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LLC – Centre for Language and Learning

Staff

Prof. Michael Dunne
Prof. Jonathan Ozelton
Mr. Jonathan Huynh
Mr. Conor O'Reilly
Ms. Herim Ahn

About

The Centre for Language and Learning (LLC) at Ghent University Global Campus is concerned with ideas and knowledge contained within language, and how users effectively communicate their knowledge of specific ideas in spoken and written forms. To this end, our focus is the provision of education courses, tutoring services, and support programmes for undergraduate and post-graduate students – each course/programme further refining the user’s language-related study skills to: Receive // Interpret // Interact with // Develop // and Communicate IDEAS in appropriate spoken and written academic and technical English.

Vision

Current university students are likely to have an active working-life until around the year 2070. For such graduates, what changes will they experience during the working-life of the 21st century? With the anticipated speed of change in scientific and technical skills, the best preparation for work in in the 21st century means training for lifelong learning in four areas: Critical Thinking / Creativity / Communication / Collaboration.

The LLC seeks to understand “how people work together”

-> To observe the relationship between IDEAS and interaction in group work
-> To understand how we make meaning and make sense, and make value from our interactions
-> To understand how groups can work together to solve problems and create innovation.

Preparing students for work in the 21st century means training in future learning and innovation skills. Particularly in the sciences, we will need to be more specialised yet more collaborative in creating new ideas. Understanding and developing interaction skills are vital.

Courses

Ba1 – English for Academic Studies 1

Focus on understanding how language and communication is specific in university, with a focus on the ability to study/revise efficiently and convey information accurately in short responses. Development of interaction group skills.

Ba1 – English for Academic Studies 2

Focus on understanding specific language within one of the five research strands, with a focus on the ability to handle this researched information responsibly. Differentiation between the written form of the researched information versus the oral and visual presentation of the same information. Develop time and resource management skills, and semester-long group-work skills.

Ba3 – Scientific Seminars and Company Visits

Further use of group work and enhanced discussion skills. Repetition of reflection writing and academic researched group writing.

Ba4 – Research Methodology and Project

Reinforcement and demonstration of dialoguing skills, technical notetaking and writing, detailed editing, and finally the presentation and subsequent defense of the finished thesis.