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Academic Skills

General data

Course ID: 2400-OG-EN-AS
Erasmus code / ISCED: (unknown) / (0314) Sociology and cultural studies The ISCED (International Standard Classification of Education) code has been designed by UNESCO.
Course title: Academic Skills
Name in Polish: Academic Skills
Organizational unit: Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences
Course groups: (in Polish) Zajęcia ogólnouniwersyteckie w j. obcym - WFiNS
ECTS credit allocation (and other scores): 5.00 Basic information on ECTS credits allocation principles:
  • the annual hourly workload of the student’s work required to achieve the expected learning outcomes for a given stage is 1500-1800h, corresponding to 60 ECTS;
  • the student’s weekly hourly workload is 45 h;
  • 1 ECTS point corresponds to 25-30 hours of student work needed to achieve the assumed learning outcomes;
  • weekly student workload necessary to achieve the assumed learning outcomes allows to obtain 1.5 ECTS;
  • work required to pass the course, which has been assigned 3 ECTS, constitutes 10% of the semester student load.
Language: English
Prerequisites:

Working knowledge of English.

Learning outcomes - knowledge:

Students know basic academic vocabulary.

Students know basic rules of academic debate and principles of academic writing and speaking.

Students know basic analytical methods helpful in academic work (such as SWOT and analysis of competing hypotheses).

Learning outcomes - skills:

Students can effectively communicate academic content – both orally and in writing.

Students are able to produce a range of written texts meeting basic academic standards (including references, bibliography and proper genre and vocabulary).

Students are able to use basic IT tools such as reference managers (Zotero, Citavi, Mendeley etc.), basic speech recognition tools, and mind maps.

Learning outcomes - social competencies:

Students effectively collaborate in groups, actively engage in group discussion and other teamwork.

Students know how to use tools for remote learning, such as teleconferencing, showing proper netiquette.

Teaching methods:

lecture with presentation

decision game

Oxford debate

oral presentation

discussion

interactive teamwork methods (world cafe, etc.)

analytical methods (Anaysis of Competing Hypotheses, SWOT etc).

feedback on written assignments

Observation/demonstration teaching methods:

- simulation (simulation games)

Expository teaching methods:

- informative (conventional) lecture
- participatory lecture

Exploratory teaching methods:

- Oxford
- practical
- presentation of a paper
- project work
- SWOT

Online teaching methods:

- content-presentation-oriented methods
- cooperation-based methods
- exchange and discussion methods
- games and simulations
- integrative methods

Short description:

The aim of this course is to improve students’ English language skills in the academic environment. This will involve learning and practicing listening, writing and speaking skills, using a range of interactive methods. Students will also be offered practical training in using basic IT tools useful especially for social science students and academics (including speech recognition tools, online translation tools, tools for managing bibliography, references and organizing personal library etc).

Full description:

Lectures (1-10)

1. Course outline. Placement test and team work to assess students’ level of English

2. Main sociological concepts and terminology

3. Identifying sources and conducting bibliographic research

4. Academic databases and how to use them

5. Basic IT skills for social science students

6. Synthesizing and critically analysing information

7. Writing and listening skills: an introduction

8. Public speaking: basic principles

9. Effective oral communication and presentation skills

10. Discussion skills: introduction to Oxford debate

Seminars: topics (1-15)

1. Introduction and ice-breaking session. Course outline

2. Source critique and referencing

3. Information gathering in practice (Google operators); using academic databases (EBSCO, Google Scholar, Academia, Researchgate)

4. Basic IT skills for social science students: practical exercise in speech recognition tools, creation of mind maps and graphs, reference managers and paper organizers (Mendeley/Zotero)

5. Basic analytical methods (SWOT, brainstorming, mind maps etc)

6. Academic writing (practical exercises: academic abstract, bio, CV, application letter, research reports)

7. Public speaking: student presentations (2-3 classes) including video-recording

8. Discussion skills: a discussion game (Playdecide)

9. Oxford debate

10. Summary and wrap-up

Assessment methods and assessment criteria:

Student performance is graded. The final grade will be the mean grade from various tasks (essays and other pieces of writing, as well as shorter tests on vocabulary, oral presentation and team work.

Each student will write/prepare a number of written texts, including: email, abstract, report, mini-essay, letter of application, curriculum vitae, as well as on oral presentation (accompanied with a Power Point presentation). Each piece (as well as active participation in other activities, such as Oxford debate and decision game) will be graded using standard scale (2-5). The final grade will be the mean from all grades obtained.

Classes in period "Summer semester 2022/23" (past)

Time span: 2023-02-20 - 2023-09-30
Selected timetable range:
Go to timetable
Type of class:
Discussion seminar, 30 hours more information
Lecture, 20 hours more information
Coordinators: Stanisław Burdziej
Group instructors: Stanisław Burdziej
Students list: (inaccessible to you)
Credit: Course - Grading
Discussion seminar - Grading
Lecture - Grading
Short description:

The aim of this course is to improve students’ English language skills in the academic environment. This will involve learning and practicing listening, writing and speaking skills, using a range of interactive methods. Students will also be offered practical training in using basic IT tools useful especially for social science students and academics (including speech recognition tools, online translation tools, tools for managing bibliography, references and organizing personal library etc).

Full description:

Lectures (1-10)

1. Course outline. Placement test and team work to assess students’ level of English

2. Main sociological concepts and terminology

3. Identifying sources and conducting bibliographic research

4. Academic databases and how to use them

5. Basic IT skills for social science students

6. Synthesizing and critically analysing information

7. Writing and listening skills: an introduction

8. Public speaking: basic principles

9. Effective oral communication and presentation skills

10. Discussion skills: introduction to Oxford debate

Seminars: topics (1-15)

1. Introduction and ice-breaking session. Course outline

2. Source critique and referencing

3. Information gathering in practice (Google operators); using academic databases (EBSCO, Google Scholar, Academia, Researchgate)

4. Basic IT skills for social science students: practical exercise in speech recognition tools, creation of mind maps and graphs, reference managers and paper organizers (Mendeley/Zotero)

5. Basic analytical methods (SWOT, brainstorming, mind maps etc)

6. Academic writing (practical exercises: academic abstract, bio, CV, application letter, research reports)

7. Public speaking: student presentations (2-3 classes) including video-recording

8. Discussion skills: a discussion game (Playdecide)

9. Oxford debate

10. Summary and wrap-up

Notes:

Student performance is graded. The final grade will be the mean grade from various tasks (essays and other pieces of writing, as well as shorter tests on vocabulary, oral presentation and team work.

Each student will write/prepare a number of written texts, including: email, abstract, report, mini-essay, letter of application, curriculum vitae, as well as on oral presentation (accompanied with a Power Point presentation). Each piece (as well as active participation in other activities, such as Oxford debate and decision game) will be graded using standard scale (2-5). The final grade will be the mean from all grades obtained.

Classes in period "Summer semester 2023/24" (past)

Time span: 2024-02-20 - 2024-09-30
Selected timetable range:
Go to timetable
Type of class:
Discussion seminar, 30 hours more information
Lecture, 20 hours more information
Coordinators: Stanisław Burdziej
Group instructors: Stanisław Burdziej
Students list: (inaccessible to you)
Credit: Course - Grading
Discussion seminar - Grading
Lecture - Grading
Short description:

The aim of this course is to improve students’ English language skills in the academic environment. This will involve learning and practicing listening, writing and speaking skills, using a range of interactive methods. Students will also be offered practical training in using basic IT tools useful especially for social science students and academics (including speech recognition tools, online translation tools, tools for managing bibliography, references and organizing personal library etc).

Full description:

Lectures (1-10)

1. Course outline. Placement test and team work to assess students’ level of English

2. Main sociological concepts and terminology

3. Identifying sources and conducting bibliographic research

4. Academic databases and how to use them

5. Basic IT skills for social science students

6. Synthesizing and critically analysing information

7. Writing and listening skills: an introduction

8. Public speaking: basic principles

9. Effective oral communication and presentation skills

10. Discussion skills: introduction to Oxford debate

Seminars: topics (1-15)

1. Introduction and ice-breaking session. Course outline

2. Source critique and referencing

3. Information gathering in practice (Google operators); using academic databases (EBSCO, Google Scholar, Academia, Researchgate)

4. Basic IT skills for social science students: practical exercise in speech recognition tools, creation of mind maps and graphs, reference managers and paper organizers (Mendeley/Zotero)

5. Basic analytical methods (SWOT, brainstorming, mind maps etc)

6. Academic writing (practical exercises: academic abstract, bio, CV, application letter, research reports)

7. Public speaking: student presentations (2-3 classes) including video-recording

8. Discussion skills: a discussion game (Playdecide)

9. Oxford debate

10. Summary and wrap-up

Notes:

Student performance is graded. The final grade will be the mean grade from various tasks (essays and other pieces of writing, as well as shorter tests on vocabulary, oral presentation and team work.

Each student will write/prepare a number of written texts, including: email, abstract, report, mini-essay, letter of application, curriculum vitae, as well as on oral presentation (accompanied with a Power Point presentation). Each piece (as well as active participation in other activities, such as Oxford debate and decision game) will be graded using standard scale (2-5). The final grade will be the mean from all grades obtained.

Classes in period "Summer semester 2025/26" (future)

Time span: 2026-02-23 - 2026-09-20
Selected timetable range:
Go to timetable
Type of class:
Discussion seminar, 30 hours more information
Lecture, 20 hours more information
Coordinators: Stanisław Burdziej
Group instructors: Stanisław Burdziej
Students list: (inaccessible to you)
Credit: Course - Grading
Discussion seminar - Grading
Lecture - Grading
Course descriptions are protected by copyright.
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