About the Course
Pre-Advanced English corresponds to the B2+ to early C1 level on the CEFR scale. At this stage, you are no longer just an "independent" speaker—you are becoming a fluent, effective, and precise user of the language. You can speak spontaneously, catch subtle humor or sarcasm, and use English effortlessly in professional or academic settings.
What You Can Do at the Pre-Advanced Level
Fluency: Interact with native speakers with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction quite possible without strain for either party.
Complex Arguments: Produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a topical issue, giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.
Nuance: Understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in your field of specialization.
Core Skills Breakdown
Skill | Pre-Advanced (B2+/C1) Expectations | Common Practice Topics |
Grammar | Using advanced structures to add emphasis, nuance, or precise timing to your ideas. | Inversion (Seldom have I seen...), Cleft sentences (What concerns me is...), Advanced Conditionals, Future in the Past. |
Vocabulary | Active vocabulary ranges from 4,000 to 6,000 words. Using precise verbs instead of modifying weak ones. | Words like advocate, inherent, versatile, implement, trigger, unprecedented. |
Reading | Understanding long, complex texts, contemporary literature, and specialized articles, even when they are out of your field. | Academic papers, opinion essays, editorial columns, classic and modern novels. |
Speaking | Expressing ideas fluently and precisely, adjusting your tone smoothly based on whether you are in a formal meeting or a casual bar. | Negotiating, debating abstract concepts, presenting complex data, using professional euphemisms. |
How to Achieve Full Advanced Mastery (C1/C2)
Eliminate Repetition with Synonyms: Stop relying on safe words like important, bad, good, or very. Replace them with precise, descriptive alternatives like paramount, detrimental, exceptional, or substantially.
Master Discourse Markers: Use sophisticated organizational phrases to guide your listener through complex arguments (e.g., Notwithstanding the fact that..., Conversely..., By the same token...).
Immerse in Natural Native Content: Read high-level publications like The Economist, The New Yorker, or scientific journals. Listen to unscripted debates, stand-up comedy, and podcasts where speakers talk at full native speed using heavy slang, idioms, or cultural references.
Your Instructor
Gregg Greening
Hello and nice to meet you. My name is Gregg, I'm from Paradise California, and a former President and Managing Director of Vocational Training and English Conversation schools in both Japan and China with over 25 years experience in the fields of Conversational English, Business English, TOEIC and IELTS preparation instruction and more to corporate clients, university undergraduates and students of all ages and abilities. I have established and developed 3 schools in both Japan and China since 1982 and have recently completed a 3 year term teaching technical English courses at Fuzhou University, Fujian, China, covering English Linguistics, Oral English Presentations, Academic Writing and Technical Engineering English Vocabulary.