Intensive English Seminar2012 December Report
Gregory Sholdt
School of Languages and Communication
Email: gsholdt@people.kobe-u.ac.jp
Curriculum:
As this was the first time for me to conduct this specific seminar, I made several adjustments tothe original curriculum that I prepared as the seminar progressed. I focused primarily on presentation
skills and strategies for medical presenters using English as a foreign language, but I incorporated
other activities and assignments that related to general communication skills as well as medical English
topics. Based on my discussion with students, I incorporated topics related to specific health issues
they expected to encounter in their host country, strategies for self-study of English before departureand while abroad, and general preparation and considerations for working and studying abroad.
Activities:
During the seminar, I used small group activities to ensure that students were given the maximum
time to practice speaking. This allowed me to stagger the activity stages to allow the latecomers tostart from the beginning. Most of the activities centered on speaking and giving presentations, butthere was some discussion and pronunciation practice also.
Homework:
There were only two opportunities to give homework assignments, and I tried to keep the timerequirements to a minimum considering the extra-curricular nature of this seminar. Some of thestudents were able to put a fair amount of effort in the presentations that they prepared.
Student Participation:
There was a core group of five or six students who attended all three sessions and a few that only
came once. They were all attentive and worked diligently on the activities I prepared. Time spent on
homework varied but they were all able to join in the presentation practice, even if minimally prepared.
They seemed very interested in discussion of specific health issues they would encounter, preparing
for their experience abroad, and strategies for building their English through self-study.
Recommendations:
1. Extend the length of the seminar in order to provide more opportunities to do homework.
2. Communicate with doctors and personnel in host countries to identify English language needs.
3. Follow up on students that are first to go abroad to identify language issues and needs.
4. Focus future seminar instruction on developing skills, strategies, and knowledge for: EFL
presentations, pronunciation, self-study, building vocabulary, and working/studying/living abroad.
5. Students should focus on language they expect to need in their unique settings. This should centeron health issues they will need to discuss in English, specific expressions for communicating withdoctors, patients, and staff, and practice listening to local accents.
Instructor’s Perspective:
This was an interesting seminar to prepare, and I thoroughly enjoyed working with the students
that participated. It was a little tricky to manage the inconsistent attendance, and I had to makeadjustments as best I could as I learned more about the students’ needs. I think the programs they are
joining will be extremely valuable in terms of their professional development and also their English
skills. With proper preparation, they should be able to maximize the value of this very uniqueexperience. If it would be helpful, I would be very happy to get further involved and help prepare athorough curriculum for future cycles of this seminar. Please do not hesitate to contact me with anyquestions.