as
International
students
in an
Australian
context.
Listening
-
In
principle,
the
objective
of
listening
comprehension
practice
in the
classroom
is that
students
should
learn to
function
successfully
in
real-life
listening
situations.
Classroom
‘teacher
talk’
with its
modified
vocabulary
and
concern
for
rapid
understanding
is the
starting
point
for the
teaching
of
listening
strategies.
Formal
lessons
in
listening
require
the
students
to
listen
to
authentic
texts
for
specific
information.
Once
again,
this
macro-skill
is
exercised
in
tandem
with
other
skills
and
students
are
often
required
to
respond
orally
to what
they
have
heard.
Students
view an
Australian
television
series
developed
for the
ESL
learner
and
complete
the
accompanying
language-based
exercises.
These
focus on
the
students’
listening,
comprehension
and
observation
skills.
Students
are
required
to
listen
for
specific
information,
answer
questions
on
specific
scenes
and note
key
expressions,
intonation
and
pronunciation
used by
specific
characters.
Dictation
exercises
provide
students
with the
opportunity
to
obtain
information
from
authentic
speech
and to
recognize
and
reproduce
graphically
the
sounds
of
English.
Speaking
-
Classroom
activities
which
develop
learners’
ability
to
express
themselves
through
speech
are an
important
component
of the
Intensive
English
Course.
Students
are
actively
engaged,
in the
teaching
process,
as
members
of a
speech
community
who
interact
orally
across
all
learning
areas.
With the
Understanding
Everyday
Australian
programme,
students
are
introduced
to the
speech
conventions
of life
outside
the
formality
of the
classroom.
Students
are
involved
in
exercises
designed
to
enable
them to
listen
to,
recognize
and
understand
the
correct
meaning
of
colloquial
expressions
in
everyday
situations.
Using
role-play
and
dialogue,
students
learn to
interact
verbally
with
peers in
a
structured
situation.
They
learn to
recognize
the
context
of a
conversation
and how
to
maintain
and
conclude
a
conversation.
Students
also
learn
how to
react
appropriately
to
different
situations
and how
to use
gesture
and
facial
expression
to help
convey
meaning.
Finally,
students
develop
an
awareness
of the
socio-cultural
contexts
of
spoken
language. |
