English Language Skills for Undergraduate Studies

Module title	English Language Skills for Undergraduate Studies
Module code	INT0203
Academic year	2022/3
Credits	30
Module staff	Rachel Elisabeth Brenner (Convenor)

Duration: Term	1	2	3
Duration: Weeks	12	12	2

Number students taking module (anticipated)	10

Description - summary of the module content

Module description

This module will help you to master the academic language and study skills needed to study Mathematics with Business at a UK university. You will study a range of spoken and written subject-related materials, which will enable you to both understand and use English appropriately within an academic context. You will also take part in collaborative tasks, such as presentations, seminars and group projects. This will give you the opportunity to apply your language skills to practical situations, and also to develop key personal skills that you will require as university students.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module aims to enable students who already have a degree of proficiency in spoken and written language skills to develop the skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking in an academic context. For spoken academic skills, classes aim to develop your confidence, fluency and accuracy when participating in seminar discussions, presenting a research topic to a group, and listening and responding to other speakers. For written academic skills, classes aim to develop your awareness and proficiency in key processes when undertaking written assignments. These include finding, understanding and extracting information from texts, and planning, drafting and editing written work. Through these tasks you will also learn to manage your time so that you can work to deadlines.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

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

1. Recognise and use appropriate academic style in spoken and/or written texts
2. Express yourself clearly to a degree of fluency and accuracy in English that enables others to understand and respond to you
3. Exchange and discuss ideas effectively with your peers, showing awareness of their communicative needs
4. Record and classify key information effectively from sources
5. Select, summarize and evaluate relevant information from source texts
6. Organise and present your own ideas logically, following academic conventions
7. Demonstrate your understanding of academic honesty

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

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

8. Carry out independent research, using technology and resources that are relevant to your academic studies

ILO: Personal and key skills

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

9. Review your academic skills and performance by engaging with tutor and peer feedback

Syllabus plan

The four main skills areas of reading, writing, listening and speaking are integrated and will be developed and reviewed throughout the course. In addition, collaboration skills, study skills and online platform training will be embedded into the module.

Spoken Language Skills

General Skills: understanding and applying features of spoken academic language including register, structure, coherence, pronunciation and fluency
Seminar discussion skills: effective management of group discussion including turn-taking, responding to other students’ ideas, reaching a consensus or compromise; using sources to support points;
Presentation skills: showing awareness of an audience’s needs by producing engaging, well-paced and coherently structured spoken language; using visual aids appropriately; responding to audience questions
Listening skills: developing effective comprehension and note-taking skills by studying structural and linguistic features of lectures, interviews, discussions and other spoken media

Written Language Skills

Understanding and applying features of written academic language including vocabulary, register, grammatical structures, cohesion and coherence
Reading Skills: understanding genre, structure, ideas and purpose of written texts on topics and issues related to your academic subject
Writing skills: analysing task requirements, establishing a focus, planning, drafting and responding to feedback
Research Skills: finding and evaluating suitable sources; note-taking, paraphrasing and summarising effectively; generating, recording and analysing data
Following academic writing conventions, particularly for your subject, and adhering to academic honesty principles, including referencing, citing sources and avoiding plagiarism

Learning and teaching

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

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
165	135

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Live Learning and Teaching Activities?	120	Whole-group teaching including teacher-led activities, seminars, and tasks done individually, in pairs or in groups, and individual tutorials
E-Learning Tasks	48	Individual learning of provided materials with short, specific tasks to complete
Guided Independent Study	132	Homework tasks, preparation + completion of coursework, exam preparation

Assessment

Formative assessment

Form of assessment	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Group Presentation (3-4 students)	5 minutes per student/15-20 minutes	1-3, 5-7, 9	Written and spoken teacher and peer feedback
Seminar Discussion (3-4 students)	5 minutes per student/15-20 minutes	1-7	Written and spoken teacher and peer feedback
Integrated Skills: Written Examination	600 word essay, 2 hours	1, 2, 5-7	Written and spoken feedback
Written Assignment	900 words, excluding list of references	1, 2, 5-9	Written and spoken feedback

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Coursework	Written exams	Practical exams
70	30

Details of summative assessment

Form of assessment	% of credit	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Group Presentation (3-4 students)	20	5 minutes per student/15-20 minutes	1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8	Written feedback
Seminar Discussion (3-4 students)	25	5 minutes per student/15 - 20 minutes	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7	Written feedback
Integrated Skills: Written Examination	30	600 word essay, 2 hours	1, 2, 5, 6, 7	Written feedback
Written Assignment	25	1500 words, excluding list of references	1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9	Written feedback

Re-assessment

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

Original form of assessment	Form of re-assessment	ILOs re-assessed	Timescale for re-assessment
Group Presentation	Individual presentation (5 minutes)	1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8	Before exam board
Seminar Discussion	Interview (10 minutes)	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7	Before exam board
Integrated Skills: Written Examination	Re-examination Integrated Skills: Written Exam	1, 2, 5, 6, 7	Before exam board
Written Assignment	Resubmission of original (1250 words)	1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9	Before exam board

Re-assessment notes

Deferral– if you miss an assessment for reasons judged legitimate by the Mitigation Committee, the applicable assessment will normally be deferred. See ‘Details of reassessment’ for the form that assessment usually takes. When deferral occurs there is ordinarily no change to the overall weighting of that assessment.

?Referral– if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to take a referral exam. Only your performance in this exam will count towards your final module grade. A grade of 40% will be awarded if the examination is passed.

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). (2nd ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English for Advanced Learners. (2014). (6th 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

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; un simplified; text; analytical; text; views; content; vocabulary; academic; essay; sources; notetaking; assignments.

Credit value	30
Module ECTS	15
Module pre-requisites	None
Module co-requisites	None
NQF level (module)	4
Available as distance learning?	No
Origin date	16/05/2018
Last revision date	12/08/2021