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.

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

Slovná zásoba

  • 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
  • Gramatika: Present tenses
  • Slovná zásoba: Key civil engineering terms
  • Čítanie: A brief history of civil engineering
  • Počúvanie: Roles and responsibilities of civil engineers
  • Písanie: My civil engineering journey
  • Hovorenie: My motivations for working in civil engineering
  • Pronunciation: Anxious and Chess + connected speech

Module 2

  • Engineering Disciplines and Infrastructure
  • Gramatika: Past tenses
  • Slovná zásoba: Civil engineering disciplines and infrastructure
  • Čítanie: Understanding various disciplines and their contributions to infrastructure
  • Počúvanie: Importance of different infrastructure components
  • Písanie: Creating summaries of infrastructure projects
  • Hovorenie: Describing and comparing various engineering disciplines
  • Pronunciation: Beats and Beach + connected speech

Module 3

  • Materials and Construction Techniques
  • Gramatika: Going to and Will
  • Slovná zásoba: Common civil engineering materials and construction methods
  • Čítanie: The properties and applications of various construction materials
  • Počúvanie: Construction techniques and material selection
  • Písanie: Material specifications and construction processes
  • Hovorenie: Explaining the advantages and disadvantages of various materials
  • Pronunciation: Bet and But + connected speech

Module 4

  • Surveying and Site Analysis
  • Gramatika: Present perfect
  • Slovná zásoba: Surveying tools, techniques, and site analysis
  • Čítanie: The importance of accurate surveying and site analysis in civil engineering
  • Počúvanie: Site assessments
  • Písanie: Preparing comprehensive site analysis reports
  • Hovorenie: Presenting site analysis results and recommendations
  • Pronunciation: Bud and Bird + connected speech

Module 5

  • Engineering Design and Planning
  • Gramatika: Countable and uncountable nouns
  • Slovná zásoba: Engineering design concepts and planning
  • Čítanie: The role of design and planning in civil engineering projects
  • Počúvanie: Design and planning tasks
  • Písanie: Creating design documents and project plans
  • Hovorenie: Communicating design ideas and discussing project issues
  • Pronunciation: Cart and Cut + connected speech

Module 6

  • Project Management and Teamwork
  • Gramatika: First conditional
  • Slovná zásoba: Project management principles and teamwork concepts
  • Čítanie: Effective project management in civil engineering
  • Počúvanie: Project management strategies and challenges
  • Písanie: Developing project management skills
  • Hovorenie: Sharing personal experiences for project management
  • Pronunciation: Day and Ray + connected speech

Module 7

  • Health, Safety, and Environmental Considerations
  • Gramatika: Passive
  • Slovná zásoba: Health, safety, and environmental terms and concepts
  • Čítanie: The importance of health and safety
  • Počúvanie: Risk mitigation and environmental protection measures
  • Písanie: Documenting environmental impact assessments
  • Hovorenie: A health and safety talk
  • Pronunciation: Guess and Yes + connected speech

Module 8

  • Continuing Professional Development and Career Growth:
  • Gramatika: Second conditional
  • Slovná zásoba: Career-related terms and concepts
  • Čítanie: Advancement opportunities and skills development
  • Počúvanie: Career paths and future goals
  • Písanie: A professional development plan for career advancement
  • Hovorenie: 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.