FP3001 English and Academic Skills Assessment Brief | UoC

FP3001 Learning Outcomes that Will be Assessed

• LO1 Write well-structured paragraphs using a mix of simple and complex sentence forms and using cohesive devices effectively.
• LO4 Engage with appropriate source material by distinguishing fact from opinion and evaluating argument. 
• LO5 Compare and evaluate information and ideas from  […] written texts
• LO6 Take retrievable notes from a variety of sources and prove their usefulness through summary and paraphrasing.
• LO7 Evaluate and select appropriate source material,  supporting your ideas within the conventions for avoiding plagiarism.
• LO8 Write a clear, detailed essay or report, evaluating information and arguments from a range of sources. 
• LO10 Demonstrate via formative and summative assessment the development of academic and independent study skills.

FP3001 Assessment Details 

Students can email one draft to their lecturer no later than 7 days before the deadline (unless the lecturer specifies otherwise), and receive general feedback comments on the work. 

See Assessment Tile in Moodle for more support resources and materials. 

Below is a guide of the suggested structure and content of your assignment. 

Introduction: (This will be around 100-150 words when complete.) 

• General introductory statements to set the context / attract interest / provide  background
• Any relevant definitions or facts/statistics that help to introduce the topic (with  citation)
• Information about the main structure/sections of the project (an outline) • Last sentence is usually a ‘thesis statement’ – a sentence which provides the main objective of the project, e.g. This essay examines… / In this report, …

Main body – section 1: 

• Divided into paragraphs with a clear, distinct focus – say what each paragraph is going to talk about.  
• Decide if each paragraph would be clearer with a topic sentence (the first sentence that gives the reader an idea about the focus of that particular paragraph).
• Use references: facts, statistics, expert opinions, quotations – don’t forget to show the citation, e.g. (Sondek & Smith, 2008), otherwise it might be plagiarism. 

Be as detailed as possible, within the word count. 

Tips:  

• If you think one paragraph contains too much information and is going to be very long, consider splitting it into two. 
• If one paragraph seems to say very little, consider integrating it into the paragraph before/after it. 
• Consider your word count – you have 1000 words. Deduct roughly 250 words for your introduction and conclusion, and you have roughly 750 words for the whole main body.

Main body – section 2: 

• (See section 1 above.)
• Additional note: You should think about how your paragraphs are going to be connected and how the project will flow logically.

Main body – section 3 (optional):

• You may not need a third section, depending on the structure/content of sections 1 and 2.  Remember to keep an eye on your word count.

Conclusion: (This will be around 100-150 words when complete.) 

Use some or all of the following: 

• Remind the reader what the project has discussed overall.
• Restate the main points made in each section/paragraph.
• Any conclusions that can be drawn? Either clarify conclusions made in the main body, or provide them here. 
• A broad final statement providing a sense of completion or a sense of ‘looking to the future’.

Grading

Your project will be assessed and graded according to the following criteria: o 

• Task achievement – overall success of the project
• Organisation – how well you have ordered and linked information
• Lexical resource – the range and accuracy of your vocabulary
• Grammatical range and accuracy – the level of grammar, including punctuation
• Academic conventions – the academic quality and use of APA referencing 

This assessment is worth 25% of your overall EAS module grade. 
See page 7 for overall grading criteria. 

Specifications 

As stated in the Module Handbook, the assignment format should comprise the following: 

Title page provided by your lecturer. On this page, you should include: the title of your work,  your assessment (J) number, the module title and code, your final word count and the  submission deadline for the work. 

Footer or header with your student assessment number, the module title and code. • Word-processed work must use: 

• 1.5-line spacing
• Arial font style
• Font size 12
• Justified alignment 

All references should be constructed using the APA referencing system. The departmental  Quick Guide is available at USS Moodle here. Further information and guidelines on referencing are available from CiteThemRight (click here). You will need to click ‘Login’ and choose Chester as your institution. A guide to using CiteThemRight is available here.  

It is expected that your writing will conform to standard Academic English in terms of spelling,  grammar, punctuation and style.