Sharjah British Council offers English courses

The British Council in Sharjah has lined up a number of general English language courses which begin at its premises tomorrow.

Sonya Storey-Webb, the Council's Marketing Officer and Teacher, told Gulf News yesterday that students were registering for the courses, and all new students need to complete a short test before registering.

"The British Council runs courses for beginners to advanced students. Ladies only courses are held in the morning and mixed classes before and after iftar throughout Ramadan," she said , adding that all general courses provided by the council are 36 hours long.

The council carefully selects teachers who must be fluent in English and be graduates holding a qualification for the teaching of English as a foreign language.

"For companies, the British Council Sharjah organises general English or business English courses for employees. The courses provide development of general or business English for everyday communication purposes in the four skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking," she said.

Before the courses start, students are asked to complete a needs analysis questionnaire and take a level test.

"These allow us to assess the level of proficiency of the students and also design a course which meets the linguistic and communicative needs of the participants," she added.

Justin Kernot, Manager of the British Council, Sharjah, urged students wishing to study in the UK or migrate to Canada, New Zealand, or Australia to do the intensive IELTS preparation course, which will begin at the council on Tuesday.

"In addition to the IELTS course, the British Council can also offer preparation courses for groups of students who wish to take an examination which assesses their level of English, including KET, PET, FCE, CAE, and CPE for general English, and BEC 1,2,3 or BULATS for business English," he said, adding that all students attending a course at the British Council, Sharjah, would receive a certificate upon completion.

Kernot said that the courses provided by the British Council, Sharjah, varied from general English courses to specialist courses for doctors, scientists, lawyers and other professionals.

He said the council has already provided courses to various public departments and private companies in the emirate, including the Sharjah Department of Culture and Information, the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Sharjah Educational Zone, Hamriya Free Zone, Sharjah Medical Group, Khatib and Alami Engineering Company, and BP Amoco.