English Lessons
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English Lessons
Our Methods
The English lessons at Language Study Centres are designed to make the most of the students’ visit to Britain. The language content of the course has a strong oral bias, and every effort is made to capitalize on the fact that the students are in an English-speaking country and being taught by native speakers. In practice this means making the most of the ‘authentic material’ which surrounds them, learning by doing stimulating tasks and projects while using English, instead of placing too much emphasis on grammatical correctness. Our aim is to use the time the students are with us to build their confidence in being able to communicate, and to help them develop strategies to continue learning effectively when they return home.
The Timetable
On their first morning the students take a placement test to assess their English ability. They are then put into small groups of no more than fifteen based on their level of English.
All students on a 2-week course will have 30 hours' tuition during their stay. However, the timetable your students follow will depend on which centre they are in. At centres where the first teaching day is a Monday students will have 3 hours of tuition per day, and their timetable will follow this pattern:
T
E A C H E R 1 |
T E
A C H E R 2 |
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9.00 - 10.00 |
10.00 - 10.40 |
10.40 - 11.00 |
11.20 - 12.20 |
|
Course Book Units |
Vocabulary & Pronunciation |
Diary Writing |
Break |
|
In centres where the first teaching day is a weekday other than Monday students will have 3 hours 20 minutes of tuition per day so that they get 30 hours' tuition over the two weeks. Their timetable will follow this pattern:
T
E A C H E R 1 |
T E A
C H E R 2 |
|||
9.00 - 10.10 |
10.10 - 10.50 |
10.50 - 11.10 |
11.30 - 12.40 |
|
Course Book Units |
Vocabulary & Pronunciation |
Diary Writing |
Break |
|
In all centres students will be taught by at least two teachers; after the break the teachers change classes so the students have the advantage of hearing different accents.
Zig-Zag timetable: Please note that in most centres during peak period a zig-zag timetable is in operation. This means that on a two-week course lessons will be in the morning for one week and in the afternoon for the other week.
Arrival dates: In the past we have found that groups arriving on days other than the published start dates can create problems with the class timetable and disrupt lessons. Please note that in an effort to minimize class disruption for everyone we have implemented the following policy:
1) In centres where the published arrival day is Monday, anyone ariving on a Saturday or Sunday will have a non-academic activity on the Monday and begin the 3 hour 20 min timetable on the Tuesday with everyone else.
2) Groups arriving one day after the published start date will be mixed in with existing classes, but on their last day (when they are alone) they will be regrouped for their final lesson and tested at the company's discretion.
3) For groups arriving two or more days after the published start date we will be unable to guarantee the full package of lessons and social programme.
Course Content
The main focus of the lessons will be the course book, which provides the framework for the course. The course book covers the topics which teenagers like to discuss, such as shopping, sport, TV and films, etc., but also includes the subject areas which are covered in the Trinity College exams. Students will also use a variety of other material in connection with project work, the course town and the excursions they go on.
As our main aim is to develop confidence and fluency the lessons are a combination of communicative activities, vocabulary development, pronunciation work, language games, role plays, excursion preparation and project work. At LSC we are very keen to link what students do in the classroom to the cultural and historical aspect of the excursion programme, so in addition to the course book, the students are also given a book of excursion worksheets which covers this aspect of the course. These worksheets will be studied in class before the students go on the relevant excursions, and will also provide interesting reading for the students outside the class or even after the course has finished.
A Record of Achievement
At the end of the course all students take a short test to check their progress, and receive an LSC Certificate of Achievement which gives a brief assessment of their progress during the course. For students who wish to gain a more formal qualification during the course we offer Trinity College London Spoken English Examinations; preparation for the Trinity spoken exam is covered during normal lessons and also in the extra weekly session.
The Students
LSC courses are sold in various countries around the world, which means there will usually be a mixture of nationalities at the centre. Classes, however, are always based on the language ability of the students rather than nationality.