ENN103F/201/1/2012

Tutorial Letter ENN103F/201/1/2012

English for Academic Purposes

ENN103F

Semester 1

Department of English Studies

This tutorial letter contains Comments on both
assignments and Pre-exam Advice

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Dear Students

This Tutorial Letter contains answers to Assignment 02, comments on Assignment 01 as well as
some pre-examination advice. We hope that you enjoyed doing the assignments and that you
found them helpful in developing your ability to read critically with comprehension and insight
and to write logically and effectively.

Assignment 01
As stated in the preface to the Study Guide, the two learning outcomes of this course are (1)
that the student will be able to read academic texts with understanding of both the texts and of
the mental processes involved in producing this understanding, and (2) that the student will be
able to write effectively for academic purposes.

These assignments are concerned with outcome two in particular, as academic writing often
requires you to take a point of view and defend it. The assignment takes you through the
processes involved in writing a convincingly argued essay, and we were interested in seeing
how you actually completed each of these tasks. We asked you to submit a portfolio, consisting
of all five tasks. We looked carefully at each task, and marked the final draft of your essay in
detail, according to the marking grid supplied on pages 290 and 291 of the Study Guide.

For both assignments you had to submit

* Task 1: a table of the arguments for and against your chosen topic
* Task 2: an edited rough draft
* Task 3: a revised essay
* Task 4: an evaluation of your own work
* Task 5: a comment about the assignment

Your revised essay was marked and assessed by your markers. You received
25 marks for content / organisation
25 marks for vocabulary, language usage and mechanics

Most students performed very well and it was gratifying to see that you had worked carefully
through each task, and had produced some well supported and convincing arguments. This
process will be of great benefit to those of you who completed it, not only in your studies at
university generally, but also because you will be required to write an argumentative essay in
the examination.

Some students did not, however, follow instructions and submitted only the essay, instead of
showing evidence that they had worked through each task. These essays were often poorly
organised and lacking in supported and logical arguments. The fact is that the whole writing
process is vital and we really wanted to see proof that you had worked through it.

When we assess an argumentative essay these are some of the aspects we look for.

¾ The essay should have an introductory paragraph which clearly introduces the reader to
the topic and purpose of the essay.
¾ The essay should have a concluding paragraph which sums up the argument and ties
the ends together, leaving the reader with a sense of completion.

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 ENN103F/201

¾ The body of your essay should be divided into a number of additional paragraphs:
according to your argument.
¾ Each paragraph should have a main idea, expressed in a topic sentence.
¾ Each paragraph should have a number of supporting sentences, which explain or
illustrate the main idea, add details, and provide examples.
¾ If you use quotes from secondary sources, these quotations should be properly used,
and the sources should be acknowledged.
¾ You should express clear opinions, and demonstrate that you have thought through the
issue for yourself. You should not present stereotypes and generalizations without
backing these up with evidence.
¾ The essay should have been revised and edited. There should not be so many
grammatical errors that the reader cannot understand what is being said.
¾ If you used secondary sources the essay should have a bibliography.

Assignment 02

Question Answer Question Answer Question Answer Question Answer Question Question

1 4 2 1 3 1 4 3 5 3

6 3 7 4 8 2 9 2 10 1

11 1 12 3 13 2 14 3 15 1

16 2 17 3 18 2 19 1 20 3

21 4 22 1 23 3 24 1 25 4

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PRE-EXAM ADVICE
When your assignment is returned to you, you should have a clear idea of where your problem
areas are. An examination is a means of establishing whether you meet the requirements of
this module. Passing your examination is, therefore, an achievement of which you should be
proud.

The exam for ENN103F is a two hour examination consisting of three sections:

a) Section A requires a written paragraph for each of the three questions totalling 30
marks (ten marks each).

b) Section B comprises ten multiple-choice questions totalling 20 marks.

And
c) Section C is a long essay of one-and-a-half to two pages. This will be marked out of 50
marks.

All sections are based on a passage provided for you to read and are posed in such a manner
as to assess your comprehension, vocabulary, grammatical usage and reading skills. In the
third section you will be required to write an argumentative essay.
Students writing a supplementary examination

If you fail this examination and you are allowed to write a supplementary examination in
October/November 2012, please note that you will not receive any further tutorial material, but
you should prepare in advance for the examination by working through all the study material
again, concentrating particularly on your weak points.

We hope you have benefited from this course and we wish you all the best for the examination.

ENN103F Team

UNISA 2012