End of block 1!!!

Well done on completing block one. You have done well taking in all the information we have given you.



As Fiona told you though, now is the time to reflect on what you have learnt, organise your thooughts and ideas and make sure you have a clear action plan for block two which clearly identifies what areas you need to work on. Please go over all the assessments, marking criteria etc. on your memory sticks so that you are clear from the outset of block two what is required of you. We can clarify this in class on Monday.



Think of block one as you being filled with the skills you need at university. Now, in the next six weeks you need to demonstrate you can use these skills to the required level of MA study. Block two is about your production so you need to be rested, clear and inspired!



Some questions to help you reflect on the pre-sessional course so far. Please post your ideas/thoughts on your blogs:



Is the pre-sessional what you expected? How has it differed?

What are you finding difficult, easy, useful or interesting about the course? What are you learning?

You are half-way there. How does this make you feel? How will you be prepared for block two? How will you manage the assessments successfully? Think about the skills you have learnt and how they apply to each assessment. Also think about your time management.

How ready do you feel for your MA course at this point? What do you think will be most challenging for you?


Hope you enjoy the visit tomorrow. Make the most of the weekend to relax and prepare for the next block. Once again, well done so far!!

Word-verification tool

Could you please turn off the automatic word-verification tool for comments on your blogs. Here is a link on how to do this:

http://www.google.com/support/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en-ch&answer=42520

This will save me and others time when commenting on your blogs.

Thank you!

Prepare for success

Some of you have voiced concerns about your listening and reading skills. The following website is an excellent resource for self-study at home to practice the skills needed in universities in the UK:

http://www.prepareforsuccess.org.uk/

This is also amongst the links to other useful sites for your self study that I have listed on the right below. The 'Using English for Academic Purposes' covers all the academic skills including vocabulary but is especially good for developing your writing skills.

Weekend work

This weekend I'd like you to read the text by Guy Cook entitled The Genre of Advertising. It is on your memory sticks. Please print it for use in class on Monday when we will use it for a seminar discussion.

Well done with having completed the Dragon's Den project. I was very impressed with the presentations and think some of them would do well on the programme itself!! You might develop them and apply!!!

I would like you to reflect on your blogs about the process of preparing and giving the presentations. Think about how you managed your group work, how you liased with the designers, how it felt speaking in front of a group of people and what you felt you gained from the whole experience in general.

I would also like to see some reflection on the critical thinking work we did this week. How do you think you are coping? This is an incredibly important component of academic study so it is important that you reflect on your progress and identify strategies for improvement.

Last but not least, have a restful weekend. Get out and enjoy yorselves as next week we start with the biggie: report writing!!!

Women and Advertising

Well done with your group discussions on the representation of women in adverstising. If you would like further reading on the topic here is a link to an article which references the Kilbourne text we read in class:

http://www.socialistalternative.org/literature/womensrights/advertising.html

Five questions that can change the world!!

http://www.medialit.org/reading_room/gifs/MML_406.jpg

Class blog

We now have a class blog. Accept the invitation in your email and you will become a member. This will allow you to easily see each others profiles. There is also a link to the class blog in the list of blogs on the right.

Use the blog to write whatever you like but I think it could be useful if you want to communicate to more than one person.

Weekend text - What is an academic paper?

http://www.dartmouth.edu/~writing/materials/student/ac-paper/what.html

link to the text I'd like you to read this weekend. We will discuss this paper this Monday so make sure you have a good understanding of it by then.

Good luck with working on the Dragon's Den project. You should have a marketing plan together by Tuesday when we'll meet with the Michael's Design students again so you can collate your work and plan you presentation. Presentations should be Thursday and Friday of next week.

Have a great weekend and well done on completing another week. Just 9 more to go!! ;)

Great blogs!

OK. I've finally managed to read all your blogs and leave comments. I will continue checking them for the rest of the course and comment as often as I can. If I don't comment because of time it's probably because your blog is fine and there is no need.

Julia has written a nice reflection on Academic style. Have a look at her blog as it is a nice summary of the differences between formal and informal language. Writing a post like this is a great way of remembering what we have learnt in class, sharing your understanding of it with others and organising your learning in general. You might want to all do the same.

Really excellent start with the blogs though. I'll enjoy following them!

Homework for weekend

Please read the text Study methods in the UK at the following link:

http://www.ukcosa.org.uk/student/info_sheets/study_methods.php

You will be tested on it next week!

Have a lovely weekend and see you on Monday!