Undergraduate Program in International Relations (HSE and UoL)

Undergraduate Program in International Relations (HSE and UoL)

Academic Writing

(Spring 2022)

Prof. Ekaterina Viktorovna Talalakina (etalalakina@hse. ru)

Abstract: The course introduces first-year students to college writing, specifically to the peculiarities of the academic essay. The course focuses on the key elements of English for Academic Purposes such as the lexis and grammar typical of the academic genre. The course meets specific needs of the International Relations major; hence, the activities build on the topics relevant to IR. The course activities highlight the peculiarities of various types of academic essays with the special emphasis on argumentative type. Additionally, the use of sources implies the application of the APA style of referencing.

Prerequisites: first semester IR freshmen courses Duration: Spring 2021 (Module 3, 4)

Course Objective: To build the basic skills of academic argumentation in English and written representation of undergraduate research in the sphere of international affairs

Learning Outcomes:

· Acquisition of the basic skills of Academic Writing (structural elements, academic register peculiarities, academic vocabulary)

· Application of AW skills to the specific subject area of International Relations

· Mastery of academic presentation

Course Materials (Reading):

· APA style guide (open access): https: //owl. purdue. edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format. html

· World Economic Forum Reports (open access): www. weforum. org

· Instructor’s Handouts

Extra Resources:

· https: //scholar. google. ru/ (open access)

· http: //library. hse. ru/e-resources/e-resources. htm (access through HSE login)

Course Plan:

Week	Skills	Week	Topics
Week 1	Academic genre Essay plan Punctuation Relationships & connectors Formal & informal style Facts vs opinions Academic collocations (AVL) Comparison and contrast Selecting and evaluating sources In-text citations in APA	Week 11	Ways to avoid plagiarism APA reference list Synthesizing Types of arguments Logical Fallacies Hedging Definition Cause and effect Peer-reviewing Compiling a Writing Portfolio
Week 2		Week 12
Week 3		Week 13
Week 4		Week 14
Week 5		Week 15
Week 6		Week 16
Week 7		Week 17
Week 8		Week 18
Week 9		Week 19
Week 10		Week 20

Grading System:

30% - writing tasks, 30% - speaking tasks, 20% - quizzes + handouts, 20% - portfolio

The instructor reserves the right to modify this syllabus by 10% to meet the specific needs of the students.

Sample quiz questions:

1) What are the correct ways of introducing APA citations?

2) Which hedging devices prevent logical fallacies?

3) What words collocate in academic phrases?

Sample essay topics:

1) Political polarization is the most urgent issue of the developed countries.

2) The open door policy benefits the host country more than it harms it.

3) Regional conflicts revolve around resource shortage.

Classroom policies:

· Make-up tasks policy: It is possible to make up for certain types of assignments only in case of having a certificate providing a valid reason for the missed class (medical certificate, event participation, etc. ). Students should request the make-up task from the instructor and submit it within one week from the day of the missed class.

· Extra credit for quizzes: The way to earn extra-credit tasks for the Socrative quiz is the following: students should create their own quiz on the same topic in the multiple-choice format in WORD DOCUMENT. Scholarly articles from the journals of the previous year should serve as sources of the quiz examples. Each 10 questions bring one extra point. The due date is one week from the day of the quiz. LATE QUIZZES ARE NOT ACCEPTED. Teaching assistants of each group are in charge of collecting these make-up tasks.

· Hand-in assignments policy: All home assignments are due the beginning of each class. LATE SUBMISSIONS ARE NOT ACCEPTED.

· Cheating policy: In case of any kind of plagiarism (with the detected source), the assignment is evaluated as zero without the chance to make up for it. In case of two written assignments with the similarity index of 50% and higher from two students, both assignments get a zero. ALL TASKS IN THIS COURSE PROHIBIT THE USE OF DIRECT QUOTATIONS. Papers with direct quotations will get zero due to non-compliance with the course requirements.

Additional information:

· Online concordances for collocation check: http: //www. just-the-word. com/ and http: //ozdic. com/

· Citation service: http: //www. calvin. edu/library/knightcite/index. php (choose APA style)

· Proofreaders: www. grammarly. com

· Mind map maker: MindMeister

· Presentation makers: Prezi, Keynote, Google Slides, Readymag, Flowvella

· Harvard guide to using sources: http: //isites. harvard. edu/icb/icb. do? keyword=k70847& pageid=icb. page342054

Student Portfolio Checklist (might be subject to slight changes):

1. Paragraphs

2. Collaborative papers

3. Reference lists

4. AWL concordancing lists

5. Synthesis matrix of articles

6. Note-taking of roundtables

7. Logical fallacies tasks

8. Literature review

9. In-class tasks

10. Abstract tasks

Apps to install on student devices (optional):

1. Socrative ROOM NAME: YOUREVT

2. Google disc (for collaborative tasks)

3. VK (to view and follow shared links)

4. MindMeister (to create mindmaps)

5. PowerPoint (to make presentations)

6. Prezi (to make presentations)

7. FlowVella (to make presentations)

8. Haiku Deck (to make presentations)

9. Quizlet (to learn the words)

10. TED (to watch ted talks)

Methods of instructions: round-table discussions, role-plays, presentations, peer-reviews.

Special equipment: NONE

Basic reading:

1. Johnson, A. P. (2016). Academic Writing : Process and Product. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

2. Tusting, K., McCulloch, S., Bhatt, I., Hamilton, M., & Barton, D. (2019). Academics Writing : The Dynamics of Knowledge Creation. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

3. Wallwork, A. (2016). English for Academic Research: Grammar, Usage and Style. New York: Springer.

Additional reading:

1. Bailey, S. (2017). Academic Writing : A Handbook for International Students (Vol. Fifth edition). London: Routledge.

2. Write Here, Right Now : An Interactive Introduction to Academic Writing and Research. (2018).

3. Khazarova E. I. (2019). Writing Practice. Moscow: Flinta

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