Assignment Brief

Course/Programme: BA (Hons) Business Studies with Foundation

Level:

Foundation Year 0 (Level Foundation Year

0)

Year 2 Level 4

Year 3 Level 5

Year 4 Level 6

Module Title: Study Skills for Higher Education

Module Leader: Sarah Gibbons

Assignment title: Study Skills for Higher Education

Assignment number:

Weighting: Individual Essay (Review Articles) Reflective writing – 30%

Individual Essay – 70%

Date given out: December 2020

Submission date: Individual Essay (Review Articles) – 30%: 18th October 2021

Individual Essay – 70%: 22nd November 2021

For late submission, CCCU Taught regulation

please check CCCU
Taught regulation (page
28 on late submission) CCCU Extenuating Circumstances Policy
and Extenuating Policy:

Method of submission:  Online only Online and paper

copy

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 1
 Special instructions for
submission (if any):

Date for results and

feedback

(please note the final

grade is subject to the
main CCCU assessment
Board)

Learning outcomes 1. Set short term and long range goals and to design an appropriate
assessed: plan of study;

2. Identify techniques for building comprehension and retention;

1. 3.Acquire knowledge of learning strategies and techniques to

improve memory retention and understanding how people learn;

4. Use of library information and media services

The penalty to be applied to late course work, which will include course work where the
work is graded on a pass/fail basis and it is possible to give a numerical mark, will be 5
per cent (of the eligible marks) per day, for up to seven days, after which a mark of 0 will
be recorded.

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 2
 TASK DESCRIPTION – Assignment 1 (30%)

Assessment 1 - Individual essay (1000 words maximum)

Read the article below and do further research to answer the questions that follow:
Features of academic writing
Structured
Academic writing should have a clear structure. The structure will often derive from
the genre of writing. For example, a report will have an introduction (including the aim or
aims), a method section, a discussion section and so on, while an essay will have an
introduction (including a thesis statement), clear body paragraphs with topic sentences, and a
conclusion. The writing should be coherent, with logical progression throughout,
and cohesive, with the different parts of the writing clearly connected.
Careful planning before writing is essential to ensure that the final product will be well
structured, with a clear focus and logical progression of ideas.
Evidenced
Opinions and arguments in academic writing should be supported by evidence. Often the
writing will be based on information from experts in the field, and as such, it will be
important to reference the information appropriately, for example via the use of in-text
citations and a reference section.
Critical
Academic writing does more than just describe. As an academic writer, you should not
simply accept everything you read as fact. You need to analyse and evaluate the information
you are writing about, in other words make judgements about it, before you decide whether
and how to integrate it into your own writing. This is known as critical writing. Critical
writing requires a great deal of research in order for the writer to develop a deep enough
understanding of the topic to be truly critical about it.
Balanced
Academic writing should be balanced. This means giving consideration to all sides of the
issue and avoiding bias. As noted above, all research, evidence and arguments can be
challenged, and it is important for the academic writer to show their stance on a particular
topic, in other words how strong their claims are. This can be done using hedges, for example
phases such as the evidence suggests... or this could be caused by..., or boosters, that is,
phrases such as clearly or the research indicates.
Precise
Academic writing should use clear and precise language to ensure the reader understands the
meaning. This includes the use of technical (i.e. subject-specific) vocabulary, which should
be used when it conveys the meaning more precisely than a similar non-technical term.
Sometimes such technical vocabulary may need defining, though only if the term is not
commonly used by others in the same discipline and will therefore not be readily understood
by the reader.

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 3
Objective
Academic writing is objective. In other words, the emphasis is placed on the arguments and
information, rather than on the writer. As a result, academic writing tends to use nouns and
noun phrases more than verbs and adverbs. It also tends to use more passive structures, rather
than active voice, for example The water was heated rather than I heated the water.
Formal
Finally, academic writing is more formal than everyday writing. It tends to use longer words
and more complex sentences, while avoiding contractions and colloquial or informal words
or expressions that might be common in spoken English. There are words and collocations
which are used in academic writing more frequently than in non-academic writing, and
researchers have developed lists to help students of academic English, such as the Academic
Word List, the Academic Vocabulary List, and the Academic Collocation List.
EAP Foundation (2021) What is Academic Writing - EAP Foundation, 5 June. Available at:
https://www.eapfoundation.com/writing/what/ (Accessed 9 August 2021)

Questions:

1. Choose four of the features of academic writing mentioned in the article above
and discuss why they are important.

2. Describe your personal experience: Since you started this course, what have you
learned that can improve your own academic writing?

MARKING CRITERIA – ASSIGNMENT 1

Marks will be awarded for answering the following questions and your ability to provide
a well-written essay with references. You are advised to support your discussion with
at least six sources published during the last ten years.

Assessment Criteria Applied - This assessment addresses the Marks available

following learning outcomes:

Choose four of the features of academic writing mentioned in the 50

article above and discuss why they are important

Describe your personal experience: Since you started this course, 20

what have you learned that can improve your own academic writing?

Essay style and academic writing 15

Referencing 15

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 4
Essay Structure:
Ensure that the essay has the following structure and contains the details outlined:

 Cover page: essay title, student ID, name of course and university
 Introduction
 Main body – consisting of well-written paragraphs
 Conclusion
 In-text citations throughout (Minimum 8)
 Reference List (minimum 6 references)
 Academic writing throughout

TASK DESCRIPTION – Assignment 2 (70%)

Assessment 2 - Individual essay (2000 words maximum)

Welcome to foundation year! You are currently studying ‘Study Skills for Higher Education’
which is a course designed to help students to study more effectively and to achieve higher
results in written assignments and exams.

1. Identify 10 key skills which are commonly taught in this course and discuss why
they will help students succeed in their university career.

You are advised to support your discussion with at least ten sources published during the last
ten years.

MARKING CRITERIA – ASSIGNMENT 2

Marks will be awarded for answering the following questions and your ability to provide a
well-written essay with references.

Assessment Criteria applied - This assessment addresses Marks available

the following learning outcomes:

Identify 10 key skills which are commonly taught in this 70

course and discuss why they will help students succeed in
their university career.
Essay style and academic writing 15

Quality of referencing 15

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 5
Essay Structure:
Ensure that the essay has the following structure and contains the details outlined:

 Cover page: essay title, student ID, name of course and university
 Introduction
 Main body – consisting of well-written paragraphs
 Conclusion
 In-text citations throughout (minimum 12)
 Reference List (minimum 6 references)
 Academic writing throughout

FORMATTING AND LAYOUT FOR ASSIGNMENTS:

Please note the following when completing your written assignments:

1. Writing: Written in academic English
2. Focus: Focus only on the tasks set in the assignment.
3. Document format: Essay
4. Cover sheet: For each assignment provide a clear title, course, and name or ID
number on a cover sheet
5. Reference List: using Harvard referencing throughout.
6. Research: Research should use reliable and relevant sources of information e.g.
academic books and journals that have been peer reviewed. The research should be
extensive.
7. Text: Size 12, Times New Roman font

MAXIMUM
LENGTH

Assessment 1: 1000 words (+/- 10%).

Assessment 2: 2000 words (+/- 10%).

These assignments address the following Learning Outcomes:

 LO1: Set short term and long-range goals and to design an appropriate plan of study
 LO2: Identify techniques for building comprehension and retention
 LO3: Acquire knowledge of learning strategies and techniques to improve memory
retention and understanding how people learn
 LO4: Use of library information and media service

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 6
 Assessment Criteria:

An outstanding 90 – Work which fulfils all the criteria of the grade below, but at an
Distinction 100 exceptional standard.

A very strong 80 – Work of distinguished quality which is based on a rigorous and broad
distinction 89 knowledge base, and demonstrating sustained ability to analyse,
synthesise, evaluate and interpret concepts, principles and data within
field of study, using defined principles, techniques and/or standard
formats and applications. This will form the basis for the development of
sound arguments and judgements appropriate to the field of study/
assessment task. There will be strong evidence of competence across a
range of specialised skills, using them to plan, develop and evaluate
problem solving strategies, and of the capability to operate autonomously
and self-evaluate with guidance in varied structured contexts. Outputs will
be communicated effectively, accurately and reliably.

A clear 71 – Work of very good quality which displays most but not all of the criteria
Distinction 79 for the grade above.

A Distinction 70 Work of highly commendable quality which clearly fulfils the criteria for
the grade below, but shows a greater degree of capability in relevant
intellectual/subject/key skills.

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 7
A very strong 67 – Work of commendable quality based on a strong factual/conceptual
Merit 69 knowledge base for the field of study, including an assured grasp of
concepts and principles, together with effective deployment of skills
relevant to the discipline and assessment task. There will be clear
evidence of analysis, synthesis, evaluation and application, and the ability
to work effectively within defined guidelines to meet defined objectives.
There will be consistent evidence of capability in all relevant subject
based and key skills, including the ability to self-evaluate and work
autonomously under guidance and to use effectively specified standard
techniques in appropriate contexts.

A strong merit 64 – Work of good quality which contains most, but not all of the
66 characteristics of the grade above.

A clear Merit 61 – Work which clearly fulfils all the criteria of the grade below, but shows a
63 greater degree of capability in relevant intellectual/subject/key skills.

Merit 60 Work of sound quality based on a firm factual/ conceptual knowledge

base for the field of study, demonstrating a good grasp of relevant
principles/concepts, together with the ability to organise and communicate
effectively. The work may be rather standard, but will be mostly accurate
and provide some evidence of the ability to analyse, synthesise, evaluate
and apply standard methods/techniques, under guidance. There will be no
serious omissions or inaccuracies. There will be good evidence of ability
to take responsibility for own learning, to operate with limited autonomy
in predictable defined contexts, selecting and using relevant techniques,
and to demonstrate competence in relevant key skills.

A very strong 55 – Work of capable quality which contains some of the characteristics of
Pass 59 grade above.

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 8
A strong Pass 50 – Work of satisfactory quality demonstrating a reliable knowledge base
54 and evidence of developed key skills and/or subject based skills, but
containing limited evidence of analysis, synthesis, evaluation or
application.

A Pass 41 – Work of broadly satisfactory quality covering adequately the factual

49 and/or conceptual knowledge base of the field of study and appropriately
presented and organised, but is primarily descriptive or derivative, with
only occasional evidence of analysis, synthesis, evaluation or application.
There may be some misunderstanding of key concepts/principles and
limitations in the ability to select relevant material or techniques and/or in
communication or other relevant skills, so that the work may include
some errors, omissions or irrelevancies. There will be evidence of ability
to operate with limited autonomy in predictable defined contexts, using
standard techniques, and to meet threshold standards in relevant key
skills.

A bare Pass 40 Work of bare pass standard demonstrating some familiarity with and
grasp of a factual/conceptual knowledge base for the field of study,
together with evidence of some ability to employ specialist skills to solve
problems within area of study, but only just meeting threshold standards
in e.g. evaluation and interpretation of data and information, reasoning
and soundness of judgment, communication, application, or quality of
outputs. Work may be characterised by some significant errors, omissions
or problems, but there will be sufficient evidence of development and
competence to operate in specified contexts taking responsibility for the
nature and quality of outputs.

LSC_CCCU Foundation in Study Skills for Higher Education Assignment Brief Page 9
A marginal Fail 30 – Work which indicates some evidence of engagement with area of study
39 in relation to acquisition of knowledge and understanding of concepts and
principles, and of specialist skills, but which is essentially misinterpreted,
and misapplied and/or contains some significant omission or
misunderstanding, or otherwise just fails to meet threshold standards in
e.g. communication, application or quality of outputs.

A Fail 20 – Work that falls well short of the threshold standards in relation to one
29 or more area of knowledge, intellectual, subject based or key skills. It may
address the assessment task to some extent, or include evidence of
successful engagement with some of the subject matter, but such
satisfactory characteristics will be clearly outweighed by major
deficiencies across remaining areas.

A 0 – 19 Work of poor quality which is based on only minimal understanding,

comprehensive application or effort. It will offer only very limited evidence of familiarity
Fail with knowledge or skills appropriate to the field of study or task and/or
demonstrate inadequate capability in key skills essential to the task
concerned.

Non- 0 Nothing, or nothing of merit, presented.

submission/Nil
attempt

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