-To develop students comprehension skills and reading strategies by using authentic texts published by the British/American press and other information sources;

-To expand students lexical knowledge, namely i) the core vocabulary related to the topics mentioned below, which, as a rule, constitute the repertoire of the so called hard news ii) other useful high-frequency words or expressions;

-To improve students oral skills by asking them to give short oral presentations to stimulate self-confidence and create an awareness of their communication, summarizing and self-monitoring skills.

-To develop students writing skills through summary and summary-analysis writing assignments, comprehension questions, paraphrasing and/or other writing activities.

-To raise students overall cultural awareness about current issues.