Tuesday's assignment - 2016-02-23

Good morning everyone,

Task one:

In order to get familiar with the Canadian workplace, there are a lot of things we need to consider. Click on this link and follow the instructions given. 

Task two:

Here is a list of business idioms that are taken from this website. Please go over them and try to understand each one’s meaning and then follow the tasks below.
Pick five to six of the following idioms and use them in sentences of your own.

• -          Please send me the information ASAP because I’m late with this presentation.
• -          Let’s do the things by the book.
• -          We have a game plan to submit this project.
• -          We should go the extra mile for our company.
• -          I have to raise the bar to show what I can do.

Take three:

Compose a short story about any event/meeting that has happened to you at your previous workplace. Use at least five to six from these idioms n your story.

Request two from your peers to check and edit your work before you publish it on your blog.

-    When I was looking for a job, I saw something under the table. Everything was up in the air for me because it was a uphill battle to get a job.

I felt like other people had a upper hand.

I didn’t want to be a yes man to get a job, but I was trying to get a white collar job. So, I did some calls and touched base with some people and got a new job.

Monday's assignment - 2016-02-22

Monday's assignment

National Occupational Classification

The National Occupational Classification (NOC) is a system of organizing information about occupations in Canada. Every occupation in Canada has a NOC job description, which provides listings of the main duties, employment requirements and job titles. These descriptions are identified by a four-digit code called the NOC code.

Knowing the NOC code for the job you are interested in can make online research easier and quicker. This is because many job search services organize their job listings and occupation information by the NOC code. Here’s how the NOC code works:

• The first number identifies the sector. There are 10 sectors in total (0–9). For example, 0 refers to management occupations, while 6 refers to sales and service occupations.

• The second number refers to the level of education or training the job requires (1–6). Generally:

1 requires a university education

2 or 3 requires a community college or apprenticeship training

4 or 5 requires a high school diploma and/or job-specific training

6 usually requires a short demonstration or on-the-job training

• The third and fourth numbers refer to specific occupations within the sector.

In the example on the right, the 2 refers to the sector Natural and Applied Sciences; the 1 means it generally requires a university degree; together, the code 2146 is the code specific to aerospace engineers. Because the NOC groups occupations that are similar to each other, it is easy to find information about occupations that are related to your occupation of choice. This can be useful if you cannot find a job in your occupation and want to broaden your job search.

Locate the NOC website (www5.hrsdc.gc.ca/NOC). 

Task 1:

List the 10 sectors that the first digit of the NOC code refers to. In small groups, brainstorm three occupations for each sector.

0 Management occupations	6 Sales and service occupations
1 Business, finance and administration occupations	7 Trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations
2 Natural and applied sciences and related occupations	8 Natural resources, agriculture and related production occupations
3 Health occupations	9 Occupations in manufacturing and utilities
4 Occupations in education, law and social, community and government services
5 Occupations in art, culture, recreation and sport

Task 2:

Think of an occupation you would like to enter in Canada (either as a survival job, or in the occupation you are trained for). Which of the above sectors is this occupation in?

5 Occupations in art, culture, recreation and sport 

Task 3:

Find the NOC (5243) code for an occupation that interests you. Read the NOC description for this occupation.       

a) How many Major Groups are listed in this sector? 
There are 5 Major Groups listed. What are they?

- Technical occupations in libraries, public archives, museums and art galleries;

- Photographers, graphic arts technicians and technical and co-ordinating occupations in motion pictures, broadcasting and the performing arts

- Announcers and other performers, n.e.c.

- Creative designers and craftspersons

- Athletes, coaches, referees and related occupations

b) What types of occupations are within this Major Group (represented by the three-digit code)?

The types of occupation are:

5241 Graphic designers and illustrators

5242 Interior designers and interior decorators

5243 Theatre, fashion, exhibit and other creative designers

5244 Artisans and craftspersons

5245 Patternmakers - textile, leather and fur products

Read the example titles in the NOC description. Do you think knowing these titles can be useful in your job search? How?

Yes, they can be useful because they can help me to find my correct position.

Example: With this description, I can see wich education level they need for this job.

Read the main duties in the NOC description. List the duties you think are most relevant to this position.

The most relevant duties are:

- Creative ability, as demonstrated by a portfolio of work, is required;

- Use of computer-aided design (CAD) software;

- A university degree.

Task 4:
Prepare a short presentation for the class about this occupation. Include related job titles, main duties and employment requirements.

Monday's Assignment

Monday's Assignment

Good morning, our first activity this morning is on accent reduction. Do you have an accent? How thick is your accent? How much have you spent on accent reduction?

Everybody has an accent. Is your accent sin or sick, thin or thick? More cartoons here.

How important is it to have a Canadian or North American accent? Why? Discuss with a partner.

Here are your tasks:

1. Check out the following accent reduction programs:
1. Accent Master
2. Accent School
3. Accent Science Systems
4. Test Den
5. Udemy
2. Fill in the following table:

Program	Pros	Cons	Price	Rank (Best = 1)
Accent Master	Video lessons, private & small group classes and customized software	price	-          $ 1280 for 12 sessions. -          $ 1720 for 18 sessions -          $ 2140 for 24 sessions	3
Accent School	Free Accent reducing software	Looks superficial	$ 255 five 60 minute sessions	4
Accent Science Systems	·         Customized lessons for different language backgrounds ·         Extensive video, audio and text materials			1
Test Den	DVD course + online practice + 1.5 hour private lesson	Looks superficial	$99	5
Udemy	Oline Course		$ 25	2

Post the table of your results on your blog. Feel free to comment specifically on Accent Science Systems. Then visit your classmates' blogs and publish your comments.

Tuesday's assignment - January 19, 2016

Good morning, everyone,

How to Work Well in Canada is our theme this week. Trying to observe and understand culture is like trying to observe and understand an iceberg. Anyone who is either looking for a job or starting out a new job will require some time to figure out the expectations, culture, and customs of any or prospective workplace.

Task 1:

Look up the meanings of the vocabulary words below.

Aggressive (Negative): ready or likely to attack or confront; characterized by or resulting from aggression.

Equality (Positive): the state of being equal, especially in status, rights, and opportunities.

Rituals (noun): the prescribed order of performing a ceremony, especially one characteristic of a particular religion or church.  

Annoyed (Negative): slightly angry; irritated.

Minimize (Verb): reduce (something, especially something unwanted or unpleasant) to the smallest possible amount or degree.

Task (Noun / Verb): assign a piece of work to.  

Collaborative (Positive):  produced or conducted by two or more parties working together.

Oblivious (Negative): not aware of or not concerned about what is happening around one.

Valuable (Positive): worth a great deal of money.

Customs (Positive): an action or way of behaving that is usual and traditional

Promptness (Positive): done, performed, delivered,

Values (Positive): the regard that something is held to deserve; the importance, worth, or usefulness of something.

Embarrassment (Negative): a feeling of self-consciousness, shame, or awkwardness.

Task 2:

Use at least five of these vocabulary words to write an email to a friend describing to him/her the Canadian culture.

Hello Hala, I hope this e-mail find you well.

I’m writing to talk about the Canadian culture.

After four months here in Canada i’m feeling happy because Canada is a country where you can feel equality between the people. The values of this people are pretty good and they never makes me fell annoyed or embarrassed.

The good task is here in Canada you can collaborate with the country.

Best Regards.

Fabio   

Monday's Assignment 2016-01-11

Monday's Assignment

We all make mistakes, but how we deal with them may be different in different cultures. Making an excuse is one of them:

Do dogs and excuses appear together in excuses in your L1? Here are more excuses in English.

Here are your tasks:

Pick a favourite.

1. Vocabulary & Pronunciation: Time Off from Work
1. Do not practise silently only. Speak aloud the new words, comparing the pronunciation carefully with the audio.

Follow the link of the audio: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jkfsn3h059xe62x/podcast%20176.m4a?dl=0

1. Make sentences using the new vocabulary.

bachelor party - I have a friend who will marry. But before we will organize a bachelor party for him.

Vegas - The bachelor party will be in Vegas.

time off from work - I need to get time off from work to go to Vegas.

to miss out - I don't want to miss out on all the fun.

vacation leave - I need a vacation leave to go to Vegas.

company policy - The company police It does not allow me to take vacation this month.

maternity leave -  leave of absence - I have some options like maternity leave or a leave of absence.

calling in sick - I'm thinking about just calling in sick.

accumulated sick leave - I have a lot accumulated sick leave.

leaving him hanging. - I like my boss and i don't want to leaving him hanging.

straight out - The best thing to do is just straight out.

wild weekend - Vegas will be a wild weekend with the guys.

the guys

1. Role play: Plagiarism
1. Listen. Then discuss with a partner.
2. Practise the dialogue by yourself and then with your partner.
3. Record your dialogue on Chirbit or Audioboom and place it, with these instructions, on your blog.

Follow the link of the audio: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ov89eqoqr6phooo/podcast%20919.m4a?dl=0

1. Write a brief trip report (no more than 100 words) for last Thursday's visit to TRL. 
1. If you didn't go, include your excuse and interview a classmate who did.
2. Add pictures (feel free to steal from my FB).
3. Have 2 classmates check your work before hitting the Publish button.