Universidad Nacional Abierta y a Distancia

Vicerrectoría Académica y de Investigación

Course: Teaching English for Specific Purposes
Code: 551038

Activity Guide and Evaluation Rubric – Task 4 ESP Syllabus

1. Activity Description

Type of activity: Collaborative

Evaluation moment: Intermediate Unit 3
Highest score of the activity: 120 points
The activity starts on: Monday, April 12, The activity ends on: Sunday, May 9,
2021 2021
With this activity, you are expected to achieve the following learning
outcomes:

To design a syllabus for a language course considering the different elements of ESP.

The activity consists of:

Individual

Task 1. Creating a syllabus for an ESP course

1. Check and read the bibliographic material in the knowledge environment for Unit
3, and / or look for syllabus outlines on the internet. Example:
https://www.slideshare.net/tinmay/syllabus-41086479

2. Create a syllabus based on the scenario you selected for the collaborative work in
Unit 2. This syllabus must contain precise elements and must respond to the
characteristics of the scenario you selected in task 3.

2. Post your syllabus in the forum

The scenarios for Unit 2 were:

A. You have been hired by a young tourist guide who already has an English level of
B2, and who is highly motivated to get a better job opportunity at a banana
plantation. In three months, this banana plantation is expected to hire new staff

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 with a general knowledge of English, who is also familiar with a specific vocabulary
related with banana plantations, production, machinery and distribution processes
to be able to explain to foreign business investors and/or visitors all the steps
required for the development and completion of the product, meanwhile they are
showed the different areas of that banana plantation.

B. A university student from an English Bachelor program in Colombia wishes to hire

an English teacher to prepare her for a language test. This student already has an
English level of B1 and is highly motivated to graduate as soon as possible, but
she lacks the ability in the receptive skills of listening and reading comprehension.
Therefore, she wants the tutor to help her prepare on these two areas for the
exam to achieve at least a B2 level.

C. Two parents are planning to live abroad with their two children in one years, and
they are looking for an English Tutor who can help their son and daughter of 12
years old to have a smoother transition to a math class. These two children have
gone to a bilingual school for 2 years, but for some reason the science teacher
talked more in Spanish than in English during his class, and for this reason the
children were not familiarized with enough English vocabulary on math topics.
Their parents want their children to learn and master the math vocabulary used
for 6th and 7th grade. The children are pretty good at learning English, but do not
understand the specific vocabulary quite well.

D. A lawyer is hiring you to prepare him for a job interview that he will have in 3
months, for a new position. He has a B2 English level and a good range of
vocabulary related with his profession, but he lacks fluency and confidence to
speak because he has not found anyone to practice with, therefore he decides to
hire you to prepare him for this specific purpose. He would like to reinforce his
speaking and listening skills.

E. An architect is hiring you because she has a month to take an English exam by
means of which she may be promoted to a better position at the company she
works for. She has a B1 level of English and manages a good range of vocabulary.
She speaks with some fluency but needs to prepare for the writing, language use
and reading parts of the exam.

Collaborative

Task 2. Consolidate a group syllabus

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Interact in the forum by posting your individual syllabus and revising your partners’
syllabi. Make sure each student has taken a different scenario for the syllabus
designed.

As the final product, and after analyzing all the participants’ syllabus, the group will
create a “standard” format (outline) for the design of a syllabus for teaching English
for specific purposes. Each item included in the format must be explained.

Example:

Item Explanation

Course Description The course description allows teachers to

present the most relevant information related to
the course. Etc.
For the development of the activity consider that:

In the Initial Information Environment, you must:

- Check the Course Agenda to organize your time.

- Check the Course News for important information.
- Verify the date of the First Web Conference so that you can plan your
participation accordingly.
- Verify your tutors’ synchronous attention by Skype.
In the Learning Environment, you must:

- Check the Course Contents and Bibliographic References for Unit 1: Experiences.
- Go to the discussion forum for the task and actively participate with your
collaborative group.
- Give feedback to your e-mates if necessary.

In the Evaluation Environment, you must:

Upload a PDF file with the task’s individual and group evidences. Identify your
file as follows: 551038 - Task 4 – Group X.pdf

Evidences of individual work:

The individual evidence to be submitted is:

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The student must submit the individual and group syllabus in a PDF document that
includes the information developed in task 1.

Evidences of collaborative work:

The collaborative evidence to be submitted is:

Submission format:

The document will be delivered in PDF

Cover according to APA style

Font: Arial o Times New Roman 12

Line spacing: 1.5

A PDF document including all participants’ syllabi as well as the syllabus outline or
template. All items in the outline must be clearly explained in terms of purpose and
intention (what you expect to achieve).

In the Evaluation Environment, you must:

Upload a PDF file with the task’s individual and group evidences. Identify your
file as follows: 551038 - Task 4 – Group X.pdf

2. General Guidelines for the Development of Evidences to Submit

For Collaborative evidences, consider the following:

A PDF document including all participants’ syllabi as well as the syllabus outline or
template. All items in the outline must be clearly explained in terms of purpose and
intention (what you expect to achieve).

In the Evaluation Environment, you must:

Upload a PDF file with the task’s individual and group evidences. Identify your
file as follows: 551038 - Task 4 – Group X.pdf

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• All members of the group must participate with their contributions in the
development of the activity.

• In each group a single member will be chosen to submit the requested product in
the environment indicated by the teacher.

• Before submitting the requested product, students should check that it meets all
the requirements mentioned in this activity guide.

• Only the members of the group that participated with contributions during the
time assigned for the activity should be included as authors of the submitted
product.

Please keep in mind that all individual or collaborative written products must comply
with the spelling rules and presentation conditions defined in this activity guide.
Regarding the use of references, consider that the product of this activity must
comply with APA style.

In any case, make sure you comply with the rules and avoid academic plagiarism.
You can review your written products using the Turnitin tool found in the virtual
campus.

Under the Academic Code of Conduct, the actions that infringe the academic order,
among others, are the following: paragraph e) Plagiarism is to present as your own
work all or part of a written report, task or document of invention carried out by
another person. It also implies the use of citations or lack of references, or it
includes citations where there is no match between these and the reference and
paragraph f) To reproduce, or copy for profit, educational resources or results of
research products, which have rights reserved for the University. (Acuerdo 029 - 13
de diciembre de 2013, artículo 99)

The academic penalties students will face are:

a) In case of academic fraud demonstrated in the academic work or evaluation, the
score obtained will be zero (0.0) without any disciplinary measures being derived.
b) In case of proven plagiarism in academic work of any nature, the score obtained
will be zero (0.0), without any disciplinary measures being derived.

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3. Evaluation Rubric Template

Type of activity: Collaborative

Evaluation moment: Intermediate Unit 3
The highest score in this activity is 120 points
First evaluation High level: The student posts their syllabus on time to allow
criterion: interaction.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 8 points
Timely posting and 10 points
individual syllabus
Average level: The student posts their syllabus late and
This criterion interaction was fair.
represents 10 If your work is at this level, you can get between 6 points
points of the total and 7 points
of 120 points of
the activity. Low level: No syllabus posted OR the selection was posted too
late OR the individual syllabus was posted 2 days before
deadline.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 5 points
Second evaluation High level: The individual syllabus contains precise elements
criterion: and responds to the characteristics of the selected scenario. It
fits the information according to the guideline. References are
Pragmatic made according to APA rules.
competence If your work is at this level, you can get between 40 points
(Syllabus content and 50 points
and Structure)
Average level: The syllabus does not contain precise elements
This criterion neither responds to the characteristics of the selected scenario
represents 50 OR it is not closely related to the guidelines OR references were
points of the total not made according to APA rules.
of 120 points of If your work is at this level, you can get between 30 points
the activity. and 39 points

Low level: The syllabus is not posted in the forum.

If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 29 points
Third evaluation
High level: The syllabus has few grammar mistakes.
criterion:

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 If your work is at this level, you can get between 8 points
Grammar and 10 points

This criterion Average level: The syllabus has some grammar mistakes that
represents 10 do not interfere with meaning.
points of the total If your work is at this level, you can get between 6 points
of 120 points of and 7 points
the activity.
Low level: The syllabus has many grammar mistakes, which
affect meaning and content.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 5 points
Fourth evaluation High level: Students interact in the forum by sharing their
criterion: syllabus and working on the outline.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 16 points
Social competence and 20 points

Average level: Students participate in the forum but do not

This criterion engage fully in the collaborative outline
represents 20 If your work is at this level, you can get between 12 points
points of the total and 15 points
of 120 points of
the activity. Low level: Students do not participate actively in the forum.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 11 points
Fifth evaluation High level: The final document has few spelling mistakes, and
criterion: punctuation is correct.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 8 points
Spelling and and 10 points
Punctuation
Average level: The final document has some spelling mistakes
This criterion OR punctuation is imprecise.
represents 10 If your work is at this level, you can get between 6 points
points of the total and 7 points
of 120 points of
the activity. Low level: The final document has multiple spelling mistakes
OR punctuation is very imprecise.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 5 points

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Sixth evaluation High level: Students present a word document including all
criterion: participants’ syllabus as well as a collaborative standard syllabus
for teaching English for specific purposes.
Final Collaborative If your work is at this level, you can get between 16 points
Document and 20 points

This criterion Average level: The final document doesn’t include all the
represents 20 information according to the activity guide OR APA Rules are not
points of the total correctly applied for citation and references.
of 120 points of If your work is at this level, you can get between 12 points
the activity. and 15 points

Low level: The group doesn’t make a final collaborative

document according to the activity guide OR nobody in the group
posts the final paper
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0 points
and 11 points