This is the nuts-and-bolts, informative section, providing information such as what materials are needed, the study schedule, and how the assignments and marking are arranged. Please read it carefully.
Course materials
ENGL 1101AED consists of:
- this Course Guide;
- the study units (Units 1–7); and
- an Assignment File containing the questions and specific instructions and advice for each of the assignments.
In addition, although there are no set textbooks for the course, you should refer to those suggested references in case you want to deepen the concepts learnt.
Course Guide
This Course Guide tells you briefly what the course is about and how you should work through the material. It also gives you some information about tutorials and the assignments. You should refer to this document throughout the course to help clarify important points about studying with HKMU.
Study units
There are seven study units in ENGL 1101AED University English: Reading and Writing; each requires two weeks of work. Each unit includes directions for study, references to sections of recommended reading and ample exercises.
The units also direct you to work on self-tests and activities. The self-tests are designed to help you check your understanding of the content of the study units, while the activities require you to reflect on important issues raised in the units and in the set text. Along with the assignments, the self-tests and activities will help you to understand the key concepts of the individual units and, indeed, of the whole course.
The study units have a common format. Each includes:
- An introduction to the unit.
- Self-tests and activities spread throughout the unit. You should check the answers to each of these as you complete them.
- A summary of the unit.
- A list of references to books, articles and reports which were consulted when the unit was written. You don't have to locate and read these materials, but used selectively, these references will help to deepen your knowledge of a particular topic and may also provide useful input to the assignments.
- A 'Focus on language' section which provides additional practice in grammar.
Reference books
There are no set textbooks for ENGL 1101AED. However, the following are some recommended references:
Bailey, Stephen (2022). Academic Writing for University Students. New York: Routledge.
Bailey, Stephen (2017). Academic Writing: A Handbook for International Students. Oxon: Routledge.
Langan, John and Albright, Zoe (2018). College Writing Skills with Readings. New York: McGraw-Hill.
McWhorter, Kathleen and Sember, Brette (2019). College Reading and Study Skills. New York: Pearson.
Murphy, Raymond (2019). English Grammar in Use: A Self-study Reference and Practice Book for Intermediate Students (with answers). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Rothman, David and Warsi, Jilani (2014). Read to Achieve: Gateway to Academic Reading. Boston: Pearson.
You may choose to buy your own individual copies of the above books. In addition, you are advised to equip yourself with a good, up-to-date dictionary (although this is not a compulsory purchase). The dictionary exercises in the course may be completed by reference to any dictionary, but the following one is particularly recommended for our students:
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary (9th edition), Glasgow: HarperCollins.
Course overview
Table 1 provides an overview of the course and suggests the amount of time needed for completing each unit. However, each of us has our own learning styles and speeds, so this schedule is only a guide. You may find, for example, that a particular unit requires more time than another. For these reasons, you should feel free to adjust the schedule to suit your needs more closely, while still adhering to the deadlines for the assignments.
Table 1 A course overview
Unit | Topic | Study weeks |
1 | Planning for writing | 2 |
2 | Developing reading skills | 2 |
3 | Integrating secondary sources of information | 2 |
| Assignment 1 due |
4 | Obtaining and using information from primary sources | 2 |
5 | Organizing academic writing | 2 |
6 | Evaluating and revising writing | 2 |
7 | Communicating in academic writing | 2 |
| Assignment 2 due |
| Revision | 2 |
| Final examination |
| Total | 16 |
It is important to plan your study schedule carefully so that it fits in with your other commitments and provides a set of realistic guidelines. On average, you need to spend about eight hours per week on this course. This estimate includes time for reading the study units, completing the self-tests and activities in the units, carrying out recommended readings, writing the assignments, attending tutorials, and preparing for the examination.
Course assessment
There are two methods of assessing progress: continuous assessment through the completion of the assignments, and an examination at the end of the course. The course is designed to help you progress smoothly through the study units to the assignments and examination.
Assignments
The assignment details will be sent to you as a separate Assignment File. There are two assignments for continuous assessment. These give you the opportunity to put into practice the skills and knowledge you have acquired on the course.
Each assignment has a particular weighting and these are shown below:
Assignment 1 = 25%
Assignment 2 = 25%
The Assignment File contains detailed instructions and advice for each assignment. You will also be sent a Presentation Schedule to remind you when to submit your assignments. It is very important to read the Assignment File and keep to the deadlines given in the Presentation Schedule.
Examination
The examination for ENGL 1101AED will last for two hours and carries 50% of the total course marks. It consists of questions which reflect very closely the types of assignments you will have been working on throughout the course.
HKMU has a clear and open approach to helping students succeed in all aspects of their study. You will be provided with a specimen examination paper similar in format to the actual examination, although the questions will, of course, be different. To be awarded a final pass grade for this course, you must attain passes in both the continuously assessed course work and on the examination.
The assessment items are outlined in the following table.
Table 2 Assessment overview
Assessment | Course area covered | Weighting |
Assignment 1 | Units 1–3 | 25% |
Assignment 2 | Units 1–7 | 25% |
Exam | Entire course | 50% |
Total | 100% |