Introductory description

The Text-Based Studies module is designed to raise students’ awareness of academic expectations and demands in the UK with regard to written work, as well as of the language they will need. As such, students are faced with a range of relevant and demanding reading material – including longer texts - and will practise the skills that they need for tackling ‘heavier’ reading.

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

Unit 1

• Note-taking and summarising
• Distinguishing main/minor points
• Reading for information (for an essay)
• Selecting reading, being critical (facts, opinions)

Unit 2

• Types of writing
• Avoiding plagiarism, References & quotations
• Style: formal/informal/language of caution
• Understanding titles, planning essays and good paragraphing
• Note-taking skills& paraphrasing
• Editing for errors
• Generalisations & examples
• Using/combining multiple sources, points of view

Unit 3

• Reading longer articles, Identifying key sections
• Determining meaning from context
• Critical note-taking when reading longer articles
• Identifying the viewpoint of a writer

Unit 4

• Reporting verbs and the language of comparison
• The language of argument & discussion
• Coherence/cohesion/linking conjunctions
• Writing about visuals / Using numbers

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• Use a range of reading strategies to select data, information and ideas from different sources and present these in an appropriate fashion to support an academic argument.
• Produce a range of written texts showing recognition of academic audiences, purposes and genres.
• Use the grammar needed for effectively producing the different academic text types and sentence structures.
• Identify some key strengths and needs of academic communication skills development, and opportunities to address these.

Subject specific skills

• Linguistic knowledge of academic texts: vocabulary and academic style, grammar and sentence structure)
• The writing process: generating ideas, planning, drafting and editing
• Reading strategies and comprehension skills: navigating texts, getting the gist, identifying key points
• Paraphrasing, summarising and synthesising from sources
• Reading into writing process

Transferable skills

• Note-taking
• Library skills (e.g. finding and evaluating sources)
• Referencing
• Academic reflection
• Time-management