Santa Monica College/ Fall 2006
ESL 28 /Section 2102
T/ Th 12:45-2:05
LA 220
Instructor: Janet Harclerode
Office: ESL 111/ Telephone 310-434-4569
E-mail: harclerode_janet@smc.edu
  Office Hours:  Mondays 8:00-10:00
Tuesdays 2:15-3:15
Wednesdays 2:15-3:45
VOH / Other times by appointment 
Homepage: http://homepage.smc.edu/harclerode_janet

ESL 28: Academic Vocabulary Skills
3 Units

• Prerequisite: None

Course Description: This course is designed for students who wish to develop their techniques for understanding academic vocabulary and using English words idiomatically.  It emphasizes context and usage of academic words from the Academic Word List (Coxhead 1998) or a similar corpus.  Students will learn to comprehend and use approximately 200 new words to improve their reading comprehension, speaking, and writing skills for academic success.

Required Text:
Schmitt & Schmitt, Focus on Vocabulary: Mastering the Academic Word List

Other Required Materials:
Access to a personal computer (home, school, or library) to use web-based support tools and materials.

Course Objectives:

Methods of Presentation:
lectures;
small group cooperative learning activities or paired activities;
computer-assisted instruction;
group presentation;
short film or video sequences
  

Method of Evaluation:
Quizzes (11)                                       50%
Writing assignments & homework     20%
Midterm                                              10%
Final exam                                         20%

Grading:
There will be 11 quizzes, but the lowest score will be dropped, so only 10 quizzes will count.  If you miss a quiz for any reason, that will be the score that is dropped.  Quizzes are worth a total of 500 points; writing assignments and homework will be worth 200 points; the midterm will be worth 100 points, and the final exam will be worth 200 points.  Keep track of your grades in eCompanion.

Homework:
To succeed in this course you will need to complete weekly homework assignments and study for quizzes. 
You will need to be able to access a computer.

Other Important Information:
1) Attend class regularly.  Students who do not attend class or complete assignments tend to fail their courses.
2) Get a buddy.  If you are late or you miss a class or assignment, you may call your buddy to see what you missed.  If you have to miss a class, you can give your assignment to your buddy to turn in for you. 
4) Complete all work when it is due.   If you cannot complete an assignment due to illness, an emergency, or a technical problem, you must contact me as soon as possible.  If you have technical problems with your computer at home, you need to make arrangements to complete your work in a library, computer lab, or at another computer.  Every college student has experienced problems with computers.  The best suggestion I have is to complete everything early in the week, so if you do have technical difficulties, you have time to fix them or visit a friend or library to do your work.
5) Please be considerate of classmates and kind to SMC facilities: turn off cell phones and pagers; do not eat or drink in class (water is ok).

Using e-Companion
All students MUST have an SMC Computing Account to take this course.  If you do not have an SMC computing account, here is how you may get one. 
1. Go to SMC's homepage at http://www.smc.edu
2. Click on the link that says: Technology Resources (in the column on the left hand side of the homepage)
3. Click on the link that says: Request Student Email/Network Account
and fill out the form.  Please note, if you want to have all your e-mail sent to an already existing account, you need to indicate it on this form. 
Your grades will be posted on e-Companion, and classmates' e-mail addresses will be available through e-Companion, which you may access at: http://smconline.org (or by following the links from SMC's homepage=>Technology Resources=>e-Companion.

Tutoring & Other Support Services:
1. Free tutoring is available in the ESL center. Sign up in ESL 106.
2. Students may use computers in the Cayton Center, the library, and Drescher Hall 203 & 204.
3. Academic counselors can be reached in the ISC (434-4217) and in Counseling (434-4210 or 434-4589).
4. Psychological counselors can be reached at 434-4262 or through Student Health.
5. You can find support materials for this course by going to my homepage and clicking on the link in the gridbox that says Support Materials for 28.

Communication with Instructor:
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns, via telephone, in my office hours, or after class.  The best time to meet with me is during office hours (listed at the top of this page).
 

Tentative Schedule*
*Please note: this schedule may change at the instructor's discretion.