Penn State College of the Liberal Arts Department of Applied Linquistics

Academic Programs

ESL Program

The Department of Applied Linguistics offers ESL courses for enrolled Penn State undergraduate and graduate students. At the undergraduate level, two 3-credit courses on academic writing are offered: ESL 004 - ESL Composition for American Academic Communication I and ESL 015 - ESL Composition for American Academic Communication II.

ESL 004/ ESL Composition for American Academic Communication I
This course is for ESL students with beginning to intermediate skills in written English. In the course, students will improve their overall composition skills in preparation for the demands of future academic writing assignments by participating in a variety of writing activities such as free-writing, journal entries, descriptions, summaries of readings, drafts and complete essays. Please note that this course may not be used to satisfy the basic minimum requirements for graduation in any baccalaureate degree program.
ESL 015/ ESL Composition for American Academic Communication II
Cross-listed with GWS; Prerequisite: a grade of C or higher required in ESL 004.
This course is for ESL students with intermediate/advanced skills in written English. In the course, students will participate in a variety of reading and writing tasks to enable them to identify how writers convey their purpose for a particular audience in readings; identify and evaluate methods of argument, persuasion and evidence used by others and implement them in their own writing; identify and evaluate how language shapes a writer's credibility and persuasive appeals; enhance their ability to organize and develop ideas in a coherent and unified way; revise and reshape their writing to improve ideas, organization, language use, vocabulary and mechanics; identify and correct structural and grammatical errors within their written texts; select sources, take notes and acknowledge sources to support ideas; and use the library to conduct library research.

At the graduate level, we offer one 3-credit course on academic writing: ESL 116G - Composition for Academic Disciplines.

ESL 116G - Composition for Academic Disciplines
This course is for ESL graduate students with intermediate/advanced skills in written English. In this course, students will undertake the analysis of the organizational and linguistic features in research articles in their field; the collection of academic sources for summary, critique, and synthesis; the composition of various sections of research articles as well as two or more complete research articles; and the analysis, revision, and discussion of their own writing. By the end of the course, students will be better able to translate their research activities into written reports that conform to the expectations of the English-speaking academic community.

We also offer a 3-credit course for both undergraduate and graduate students who wish to improve their oral skills: ESL 114G - American English for Academic Purposes.

ESL 114G - American English for Academic Purposes
This course is designed to provide English language instructional support for ESL graduate students. Students will complete language activities that will improve their pronunciation of Mainstream US English (MUSE); help them develop and maintain effective, culturally appropriate oral communication strategies necessary for interaction with individuals, small groups and large classes; help them develop knowledge of useful American vocabulary, idioms and expressions; help them improve their ability to listen to and understand Americans in conversation; and improve their awareness of American cultural practices.

For more information about the ESL program, please contact the Director, Professor Paula Golombek