Teaching Technical English
Course Summary
This highly interactive teacher training course provides a solid introduction to the teaching of technical English and ESP. The course covers a broad span of teaching ideas and activities to enliven lessons and make them more motivating, and places a strong emphasis on developing practical skills for the classroom. The course is useful for both those with some experience of technical English training and those new to the field.
Fast Facts
| Start dates: | 18 – 22 February 2019 04 – 08 March 2019 22 – 26 April 2019 08 – 12 July 2019 19 – 23 August 2019 21 – 25 October 2019 |
| Max. group size: | 12 |
| Entry level: | B1 |
| Min. age: | 23 |
| Course materials: | Included |
| Hours/week: | 21 |
| Price: | £395 |
| Booking fee: | £50 |
| Terms and conditions |
Target Audience
This course is for all professionals who want to better understand the challenges of teaching technical English. You will learn about different approaches to teaching English for Specific Purposes (ESP), aspects of teaching technical English, and develop your skills for teaching in this area. Participants need to be at a minimum B1 level of English.
Preparation
After registration, participants on this course programme will receive:
- A pre-course questionnaire which will enable trainers to learn about the participants’ teaching backgrounds
- Information about the Europass Mobility Certificate
- A recommended reading list to prepare participants for various aspects of the course
- Information about York to prepare teachers for their cultural experience
Objectives
By the end of the course participants will:
- be able to understand and use a wide range of technical vocabulary
- have a knowledge of the key pedagogy behind teaching technical English and ESP
- have gained the confidence to discuss and present technical issues
- have developed an understanding of the structural use of technical language
Methodology
Sessions demonstrate and train technical English approaches, methodologies, techniques and knowledge. An interactive communicative approach is applied, which provides participants with their own experiential learning of the activities and methodologies. Input sessions are in the form of hands-on workshops and involve brainstorming, analysis, problem-solving, and role-play, both in pair work and group work. Participants are actively involved in the sessions to maximize their learning and to experience activities from their learners’ point of view.
Teachers are asked to reflect on the activities, inviting discussion with regard to their own pedagogical knowledge and skills, teaching methods and contexts, and on adaptation of activities to their own teaching and learning situations. Participants are also introduced to key resources related to the further development of their teaching skills and personal professional development. Both teaching and learning are explored, analyzed and discussed, further enabling the participants’ use of their teaching skills in technical English.
Follow Up
The course ends with an evaluation session, where teachers are asked to reflect upon the value of the knowledge gained on the course. They are also encouraged in this session to create a Personal Development Action Plan, and select activities which they would like to try out in their own classes. They are invited to join the York Associates Community, which allows networking and contact with the trainers and fellow colleagues, and with participants from other courses.
Sample Course Programme
| Session One | Session Two | Session Three |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| MONDAY | Ice-breaker Introduction to the course: objectives and methodology Challenging our beliefs of ESP and Technical English | Defining learners’ current and future needs Key functional and communication skills | Using authentic materials Sources, approaches and lesson ideas |
| TUESDAY | Language Feedback Technical Vocabulary in context | Technical Communication Cause and effect Active / passive | Process Description Video comprehension Describing a production process |
| WEDNESDAY | Language Feedback Technical Vocabulary in context | Technical Communication Explanations and Instructions | Treasure Hunt in York Fun practical activity in the city centre to test out your accuracy and technical understanding |
| THURSDAY | Language Feedback Technical Vocabulary in context | Technical Communication Problem solving Information exchange | Presenting Technical Information Prepare a talk around a technical subject |
| FRIDAY | Language Feedback Vocabulary review Bringing it all together | Producing training materials Workshop for materials production based around technical language | Personal Action Plan further professional development Review and feedback. |
21 hour teacher development courses may use a 8.00- 12.30 or 13.30 -17.30 time slot. Afternoon programmes will finish earlier on certain days for social programme options.
