Unit name | Introduction to Literature and Community Engagement 2 |
---|---|
Unit code | ENGL10049 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | C/4 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
Unit director | Mrs. Thomas-Hughes |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of English |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
‘Introduction to Literature and Community Engagement 2’ is the second in a series of four cumulative units which aim to prepare and support students in the development and execution of individual community-engaged projects as part of their undergraduate studies on the English Literature and Community Engagement BA.
Community Engagement is a practice-led discipline. Teaching in community engagement combines: practical, skills-focused, discussion-based workshops; ‘expert masterclasses’ led by community engagement or reading group experts; and seminars which examine the ideas of community, engagement and the practice of reading in contemporary society.
This unit critically examines the practical application of service-learning pedagogy through literature/literacy focused community-engaged projects. Students will be introduced to examples of reading-groups and other literature-focused community-engaged projects from a range of contexts and will consider these in relation to the development of their own community-engaged projects.
The unit enables students to develop implementable community engaged project plans which draw on academic literature alongside resources and frameworks from a range of ‘community-engaged’ contexts (from the voluntary and statutory sectors). The unit incorporates skills-based training to support the facilitation of groups.
The unit introduces reflection as a method for developing and evaluating community-engaged projects and intersects this with further direct teaching of research and academic writing skills.
Aims
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1) demonstrate an ability to use critical understandings of ‘community’ and ‘community engagement’ to inform the development of community-engaged projects.
2) articulate how the study of English Literature might be used to underpin a community-engaged project.
3) design a community-engaged project in a suitable placement.
4) critically assess their community-engaged project design and reflexively evaluate their methodology and approach.
Through the year:
1 x 5-10 minute oral presentation and Q&A on community-engaged project. (ILOs: 3 & 4 )
1 x reflective essay (3000 words) (ILOs: 1 - 4) 100%
Bolton, Gillie. Reflective practice: Writing and professional development. Sage publications, 2010.
Clark, Christina, and Kate Rumbold. "Reading for Pleasure: A Research Overview." National Literacy Trust (2006).
Foasberg, Nancy M. "Online reading communities: From book clubs to book blogs." The Journal of Social Media in Society1.1 (2012).
Hartley, Jenny, and Sarah Turvey. Prison Reading Groups: What Books Can Do Behind Bars: Report on the Work of PRG 1999-2013. University of Roehampton, 2013.
Long, Elizabeth. Book clubs: Women and the uses of reading in everyday life. University of Chicago Press, 2003.
Maynard, Sally, Sophie Mackay, and Fiona Smyth. "A survey of young people's reading in England: Borrowing and choosing books." Journal of Librarianship and Information Science 40.4 (2008): 239-253.
Peplow, David. "’I’ve never enjoyed hating a book so much in my life’: The Co-Construction of Identity in the Reading Group." Pragmatic Literary Stylistics. Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2014. 152-171.
Plus, a range of texts, resources and toolkits from the voluntary and statutory sectors.