Programme Title

BA English and History

Final Award
(exit route if applicable for Postgraduate Taught Programmes)

Bachelor of Arts

Programme Code

ENG-BA-JS

UCAS Code

QV31

HECoS Code

100302

ATAS Clearance Required

No

Mode of Study

Full Time

Type of Programme

Joint Honours Single

Length of Programme

3 Academic Year(s)

Total Credits for Programme

360

Exit Awards available

Teaching Institution

Queen's University Belfast

School/Department

Arts, English and Languages

Framework for Higher Education Qualification Level 
www.qaa.ac.uk

Level 6

QAA Benchmark Group
www.qaa.ac.uk/quality-code/subject-benchmark-statements

English (2015)

Accreditations (PSRB)

Does the Programme have any approved exemptions from the University General Regulations
(Please see General Regulations)

N/A

Programme Specific Regulations

Each level must include 60 CATS in English and 60 CATS in Modern History.

Transferring from Single to Joint Honours:
On completing Level 1 a Single Honours student in either of English or History who has completed 40 CATS at Level 1 in the other subject and has achieved an average mark across the 40 CATS of 60 or above may be admitted to this Joint Honours Programme subject to having obtained the approval of the Adviser of Studies in the subject in which they have only 40 CATS.

Students will be notified each academic year of the optional modules being offered in the following academic year. Students are advised that not all optional modules will necessarily be offered in each academic year. Also, the delivery of a module may be subject to a minimum number of enrolments as well as unforeseen circumstances (eg illness of a member of staff). The range and content of optional modules will change over time as degree programmes develop and students' choice of optional modules may also be limited due to timetabling constraints.

Students with protected characteristics

N/A

Are students subject to Fitness to Practise Regulations

(Please see General Regulations)

No

Learning Outcomes: Cognitive Skills

On the completion of this course successful students will be able to:

recognise and appreciate the varying effects of different literary and linguistic forms of expression;

respond to, and differentiate between, different ideological and theoretical positions;

analyse and interpret material from different geographical, cultural, and temporal contexts;

think independently, originally, and self-reflexively;

demonstrate a capacity for critical reflection and judgment in the light of evidence and argument;

discriminate between substantive and peripheral concerns in their understanding of literary and linguistic issues;

identify, collate and organise relevant data and information from a variety of primary and secondary sources in support of their argument;

understand complex tasks and an ability to present appropriate solutions in written form;

work autonomously, manifested in self-direction, objective-setting, prioritising and time-management;

reflect on their own learning, seeking and making use of constructive feedback;

produce intellectually coherent academic analysis within word limits and time deadlines;

apply requisite referencing and presentation formats in the production of written analyses;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Class discussion in which analysis and interpretation of texts takes place allows the students to develop a comparative understanding of different approaches to material. It allows for both tutor- and student-led opportunities for the discussion and comprehension of directed reading and secondary source information.

Analytical literary-critical exercises – both formative and summative – test students’ ability to engage with, contextualise, and interpret texts. The ability to collate and obtain information is developed through introductory training in the use of libraries and online resources.

Extended essays test their ability to order and shape information, and to recognise ways in which the presentation and prioritisation of material is conducive to its rhetorical effect.

In all modules, students are encouraged to refer to current critical and theoretical debate in order to form their own judgement of the text or data in question. They work towards a number of deadlines for formative and summative work, and for class presentation, thereby learning to prioritise assignments and objectives, and in doing so hone their time management skills.

Methods of Assessment

Progress through the degree is one in which the autonomous learning undertaken by students is gradually increased, from lecture/tutorial based teaching at stages 1 and 2, to student-centred learning, through 2- or 3-hour seminars, at stage 3.

Extended essays and the dissertation test students’ ability to order and shape information, and to recognise ways in which the presentation and prioritisation of material is conducive to its rhetorical effect. In all modules, students are encouraged to refer to current critical and theoretical debate in order to form their own judgement of the text or data in question.

Class discussion, in which analysis and interpretation of texts takes place, allows students to develop a comparative understanding of different approaches to material.
Analytical literary-critical exercises – both formative and summative – test students’ ability to engage with, contextualise, and interpret texts.

The dissertation, examinations and essays require students to demonstrate coverage of material, appropriate methods of analysis, the ability to discriminate between arguments, and the ability to form an independent argument.

Feedback is provided for each type and instance of assessment and students may seek dedicated feedback sessions with course tutors.

The Personal Tutor system facilitates student reflection upon academic performance and assists in developing strategies for improvement.

appreciate a range of historical and cultural perspectives on academic enquiry;

engage with and interpret layers of meaning within primary sources;

discriminate between what is central and what is peripheral to the issue in question;

evaluate sources critically in their context;

make judgments on the basis of varied and problematic evidence and according to the persuasiveness of the arguments or the reliability of the evidence used;

gather, organise and deploy evidence, data and information; and be familiar with appropriate means of identifying, finding, retrieving, sorting and exchanging information;

demonstrate an analytical ability, and have the capacity to consider and solve problems, including complex problems to which there is no single solution;

recognise the importance of explicit referencing and the ethical requirements of study, which requires critical and reflective use of information and information technology in the learning process;

structure, manage and adapt strategies for self-directed independent research.

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Seminars and tutorials offer a variety of tutor-led and student-led learning opportunities as well as a more sustained opportunity to debate and evaluate a breadth of knowledge gained independently from directed reading and from the sharing of resources and information.

Through class discussions, sometimes assigned to pairs or sub-groups, students develop a comparative understanding of different approaches to material and the ability to formulate their own arguments and responses.

Through supervision of dissertations and research essays students are encouraged to identify a research topic; collate relevant data and write an independent analysis of it.

Student-centred learning situations encourage the ability to present and summarise knowledge to peers in a coherent, structured form, and to further enhance organisational and inter-personal skills.

Writing skills tutorials and dissertation workshops develop a student’s ability to structure and write a coherent and lucid essay and dissertation. Research skills in online bibliographical searches and the use of archives and libraries are developed through preparatory workshops for the dissertation. Students also have the opportunity to attend classes in database management.

Group projects are used to encourage students to collaborate with peers, negotiate the demands of teamwork and develop their understanding of a topic.

Methods of Assessment

Examinations and essays require that students demonstrate coverage of material, appropriate methods of analysis, the ability to discriminate between arguments, and the ability to form an independent argument.

Written exams help students gain a knowledge of a topic that can be readily and directly applied to a set problem or question, and also test their ability to select relevant information and to write clearly and concisely within a set time.

Essays test their ability to collect, order and shape information, and to recognise ways in which to present and prioritise material.

Dissertations test students’ ability to conceive of an independent research project; collate relevant data and synthesise it in a coherent and lucid analysis.

Coursework is required to be submitted in a specified form and to fixed deadlines, thus teaching students to learn to prioritise assignments and objectives and to hone their organisational and time-management skills.

Feedback is provided for each type and instance of assessment and students may seek dedicated feedback sessions with course tutors. The Personal Tutor system facilitates student reflection upon academic performance and assists in developing strategies for improvement.

Learning Outcomes: Knowledge & Understanding

On the completion of this course successful students will be able to:

display a broad knowledge of a range of periods in literary history, including literature before 1660, and an understanding of the social and political contexts in which texts are both written and read;

have an in-depth knowledge and understanding of particular periods, movements and authors according to individual progression through the degree;

demonstrate knowledge of English, American, Irish and postcolonial writing, and familiarity with debates surrounding the shaping of individual and cultural identity;

understand the rhetorical, stylistic and aesthetic strategies of the different genres of prose fiction, drama and poetry;

display familiarity with a range of theoretical approaches to literature and language, and with the key critical debates that form and inform the disciplines themselves;

exhibit an awareness of major structural levels of linguistic organisation in speech and writing;

demonstrate familiarity with major periods in the development of the English language and of contexts of language production and variation;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Knowledge and understanding are developed through lectures, tutorials, seminars (many of which will be enhanced by learning aids such as hand-outs, and key readings available online through Queen’s Online) and through the assessment and feedback process.

Lectures and tutorials together provide knowledge and the opportunity to discuss, evaluate and apply that knowledge to texts.

Seminars offer the more sustained opportunity to debate and evaluate a breadth of knowledge gained independently from directed reading and from the sharing of resources and information.

Extensive background reading is required throughout the pathway, developing students’ specialist knowledge of particular genres and periods of literature in addition to a broad base of knowledge about literary history.

Methods of Assessment

A range of assessment methods ensures that these skills are evaluated in different ways.

Formative written work assists the development of understanding, critical judgment, and independent thought, both through the feedback given, and through the process of writing itself.

The dissertation, examinations, essays and seminar presentations and language project work require that students demonstrate coverage of material, appropriate methods of textual and linguistic analysis, the ability to discriminate between arguments, and the ability to form an independent argument.

an awareness of continuity and change over an extended period of time;

an understanding of the history of a number of different countries and societies;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

The History programme incorporates a wide range of modules that focus on different periods of time and geographical regions.

Methods of Assessment

Assessment of individual modules.

Experience of critically evaluating documentary sources in a detailed fashion;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Analysis of primary sources is incorporated into the curriculum at all levels.

Methods of Assessment

Essays, seminar/tutorial contributions and dissertations.

an ability to reflect critically on the nature of History as an academic discipline and an awareness of historiographical and methodological debates;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

In lectures and tutorials students are encouraged to reflect on the historiography of particular topics and to compare different perspectives and methodological debates.

Methods of Assessment

In the criteria for assessment of written and oral work particular attention is paid to the student’s familiarity with the historiography of a topic as well as their awareness of different methodological approaches and debates.

In the assessment of dissertations, students are expected to demonstrate an awareness of the secondary literature on their research topic and to engage with it in an imaginative as well as critical fashion.

an awareness of the diversity of specialisms within the discipline of History;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

In lectures and tutorials students are encouraged to identify different specialisms and the contribution that they make to our understanding of the past.

The History curriculum provides students with a wide range of modules to choose from which reflect the different specialisms of members of staff. These include economic, gender, intellectual, political, religious and social historians.

Methods of Assessment

In the criteria for assessment of written and oral work particular attention is paid to the student’s familiarity with the historiography of a topic as well as their awareness of different methodological approaches and debates.

In the assessment of dissertations, students are expected to demonstrate an awareness of the secondary literature on their research topic and to engage with it in an imaginative as well as critical fashion.

an appreciation of the role of History in society and the varied ways in which it can be presented to a non-academic audience;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

In levels one and two, all students take modules which focus on public history and the presentation of history in public spaces such as heritage centres, museums, television, film and online.

Methods of Assessment

Group presentations on public history projects.

have written an extended piece of work based on contemporary sources or an in-depth historiographical enquiry.

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

At level 3 emphasis is placed on students working on primary sources and writing extended research essays as well as a dissertation.

Methods of Assessment

Research essays (4-5.000 words) and dissertations (14,000 words).

Learning Outcomes: Subject Specific

On the completion of this course successful students will be able to:

read texts with a developed awareness and appreciation of their formal, structural and generic properties;

assess critical interpretations of the ways in which different cultural and historical contexts inform the reading and writing of texts;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Lectures provide specific contextual and theoretical information as well as offering practical examples of different critical approaches.

Tutorials and seminars allow for close reading of texts in a group situation, while developing students’ ability to formulate their own arguments and responses.

Methods of Assessment

Assessment methods vary in accordance with the specific learning outcomes of particular modules as detailed below or in the Arts, English and Languages Handbook.

analyse the forms, function, and development of language;

utilise a critical vocabulary and engage with different critical perspectives in the analysis of texts;

be aware of key debates concerning the development of the discipline of literary criticism;

write coherent, structured and relevant essays in answer to specific questions on literature and language;

select and utilise primary quotation and secondary critical material in the formulation of an argument;

display familiarity with bibliographic convention and should be able to research, reference and present written work according to the requirements of the subject area;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Formative work – both written and oral – enables students to combine the knowledge and skills developed through lectures and tutorials, and to formulate, and receive feedback on, their own independent arguments.

Module and programme information and style sheets guide students in their choice of, access to, and citation of relevant secondary materials.

Methods of Assessment

All assessment methods, whether the dissertation, essays or oral presentations, aural tests or examinations, require students to demonstrate the English subject skills which are detailed in the Marking Criteria and the English Assessment and Feedback Policy made available in Module Resources.

a respect for historical context and evidence and a greater awareness of the historical processes unfolding in our own time;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Discussions in seminars and tutorials encourage students to reflect on the historical context of current developments and public discourse.

Methods of Assessment

In written and oral work, students are expected to demonstrate an awareness of the different context of the past.

an ability to understand how people have existed, acted and thought in the always different context of the past;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Lectures, seminars and tutorials aim to make students aware of the different context of the past.

Methods of Assessment

Essays, dissertations, oral presentations.

Learning Outcomes: Transferable Skills

On the completion of this course successful students will be able to:

an ability to read and analyse primary sources, both critically and empathetically;

Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies

Work on primary sources is incorporated into the curriculum at every level.

Methods of Assessment

Essays, dissertations, oral presentations.