English. Develop your command of the English language with us.

This course is designed for people in the workplace, as well as tertiary-level students who want to increase their writing skills in English at an advanced level.

Following revision of English grammar and sentence structure, the main focus is on developing writing with a range from conversational to educated formal English. Each week we study a range of writing from short email texts to longer administrative communication, including examples from business and public administration. Academic essays are also included in the range, with other examples chosen from journalism and general reading. Weekly written exercises relate to these texts and your own work and study. Your own writing each week and the presenter’s detailed comment on it are among the real advantages of the course. Another major focus is that writing skills gain from reading and conversation – and reading and conversation about it are too often limited in a busy working life.

This course aims to polish your own kind of writing for your own purposes. It builds from grammar and sentence structure to paragraphs and longer pieces of writing that involve higher order thinking for administration, business and study. Vocabulary and style are analysed in relation to voice and rhetoric- and what we mean by voice and rhetoric in writing. Sophisticated punctuation is included as a medium for critical thinking. The focus is on writing that is accurate, clear and flexible – without the flaws of business and academic jargon. We use a key text for that purpose: Martin Cutts, Oxford Guide to Plain English.

Outcomes

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

• write with increased skill in advanced forms of writing that include sophisticated workplace email and complex workplace communication with a range between educated, formal language and conversational language
• communicate in workplace and academic writing with advanced rhetoric and punctuation
• communicate with a range of appropriate vocabulary and style
• write with an improved command of English prose that includes awareness and practice of current English standards about jargon and plain English.

Content

• Advanced introduction to spoken and written English
• Revision of practical grammar
• Building writing with advanced work in sentence structure, punctuation and spelling
• Advanced practice in writing with a focus on paragraphs and argument
• Vocabulary enrichment
• Formal writing for a range of communication, including formal communication for the workplace and online text, and essays for secondary and tertiary courses
• Weekly individual written exercises with detailed reading and discussion by the presenter
• A focus on extending skills through reading texts, and group discussion
• A major focus is that spoken and writing skills improve as a result of a wide range of reading, writing and conversation

Intended audience

Suitable for people who have a standard competence and wish to increase their skills in formal writing and speaking to a more advanced level. It is designed for those in the workforce who want to improve their communication skills, and for university students in undergraduate and postgraduate courses. It is designed to be rewarding for both native speakers and people who come from another language.

Note: If you have only a limited competence in English and only limited English grammar, you should begin with Enhancing Your English Course: Steps Towards Better Writing – Standard, then join this advanced course. Remember that in multicultural Australia, university students and graduates in some courses, and senior administrators and successful business people can need to revise standard English before taking this Advanced course.

Delivery style

Delivered as a combination of lecture and interactive discussion and conversation, including a booklet, examples for discussion, regular written work and reading of selected texts such as newspapers, magazine essays, business writing, academic essays, novels and online resources such as TED.com.

Materials

A course booklet is distributed electronically.

Prescribed text

Martin Cutts, Oxford Guide to Plain English.

Please ensure you have a copy of this classic book for the second session. It is not expensive.