LLLEXILINK / LESSON 02

Workplace Skills and Career Development

Professional communication, teamwork and career growth

B2 · Upper-intermediate 80-minute lesson 20 target collocations

Workplace vocabulary · SkELL investigation · Lexical approach

Professionals collaborating and discussing ideas during a business meeting
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Student profile

LexiLink · Workplace Skills B2 80 minutes

Complete the tasks, investigate word partnerships in SkELL and prepare a short career-development paragraph.

80-minute lesson route

Teacher-facing timing plan; the tasks below follow this sequence.

0–5 min · Warm-upDiscuss workplace strengths and career goals.
5–17 min · ReadingRead the text and complete comprehension tasks.
17–27 min · NoticingMatch and complete target collocations.
27–42 min · DDL with SkELLInvestigate four keywords and discover natural lexical collocations.
42–52 min · RetrievalOdd One Out and Find the Collocate.
52–62 min · CategorisingCollocation Sorting and Lexical Cloze.
62–70 min · CorrectionRepair unnatural lexical combinations.
70–77 min · ProductionWrite at least 100 words about a career-development plan.
77–80 min · ReflectionReview your score and share one SkELL discovery.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the lesson, you will be able to recognise and use lexical collocations related to career development, verify word partnerships with SkELL, interpret related words in context and describe professional goals more naturally.

Target collocations: definitions and synonyms

Study the English definitions and compare the synonyms. No translations are provided.

Reading: Building a Career Step by Step

Read the text carefully or listen to it. Target collocations are shown in bold.

Listen to the reading
Browser voice · English pronunciation
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From First Job to Professional Growth

Career development usually begins with understanding your strengths and deciding what you want to achieve. It helps to set career goals and identify the abilities you need to reach them. People can develop professional skills through courses, projects and practical tasks. For many graduates, the next priority is to gain work experience that connects classroom knowledge with real workplace demands.

When looking for a position, candidates should update their CV, apply for a job that matches their interests and submit an application that clearly presents their qualifications. If they are invited to attend an interview, they can prepare examples that demonstrate their abilities. Clear, relevant answers can help candidates make a good impression and answer questions confidently.

Professional success also depends on how people work with others. Employees need to take responsibility for their tasks and manage their workload carefully. They are often expected to meet performance targets, work collaboratively with colleagues and solve problems when plans change. Constructive teams also provide feedback so that members can learn from experience and improve their work.

Work can sometimes be demanding, so employees need to handle pressure without losing sight of priorities. They can continue learning by asking for feedback, sharing ideas and building useful contacts. It is valuable to build a professional network, improve performance over time and pursue career opportunities that match long-term goals. Career development is not a single event; it is a process of learning, contribution and reflection.

Reading Task A — Choose the best answer

Reading Task B — True or False?

Choose True or False according to the text.

Reading Task D — Match the idea to the paragraph

Choose the paragraph number (1–4). Some paragraph numbers may be used more than once.

1. Matching · 10 points

Choose the correct ending.

2. Complete the Sentence · 10 points

Choose the lexical collocation that best completes each sentence.

3. SkELL Collocation Clusters · 10 minutes · 10 points (teacher-scored)

Open SkELL. For each keyword, use Word Sketch or example sentences to find at least two lexical collocations. Write one original sentence using each of your first two collocations. Then open Similar words, record two candidate synonyms or related words, and note a corpus example or context you checked. Related words are not automatically interchangeable: check their meaning and word partnerships in context. Your collocations, original sentences, Similar words and corpus notes will be submitted with this lesson for teacher review.

Investigation routine
Keyword → find collocations in SkELL → record similar words → check a real example → decide whether each related word can replace the keyword in that context.
CAREERSearch focus: verb + noun lexical collocations
Find verbs that naturally combine with career.
SKILLSSearch focus: verb + noun lexical collocations
Find verbs that describe building, using or showing skills.
EXPERIENCESearch focus: verb + noun lexical collocations
Find verbs associated with obtaining or using experience.
TEAMWORKSearch focus: adjective + noun lexical collocations
Find adjectives that describe the quality or nature of teamwork.

Teacher scoring: up to 10 points for distinct, accurate lexical collocations supported by SkELL evidence. Similar words are assessed for relevance and contextual interpretation; related words are not automatically interchangeable.

Your SkELL records and original sentences will be submitted with the lesson; no separate copying is needed.

4. Odd One Out · Based on SkELL · 10 points

Choose the collocation that does not fit the pattern of the other three. Use your SkELL notes to check which combinations are natural in English. After checking, read the explanation.

5. Find the Verb, Find the Collocate · 10 points

Choose the verb that completes each workplace collocation.

6. Collocation Sorting · 10 points

Choose the verb that creates a natural lexical collocation.

7. Lexical Cloze · 10 points

Word bank: set career goals · develop professional skills · gain work experience · update your CV · attend an interview · make a good impression · take responsibility · manage your workload · meet performance targets · build a professional network

8. Collocation Repair · 10 points

Choose the best correction. Focus on natural lexical word partnerships.

9. Productive Recall Challenge · 5 points (teacher-scored)

Write at least 100 words on My Career Development Plan. Use at least eight target collocations from this lesson.

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0 words — 100-word minimum to submit; no maximum

Teacher awards up to 5 points for accurate, appropriate use of distinct target collocations and a clear career-development plan.

Submit your lesson work to the teacher

Your profile, exercise responses, SkELL collocations and original sentences, related words, corpus notes, writing paragraph and available scores will be collected in the teacher’s spreadsheet. Complete all four clusters and a paragraph of at least 100 words before submitting.

Lesson score

Auto-scored sections: reading MCQ, True/False, paragraph matching, Matching, Sentence Completion, Odd One Out, Find the Collocate, Sorting, Lexical Cloze and Collocation Repair (100 points total). SkELL cluster (10) and productive writing (5) are teacher-scored. Maximum lesson total: 115 points.

LexiLink · Connect words. Build fluency. Your SkELL collocations, original sentences, Similar words, corpus notes and writing paragraph are included in the lesson submission. Complete the required fields and submit your work to the teacher.