Besides the Humanities module which I had to retake, the other major module is English Language, where it covers the history and evolution of the language from Latin to Chaucer to Shakespeare to Dickens to the simplified and colloquialism of modern times.
The structure of the module is as follows :
First spoken by a group of mercenaries off the shores of continental Europe, the English language is now used by an estimated 1,000 million people. Who speaks it? For what purposes? What kind of language has English become? These questions and many others are considered in this new interdisciplinary course, which looks at the history of English, its use in a range of present-day contexts and its position as an international language.
The questions considered in this course include:
- Most people would find it hard to read Chaucer’s tales in the original. How has the language changed, and why has it changed so much?
- How do varieties of English around the world differ from one another, and are we becoming more dissimilar or more alike as speakers?
- Many people hold strong views about ‘good’ and ‘bad’ English. What are these ideas founded on? How valid are they?
- How is English used creatively, in rhymes, songs and verbal play, and as a literary language?
Part I of The English Language is presented in two volumes:
English: history, diversity and change
Using English: from conversation to canon
There will be three assignments and one examination, just like in the Humanities module.
However, I have not been in school for the last six years or so. Since then, there could be changes, thus I decided not to be exempted and went ahead to take the module. Needless to say, people ask why must I do something so unnecessary? Simply because I feel I can learn more things!
The structure of the module is as follows :
Effective Communication, a compulsory course, develops students’ English competencies and communication skills to write and speak more effectively in the classroom and in the workplace. The course covers the formats and styles of academic essays, reports, project proposals, resumes, letters, and oral presentations. Students will focus on the various purposes of writing and oral presentations, analysing the needs of different audiences, and selecting appropriate language, formats and visual tools.
Students may be exempted from this course if they pass a waiver examination.
I. ACADEMIC WRITING SKILLS
- Academic writing
§ Types of academic writing: data commentary, summaries, critiques, research papers
§ Purpose, context, audience
§ Conducting research
§ Focussing on a topic
§ Exploring and brainstorming ideas
§ Avoiding plagiarism
- Grammar and style of academic writing
§ Verbs
§ Linking words and phrases
§ Word Choice: vocabulary shift
§ Summary words
- Structure and content
§ Outlining and organising ideas: general to specific, cause and effect, problem solution
§ Deciding on the key content and supporting ideas
§ Developing an argument: thesis, analysis, explanation, interpretation
§ Writing a thesis statement
§ Developing paragraphs: topic sentence and supporting information
§ Achieving text cohesion and coherence: between ideas within paragraphs and between paragraphs
§ Writing effective introductions and conclusions
§ Revising and editing
- Integrating secondary resources
§ Documenting sources properly
§ Styles of documentation in academic writing: APA, MLA, etc.
§ In-text and end-of-text referencing
There will be three assignments for this course, which do not carry equal weightage. Needless to say, I must pass all three assignments before I am deemed to have passed the course.
Well well.. I seem to have a busy semester ahead!
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