ENGLISH LANGUAGE QUALIFYING EXAM B2

Credits: 
3
Site: 
PARMA
Year of erogation: 
2021/2022
Unit Coordinator: 
VANNUCCI Armando
Semester: 
First semester
Year of study: 
1
Language of instruction: 

English
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Language of instruction: 

English

Learning outcomes of the course unit

By the end of the course the students reach level B2 of the European Frame of Reference, having developed their skills related to grammar, lexis, functions, reading and listening comprehension. Based on the CEFR, at level B2 the user can understand the main ideas of complex written and spoken text on a wide range of both concrete and abstract topics, including technical material in their field of specialization.

By the end of the course the students reach level B2 of the European
Frame of Reference.

Prerequisites

Intermediate level knowledge of English (equivalent to level B1 of the Common European Frame of Reference).

Intermediate knowledge of English (equivalent to level B1 of the
European Frame of Reference)

Course contents summary

All the topics set for English LEVEL B1
Present Perfect Simple and Present Perfect Continuous
Second Conditional
The Passive voice
Indirect speech and reporting verbs
Modal verbs of deduction
Main conjunctions
Use of prefixes and suffixes to build nouns, adjectives, etc.
Expressing opinions

All the topics for English 1
Present Perfect Simple and Present Perfect Continuous.
Second Conditional
The Passive voice
Indirect speech
Modal verbs of deduction
Main conjunctions
Use of prefixes and suffixes to build nouns, adjectives, etc.
Expressing opinions

Recommended readings

Recommended for grammar and vocabulary:
Vv. Aa., Oxford 360° pack with answer key booklet, OUP

Textbook
A. Doff, C. Thaine, H. Puchta, J. Stranks, P. Lewis-Jones, Empower B2 Upper-Intermediate (Student’s book with Online Assessment and Practice, Online Workbook), Cambridge University Press

Further practice
S. Burgess, J. Newbrook, J. Wilson, Gold First Exam Maximiser New edition (with key), Pearson (with audio)

For grammar and vocabulary:
M. Vince, G. Cerulli, New Inside Grammar, Macmillan
Textbook
C. Oxenden, C. Latham-Koening, New English File Upper-Intermediate
Multipack C/C
(SB+Entry+WB+Key+MultiRom), Oxford University Press
Further practice
S. Burgess, J.Newbrook, J.Wilson, New First Certificate Gold Exam
Maximiser (with key), Longman (with audio CD set)
Recommended monolingual dictionary
Oxford Wordpower Dictionary
Macmillan Essential Dictionary for Learners of English
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

Teaching methods

Interactive classes with the use of multimedia (blended learning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blended_learning).
Methodology: presentation of structures, deduction of rule, contrastive use of the language, use of different teaching aids (audio and video materials, slides, textbook, etc.).

Assessment: achievement test focusing on grammar, lexis, functions, reading and listening comprehension.

Due to the CoVid crisis, the course will have to be held online, in interactive mode (synchronous). Classes will presumably start in november 2020.

Methodology: presentation of structures, deduction of rule, contrastive
use of the language, use of different teaching aids (slides, audioCDs,
textbook, etc.).

Assessment methods and criteria

Multiple choice test with questions on grammar, lexis, functions, reading and listening comprehension. The pass mark is 60%, obtained by adding the number of correct answers. Dictionaries, grammar reference books, electronic devices, etc. are not allowed.

Assessment: final test with multiple choice questions on grammar, lexis,
functions, reading and listening comprehension.

Other informations

VALIDITY OF LANGUAGE CERTIFICATES
For the list of valid certificates and their recognition / validation in place of the in-house test, please see http://www.tlc.unipr.it/vannucci/studenti/IdoneitaDiLingue/index.html
The same information can be found at the Elly page of the Department related to this subject.

Additional material with modules focusing on the topics related to the exam is available online and can be accessed from the same Elly page
The material includes slides with exam tips and exercises which are corrected automatically. The pass mark for the exercises is 60%.