English B1 part 1

This is one of several courses in English offered each year at different levels, depending on the precise needs of the students who enroll each year.

The objective of these courses is to improve all the language skills, enabling students to reach a high level in general English. The level required in the Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society for a Bachelor’s degree is B2+ (as described in the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for language learning); for students of Italian literature in the Institute of Italian Studies (ISI), the level required is B2.

Students should enroll through Qualtrics in the level they feel suits them best. During the first week of class, all students will be required to take a placement test to ensure that they are enrolled at the appropriate level. Students who can present a recent Cambridge certificate at the right level do not need to follow this course or take the exam. For B2, the certificate must be at least a First pass or IELTS 5.5 (160 on the Cambridge scale); for B2+ a grade B in First is required, or IELTS 6.5 (173 on the Cambridge scale). Other kinds of certificates are not accepted for this purpose. Certificates may not be more than three years old.

Students are divided into groups by level, and are expected to follow the course to which they are assigned. Access to the exam is permitted only to students who have at least 80% attendance in class in the semester prior to the exam session. 

The objective of these courses is to improve all the language skills, enabling students to reach a high level in general English.

In presence

Class time is devoted to systematic practice of listening, reading, speaking and writing, and to developing grammatical accuracy and range of vocabulary.
 
A coursebook is chosen for each level within the first two weeks of each course and will be announced through the iCorsi platform. Lessons consist of training and practice of all language skills in the ways considered most useful for each specific level. It will be necessary to buy the course book for the group assigned, which will be announced by the end of the second week of classes.

The first-year examination is broadly based on Cambridge First, with a written paper consisting of Use of English, Reading, Writing and Listening, followed by an oral exam. 

The exam is open to students who have, in the semester preceding the session in question, met the 80% attendance requirement in the class to which they were assigned.

Students may only take the oral exam if they reach the required level in the written paper. The oral exam must be passed separately at the same level, and if a student fails the oral exam, the whole exam (including the written paper) has to be retaken.