Description

English Language Skills for Undergraduate Studies (M)

Description - summary of the module content

Module description

This module is designed to enable you to improve your language proficiency and study skills within the contexts of mathematics and business studies, in order to develop your ability to read complex academic texts and to extract and evaluate the relevant information; to produce written assignments in an appropriate format following academic conventions; to develop fluency and confidence in seminar discussions and the delivery of presentations, and to enhance your ability to extract relevant information from lectures.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module aims to provide students who already have a degree of proficiency in spoken and written language skills to develop and strengthen the skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking in an academic context.

During the seminar skills classes the aim is to develop confidence, fluency and accuracy when participating in seminar discussion, presenting the outcome of personal research to a group or listening to speakers. In their academic writing skills classes the core aim is that students will develop awareness and proficiency in essential skills when writing texts and undertaking written assignments both on the current programme and in their subsequent study programme. The module will include a written assignment based on extensive reading and some electronic library-based research, with a presentation of the results.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Use language creatively and flexibly for a range of purposes and audiences
• 2. Engage actively in discussion and show awareness of the communicative needs of others
• 3. Engage in analytical and evaluative thinking
• 4. Research effectively and use target language source materials appropriately
• 5. Extract and synthesise key information from a range of written and spoken sources
• 6. Take accurate and effective notes
• 7. Organise and present ideas within the framework of a structured and reasoned argument
• 8. Monitor writing for good academic practice that avoids plagiarism

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 9. Participate effectively in key elements of the taught programme, which involves operating in the general fields of mathematics and business studies
• 10. Engage in research relating to the specific subject area

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 11. Deliver an effective presentation
• 12. Use spoken and written language skills competently in English
• 13. Use technology relevant to your studies, e.g. electronic journal library catalogues, IT tools, Virtual Learning Environments
• 14. Work co-operatively with others and provide and make use of effective feedback on tasks

Syllabus plan

Syllabus plan

The four skills areas will be covered concurrently in class time. Subskills will be covered sequentially.

Spoken Language Skills

• ·        Group discussion skills: using language appropriately, flexibly and creatively; formulating questions about what they have heard to initiate discussion; showing awareness of other people’s communicative needs by supporting and encouraging their contributions.
• ·        Presentation skills: presenting a topic which students have researched to their group, having organised material to ensure clarity and coherence.
• ·        Listening, comprehension and note-taking skills.

Written Language Skills

• ·        Reading skills: understanding the structure and ideas of complex, unsimplified written text; adopting an analytical approach to text and data, e.g. compare different writers’ views.
• ·        Techniques for monitoring understanding: engaging with text content; relating it to their own knowledge base in order to monitor their own understanding; developing vocabulary which is related to their field of academic study, i.e. mathematics and business.
• ·        Research and writing skills: analysis of essay titles and establishing the focus required to answer the question.
• ·        Evaluating sources for their relevance and academic credibility.
• ·        Locating information from a variety of text types.
• ·        Effective notetaking for assignments.
• ·        Synthesising information from different sources.
• ·        Supporting arguments using source material through summary, paraphrase, quotation.
• ·        Making clear and correctly formatted references to sources.
• ·        Compiling reference lists according to the APA (6^th ed.) conventions.
• ·        Monitoring their writing for good academic practice, which avoids plagiarism, using Turnitin.
• ·        Completing a written assignment relevant to the field in line which academic conventions.

Learning and teaching

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Assessment

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Re-assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

In cases of referral, reassessment will apply only to the failed elements. The module will be capped at 40%. In cases of deferral, reassessment will apply only to the affected elements.

Resources

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Basic reading:

Houston, K. (2009). How to think like a mathematician: A companion to undergraduate mathematics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Longman Business English Dictionary. (2007). (2^nd ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English for Advanced Learners. (2014). (6^th ed.) Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.

Walker, C. (2017). English for Business Studies. Reading: Garnet Publishing Ltd.

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

Web based and electronic resources: ELE – http://vle.exeter.ac.uk

Module has an active ELE page

Indicative learning resources - Other resources

Corballis, T. & Jennings, W (2009) English for Management Studies. Reading: Garnet Publishing Ltd.

Manning, A. Wilding, E. & Harvey, P. (2007). Seminars and Tutorials. Reading: Garnet Publishing Ltd.

Key words search

language; discussion; skills; communication; presentation; research; clarity; coherence; listening; comprehension; written; reading; structure; ideas; complex; unsimplified; text; analytical; text; views; content; vocabulary; academic; essay; sources; notetaking; assignments.