WHO’S AFRAID OFBUSINESS ENGLISH?

Preparing Students for the International World of Business

WHAT IS BUSINESS ENGLISH?

A set of skills used to: Prepare people for careers Promote oral communication Develop professional writing Facilitate negotiating Enhance teamwork &

networking

WHY TEACH BUSINESS ENGLISH?

To meet today’s challenges:•Technology and industry•Academia•Global economics•Travel•Self-improvement

WHO NEEDS BUSINESS ENGLISH?

Most employees in the following sectors:

• International trade & tourism•Academia • Industry and finance•High-tech … and more

WHAT SHOULD A CURRICULUM INCLUDE?

The four basics, tailored specifically: •LISTENING •SPEAKING •READING •WRITING

PREPARING to TEACHView Business English as a PROCESS COURSEBegin easy progress to more

advanced materialProvide feedbackPlan to hold 1-on-1 tutorials

DEVELOPING LISTENINGBegin each lesson with pair-work. Distribute provocative sentences:1. How true do you think the following

statement is: “You should work to live, not live to work”?

2. Is it better to marry someone of the same cultural background? Why?

3. Do you share goals and plans with others so that they will help you maintain your motivation and drive?

FOLLOW-UP

After 5-10 minutes, during which you circulate and listen, ask several students to relate what their partners said.

ENCOURAGING SPEAKING1. Begin by having students talk with a partner, then with a small group.2. Next, have each get up before the class and talk for 30 seconds on short topics, such as news items: How does “Re-Walk” revolutionize movement for people who are partially paralyzed?

FACILITATING READING1. Do not crowd the board; erase

frequently.2. Prepare worksheets using large,

easy-to-read fonts, such as Tahoma, Comic Sans, and Ariel.

3. Leave space between lines. 4. Number items, for easy referral.

5. Assign a variety of texts for reading.6. Check comprehension by holding group discussions. 7. Each group appoints a “Speaker” who reports back to the class

TEACHING WRITING• Review the purpose and form of each

type of writing: email letter, cover letter, agenda, request, apology, thank you, position paper, etc.

• Prepare TEMPLATES or samples for each writing assignment.

AGENDA SIMULATIONSample Agenda: “Let's Promote Product X!“

Objective: Brainstorm a marketing campaign for our newest product Attendees: The Creative DepartmentDate, Time and Duration: Monday, May 17th from 3:00–4:00 PMLocation: Main BoardroomWhat to Bring: Your creative thinking caps and anything else that gives you creative inspirationTimes, Agenda Items and Presenters:

3:00-3:15 Julie will remind us of key features of our product and the latest market research 3:15-3:50 Jim will lead the brainstorming session 3:50-4:00 Tanya and Nancy will summarize our progress

Group simulation: each group receives a challenge and has to create an Agenda, based on the sample.Group One: OLD ORCHARDA high quality apple juice made using organic fruit and traditional methods. It is sold at a premium price in restaurants and coffee shops. Market share and profit margins are declining. How can Old Orchard update its image and diversify into new markets?

Group Two: CRUNCHY MORNINGAn exciting new range of breakfast cereals with unusual flavors: kiwi, grapefruit, passion fruit and pomegranate. How can Crunchy Morning capture a share of a saturated market?

PROFESSIONAL WRITING: The One-Pager

• Profile your company/product/service• Distribute or display as a handout or

“leave behind” at conferences, conventions, study days, etc.

• “Zero in” on your essence: your concept, your proposal or offering

• State your “added value” or benefits• Use active voice, color and pictures• Catch attention quickly• Include contact information

HOW TO ASSESSUse RUBRICS

1. Prepare students: let them know the expectations of each assignment.

2. Decide what is the optimum level and give that the highest point value

3. Scale down, by adjusting the words you use, to deal with lower levelsExample:

a. HIGHEST LEVEL: “Well-prepared and researched”

b. MODERATE LEVEL: “Mostly well-prepared, with evidence of research”

c. LOWEST LEVEL: “Little evidence of preparation or research”

ASSESSING WRITTEN WORK

• Pay attention to all aspects you have taught.

• Decide the weight of each criterion• See the sample below:

Criteria Excellent 91-100

Satisfactory 81-90

Apprentice71-80

 Thesis & Argument 45% 

Argument and counter-argument are clear and supported throughout with well-selected evidence; clearly demonstrates wide knowledge of issue.

Argument and counter-argument are usually clear and usually supported with evidence; some opposing arguments are unclear or not convincing; understanding of issue at adequate level.

Argument and counter-argument are unclear or unsupported by evidence; opposing arguments are ignored or not rebutted; writer’s understanding is unclear.

 Organization & Sources 25% 

Introduction is interesting, body shows clear defense of position, and conclusion effectively summarizes position. Relevant & sufficient number of sources are cited and used to support argument.

Intro/body/conclusion structure exists but some transition or organization problems may impede flow of paper. Some sources are not credible or relevant / OR not always used and cited to support arguments.

Paper seems unorganized, OR paper does not flow well, OR lacking intro/body/conclusion.Insufficient, not credible, or irrelevant sources, OR not used to support arguments, OR no citation of sources.

 Writing Style & Grammar 30%   

Clear, focused writing; sentences are grammatically correct and meaning is clear; word choice is appropriate; formal register; punctuation and spelling are nearly perfect. 3 or less errors.

Essay is readable but includes some grammatical or mechanical errors; word choice is sometimes awkward or inappropriate; style not always formal. 4 – 7 errors.

More than 8 writing errors; grammatical errors and other problems affect meaning; style sounds translated; tone is informal; use of slang.

ASSESSING ORAL PRESENTATIONS

• Model through your teaching how students should give presentations.

• Tell them what you are doing, giving explanations where necessary.

• See the sample:

  Excellent 91-100

Very Good 81-90

Need to Improve 71-80

Organization, Style, Content & Timing 45% ___ 

Presentation is clear, logical & organized. Clear introduction, body & conclusion. Evidence of effective research. Depth of material shows understanding. Timing is accurate.

Presentation is generally clear & well organized: a few minor points may be confusing. Structure could use some reorganization. Research shown. For the most part, explanations are accurate & complete. Timing is nearly correct.

Listener can follow presentation only with effort. Some arguments are lacking logic. Structure not always clear. Level is not always appropriate, & may be too simple or too complex. Much of information is read. Lacking evidence of academic references. Too long or too short.

Power Point Slides 10%   ___

Prepared in professional manner. Clear font. Right amount of information. Pictures, diagrams, colors & background clear.

Mostly professional. Appropriate information. Most material, fonts, pictures, & backgrounds are clear.

Lack of professional preparation. Font too small. Busy background that makes text difficult to read. Too much or too little information. Irrelevant material included.

Grammar & Word Choice 15% ___

Sentences are complete & grammatical. Vocabulary is formal, sophisticated & precise. Parallelism in lists. No spelling errors.

Sentences are mostly complete & grammatical. Level of vocabulary is usually correct; most words used correctly. Mostly parallel lists. Some spelling errors.

Some grammatical errors and/or use of slang. Some incomplete or run-on sentences. Vocabulary may be limited or inaccurate. Lack of parallelism in lists. Frequent spelling errors.

Personal Appearance, Body Language & Clarity of Speech 30% ___

Completely appropriate dress for the occasion. Poised & confident. No unnecessary movements. Standard pronunciation of words & good flow of sentences. Speaker can be heard by all. Eye contact at all times.

Generally appropriate dress for the occasion. Mostly poised & prepared. One or two nervous gestures. Mostly accurate pronunciation and adequate flow of sentences. Voice level mostly even. Slight accent. Eye contact mostof the time.

Inappropriate dress for the occasion. Lacking confidence. Nervousness obvious (pacing, throat-clearing, etc.) Difficult to understand words and/or sentences due to mispronunciation and/or heavy accent. Voice level uneven. Little or no eye contact.

UTILIZE THE MEDIA

• LISTENING: YouTube, Macmillan, TED and BBC for video clips and texts of authentic conversations

• SPEAKING: Use authentic conversations for practice –

e.g. telephoning back-to-back

Caller (Computech) Called Person (Intech) Greeting. “Intech, good morning.” Introduce yourself. Ask caller to spell name.Confirm/correct. Offer to help.Ask for an appointment with Mr. Townsend.

Ask what it’s about.

Explain that you want to discuss the shipping of goods from Tokyo to Ashdod Port.

Acknowledge – ask when would be a good time.

Suggest next week. Reject – Mr. Townsend is away.Suggest beginning of next month.

Agree.Suggest Monday the 3rd.

Reject – on Monday, Mr. Townsend is busy all day.Suggest Tuesday the 4th.

Agree. Suggest 10:00 a.m. Agree – ask for an email to confirm.Offer to book a hotel.

Agree to email. Hotel booking is not necessary.Signal you are finished.

End call / thanks / remind caller of email, etc.

End call.  

• READING: texts from Time, MIT Technology Review, BBC

• WRITING: provide samples, templates and outlines from owl.purdue, Oxford UP, Macmillan

Dear Janet:Here is my market report; I know it is a bit late, and I apologize. I hope you notice that I am using many of the terms that I heard at the recent Trade Conference in Tokyo – they are the latest trend in the field. I didn’t see any good reason to include the data that I usually submit: I think everyone on the team is aware of it.If you have any comments or suggestions, let me know.Regards,Jackson Jackson Mahler

WHAT ABOUT GRAMMAR?Consider major issues: Tenses: active, passive & MODALS Punctuation & capital letters Sentence and paragraph structure Parallelism, run-ons, prepositions

DEVOTE TIME EACH LESSON TO GRAMMAR

EXERCISE, BRIEFLYNothing is more embarassing than making a writing mistake? Of course, we all think its funny when we spot a mispelled word in magazine ads or on billboards. If one of your employee’s are making the the mistakes, it can be disasterous. And if you have a typo in a memoo to the boss; how do you think they will view your professionalism? These kind of mistakes can be prevented, irregardless of the persons job title. The people that make the mistakes can seriously effect how other’s view you’re company.   

V.A.T.

Cultural know-how:Make students aware of cultural

differences, using English as “an intrinsic part of communication in multinational settings”

Use Kiss, Bow, and Shake Hands as the text for this unit

UNIT ON MULTICULTURAL BUSINESS PRACTICES

CONSIDER:1. Welcoming and introductions 2. Settling in and using small talk 3. Planning for the visit and setting

preliminaries 4. Beginning discussions &

negotiations5. Following-up

CHOOSE GROUPS & COUNTRIES

1. Allow 30-40 minutes for organization. The rest must be done out of class.

2. Email Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands 3. Students prepare an 8-10 minute

oral presentation dealing with key issues (using PowerPoint)

BEGINNINGS• Grow and develop with your

students.• Ask for feedback after every activity.• Innovate.• Seek out new materials.• At the end of the course, ask them:

what should I KEEP, DISCARD, and CHANGE.

• Then DO exactly that!

TRUST YOUR STUDENTS & TRUST YOURSELF

CONTACT ME!

Judy Siegel Henn, Ph.D.Division of HumanitiesThe Technion

henn_judy@yahoo.com052-8714283

REFERENCES• “English as a Lingua Franca in International

Business Contexts.” Editorial. English for Specific Purposes 24 (2005):367-80.

• http://pbp.typepad.com/nobull/2010/01/how-many-writing-mistakes-can-you-find.html

• Morrison, Terri and Wayne A. Conaway (1995, 2006). Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands: The Bestselling Guide to Doing Business in More Than 60 Countries. Avon, MA: Adams Media.