English for Professional Purposes: Presenting in English

(COM 23)

The ability to communicate ideas effectively continually ranks at the top of the list of skills needed by business people, engineers, and other professionals. This series of advanced English courses gives non-native speakers the chance to identify and practice the essential speaking and writing skills needed in professional settings.

Designed for advanced non-native speakers working in professional contexts, this course focuses on the development of clear, effective presentation skills in English, with specific attention to the accurate use of American English sounds, stress, and intonation. Students will present to both small and large groups, learning how best to organize information in order to gain and keep audience attention. Goals are to develop confidence, fluency, and accuracy when presenting in English. Two presentations will be videotaped for analysis and personalized instructor feedback. Students may also complete individual audio recordings for further instructor feedback.

Please note: This is an advanced-level English as a Second Language course.

Phil Hubbard, Director of the English for Foreign Students Program, Stanford Language Center

Phil Hubbard joined the English for Foreign Students staff more than twenty years ago after teaching linguistics and English as a second language at UC San Diego, San Diego State, and Ohio University, and has taught a range of courses in that program including oral presentation and pronunciation. He has been a keynote speaker at nine academic conferences in the US, Asia, and Europe in computer-assisted language learning. He recently published an edited, four-volume set on that topic, Computer Assisted Language Learning: Critical Concepts in Linguistics. Hubbard received a PhD in linguistics from the UC San Diego.