Professional and Academic Communication

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2015:

340 hours

To enrol in this subject, you must be admitted in the Master of English in a Global Context. This subject is not available for students admitted in any other courses.

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Objectives, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and the Disability Liaison Unit:
http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

This subject develops students’ English language competency across the four macro skills of reading, writing, speaking and listening. The focus is on understanding the structure of written and spoken academic, research and business texts, writing & speaking for various professional and academic purposes and in different forms, analysing spoken and written arguments and acquiring, using specific vocabulary and concepts, and making effective presentations. It develops participants’ research, critical thinking, reading and writing skills as well as their ability to plan and write a review of literature and make a research-topic-related presentation fluently and confidently. Students research, synthesise, write and present on a topic that is relevant to their field of study. The subject has a supported experiential learning emphasis.

On completion of this subject, students should be able to:

• Read and evaluate different genres with an understanding of their different purposes;
• identify and summarise key information in a range of sources;
• Analyse, use and write texts in a variety of professional and academic genres
• Synthesise information from a range of sources
• Follow, understand and critique information in discussions, presentations and lectures;
• Plan and present an effective oral presentation
• source information on a topic for review;
• identify further areas for investigation;
• present integrated sources in a written literature review (for academic or professional settings);

Paraphrasing, summarising, referencing and macro skills tasks: 2000 words in total, due throughout semester, 20%
Research review/research critique/article critique: 1000 words, due mid semester, 10%
Literature Review/Annotated Bibliography: 1000 words, due mid semester, 10%
Research Project/Literature Review: 2500 words, due end semester, 25%
Critical Review: 1000 words, due late in the semester, 10%
Oral Presentation: 2500 words equivalent, due end semester, 25%

Attendance at all classes (tutorial/seminars/practical classes/lectures/labs) is obligatory. Failure to attend 80% of classes will normally result in failure in the subject.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On completion of this subject students should be able to:

• Demonstrate understanding of, and apply, social, academic and professional discourse conventions;
• Reflect upon and analyse their effectiveness as independent language learners;
• Evaluate, present and justify opinions in written and oral form;
• Plan and present an effective oral presentation based research
• Interact effectively in a small group;
• Access, critically evaluate and utilize resource and research materials;