2023/24 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

EDUC5982M Teaching English for Academic Purposes

30 creditsClass Size: 120

Module manager: Dr Simon Green
Email: s.j.m.green@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2023/24

Module replaces

EDUC5913M Teaching Academic English

This module is not approved as an Elective

Module summary

The module is aimed at in-service or pre-service English as a second or foreign language teachers who want to specialise in teaching English for Academic Purposes (and so work, for example, in a university language centre). The module has three overall aims: (1) to help students understand the nature of academic communication in English-medium higher education contexts; (2) to help students understand how English for Academic Purposes teaching can help both L2 and L1 speakers of English communicate appropriately and effectively in academic contexts; and (3) to help students gain some critical understanding of issues, methods and materials in the teaching and assessment of academic English. The module will be taught through a ‘flipped classroom’ approach in which input is provided prior to class sessions through pre-sessional reading and viewing/discussion of pre-recorded lectures, and class time is used for clarification and application activities. These input, clarification and application stages form the foundation for post-sessional extension activities. Much of the pre-sessional work, and part of the assessment will be carried out in study groups to afford students opportunities for peer discussion and collaborative study.

Objectives

The module is aimed at in-service or pre-service English as a second or foreign language teachers who want to specialise in teaching English for Academic Purposes (and so work for example in a university language centre).
The key goals of the module will be: 1) to help students understand the nature of academic discourse and academic literacies and the way these discourses and literacies are shaped by disciplinary epistemologies, institutional values and wider socio-cultural factors; 2) to help students understand how targeted, specialist English language and literacy instruction may support both L2 and L1 English-speakers to master the English language and literacy practices of their discipline; 3) to help students gain insights into the content, methods, materials and analytical tools available in the teaching and assessment of EAP.
The module will be taught through a ‘flipped classroom’ approach in which input is provided prior to class sessions through pre-sessional reading and viewing/discussion of pre-recorded lectures, and class time is used for clarification and application activities. These input, clarification and application stages form the foundation for post-sessional extension activities.
It is also envisaged that there will be additional features, capitalising on the proximity of the University of Leeds Language Centre. Dependent on the agreement of the Language Centre, I would envisage optional visits to the LC to observe classes, interviewing of LC teachers, and short talks by LC teachers.

Learning outcomes
1. Students will be aware in broad terms of the key defining features of academic discourse and of its ‘situated’ nature, and of the ways in which it is shaped by disciplinary epistemologies, institutional values and broader socio-cultural factors.
2. Students will be able to identify some of the main social and cognitive genres, lexico-grammatical realisations, and some of the key multi-modal academic literacy practices of their own field (TESOL).
3. Students will have both an understanding and some practical experience of Needs Analysis and Corpus Analysis, as tools for gathering data about academic discourse.
4. Students will have an understanding of key concepts in English for Academic Purposes instruction and some insight into contemporary debates within EAP.
5. Students will have some critical understanding of methods and materials in teaching EAP.
6. Students will have some critical understanding of issues, methods and materials in the assessment of academic English.

The module develops key professional literacy skills, as defined by the Leeds Skills Matrix, as follows: the ability to take a logical approach to solving problems and resolving issues through approaching problems from different angles using both analytical and creative skills (problem-solving); the ability to build positive relationships with other people which then enables successful projects or other collaborations (teamworking); the abilities to be clear, concise and focused, to tailor a message for an audience and to listen to the views of others (communication); the ability to motivate a group of people to act toward achieving a common goal (leadership); the ability to influence others to take appropriate action and being able to discuss and reach a mutually satisfactory agreement (negotiation); and the ability to prioritise, work efficiently and productively and to manage time well in order to meet deadlines (time management). These skills are developed through in-class discussion and study activities, especially group activities, through the pre-sessional tasks set for study groups, and through the assignment which has a collaborative element and an individual reflective element. Through the same processes, the module also develops core academic skills to do with reflection, critical thinking, presentation, the use of academic language, referencing, information searching, and academic integrity, and develops digital skills to do with online communication and collaboration.

Syllabus

Indicative content:

1. The nature of academic discourse and academic literacy
2. The nature of EAP
3. EAP course design
4. Needs Analysis as a tool in EAP course design
5. Corpus Analysis as a tool in EAP course design
6. Materials and methods in teaching lecture skills
7. Materials and methods in teaching seminar and tutorial skills
8. Materials and methods in teaching academic reading and writing skills
9. Assessing academic English

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Seminar	11	2.00	22.00
Tutorial	2	0.50	1.00
Independent online learning hours			66.00
Private study hours			211.00
Total Contact hours			23.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			300.00

Private study

Private study = reading and discussion to deepen understandings of session topics, typically following up post-sessional suggested readings and the wider literature, and working on the modular assessment.

Independent learning (both online and face-to-face) = pre-sessional reading, viewing of pre-recorded lectures and completion of related study-group discussion and preparatory tasks.

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

The assessment for this module would consist of two elements, a group element and an individual reflection on that group element.
The group element would be a narrated (recorded) PowerPoint (PPT) exploring a topic covered in the module that the group has found interesting or puzzling and wishes to explore further. As an example of such a topic, students might select the area of teaching academic writing and within that, they might focus on the issue of criticality in academic writing and how students may be taught to write more critically. Each group would need to agree the topic with their tutor before commencing work on it. Each member of the group would then be expected to read in the area to develop a deeper understanding of concepts and relevant issues, to bring their understandings to the group for discussion and to develop a collective viewpoint, and then to co-construct the recorded narrated PPT. Organisation/content of the PPT would be up to the students, but to clarify the kind of product anticipated, a group tackling the issue of criticality in academic writing would need to do the following: They would need to define the issue, through synthesising contemporary understandings of criticality, and showing awareness of the culturally-loaded nature of such understandings. They would then need to identify the difficulties specified groups of students might have with writing critically, and explore contributory factors, drawing on research in the field. Finally, they would need to identify ways in which English for Academic Purposes teaching could help learners develop critical writing abilities, again drawing on evidence from the field and offering concrete examples where necessary. To achieve standardisation, the PPTs would be limited to 12 slides, excluding title, references and any appendices.
The individual element would be a personal reflection on the topic, in relation to the student’s experience and possible future teaching, in the form of a 1000-word written text. Although a personal reflection rather than an essay, this text would be expected to be academic in register and follow standard referencing and citation conventions. The combination of collaborative and individual elements has been chosen to reflect the Leeds for Life developmental skills (see p. 6 above).
The challenges posed by this assignment are in line with Quality Assurance Agency standards for Level 7 (Master’s degree) qualifications as follows: The assignment requires students to demonstrate ‘a systematic understanding of knowledge, and a critical awareness of current problems and/or new insights, much of which is at, or informed by, the forefront of their academic discipline, field of study or area of professional practice’, a ‘practical understanding of how established techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret knowledge in the discipline’, and a ‘conceptual understanding that enables the student to evaluate critically current research and advanced scholarship in the discipline’ (QAA, 2014: 28).
A form of this assessment has been piloted in the AY 2021-22 with positive results (participant feedback has been almost entirely positive and mean grades are now in the low merit band).
Students will receive written feedback on a draft of their group PowerPoint presentation. They will then have an opportunity to clarify this feedback and ask further questions in group tutorial. Informal formative feedback on performance will also be provided in class and through email in response to completion of pre-sessional and sessional learning tasks such as mini-presentations, group discussions, lesson analyses, materials analyses, corpus analyses etc.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Group Project	See below	75.00
Reflective log	Individual 1000 word reflection on the topic of the group project	25.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Study groups (trios or quartets) will submit a narrated PowerPoint presentation. Each student submits a 1000 word reflection on the topic of the group project.

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 06/11/2023 14:33:20

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