ELP Foundations Curriculum
How does ELP Foundations work?
- Incoming international PhD and MFA students complete setup tasks in our preboarding site over several weeks in late May. These are self-paced tutorials which introduce the course tools and assist students in setting up their Northwestern digital tools, such as email, Canvas, GlobalConnect VPN, multi-factor authentication, Padlet, Zoom, etc.
- Once the course begins in late June, students access online content and assignments through a Northwestern Canvas course site. Students complete weekly assignments from Sunday to Saturday at their own pace. Assignments that include interaction with other students will be due on Thursday of each week to give peers time to respond by the Saturday deadline.
- Course content includes information on academic culture, introductions to the other students in the course, strategies for using spoken English in US contexts, and practical advice on getting settled at Northwestern as an international student. Students will receive personalized feedback on their assignments from ELP faculty, teaching assistants, and graduate student online peer mentors.
- Students who need additional linguistic support prior to arrival may opt in to use ELSA™ online software, with thousands of lessons on grammar, fluency, and pronunciation that provide live feedback to users, and/or meet individually via Zoom with one of our faculty members.
- Students get to know one another through online discussions and optional weekly synchronous sessions through Zoom videoconferencing. All coursework may be completed asynchronously, but optional live synchronous discussion sessions and faculty office hours are offered for those who wish to participate.
- Students who complete the course will be able to attend up to five guided field trips to explore Evanston and Chicago and meet their online classmates in person.
ELP Foundations students sample local pastries and coffee before heading out for the Fall Walking Tour of Evanston and the North Shore social event.