MODULE OVERVIEW
Class Hours: 9H
Out-of-class activities: 13,5H
Total time: 22,5H
SCENARIO:
The product is ready to be manufactured and now you work with the Marketing department to sell the product. You’ll have to deal with the following:
● Presenting engineering products & services (e.g. with retailers, internet traders like Amazon, etc.)
● Attending a meeting to sell company’s technical products: Promoting engineering products & services
● Customer service & Maintenance service for customers (e.g. online, face to face, on the phone; guarantee)
GENRES:
● face-to face conversations in debating, discussing, exchanging opinions
● meetings: arranging the meeting/event/procedure/assessing clients needs, planning the process
● leaflets: advertising service and products, blogs, articles, manuals
● in-house memos
● tables with selected technical and general information
● elevator pitch: canvas or video recordings
● video presentations: advertising a product, presenting ideas and concepts
● instructions, manuals, technical descriptions
● SWOT analysis
● inquiry: asking relevant questions
Learning objectives for the whole module:
SKILLS:
● Reading: understanding letters, memos, emails, questionnaires, leaflets, manuals, instructions, technical descriptions of a product, blogs, specific and general articles – scanning and skimming techniques
● Listening: short instructional video clips, films explaining the rules of elevator pitch, leaflet design and SWOT analysis, persuasive and advertising language using the concept of Ethos, Pathos, & Logos
● Writing: designing, ordering and creating leaflets, synthesising information in short forms of a leaflet/presentation/memos/instructions, preparing the questions in a questionnaire, summarizing information in bullet points
● Spoken interaction: arranging and attending meeting/presentations, socialising with customers, selling product to potential clients, negotiating ideas regarding the group projects, participating in group brainstorming
● Spoken production: demos, presentations, giving oral instructions, using and distinguishing formal and informal discussion, debating, brainstorming language
LANGUAGE
● Vocabulary: distinguishing and using the various levels of formality and informality of the spoken interaction, persuasive and argumentative phrases, meetings language, leaflets language, using effectively professional vocabulary connected with the field of interest, using effectively and communicatively turn-taking phrases in the spoken production
● Grammar & Discourse: using effectively and properly auxiliary verbs in various types of questions, using passive verb forms in various tenses in products and service descriptions,
● Pronunciation: distinguishing and using persuasive pitches, personal tone, and the proper intonation in questions and sentences
INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE (IC): Awareness of differences across cultures: various ways of politeness in spoken interactions and turn taking phrases, various professional needs regarding specific products or services.
VIRTUAL REALITY: two activities in this module, one at the end of Task 1, another at the end of Task 2.
TASK 1: Elevator pitch
Learning objectives for TASK 1:
SKILLS
READING
– B1 I can understand the most relevant information in informative texts related to my interests and academic field, provided I can reread more difficult sections.
– B1 I can read through longer texts in my field to gather information and opinion from different texts in order to complete a specific task.
– B2. I can understand texts on specialized topics of interest occasionally using a dictionary and other reference sources to check specific vocabulary.
– B2. I can understand the difference between formal (academic articles) and informal (blogs) written language.
– B2. I can skim and scan the text for information.
– B2. I can provide short summaries of a wide range of technical texts, commenting on the main themes and contrasting various points of view.
– B2. I can understand the use of persuasive language.
WRITING
–
– B2. I can structure the content of a presentation.
– B2. I can write texts of presentations on topics related to one’s field of interest in a short and concise way
– B1/B2. I can prepare questionnaires and surveys using correct types of questions.
– B1/B2. I can make notes of a useful spoken language while listening to talks and presentations (B1/B2)
– B2. I can plan, review and check one’s pieces of writing with the help of a dictionary and other reference sources.
LISTENING
– B1. I can understand the main points of a discussion on general topics if the participants use clear standard language.
– B1. I can understand the main points of a discussion on topics related to my field.
– B2. I can follow complex lines of argument, if the topic is reasonably familiar and the speech is clearly organised and presented.
– B2. I can understand the main points of discussions and presentations on the general and academic level when participants use different accents.
– B2. I can use a variety of strategies to achieve comprehension (main points, contextual clues, redundancies).
SPEAKING AND INTERACTION
– B1. I can start, maintain and close simple face-to-face conversation on topics that are familiar or of personal interest.
– B1/B2. I can use effectively grammatical structures and phrases during a discussion, to show agreement or disagreement about what has been said in a polite way.
– B2. I can ask for clarification of information and also to give clarification if necessary.
– B2. I can initiate and take part in a discussion with effective turn-taking.
– B2. I can distinguish between formal and informal spoken language and to use it appropriately during phone conversations.
– B2. I can work in a team exchanging detailed factual information and opinión on matters within my fields or interests.
LANGUAGE
● Vocabulary: word building related to business presentations, phone conversations, persuasive language;
● Grammar and discourse: different types of questions (general/specific; direct/indirect) in questionnaires and phone inquiries; informal/ formal phrases in phone conversations
● Pronunciation: intonation in questions
GENRES:
● ‘elevator pitch’
● discussion
● presentation
● questionnaires
● notes and memos
INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE (IC): Awareness of differences across cultures: various ways of politeness in spoken interactions and turn taking phrases.
TASK 2: Designing and writing a leaflet
Learning objectives for task 2:
SKILLS:
READING:
– B2. I can provide short summaries of a wide range of technical texts, commenting on the main themes and contrasting various points of view.
– B2. I can use the internet texts to get the necessary technical information and explain the main idea of the text related to the specific activity.
– B2. I can analyse the examples of commercials and leaflets in order to find out about the most effective language, content and layout.
– B2. I can find the differences between the language of commercials and leaflets.
– B2. I can understand the use of persuasive language.
– B2. I can skim and scan the text for information.
– B2. I can differentiate between the components of a SWOT analysis.
WRITING:
– B1. I can plan the proper leaflet structure.
– B1. I can write a simple but detailed description of a SWOT process.
– B1/B2. I can transfer the watched and read content into an information table.
– B2. I can transfer and adopt the technical language to the language understood by the common users.
– B2. I can write an in-house memo,
– B2. I can make notes about the given samples, specifically the content of the advert and the leaflet, analyse, select and organise the ideas into the bullet points written format.
LISTENING:
– B1. I can understand the main points of a discussion on general topics if the participants use clear standard language.
– B1. I can understand the main points of a discussion on topics related to my field.
– B2. I can follow complex lines of argument, if the topic is reasonably familiar and the speech is clearly organised and presented.
– B2. I can understand the main points of discussions and presentations on the general and academic level when participants use different accents.
– B2. I can listen for the detailed information regarding the specific language phrases as well as for the specific content regarding: the leaflet preparation, SWOT analysis, as how to structure a memo and comprehend the principles
SPEAKING PRODUCTION:
– B2. I can group and classify brainstorming ideas.
– B2. I can explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.
SPEAKING INTERACTION:
– B1. I can start, maintain and close simple face-to-face conversation on topics that are familiar or of personal interest.
– B1/B2. I can use effectively grammatical structures and phrases during a discussion, to show agreement or disagreement about what has been said in a polite way.
– B2. I can ask for clarification of information and also to give clarification if necessary.
– B2. I can inquire about the solutions.
– B2. I can agree and disagree with the others, compromise about the common solution, negotiate.
– B2. I can effectively collaborate and exchange the ideas to collect the necessary information.
LANGUAGE
● Vocabulary: using the persuasive advertising vocabulary with the technical data, linking the technical information with the potential benefits of the target customers, the specific advertising phrases, descriptive adjective, persuasive verbs
● Grammar & Discourse: the accurate use of personal and impersonal language structures, descriptive adjectives, personal and impersonal passive structures, distinguishing and using the less and more specific technical vocabulary
● Pronunciation: distinguishing and using persuasive pitches, personal tone, and the proper intonation in questions and sentences
GENRES:
● commercials
● leaflets
● talks
● presentations
● articles
● notes
● tables
● memos
● authentic videos
INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE (IC): finding the differences between the needs and requirements of various target audiences
FOLLOW-UP/REFLECTION UPON TASKS TO ACTIVATE LEARNING
Describe activity or materials that can act as reflection or follow-up:
Real Life Task 1: Ss record their own ‘pitches’ and publish them on the Google Disc to be evaluated by the rest of the group or publish them on Padlets and the rest can comment on them.
Real Life Task 2: Ss should also prepare a written project showing how they arrived at the final version of their leaflet encompassing all the steps of the SWOT analysis as a manual of action.