İstanbul Okan University

STEP: Course Overview
Our Supporting Team of English Practices (STEP) is the initial branch that our Preliminary Academic Course of English (PACE) students meet while entering their freshman year. These faculty driven lessons are a sub-division of PACE. They provide guidance to our former PACE students to the language that they will see throughout their education and in their careers.

STEP consists of Courses of Ongoing Rudimentary English (CORE) and Basic English Courses (ENG). The STEP team comprises of highly trained lecturers who work with undergraduates- both Turkish instructed and English instructed students. They focus primarily on the English goals and necessities of the students at hand to assist in understanding their studies, critical thinking, problem solving and cooperation between one another with in their faculties.

CORE Courses
CORE courses introduce the students to university-level academic English skills. Its goal is to enable building on the skills the students have developed through the preparatory year at the university or earlier school years and to progress towards the advanced level of literacy.

CORE courses aim to develop the core transferable skills in critical thinking, reading, and writing, listening and speaking that are used in university courses, regardless of the program of studies.

Goals of CORE Courses

• To strengthen students’ academic skills
• To encourage students to respond critically to ideas
• To prepare students for listening, reading, writing and speaking in courses across the curriculum
• To help the students develop strategies to enhance listening and speaking performance
• To help students develop basic information literacy skills
• To help students develop awareness of their progress as listeners, readers, writers and speakers

CORE Course Credit:

Theory: 2
Practice: 2
Credit: 3
ECTS: 4

ENG Courses

ENG courses are for Istanbul Okan University Turkish instructed student body. These courses are general English courses. It is intended for students who have already learned little English, but who do not yet feel confident enough to move on. ENG courses are conducted fully online though LMS. Despite the courses being online, students who take ENG courses, have their final examination in class.

An important and valuable component of ENG courses is the individual and/or group meeting time scheduled each week for the students with their instructors in class where the course tutor works with each student or a group of students to set goals and to develop skills to meet these goals.

Goals of ENG Courses

• To help students develop their General English skills at Elementary Level
• To expand students’ vocabulary and to consolidate their grammar skills
• To enhance all four skill areas – Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking
• To help students develop their existing language skills in four basic areas
• To encourage students to be able to introduce themselves, to talk about daily routine, past and present events and future actions

ENG Course Credit:

Theory: 2
Practice: 2
Credit: 3
ECTS: 4

CORE&ENG Success Criteria: Course Grade in the CORE &ENG courses is based upon the success criteria specified by the instructors at the beginning of the courses. The criteria will slightly differ between CORE and ENG courses due to the courses nature.However, participation in the courses and success rate in the course assignments will always be ground parts for course success.

• Course Contents
• Proficiency Exam (Sample)

The course letter grade that will appear in the students’ transcript corresponds to the following grades:

STEP Policies and Expectations
Attendance policy
According to university policy, missing more that 20% of taught hours of any class constitutes failure due to the absenteeism with VF letter grade in the transcript.