Module HPS-1006:
Essential Skills for Academic Success

Module Facts

Run by School of History, Philosophy and Social Sciences

20.000 Credits or 10.000 ECTS Credits

Semester 1

Organiser: Dr Hefin Gwilym

Overall aims and purpose

Aims: The module's aim is to nurture students' academic and employability skills. Students will acquire skills that will help them to produce good academic work, such as essay writing skills, basic research skills, skills for conducting a literature search and simple presentation skills among others. Improving students' skills-base will also help to enhance students' employability and in-work skills.

Students will gain three key employability skills:

  • Communication
  • Critical thinking
  • Time management

Teaching and learning Strategy: Weekly lectures and seminars. The lectures will be generic for the whole of the first year. The seminars will be according to disciplines. The module also includes weekly presentation skills sessions. These are peer-led learning in which presentation skills are learnt and developed through practise and feedback. Students participate via a combination of giving short speeches and audience participation. Weekly lectures and seminars and for the peer led component - Practical classes and workshops. 1 hour presentation skills workshop x 6.

Assessment: 1,500 word essay 40 5 minute individual presentation 40 Peer Led Presentation Skills 20

Course content

Subjects may include, but are not limited to: - How to write a good essay - How to conduct a literature search - What are your markers looking for? - What is Unfair Practice? - Enhancing my Employability - Historiography/using critical literature - Approaches to Historical and Social Research - Referencing well - How can study abroad improve my skills? - What to do when life interferes with study

Assessment Criteria

good

Has a good understanding of the nature of knowledge in Humanities and Social Sciences. Able to communicate effectively in various forms and has good time management skills.

excellent

Has a critical understanding of the nature of knowledge in Humanities and Social Sciences. Displays excellent time management skills and has outstanding communication skills in all forms.

threshold

Has a basic understanding of the nature of knowledge in Humanities and Social Sciences. Displays basic time management skills and demonstrates basic communication skills in all forms.

Learning outcomes

  1. To foster a critical understanding of various academic sources

  2. To develop time management strategies

  3. An understanding of what is meant by the Social Sciences and Humanities and the nature of academic knowledge in these areas.

  4. Gain the ability to communicate effectively

Assessment Methods

Type Name Description Weight
Essay 50.00
Presentation 50.00

Teaching and Learning Strategy

Hours
Lecture

12 x 1 hour lecture

 12
Seminar

12 x 1 hour seminar

 12
Private study

Private study to include, but not limited to reading, researching variety of subjects and analysing sources.

 176

Transferable skills

  • Literacy - Proficiency in reading and writing through a variety of media
  • Self-Management - Able to work unsupervised in an efficient, punctual and structured manner. To examine the outcomes of tasks and events, and judge levels of quality and importance
  • Exploring - Able to investigate, research and consider alternatives
  • Information retrieval - Able to access different and multiple sources of information
  • Critical analysis & Problem Solving - Able to deconstruct and analyse problems or complex situations. To find solutions to problems through analyses and exploration of all possibilities using appropriate methods, rescources and creativity.
  • Presentation - Able to clearly present information and explanations to an audience. Through the written or oral mode of communication accurately and concisely.
  • Teamwork - Able to constructively cooperate with others on a common task, and/or be part of a day-to-day working team
  • Argument - Able to put forward, debate and justify an opinion or a course of action, with an individual or in a wider group setting
  • Self-awareness & Reflectivity - Having an awareness of your own strengths, weaknesses, aims and objectives. Able to regularly review, evaluate and reflect upon the performance of yourself and others

Subject specific skills

  • the ability to formulate and investigate sociologically informed questions
  • competence in using major theoretical perspectives and concepts in sociology, and their application to social life
  • the capacity to analyse, assess and communicate empirical sociological information
  • the ability to identify a range of qualitative and quantitative research strategies and methods
  • the ability to undertake and present scholarly work
  • the ability to understand the ethical implications of sociological enquiry
  • Be aware of the ethical, social and political contexts within which social policy practice and research is conducted and delivered
  • Develop a knowledge and expertise with respect to a range of evidence-based policy making and practice.
  • use some of the established theories and concepts of social policy and other social sciences to analyse how social needs, social problems and policies themselves are constructed and understood in both national and international contexts

Courses including this module

Compulsory in courses:

Optional in courses: