English for Human Resources

Introduction

English for Human Resources is an online course, consisting of 56 units of English, and providing approximately 60 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 human resources situations. The course blends grammatical structures necessary for this level, with vocabulary, reading, listening, writing, speaking, and pronunciation.

Gramatika

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.

Vārdnīca

By the end of the course students will have learnt approximately 200 expressions used in the human resources field.

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 human resources contexts.

Unit summary

Module 1

  • Introduction to Human Resources
  • Gramatika: Present tenses
  • Vārdnīca: Key HR terminology, basics of employment, types of employees:
  • Lasīšana: The evolution and importance of HR in organisations
  • Klausīšanās: An interview with an HR manager discussing their role
  • Rakstīšana: Drafting a brief description of one’s HR job role
  • Runājot: Discussing the role of HR in an organisation
  • Pronunciation: Anxious and Chess + connected speech

Module 2

  • Recruitment and Selection
  • Gramatika: Past tenses
  • Vocabulary: Job postings, applications, interviews, selection processes
  • Lasīšana: The stages of the recruitment process
  • Klausīšanās: A mock job interview
  • Rakstīšana: Creating a job advertisement for a fictional position
  • Runājot: Job interviews
  • Pronunciation: Beats and Beach + connected speech

Module 3

  • Training and Development
  • Gramatika: Going to and Will
  • Vārdnīca: Onboarding, training modules, career progression
  • Lasīšana: The importance of continuous employee training
  • Klausīšanās: A workshop on employee development
  • Rakstīšana: Drafting a training schedule for new employees
  • Runājot: Organising initial and ongoing employee training
  • Pronunciation: Bet and But + connected speech

Module 4

  • Compensation and Benefits
  • Gramatika: Present perfect
  • Vārdnīca: salary, bonuses, benefits, allowances, deductions
  • Lasīšana: How companies decide compensation packages
  • Klausīšanās: Negotiation of a salary package
  • Rakstīšana: Designing a basic compensation package for a role
  • Runājot: Salaries and bonuses
  • Pronunciation: Bud and Bird + connected speech

Module 5

  • Performance Management
  • Gramatika: Countable and uncountable nouns
  • Vārdnīca: Appraisal, feedback, goals, performance metrics
  • Lasīšana: The significance of regular performance reviews
  • Klausīšanās: A mock performance review meeting
  • Rakstīšana: Drafting a performance feedback for an employee
  • Runājot: Improving performance
  • Pronunciation: Book and But + connected speech

Module 6

  • Employee Relations
  • Gramatika: First conditional
  • Vārdnīca: Employee engagement, grievances, mediation, workplace culture
  • Lasīšana: The importance of maintaining positive employee relations
  • Klausīšanās: A mediation session between an employee and a manager
  • Rakstīšana: Drafting a memo addressing a common workplace concern
  • Runājot: Conflict resolution
  • Pronunciation: Cart and Cut + connected speech

Module 7

  • Legal and Ethical Aspects of HR
  • Gramatika: Passive
  • Vārdnīca: Contracts, labour laws, non-discrimination, ethics
  • Reading: An overview of European Union labour laws and their significance
  • Klausīšanās: A discussion on ethical dilemmas in HR
  • Rakstīšana: Designing a code of conduct for employees
  • Runājot: The implications of a breach in the code of conduct
  • Pronunciation: Day and Ray + connected speech

Module 8

  • Trends in HR and the Future
  • Gramatika: Second conditional
  • Vārdnīca: Remote work, diversity and inclusion, automation in HR
  • Lasīšana: The changing landscape of HR in the digital age
  • Klausīšanās: A seminar on the future of HR practices
  • Rakstīšana: Drafting a proposal for incorporating a new HR trend
  • Runājot: The future of work
  • Pronunciation: Fine and Vine + connected speech

Follow-up

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