English Courses

This course is aimed at students in their first year of study and will develop students’ spoken and written language proficiency. The course also introduces academic literacy skills common to all disciplines. Students will learn to evaluate others’ opinions, develop strong arguments and communicate those arguments effectively in written and spoken English. They will also build skills and habits for self-directed learning at university. This course and its assessments build on the foundation proficiency needed to confidently take part in social and academic life at university in English, while introducing students to elements of academic literacy. The intended learning outcomes of the course will enable students to express complex ideas precisely and coherently to different audiences through both written and spoken English communication, develop their critical thinking and critical analysis skills, and develop strategies for lifelong learning.

LANG 1406, Academic English for Business Studies, is a 3-credit, common-core course taken by all business students. Over one semester, students attend three hours of classes per week, complete a variety of out-of-class activities and prepare for assessed tasks.

LANG 1406 takes an active and collaborative approach to learning, centred on developing students’ competence to communicate effectively within business contexts in the university and beyond. Every class includes at least one communicative task where students work together to share information, solve a problem or brainstorm ideas. Outside class, students are expected to take a proactive approach to meet with group members, find information and work together towards common goals. Students are also expected to take responsibility for their own learning by reflecting on coursework performance and using self-reflection and feedback from others – including their lecturer, peers, and GenAI tools – to improve.

LANG 1406 puts a strong emphasis on the academic literacy skills essential for business studies. The course introduces students to the research skills for finding and evaluating sources for discipline-related writing and speaking tasks. Students are expected to be critical readers and writers, synthesizing ideas from different sources when developing a coherent argument. As previously mentioned, the course also aims to develop students' competence in communicating effectively in a wider community beyond the university, developing the ability to collaborate both as a member and leader of a group. Throughout the course, students are expected to transfer and adapt their knowledge, attitudes and habits for autonomous lifelong learning.

LANG 1407, Academic English for Engineering Studies, is a 3-credit, common-core course taken by all engineering students.  Over one semester, students attend three hours of class per week, complete a variety of out-of-class activities and prepare for assessed tasks.

LANG 1407 aims to develop students’ competence to communicate accurately and appropriately in engineering contexts in the university and beyond. LANG 1407 takes an active, collaborative, approach to learning. Every class includes at least one communicative task where students work together to share information, solve a problem or brainstorm ideas. Outside class, students are expected to take a proactive approach to meet with group members, find information and work together towards common goals. They are also expected to take responsibility for their own learning by reflecting on coursework performance and using self-reflection and feedback from others to improve.

LANG 1408, Academic English for Humanities and Social Science Studies is a 3-credit, common-core course taken by humanities and social science students. Over one semester, you will attend three hours of class per week, complete a variety of out-of-class activities and prepare for assessed tasks.

The objective of LANG1408 is to develop your academic literacy skills to communicate effectively within the context of your disciplinary studies and beyond. There is a strong emphasis on research skills for finding and critically evaluating sources for discipline-related writing and speaking tasks. You are expected to be critical readers and writers, synthesizing ideas from different sources when developing a coherent argument. The course also aims to develop your competence in communicating effectively in a wider community beyond the university, developing the ability to collaborate both as a member and leader of a group. Throughout the course you are expected to transfer and adapt knowledge, attitudes and habits for autonomous lifelong learning.

LANG 1409, Academic English for Science Studies, is a 3-credit, common-core course taken by all science students.  Over one semester, you will attend three hours of class per week, complete a variety of out-of-class activities and prepare for assessed tasks.

This course puts a strong emphasis on the academic literacy skills essential for science studies. The course introduces students to the research skills for finding and evaluating sources for discipline-related writing and speaking tasks. Students are expected to be critical readers and writers, synthesizing ideas from different sources when developing a coherent argument. The course also aims to develop students' competence in communicating effectively in a wider community beyond the university, developing the ability to collaborate both as a member and leader of a group. Throughout the course, students are expected to transfer and adapt their knowledge, attitudes and habits for autonomous lifelong learning.

LANG 2063 is a three-credit, one semester course offered in both the Fall and Spring semesters. Students attend two 1.5 hour-lessons per week. The course offers students the language and communication skills and strategies to adapt their writing to various professional contexts. It increases students’ awareness of how writing can create change and persuade others to take action, and how audiences, contexts, and genres call for different choices in language, organization, format, and style. The course develops students' ability to communicate in digital contexts by analyzing and producing texts, including but not limited to workplace emails and professional social media posts. As students explore and analyze business genres, they learn how to shape and adapt their language skills, strategies, and communication practices for various purposes. Students will develop a repertoire of language and communication skills and strategies, enabling them to write for various workplace needs.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Students can:

a) Develop and apply knowledge of rhetoric and genre to write texts appropriate for workplace contexts, purposes and audiences

b) Critically analyze workplace genres using linguistic and communication theories to write texts appropriate for workplace contexts, purposes and audiences

c) Organize workplace texts logically and coherently to communicate ideas

d) Develop awareness of writing as a social process by giving, receiving and responding to feedback

e) Lead and work as a team and manage work independently

f) Develop awareness of ethical concerns when integrating Gen AI and other technologies to enhance writing practices

LANG 2064 is a three-credit, common core course for students of any discipline. Students attend 3 hours of class per week over one semester. This course enhances student awareness of how spoken communication can drive change and persuade action. By exploring and analyzing spoken genres and applying linguistic and communication theories and strategies, students learn to shape and adapt their language to influence diverse workplace audiences in multimodal settings. The course particularly focuses on developing skills in personal and corporate branding, leveraging storytelling, intercultural awareness, and rhetorical and linguistic strategies. Students will also learn to handle sensitive business situations, including crises and intercultural communication, and navigate business meetings to achieve intended goals while maintaining rapport through effective communication strategies. Through critical analysis, hands-on practice, and reflections, the course equips students with a versatile repertoire of language and communication skills, preparing them to be effective communicators and leaders in the workplace.

LANG 2065, Research Writing, is a three-credit, common-core course for students in any discipline.  Students attend 3 hours of class per week over one semester. The course aims to enhance students’ academic writing regardless of major.  It empowers students to confidently tackle complex academic writing challenges in writing up research projects. A key focus is helping students understand the varied needs, purposes, expectations and contexts of their writing tasks. By exploring common conventions that apply across disciplines and those unique to each discipline, students learn to adapt their writing effectively. The course also emphasizes taking a stance and creating strong, coherent, evidence-backed arguments. With advanced synthesis, citation strategies and rhetorical techniques, students position their ideas and solve problems critically through their writing. Exposing students to technologies particularly Gen AI tools for research and customized chatbots to guide writing, this course creates writers who are adept at integrating technologies while maintaining academic integrity. Through collaboration, reflection and the writing process, the course nurtures a community of writers who learn how to value peer feedback, self-evaluation and continuous improvement.

This introductory course will help students explore the impact of digital media texts (such as podcasts, wikis, and social media like YouTube) on academic, professional and social communication practices. The course will enable students to be: critical of current digital communication practices; reflective of their communication and participation through digital media; aware of how digital communication can impact language delivery; and reflective of their English language development. To achieve this, the course guides students in developing basic knowledge of digital literacy theories and practices and to produce their own digital media texts for English communicative purposes. Students will undertake authentic tasks related to their academic and future careers that enables them to achieve the necessary communication skills in a digital world.

LANG 2090 is a three-credit, one-semester humanities (linguistics) broadening course for students of any discipline. Students attend two 1.5-hour classes per week over one semester. This course provides students with opportunities to use corpus tools to analyse language data, identify language patterns, and observe their applications in daily communication.  Students will gain insights into language patterns through empirical studies, enhancing their digital literacy and equipping them with the quantitative skills necessary to interpret and leverage large datasets. Through the study of existing language corpora and the development of their own databases, students will deepen their understanding of how language impacts communication and societal dynamics.

Note: The course details are subject to revision and may change.

Speech technology such as AI powered voice assistants on smart speakers and smartphones has become an integral part of everyday life. Development of speech technology requires a systematic understanding of human speech sounds. LANG 2091 introduces students to Phonetics, the scientific study of the physical properties of human speech sounds. Students will learn the physical (acoustic) properties of different components of human speech, how speech sounds are produced and how the knowledge of Phonetics can be useful to speech technology and its development. Students will be actively engaged throughout the course through lectures, interactive tasks, and hands-on practice and learning activities. They will also conduct computerized acoustic analyses of speech sounds using freely available software and explore topics in Phonetics (e.g. foreign accent) or speech technology (e.g. synthesized speech) which are of interest or relevance to students.

This course is a three-credit, one-semester broadening course for students in any discipline. It assumes no prior knowledge of Phonetics or speech technology. Students attend three hours of class per week.

Note: The course details are subject to revision and may change.