Academic writing 2100-SPP-L-D3ACWR
During the course students work on key aspects of academic writing, such as the use of sources, avoiding plagiarism, appropriate style, structure and organisation, cohesion and coherence, as well as referencing and using referencing management software (Zotero). Students produce two written assignments during the course. Essay questions and some sources are provided.
List of topics:
1. Course and assessment overview. Reading long texts.
2. Synthesising information and answering research questions.
3. Introduction to avoiding plagiarism. Types of plagiarism, antiplagiarism software, academic integrity.
4. Structure and organisation in academic writing. Focus on introductions and conclusions, and paragraph structure.
5. Planning and drafting as essential stages in academic writing.
6. Referencing styles: APA 7th ed. And CMOS 17th ed. Using Zotero – referencing management software.
7. Using AI ethically to become a better writer.
8. Key features of the academic style. Analysis of well-written academic essays.
9. Common language structures for academic writing: reporting verbs, noun phrases and hedging.
10. The skill of giving and receiving valuable peer feedback. Peer review of essay drafts.
11. Essay submission and evaluation of writing.
12. Feedforward and action plan: how to continue working on academic writing skills after the course.
Type of course
Mode
Prerequisites (description)
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, students will:
- Have a better understanding of criticality and argumentation
- Be able to identify and use appropriate style and register in academic writing
- Be able to write a well-structured academic essay showing a clear position supported with evidence from sources
- Have practised ways of avoiding plagiarism (summarising, paraphrasing and referencing)
- Expanded their range of academic vocabulary and structures
Assessment criteria
The teaching approach focuses on the students and their active participation in class (action-oriented approach). Students often work in pairs and groups. The course is partly based on the flipped classroom method where students complete the preparation stage before classes. This method allows for more efficient interaction during classes.
All students are expected to use laptops in class and to produce written assignments. Reviewing essay drafts on smartphones will not be acceptable. Class and supplementary materials will be available on Google Classroom.
Formative assessment plays a significant role in the development of writing skills therefore, each student will receive feedback on their written work at various stages of the process of writing and will be asked to act upon it. Live feedback on essay drafts will be given in class in the second half of the course.
All students are urged to keep the set deadlines for submission of assignments. Failure to meet the assigned deadlines will result in a lower grade and no feedback.
Any form of plagiarism will result in failing the course.
There are three components of the final grade:
1. Essay 1 (outline, version 1, version 2) – 35%
2. Essay 2 (outline, draft, final version) – 50%
3. Attendance and active participation in class – 15%.
Submission deadlines will be given at the beginning of the course.
Marking scale
93%-100% - 5
87%-92% - 4.5
77%-86% - 4
71%-76% - 3.5
60%-70% - 3
0%-59% - 2
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: