Communication Skills in English - Lab

English

Rationale

Course Objectives:
Communication skills play an important role in career development. This lab course aims at actively
involving students in various activities to improve their communication skills with an emphasis on
developing personality of the students. Thus, the objectives of this course are:
1. To develop listening skills for enhancing communication.
2. To develop speaking skills with a focus on correct pronunciation and fluency.
3. To introduce the need for Personality development- Focus will be on developing certain qualities which will aid students in handling personal and career challenges, leadership skills
etc. for that purpose group discussion, extempore and other activities should be conducted
during lab classes.

Course Content:
Unit 1 Listening Skills
Listening Process and Practice: Introduction to recorded lectures, poems, interviews and speeches,
listening tests.
Unit II Introduction to Phonetics
Sounds: consonant, vowel, diphthongs, etc. transcription of words (IPA), weak forms, syllable division, word stress, intonation, voice etc.
Unit III Speaking Skills
Standard and formal speech: Group discussion, oral presentations, public speaking, business presentations etc. Conversation practice and role playing, mock interviews etc.
Unit IV Building vocabulary
Etymological study of words and construction of words, phrasal verbs, foreign phrases, idioms and
phrases. Jargon/ Register related to organizational set up, word exercises and word games to enhance self-expression and vocabulary of participants.
Recommended Readings:
1. Daniel Jones. The Pronunciation of English. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1956.
2. James Hartman& et al. Ed. English Pronouncing Dictionary. Cambridge: Cambridge University

Course Content:
Unit 1 Listening Skills
Listening Process and Practice: Introduction to recorded lectures, poems, interviews and speeches,
listening tests.
Unit II Introduction to Phonetics
Sounds: consonant, vowel, diphthongs, etc. transcription of words (IPA), weak forms, syllable division, word stress, intonation, voice etc.
Unit III Speaking Skills
Standard and formal speech: Group discussion, oral presentations, public speaking, business presentations etc. Conversation practice and role playing, mock interviews etc.
Unit IV Building vocabulary
Etymological study of words and construction of words, phrasal verbs, foreign phrases, idioms and
phrases. Jargon/ Register related to organizational set up, word exercises and word games to enhance self-expression and vocabulary of participants.
Recommended Readings:
1. Daniel Jones. The Pronunciation of English. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1956.
2. James Hartman& et al. Ed. English Pronouncing Dictionary. Cambridge: Cambridge University

ress, 2006.
3. Kulbhushan Kumar, Effective Communication Skills, Khanna Publishing House, New Delhi
(Revised Ed. 2018)
4. J.D.O’Connor. Better English Pronunciation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980.
5. Lindley Murray. An English Grammar: Comprehending Principles and Rules. London: Wilson
and Sons, 1908.
6. Margaret M. Maison. Examine your English. Orient Longman: New Delhi, 1964.
7. J.Sethi & et al. A Practice Course in English Pronunciation. New Delhi: Prentice Hall, 2004.
8. Pfeiffer, William Sanborn and T.V.S Padmaja. Technical Communication: A Practical Approach.
6th ed. Delhi: Pearson, 2007.

Jokes Random

A man is flying

A man is flying in a hot air balloon and realizes he is lost. He reduces height and spots a man down below. He lowers the balloon further and shouts: “Excuse me, can you help me? I promised my friend I would meet him half an hour ago, but I don’t know where I am.”
The man below says: “Yes. You are in a hot air balloon, hovering approximately 30 feet above this field.”
“You must be an engineer,” says the balloonist.
“I am,” replies the man. “How did you know?”
“Well,” says the balloonist, “everything you have told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to make of your information.
“The man below says, “You must be a planner.”
“I am,” replies the balloonist, “but how did you know?”
“Well,” says the man, “you don’t know where you are, or where you are going, and you have made a promise which you have no idea how to keep. The fact is you are in the exact same position you were in before we met, but now it is somehow my fault.”