Finnish for Professionals 2 (B1-B2) (5 cr)

Objective

On completion of the course, the student will be able to communicate well in Finnish in his/her work environment and relate field-specific or general work related information in written and spoken forms. The student will identify the difference between formal and informal style. He/she will understand both field-specific and general work related texts. The student will also be able to both discuss and write clear and structured texts about topics related to his/her field or work in general (for eg. report, essay, memorandum). The student will know how to improve his or her language skills independently. The student’s communication skills will correspond to the skills level B1.2-B2.1 as defined by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

Content

- Communication in oral and written work related situations
- The situational variation of language (differences between the formal and informal language)
- Reading, listening, speaking and writing texts related to the working life and student’s own field as well as widening the professional vocabulary
- Revision of grammatical structures (building and connecting sentences, verb forms) and structures of written language (participles and infinitive or participial constructions)
- Basics of constructing texts and standardisation of language
- Strengthening language learning strategies.

Location and time

6.1.-23.5.2025
Weekdays and times vary. Exact schedule later in Moodle.
Part of the classes will be independent small group studying according to teacher's instructions.

Materials

Teacher's material.

If you wish, you can familiarize yourself with the following literature:
Gehring, Heinzmann, Päivärinne, Udd: Suomen mestari 4.
J. Piirainen: Työelämän suomea 2.

Teaching methods

Virtual teaching in Zoom, small group work and independent studying on Moodle workspace.

Exam schedules

- oral exam
- written exam/ other written work

The time and method of taking the exams will be defined at the start of the course.

Student workload

The student's amount of work 5 credits = 135 h
Virtual teaching, small group working, homework and independent studying.

Further information

This Finnish as a second language course is open to all Metropolia degree students and also students in Metropolia Open University of Applied Sciences.

Good studying skills and a lot of independent work required: reading and writing texts and studying grammar and vocabulary. Book time for independent studying on your calendar at least 5 h/week.

Artificial intelligence is used in the course only according to the teacher's instructions.

Evaluation scale

0-5

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

- The students’ skills are sufficient for writing comprehensible and partly detailed texts. He/she is familiar with the linguistic means for writing clear and coherent text.
- The student identifies principles of different levels of formality in communication in different text types and takes them into account in his/her texts.
- The student is able to read many kinds of texts on general work, studies and field-related topics. He/she identifies the main points in a text. The student is able to communicate information and express his/her thoughts and views also in many kinds of oral situations related to studies and work.
- The student receives feedback and makes an effort to apply it in his/her oral and written communication.

Assessment criteria, good (3)

- The student is able to use relatively diverse sentence structures and linguistic means to write a text. He/she has a relatively extensive vocabulary on his/her own field and work related topics.
- The student is able to compose clear, quite detailed texts and oral presentations related to work and/or field-specific topics taking into account the requirements of different levels of formality in communication.
- The student understands many kinds of texts related to studies, work and his/her own field. He/she is able to find the main points in a text and identifies the purpose of the writer and the text. The student is able to take part in discussions related to his/her field and communicate information and views related to it quite precisely.
- The student is able to assess his/her language skills and set development goals.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

- The student has a good command of basic grammatical structures and quite an extensive professional vocabulary.
- The student is able to compose clear, coherent and quite detailed texts and presentations related to his/her field and work in general taking into account the correct level of formality in a situation.
- The student understands quite easily a wide range of texts related general topics and to his/her field. He/she is able to summarise the main points of the texts and describe, analyse and compare their contents. The student is able to communicate in a clear manner and compose well-structured texts. He/she expresses himself/herself relatively efficiently and in detail also in oral conversations.
- The student is willing and able to develop his/her language skills in a goal-oriented manner.

Assessment methods and criteria

Continuous assessment (written and oral assignments, participation to classes and small groups) and oral and written exams/written work.

Qualifications

Previous knowledge of Finnish on the B1 level (e.g. at least Suomen mestari 1-3 and Finnish for professional 2 or equivalent studies.

Further information

Starting level: B1.1-B1.2
Target level: B1.2-B2.1