Course Outline

Course outline, course requirements and assessment.



Academic Reading and Writing 1

Spring Semester 2016 

Weekly Course Outline


Weeks
Course Content
Assessment

Week 1
10-14 Jan

Introduction to the course. Course requirements and assessment. Developing reading and writing skills. Revision of common errors: prepositions, tenses, conditional sentences and academic vocabulary. Grammatical cohesion: reference words such as pronouns and conjunctions. Embedded questions.



Week 2
17-21 Jan

Introduction to basic research skills. Academic essay format. Academic essay writing skills: expository, descriptive, narrative, argumentative / persuasive. Understanding how to avoid plagiarism. Paraphrasing techniques. Extensive reading.



Week 3
24-28 Jan


Week 4
31 Jan-4 Feb

Revision: Basic research skills; APA referencing style, in-text direct and indirect citations, research essay format, and plagiarism. Reading authentic texts. Developing paraphrasing skills.



Week 5
7-11 Feb

CLO 3- Use brainstorming, organizing and planning techniques to generate ideas and narrow down a topic before completing a plan for a piece of writing, and be able to locate and select appropriate sources when needed including the use of library resources. 
CLO 4- Use material from relevant reliable sources to develop clear and detailed text acknowledging materials used by citing sources in APA format and using direct quotations correctly so that detailed information is communicated reliably and with appropriate acknowledgment. Understanding the seriousness of plagiarizing and the consequences of doing so.


Coursework 1
Test 1: 
Basic research skills; APA referencing style, in-text direct and indirect citations, 
research essay format, and plagiarism. Paraphrasing.

Week 6
14-18 Feb

Academic reading. Reading with a purpose.
Extensive reading: The Cop and the Anthem, by O. Henry.
Developing paraphrasing skills. Generating ideas, planning, drafting, revising, editing and proofreading. 

Developing text editing and text correction skills by using software.

Abridgment, adaptation and paraphrasing




Week 7
21-25 Feb

Developing reading and vocabulary skills. Intensive reading and contextualized vocabulary. Increasing vocabulary and academic word base.



Week 8
28 Feb-3 Mar

CLO 1- Use a range of reading strategies and skills to build interactive reading, including identifying different kinds of text structure, identifying main versus supporting detail, and opinion versus fact, drawing conclusions and evaluating, using context and other sources/resources to find and understand words, all with a large degree of independence.
CLO 2- Deploy appropriate skills and strategies to further understanding of academic vocabulary in context.
CLO 3- Use brainstorming, organizing and planning techniques to generate ideas and narrow down a topic before completing a plan for a piece of writing, and be able to locate and select appropriate sources when needed including the use of library resources. 


Coursework 2

Week 9
6-10 Mar

Reading authentic texts. Developing paraphrasing skills to avoid plagiarism.



Week 10
13-17 Mar

Charts, graphs and tables. Extracting information from graphs. Drawing logical conclusions from information contained in graphs, diagrams, pie charts and tables. Identifying trends of development.



Week 11
20-24 Mar

Extensive reading. Identifying main ideas and topics. Distinguishing main ideas from supporting information. Distinguishing examples from main ideas. Making inferences and deductions. Drawing logical conclusions from information contained in texts and graphs.


Week 12
27-31 Mar
Semester break

Week 13
3-7 Apr
Semester break


Week 14
10-14 Apr

Development of writing skills to prepare for writing an academic style essay. Academic essay writing skills: expository, descriptive, narrative, and argumentative / persuasive essays.



Week 15
17-21 Apr

Developing paraphrasing skills.
CLO 3- Use brainstorming, organizing and planning techniques to generate ideas and narrow down a topic before completing a plan for a piece of writing, and be able to locate and select appropriate sources when needed including the use of library resources. 
CLO 4- Use material from relevant reliable sources to develop clear and detailed text acknowledging materials used by citing sources in APA format and using direct quotations correctly so that detailed information is communicated reliably and with appropriate acknowledgement. Understanding the seriousness of plagiarizing and the consequences of doing so.
CLO 5- Draft, revise, edit and proofread written work largely independently using appropriate reference materials, tools, software or websites where necessary. 


Coursework 3
Test 3 - A test and an essay (combined).

Week 16
24-28 Apr

Preparation for the final exam. Reading newspapers, magazines, encyclopedias, guidebooks, textbooks, various internet resources, etc., and making detailed, extensive notes that contain references. Developing paraphrasing skills. Preparing to write an academic essay.



Week 17
1-5 May

Making inferences and deductions. Drawing logical conclusions from information contained in texts and graphs. 
Thu, 5 May - last day of classes.



Week 18
7-12 May

Final assessment (reading and writing): course learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. 


Final assessment




Common Course Outline

Course Description:
First semester BAS course focusing on basic research and academic reading and writing skills. Connects reading to vocabulary acquisition and to the production of academic-style essays containing references. Students apply techniques such as brainstorming, organising and planning to generate ideas, as well as drafting, revising, editing and proofreading written work.

Additional Information:
The course also equips students to access academic texts more effectively whereby they can produce written academic English which is proficient enough to demonstrate their learning and their understanding. In doing so students need to grasp the basics of research skills outlined below. 

Course Learning Outcomes:
CLO 1- Use a range of reading strategies and skills to build interactive reading, including identifying different kinds of text structure, identifying main versus supporting detail, and opinion versus fact, drawing conclusions and evaluating, using context and other sources/resources to find and understand words, all with a large degree of independence.
CLO 2- Deploy appropriate skills and strategies to further understanding of academic vocabulary in context.
CLO 3- Use brainstorming, organizing and planning techniques to generate ideas and narrow down a topic before completing a plan for a piece of writing, and be able to locate and select appropriate sources when needed including the use of library resources. 
CLO 4- Use material from relevant reliable sources to develop clear and detailed text acknowledging materials used by citing sources in APA format and using direct quotations correctly so that detailed information is communicated reliably and with appropriate acknowledgement. Understanding the seriousness of plagiarizing and the consequences of doing so.
CLO 5- Draft, revise, edit and proofread written work largely independently using appropriate reference materials, tools, software or websites where necessary. 

Delivery Framework:
This course is structured in a way that is indicative of the course objectives set and study skills that students need to acquire.

Assessment breakdown:
Basic research skills 20%: Campus designed and administered test. (Outcomes: 3,4)
Reading portfolio10%: Campus designed and administered. (Outcomes: 1,2,3)
Vocabulary 15%: Campus designed and administered. (Outcomes: 1,2,3)
Writing portfolio 25%: Campus designed and administered. (Outcomes: 3,4,5)
Final Exam (Reading 15% and Writing 15%): System-wide designed and administered. (Outcomes, 1,2,3,4,5)

All above mentioned course learning outcomes (CLO 1, CLO 2, CLO 3, CLO 4, CLO 5) will be assessed.

Basic research skills:
You will learn how to reference work using APA style which you will use throughout your Bachelor studies. You will learn the reasons for gaining knowledge and why we need to reference work that we use. Plagiarism is a core element of this assessment with exercises on what is and what is not plagiarism. Your teacher will guide you in sourcing materials to use in learning about specific subject areas. Your assessment will reflect the aforementioned elements in a test format.  

Reading portfolio:
You will be guided by your teacher on readings that are suitable for your study. The readings will be connected to acquiring vocabulary and encouraging writing. You will build a creative reading portfolio of readings accompanied by evidence of comprehension. With the help of your teacher through reading activities you will acquire the skills needed to interpret readings and enrich your knowledge. A grade will be given for the portfolio.

Vocabulary:
At this level of study you will acquire new vocabulary that is connected to your readings. This will be assessed in various ways: vocabulary logs, glossary, written usage in context, and quizzes. The main goal of this assessment is to increase your vocabulary and academic word base.

Writing portfolio:
This will reflect your readings and demonstrate your writing skills that have been taught over the period of the course. The portfolio will reflect your ability to take notes, brainstorm, summarize and check your own work. Your teacher will guide you in attaining these skills and you will submit completed work into your writing portfolio where it will be graded.

Final, reading and writing essay:
There will be two (three) passages, the combined length of which should be no more than 1500 words. One text should be 500-800 words (650-750) words, FK Level 12; the other should be 500-800 words (550-650) words, but at FK Level 10. The latter text should include 1 graph or table. (The third passage should be a chart, graph, or table-linked by its content, if possible, to the topic of the second—the shorter—reading passage.) Five items will assess vocabulary. The student will write an extended, multi-paragraph text (250-300 words) demonstrating exit competency level (5.5 HCT Writing Band) with an introduction, body, and conclusion in one of the following genres: compare/contrast, problems/solutions, causes/effects, or argumentative essay. Grading will be moderated.

Assessment Strategies:
Coursework 1 - Set Exercises: 20%
Basic research skills; APA referencing style, in-text direct and indirect citations, essay format, sourcing and plagiarism awareness.
(Outcomes: 3,4)
Coursework 2 - Set Exercises: 25%
Reading and contextualized vocabulary.
(Outcomes: 1,2,3)
Coursework 3 - Set Exercises: 25%
Development of writing skills to prepare students for writing an academic style essay.
(Outcomes: 3,4,5)
Final Assessment - Written Examination: 30%
Reading 15%: Two texts and one chart/graph/table; 30-35 reading comprehension items to include 5 vocabulary items. Writing 15%: Students write a 250-300 word essay. 2 hour exam: 1 hour for reading and 1 hour for writing.
(Outcomes: 1,2,3,4,5)
Total Weight: 100%.