The academic year is over and I'm kind of happy but a little bit sad. But anyway, summer is coming and I can´t wait for it to come! I want holidays and sun! Exams are finishing and I hope I did them well.
First of all I will say that doing this blog has been such an enjoyable experience. I have never done it before, and I think it's a quite beneficial activity since it forces students to write in English, to think in English and to search for interesting information which otherwise would never be explored. This is rather a motivating exercise to do every week, with which you learn and develop you English skills as well as you searching and surfing the web skills.
On the other side, I want to do a kind of critical review of this subject in general. From my point of view, the material used to give the lessons is appropiate in order to build a C1 level, however I think teachers should put more emphasis on doing exercises that will appear in the exam. That is to say, I would provide students with CAE exams in order to practise what they are going to face in the actual exam. The book utilised is good but maybe it is not enough for the student's preparation.
First of all I will say that doing this blog has been such an enjoyable experience. I have never done it before, and I think it's a quite beneficial activity since it forces students to write in English, to think in English and to search for interesting information which otherwise would never be explored. This is rather a motivating exercise to do every week, with which you learn and develop you English skills as well as you searching and surfing the web skills.
On the other side, I want to do a kind of critical review of this subject in general. From my point of view, the material used to give the lessons is appropiate in order to build a C1 level, however I think teachers should put more emphasis on doing exercises that will appear in the exam. That is to say, I would provide students with CAE exams in order to practise what they are going to face in the actual exam. The book utilised is good but maybe it is not enough for the student's preparation.
Some grammar exercises that appear in the exam can be practised in the book, that's truth. But, for instance, now that we have already done the exam: In the listening part, the second exercise composing the exam hasn't been previously practised. Never. Students didn't even how that exercise worked or how they should do it. The teacher didn't explain it in an appopiate way and many people failed to do it becuase they didn't know its mechanism. In ohter words, we could have practised that kind of listening exercise with the language assistant, but we didn't. Or the exam could have included the type of exercises we have been practising in class. I think that this is a really bad point about the subject, in some sense we are not prepared (taking into account that we have to work at home in our own) for what we have to face in the exam.
Moreover, I know about the general disappointment of the students of second course with this subject and I totally understand it. I would change the way of giving lessons. At least I would include some hour at the week in which exercises of the exam were practised. Be it about reading, about listening, or about grammar. The only skill I think is well covered is speaking, since we are more "forced" (in a good sense) to practise it with the speaking assistant. The other areas have some empty gaps that need to be filled. I would undoubtedly change the working of this subject, I think the students desperately need it. We, the students need to be provided of materials in order to prepare THAT exam. And it would be fair that exercises in the exam were appopiately explained before starting to do it. Also errors like misprints should be noticed since the first moment, not at last. That is so confusing for students and can be such a great deal for us.
So all in all, I think I have given my personal opinion, which, the vast majority of the students share. Hope it is useful!
Kind regards.
Written by: Ana Martínez Jiménez
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