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English Language ProgramENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES PROGRAM (EAPP) The general aim of the program is to equip learners with the linguistic needs necessary to succeed in a high-caliber academic environment and to act as professionals in their chosen fields. The program strives to prepare students to be confident and communicatively competent English language users through:
Academic Writing All incoming graduate students are required to take the pre-curriculum Academic Writing program during the summer of their first academic year. This is a four-week program that serves to initiate new students into the academic writing culture of ADA. Students enrolled in this program receive 20 hours of instruction per week. They take courses in Critical Reading & Academic Writing as well support sessions in language use and delivering effective presentations. Graduate and undergraduate students continue receiving support in academic writing in the first year of their mainstream programs. Advanced Writing Skills is a core class that prepares graduate students for writing assignments in different content areas of their study (i.e., history, economics, law and environmental policy). Critical Reading & Academic Writing I and II are core classes that help undergraduate students to enhance their skills in research paper writing. English Preparatory Program English Preparatory Program (EPP) is designed to develop English language competence of students to the level sufficient to pursue the ADA undergraduate academic program in English. It is a one year program that aims at: 1) developing students’ general knowledge of English so that they can freely converse in various types of non-academic discourses 2) developing students’ knowledge and skills in Academic English so that they can successfully pursue the ADA undergraduate academic program in English. In this regard, critical reading and writing skills are of essential emphasis. Program duration The normal period of education in EPP is one academic year. However, if you fail to meet program graduation requirements, you may repeat EPP for an additional year. You cannot take EPP for more than two years. No TOEFL, IELTS or other internationally recognized English exam is required to enroll in EPP.
Students who score 60 in ADA-EPE or 75 in iBT TOEFL (537 Paper-based) are exempt from EPP. Overview of the English Proficiency Exam (ADA-EPE) ADA-EPE is a test designed to assess the English language proficiency level of students who are admitted to the undergraduate program at Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy, where English is the medium of instruction. The purpose of the exam is to identify the English language proficiency level of a student and to place him or her in the appropriate level. ADA-EPE has four parts: English language use, Reading Comprehension, Listening and Essay Writing. Levels in EPP Based on the results of the ADA-EPE, students are placed in one of the four levels: elementary, lower- intermediate, intermediate, and upper-intermediate. Most students in the upper-intermediate level have previous knowledge of English. What they mainly lack is academic skills such as writing, analytical reading, and effective presentation. Students in the intermediate level have had previous exposure to English but do not have enough experience to have a good command of written and spoken English. Students in the lower-intermediate level have had English before but have forgotten the basics. Elementary level students come into the program with little or no English. Level advancement The chart below illustrates at what level different groups begin and how they progress until the end of the program. Level Assessment Students will be assessed on each class (core and elective) at a certain level through attendance (10%), participation (15%), course assignments and weekly/biweekly achievement tests (50%), and final exams (25%). Requirements for completion of EPP To graduate from EPP and qualify for the next phase of the undergraduate program, at the end of the EPP program, students must have completed all placed levels and have at least a cumulative 2.0 Grade Point Average (GPA). Each semester’s GPA is the total of 30% for Reading and Writing, 30% for Listening and Speaking, 30% for Language Use, and 10% for your Elective. The GPA of each semester will be combined at the end of the academic year to calculate a cumulative Grade Point Average”. Class size is 12 -15 students per group. Core courses include Reading and Writing, Listening and Speaking, and Language Use. Elective courses include Vocabulary Development, Storytelling, Newspaper production, Drama, Current Events, Digital Storytelling, Public Speaking, and Movies Course Descriptions: Academic Writing for Graduate Students:
Critical Reading and Academic Writing is designed to help you build the confidence and the skills necessary to be a successful reader and writer in your master’s degree courses and in your professional life. In this course you will increase your ability to analyze and evaluate the ideas of past and contemporary authors, synthesize them, and add your own unique perspective. You will be held to the highest degree of academic honesty and learn to avoid plagiarism by refining your ability to refer to others’ ideas through summarizing, paraphrasing, and quoting. You will also practice the specific skills related to basic academic writing genre such as summaries, critiques, and research based essays, and in the process you will increase your fluency and accuracy in written English. Advanced Writing Skills is designed to help you develop your research and writing skills appropriate for the graduate level. The content of the course will include a series of small assignments and final research paper that may be prepared based on a topic of study from one of your other MADIA courses. This course will help you to understand and implement the characteristics of good writing into your own writing. Course Descriptions: English Preparatory Program for Undergraduate Students Reading and Writing This course essentially emphasizes skills in reading, critical thinking, and writing. At the same time, it integrates the study of grammar with vocabulary drawn from the readings. Students become faster and more effective readers through deploying reading strategies as predicting and identifying main ideas and details as well as through expanding their vocabulary range and strengthening their abilities to use different contextual clues and word forms to deduce the meaning of unknown words. They become better thinkers through synthesizing information or reacting to the viewpoints in the readings. And finally, they become better writers through different type of writing assignments that require them to apply the language, grammar, and content in a structured and coherent way. Listening and Speaking This course essentially emphasizes listening and speaking skills with additional focus on pronunciation, development of grammar knowledge and vocabulary. Student become better listeners through listening to authentic radio reports, interviews, lectures or other genres and practicing identifying main and ideas and details. They become better thinkers through the activities that prompt them to listen between the lines and make inferences. And finally, they become better communicators through the extended speaking tasks that require them to use the vocabulary and grammar in both prepared and unprepared speeches. Language Use This course aims to develop students’ deeper understanding of the grammar points they study in the Reading and Writing and Listening and Speaking courses and to provide them with wider practice of accurate and yet meaningful and appropriate application of grammatical structures. Electives Vocabulary development In this class you will learn additional vocabulary including idioms, collocations and phrasal verbs that will help you in your daily life and academic English. This class will involve a fun part which is playing a lot of vocabulary games and a business part which is keeping a vocabulary log that will be introduced by your instructor at the beginning of the class. Story telling In this class you will read different interesting short stories mainly written by English/American writers. The main purpose of this class is to put an additional focus on the development of your reading skills and vocabulary expansion. You will also practice your writing skills by keeping a reading journal where you will write a summary of a story and your opinion about the events and personalities in it. Additionally, you will work on your speaking skills by asking/answering the questions of your classmates and discussing the events and personalities in a story. Newspaper project In this class you will learn about styles of journalism and audience consideration with the view to creating a student publication. During brainstorming for the production of the publication, you will learn how to produce interesting, well-organized and ethical pieces of writing. You will learn how to write attention-grabbing introductions and headlines, use source materials without plagiarizing, edit for content, organization and grammar, and meet deadlines. There will be opportunities to interview and photograph students, fellow citizens, and important visitors. You will also practice oral communication skills as you produce something that you, your classmates, other ADA students, and your family and friends can enjoy reading. Current events and Debate This class involves readings/listenings and class discussions/debates based on current events. You will be required to read articles from journals, newspapers, and magazines, develop your own informed opinions based on fact, and synthesize several different articles. A large part of this course will also be devoted to expanding your vocabulary and helping you develop the necessary skills for continuously adding to your own English vocabulary throughout your graduate studies. Electives/II Semester Drama In this class you will learn English while acting out famous scenes from the stage. By stepping outside your everyday life and into other characters’ lives, you will stretch your confidence as well as your English. Each week, you will work on different skills in drama through genres such as fantasy, comedy, romance, crime, etc. Using your new knowledge, you will work in groups to complete two challenging (but fun) projects and a drama log. Digital storytelling Digital storytelling recreates the ancient art of storytelling but with the additional use of images and sound, and is often used as part of a collaborative, interactive project. In this class you will be introduced to interesting narratives written mainly by well known English/American writers. The main purpose of this class is to put an additional focus on your reading skills’ development and vocabulary expansion. You will also practice your writing skills by keeping a narrative or personal journal where you will comment both on the stories you have read and your personal experiences. Additionally, you will have a chance to share your stories with the class. Movies In this class students will be introduced to different movie genres including documentary, animation and feature film, with the view to writing both informative and evaluative critiques for both student and outside publications. You will watch movies, but also take notes during them, discuss their content and style in class and work on your vocabulary development as well as speaking and writing skills enhancement. Some reviews may be chosen for publication in student media. Public Speaking Class This course is designed to equip the advanced student with the necessary skills and confidence to deliver professional and articulate speeches in English. In this course, you will deliver informative, persuasive, panel, training, and commemorative presentations to prepare you for the wide range of delivery styles you may encounter in your college study. The individualized feedback from your self-analysis, instructor, and peers will provide you with ample opportunity to improve your delivery style throughout the course of the semester. ENGLISH FOR PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES Under English for Professional Purposes, we offer the following courses: Advanced Foreign Service Program (AFSP) officers receive an eight-week intensive English for Diplomacy to boost their proficiency levels and then sustained support throughout the academic portion of the AFSP program. Students are placed into intermediate, high-intermediate, and advanced levels based on the results of the placement testing. The intermediate level follows a skill-focused, content-based curriculum designed to build students’ vocabulary and skills, and organized thematically around international economics, international relations, and international politics, law and organizations. In the high-intermediate course, students apply language skills to real-world activities such researching topics, reading and writing job-related documents, and the development of oral proficiency for public speaking, debate, and negotiation. The advanced level course mirrors real world activities directly relevant to each student’s professional role. This level is centered around a simulated negotiation of a topic of interest to the students in the course. Public Speaking This course is designed to equip the advanced student with the necessary skills and confidence to deliver professional and articulate speeches in English. In this course, you will deliver informative, persuasive, panel, training, and commemorative presentations to prepare you for the wide range of delivery styles you may encounter in your professional career. The individualized feedback from your self-analysis, instructor, and peers will provide you with ample opportunity to improve your delivery style throughout the course of the semester. Professional Communication 1 This course is designed to hone your communication skills to help you be successful in the English-speaking professional world. The course will introduce the rhetorical conventions of contemporary English discourse. Students will have the opportunity to revise work in order to produce well-articulated professional products such as business letters, and proposals. Students will participate in classroom activities that require analysis and critical thinking through group collaboration, informal presentations, and intercultural communication strategies. The aim of the course is to help students become better writers, thinkers, and communicators in the business world. Professional Communication 2 This course is designed to expand and fine-tune your communication skills to help you succeed in the English-speaking professional world. Building upon the skills and knowledge gained in Professional Communication 1, students will have the opportunity to produce well-articulated professional products such as cover letters, resumes, and summaries. Additionally, students will focus on the language necessary in real-life situations such as job interviews or negotiations. Students will participate in classroom activities that require analysis and critical thinking through group collaboration, informal presentations, and intercultural communication strategies. The aim of the course is to help students become better writers, thinkers, and communicators in the business world.
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