JOB INTERVIEWS AS A MEANS OF ENCOURAGING SPEAKING

This talk focuses on a job interview module implemented in the Advanced 1 course at Afeka College of Engineering The course content was remodelled according to the CEFR reform. Afeka’s raison d’etre includes equipping future engineers with disciplinary knowledge, academic skills as well as other crucial skills in today’s Hi-Tech industry, such as effective communication and teamwork. With this rationale in mind, we employ progressive pedagogies and learning materials to target real-life applications.

The module follows a communicative task-based approach and targets all four skills. Students read sample interviews and listen to audio-visual materials, such as TED-talks and YouTube clips on tips to succeed at job interviews, thus, applying mediating skills. Students then answer in writing 15/20 sample interview questions describing their past professional activities. Finally, they take part in graded oral interview-simulations. The latter calls for the use of social interaction skills, such as interaction in occupational situations, engagement in conversation with the interviewer, and the use of communicative strategies, such as asking for clarification and compensating. In large classes students recorded their interviews.

The stages and activities of the module, the assessment rubric, and the breakdown of can-do descriptors for each activity will be shared in the talk.