This pre-sessional course aims to prepare students who may be embarking on graduate coursework for the first time, or who may have been away from formal studies for a significant period of time. It ensures students can adjust to the academic culture and expectations of graduate study. The course is offered twice yearly.
This Course has two parts: Academic and Research Skills and Information Literacy. The Academic and Research Skills component introduces students to the academic expectations they will find during their graduate coursework and familiarises them with Crawford teaching styles and resources available. This includes expectations in teaching and learning, the language of different disciplines, research skills, critical analysis, use of argument and evidence, academic reading and writing, academic integrity and referencing, and presentation skills. The Information Literacy Program (ILP) supports students in consolidating Academic and Research Skills through Information Management, Information Searching and Information Technology. 

The Graduate Academic and Research Skills program is significant in ensuring that students have increased confidence in their ability to achieve academic success at Crawford School

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

On completion of the Academic and Research Skills component of this course, students will be able to
1. understand the university’s expectations
2. use strategies to manage time and assignments 
3. use strategies to effectively read and understand an academic text
4. use effective strategies to note take, paraphrase and summarise key ideas in an academic text
5. identify an argument and evidence in an academic text
6. construct an argument and provide evidence to support this
7. assess the strengths and weaknesses of another writer’s ideas
8. find, evaluate and interpret authoritative and relevant sources for assignments
9. apply the referencing conventions required by the Crawford School and avoid plagiarism
10. write and structure an assignment in an appropriate style
11. be familiar with the study of Public Policy  
12. submit an assignment through Wattle/TurnitinInformation Literacy Program

On completion of the Information Literacy Program in this course, students will be able to:
1. use strategies to effectively search for academic text
2. assess the strength and weaknesses of websites
3. assess information sources from Library databases and apply to research requirements
4. understand how to save and organise electronic files 
5. use professional design techniques in presentations
6. install online software through Microsoft Office 365 Online Portal 
7. apply correct academic formatting for long documents 

Field Trips

There will be two concurrent field trips for this course: A) a "gardens" trip to the National Arboretum and Botanic Gardens, and B) a "parliamentary triangle" trip to the Federal Parliament House and the National Library.

Additional Course Costs

There are no additional costs required for the course or the field trips.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Written comments
• Verbal comments
• Feedback to the whole class, to groups, to individuals, focus groups

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Introductions and expectations
2	Thinking critically and reflectively to learn effectively in an academic environment, and managing your time and focus
3	Understanding academic debates: using theories as a lens and managing contested concepts
4	Finding relevant and useful material to read: what types of material are available, and how to choose the most useful and reliable reading materials at the right times
5	Identifying and understanding arguments in academic texts
6	Reading effectively: how to get relevant and useful information from academic texts as quickly as possible
7	Writing essays: building and outlining arguments, writing a comprehensive essay plan, and effectively signposting your argument
8	Using sources and referencing following the Crawford style
9	Making effective presentations
10	Writing effectively: academic style, structuring sentences and engaging with other people’s ideas
11	Using Turnitin and other useful apps, and Academic Skills during semester
12	Group presentations session

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment
Reading response	0 %	24/01/2019	04/02/2019
Summary	0 %	04/02/2019	12/02/2019
Referencing	0 %	12/02/2019	15/02/2019
Group presentation	0 %	15/02/2019	18/02/2019
Academic essay	0 %	18/02/2019	25/02/2019
Final ILP Quiz (Pass/Fail)	0 %	08/02/2019	04/03/2019

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Assessment Task 1

Reading response

Write a response to the Focus Paper of less than 300 words. You need to respond to the ideas in the text, do not just summarise it. Think about 1 or 2 main points you want to make. Consider, for example, any of the following questions to help you get started:

• What is the main problem or issue that the author is addressing?
• What is the author's central claim, argument, or point?
• What assumptions does the author make?
• What evidence does the author present?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the text?
• What are possible counter arguments to the texts claims?
• Why are the problems and arguments interesting or important?
• How is the topic relevant to your own work or interests?

DUE Thursday 24 January, 12pm

Submitted by email to your class lecturer

Assessment Task 2

Summary

Write a 250 word summary of one of the papers in a list provided on Wattle. This task requires you to identify and explain the main argument of the paper, not simply describe the paper.

DUE Tuesday 5 February, 12pm

Submitted through Wattle

Assessment Task 3

Referencing

The referencing task requires you to apply the principles of the Crawford referencing style to create a properly formatted reference list. The task will be handed out in class, and will be completed in groups of 2 or 3.

DUE Tuesday 12 February, 9am

Submitted through Wattle?

Assessment Task 4

Group presentation

You will be assigned to a small group, and as a group you will have to prepare and deliver a short oral presentation, using PowerPoint, on a topic relevant to the Focus Paper (possible topics will be discussed in class). If time allows, each group will also field questions about their presentation from the audience.

DUE Friday 15 February, 11.30am

Assessment Task 5

Academic essay

Economic inequality within many countries has been increasing in recent years, and many academics and politicians have been expressing concerns that high levels of inequality will have negative consequences for economic growth, social wellbeing, political stability, and environmental sustainability.

In this essay, you are asked to make an argument for whether the government of your country needs to do something to try to reduce economic inequality.

To make a good argument you must:

• make it clear to the reader what you are arguing for ( give a clear thesis)
• provide clear and well-connected reasons to support your thesis
• provide sufficient evidence to convince the reader of each of your reasons
• provide appropriate evidence, drawn from academic literature, not the media or personal experience
• show that you have considered other points of view
• demonstrate a critical approach to the literature.

We will discuss effective ways to build arguments and structure papers in academic skills classes, as well as how to use academic literature to develop your opinion and support your argument. These are the skills that will be assessed in this essay, not the actual content.

The essay should be 800 words, excluding references. Submit to Wattle/Turnitin.

DUE Monday 18 February, 4.30pm

Submitted to Turnitin through Wattle

Assessment Task 6

Final ILP Quiz (Pass/Fail)

To be completed online, in the final workshop

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students