SKLS 500: Graduate Scholarly Communication
2023-09-26
Course Description
This course is an introduction to graduate-level scholarly communication, with a focus on academic expectations for success at the graduate level. It provides an overview of academic honesty practices, essay formats and documentation, essay organization, academic tone, scholarly identity, and genre conventions.
Course Objectives
By the end of this course, students will be able to do the following:
- Evaluate your own writing based on TWU’s scholarly writing expectations of essay format, style, and mechanics.
- When writing:
- Apply the requirements and conventions of genre-specific papers.
- Produce original writing content that meets Academic Honesty standards, including source integration.
- Demonstrate essay structure and format and scholarly writing style.
- Implement strategies for written communication and collaboration, such as email, discussion forums, academic essay genres, and other mediums.
- Identify, integrate, and synthesize scholarly sources by applying academic research and critical reading strategies.
Course Evaluation
| Topics | Weightage |
|---|---|
| Learning Journal | 45% |
| Essay Structure: Reverse Outline | 5% |
| Essay Format Template | 5% |
| Academic Honesty Assessment | 10% |
| Paraphrase & In-text Citation Assessments | 5% |
| Genre Specific Analysis/Summary | 30% |
| TOTAL | 100% |
See the Course Syllabus and the Assessments section in this book for specific assignment details, including grading rubrics. Submit all assignments via the assignment dropboxes in Moodle.
Grading System
The TWU University Standard Grading System is the primary source for how you will be graded, although some courses and departments may deviate from this sytem. Please check with your instructor if you are unsure.
To pass this course, students must have at least 80% attendance. Live-time attendance will be required for activity completion and passing the class.
Course Activities/Requirements
Reflective paragraphs due after each class submitted at the end of unit topic lesson. These reflections will be based on students’ experiences with different aspects of scholarly writing covered in each class.
Self-assessments and peer feedback based on topics covered in each module. A reflective paragraph will follow these activities.
A reverse outline to evaluate elements required in writing academic essays and paragraphs
A template outlining required sections of a paper page set up, use of headings, style of citations, reference page.
A formative assessment of understanding of TWU’s Academic Honesty policy. There will be a self-guided quiz and an analysis of a sample paper where students will evaluate the appropriateness of use of sources in academic writing.
A self-analysis of use of sources within a paragraph, with emphasis on integration of sources in both quotations, summaries, and paraphrase.
Summaries of texts to be written in style of common assignment genres. Students will analyze the format, style, register, voice, and tone appropriate to each genre type.
Additional Resources
Writing Centre Sessions
Please note that you may be required to use the support of our writing center coaches for this course. Plan to book your appointments well in advance, so that the coaches have time to work with you on each of your assignments. The Writing Centre is available to assist all students with their academic writing assignments in any subject at any stage of the writing process. This is a free service and Online Writing Sessions are available. For more information or to make an appointment, visit the Writing Centre website or send an email.
Course Navigation
This course is organized into 8 units. Each unit of the course will provide you with the following information:
- A general overview of the key concepts that will be addressed during the unit.
- Specific learning outcomes and topics for the unit.
- Learning activities to help you engage with the concepts. These often include key readings, videos, and reflective prompts.
- Course Assessments will be posted and submitted in Moodle. See the Assessment tab in Moodle for the assignment dropboxes.
Note that assessments, including assignments and discussion posts will be submitted in Moodle. See the Assessment tab in Moodle for the assignment dropboxes.
Course Activities
Below is some key information on features you will see throughout the course.
Learning Activity
This box will prompt you to engage in course concepts, often by viewing
resources and reflecting on your experience and/or learning. Most
learning activities are ungraded and are designed to help prepare you
for the assessment in this course.
Assessment
This box will signify an assignment or discussion post you will submit
in Moodle. Note that these demonstrate your understanding of the course
learning outcomes. Be sure to review the grading rubrics for each
assignment.
Checking Your Learning
This box is for checking your understanding, to make sure you are ready
for what follows.
Media
This box is for displaying/linking to media, such as videos or songs, in
order to help illustrate or communicate concepts.
Note
This box signifies key notes, such as where to submit assignments. It
may also warn you of possible problems or pitfalls you may
encounter!
How To Navigate This Book
To move quickly to different portions of the book, click on the appropriate chapter or section in the table of contents on the left. The buttons at the top of the page allow you to show/hide the table of contents, search the book, change font settings, download a pdf or ebook copy of this book, or get hints on various sections of the book.
Figure 0.1: Top menu bar
Figure 0.2: Left and right navigation arrows
Writing Standards
For this course, you are expected to follow the writing standards according to APA 7. Please consult the OWL Purdue website for guidance and seek assistance from the TWU Writing Center and writing coaches as needed. Assignments have rubrics that attribute some marks to APA formatting and cannot be graded as fully meeting expectations if there are APA errors. That said, your conceptual understanding remains of primary importance. It is your responsibility to ensure polished work to the highest standard of which you are capable. This demands meticulous attention to detail, which will become more ‘natural’ with practice. Please seek any necessary clarification from your instructor.
It will be assumed that you have read, understand, and agree to the information provided at the Academic Dishonesty Policy website. If you have any questions at all please contact your instructor.