DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH AND COMPARATIVE LITERATURE

COLLEGE OF ARTS AND LETTERS

UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES

COURSE NUMBER               ENGLISH 30

COURSE TITLE                     English for the Professions

COURSE DESCRIPTION      Principles and uses of effective communication in English in the different professions

CREDIT                                  3.0 units

COURSE OBJECTIVES

• To understand and apply the principles of effective communication in English in the different professions, which allows for the integration of knowledge and skills
• To understand and apply the genre approach to effective communication in the different professions, which leads to an awareness of the conventions that form the discourse of various disciplines
• To demonstrate critical skills in the evaluation, and revision of materials taken from the different professions
• T o demonstrate an awareness of the dynamics of communication in the Philippine workplace

COURSE OUTLINE

I.          Principles of writing

A.     Qualities of effective writing (unity, order, conciseness, cohesion, emphasis, grammatical accuracy)

B.     Communication models

C.     Purposes for writing (informative; positive/good news;  negative/ critical/sensitive/confidential;  persuasive)

II.         English in the Professions: an analysis and evaluation of the language and format of specimen writings in the different professions

A.     Science and Technology

B.     Social Sciences

C.     Business

D.     Law and Diplomacy

E.      Medicine

F.      Media

G.     Arts

III.       Forms of written and spoken communication in the different professions

            (choices from the following to be determined by the class and the teacher)

A.     Pre-professional transaction (application letters, resumes, cover letters, telephone follow ups, interviews)

B.     Office correspondence (meetings, minutes, memoranda, office forms)

C.     Business letters (inquiry, complaint, sales of products/services/ ideas/systems, etc.)

D.     Reports (scientific, technical, field reports; business reports, feasibility studies, [business] case studies, market studies, marketing plans, proposals, annual reports)

E.      Legal documents and briefs

F.      Medical reports and (medical) case studies

IV.       Enhancements in communication

G.     Visual aids (graphs, tables, charts, etc.)

H.     Strategic and cultural designs (in oral vs. written reporting, suggesting, criticizing, etc.)

I.        Language elaboration, refinement, and control

Requirements

• written exercises on selected forms listed under III        
• documented report (using statistics, graphs, field work, etc.)
• critique of specimen writings
• oral reports
• participation in class and group discussions and activities

REFERENCES

Andrews, Deborah C. and William D. Andrews. BUSINESS COMMUNICATION.  2^nd ed.  New York:  Macmillan.

Fein, Richard.  COVER LETTERS!  COVER LETTERS!  COVER LETTERS!        Singapore: S.S. Mubaruk and Brothers.

Jornacion, G.  PHILIPPINE-BASED MATHEMATICAL GENRE.  1995.

Journet and Kling.  READINGS FOR TECHNICAL WRITERS II.  1984.

Littlejohn, Andrew.  COMPANY TO COMPANY:  A NEW APPROACH TO        BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE IN ENGLISH.  2^nd ed.  Great Britain: Cambridge University.

Martin, Ian.  AN INVITATION TO ESP.  Singapore: RELC, 1992.

Rozakis, Laurie.  MERRIAMWEBSTER'S RULES OF ORDER.  Springfield, Massachusetts: Merriam-Webster, 1994.

Training Manuals of Selected Consultancy Groups and Consultants (Tomas Andres; J. Walter Thompson; John Clements; ISO Manuals).

Vik, Gretchen, et al.  BUSINESS COMMUNICATION.  Illinois: Irwin, 1994.