Introduction to Special Needs Education Programme description

Publication in international journals has become increasingly imperative for academics worldwide. Scholarly success is often measured in terms of publication in high ranking, international ¿ i.e. English language ¿ peer-reviewed journals. At the same time, the internationalisation agendas of higher education institutions ¿ in Norway and around the world ¿ place an emphasis on collaboration and initiatives across international borders. The ability to communicate in English is central to successful involvement in such work.

This course sets out to equip PhD candidates and faculty members at OsloMet with the writing tools needed to meet these challenges.

The course will focus on familiarising participants with the academic writing conventions, as well as addressing the most common problem areas confronting Norwegians when writing academic English. This is a practical course in which participants¿ own writing is a key element. Time will be spent discussing participants¿ texts as well as the principles of academic writing.

The course provides participants with the opportunity to practice academic English and develop competence in working with English academic texts.

The course also contributes to the wider university college milieu by developing a forum for work-in-progress discussions and facilitating participation in international fora as well as internal internationalisation projects. Furthermore, the course enables academic/research contact across faculty lines.

The target group for this course is PhD candidates and researchers among the academic staff at OsloMet, who are actively engaged in writing articles, papers or dissertations in English.

Opptakskravet er generell studiekompetanse eller tilsvarende realkompetanse.

Søkere som tas opp på grunnlag av realkompetanse må være 25 år eller eldre i opptaksåret og kan ikke ha generell studiekompetanse. Slike søkere må i tillegg dokumentere ett av følgende:

• Fagbrev eller tilsvarende, og minimum to års relevant (fulltids) yrkespraksis
• Minimum fem års relevant yrkespraksis og tilstrekkelige ferdigheter i norsk (eller annet nordisk språk) til å kunne gjennomføre studiet. Inntil to av de fem årene kan erstattes av relevant ulønnet arbeid, utdanning, organisasjonserfaring eller liknende. Faget norsk (eller annet nordisk språk) skal bestå av minimum 112 årstimer fra videregående opplæring eller tilsvarende, bestått med karakteren 2 eller bedre. Alternativt kan kravet til norsk dokumenteres med en attest fra arbeidsgiver som beskriver hvordan søkeren på en tilfredsstillende måte har brukt norsk skriftlig og muntlig (eller annet nordisk språk) som en vesentlig del av sitt arbeid. Søkere med morsmål fra land utenfor Norden må dokumentere at de oppfyller krav til norsk tilsvarende kravet til generell studiekompetanse, i henhold til krav i forskrift om opptak til høyere utdanning.

Relevant deltidsarbeid av ulikt omfang og lengde kan regnes om til heltid, etter gjeldende regelverk.

Etter fullført studium har kandidaten følgende læringsutbytte, definert som kunnskap, ferdigheter og generell kompetanse:

Kunnskap

Kandidaten

• har kunnskap om og forståelse for spesialpedagogisk tilrettelegging av opplæring
• har forståelse for og innsikt i tiltak for barn, unge og voksne med særskilte opplæringsbehov
• ha kunnskap om barn og unges psykososiale miljø

Ferdigheter

Kandidaten

• kan nyttiggjøre seg individuelle opplæringsplaner og forstå innholdet i planene
• kan reflektere over ulike tiltak som gjennomføres i samarbeid med andre faggrupper

Generell kompetanse

Kandidaten

• viser evne til samarbeid, ansvarlighet og kritisk tenkning
• kan reflektere over spesialpedagogisk tilrettelegging av opplæring i tråd med etiske krav og retningslinjer, og i lys av teori- og erfaringsbasert kunnskap
• viser forståelse for likeverdig opplæring for barn og unge med ulike behov

Participants will develop a sophisticated awareness of the conventions of academic writing, and how they vary between different disciplines. Participants throughout the course will apply this awareness to their own projects, refining their writing and increasing their likelihood of publication. Moreover, the analytical tools each participant develops during the course will keep on working after the course: each participant will continue to develop their awareness of academic writing and improve their own writing long after the course has finished.

Among the topics covered by the course are:

• Variations in academic style
• Audience, purpose and style
• The writing process
• Disciplinary identity
• Academic language
• Vocabulary, grammar, sentence, paragraph and text
• Coherence and cohesion
• Directness and formality
• Avoiding common errors: e.g. digression, lack of thesis statement, misunderstanding one¿s audience
• Analysing, discussing and responding to academic texts
• Article structures, including IMRAD

The course is held each semester.

• The course language is English throughout.
• The course will include task-based teaching, focusing on problems typical for Norwegian writers of academic English.
• In each session the group will work on two draft documents submitted by participants. The group works together on improvements.
• The rest of the session will focus on analytical and short writing and thinking tasks, aimed at rooting writing conventions in participants¿ disciplinary knowledge

Participants are expected to work on their papers between sessions, assimilating into their own work topics raised during class.

Participants will be responsible for distributing their manuscripts to the group at least a week before the session dealing with their work.

- Attendance:

• In order to take the exam, and be eligible for study points, the participant must have attended at least five of the six sessions.

- Compulsory tasks:

• A completed needs analysis form, and an academic text (an unedited manuscript, approx. 5 pages, double spaced font sized 12) must be submitted prior to the first course session.
• Active participation in all group sessions.
• Resubmission of the academic text in progress for discussion in the group.
• Final resubmission of this text, revised further, for the exam.
• A reflective statement, describing the candidate¿s experience of and responses to the course.

Course Code: AWC6000.

Individual oral exam consists of a 15 minute presentation, containing a visual element (e.g. a PowerPoint or Prezi), describing how the participant¿s article has developed over the course and how they expect it to develop subsequently, followed by a 15 minute discussion with the examiners, testing the reasoning behind the participant¿s writing decisions, their understanding of concepts covered, and their ability to further develop the text.

The exam will be assessed by two internal examiners.

Grading scale

Pass/Fail.

New/postponed exam

In case of failing the exam or in case of valid absence at the time of the exam, the student is entitled to make a renewed attempt. The re-examination will be arranged in the same manner as the regular exam. The students are themselves responsible for registering for the re-examination within given deadlines.