BA Modern Languages and History (Portuguese)

Year 2

(Award available for year: Diploma of Higher Education)

Learning outcomes

On completion of the year students should have provided evidence of being able to:

Research Skills:
- Self-select or develop their own research questions and identity appropriate methods through which to address these
- Present a structured and nuanced argument, and communicate using terminology and concepts appropriate to the field(s) of study
- Identify and locate primary and secondary sources pertinent to the questions being addressed and critically evaluate their respective contributions
- Demonstrate dexterity and sensitivity in use of material engaging with conventions appropriate to the discipline

Language Skills and Intercultural Awareness:
- Communicate effectively and appropriately in the target language on a range of topics with a reasonable degree of grammatical accuracy
- Demonstrate awareness and appreciation of the structures and registers of the target language
- Demonstrate cultural sensitivity and an ability to respond appropriately in social contexts in which the target language is used
- Engage with different genres encountered in daily life in cultures in which the target language is spoken

Subject Knowledge:
- Show a general understanding and cultural awareness of societies in which the target language is spoken
- Identify specific aspects of literatures and social and historical issues pertaining in the cultures in which the target language is spoken and locate them within this broader background
- Make use of specialist knowledge needed to support critical understanding of the significance of major themes within the field(s) of study.

On completion of the year/programme students should have:
- a broad understanding of how people have existed, acted and thought in a range of societies and cultures (hbp #12.1 and 17)
- Appropriate and enhanced techniques for close work on sources, both primary and/or secondary (hbp #18)
- An enhanced understanding of chronological continuity and change applied to contrasting historical periods and cultures (hbp #16);
- an enhanced understanding of historical scholarship in relation to contrasting historical periods and cultures
- the ability to apply critical and empathetic reading and use of texts or other source materials (hbp 12.2)
- A critical appreciation of the complexity and diversity of past cultures, acquired through focussed study of contrasting historical periods and cultures hbp12.3
- A critical understanding of the problematic nature of historical interpretation and evidence (hbp 12.4)
- Advanced skills of critical evaluation of historical evidence applied to contrasting historical periods and cultures
- a high level of ability to communicate the results of their work
- the ability to evaluate critically a broad range of historical evidence drawn from contrasting historical periods and cultures (hbp 12.5)
- intellectual independence enhanced by insightful reflection on contrasting historical periods and cultures (hbp 12.6)
- The ability to marshal and communicate their argument, both oral and written, applied to contrasting historical periods and cultures hbp12.7)
- the ability to present a sophisticated structured and coherent argument
- the capacity to understand and reflect upon the appropriateness of some of the different approaches to history (e.g. social history, economic history, political history, cultural history, landscape history etc.) (hbp # 20).
- the ability critically to evaluate qualitative and/or quantitative data, from both primary and secondary sources, drawn from contrasting historical periods and cultures
- the ability to appreciate, employ and critically evaluate a broad range of approaches to history (hbp #20).
- the ability to apply critically a range of techniques and approaches to analyse data and information.
- A critical appreciation of the uncertainty, ambiguity and limitations of knowledge in the discipline;
- the capacity to understand and reflect upon the nature of history and the limitations of historical evidence. (hb

Transferable (key) skills

Students will have had the opportunity to acquire, as defined in the modules specified for the programme:

- Qualities and transferable skills necessary for employment related to the subject area(s) studied;
- Skills necessary for the exercising of personal responsibility
- Decision making

Assessment

Achievement will be assessed by a variety of methods in accordance with the learning outcomes of the modules specified for the year/programme and will include:

- Demonstrating the ability to apply a broad range of aspects/competencies of the discipline/profession to complex, albeit standard, situations and simple, albeit novel or atypical, instances
- Work that is often descriptive in nature but drawing on a wide variety of material
- Demonstrating basic professional competencies relevant to the discipline/s
- The ability to evaluate and criticise received opinion