ENGLISH FOR BUSINESS 1 (ENGL 201)

OVERVIEW

1. COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course not only hones students’ business English abilities, but it also enables students to develop the vital soft skills necessary for communicating successfully in the workplace as young professionals and beyond. Throughout the course, students will engage in controlled activities within the classroom designed to develop their soft skills, such as improv, role-play, spontaneous and planned presentations, and character evaluations. Students who complete the course will also create a practical portfolio of professional communications collateral and participate in a project designed to introduce them to working professionals and communications realities at companies of their choice.

2. REASON FOR THE COURSE

You can have all the technical skills in the world, but if you cannot communicate effectively, you will not be able to succeed well in the workplace. Although powerful augmenting tools like AI and ChatGPT, etc, exist today, business professionals must still know how and when to wield them and be prepared to take responsibility for their ethicality, accuracy, and appropriateness. Communicating effectively in business also includes behavioral competencies, such as listening, body language, customer service skills, emotional intelligence, persuasion, confidence, aptability, resilience, and creativity. By taking this course, students will develop these vital soft skills, knowing why and how and being able to behave, interact, and communicate effectively and with confidence as young professionals entering the workforce.

3. STUDY HOURS

4. ROLE IN CURRICULUM

Prerequisites:
Students must have successfully completed English for Academic Purposes 1 or 1P.

SKILLS

  • LEARNING OUTCOMES
  • ASSESSMENT AND GRADING
  • TEACHING METHODS
  • STUDY PLAN
  • TEXTBOOKS AND REFERENCES

5. COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES (CLO)

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

Knowledge Level of
Learning		 Related PLO
Articulate Effective Vocabulary & Terminology (CK1)
Articulate effective vocabulary and terminology used in formal business settings. 		 Apply PK1
Cognitive Skills Level of
Learning		 Related PLO
Create Business Communications Collateral (CC1)
Create professional business communications collateral in English, including a professional resume and LinkedIn profile.		 Create PC1
Communication, Information Technology, and Numerical Skills Level of
Learning		 Related PLO
Demonstrate Professional Spoken English (CCIT1)
Demonstrate spoken English in professional settings, such as customer service situations, interviews, and networking.		 Apply CCIT3
Interpersonal Skills and Responsibilities Level of
Learning		 Related PLO
Confident Collaboration & Management (CIP1)
Collaborate with teams and executives with confidence and manage projects productively.		 Organize PIP1

6. ASSESSMENT AND GRADING

Grades will be determined based on a grading score, calculated using the following assessments and score allocations:

SKILL Assessment Skill Weighting for Grade
Participation Portfolio Controlled Activities Presentations Final Project
Articulate Effective Vocabulary & Terminology (CK1) 50%     50%   25%
Create Business Communications Collateral (CC1)   100%       25%
Demonstrate Professional Spoken English (CCIT1)     20%   80% 25%
Confident Collaboration & Management (CIP1)     80%   20% 25%

 

7. TEACHING METHODS

The course primarily uses demonstrations, role-play, case studies, group discussions and problem solving, presentations, questions, workshops, and improvisation. The class is frequently turned into a dynamic, interactive, safe-space for learning and growing together as students spend time exploring, practicing, role-playing/enacting scenarios and subsequently, enhancing their soft skills and behavioral competencies for business communications. Students will also spend time in class workshopping communications collateral and examining real life situations and scenarios.  In place of tests and exams, students will create a portfolio of communications collateral and produce a final project demonstrating what they have learnt: 

Portfolio   
Work Group: Groups of 4
Output Format  Suite of Business Collateral
Language: English
Assignment: Students will individually prepare a suite of business documents which they can use immediately or over the coming months. As a group, students will review and workshop each other’s documents to provide suggestions for improvement or quality control. The portfolio will include a resume, a LinkedIn profile, business cards, and professional correspondence – elements of which will also be incorporated into class role play scenarios/activities as well as the controlled activities.  Students may receive extra credit on the assignment up to 5 points for preparing and including a flawless cover letter applying to a real job. Scoring will be according to the Assignment Rubric.
Final Project:  

 That Sweet Work Life

Work Group: 

Groups of ~6-8
Output format:

 Interview, Video, & Self-Evaluation
Language: English
Assignment: Working as a group, students will research and develop questions and conduct an Informational Interview with a working professional (Excluding Cam-Ed staff or faculty). They will then design and create a video together wherein they demonstrate lessons learned in the video as well as additional points learned, selecting their topic from a list provided. Finally, students will individually complete a self-evaluation analyzing their group dynamics, behavior, experiences, and what they learned in the process. Scoring will be according to the Assignment Rubric. 

8. STUDY PLAN

The course targets the 20 lessons in the study plan below. Each lesson is 1.5 class hours each; there are a total of 30 class hours.  The study plan below describes the learning outcome for each lesson; described in terms of what the student should be able to do at the end of the lesson.  Readings should be done by students as preparation before the start of each class.  Implementation of this study plan may vary somewhat depending on the progress and needs of the students. 

 No Lesson Learning Outcomes Teaching (T), and Assessment (A) Methods
 1

Course Introduction: Understanding yourself & finding your professional voice

  1. Distinguish between personal and professional communications for Business (CK1)
 Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
2

Passion, Persuasion, & Public Speaking

  1. Understand elements necessary for effective presentations (CC1)
  2. Articulate ideas with confidence and passion (CC1)
 Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
3

Tools for understanding yourself – In the workplace, we expect what?

  1. Demonstrate behaviors, strengths, skills, and areas for personal/professional development (CK1)
 Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
4

Workshop Day

  1. Present a professional image of oneself (CC1)
  2. Compose a strong opening statement/elevator pitch/ biography (CC1)
 Demonstration (T) Controlled Activity (A)
5

Elevating your voice with ICT – LinkedIn, AI technology

  1. Assess what ICT to use and in what instances/Critique proper use of AI (CK1)
  2. Build their professional brand with ICT (CC1)
 Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
6

Body Language, Confidence, and BSing – how do we talk about ourselves or our interests effectively?

  1. Portray themselves appropriately in interactions with other professionals (CCIT1)
  2. Create effective stories/narratives for professional encounters (CC1)
 Demonstration (T) Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
7

Creating Effective Customer Service 

  1. Understand how to respond to people in various scenarios, in person or remote (CK1)
  2. Demonstrate flexibility and empathy in conversations (CCIT1)
 Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
8

Workshop Day

  1. Perform customer service interactions professionally (CCIT1)
 Demonstration (T) Controlled Activity (A)
9

Customer Service Language

  1. Explore the context of an interaction with someone outside their normal experiences (CK1)
  2. Demonstrate adaptability, customer service, and intercultural communication (CCIT1)
 Demonstration (T) Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
10

Presenting yourselves with power while building trust

  1. Network like a pro (CCIT1)
 Demonstration (T) Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
11

Grounding yourself – while letting your imagination soar

  1. Reimagine how they see themselves and their accomplishments/interests/experiences (CC1)
  2. Apply creative thinking to articulate a more powerful narrative about themselves or a topic (CC1)
 Demonstration (T) Activity (T, A)
12

Workshop Day

  1. Perform professionally in networking or business encounters (CCIT1)
  2. Design a compelling professional profile for CV/bios/LinkedIn (CC1)
 Demonstration (T) Controlled Activity (A)
13

Types of interviews/conversations

  1. Determine how to open and maintain a conversation with purpose (CK1)
  2. Create meaningful questions for interviews and conversations (CC1)
 Discussion (T, A) Demonstration (T) Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
14

Learning to listen and receive/respond appropriately

  1. Apply listening and empathy techniques (CCIT1)
  2. Demonstrate positive customer service and emotional intelligence skills (CCIT1)
 Discussion (T, A) Demonstration (T) Kahoot (T, A) Activity (T, A)
15

Different kinds of presentations

  1. Differentiate between presentation styles and techniques (CK1)
  2. Design professional presentation formats/scripts (CC1)
 Demonstration (T) Discussion (T, A) Activity (T, A)
16

Workshop Day

  1. Roleplay business interviews/conversations (CC1)
  2. Produce dynamic presentations for business (CIP1)
 Demonstration (T) Controlled Activity (A)
17

Corresponding with the experts

  1. Interview and converse with working professionals digitally and in-person for business purposes (CIP1)
  2. Follow up on conversations appropriately (CC1)
 Discussion (T) Demonstration (T) Activity (T, A)
18

Applying for the job

  1. Create excellent resumes (CC1)
 Discussion (T) Demonstration (T) Activity (T, A)
19

Interviewing for the job

  1. Demonstrate professionalism in job interview scenarios
 Discussion (T, A) Activity (T, A)
20

Student Showcase

  1. Produce a product that showcases the skills they have developed (CC1, CCIT1, CIP1)
 Discussion (T) Presentations / Controlled Activity (A)
Total Hours: 30

9. TEXTBOOKS AND REFERENCES

Textbook

There is no specific textbook for this class, but students may reference the materials
below and handouts from class

References

  1. PEARSON, Business Communication Today, Courtland L. Bovée and John V. Thill, Fourteenth Edition Global Edition. CamEd Resumes, Cover Letters, and Interview Tips Handbook (2024 Edition)
  2. CamEd Resumes, Cover Letters, and Interview Tips Handbook (2024 Edition)
  3. Macmillan Education 2013, The Business B2 Upper Intermediate, Frances Watkins and Paul Emmerson with Mike Sayer, First edition published 2008.
  4. Macmillan Education 2013, The Business C1 Advanced, John Allison, Rachel Appleby and Edward de Chazal, First edition published 2013.

Education Resources