Detailed Sample Task: Stage II

CLB 6 - Listening, Writing Comprehending Information, Reproducing Information

Workplace Writing

Real-World Task

Listen to an update on a work project and summarize the main points.

Planning Context

Helpful Knowledge:

General knowledge of workplace norms  in Canada.
General knowledge of staff meetings  and/ or online meeting etiquette.
Some knowledge of note-taking  strategies and or common abbreviations and symbols.

Context:

In the Canadian workplace, meetings or presentations are common ways to share important information and updates. Taking notes during a meeting or presentation is a useful strategy to identify and remember important details, and to ensure tasks are assigned to specific individuals.

Vocabulary and Grammar

Sample Vocabulary:

update
status
progress/ progression
objectives
end goal
ongoing
deadline
extension
before / in the beginning / at the start
after/ at the end
so far/ thus far

Sample Grammar:

Present perfect progressive tense  when reporting updates on a continuing project or task.
Future tense when reporting plans  for project or task completion.
Mixed tenses in compound or complex sentences to describe progress and plans.
Signposts/ logical connectors to indicate sequence and/ or reason.

Knowledge and Strategies

Textual and Functional Knowledge:

Workplace meeting genre.
Note-taking genre.
Openings and closings of a presentation  of a topic.
Common expressions noting  time/ progression of time in a project  or task.
Common expression to indicate contrast between stages of project or task progression.
Note taking conventions; common short forms or abbreviations.

Sociolinguistic Knowledge:

Awareness of the unspoken dos and don’ts of the Canadian workplace.
Soft skills for the Canadian workplace  and workplace meetings.
Expectations around taking meeting minutes.

Activities and Tasks

Sample Skill-Building Activities:

Listen to sample updates on work projects from meetings to identify the main ideas or topics, the purpose of the updates, and signposts to break the stage of the update into subtopics or chunks.
Review past progressive and future tenses.
Identify tenses in update subtopics.
Listen to sample updates on work projects from meetings to identify actions that were started in the past and continue, as well as actions that are planned for the future.
Use a timeline or graphic organizer to sequence events when listening to a sample update.
Review common symbols and abbreviations used when taking notes.
Review different types of note-taking styles and methods (Cornell notes, mind mapping, timelines, apps and so on).
Listen to a sample update on a work project from a meeting and practice taking notes.

Sample Skill-Using Tasks:

Listen to an update on a work project  and answer questions about it.
Summarize the main points from an update on a project.

Sample Assessment Tasks:

Listen to an update on a work project  and summarize the main points.

Teaching Considerations

Cultural Considerations:

Discuss and compare approaches to communication in Canadian workplaces and other countries to develop intercultural awareness.

Digital Literacy Strategies:

Successful completion of some tasks may require some baseline digital knowledge and skills.

Learners may need to:

Understand and use email and meeting etiquette.
Use videoconferencing technology for online meetings.
Have keyboarding and typing skills.

Instructors can:

Use digital tools such as translation or pronunciation tools to support language learning and foster autonomous learning.
Introduce websites that are relevant to the task(s).

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Indigenization Strategies:

Instructors can:

Use diverse representations of people in all your learning resources and images, including people who are 2SLGBTQIA+, Indigenous, Francophone and of other cultures, and people who have disabilities or who are neurodivergent.
Recognize that learners with disabilities and learners who are neurodivergent may need accommodations in the workplace; when possible, help learners of all abilities understand their rights in the workplace.
Recognize that some learners may have different views. You can be sensitive to their differing opinions, but all learners benefit from EDI, and all learners have the right to an inclusive and equitable learning environment.
Teach that race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, family status, genetic characteristics and disability are all protected grounds under the Canadian Human Rights Act.
Raise learner awareness of the need for respecting and using preferred pronouns of co-workers when making requests or talking about them with others.

Trauma-informed Strategies:

Possible Trauma Triggers:

Learners who have experienced trauma can be triggered by people in positions of authority; make sure learners understand their rights in the workplace and give strategies for making polite requests.
Questioning can be triggering for learners who have experienced trauma; be careful with the tone of questions in any kind of meeting situation and make sure learners understand the purpose of the activities.

Strategies:

Give learners advance warning of discussions of this topic.
Giving learners the knowledge, skills and language to access resources can be empowering.

Resources

Outings, Guest Speaker Suggestions, Extension Activities:

Invite a manager or supervisor from an organization to talk about workplace expectations regarding sharing updates and documenting information for workplace projects.
Use graphic organizers to take notes summarizing short presentations  or videos.
Role-play using notes to help describe what happened in the meeting  for a colleague who was away.
Practice taking formal meeting minutes for an employer.

Units and Modules:

Avenue Course Builder: Select the theme Employment, and CLB 5, 6 and 7 for units related to meetings and note taking (adapt for the CLB level you teach).
- CLB 5-6 Giving and Listening to Presentations
- CLB 5+ Participating in Meetings
- CLB 7 Participating in Workplace Meetings

Lessons and Activities:

(Adapt for the CLB level you teach)

Instructor Resources and References: