2015-2016 academic year

English for Journalists (21333)

Degree/study: Journalism
Year: 2nd
Term: 2nd
Number of ECTS credits: 4 credits
Hours of studi dedication: 100 hours
Teaching language or languages: english
Teaching Staff: Dr. Christopher Tulloch / Mr. Ben Cardew

1. Presentation of the subject

This course - aimed at fourth year journalism students - will help participants to develop the
necessary language skills for communicating effectively and confidently in English in a
newsroom environment and aims to equip students with the linguistic tools necessary for
them to develop as professional journalists in the future. The course adopts a hands-on
approach. Students will work in groups and individually as they improve their oral expression
with reference to current events and related professional matters, in addition to improving
their listening skills. Students will also be taught how to deal with grammatical issues strictly
related to the exercise of the profession (correctly constructing questions or reported speech,
for example) and simulated activities, such as press conferences, job interviews and guest
speakers, will be used to track their progress. The course will adopt a flexible approach based
on the abilities of the group

2. Competences to be attained
Instrumental skills: To understand and interpret written academic texts in a relevant and
reasoned manner. To be capable of using both oral and written English in an academic way
(reading, writing and speaking in a mid to upper register).

Personal skills: To be capable of working in a group, actively participating in the assigned

tasks and debating opposing views to come to an agreement. To accept divergent points of
view as a fundamental ingredient of academic life and inseparable from modern society and
to respect opposing views to your own. To have developed or consolidated self discipline,
personal motivation and a thorough working manner, alongside organisation skills and
timing.

Systemic skills: To have developed the sense of curiosity and the thirst for knowledge which
are essential in all parts of the educational process and in all areas of professional life. To be
capable of applying and adapting knowledge acquired in new situations with flexibility and
creativity. To be able to learn independently.

Degree specific skills: Knowledge of English on a professional level within the media.
Knowledge of the evolution of journalistic methods and traditions in different media.
Knowledge of the makeup of different media, in so far as they reflect different ways of life
and different cultures, related to social context. Knowledge of the main issues and events in
media. The capacity to read and analyse specialised texts and documents on whatever
relevant subject. The basic capacity to understand the news production process, both written
and audiovisual, in English.

Course specific skills: -Communicate effectively and confidently in English in a specific

academic and professional context, at both reception and production level

-Discuss current affairs and professional matters in English

-Ability to contact and interact with sources in English

-Capacity for reading specialised journalism texts in English

-Acquisition of basic skills to write news texts in English

-Speed-read in English in order to absorb high volumes of information in a short time

-Correct telephone, email and social media skills in English

-Increase range of professional vocabulary

-Improve fluency training designed to improve accent, pronunciation, tone and register

-Deliver speeches under simulated time / pressure constraints

-Remedial language training focussed on oral and written expression

-Fine tune general public speaking and presentation skills

3. Contents
In general terms, students will work on four areas of English language training, which will be
interwoven into 20 two-hour sessions:

Firstly, listening skills. Course content in this case will focus on improving students' listening
comprehension abilities. In order to do so, every class will include listening exercises through
online programmes designed specifically by the BBC and the British Council for such
purposes. Students will be taught how to identify typical oral structures and linguistic
formalities used when dealing with the press. Course instructors will also introduce British,
American and non-native accents, in order to broaden the scope of oral comprehension.

Secondly, oral expression skills. Most classes will begin by a group look at current affairs
and all students will be expected to participate at both an informal and then more formal level
in in-class debates. Through the use of rotating groups, students will be expected to form
mini news teams and to inform the rest of the group of the "headlines of the day" as if
simulating an editorial meeting, before closing the class out with a simulated five minute
radio news bulletin. The course instructor will take notes on student performance and then
correct the most frequent mistakes.
As for grammar and written skills, it must be stressed that the course is not a general
English course but rather offers specific help to students who wish to improve their level in a
professional news environment. Exercises, which may be completed both in class or outside
class time, will be strictly related to the field of journalism. Students will be presented with
'classic mistake' scenarios, relevant case studies and the necessary vocabulary and
professional jargon needed to work in the press, radio, television, internet and social media.

Finally, improving personal language skills will be included towards the end of the course.
Given that the class makeup is one of second-term fourth-year students, language training
oriented towards presentation, curriculum and interviewing skills will be introduced to enable
the student to face professional challenges in an English-language environment.

4. Assessment
The course characteristics inevitably lead to a continuous assessment model. Students will be
equally graded on all four main blocks of the course (4 x 25%):

-25% Listening /Oral Comprehension = in-class exercises + outside activities

-25% Oral expression = participation in current debates + newsroom bulletins in groups

-25% Written comprehension = case studies, vocabulary tests, news articles

-25% Personal language skills = interviewing skills, presentation exercises

It must be pointed out that students will be graded on their progression during the course.

Students who initially fail the course will have a further opportunity to pass at the end of
April, by taking a two-hour test. It will be divided into four half-hour blocks, each worth 25%
of the final mark. Students will be tested on listening / oral comprehension; oral expression;
written comprehension and personal language skills. The test will be based on language skills
covered during the English for Journalists course, with students expected to demonstrate
knowledge of these specific areas, rather than a general level of English

5. Bibliography and teaching resources

5.1. Basic bibliography

EVANS, Harold. Essential English for Journalists. Pimlico: 2000.

HYCKS Winford. English for Journalists. Taylor & Francis , 2006

MURPHY. R. English Grammar in Use. Cambridge. 2004

5.2. Complementary bibliography

HYCKS, Wynford. Media Skills. 3rd Edition. Routledge, 2007

5.3. Teaching resources

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/specials/2009/03/090316_specials_cojo.s
html

http://www.britishcouncil.org/professionals-specialisms-journalism-intro.htm

http://www.slideshare.net/RockyS11/english-for-journalistsdoc

6. Metodology
Given the nature of the course, the large number of students in class (due to its obligatory
nature) and the difference in ability among participants, classes will adopt a flexible method.
In general, however, a 'standard' two-hour class would use the following 'script':

- Classes begin with an overview of the key ideas of the previous class. Students will be
asked to demonstrate that they have absorbed the material taught in the previous class.

- Students will then be asked to improve their oral skills by participating in a structured
debate on current events. One group will be asked to offer the main headlines from the
Catalan, Spanish and international press.

- Short listening exercises will be introduced, using relevant audio documents to increase
variety.

-Written and grammar activities will then be introduced to fine tune writing skills. These
exercises may be corrected in class or later by the instructor, to be returned in the following
class.

-Classes will finish with a five-minute news bulletin simulation presented by a group of four
to six students, who will take on roles of presenter or section head (politics, economics,
international sport, culture...etc). Other class members will grade their performance.

-Students can submit written exercises and news articles to be published in accordance with
the "News Agencies" course of the UPF and the Catalan News Agency.

7. Planning of activities
Week 1: Course explanations, personal presentations

Weeks 2-8: Listening, oral expression, writing, grammar, vocabulary exercises

Week 9: Personal language skills, professional orientation in English, (CVs, interviews)

Week 10: English for Journalist language individual diagnosis, all completed exercises