School: British Council Singapore
Course: Certificate in General English
About this course
SMART English: Certificate in Intensive English is a complete course to prepare you for work, study and life. The unique study programme ensures you fully equip yourself to fast-track your future success.
- 20 class hours +5 further personal study hours per week
- Choose an Academic English or General English study pathway
- Free daily myClub language workshops, and events
Course content
Core Class
Build a solid English base by developing your reading, writing, listening and speaking skills and learning important grammar and vocabulary.
Life Skills
Make the most of your English while mastering your soft skills in our British Council-designed module; from working in multicultural teams to mastering your EQ.
Further Learning Programme
Maximise your learning by following the weekly study programme provided to you each Monday to help guide your individual study, using the British Council’s own online learning platform and other carefully-selected resources.
Academic English Skills (AE)
Academic English Skills (AE) focuses on preparing your language skills (and exam skills such as IELTS) for further study at school , college or university
(Available from Foundation: Pre-Intermediate to Advanced)
General English Skills (GE)
General English Skills focuses on improving your language skills through practice of real life tasks in writing, reading, listening and speaking.
(Available from Beginner to Advanced)
Levels
Overview
SMART English is available for all learners at all levels up to Advanced. When you start you will take a free placement test and our teachers will then recommend a suitable level. We will give you a Study Pathway to show you how you can progress towards to your goals within your chosen length of study.
| British Council SMART English level | Maximum length of level | Common European Framework (CEFR) equivalent |
| Beginner | 6 weeks | A0 |
| Elementary | 12 weeks | A1 |
| Foundation: Pre-Intermediate | 12 weeks | B1 |
| Foundation: Intermediate | 12 weeks | B1 to B2 |
| Higher | 12 weeks | B2 to C1 |
| Advanced | 12 weeks | C1 |
By the end of the course, you will be able to:
- understand basic questions about yourself and your life
- understand English spoken by native speakers at slower than normal speed
- read and understand simple English texts
- speak slowly so that others can understand you
- ask for help when you don’t understand
- write simple information about yourself using simple grammar and vocabulary.
By the end of the course, you will be able to:
- understand and respond to simple questions about yourself and your life
- understand simple conversations
- understand English spoken by native speakers at slower than normal speed
- read and understand simple articles and public notices
- speak clearly but slowly so that others understand you
- ask for help when you don’t understand
- write simple instructions or messages with few errors in grammar.
These courses cover a total of 24 weeks and are for students who have some fluency in English, but who still have problems with basic grammar and little confidence in using English. The General English Skills (GE) option will help you use English in day-to-day and work situations. The Academic English Skills (AE) will help you prepare for school, university and IELTS.
By the end of the course you will be able to:
- talk easily with others in common social situations
- speak clearly enough to be easily understood by others
- exchange opinions with others and justify your point of view
- read and understand the key points of academic texts (AE)
- read and understand English when you see if in everyday situations (GE)
- write in different Academic styles, including those needed for IELTS (AE)
- write in simple correct English in a variety of real-life scenarios (GE).
By the end of the course, you will be able to:
- discuss a wide range of topics with ease
- express your opinions clearly and support them with arguments
- write appropriate text types accurately and in the correct register (AE)
- write in more complex correct English in a wide variety of real-life scenarios (GE)
- answer comprehension questions on written and listening texts as found in Academic situations and in the IELTS test (AE)
- understand a range of written and spoken English in a variety of everyday situations (GE).
By the end of the modules, you will be able to:
- discuss a wide range of topics fluently and with increasing accuracy
- express clearly your feelings and opinions and support those opinions with persuasive argument
- speak clearly and naturally so that others have no difficulty understanding you
- understand English spoken used in Academic contexts (lectures, seminars) spoken at normal speed without needing to ask for clarification (AE)
- understand English spoken at normal speed by native and non-native speakers without needing to ask for clarification in everyday situations (GE) and exam and Academic context
- write confidently in a range of Academic genres (AE)
- write confidently, getting your message across clearly, in a wide range of day-to-day situations (GE).
Advanced IELTS is for students whose English is already of a high standard, but who wish to focus their energies on preparing for the Academic IELTS exam. You will develop all the required exam skills as well as delivering extensive exam practice.
By the end of the course you will be able to:
- talk confidently about various subjects for an extended length of time, to help you perform with confidence in the oral component of the test
- write succinctly and develop arguments logically
- write appropriate text types accurately and in the correct register
- analyse data effectively and identify the key features and trends
- analyse questions for the IELTS Reading and Listening tests and use these skills to identify relevant information in the texts.