English for Civil Engineers

Introduction

English for Civil Engineers is an online course, consisting of 93 units of English, and providing approximately 100 hours of study for students.

Course aims

To give students at Intermediate, CEFR B1/Upper Intermediate B2 level practice in general and business-oriented language required for business contexts at this level, specifically tailored towards the specialisation of civil engineering. The course blends grammatical structures necessary for this level, with vocabulary, reading, listening, writing, speaking and pronunciation.

Граматика

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

  • Use present and past tenses correctly
  • Use the appropriate conditional forms to talk about situations and consequences
  • Use the present perfect to describe a link between past and present events
  • Use going to and will to talk about future predictions and intentions
  • Use the passive form correctly
  • Distinguish and be able to correctly describe countable and uncountable nouns

Речник

  • By the end of the course students will have learnt approximately 120 expressions used in civil engineering

Skills

  • By the end of the course students will have had exposure to and practice in reading and hearing formal and informal English from a variety of accents and civil engineering contexts

Unit summary

Module 1

  • Introduction to Civil Engineering
  • Граматика: Present tenses
  • Речник: Key civil engineering terms
  • Четене: A brief history of civil engineering
  • Слушане: Roles and responsibilities of civil engineers
  • Писане: My civil engineering journey
  • Говорене: My motivations for working in civil engineering
  • Pronunciation: Anxious and Chess + connected speech

Module 2

  • Engineering Disciplines and Infrastructure
  • Граматика: Past tenses
  • Речник: Civil engineering disciplines and infrastructure
  • Четене: Understanding various disciplines and their contributions to infrastructure
  • Слушане: Importance of different infrastructure components
  • Писане: Creating summaries of infrastructure projects
  • Говорене: Describing and comparing various engineering disciplines
  • Pronunciation: Beats and Beach + connected speech

Module 3

  • Materials and Construction Techniques
  • Граматика: Going to and Will
  • Речник: Common civil engineering materials and construction methods
  • Четене: The properties and applications of various construction materials
  • Слушане: Construction techniques and material selection
  • Писане: Material specifications and construction processes
  • Говорене: Explaining the advantages and disadvantages of various materials
  • Pronunciation: Bet and But + connected speech

Module 4

  • Surveying and Site Analysis
  • Граматика: Present perfect
  • Речник: Surveying tools, techniques, and site analysis
  • Четене: The importance of accurate surveying and site analysis in civil engineering
  • Слушане: Site assessments
  • Писане: Preparing comprehensive site analysis reports
  • Говорене: Presenting site analysis results and recommendations
  • Pronunciation: Bud and Bird + connected speech

Module 5

  • Engineering Design and Planning
  • Граматика: Countable and uncountable nouns
  • Речник: Engineering design concepts and planning
  • Четене: The role of design and planning in civil engineering projects
  • Слушане: Design and planning tasks
  • Писане: Creating design documents and project plans
  • Говорене: Communicating design ideas and discussing project issues
  • Pronunciation: Cart and Cut + connected speech

Module 6

  • Project Management and Teamwork
  • Граматика: First conditional
  • Речник: Project management principles and teamwork concepts
  • Четене: Effective project management in civil engineering
  • Слушане: Project management strategies and challenges
  • Писане: Developing project management skills
  • Говорене: Sharing personal experiences for project management
  • Pronunciation: Day and Ray + connected speech

Module 7

  • Health, Safety, and Environmental Considerations
  • Граматика: Passive
  • Речник: Health, safety, and environmental terms and concepts
  • Четене: The importance of health and safety
  • Слушане: Risk mitigation and environmental protection measures
  • Писане: Documenting environmental impact assessments
  • Говорене: A health and safety talk
  • Pronunciation: Guess and Yes + connected speech

Module 8

  • Continuing Professional Development and Career Growth:
  • Граматика: Second conditional
  • Речник: Career-related terms and concepts
  • Четене: Advancement opportunities and skills development
  • Слушане: Career paths and future goals
  • Писане: A professional development plan for career advancement
  • Говорене: Setting personal goals and identifying areas for growth
  • Pronunciation: Hope and Hop + connected speech

Follow-up

Students completing the English for Civil Engineers course should feel confident in tackling any upper intermediate course, including our Upper Intermediate Business Power course.