Academic Development for Arts and Humanities 2 (Q0002F)

15 credits, Level 3 (sub-degree)

Spring teaching

This is the second of two core and compulsory modules that will develop your academic skills necessary for undergraduate study. Successful completion of Academic Development 1 is a pre-requisite for this module.

Building on the research skills you developed in Academic Development 1, and working on a piece of independent research, this module helps you produce arguments that reflect your own point of view while making sure they are thoroughly evaluated, well-structured and supported with sound evidence.

Continuing to work with the Online Academic Writing Guide and with texts introduced by your Academic Development tutor, you will notice how expert writers in your chosen subject area convey their arguments before going on to produce your own arguments in-line with the expectations of your chosen subject area. Working in this way will help you become a part of a specific academic community, allowing you to effectively communicate your points of view to your subject tutors and peers.

Through reflective tasks and assessments, the module will continue to help you develop approaches to study that will give you an edge in your first year of undergraduate study and throughout the rest of your time at university.

Topics of study in this module include:

• the process of academic writing in your chosen subject area
• producing academic texts for your specific pathways
• developing your own voice when writing and presenting
• writing well-connected and logical arguments
• showing critical thinking in your work by engaging with alternative views and perspectives
• referencing/writing citations
• presentation, negotiating and debating skills
• understanding feedback and connecting it to other assessments.

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 150 hours of work. This breaks down into about 33 hours of contact time and about 117 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2024/25. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum.

We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.