Transferable Academic Skills Kit (TASK)

Various authors

Garnet Publishing Ltd 2007

12 Module Boxed Set

ISBN 978-1-85964-927-5

TASK Teacher's Book

ISBN 978-1-85964-928-2

This course is designed for students in tertiary level education and aims to prepare these students, especially those who are studying in a foreign country in English, for the requirements and challenges of studying at a higher or further education level. Twelve modules are presented in A4 booklets of about 25 to 40 pages in length, and modules include Academic Culture, Research and Referencing, Examination Techniques, Scientific Writing, Presentations and Seminars and Tutorials.

The first module, Key Foundation Skills, introduces students to the idea that studying at tertiary level provides more than just an understanding of the subject matter, but also helps students to develop skills throughout their studies which are transferable to other situations. In addition to identifying and describing the transferable skills, this unit covers areas such as personality and learning types, strengths and weaknesses, organisation and time management. The second module looks at academic culture, the transition into tertiary education and expectations of the educational institutions, and examines cross-cultural communication and philosophies.

All of the modules have extension activities and website activities at the end of the module, and each has a glossary. The modules covering essay and scientific writing contain a wealth of information which would be useful to any student, irrespective of whether English is their mother tongue, as writing academic documents requires skills which are not necessarily called upon in secondary education. I recently had a conversation with my niece, a Research Fellow in chemistry at Cambridge University, and she confirmed that many students have significant problems writing reports or essays, and writing answers to exam questions. Foreign students are able to attend special English classes to help them acquire these academic writing skills, but in her opinion, most of the students would benefit from such a course.

There is a Teacher's Book to accompany the Skills Kit, but I did not see this, so I am not aware of the thinking behind each module, or whether there is additional material to accompany the booklets. However, each module contains pair or groupwork, but I think students could also benefit from self-study if they were unable to complete the modules as part of a group course.

I imagine that this modular course could benefit many students entering tertiary education, and not just those studying in English as a foreign language. It may also be of help to English teachers working in the field of English for Academic Purposes.

Angela Matthews Siegrist