| Unit name | Writing Your World: Literature, Creative Writing and Community |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGL20121 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Kahora |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
none |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
none |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
none |
| School/department | Department of English |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
This unit offers students an opportunity to work on the non-analytical creative end of literature. This increases their understanding of how writers approach their craft and improves their analytical skills; it also offers a potential career track as writers and workers in creative industries. It introduces students to creative writing through the short form and life writing as a potential resource for use in, and reflection on, their community-engaged projects alongside exploring a range of short literature forms from across the globe which are broadly focused around ‘writing your world’. Students will have the chance to engage directly in creative writing practice, exploring this as a tool for enhancing and diversifying their reflexive writing on their community-engaged projects.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
Community engagement units prepare and support students in the design, facilitation, theoretical underpinning, critical reflection and evaluation of community engaged learning. Community engaged learning describes opportunities for students to work in partnership with local communities and/or local community organisations to engage with real-world questions as part of their curriculum by applying theory to real-world contexts. Study in the classroom will support students’ parallel development of an individual, community-engaged project, while seminars will offer a space for dialogue between classroom-based pedagogy and community-engaged practice.
An overview of content
Students will have the opportunity to experiment with creative fiction writing as a reflective tool and resource for developing community-engaged practice. This will include a focus on the basic elements of short fiction: plot, point of view, setting and description, and characterisation. The course involves teaching students the basic elements of creative writing, concentrating on the short story form and life writing. The unit considers the significance and relevance of different forms of literature (which may include oral literary traditions, visual narrative forms, and others) to different communities, with students drawing on reflections on the literary forms they have used in their own community-engaged projects and practice.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
Students will have an opportunity to write their own original fiction or piece of life writing and explore various forms of narrative, supported by critical examination of a range of short fiction.
Learning Outcomes:
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
This unit is normally taught through a series of 3-hour seminars. Seminars use a range of teaching methods including lectures, group discussion, research and writing activities, and peer dialogue. Students are expected to attend all timetabled teaching, engage with the reading, and participate fully with the weekly tasks and topics. Learning will be further supported through the opportunity for individual consultation.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Students will be given the opportunity to submit a draft or outline of their final summative essay and receive formative feedback. For every session, students will submit drafts of their creative writing for peer review. This builds towards their summative assessment.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
500-word process paper (10%) [ILOs 1-2].
2,500-word piece of creative writing (90%) [ILOs 1-3].
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the format or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are confirmed by the School/Centre shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. ENGL20121).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
