New ICT Literacies and Holistic Approaches for the Effective Learning of Languages in Tertiary Education

Abstract: This paper summarizes the evolution of different subjects of English for Specific Purposes and English for Academic and Professional Purposes. The aim here is to show a continuum of changes that have not started and nished in one subject alone but affect the whole curriculum. After the discussion section where advantages and drawbacks of the changes introduced are analyzed, we arrive at some conclusions regarding this ve year period of development in the approach to the teaching and learning of the specific or academic English language in the Escuela Universitaria de Ingeniería Técnica de Telecomunicación, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. Resumen: Este trabajo resume la evolución que han experimentado distintas asignaturas de Inglés para Fines Especí cos e Inglés para Fines Académicos y Profesionales. El objetivo principal es mostrar cómo el esfuerzo por mejorar las asignaturas afecta al currículo como un todo y no sólo a cada una de las asignaturas. Tras el análisis de algunas de las ventajas e inconvenientes de los cambios introducidos, se alcanzan algunas conclusiones sobre la evolución que han sufrido este tipo de asignaturas durante los últimos cinco años en la Escuela Universitaria de Ingeniería Técnica de Telecomunicación, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid.

Analysing written production competence descriptors for academic and professional purposes and their calibration to the CEFR

The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) "describes in a comprehensive way what language learners have to learn to do in order to use a language for communication and what knowledge and skills they have to develop so as to be able to act effectively" (Council of Europe, 2001: 1). This paper reports on the findings of two studies whose purpose was to assess written production competence descriptors meant for their inclusion into the Academic and Professional English Language Portfolio KELP) for students of engineering and architecture. The main objective of these studies was to establish whether the language competence descriptors were a satisfactory valid tool in their language programmes from the point of view of clarity, relevance and reliability, as perceived by the students and fellow English for Academic Purposes (RAP) / English for Science and Technology (EST) instructors. The studies shed light on how to improve unsatisfactory descriptors. Results show that the final descriptor lists were on the whole well calibrated and fairly well written: the great majority was considered valid for both teachers and students involved.

Secundary school profile in science and technology versus the first year at the Technical University of Madrid. Cause of failure or quitting?

Se analiza el absentismo, el fallo y el abandono de los estudiantes en los primeros semestres del grado sobre la base de su formación en la educación secundaria.

The University in the Cloud Computing.

With the advancement of Information and Communication Technology ICT which favors increasingly fast, easy, and accessible communication for all and which can reach large groups of people, there have been changes, in recent years in our society that have modified the way we interact, communicate and transmit information. Access to this, it is possible, not only through computers situated in a fixed location, but new mobile devices make it available, wherever the user happens to be located. Now, information "travels" with the user. These forms of communication, transmission and access to information, have also affected the way to conceive and manage business. To these new forms of business that the Internet has brought, is now added the concept of companies in the Cloud Computing ClC. The ClC technology is based on the supply and consumption of services on demand and pay per use, and it gives a 180 degree turn to the business management concept. Small and large businesses may use the latest developments in ICT, to manage their organizations without the need for expensive investments in them. This will enable enterprises to focus more specifically within the scope of their business, leaving the ICT control to the experts. We believe that education can also and should benefit from these new philosophies. ?Due to the global economic crisis in general and each country in particular, economic cutbacks have come to most universities. These are seen in the need to raise tuition rates, which makes increasingly fewer students have the opportunity to pursue higher education?. In this paper we propose using ClC technologies in universities and we make a dissertation on the advantages that it can provide to both: universities and students. For the universities, we expose two focuses, one: ?to reorganize university ICT structures with the ClC philosophy? and the other one, ?to extend the offer of the university education with education on demand?. Regarding the former we propose to use public or private Clouds, to reuse resources across the education community, to save costs on infrastructure investment, in upgrades and in maintenance of ICT, and paying only for what you use and with the ability to scale according to needs. Regarding the latter, we propose an educational model in the ClC, to increase the current university offerings, using educational units in the form of low-cost services and where students pay only for the units consumed on demand. For the students, they could study at any university in the world (virtually), from anywhere, without travel costs: money and time, and what is most important paying only for what they consume. We think that this proposal of education on demand may represent a great change in the current educational model, because strict registration deadlines disappear, and also the problem of economically disadvantaged students, who will not have to raise large amounts of money for an annual tuition. Also it will decrease the problem of loss of the money invested in an enrollment when the student dropout. In summary we think that this proposal is interesting for both, universities and students, we aim for "Higher education from anywhere, with access from any mobile device, at any time, without requiring large investments for students, and with reuse and optimization of resources by universities. Cost by consumption and consumption by service?. We argue for a Universal University "wisdom and knowledge accessible to all?

Análisis de la expresión escrita en las Universidades de Madrid a través de la asignatura Trabajo Fin de Grado en los estudios de ADE

Ante la preocupación generalizada de la sociedad acerca de las carencias de los jóvenes en cuanto a la expresión escrita, el presente artículo tiene como objetivo analizar si esta competencia se desarrolla y se evalúa en la Universidad. La comunidad académica no puede permanecer ajena a este problema, por lo que es importante que incluya dentro de sus planes de estudio la mejora de esta competencia. El desarrollo de la expresión escrita se incluye entre las competencias generales instrumentales para el aprendizaje y la formación. Se considera, por tanto, una competencia necesaria para cualquier tipo de estudio y cualquier perfil profesional. En particular, en los estudios de ADE, la adquisición de la expresión escrita no se circunscribe a ninguna asignatura en concreto, sino que puede desarrollarse en varias de ellas a lo largo de la titulación. No obstante, el Trabajo de Fin de Grado es una de las asignaturas en la que mejor puede enmarcarse la consecución de esta habilidad. Por este motivo, se realiza un análisis sobre el diseño, la organización, el contenido y la evaluación del Trabajo de Fin de Grado en todas las universidades de la Comunidad de Madrid, tanto públicas como privadas, en las que se imparte el Grado en Administración y Dirección de Empresas. El estudio se ha elaborado a partir de la información de los planes de estudio y de las guías docentes de la asignatura, disponibles en las páginas web de las universidades.

University large lectures in MICASE: a systemic functional analysis

Se analizan las estrategias y la estructura discursiva de las conferencias del corpus MICASE (El corpus de inglés académico oral de la Universidad de Michigan) desde una perspectiva dual: el enfoque sistémico-funcional y el estudio de Young sobre conferencias. Los resultados demuestran que las conferencias son un género complejo que no solo incluye el contenido ideacional sino diversas evaluaciones de los profesores sobre los temas tratados. Los profesores usan fuentes académicas, convenciones formales y un estilo idiosincrático. También muestran su punto de vista mediante el uso de marcadores modales y adverbios que varían en función de las distintos tipos de conferencia (Biología/ Ciencias de la Salud, Arte y Humanidades, Ciencias Sociales/ Educación).

Estudio para la implantación de Programas en Inglés en los títulos de grado de la ETSI Agrónomos de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

Universities are offering more and more courses and programmes in an additional language. At HEPCLIL, therefore, we would like to debate the methodological im - plications of these changes, giving voice to practical classroom experiences and initiatives. We would also like to act as a platform for cutting-edge research on CLIL in higher education. What impact does teaching in an additional language have on content or language learning? What are the effects on teachers and stu - dents in higher education?