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Poslední úprava: doc. PhDr. Jiří Vykoukal, CSc. (25.07.2017)
The structure of the course is based on the parts of a thesis. Students who are currently writing a thesis will be encouraged to write in their topic area to develop their vocabulary and writing skills in their field of interest. |
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Poslední úprava: Pamela Danielle Cotte, M.A. (01.03.2018)
Students will learn how to write and structure a thesis using proper academic English. o To enhance skills in correct use of academic English, including academic style and grammatical forms. o To give students skills in utilizing the structure and signposting language used in academic English writing. o To enhance use of vocabulary and conventions for writing each part of a thesis, applying these to their own thesis work. Students who are currently writing their thesis will write partial drafts of some sections of their thesis during the course. |
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Poslední úprava: doc. PhDr. Jiří Vykoukal, CSc. (25.07.2017)
Sources: Cambridge Academic English Upper intermediate and Advanced; British Council English for Academics course; current KJP Academic English courses; IMS thesis information (e.g. “manual” for MA thesis seminars; Methodological Seminar syllabus) |
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Poslední úprava: Pamela Danielle Cotte, M.A. (28.01.2022)
Depending on the covid situation the course will be in person or online. If online the Zoom link will be provided to students and added here.
The course is structured according to the parts of a thesis. A brief summary of the structure and content of each part of the thesis will be given to students. Students will be encouraged to make a notebook or an electronic "notebook" organized by these parts of a thesis that they can use as a practical resource while writing.
Students should do their written assignments on their thesis topic or if they do not have a thesis topic yet, on the topic they are exploring or their academic area of interest. This will keep them engaged in research, help them begin to focus their thesis topic and familiarize them with the academic writing vocabulary and norms in their field of study.
Most lessons include a writing assignment related to a specific part of the thesis (see the syllabus), enabling students to put the skills they are learning into practice. - Part 1 of lessons will often be work with students’ texts from the previous lesson, for example editing practice or analysis of structure and academic style. Emphasis will be placed on students’ own texts in order to improve their individual writing skills. - Part 2 will be skills development with a focus on writing part of the thesis using various approaches such as analysis of texts, use of vocabulary and phrases, structuring, grammatical exercises, comparing academic English with non-academic English, discussion etc.
Pair work, group work, and individual work will be used. Students are expected to do the assigned homework to prepare for lessons and to participate actively in classroom activities and discussions.
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Poslední úprava: Pamela Danielle Cotte, M.A. (28.01.2022)
Assessment will be based on the following: I Attendance and class participation. -If a student is absent, it is his or her responsibility to check the homework to be prepared for the next lesson, including submitting any written assignments due. Materials for each lesson will be put on SIS. II Successful completion of 4 written assignments and homework. -These assignments must be completed on time as they will be used for in-class text analysis and exercises. They will be short, with an emphasis on quality, not quantity. Written assignments should be done on the thesis topic or the area the student is researching for his or her thesis. -Written assignments must be submitted in class as paper copies with a space between each line for corrections and the student's name. III Midterm test - The date of the midterm test will be confirmed by email. It takes place in lesson 6 (see the syllabus below). - The content will come from lessons 1-5: (lessons 1-5: academic style, use of articles, qualifying and hedging, passive voice, nominalisation, conjunctions and sentence connectors, paraphrasing, reporting words - The test will consist of fill ins, grammar exercises (e.g. Add an article if needed.), editing exercises (e.g. Find and correct the mistake in the sentence) and paraphrasing. IV Oral presentation. -This will consist of 5 minute individual presentations in which students will present their thesis or research as a “spoken abstract“ (see the syllabus). - Presentation skills training will be given in class and all materials will be posted on SIS. - All students will be expected to give feedback on their classmates’ presentations as part of their presentation skills training. -Assessment criteria will be discussed in class and put on SIS.
The course is pass/fail. There is no final exam.
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Poslední úprava: Pamela Danielle Cotte, M.A. (17.02.2019)
Lesson 1 Course information; Academic English style and grammar conventions Course overview, requirements and policies What is academic English? Writing in an academic style: qualifying and hedging, use of passive voice, nominalisation Use of articles Lesson 2 Thesis structure; Supporting arguments with evidence Thesis structure and signposting language Critical thinking: writing logical arguments Structuring paragraphs: topic and supporting sentences; developing and supporting claims with evidence Writing homework: the thesis proposal Lesson 3 Summarizing; Paraphrasing Writing: the thesis proposal (recognizing academic style, editing) Conjunctions and sentence connectors, e.g. to express cause and effect Summarizing, paraphrasing and quoting In class writing: paraphrasing and one paragraph summary of an academic article Lesson 4 The literature review The literature review: structure, content and language Synthesizing from source material Reporting words WRITING ASSIGNMENT 1: the literature review (one page) Lesson 5 The methodology section Writing: the literature review (text analysis; error correction; editing practice) Explaining methodology and rationale Midterm test review Lesson 6 Midterm test; The results section (the findings) Midterm test on lessons 1-5: academic style, use of articles, qualifying and hedging, passive voice, nominalisation, conjunctions and sentence connectors, paraphrasing, reporting words The results section: structure, content and language Discussing and interpreting data in figures, graphs and tables Optional writing homework: a description of a figure, graph or table Lesson 7 The discussion section (evaluation and discussion) Discussing and interpreting research and data WRITING ASSIGNMENT 2: the conclusion of the results section (2-3 paragraphs) Lesson 8 The thesis conclusion Writing assignment 2: the conclusion of the results section (text analysis; error correction; editing practice) The thesis conclusion: structure, content and language WRITING ASSIGNMENT 3: the thesis conclusion Lesson 9 The thesis introduction Writing assignment 3: the thesis conclusion (text analysis; error correction; editing practice) The thesis introduction: structure, content and language WRITING ASSIGNMENT 4: the thesis introduction Lesson 10 Academic presentation skills; Punctuation Writing assignment 4: the thesis introduction (text analysis; error correction; editing practice) Punctuation (colons, semicolons and commas) Academic presentation skills: presenting a thesis in 5 minutes – “a spoken abstract” Signpost language Bullet points: effective use (spoken versus written English) and correct format Lesson 11 The abstract Abstracts: purpose, structure, content and language Student thesis or research presentations and defence (5 minute “spoken abstracts”) Lesson 12 Presentations; Review Student thesis or research presentations and defence (5 minute “spoken abstracts”) Review of key points |
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Poslední úprava: doc. PhDr. Jiří Vykoukal, CSc. (25.07.2017)
The required level is at least B2. |