Publication details
Get Ready For Life! Developing Students‘ Communication in English Through Solving Case Studies in Law and Marketing. Application of Theory on Real Cases from Marketing, Corporate Law and Unfair Competition in English.
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| Year of publication | 2019 |
| Type | Conference abstract |
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| Description | The talk describes a new multidisciplinary course created by teachers of marketing, corporate law, unfair competition and academic English, which was jointly taught at the Faculty of Law, Masaryk University, Czech Republic for the first time in 2018. The main aim of the course was to develop students’ legal and communicative competences, soft skills in English and creative thinking through solving case studies from Czech law. The conference presenters will explain the structure of the course, its topics and requirements. They will also provide samples of activities used in the classroom. This effort is in harmony with current trends of developing English for Academic Purposes (EAP) across disciplines, e.g. Dudley-Evans & St .John (1998), Jordan (1984, 1993 &1996), Swales &Feak (2001). The multidisciplinary course thus enhances theoretical knowledge and its practical application on specific cases. Based on the needs analysis among the first time employers and law graduates (Project Impact 2015) we became aware that students during their studies need more practice in soft skills and communication and also ask for more opportunities to apply theory on specific real life cases in their majoring subjects, law, economics and marketing. As our graduates deal more and more with English speaking clients in Czech legal environment, therefore the course was developed and taught in English, which led to challenges for both the students and the teachers, not only in terms of methodology. Specific terminology proved to be an issue in a number of cases due to inexistence of English equivalents for Czech legal concepts or due to English terms meaning different things in various contexts. These findings may in future stimulate legislators as well as linguists and interpreters in their work with EU Directives. Since our experience so far has proven that there are quite big discrepancies between students’ high command of English and their rather inadequate reactions, behaviour and strategies in carrying out specific tasks, we decided to cater for the these needs. To illustrate some of the classroom activities, students analysed web pages of attorney-at-law companies, suggested improvements in a formal English letter, prepared invitations to general meetings, analysed real life in the area of unfair competition and corporate law and suggested possible solutions. Although the world of English instructors and the world of lawyers as well as economists seem to be different, during the preparation of the course all team members learned a lot from one another. They developed individual tasks together, expanded their repertoire in methodology and IT skills. They also built insights into new disciplines. All of that have been possible thanks to building mutual trust, constant support and motivation. The authors believe that the contents of the course as well as its methodology reflects current trends in education across disciplines and the experience gained can inspire others. |