Students

LING1120 – Exploring English

2022 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Maria Herke
maria.herke@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

The English language is used in many different ways: to inform, to question, to report, to regulate, to express emotions, to advertise products, to create images, to construct works of literature. Drawing on a view of language as a 'social semiotic', this unit moves from some basic and traditional concepts in English grammar to looking at the grammatical choices users of English make in a variety of contexts, with lectures covering both theory and practice. The theoretical lectures provide an introduction to some basic concepts of, and tools for, a functional approach to grammar description and analysis of its application to context. The practical lectures and online activities invite students to explore the relationship between the grammar of and the contextual meanings in texts - both spoken and written - drawn from many different social contexts.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Demonstrate an understanding of what is meant by a functional approach to English grammar, and in particular the functional approach taken by systemic functional grammarians.
  • ULO2: Use basic terminology (in terms of both traditional and systemic functional grammar) used by grammarians to describe grammatical phenomena.
  • ULO3: Analyse short texts in terms of their grammatical patterns.
  • ULO4: Discuss the role of language as it is used in a variety of social contexts.
  • ULO5: Communicate in academic writing the ways composers of either written or spoken texts use language choices and other text design strategies to target their chosen audience as well as meet their own needs in the communicative process.

General Assessment Information

General Assessment Information 

1. Late Assessment Procedure

  • Late submissions without an extension will receive a penalty of 3% of the total mark available for the assessment task per day including weekend days (i.e. this is 3% of the total marks possible for the task – NOT 3% of the marks the student received. For example, if the assessment task is worth 100 marks and the student is two days late their mark for the task is reduced by 6 marks.)
  • Late submission of an assessment task without an extension will not be accepted at all after the date on which marked assessment tasks have been released to the rest of the class. Any student with unsubmitted work at this date will receive a mark of 0 for the assessment task.
  • Extensions will only be given in special circumstances, and can be requested by completing the Special Consideration request at ask.mq.edu.au and providing the requisite supporting documentation.
  • Extensions that will result in submissions after the assessment task has been returned to the class will require a separate assessment task to be completed at the unit convenor's discretion.
  • For more information on Special Consideration, see the university website https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration\
  • If a student fails the unit due to non-submission of an assignment or non-attendance at an exam, an FA grade will be applied in accordance with the University's Assessment Policy.
  • Unit convenors have the discretion to determine whether or not students should fail a unit on the basis of lateness penalties alone if other learning outcomes of the unit have been met.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Short Essay 10% No 13/3/22
Clause ID & Thamtic analysis 30% No 5/6/22
Major Essay 25% No 19/5/22
Grammar Exercise 35% No 28/4/22

Short Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 13/3/22
Weighting: 10%

 

In this short essay students analyse the context of a provided text (500 words)

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of what is meant by a functional approach to English grammar, and in particular the functional approach taken by systemic functional grammarians.
  • Discuss the role of language as it is used in a variety of social contexts.
  • Communicate in academic writing the ways composers of either written or spoken texts use language choices and other text design strategies to target their chosen audience as well as meet their own needs in the communicative process.

Clause ID & Thamtic analysis

Assessment Type 1: Qualitative analysis task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 5/6/22
Weighting: 30%

 

This is a an assessment that tests students' understanding of clause identfication and Theme / Rheme analysis.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of what is meant by a functional approach to English grammar, and in particular the functional approach taken by systemic functional grammarians.
  • Use basic terminology (in terms of both traditional and systemic functional grammar) used by grammarians to describe grammatical phenomena.
  • Analyse short texts in terms of their grammatical patterns.
  • Communicate in academic writing the ways composers of either written or spoken texts use language choices and other text design strategies to target their chosen audience as well as meet their own needs in the communicative process.

Major Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: 19/5/22
Weighting: 25%

 

This 1200 word essay will require you to compare two texts using both experiential and interpersonal meanings as your analytical tools.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of what is meant by a functional approach to English grammar, and in particular the functional approach taken by systemic functional grammarians.
  • Use basic terminology (in terms of both traditional and systemic functional grammar) used by grammarians to describe grammatical phenomena.
  • Analyse short texts in terms of their grammatical patterns.
  • Discuss the role of language as it is used in a variety of social contexts.
  • Communicate in academic writing the ways composers of either written or spoken texts use language choices and other text design strategies to target their chosen audience as well as meet their own needs in the communicative process.

Grammar Exercise

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 28/4/22
Weighting: 35%

 

This grammar exercise is based on Lectures 4-14 and will cover experiential and interpersonal meanings. Students are strongly advised to participate in the online practice grammar quizzes in order to prepare for this assessment as our research indicates there is a direct correlation between practice quiz participation and the assessment grade.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of what is meant by a functional approach to English grammar, and in particular the functional approach taken by systemic functional grammarians.
  • Use basic terminology (in terms of both traditional and systemic functional grammar) used by grammarians to describe grammatical phenomena.
  • Analyse short texts in terms of their grammatical patterns.
  • Discuss the role of language as it is used in a variety of social contexts.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Lecture content will be delivered to you online via your ilearn site in the form of screencast videos (vlogs) with associated online activities which will be available through the LING1120 ilearn site. There are no face to face lectures but there may be an opportunity to attend the lectures as I record them. This may suit thise who prefer a "live" experience. More infomraiton will be given in week 1.

Tutorials are 1 hour and begin in Week 2. Most streams are available in face to face mode on campus and some will be available online via Zoom. Unless you have permission to change, you  should attend the tutorial class you registered in. Students should aim to attend at least 80% of these valuable classes.

This unit runs over the full 13 weeks of Semester , however Week 13 will be used to summarise the work throughout the semester. Please note that the Semester break is a break from face to face teaching, not a vacation break, and we may set work to be done during those two weeks.

Textbook

There is a set textbook: Butt, Fahey, Feez and Spinks, Using Functional Grammar: An explorer's guide to English, Edition 3, published by Palgrave Macmillan. Please ensure you purchase a copy as early as possible because it is an invaluable resource for this unit. The university's official textbook supplier is Booktopia and you can easily order an online copy by going to https://www.booktopia.com.au/books-online/text-books/textbook-finder/cXC-p1.html?src=header

International students: 

Lecture content will be delivered to you online via your ilearn site in the form of screencast videos (vlogs) with associated online activities which will be available through the LING1120 ilearn site. There are no face to face lectures.

Tutorials are 1 hour and begin in Week 2. Most streams are available in face to face mode on campus and some are available online via Zoom. Unless you have permission to change, you  should attend the tutorial class you registered in. Students should aim to attend at least 80% of these valuable classes.

This unit runs over the full 13 weeks of Semester , however Week 13 will be used to summarise the work throughout the semester. Please note that the Semester break is a break from face to face teaching, not a vacation break, and we may set work to be done during those two weeks.

Textbook

There is a set textbook: Butt, Fahey, Feez and Spinks, Using Functional Grammar: An explorer's guide to English, Edition 3, published by Palgrave Macmillan. Please ensure you purchase a copy as early as possible because it is an invaluable resource for this unit. The university's official textbook supplier is Booktopia and you can easily order an online copy by going to https://www.booktopia.com.au/books-online/text-books/textbook-finder/cXC-p1.html?src=header

 please start trying to locate the text early as it can be difficult to acquire outside of Australia.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2022.02 of the Handbook