LUE1002 University English II

Course Introduction

Welcome to LUE1002 University English II.  We hope that you will find this course interesting, stimulating and useful for your academic studies at Lingnan.  Before you begin this course, there is some important information for you below which your teacher will go through with you.

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English Language Learning at Lingnan

Since most teaching at Lingnan is in English (with the exception of some Chinese courses) and Lingnan University expects all of its graduates to be prepared for their future lives and careers by being proficient at languages, you are expected to continue to both improve your English language skills and to learn how to use English at university and beyond. For this reason, all students are expected to complete 12 credits of English language studies in order to be eligible to graduate at the end of their chosen course of study.

These four required courses must be completed in the order shown above and each course must be completed successfully in order to progress to the next. If a student fails any one of the Year 1 courses (LUE1001 or LUE1002), it will be retaken in the next term.  

#  Course code to be confirmed
* You can choose from a range of elective English courses which focus in more detail on various English language skills offered by CEAL, English Department and Translation Department.

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English Language Requirements at Lingnan

Students admitted from the 2017-18 intake and after, including students admitted to first year or directly to second year or above, are required to satisfy the following English language requirements:

1. Compulsory English Entry Test

Undergraduate students who are admitted to Year 1 are required to take the Diagnostic English Language Tracking Assessment (DELTA) twice respectively in their first year and second year of studies at Lingnan.  For details of DELTA, please visit:  http://www.ln.edu.hk/ceal/delta/

2. Compulsory English Exit Text

An overall band score of 6.5 in International English Language Testing System (IELTS) (Academic Module) is set as the University-wide minimum English language graduation requirement while students of the following programmes shall attain different threshold scores:

For details about the English language requirements for the undergraduates from 2017-18, please visit:  http://www.ln.edu.hk/reg/tselceep.php.  It is strongly recommended that students take IELTS upon completion of the four English Language Enhancement courses.

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Aims

LUE1002 University English II is a 3-credit English enhancement course in tutorial mode. There are four hours of tutorial classes per week (2 x 2 hours). Class size is about 20 and you will be encouraged to both actively participate in class and to study English outside class through some assigned tasks. 
This foundational course aims to improve your English language competence and academic skills necessary for you to succeed in an English-medium university and to cultivate your awareness of the language conventions, arts and research skills in academic contexts, with particular focus on how to scaffold a text by using appropriate lexico-grammatical resources, patterns and strategies. All the tasks, readings and in-class materials are based on a particular context relevant to your interests and needs. Remedial practice in grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation will also be provided to help you to facilitate your scaffolding and learning process during the course.

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Intended Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the course, you will be able to:

• identify the connections between reading and writing by reading articles of various lengths and producing critical responses
• demonstrate the awareness of similarities and differences of language conventions in disciplines (Science, Social Science and Humanities)
• explain the role of critical thinking in argumentation
• demonstrate an appropriate use of subtle rhetorical devices such as stance markers and hedges by interacting authentically in face-to-face and online contexts
• use the writing process by producing multiple drafts exchanged and discussed with peers
• demonstrate an understanding of research process by selecting an interdisciplinary issue for exploration
• demonstrate an understanding of the role of different media (for example, verbal vs visual) in argumentation
• use the structure and advanced techniques of argumentation
• reflect critically on argumentation, writing processes and language features
• produce an extended argumentative essay by using, comparing and integrating opinions from different disciplines
• demonstrate the ability to cite ideas and produce references according to academic conventions
• demonstrate the ability to present arguments orally and visually using advanced presentation skills
  

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Key Content

The course has the following focus of interest:

Throughout the course, these topics will be explored and illustrated with their inter-relationships in various communication contexts.

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Teaching and Learning Activities

The course takes an integrated approach to language learning and as such, you will engage individually, in pairs and in small groups in a variety of classroom activities. Authentic reading and listening materials are used throughout the course covering a variety of contexts and topics. Speaking and writing activities allow practice of skills and language covered in the course. Ample opportunities are also provided for you to reflect upon and receive feedback on your work. Additional practice materials, online resources and homework assignments encourage you to engage in language learning beyond the classroom.

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Measurement of Learning Outcomes

The learning outcomes will be measured through 100% continuous assessments, with details as follows:

• Writing coursework (I): Responding to an online article with an argument and write a reflection on the language used in your response especially your use of stance markers, hedges and other lexico-grammatical items. Both response and reflection are about 200 words for each. (20% of the final mark)
• Speaking coursework (I): Work in a group of 3-4 and create a visual to support an argument. In the presentation, you have to explain what your argument is and why the visual can be used to support the argument. The visual can be an infographic, video or a photograph. Each presentation takes 20 minutes including a Q/A session. The assessment includes both individual and group components. (20% of the final mark)
• Writing coursework (II):  Write an argumentative essay of 900-1,100 words making full use of what you have learnt in this course. (30% of final mark)
• Speaking coursework (II):  Give an individual presentation to argue for the position you have chosen for your topic. Each presentation takes 10 minutes including a Q/A session.   (25% of final mark)
• Attendance and participation: For attendance and active participation in class activities and discussion. (5% of final mark)

Please refer to the handout “Tasks, coursework and course overview” for more details on the course assessments.

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Course Materials

Course materials developed by CEAL will be available on LUE1002 Main Course Page on Moodle for you to download/print.  You are expected to come well prepared to every class.  The course materials will be referred to in every class, so you should print them out or bring a suitable electronic device such as a netbook, a laptop or a tablet to view the electronic materials.  A small size tablet such as the iPad Mini is considered to be the minimum suitable size for viewing and using the course materials.  A device of the size of a smartphone or smaller is NOT considered adequate for viewing the materials in class.

Supplementary materials are also provided through the Main Course Page on Moodle: https://lms.ln.edu.hk.  You will find this Moodle site and CEAL’s web site (http://www.ln.edu.hk/ceal) very useful for guiding your English language studies and for helping to answer questions you may have about this course, or other language enhancement courses offered by CEAL.

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Course Guidelines

1. Attendance and class participation

You are expected to attend all lessons and to be punctual in attending all classes, consultations and in-class assessments.  Generally, illness is the only reason to miss classes.  Other cases should have the instructor’s prior approval.  In case of illness preventing attendance at classes, you must present a doctor’s letter or other acceptable documentary evidence.  Late coming will be noted and lateness of more than 15 minutes will result in your being marked absent from that hour of the class.   You are also expected to actively participate in activities and class discussion.

2. Homework

You will be given homework to do outside the class. There are coursework assignments to complete throughout the course. 

3. Assessment Policy

Any student who fails to be present at an in-class assessment because of illness will be given one further opportunity for assessment, provided there is sufficient documentary evidence justifying his/her absence and it is administratively possible.  Only in cases approved by the class teacher will you be allowed to take a make-up assessment. 
If you disagree with the awarded marks for any assessment you should meet with your teacher and appeal within 3 days after receiving the disputed marks. Any appeals made after this time are not likely to be considered. When making an appeal, justification for a change of mark should be presented.

4. Late Submission Penalties

For each assessment, there are deadlines. Five per cent (5%) of the total possible mark will be deducted for late submission each day (including Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays after the due date), but any assessment submitted 7 days after the due date will not be accepted.  This penalty applies to all work that is not submitted on the due date without prior approval and/or in failure to produce supporting documentary evidence such as a doctor’s certificate in the case of illness.

5. Presentation of Work

There is a task sheet for each course assessment. Pay close attention to the instructions in the task sheet that tell you how to present and submit your work. Your work will be done in class or submitted through Moodle. Your teacher will show you how to do this in class and there will be other support available.

6.Plagiarism

If plagiarism is demonstrated, the student concerned may receive a zero mark on that assignment and dishonest practice cases may be referred to the Student Disciplinary Committee.  If you have any doubts about a piece of submitted work, you should discuss the work with your teacher before officially submitting it. 

To understand more about plagiarism – what it is and how to avoid it – you are advised to read the following information on the University’s intranet:
http://www.ln.edu.hk/current-students/student-orientation/academic-pursuit/academic-integrity

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Important Notes:

(1)       Students are expected to spend a total of 12 hours (i.e. 4 hours of class contact and 8 hours of personal study) per week to achieve the course learning outcomes.
(2)       Students shall be aware of the University regulations about dishonest practice in course work, tests and examinations, and the possible consequences as stipulated in the Regulations Governing University Examinations. In particular, plagiarism, being a kind of dishonest practice, is “the presentation of another person’s work without proper acknowledgement of the source, including exact phrases, or summarised ideas, or even footnotes/citations, whether protected by copyright or not, as the student’s own work”. Students are required to strictly follow university regulations governing academic integrity and honesty.
(3)       Students are required to submit writing assignment(s) using Turnitin.
(4)       An online ‘Plagiarism Awareness Tutorial’ (https://pla.ln.edu.hk/) has been provided to help students understand what plagiarism is and how to avoid it. All new undergraduate students starting from the 2016-17 intake are required to complete this online tutorial by the end of their first year in Lingnan. Completion will be indicated by ticking the check-box at the end of the course. The tutorial takes approximately one hour to finish. Students will be blocked from course registration for the coming academic year if they have not studied the materials by the end of the academic year.

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