Essential English

Course aim

The course will help you to practice your reading, writing, spelling, speaking and listening skills in English. It will also assist you to move on and develop your English further.

Do I need any particular skills or experience?

• You will need your own personal email address so that you’re able to login to the WEA’s digital learning platform: WEA Canvas. You will need to be able to understand how to follow URL links to pages on the internet. If you want to understand more about Canvas please visit: http://bit.ly/WEAonline
• Before you join the course, you will take an initial assessment so that the tutor can make sure the course is right for you.

By the end of the course I should be able to:

• Take part in a discussion, give opinions clearly and listen, respond appropriately to others contributions.
• Use effective strategies to find the meaning of unknown words.
• Identify the main purpose and ideas in a longer piece of writing.
• Plan and draft a short piece of writing using grammar and punctuation accurately to ensure the meaning is clear with compound sentences and paragraphs as appropriate.
• Spell common and regular words correctly.

How will I be taught?

• The WEA’s digital learning platform, Canvas will be used to provide resources or to support lessons, enable assessment, provide learner feedback and for other activities for individuals away from the course. If you want to understand more about our digital learning platform please visit: http://bit.ly/WEAonline
• The WEA tutor will use a range of different teaching and learning methods and encourage you and the group to be actively involved in your learning
• You will be expected to carry out a range of activities in your own time

What kind of feedback can I expect?

• You will be able to keep a record of your progress and achievement using photos, audio, text or documents uploaded into the WEA’s digital learning platform, WEA Canvas.
• Your tutor will provide written, text and audio feedback recorded in WEA Canvas, WEA’s digital learning platform.
• You will be able to keep a digital portfolio of your work on WEA’s digital learning platform, Canvas.
• A range of informal activities will be used by the tutor to see what you are learning which may include quizzes, question and answer, small projects and discussion
• You will have opportunities to discuss your progress with your tutor
• You will be encouraged to share your work with the group and discuss your learning
• At the start of the course, the Tutor will assist you to chose individual learning goals. You will receive regular feedback which will help you to see what you can do and the things you need to be working on.

What else do I need to know?

• You will also need access to the internet outside of your sessions. You could do this using a smart phone, tablet, laptop or a desktop computer (at home or through a library etc.).
• You will need a personal email address to join the WEA’s digital learning platform, Canvas so that you can receive resources, record your progress and achievement and to work with others and share ideas. If you want to understand more about our digital learning platform please visit: http://bit.ly/WEAonline

Pre-course work, reading and information sources

• You will have access to course resources and links to wider learning through the WEA’s digital learning platform, Canvas: http://bit.ly/WEAonline
• You do need to do anything before the course. However it is useful if students are reading short books for pleasure or information.

What can I do next?

• Progress to another WEA course
• Progress to a course with another provider
• Become involved with the WEA in a range of voluntary work and other activities including campaigning as a WEA member
• Become involved as a volunteer for a WEA partner or another organisation
• Access the WEA What Next? booklet here http://www.wea.org.uk/learn-wea/what-can-i-do-next