Aural-Oral

Behind the somewhat cryptic title of "Aural-Oral" is a module that targets listening comprehension and speaking, two essential skills that students must hone if they want to excel in using English both in professional contexts and in private ones. In this class, students practice their listening comprehension skills by being exposed to either audio or audiovisual materials throughout the semester. These materials can be anything from audiobooks to TV series. Students not only train their ears to adjust to different dialects, wide-ranging registers, and varying speeds of delivery, but they also receive an opportunity to engage in active vocabulary development, something that is key for advanced learners of a foreign language. For the speaking component of the class, students participate in in-class discussions and activities, and they are asked to give an academic presentation on a topic that is determined early in the semester. This lays the foundation for students to become confident and competent public speakers, and it also enables them to bring together many of the skills that are the focus of other Sprachpraxis modules, such as Grammar and Phonetics.