ST. AUGUSTINE UNIVERSITY OF TANZANIA
COURSE OUTLINE
LG 102: BASIC ENGLISH LANGUAGE COURSE
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The course is designed to raise English language competence and proficiency among students in both academic and professional communication. It aims at raising these skills through reduction of language problems and imparting necessary mastery of English Grammar. The course will take a practical approach; regular exercises will be used as a teaching method. Students will also make presentations on certain parts of the course.
COURSE OBJECTIVE
The general objective of this course is to raise students’ proficiency in English language skills so that they can handle their academic work better and improve their oral and written communication.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of this course the student should be able to:
Identify parts of a sentence.
Construct and analyse sentences of different patterns.
Identify and use coordinators and subordinators correctly in sentences.
Correct faulty sentence structures.
Demonstrate effective use of the dictionary.
Demonstrate skills in punctuation and proper spelling.
COURSE CONTENT
Module 1: Sentence structures
The use of Articles
Parts of a sentence
Basic sentence patterns
Types of sentences
Coordination and subordination
Conditional sentences
Direct and indirect speech
Module 2: Faulty sentence structures
Misplaced modifiers
Daggling modifiers
Sentence fragments
Run-on sentences
Parallelism
Module 3: Dictionary use
Varying use of the dictionary
Dictionary as a grammar reference source
Module 4: Writing skills
Developing skills in spelling
Punctuation
Developing academic essays
Course evaluation
Course work which includes quizzes, assignments, and tests, will constitute 40%.
The remaining 60% comes from the final examination.
BASIC READINGS
Ebest, S. B. et.al. (2000). Writing from A – Z. California: Mayfield Publishing co.
Eisenberg, N. & Wiener, H. (2001). The Questioning Reader. New York: Longman.
Forlini, G. (1987). Grammar and Composition (3rd ed). New York: Prentice Hall.
Hildebrandt, H.W. & Murphy, H.A. (1988). Effective Business Communication. (5th ed) New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company.
Lark R.B. (1982). Effective English for Business Communication. Toronto: Gage Publishing.
Langan, J. (2006). English skills (8th ed). Boston: McGraw-Hill Book Company.
Leech, G. & Starvik, J. (2001). A Communicative Grammar of English. London: Longman.
Muchiri, M. (1992). Communication Skills for Colleges and Universities. Nairobi: Longman.
Mutua, R.W, Omulande, S.J & Otiende, J.E. (1990). Study and Communication Skills. Nairobi: Macmillan.
Ross, S.R. (1974). Speech Communication: Fundamentals and Practice (3rd Ed). New Jersey: Prentice Hall Inc.
Saleemi, N.A. (2003). Business English. Nairobi: N.A Saleemi Publication.
Simmons, W.H. (1986). Persuasion: Understanding, Practice and Analysis (2nd ed). New York: Graw Hill Inc.
Shiach, D. (2002). Basic Written English. London: John Murray Publishers.
Wren P.C. & Martin, H. (2006). High School Grammar and Composition. India: S. Chand & Co.
