General Course

The General Course has been designed to help beginning as well as the professional student learn and use English in the shortest time possible. Our curriculum is evaluated, tested, and updated regularly in an attempt to keep pace with the ever-changing academic needs of our students.

This course offers you:

1) PROFESSIONAL TRAINING by ALS’ highly experienced and dedicated instructors;

2) ESP (ENGLISH FOR SPECIAL / SPECIFIC PURPOSES) (For Example: AMERICAN BANKING LAW COMPARATIVE & ENGLISH FOR LEGAL PROFESSIONALS Methodologies);

3) STUDY TECHNIQUES / NOTE TAKING STRATEGIES / BUSINESS WRITING;

4) UNITED NATIONS ASSEMBLY/Cultural orientation, including preparation for field trips / CULTURAL & RELIGIOUS IMMERSION.

Students attend class for two (2) hours per day; three (3), four (4), five (5) days per week. Students choose from any of the following options:

OPTION A: 20 classroom sessions totaling 2 days/week at 40 hours for 10 weeks
OPTION B: 20 classroom sessions totaling 3 days/week at 40 hours for 6.5 weeks
OPTION C: 20 classroom sessions totaling 4 days/week at 40 hours for 5 weeks
OPTION D: 20 classroom sessions totaling 5 days/week at 40 hours for 4 weeks

Each of these options consists of two hours of grammar, listening, speaking, writing, and reading. Approximately one hour of homework is assigned after each class session.

Each and every student is tested at registration and is placed in one of five levels corresponding to a study skill area:

LEVEL 1 (Beginning)
LEVEL 2 (Low Intermediate)
LEVEL 3 (Intermediate)
LEVEL 4 (High Intermediate)
LEVEL 5 (Advanced)

The emphasis in Levels, 1, 2 and 3 is on listening, speaking, reading and writing, using all major grammatical forms. Participants who complete Level 3 are able:

  • To understand speech with minimal repetition, to participate with confidence in most business conversations and to carry forward an oral presentation on a topic of general interest.
  • To skim, scan, read and discuss general expository texts, with increasing ability to guess word meanings from context.
  • To write with clarity and with a minimum of errors, showing a basic understanding of the relationship between the topic sentence of a paragraph and the theme of the composition.

In Level 4, the students learn:

  • To take notes, to discuss familiar topics without preparation, and to present an oral report on a researched topic.
  • To read, summarize and discuss complex material on a variety of subjects, with developed ability in analysis of form and content, including the author’s point of view.
  • To write descriptive and expository compositions with coherence, style and continuity, using complex sentences with progressive ease and comfort.
The focus of Level 5 (Advanced) is in enhancing most, if not all of the wide range of accumulated English Language Training communicative skills. At this level, a student is enabled to focus on specific concentrations and subjects that are of immediate academic/professional concerns — TOEFL, TOEIC, IELTS, PET, standardized examination preparation — To name a few.

Graduation from level-to-level requires mastery of all courses taken and successful results on final examinations, and completion of class/homework assignments; including, but not limited to, punctual and full classroom attendance.