Module: English Study Skills, Creativity & Theoretical Contexts

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

Module Title	English Study Skills, Creativity & Theoretical Contexts
Module Code	LIT1003 (ITS: EL102)
Faculty	English	School	Humanities & Social Sciences
NFQ level	8	Credit Rating	5

Description

The purpose of this module is to supply students with practical skills, theoretical frameworks, and an awareness of different critical approaches, with the ultimate aim of deepening their understanding of the discipline of English, what is required of them in terms of the work they produce, the different ways of reading and engaging with texts, and the skills required to write both academically and creatively. Students will develop knowledge of and skills in researching, writing and analysing texts through a series of lectures and related tutorials, as well as a series of lectures focused on the creative writing process itself. The module will also serve to introduce students to ideas and approaches that will be further developed on other modules.

Learning Outcomes

1. Undertake well-directed and focused subject-specific research; present this research in a structured, clear and appropriate fashion; and adhere to correct conventions for referencing and presenting bibliographic information.
2. Demonstrate an understanding of the origin and development of English as an academic discipline.
3. Display an understanding of the key terminology associated with the critical and theoretical approaches studied.
4. Discuss the key intellectual elements that shape specific critical approaches.
5. Apply ideas from the various schools of literary criticism studied to literary texts encountered.
6. Appreciate the distinction between the conventions for academic writing and the creative writing process.

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full time hours per semester
Lecture	21	Lectures
Tutorial	3	Tutorials
Independent Study	101	Independent Learning
Total Workload: 125

Section Breakdown
CRN	10644	Part of Term	Semester 1
Coursework	0%	Examination Weight	0%
Grade Scale	40PASS	Pass Both Elements	Y
Resit Category	RC1	Best Mark	N
Module Co-ordinator	James Shanahan	Module Teacher	Darran McCann

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Formal Examination	End-of-Semester Final Examination	100%	End-of-Semester

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Intro: Why Are We Here?

Writing and Presentation Skills (2)

Referencing and Research Skills (2)

Intellectual Property and Plagiarism

Liberal Humanism and Semiotics (2)

Structuralism and Postructuralism (2)

Marxism and Literary Criticism (2)

Literature and psychoanalysis

Gender and Culture (2)

Postcolonialism (2)

Creative Writing in Practice (5)

The Arts degree and the development of English as a discipline

Indicative Reading List

Books:

Peter Barry: 2002, Beginning Theory,, 2nd,
Bill Bryson: 1990, Mother Tongue: The Story of the English Language (1990).,
Terry Eagleton,: 1996, Literary Theory: An Introduction,
2005: New Hart’s Rules: The Handbook of Style for Writers and Editors, 85532
2013: English for the Natives: Discover the Grammar that You Don’t Know You Know, 85533
2003: Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation,

Articles:
None

Other Resources

None