Academic English Discussion in Life Sciences
| Numbering Code | G-BIO21 65006 LE68 | Year/Term | 2022 ・ Intensive, First semester | |
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| Number of Credits | 1 | Course Type | Lecture | |
| Target Year | Doctoral students | Target Student | ||
| Language | English | Day/Period |
Intensive 13:15-15:15 on Fridays |
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| Instructor name | CARLTON, Peter (Graduate School of Biostudies Associate Professor) | |||
| Outline and Purpose of the Course | The ability to communicate in English is an essential skill that all scientists need to continuously practice. The main goal of this course is to provide you with the necessary tools and practice in giving effective presentations, engaging in active discussions, and thinking critically about science in English. | |||
| Course Goals |
Students will learn how to construct and deliver a basic 15-20 minute scientific presentation in English, on their own research as well as on papers in their field. Students will learn how to ask and answer questions concisely. As needed, points of English grammar and pronunciation will be reviewed. |
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| Schedule and Contents |
There will be 8 classes altogether, for 1 credit. The 8 classes are broken down as follows: [Class 1] The first class will focus on the basic structure of a presentation with tips on how to introduce your study, explain your data clearly and concisely, and field questions from the audience. Listeners will practice giving comments and asking questions to speakers. [Classes 2-4] Each student will present a selected research paper and discuss the significance of the study’s key findings for 20 minutes followed by Q&A from audience members for 5 minutes. The speaker will evaluate his/her own performance, and listeners will also provide the presenter with constructive feedback. [Classes 5-6] Students will give 20-minute presentations about their own research projects, followed by Q&A for 5 minutes. Again, peer and self-evaluations will be made. [Classes 7-8] The final presentation will be about the same research projects (given in classes 4-5) but with significant changes made based on the peer evaluation and teacher comments they received after their first try. The reason for doing this is to allow students the chance to reflect on strengths and areas of improvement of their original presentation in order to make appropriate modifications for improvement. In all classes, at least one question and/or comment from each listener is *required*. |
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| Evaluation Methods and Policy |
You will be evaluated on the basis of your performance and improvement of both your *presentation* and *questioning* skills. Each student must ask at least one question at each presentation - either during the presentation or at the end. |
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| Course Requirements | None | |||
| Study outside of Class (preparation and review) | Students will need to spend time reading research papers and summarizing their own research contents in advance of their presentations. | |||
| Textbooks | Textbooks/References | None | ||
| References, etc. |
None |
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