Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE PSY1658

 
TITLE Academic Writing and Presentation in Psychology

 
UM LEVEL 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course

 
MQF LEVEL 5

 
ECTS CREDITS 4

 
DEPARTMENT Psychology

 
DESCRIPTION This study-unit is of a technical nature. The focus will be on academic oral presen-tations and written essaysin Psychology, although many principles could be carried over to other areas. In addition, students are guided to think criticallyon what they are learning in Psychology and develop their own academic “voice”.

The following topics will be covered:
- Types of academic writing;
- Commonest mistakes;
- Thinking Skills;
- Understanding the purpose of the written task required and analysing questions;
- Planning essays;
- Own voice: good and bad opinions;
- Opinion and intention statements;
- Introductions and conclusions.

Study-unit Aims:

The objectives of this study-unit are the following:
- To be aware of the technicalities of presentations in the discipline;
- To write a psychological essay of quality, and be able to assess written work;
- To answer test and examination essay questions;
- To inform and educate about writing a dissertation;
- To orally present psychological knowledge.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

- write paragraphs, sentences and marker words;
- identify common mistakes and faulty styles;
- identify language issues in relation to psychology, gender issues etc.;
- recognise the different chapters or sections of a dissertation;
- recognise good presentation and faulty presentation techniques.

2. Skills
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

- understand the requirements of an essay title and plan an essay accordingly;
- plan, prepare, deliver and evaluate an oral presentation;
- plan a dissertation with its relevant sections or chapters;
- structure an idea and support it in writing;
- write an opinion and an intention statement as part of a larger piece of ac-ademic writing;
- write appropriate introduction and conclusions;
- write in a style commensurate to academic psychology;
- evaluate one’s own written work.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

There is no main text for the study-unit. Lecturer will provide notes.

- Beins, B. C., & Beins, A. M. (2012). Effective writing in Psychology: Papers, Posters and Presentations (2nd ed.). Wiley Blackwell.
- Connelly, M. (2004). The sundance writer (2nd ed). London: Thomson.
- Creme, P. & Lea, M. R. (1997) Writing at university. Buckingham: Open Univer-sity Press.
- Cutts, M. (1995). Plain English guide. London: Oxford University Press.
- Fairburn, G. J. & Winch, C. (1996). Reading, writing and reasoning. UK Bucking-ham: Open University Press.
- Inglis, J. & Lewis, R. (1993). Clear thinking. London: CollinEducational.
- McDonald, S., & Salamone, W. (2004). The writer’s response. London: Thomson.
- Parrot, L. (1999) How to write psychology papers. New York: Longman.
- Redman, P. (2001). Good essay writing (2nd ed.). London: Sage.
- Scott, J.M., Kock, R., Scott, G.M., & Garrison, S.M. (2002). The psychology stu-dent writer’s manual (2nd ed.). New York: Prentice Hall.
- Turner, J. (2002). How to study: a short introduction. London: Sage.
- Wingersky, J., Boerner, J., & Holguin-Balogh, D. (2006). Writing paragraphs and essays (5th ed). London: Thomson.
- Wyrick, J (2005). Steps to writing well (9th ed). London: Thomson.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Assessment Due Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Presentation SEM1 No 40%
Take Home Examination (24 Hours) SEM1 Yes 60%

 
LECTURER/S Chantal Avellino

 

 
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The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

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