‘The Five Essential Elements of a Thesis’ workshop is designed to facilitate the initial phase of designing and planning a large research project in the Humanities, by giving students a clear overview of the basic elements common to a thesis in Humanities disciplines. The course will introduce the Five Essential Elements of a Thesis (issue, contexts, texts, methodology and voice). After introducing these concepts, the workshop will give students the opportunity to articulate these concepts in their own projects, and to receive feedback from staff and students in the course. The course will also include a session on ‘Developing an Argument’, which develops the skills of identifying the basic elements of description, analysis and argument, and incorporating these elements in their own writing practice. The ‘Five Essential Elements of a Thesis’ aims to help students prepare for their Thesis Proposal Review, while ‘Developing an Argument’ aids students in the writing process.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
1. Become familiar with core components of a thesis
2. Articulate these components in relation to student's own project
3. Engage in critical evaluation of each of these elements in relation to the student's proposed HDR project and the projects of other students in the workshop
4. Learn how to justify choice of particular methodological approaches, and selection of texts
5. Learn to identify differences between description, analysis and argument in Humanities writing
Indicative Assessment
The course will be assessed as pass or fail. Students must gain a pass grade for each component of the assessment.
Presentation in which student explains each of the Five Essential Elements in relation to his/her thesis project (15 min) (35%) [Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4]
Analysis of student's own writing and writing of others students, using techniques taught in the workshop (five elements; description, analysis, argument) (4000wds) (35%) [Learning outcomes 4, 5]
Attendance and seminar participation, including response to other students' presentations (30%) [Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Attendance at all scheduled seminars is compulsory, except in exceptional circumstances. In the case of inability to attend, suitable documentation must be provided to the course coordinator [eg medical certificate]. No more than one day of the course can be missed, or a fail grade will be recorded.
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
130 hours of total student learning time made up from:a) 36 hours of contact over 12 weeks: 24 hours of lectures and 12 hours of workshop and workshop-like activities, and
b) 94 hours of independent student research, reading and writing.
Requisite and Incompatibility
You will need to contact the School of Literature, Languages and Linguistics to request a permission code to enrol in this course.
Prescribed Texts
This is a practical writing workshop. The set readings will draw from texts including The Chicago Manual of Style and Introduction to Scholarship in Modern Languages and Literatures. The Course Convenor will also provide selections from a range of contemporary essays and monographs in relevant fields for students to analyse using the writing and rhetorical techniques taught in the course. The selection will depend upon the fields in which the students are doing research.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 1
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $3360 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $5160 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9315 | 22 Jul 2019 | 29 Jul 2019 | 31 Aug 2019 | 25 Oct 2019 | In Person | N/A |