Student Handbook - Moodle Book

THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE

Attendance

All students are expected to attend 100% of classes unless a very good reason is given. The teaching which you receive and the discussions you take part in during classes are a vital part of the learning process at Queen Mary. You will not be able to keep up with a module for which you are missing classes by reading for it at other times. This is an essential complement to class attendance, but not a substitute for it. Copying another student’s notes will also not give you the deeper understanding of the issues discussed which you gain from taking part in those discussions.

 

Of course, there are legitimate excuses for absence: illness, religious obligations, bereavement, would be examples. But you do need to keep us informed of any reasons (medical or personal) that will prevent you from attending a class or classes. You should inform the teacher before the class that you are unable to attend, and give reasons. You may be asked to submit a medical certificate or similar document to cover absences of more than five days, or a series of shorter absences.

 

We are well aware that many students have to find employment to finance their university studies. However, employment commitments will not be regarded as a sufficient excuse for absence. If you have to work, you must harmonise your work commitments with your academic timetable.

 

If your attendance is regarded as unsatisfactory, we may ultimately take steps to de-register you from that module. A student deregistered from a module is not permitted to replace it with a new module: it remains on your transcript, and although you will receive any marks for work submitted up to the point of your deregistration, it will inevitably be a fail mark overall. If, as a result of de-registration, you are registered for fewer credits than you require to progress to your next year of study, your enrolment is at risk of termination: that is, you may be unable to continue as a student of the College.

 

We will always try to help students who are experiencing genuine problems, but we cannot do so if you do not keep us informed of them. Of course, you may not want to discuss personal matters with all of your teachers, but you must make sure that the Student Experience Manager, Rosine Smyrl, or your Adviser is aware of what is happening so that he or she can offer a generalised explanation on your behalf. Even if your attendance is jeopardised by genuine problems, it is unreasonable to delay informing us of these until you have already been deregistered from a module for non-attendance. By that time, it may be too late to reinstate you.

 

Students must have permission from the Head of School to be absent from College during term-time for anything other than medical or urgent personal reasons, and must provide a valid reason for absence for such permission to be given.

 

With very few exceptions, all classes are timetabled for a full hour or multiples of an hour. By a College-wide agreement, they actually run from five minutes past the hour until five minutes to the next hour, to allow everybody to get from one venue to another. It is extremely disruptive to teaching if students (or teachers) arrive late. If you do not arrive by quarter past the hour at which the class starts, you may not be permitted to enter the room, and you will be recorded as absent from that class.

 

Private study

You must be aware that as well as attending all classes, you will need to set aside at least five hours per week per module for private study in order to keep up with the modules you are taking. This requires a great deal of motivation and organisation. You might spend this time researching in the library, reading and making notes and working on preparation for assignments, or it might suit you better to work at home.

 

Teaching

Teaching is carried out principally in lectures and seminars. For seminars and language classes, groups are usually kept small, but lectures may be larger. Typically, you will have one lecture and one seminar each week for each module that you take. There will normally also be a film screening each week for any film-related modules. Language classes may sometimes take place in the language or computer laboratories.

 

Lectures

Lectures are used to give an overview of the topic. You may not be expected to contribute, but to listen and take notes while the lecturer speaks to you, although you may have the opportunity to ask questions, or be asked questions, at the end. Lecturers may speak or read from notes, write on the board or use a variety of presentation aids (overhead projectors, slides, film extracts) to illustrate their points. You may find for some modules that a number of different lecturers are involved, teaching for only one or two weeks on topics on which they are specialists.

 

Use the information given in the lecture as a basis for further reading and also aim to consolidate and build on what you have heard to get a clear picture. You may find it helpful to discuss the lecture with other students and compare notes. This will help you to be prepared to contribute in seminars on the same topic.

 

Seminars

A seminar group will normally consist of the teacher and a group of not more than 25 students. It will typically concentrate on a topic from a previous lecture and investigate it in more depth. The seminar may take the form of traditional classroom teaching where the lecturer leads by delivering information and then asks the students to work in groups on set tasks. It may take the form of a large discussion. In any event, as a student you will be expected to take an active part and will grow in confidence as you find that you are able to contribute.

 

Preparation for classes

The module outline which you receive at the start of each module will give you information about the topic for each week, and you will normally be given suggestions for prior reading. You may find that preparatory reading or viewing for a lecture does not make the topic ‘gel’ completely, but you will find that it will help you to make sense of the lecture and the lecture will help you make sense of the reading.

 

It is important to prepare for seminars by reading through lecture notes, and making sure that you have done any background reading which has been set. If you don’t, you may find that you are at a loss and embarrassed during the seminar. You may be wasting your time, and that of the other students attending. It is, of course, unfair to expect others to do the work for you.

 

Taking notes

Learning to take clear notes is a valuable skill. You should aim to take down key ideas, rather than attempt to write down everything that is said. Listen for clues as to when a key point is being made or when a lecturer is moving on to the next heading. Use a spidergraph system, or write your notes as headings or sub-headings and leave plenty of space to fill in other details later. It is better to keep listening rather than frantically write. If you absorb what you hear, your headings will act as memory joggers and you can write further notes in your own words later. Go through your notes as soon as possible after the class and try to fill in any details and clarify any abbreviated bits.

 

Make sure that you label your notes, and any handouts, with the date and name of module and teacher. This will enable you to make use of the information when you are preparing to write essays.

 

The English Language and Study Skills section of the Language offers a number of free “Insessional” courses in study skills where you can learn strategies for taking good notes, and other ways to get the most out of your studies.  You can get detailed information about the modules and how to register for them on the website, or come to the SLLF School Office, in ArtsOne 108.

 

Feedback

Questions and discussion in class, the essays you write, etc, and your teachers’ comments on them all stimulate and help you clarify your ideas, and also show the effectiveness of the teaching/learning process. You are encouraged to discuss your essays individually with your teachers, who will usually set aside times to do this when any work is returned. You should discuss your general progress with your Adviser each semester.

 Coursework will be returned and feedback offered within four term-time weeks of the submission date.

 

Deadlines

Deadlines for handing in coursework will be put in writing in a module handout, on QMPlus, and sometimes also on the noticeboards. They must be treated as absolute, and it is your responsibility to make sure you know what the deadline is for each piece of coursework, as you will be penalised if you miss it. You can submit work prior to the deadline, and you would be well-advised not to leave work to the last minute. Work submitted after the deadline (even by 5 minutes!) will receive a maximum mark of 40%.  If you have personal or medical issues that prevent you from being able to complete your work in time, you may ask for an extension to the deadline (see § 4 DEALING WITH PROBLEMS) by completing the Extenuating Circumstances form, which is available online from the Extenuating Circumstances pages of the website or on QM+. Late work handed in up to two weeks after the deadline without an agreed extension will receive a maximum mark of a bare pass (40%). Work handed in more than two weeks late without an agreed extension will receive a mark of zero. Failure to submit coursework may also lead to de-registration from a module.

 

Time management

To be sure of meeting deadlines, it is vital that you plan ahead. The freedom of choice you have under the modular system makes it impossible for Module Organisers to prevent deadlines for different modules from coinciding. Stagger your essay writing and get some essays out of the way well before the common deadline so you have time to think properly about the later ones. Remember too that a lot of students will be looking for the same library books at the same time. Poor time management is NOT considered an extenuating circumstance, and it can seriously jeopardise your final mark.

 

There are some things that you can do to lessen the panic of running out of time for assignments.

 

•     Use a year planner to highlight the actual dates of your deadlines in each semester.

•     Mark down on the same planner all your personal commitments that may prevent you from working on your assignments, e.g. family birthdays, weekends away, commitments with children and busy periods at work if you have a job.

•     Next you should share out your own assignment deadlines and tasks into the spaces. This will give you time for working on essays through the semester. This DOES mean that you will be researching and writing notes before you have a lecture on the topic. It will encourage you to be thinking about, and working on, assignments continuously and you will have a bank of research and notes ready for adding to, and be prepared for the final write-up.

 

Help yourself by being organised. Try to visit the library on the same days as your teaching sessions. Keep a diary with a list of everything that you hope to achieve in that day. If you need to meet certain people, teachers or other students, arrange to see them at times close to your classes. In other words, capitalize on the time when you are in College to make the best and fullest use of your time. Wherever possible, make your efforts more productive by working with a study partner and attacking the library together, sharing lecture notes and brainstorming ideas.

 

Find out what works for you and those around you regarding your working patterns. The same pattern does not suit everyone. Some people find it useful to stick to a work-style 9-5 pattern. Others prefer to be (or have to be) much more flexible.

 

Prepare your family and friends by making sure that they understand the commitment you are going to be making. Make your time planner visible to all so that they are aware of the periods when you will be most in need of their support. As you progress you will probably find that you can get tasks done in less time, but don’t forget to schedule time for unforeseen events and for time off to relax. You will find some weeks will be more productive than others during the term.

 

Disability

It is in your own interest to let your adviser know if you have a disability, including dyslexia. The College has a statutory duty to make reasonable adjustments for you according to that disability, but we have to rely on you to make it known to us in the first instance. Examples of such adjustments may be allowing you to record lectures, special exam arrangements, provision of module material in alternative formats, e.g. large print, alternative forms of assessment, or other campus academic support. The College’s Disability and Dyslexia Service, based on the second floor of the Bancroft Building, can provide a great deal of assistance, from advice to support workers, if required.

 

You are advised to consult with the Disability and Dyslexia Service (www.dds.qmul.ac.uk, email: dds@qmul.ac.uk; tel: 020 7882 2756) as early as possible in the academic year, to ensure all appropriate support has been considered and can be put into place early on. Please note that in some modules there are in-class tests during the semester for which special arrangements may need to be made, and you would be well advised to ensure that we are aware of your requirements in good time, as allowances cannot be made at the last minute, or retrospectively.

 

Advice and support for disabled or dyslexic students

The Disability and Dyslexia Service provides advice and support for students with sensory, mobility and physical disabilities; dyslexia and specific learning difficulties; mental health issues and long term medical conditions. They offer comprehensive advice and support with your related study needs, such as arranging non-medical helper support (including readers, note-takers and campus support workers), exam and study arrangements, dyslexia screening, special equipment, funding sources for special equipment or assistance and Disabled Students’ Allowances.

 

Writing essays

The School is active in the College’s ‘Writing in the Disciplines’ programme, and some of its modules are designed to be writing intensive, that is, to provide serious instruction on essay-writing as an integral part of the module; you are encouraged to take at least one of these modules during your studies here. Essays are the main type of work that you will be producing throughout your undergraduate career. It is essential that you develop the skills of writing essays of university standard as quickly as possible. The process is not an instant one, and students come to university with different skills and approaches; moreover, lecturers have different ideas about essay writing as well. The following notes are intended as general help and orientation. They should be treated as ancillary to the guidance and feedback that you will get from your teachers throughout your studies in the School. The English Language and Study Skills section of the Language offers a number of free “Insessional” courses in study skills where you can learn strategies for taking good notes, and other ways to get the most out of your studies.  You can get detailed information about the modules and how to register for them on the website, or come to the SLLF School Office, in ArtsOne 108.

 

The purpose of essay‑writing

Perhaps the first point you should be aware of is that at university level literature, linguistics, film, and cultural studies are not disciplines which look for black‑and‑white, ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answers to problems. It is accepted that problems will produce many interpretations, and disputes among experts are a sign of a healthy interest in the subject.

 

Essay‑writing requires you to organise your thoughts on a given topic, and to put forward your own argument in response to a particular question. It also gives you valuable experience in expressing your ideas in a clear, logical and structured way —a skill which obviously has countless applications beyond undergraduate studies.

 

A further benefit from writing essays is that practice is gained which can be drawn upon in examinations, and the essays you write during term‑time can be very useful revision aids (although, obviously, you may not answer on the same topic in an exam as you have already written for assessed coursework). Moreover, it is through the comments you receive on your essay (either written or oral) that you can gauge your own progress, discovering which areas are your particular strengths, and ones to which you may need to give more attention.

 

Analysing the question

Essays are written as responses to specific questions, rather than just general discussions of a topic. This is quite different from the system in many countries of continental Europe. Both in coursework essays and in examinations, relevance to the question is one of the most important criteria on which essays are judged.

 

The first and most crucial step before embarking on writing, therefore, is careful thought about the question and analysis of it. What are you being asked to do?  Essay questions can be of different types. Some are survey questions (‘Discuss the role of women in the Spanish Golden Age plays you have studied’); some focus on change over a period of time and ask you to assess questions of causation (‘Account for the development of the passive in French’); some invite you to engage in a debate on an issue which has generated critical controversy and on which you are expected to come down on one side or other (‘Do you agree that classicism is an outmoded concept?’); some may ask you to concentrate on aspects of form (‘Discuss the use of colour in the films of Claude Chabrol’); and many expect you to combine these approaches.

 

It is essential, therefore, before beginning to write, to clarify in your mind what the question is asking. Make absolutely sure that you understand the question. If you do not, then ask your teacher, or choose another question.

 

Planning the essay

Perhaps the most difficult part of writing an essay is beginning it. Looking at a blank sheet of paper can be very daunting. To get over this initial hurdle, it is sometimes helpful to ‘brainstorm’, jotting down any thoughts that occur to you, in any order.

 

The next step is to decide your strategy for answering the question. Planning and structuring your answer are essential; poorly planned essays are unlikely to be very coherent. Decide what the main points are that you need to make. Ask yourself in what order they should be considered. What emphasis does each point deserve within your essay?  You need to ensure that your answer is full (that no part of the question has been ignored), balanced (that each component or point is given due weight) and appropriately illustrated.

 

There are no simple universal rules about how to decide on structure because it will depend so heavily on the specific question asked. Some general principles, however, are worth bearing in mind:

 

•     Essays need to be clearly shaped and signposted. It is useful to think in terms of an introduction which engages the interest of the reader, picks up on the title (or at least an important aspect of it), and tells the reader how you are going to handle the topic. Equally important is a concluding paragraph, in which you summarise and draw together what you have said. Those are the easy parts to define (though not necessarily to write!). What comes in between needs to be just as structured and clear in purpose and function.

 

•     A statement at the beginning of your essay (often in the introduction) should clarify the direction and aim of your argument. The argument (most of the rest of your essay) is the setting down of the various specific aspects you have decided to discuss.

 

•     Arguments need to be developed. Where your essay is of the ‘survey’ type, the different aspects should be the subject of different paragraphs or series of paragraphs which are presented in a sensible and effective order. It should be clear to the reader where the argument is going. In essays of the critical type, planning and laying out the argument can be more complicated and need more thought, but the basic principle is the same; the reader should always know where the argument is going and why you are making the points that you are.

 

•     Avoid ‘telling the story’ in literary essays. Concise reference to plot in a way that immediately relates to a specific point you are making in your essay can enhance your argument; but you must take care to avoid lapsing into telling the story for its own sake. Essays which follow this route very quickly become diffuse and aimless and lose sight of the argument. It is more effective in argument to allude to the events of the plot than to spell them out.

 

You should adhere closely to the word-limit that has been set for your essay. The questions set are designed to be answerable within the limit and essays which are more than about 10% longer than the limit will be penalised. On the other hand, an essay which is substantially shorter than the limit will also be penalised, as it is unlikely to cover the topic in sufficient depth.

 

Style

Clarity and succinctness are the most important qualities to aim for, and that applies to the detail as much as the overall approach. Written work should be formal (avoiding the colloquial) without being pompous or verbose. Here are some suggestions:

 

Words and phrases:  Try to cut out the superfluous. Why say ‘conduct an investigation of’ when ‘investigate’ will do, and is easier on the reader?

 

Sentences:  Always go for a clear and unambiguous structure, and remember that a sentence must contain a main clause. Here are some examples of common non-sentences found in essays: ‘For example, his mother.’; ‘For example, when the mother dies.’. If you are juggling with more than two sub-clauses, the chances are that it would be better to break the concepts you are trying to express into more than one sentence. A variety of sentence length is an effective way of holding the reader’s attention, but not if the sentences become convoluted in the process.

 

A key to effective communication is the punctuation of sentences. This can both clarify what you are saying and make it easier to read. Two of the most common traps:

 

•     Do not run sentences together with commas when they are really separate sentences. Do not write ‘The mother is portrayed cruelly, her ugliness is heavily stressed’.

•     Do use commas in pairs to delimit phrases or subordinate clauses; e.g., ‘The message of the novel, in spite of the seemingly happy ending, is a pessimistic one’.

 

Paragraphs:  Paragraphs are elements or building blocks of an argument; each paragraph should show its logical links with the next. Paragraphing is a way of giving shape to a text by breaking sequences of sentences, but it is always better if these breaks correspond to coherent units, or at least have a clear purpose. Starting a new paragraph should indicate that you are moving your argument along into new terrain. Many people do not take advantage of this device. Some write in long paragraphs of uninterrupted strings of sentences, in which it is easy to lose the point; others break the sequences so frequently that paragraphs can contain little more than a sentence or two, in which case the argument is lost in a sense of fragmentation. The best way to improve your paragraphing is to learn from examples; look at the books which seem to you to present the argument most effectively, study the paragraphing and try to emulate it.

 

Spelling

A great number of students have problems with spelling. This is not said to depress you (on the contrary, it may come as a relief to know that the problem is so common), but because a) it is a fact, b) it matters, and c) if you are one of those many who has difficulties with spelling, now is the moment to do something about it.

•     Take note of the corrections made by your teachers on essays. One practical suggestion is that you keep a list of the words that you identify as those with which you have difficulty, especially those which you use frequently. If you word-process, you could keep this list in alphabetical order and build it up as you go along.

•     As you are word-processing your essay, use a spell checker. It won’t cure the problem in itself; apart from anything else, a spell checker may ensure that words are spelt correctly but not that they are the words you wanted to use. But it will improve your end-product, and, if you take note of the corrections it suggests (as above), in time it can help you to improve your own spelling. You may also find it useful to keep a good dictionary at your side as you write.

•     One of the commonest mistakes nowadays concerns the use of apostrophes. In the case of nouns, the apostrophe is used to convey possession, not plural. Thus you should write the committee’s decision (= ‘the decision of the committee’), but not the three king’s (which has no meaning). Unfortunately, the same is not true of pronouns; its means ‘of it’, while it’s means ‘it is’ (and should not be used in essays anyway, as it is too informal).

 

Some people who have substantial difficulties with spelling are dyslexic. If you suspect that your writing problems may come into this category, you should contact the Disability and Dyslexia Service (dds@qmul.ac.uk) to arrange a diagnosis.

 

Documenting your essay

We do not expect your essay to consist purely of your own ideas and opinions. It will naturally include some material that you have acquired from lectures or seminars. But there are other sources on which you can draw: books, articles in journals, and websites. In general, you should be guided by your teacher’s recommendations for reading. He or she may have deliberately left a book off a reading list because it is too rudimentary or too difficult, or because its conclusions are not accepted among scholars. You should be very careful about using material from websites, because this has often not gone through the quality controls required in academic books or journals. But never keep silent about a source because you do not know whether the teacher will approve of it or not. If consulting an unreliable source leads you into error, you will lose marks for the error anyway, and to mention the source at least gives you some excuse.

 

The rule is that, whatever sources you use, you must acknowledge them. Not to do so is dishonest since it is seeking credit for someone else’s work (see Plagiarism under § 5.1 ASSESSMENT). To acknowledge a source means: (i) to list it in a bibliography; (ii) to give references in the text of your essay itself. Both are essential. The form these acknowledgements take is largely a matter of convention. Other departments may require you to do things slightly differently. But when submitting essays to the School of Languages, Linguistics and Film, please make sure you keep to the following guidelines.

 

The School of Languages, Linguistics and Film prefers the so-called ‘Author-date’ (or ‘Harvard’) system. This means that, rather than having to add a footnote or endnote every time you need to document the source of an idea, you simply add a bracket in the text giving the surname of the author, the date of the publication referred to, a colon, and the relevant page numbers. Thus, if you found a particular point on page 330 of an article by Charles A. Ferguson, published in 1950, you should, after making that point in your essay, add a brief reference in the form (Ferguson 1950: 330). To enable your reader to make sense of these references, you will then need to include at the end of your essay a bibliography giving the full details of all the material you read for that essay. These should be listed alphabetically by author and chronologically by date (i.e. they should begin with exactly the information included in the brackets in your text). They should contain enough information to enable the reader to check the reference for him or herself, including the exact title and the exact place of publication. Ferguson’s article is entitled ‘Diglossia’ and appeared in the 15th issue of a journal called Word. In a bibliography therefore it would appear as: Ferguson, Charles A (1950), ‘Diglossia’, Word, 15: 325-40.

 

Notes: Besides the bibliography, you may also want to add information to your essay other than in the text. This is best done through notes, with a number superscripted in the text referring to the note which then appears either at the bottom of the page (‘footnotes’) or after the end of the essay itself (‘endnotes’). However, notes should always be kept to a minimum, and in many essays are quite unnecessary.

 

Writing a bibliography

Remember: All essays must have a bibliography attached at the end; failure to provide one will have a serious effect on your mark. This list should include all the reading you have done in the preparation of your essay, even if you haven’t used it directly. If you are writing about a particular text or texts, do not forget to include details of the edition(s) you have used. Do not include in this list anything you have not read.

 

Within the School we recommend that in your bibliography you should adopt the following conventions:

 

Books. Give, in this order:

 

i)     the surname of the author, followed by a comma;

ii)     the author’s first name (or initials only, if the title-page has only initials);

iii)    the date of publication (in parentheses) followed by a comma;

iv)   the title (in italics if you can when word processing, or if not, underlined);

v)    the place of publication (followed by a colon), and the name of the publisher (both in parentheses). E.g.:

        Garman, Michael (1990), Psycholinguistics (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).

 

Films. Give, in this order:

 

i)     the surname of the director, followed by a comma;

ii)     the director’s first name (or initials only, if that is how the director is known);

iii)    the date of release (in parentheses) followed by a comma;

iv)   the title (in italics if you can when word processing, or if not, underlined). E.g.

        Jordan, Neil (1992), The Crying Game.

 

Articles in periodicals. Give, in this order:

 

i)     the surname of the author, followed by a comma;

ii)     the author’s first name (or initials only, if that is what the author gives);

iii)    the year (in parentheses) followed by a comma;

iv)   the title of the article in single quotation marks, followed by a comma;

v)    the name of the journal (in italics if you can when word processing, or if not, underlined) followed by a comma;

vi)   the volume number, followed by a colon;

vii)   the first and last pages of the article. E.g.:

        Ferguson, Charles A (1950), ‘Diglossia’, Word, 15: 325-40.

 

Articles in collective volumes. Give, in this order:

 

i)     the surname of the author, followed by a comma;

ii)     the author’s first name (or initials only, if that is what the author gives);

iii)    the date of publication (in parentheses) followed by a comma;

iv)   the title in single quotation marks, followed by a comma then the word in;

v)    the title of the book in which the article appears (underlined or in italics), followed by a comma;

vi)   the abbreviation ed., followed by the first name (or initials) and surname of the editor(s) of the volume;

vii)   the place of publication (followed by a colon), and the name of the publisher (both in parentheses);

viii)  the abbreviation pp., followed by the first and last page numbers of the article. E.g.:

        Crystal, David (1980), ‘Neglected Grammatical Factors in Conversational English’, in Studies in English Linguistics: For Randolph Quirk, ed. Sidney Greenbaum, Geoffrey Leach, & Jan Svartvik (London: Longman) pp. 150-187.

 

 

Electronic Media (e.g. the Internet). As for print media, except:

 

i)      if it is not clear which medium you are referring to, say so immediately after the title, in square brackets;

ii)     if it is not possible to establish when something was posted, write n.d. instead of the date;

iii)    on a new line, give the complete address for the Internet source you are citing, including, where appropriate, http:// (in angled brackets < >) followed by a comma;

iv)    always give the date when you found something on the Internet, in the form accessed 20 August 2002. E.g.:

Borrow, George (1996), The Zincali: An Account of the Gypsies of Spain [online text], Project Gutenberg

<ftp://ftp.ibiblio.org/pub/docs/books/gutenberg/etext96/zncli10.txt>, accessed 20 August 2002.

Bowmal, Paul et al. (1999), ‘Why “Polemics: Against Cultural Studies”?’, parallax [online journal], 5 (2): 1-2

<http://ninetta.catchword.com>, accessed 20 August 2002.

Luther, Martin (1996), ‘Letter to the Archbishop of Mainz, 1517’ in The Works of Martin Luther, ed. and trans. Adolph Spaeth et al. (Philadelphia: A.J. Holman 1915) Vol. 1, pp. 25-28

<http://www.fordham.edu.halsall/source/lutherltr-indulgences.html>;, accessed 20 August 2002.

 

Note the capitalisation of words in English titles. In other languages, other rules apply: in Catalan, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish, the normal rules of prose apply; in French, the first noun and all preceding words are capitalised, the remainder of the title being treated like normal prose.

 

Quotation from literary texts

If the essay you are writing is a literary one based on a text or texts, refer to the text(s) you are discussing as much as possible and quote from it when you feel it is necessary or appropriate. Wherever possible you should quote in the original language. (Note that in an examination it is not essential to quote the text, but if you can do so accurately, then so much the better.)

 

• Titles of works should always be italicised (or underlined in a handwritten essay). Many novels or plays are named after a character within them (e.g. Don Quijote, Madame Bovary, Tristana), and italics/underlining makes clear when you are talking about the text, as distinct from the character.
• Use single inverted commas for sections of works, and for individual poems, essays or chapters of books.
• Do not give the titles of foreign-language works in English. Likewise, give names of characters as they occur in the text, not in their English forms.
• When you quote from a text, say where in a text you are quoting from. There are various ways to do this, depending on the type of text:

 

Poems: give line numbers, if possible,, e.g. abbreviated to 'l.' or 'll.': e.g. l. 8, ll. 23-26.

Plays:   these are usually divided into acts and/or scenes. Give the number of the act in Roman capitals, that of the scene in Arabic: thus Act Four, Scene Two is written 'IV.2'.

Novels: these may be divided into parts or chapters or both: give the reference as 'Part II, ch. 9' (or simply II.9, if you think that will be clear enough). Add the page number as well, in the edition you are using, which you will have listed in your bibliography.

Films:   give a very brief description of the point in the film at which the image, scene or sequence occurs.

All these references may be given in brackets after the quotation. Giving references will help the reader to check if necessary and aid your revision when the time comes.

 

(For clear guidance on all the subtler points of referencing, consult Chapter 15 (‘References and Notes’) of: Ritter, R.M. (ed. & comp.) (2002), The Oxford Manual of Style (Oxford: Oxford University Press) pp. 504-576.)

 

Note what is said under Planning the essay about avoiding telling the story. As the reader knows the text, you should never do this or otherwise paraphrase the plot. The purpose of your essay is to argue points and persuade the reader, not to tell the reader what s/he already knows.

 

Use the present tense, not the past, to talk about events and characters: ‘Andromaque is a captive...’ not ‘[...] was [...]’.

Presentation

How you present your essay matters greatly. Effective presentation should be thought of not just as something useful for writing essays, but as a life-skill. But remember, presentation is not a question of using fancy fonts and bindings, but about ensuring that your work is clear to read and to mark.

 

Word-processing:  You will normally be expected to word-process your essays in order to submit an electronic copy through QMPlus.

•     Ensure that your text is double-spaced and has margins of at least 2.5 cm. This is the universal convention for academic writing, and it ensures that there is enough space for your tutor’s comments and corrections.

•     Ensure that the pages are numbered, and correctly stapled together.

•     In word-processed text it is easy to put in any notes as footnotes, which puts them closer to their point of reference.

•     Be careful when you move text within your essay. This may lead to the need for adjustments to surrounding paragraphs (both in the place where you moved the text from, and in the place where you moved it to), and you should carefully re-read and amend your essay after any such reshaping.

 

If your coursework is hand-written, the pages still need to be numbered, and you should allow plenty of margin space on both sides of the page for comments and corrections. Notes are best placed at the end of the text as this gives you flexibility while writing.

 

Checking:  Teachers, and examiners, give much weight to the technical accuracy of the essay. Check very carefully for spelling mistakes, wrong quotations and typing errors. Ensure that the footnote numbers correspond with those in the text.

 

Assessed coursework cover-sheets:  You must submit assessed coursework with a coversheet. Make sure you have included all the information asked for, particularly the title of the essay, and the teacher’s name. Do not include your name anywhere on the work.

 

Writing in examinations

Almost all of what has been said above applies equally to examination essays. Obviously you should omit footnotes and references, and the crutch of a spell checker is no longer there. But the main components of essay-writing are as important as ever: analyse the question, plan the essay, write it methodically, and check grammar, spelling and accuracy.

 

Unless you are a seasoned and experienced examinee, entirely comfortable with the process, it is a good idea to build in examination practice as part of the revision process. Do some timed essays, and timed ‘unseen’ essays (e.g. pick questions from past examination papers which you do not look at until the moment you sit down to write your answer). The timing of examination writing is absolutely crucial; examiners deduct marks for incomplete last essays, and failure to answer the required number of questions has a dramatic impact on your overall mark.

 

Suggestions for further reading

The following books contain detailed advice on developing your study skills:

 

Barrass, R, Students Must Write: A Guide to Better Writing in Coursework and Examinations (London: Routledge, 1995). An excellent, clearly written and comprehensive guide.

Buzan, T, Use Your Head (London: BBC, 1974).

Dunleavy, Patrick, Studying for a Degree in the Humanities and Social Sciences (London: Macmillan, 1986).

Clanchy, John, & Brigid Ballard, How to Write Essays: A Practical Guide for Students, 2nd ed. (Melbourne: Longman Cheshire, 1992).

Johnson, R, Writing Essays: Guidance Notes for Students (Manchester, 1991).

Jordan, R R, Academic Writing Module, Nelson Study Skills in English (London: Nelson, 1992). An excellent guide for students whose first language is not English.

Lewis, R, How to Write Essays (London: Macmillan, 1979).

 

Useful reference works on good written style include:

 

Gowers, Ernest, The Complete Plain Words (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1978).

Fowler, H W, A Dictionary of Modern English Usage, 2nd ed., revised Ernest Gowers (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1965).

 

The MHRA Style Book: Notes for Authors, Editors, and Writers of Theses, 5th ed. (London: Modern Humanities Research Association, 1996) gives much more detailed advice on style, referencing, etc.

 

Help with academic study and English language skills

The English Language and Study Skills office (ELSS) in the Language Centre offers a range of modules in English language, academic communication skills and related areas. All students are eligible to use this service, which is free of charge. Whether you are unsure about the skills required for your degree, you wish to enhance your abilities in a particular area, or your first language is not English and you feel you would benefit from extra support, you are encouraged to come and see them.

You can get detailed information about the modules and how to register for them on the website, or come to the SLLF School Office, in ArtsOne 108.

 

For additional self-study work on improving your use of English, the Academic English Online website is great fun and a good resource.

 

Learning Development

The College offers a free and confidential Learning Development service available to any QM student. Based in the Mile End Library, this includes:

• bookable one-to-one tutorials to discuss your approaches to study, a written assignment, a spoken presentation or a knotty area of grammar
• bookable one-to-one tutorials  with one of our Royal Literary Fund Fellows to talk about your writing
• advice on Maths, Statistics and Science  - on a drop-in basis in the first floor study centre
• brief consultations on writing and study skills, such as researching an assignment, referencing or using your time effectively on a drop-in basis in the ground floor Help Zone
• retreats and protected reading and writing spaces to help you focus, manage your time, develop better practices for reading and writing
• access to QM study skills books collection located on the ground floor

To find out more details, go to: www.learningdevelopment.qmul.ac.uk

 

We also recommend that you consult the Mind the Gap website which discusses how the modules which you study here can help you develop skills and approaches that are useful well beyond your university career: http://www.mindthegap.qmul.ac.uk

 

SLLF Writing Support Centre

The School of Languages, Linguistics and Film recognises how closely writing is linked to thinking; and how important writing skills are both in the academic and professional worlds. A large part of your assessment, for example, while you are at university is based on your academic writing. We wish to support all our students, therefore, in developing their writing skills throughout their university career.

 

The School runs a Writing Support Centre, coordinated by Dr Kirsteen Anderson, in addition to the QMUL Learning Development services in the Library. They share the same goals: to help you become a more confident and effective writer.

 

The SLLF Writing Centre offers free weekly workshops at fixed times in Semesters 1 and 2 to any student who would like to develop their university writing further. You are welcome to come along to these sessions at any point in the academic year, on a drop-in basis or more regularly. You can also arrange an individual, half-hour session at other times in Semesters 1, 2, and 3 by emailing Kirsteen Anderson at k.h.anderson@qmul.ac.uk

 

Both workshops and individual sessions are informal, non-judgmental and friendly. This is not remedial work but a chance to enhance your skills- we are all learners at whatever stage we find ourselves. You can bring along essays or other coursework that you are drafting, or essays which have already been marked and commented on by a tutor, or simply aspects of your work that you would like to discuss and explore. Some of the areas that we cover are how to structure an argument clearly, how to use the SLLF referencing conventions accurately, how to re-read one’s own work critically, how to interpret what an essay title is asking you to do; and if necessary, we can also do some refresher work on grammar, sentence structure and appropriate vocabulary.

 

For workshop times, please see the LCD screens in the ArtsOne Building, look for details on staff office door, or email Kirsteen Anderson on k.h.r.anderson@qmul.ac.uk

 

 

Module evaluation by students

At the end of each module, students are invited to give the Module Organiser feedback by completing a questionnaire. The Module Organiser will give you the appropriate form near the end of the module. Your co-operation will be valued - it is quite voluntary and entirely anonymous. The purpose of the questionnaires is to ensure the quality and suitability of all modules and their teaching in the School. The major positive and negative points which emerge are presented to the Teaching and Learning Committee for further discussion which, where appropriate, will recommend action to the School.

 

Programme evaluation by final year students

In February or March each year, final year students will be contacted by MORI, an independent market research agency, who will invite you to take part in the National Student Survey of your overall experience of studying at Queen Mary. This research is commissioned by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, who has a statutory role in ensuring the quality of teaching in higher education in England is assessed, and believes that students' views should form an important part of the assessment, and the results of the survey are published in the late summer.  Participation is voluntary and anonymous, but your views are extremely important to the College to enable us to identify and build on our strengths, and improve on areas of weakness