General English

Course Overview

CRICOS Course Code: 097123J

Sydney English House offers General English courses from Beginners to Upper Intermediate levels and each level consists of 12 weeks of study. New students sit for the Placement Test on Mondays and are able to commence their class on Tuesdays.

This General English programme aims to equip students with a firm foundation in English for work or study-related reasons. As such, students taking this programme can expect an active and engaging learning environment that includes the use of authentic materials and resources for improving their listening, reading, speaking and writing skills, grammar and vocabulary.

In this programme, teacher-led instruction is complemented by
in-class activities, end of week tests, mid-course and end-of-course assessments. Students are assessed informally on a fortnightly basis and are also given a formal mid-course assessment in week 6 and a formal end-of-course assessment in week 12. Students need to meet the criteria satisfactorily in order to move on to the next level of study.

General English helps you achieve your goals

■ Reading, writing and listening skills
■ Speaking and fluency skills
■ Knowledge of grammar, vocabulary and idioms
■ Communication and conversation strategies
■ Pronunciation

Excursion

As part of the real-world learning and application of the English language, once a month, students will be given the opportunity to visit places such as the ABC studio, the Australian Museum, “Sculptures by the Beach” and to participate in a “Scavenger Hunt” around Sydney’s CBD. This is to enable them to learn more about the Australian culture and way of life, for them to practice their speaking, listening, reading and writing skills, and to increase their confidence in using the English language. These will not be optional and will be held during class times.

Options

Once a week, teachers will introduce an Options class for two hours as part of the course curriculum. Students will be encouraged to choose and sign up for the option they wish to study. The availability of the Options class encourages the interaction of students from all different levels. These could include grammar, pronunciation or computer-assisted learning among others.