Overview

This module provides students with essential research skills in translation studies, modern languages and intercultural studies, supporting their MA projects and preparing them for further postgraduate study. The module involves fortnightly seminars, delivered by different members of staff in the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures, each focusing on a specific academic skills. Students are given guidance on how to conduct detailed literature searches, how to improve their academic writing, and other essential research tools and methods. Assessment includes an annotated bibliography, a presentation and research proposal.

This module will prepare students for research in the field of translation studies, modern languages and intercultural communication. It will also help them to develop both a theoretical understanding of the processes and practical skills needed to carry out and present research in those fields. Students will learn how to locate relevant bibliographic sources for their emerging dissertation projects, compile a bibliography following a consistent and recognised style, and write, reference and present academic work in a clear and coherent manner. Questions related to research methods in translation will also be covered, and students will be expected to evaluate, select and apply different methodologies to their own projects. Students will also learn how to write a project proposal in translation studies, including research and practice-led projects. The core aim of the module is to enable students to plan and manage successfully their own dissertation projects and to present their research findings in a logical and clear manner.

Assessment Strategy

-threshold -C- - C+: Able to find out basic details about authors, concepts, primary texts and secondary texts.

-good -B- - B+: Provides a thorough and largely accurate account of research processes, whilst demonstrating the ability to marshal and coordinate a large amount of information on authors, concepts, primary texts and secondary texts.

-excellent -A- - A*: Provides a thorough and clear account of processes and able to deal effectively and imaginatively with resource difficulties, whilst demonstrating the ability to marshal and coordinate a large amount of information on authors, concepts, primary texts and secondary texts.

Learning Outcomes

• Articulate and substantiate, both verbally and in written form, the aims and methods of the student’s own research approaches and plans.

• Correctly deploy academic conventions relating to citations and bibliographical information in the writing up of research.

• Effectively use a variety of resources for research in the Arts and Humanities in a number of different media, such as library book collections, bibliographical databases and the internet.

• Formulate appropriate research questions and design research projects.