ILMAFSN-Academic Skills and Language for Food Science

Module Provider: International Study and Language Institute
Number of credits: 0 [0 ECTS credits]
Level:7
Terms in which taught: Autumn term module
Pre-requisites:
Non-modular pre-requisites:
Co-requisites:
Modules excluded:
Current from: 2022/3

Module Convenor: Dr Phil Smyth
Email: phil.smyth@reading.ac.uk

Module Co-convenor: Ms Sarah Mattin
Email: s.mattin@reading.ac.uk

Type of module:

Summary module description:

This module focuses on the academic language and writing skills needed to perform more effectively at postgraduate level in Food and Nutritional Sciences. It is primarily designed for postgraduate Food and Nutritional Sciences students whose first language is not English. The module utilises Food Science-specific texts to develop a range of writing skills needed for successful completion of assessed coursework and exam tasks.

The module is non-credit-bearing and designed to support students’ disciplinary study, the expectation being that students will apply the skills they have learnt on ILMAFSN in their credit-bearing work. Therefore, for the module itself, there is no assessment or expectation of independent study hours.

Aims:

This module aims to support MSc Food and Nutritional Sciences students whose first language is not English with their transition to the UK HE context and academic culture. It focuses on the key academic language and skills needed to successfully complete master’s level Food and Nutritional Sciences written assignments and exam tasks.

By the end of the module, students will be better able to:

• recognise and respond to the expectations of the key written assignment genres in Food and Nutritional Science, e.g. the Essay, the Report 


• employ task-appropriate organisational patterns at paragraph, section and whole-text level


• use a range of Food and Nutritional Sciences-specific sources appropriately and effectively


• accurately use the referencing conventions for their discipline


• employ task-appropriate language (grammar and lexis)


• critically evaluate their own and others’ writing


• communicate fluently and accurately within their discipline by building their subject-specific vocabulary and grammar

Assessable learning outcomes:

N/A

Additional outcomes:

N/A

Outline content:

Classes will focus on the following

• Key skills useful to all academic writing within Food and Nutritional Sciences:
  
  
  
  • incorporating sources using paraphrasing, summarising and direct quotation
  
  
  • ‘information flow’ in English-language texts
  
  
  • employing linguistic features of textual cohesion to clearly signal relationships between parts of a text
  
  
  
  


• Grammar for academic communication, including verb tense and form, nominalisation, clause and sentence structure

Global context:

This module supports internationalisation at Reading by facilitating successful and equal inclusion of students whose first language is not English in UK degree programme study.

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:

The module takes a discipline-specific approach to language and literacy development using example student texts and published Food and Nutritional Sciences-specific sources in classroom tasks. 

Teaching will be learner-centred, taking a task-based approach to:

• guided ‘noticing’ of key organisational and linguistic features in context


• exercises practicing use of relevant lexical/grammatical items


• scaffolded reading-to-write exercises


• scaffolded written-language and spoken-language tasks

Summative assessment- Examinations:

N/A

Summative assessment- Coursework and in-class tests:

N/A

Formative assessment methods:

N/A

Penalties for late submission:

N/A

Assessment requirements for a pass:

N/A

Reassessment arrangements:

N/A

Additional Costs (specified where applicable):

1) Required text books: 

2) Specialist equipment or materials: 

3) Specialist clothing, footwear or headgear: 

4) Printing and binding: 

5) Computers and devices with a particular specification: 

6) Travel, accommodation and subsistence: 

Last updated: 2 November 2022