Course
Academic English
This course utilizes the same breakdown components as any English exam, which are reading, writing, listening, and speaking, with special emphasis on listening and speaking. More specifically, this course will provide students with an engineering background, an opportunity to meet the language facility requirements to prepare for any language test as well as build the confidence needed to excel in a western academic environment. We will read several major works of literature and examine how these texts relate to cultural ideas and practices associated with their country of origin. This will help students focus, polish, and deepen their writing as well as their presentation skills. This is a project-based learning environment to fully integrate a communal opportunity for all students equally, to help each other and work together to dominate the speaking and listening of the English language.
Edurne Seco
Course Director
Office Hours: Contact by email or WeChat
Email: edurne@c4dmti.com
WeChat ID: GGSJEnglishTeacher
Laurie Rodgers
Author/Guest Speaker
Sara Rodgers
Editor/Illustrator/Guest Speaker
Reading List
The program provides a meaningful understanding of
01
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll
02
Wuthering Heights
Emily Bronte
03
The OutsideRs
S. E. Hinton
04
Flatland
Edwin A. Abbott
05
Where the Water Meets the Shore
Laurie Rodgers
06
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
William Shakespeare
Lateness Policy
The penalty for late submissions is 5% per day. So, if an assignment is due on Monday and you submit it on
Tuesday, you will be docked 5%, and on Wednesday another 5%, and so on. Late assignments will only be
accepted for 5 days after the original due date. It is your responsibility to get your assignments to your professor.
In exceptional circumstances these penalties may be waived, on the condition that the circumstances are
documented (e.g., a doctor’s note, or receipts for emergency travel). Any such exception must be approved by the professor.
There is no late policy for the exam, so do not miss the exam date. If you do miss the exam for medical reasons or another emergency, you must be in touch with a member of the GGSJ centre and your professor immediately
Academic Integrity
Violations of the policy on Academic Integrity will be taken very seriously in this course. Please make yourself familiar
with this policy, and follow its guidelines:
https://www.academicintegrity.utoronto.ca/
Accommodations/ Accessibility
If you require any accommodation, please contact the course professor and provide the necessary documentation or
a simple explanation will do as well. This includes any psychological disorders, learning disorders, or physical
restrictions
Assignments and Evaluation
Participation
10%
Short Written Assignments
40%
Major Presentation
25%
Interview
10%
Final Exam
15%
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go…”
Dr Seuss
Lecture Schedule
Lecture 1
9:00 – 12:00
Introduction
AGO Tour
Syllabus handed out, Short Assignment #1 handed today.
Lecture 2
9:00 – 12:00
Introduction to Satire
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Assignment #1 due by midnight; Assignment #2 handed out today, Essay Outline and structure explained
Lecture 3
9:00 – 12:00
Essay Structure and Introductory paragraph
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
How to cite your works, start research, continue reading book
Lecture 4
9:00 – 12:00
The Victorian Period
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Finish book, and work on essay outline
Lecture 5
9:00 – 12:00
Lewis Carroll
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Finish book, and work on essay outline, and short assignment #2
Lecture 6
9:00 – 12:00
Emily Bronte
Wuthering Heights
Watching Wuthering Heights 2009 series adaptation by BBC, Short Assignment #3 handed today
Lecture 7
9:00 – 12:00
TED Talks and Presentation skill
Wuthering Heights
Read Wuthering Heights Chs. 1-10, ted talk lecture and preparing for Major Presentation
Lecture 7
9:00 – 12:00
Business component
Wuthering Heights
The Seven C’s of Communication, read Wuthering Chs. 11-14
Lecture 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
9:00 – 12:00
Business Plans
Wuthering Heights
Finish Wuthering Heights, Short Assignment #4, #5 handed out this week, Friday Presentations start.
Lecture 13
9:00 – 12:00
Business Development
The Outsiders
Watching The Outsiders 1983, continuing Business Plan
Lecture 14
9:00 – 12:00
Queen’s Park
Legislative Assembly Trip
Visiting Queen’s Park and learning about the Canadian Governmental Systems
Lecture 15
9:00 – 12:00
Business Development
Business Plans
Working on Assignments #3, #4, #5, presentations
Lecture 16
9:00 – 12:00
Poetry Day
Where the Water Meets the Shore
Laurie and Sara Rodgers give a talk about their book
Lecture 17
9:00 – 12:00
Business Development
Business Plans
Working on Assignments #3, #4, #5, presentations
Tuesday, February 18 – 19, 2020
Meeting at MMF 9:00
Reading Week
trip to Niagara Region
Niagara Falls, tour of Falls, Niagara-on-the-lake, Peller Estates Winery tour
Lecture 18
9:00 – 12:00
S. E. Hinton
The Outsiders
Read Chs. 1, 2; presentations and pending assignments
Lecture 19
9:00 – 12:00
Business Component
The Outsiders
Read Chs. 3, 4; presentations and pending assignments
Lecture 20, 21
9:00 – 12:00
The American 1950s
The Outsiders
Read Chs. 5, 6, 7, 8; presentations and pending assignments
Lecture 22
9:00 – 12:00
Segregation Laws
The Outsiders
Read Chs. 9, 10, 11, 12; presentations and pending assignments
Lecture 23
9:00 – 12:00
Mathematical Satire
Flatland
Watching Flatland movie, finishing The Outsiders, and pending assignments
Lecture 24
9:00 – 12:00
Professional Social Media
Business Interviews
Preparing for interviews, CVs, cover letters, LinkedIn profiles, and taking headshots (COME TO CLASS DOLLED UP)
Lecture 25
9:00 – 12:00
Victorian Mathematics
Flatland
Prepare interviews, presentations, pending assignments, Short Assignment #6 handed out today
Lecture 26
9:00 – 12:00
Finalizing the Business Component
Flatland
Prepare interviews, presentations, pending assignments, read Flatland Part I
Lecture 27, 28. 29
9:00 – 12:00
Interviews
Come dressed accordingly for your interview time slot
Lecture 30
9:00 – 12:00
Comparative Essay
Flatland
Finishing reading Flatland, and all other assignments
Lecture 31
9:00 – 12:00
Guest Speaker, Ibai Victor
Computer Engineering
On being an student at a Canadian University and correlation between an engineering and English soft skills.
Lecture 32
9:00 – 12:00
Shakespeare
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Watching A Midsummer Night’s Dream movie 1999
Lecture 33
9:00 – 12:00
Act One
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Assignment #7 handed out today, work on pending assignments
Lecture 34
9:00 – 12:00
Act Two
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Work on pending assignments
Lecture 35
9:00 – 12:00
Act Three
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Work on pending assignments
Lecture 36
9:00 – 12:00
Act Four
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Work on pending assignments
Lecture 37
9:00 – 12:00
Act Five
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Work on pending assignments
Lecture 38, 39, 40
9:00 – 12:00
Finals
Review for Final Exam
Thank you all for taking part in this course!