ITTT Specialized Course

Teaching Business English

BE 001

Unit 1
Course Introduction

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International TEFL and TESOL Training
Where the world is your classroom
 Unit 1 Course Introduction

Teaching Business English

Welcome to the International TEFL and TESOL
Training (ITTT) course in Teaching Business English.
This Introductory unit aims to give you an overview of
the company, the course and the possibilities you will
have on completion of it.

International TEFL and TESOL Training (ITTT) is one of

the most successful providers of onsite and online
TEFL training in the world.

It is our mission to train teachers to a high standard of

knowledge and awareness.

We believe that we are at the forefront of TEFL

teacher training and endeavor to be ahead of the
market in all aspects of our courses.

There are many Business English courses available

on the market; you may well have researched them
already. If so, you will have seen that most of these
courses approach the subject in the same way. This is
not unusual, as many businesses develop through
imitation of successful products, adding their own
individual touches here and there.

International TEFL and TESOL Training course aims to

be different. We feel that our courses and the
material within them should challenge and question
the norms of thinking.

We aim to develop critical and analytical thinkers,

who will decide on their methodologies after careful
consideration of a range of theories.

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Course Content
Unit 1: Course introduction

n Course content
n How the course works
n Aims and objectives
n General terminology
n Business English overview
n ESP
n Prospects
n Task sheet unit 1

Unit 2: Teaching and learning

n Teachers
n Learners
n Teaching adults
n Teaching groups and individuals
n Reading, writing, speaking and listening
n Teaching methods overview
n Task sheet unit 2

Unit 3: Course development

n First meetings
n Needs analysis
n Syllabus design
n End of course assessment of students
n Examinations
n Course evaluation
n Task sheet unit 3

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Course Content
Unit 4: Materials

n Authentic and non-authentic materials

n Designing non-authentic materials
n Lesson planning
n Sample and blank lesson plans
n Book resources
n Using the internet
n Materials webliography
n Task sheet unit 4

Unit 5: Teaching themes

n Case studies
n Frameworking
n Problem based learning
n Games
n CALL
n Speech-Act theory
n Putting it all together
n Task sheet unit 5

Unit 6: Business English world

n Business English etiquette

n Seeking employment and job site webliography
n CV/Resume
n Examinations for teachers
n Organizations and associations
n Supplement
n Task sheet unit 6

Summative task

n Short essay-writing task, 500 to 1000 words

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

How the course works

The course has been designed to allow for maximum
flexibility. You can work at a pace that suits you, as
long as you complete the course within six months of
receiving your login details. The time remaining will
always be displayed at the top of each page.

In order to get the maximum benefit from the course

we recommend working on one unit per day. This will
allow you to complete the course in under a week and
will also give you time to understand and digest the
lesson fully before continuing. However, if you wish to
work through the course more quickly, or slowly, the
choice is yours.

Our online courses are designed to be as user-friendly

as possible. To move comfortably through the course,
simply follow these straightforward steps for each
unit:

1 feel
Work through the materials for the first unit until you
you have fully absorbed all the information
provided.

2subjects
Once you are ready you should then consolidate the
covered in the unit by completing the end-of-
unit task sheet. Please note that this could involve
guided research.

3the
After completing the task sheet you should click on
‘test’ tab in the red bar at the top of your control
panel which will take you to the multiple choice
assessment for the unit.

4 questions
When you are happy that you have answered all the
to the best of your ability, simply click on
the ‘submit’ button at the bottom of the test which will
take you to your results page.

5next
After completing the test you can then move on to the
unit.

Click on the ‘instructions’ tab in the red bar at the top

of the online course control panel for more details.

After successfully completing the course, you will

receive your Certificate in Teaching Business English
in the mail.

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Online course tutors

If you have chosen the tutored version of the course,
you will be able to contact a tutor by hovering over the
‘contact’ tab in the red bar at the top of your control
panel, then selecting 'contact a tutor'):

Your tutor will be available to help you with any

questions you have regarding the course content for
the duration of your studies.

For both the tutored and non-tutored version of the

course, you can contact us with questions regarding
administration or technical support issues by sending
a message via the 'contact' tab.

All online tutors are experienced teacher trainers and

English teachers and communicate with each other
regularly to discuss the progress of their course
participants.

If you are doing the course without a tutor and at any

stage you would like to switch to a course with tutor
support, please send us a request via the ‘contact’
tab in the control panel and we will make the
necessary arrangements.

Please note that this is a course in the teaching of

business English rather than the language used in
business. We assume that all course participants are
fluent speakers of English, so shouldn't need any
assistance with business English language and are
able to do the necessary research if unsure.

Online tutors are therefore available to offer advice

on the course contents rather than explain business
English terminology.

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Aims and objectives

Target group

This course is designed for practicing or intending

teachers of English.

It is assumed that participants will have completed

either an online TEFL certificate or an onsite TEFL
course, and that they intend to be able to specialize in
the area of Business English teaching now or in the
future.

Participants are not expected to have any formal

business training, as this course is designed to
develop the skills needed to teach English in a
business environment.

Aim

To give participants the opportunity to study ideas and

methodologies relating to the teaching of Business
English in an EFL setting.

Objectives

On completion of the course participants should be

able to:

n Discuss using standard industry terminology the

role of Business English teaching
n Have an understanding of the general role of a
Business English teacher in a variety of settings
n Create a teaching syllabus based on evidential
assessment of clients needs
n Have realistic ideas for individual lessons and how
to deliver them to a range of target groups
n Be aware of how to find or create material for their
teaching
n Be able to create and apply assessment procedures
pre-course, on-course and post course
n Be aware of the opportunities available for further
professional development

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

General terminology
As an introduction to the world of Business English it is
useful to look at some of the terminology you will come
across throughout this course and in the world of
teaching English as a foreign language in general.

BESIG IATEFL's Business English Special Interest

Group

Cambridge
BEC 'Cambridge Business English Certificate'
Exam suite

CertTEB Cer tificate in Teaching English for

Business

CTBE Certificate in Teaching Business English

DipBPE Diploma in Business and Professional

English Language Teaching

EAP English for Academic Purposes (usually

overseas university entrance)

ELT English Language Teaching (generic term)

EOP English for Occupational Purposes

ESP Teaching of English for Specific Purposes

FTBE Foundation certificate for Teachers of

Business English
Fur ther cer tificate for Teachers of
Business English

IATEFL International Association of Teachers of

English as a Foreign Language

IATEFL SIG Special interest groups within IATEFL

LCCI London Chamber of Commerce and

Industry examinations

TEFL Teaching of English as a Foreign Language

TESOL Teaching of English to Speakers of Other

Languages

TEYL Teaching of English to Young Learners

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 Unit 1 Course Introduction

General business English

English is the modern language of business. As
markets have become global, businesses at all levels
have had to adapt and train their staff in English
usage, both written and spoken.

This course is designed to give an overview of the

methodologies and techniques that can be applied to
a whole range of business applications.

You do not need to be a specialist in any particular

business field to be able to teach English for business,
though a working knowledge of general business
terminology will obviously be beneficial.

Most of the language of any business interaction is the

same as any normal interaction, for example, agreeing
and disagreeing, making arrangements, writing letters
and reports and so on, though it may be more formal.

This area of English teaching is currently undergoing

rapid growth and teachers with a qualification or
experience will have a wider and possibly more
lucrative range of employment prospects.

Where and how your teaching takes place will be

studied in greater depth later in the course but it is
worth mentioning at this stage that there will be a
wealth of knowledge and expertise brought by your
clients to the classroom and you should be prepared to
use this material whenever possible to make your
teaching as practical and relevant as possible.

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

ESP: Teaching of English

for Specific Purposes
This term encompasses a whole range of specific
areas of English teaching usually with some academic
or vocational purpose in mind.

Some examples are:

n Medical English for medical personnel

n English for banking and finance
n English for academic purposes (usually university
entrance examinations)
n English for Law
n English for engineering practices
n English for science and technology

This is a continually evolving market, which is keeping

pace with new technologies. Basically any specific
vocation you think of can have an associated course
designed and delivered for it.

As an ESP teacher you do not have to have any specific

training in the area in which you are teaching English;
bear in mind that your students/clients will already
know about their own area of expertise. You are there
to give them the skills to use this knowledge through
the medium of the English language.

Some specialist words will be needed in your lessons

and these can usually be found in the text book
glossary.

After some experience in this field of teaching (though

experience is not absolutely necessary) you may wish
to consider your professional development through
further study and examinations. Details of such
examinations can be found in unit six of this course.

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Prospects
Employment prospects for TEFL teachers are
extremely good. If you have studied in an additional
field such as Business English your prospects are
enhanced.

You will be able to find employment opportunities all

around the globe and can live a relatively comfortable
lifestyle in most countries. The types of teaching
positions you will find, along with the working
conditions and salaries will vary country by country,
but below are some typical outlines of what you could
expect.

Teaching private clients or 'one to one'

This forms a very large part of the market and your

clients may vary from a one-man business to the chief
executive of a multi-national corporation.

This method of teaching may take place through either

of the venues on the next page or you may be
'freelance'.

Salaries will be dependent to some extent on the local

or national economy. You may expect more than
$2000 per month in the UAE but less than $1000 per
month in a country such as Thailand. Far and Middle
Eastern states offer relatively higher salaries but can
often have more stringent working conditions and
practices.

Working hours are another area where there can be a

great variation. As a freelance teacher you can
obviously choose how much or how little you need to
do. Working for a company you may have as little as 18
contact hours, or as many as 35 contact hours per
week.

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Teaching in a language center or language school

The center offers language courses including

Business English to the general population. Your
groups of clients may be from different businesses in
the area or a larger corporation may send a group of
their employees to study together.

Teaching at a company or 'in house'

Many organizations offer (and may demand) their

employees have English training at the company site.

Your client groups may therefore be from one

department or a range of departments at a particular
management level.

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Task sheet
Check your knowledge before attempting the unit test.

Please note that this task sheet is solely for checking

that you have understood the course unit content. You
do not need to submit this task sheet – just use it to
check you have understood the major points.

Note: not all the information needed for the answers can be found in the unit, so you may need to do further research from
other sources.

Task 1 – Within this course, where would you find the following information?

a. Writing a lesson plan

b. Using computers in your teaching

c. A suitable gift for your boss

d. The meaning of the term "facilitate”

e. How to construct a 'needs analysis'

Task 2 – Give three examples of ESP areas in addition to those on page 9.

(I)

(ii)

(iii)

Task 3 – What is the minimum time needed to complete the online version of this course?

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Unit 1 Course Introduction

Check your knowledge before attempting the unit test.

Please note that this task sheet is solely for checking

that you have understood the course unit content. You
do not need to submit this task sheet – just use it to
check you have understood the major points.

Task 4 – What is the difference (if any) between TEFL, TESL and TESOL?

Task 5 – In which business English setting would you prefer to teach, and why?
Give as much detail as possible.

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