Professional and Academic English for International Students - Essay Example

Introduction This paper is a practical paper that describes how to train and equip a group of professionals who are part of an overseas trade delegation who need some training in Business Communication Skills. This paper will examine the important aspects of the training and how they are to be prepared for the programme. In doing the project, the paper will begin by defining the scope of the training programme. This will define the kind of delegation that would be sent and the kind of things that they will be involved in. The project will go on to define a business skill in the CERT IBET course that will be studied and outline aspects of skills that will be handled. In the illustrative section of the paper, there would be an analysis and evaluation of the methods, approaches, techniques and resources that will be used to deliver the training. The paper will also narrow down its scope to concentrate on how to incorporate cultural intelligence and cultural awareness into the training programme. Scope of Training This paper will be based on a group of 12 Asian delegation consisting of business executives who are being prepare for an international conference in the United States of America. The paper is therefore being put together to describe the teaching methods and content that will be employed to enable these executives to learn about how to communicate with their American counterparts and integrate culturally into the American society. In attaining this end, the paper will involve the components of Course and Syllabus Design which underline the IBET Certificate training programme. This will mean the application of important ideas and concepts from this aspect of the course to formulate a proper tuition system and design that would help the participants appreciate the course in English Business Communication. In doing this, we assume that the course is going to be held in a five day intensive session which would last for six hours each day with three breaks. This will be held in a conducive environment where all the participants will get the opportunity to interact with me, the tutor or instructor. A Course & Syllabus Design In general terms, “a course syllabus provide the blueprint for structured teaching and learning in a training session” (Morrison, 2011 p133). “A syllabus provide the aims, objectives and targets that a given teaching program is meant to provide to the participants” (Moreno, 2011 p107). In this section of the paper, I will like to indicate how the course would be structured and the kind of syllabus which will be used to teach these Asian business executives. Before giving further details of the syllabus design, I will proceed with more information about the Profile of the training. Profile Language Background The people being trained are individuals who have a middle level knowledge of the English language. In other words, they have a passing familiarity with the English language and can get an average score of about 5.0 in the IELTS workers examination. However, they do not use English language as their primary mode of communication in their home country. Due to that, they feel that this course would provide them with important preparation prior to their active role in the United States. Background & Experience The participants are between ages 28 and 55 and are middle ranked managers and board members of a medium sized Asian company. The team is evenly divided between men and women. However, being Asian, there is a strong power distance between leaders and their subordinates. Hofstede defines power distance as the “differences in wealth, prestige and power and this reflects in how much people expect to be distant from people in authority” (Jandt, 2007 p177). This means that there are defined power structures and this is something that must reflect in the training programme. Time Available for the Study The programme is to be completed in a 5-day intensive programme. Participants are expected to attend all lessons and sessions of study. Each programme will be carried out between 9am and 16.30 each day. This will be done onsite and participants would be given breaks after every 90 minutes. The total number of hours is 30. Detailed timetable is available in Appendix 1. Location Due to the level of the participants, the training would be carried out in a hotel located in the countryside or a suburban area in the United Kingdom. This will enable the participants to remain in-doors and concentrate. Also, the Monday-Friday working week will mean that they can use the weekends to undertake tours and visit family and friends in the UK. This will allow them to remain on site for the whole duration and concentrate. Methods of Delivery The vast majority of the learning would include a presentation by the tutor. This will be done through a visual presentation which will include slideshows and videos to show the participants some important areas and aspects of Business English and Business Communication. The programme would be delivered in two different streams. The first stream would involve a wide array of Business Communication in the English language. The second stream would be focused on cross-cultural communication and how to master some important cultural techniques which will be important for the Asian managers to interact with their colleagues in the United States. In-between deliveries, there will be progress tests and demonstrations that would be carried out in the form of two Quizzes for the mainstream study and a Practical Work in cultural awareness. The quizzes would be some kind of progress test which will test the understanding of the participants. The practical work would involve an application of a significant portion of the studies undertaken. Focus of the Training Programme The core focus of the course will be on two main aspects of Business English: 1. General Principles of Business English and 2. Cultural & Cross-cultural Communication General Principles of Business English will involve the teaching of important communication skills that are necessary for the understanding and knowledge necessary for transactions as a top-level manager in an English-speaking environment. The Cultural & Cross-cultural Communication unit of the study will be based on how cultures and systems differ. It will indicate important aspects of culture as expressed through popular models like the Hofstede, Trompenaars and other scholarly theories which are widely accepted. The participants would be taught how to use those models to solve real life problems and come up with solutions to practical situations and scenarios. Course Content Introduction & Course Outline General English V Business English Lexical Framework Meetings Cultural Awareness- Introduction Pre-Meeting Activities Cultural Awareness I Cultural Awareness II Quiz I Presentations Negotiations I Negotiations II Practical Work in Cultural Awareness Cultural Awareness - Final Networking & Socializing I Networking & Socializing II Question & Answer Session Additional Tools in Communication Quiz II Final Words & Interaction. You are training a group of professionals of a level defined by you who will be part of an overseas trade delegation Select one Business Communication Skill from the CERT IBET course syllabus and outline aspects of the skills you will teach to the group. B Methodology for Delivery Critically evaluate the methods, approaches, techniques and resources that you would use to deliver the training. C Cultural Awareness & Intelligence Creation Show how you will incorporate an awareness of cultural intelligence into your programme References Jandt, F. E. (2007) Introduction to Intercultural Communication London: SAGE Publication. Moreno, R. G. (2011) Words for Working: Professional and Academic English for International Students Valencia: Universitat de Valencia Morrison, B. (2011) Independent Language learning. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. Read More