General English
CRICOS CODE: 115433H
Designed for students from non-English-speaking backgrounds, this program enhances your academic reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills to help you succeed in university or college. Develop critical thinking, research, and presentation skills while mastering academic language and conventions
The learning aims, objectives and outcomes are in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). Students who complete each level of the course are considered to have met the proficiency standards set out at each level of the CEFR.
Students come to ALTEC College from different proficiencies across the four macro skills and, as a result, all students need to take a placement test prior to the commencement of classes.
All students take a speaking and writing test which is marked by the Director of Studies or the Assistant Director of Studies according to a criterion-referenced scale.
These tests and scales form the basis of the Placement Tests. Because the courses can accommodate students with only a very low grasp of English, ALTEC College is able to accept students into the Elementary course even if they are at a very low level.
International students: ALTEC College offers various intakes throughout the year. International students can enter the course at any of these intakes, subject to meeting entry requirements.
The intakes are also published in ALTEC College’s Academic Calendar.
Program Structure
50 weeks of General English.
Each week there are 20 face-to-face contact hours.
This 50 week period is made up of five levels that each correspond to 10 weeks of coursework.
Note: There is a 2 week mandatory holiday period over the Christmas/New Year period.
Learning Outcomes
These objectives are broken down into Learning Outcomes based on the key areas of competency: speaking, listening, reading, writing, grammar and vocabulary. These learning outcomes are the same regardless of which cycle (textbook) the class is studying from.
In each level from Elementary to Advanced, students and teachers aim to complete these Learning Outcomes to ensure that they reach the standard of that level.
Course Objective
The curriculum, syllabus and assessment are designed to help students achieve Course Objectives and more detailed and measurable Learning Outcomes.
The learners’ overall Course Objectives in the General English course are to enable students to:
- Develop proficiency in English across the four macro skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing effectively in a variety of contexts
- Develop core knowledge of the vocabulary and grammar of English
- Develop awareness of sociocultural knowledge relating to communication in English as used with native speakers and with other non-native speakers where English is used as a lingua franca
- Develop study skills that will maximise efficiency of study in class and externally
- Develop independent learning skills for ongoing improvement in language proficiency
Framework
