Approaches to textual analysis (P02602)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 11 ? Acronym : EDU-P-P02602

This course is suitable for both practising teachers and for non-teachers who have an interest in language and in the ways language is used by writers and film makers to create meaning in different genres of texts. The course introduces students to a variety of approaches to, and techniques for, analysing both print and non-print texts which will allow them to develop further existing skills and acquire new skills in textual analysis, literary criticism, stylistics and corpus linguistics. By the end of the course students will have a portfolio of collaborative and individual analyses which will prepare them for an individual assignment that requires them to select both texts and analytical approaches.

The key aim of the course is that participants have the opportunity to develop both their theoretical understanding of and practical skills in the analysis of texts from different theoretical perspectives. To achieve this the course will stress:

• genre theories, and the impact they have on the interpretation of texts
• reader response theory, and the effect that readers’ social and cultural backgrounds have on their ‘reading’ of texts
• different interpretations of the same text which occur when analysed from different literary perspectives
• the complex and varied layers of meaning that emerge following the linguistic analysis of such texts

Entry Requirements

? Costs : Students are required to purchase the core texts marked in bold.

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Education, (The Moray House School of Education, Schedule C)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : Postgraduate

? Delivery Period : To be arranged/Unknown

? Contact Teaching Time : 3 hour(s) per week for 10 weeks

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

Successful completion of the course will allow participants to:

• discuss the essential features of analysis of texts from different theoretical viewpoints
• engage with practical analysis of texts from a range of analysis procedures
• relate issues of choices in paradigms for analysis of texts
• engage with practical application of the theories and principles of textual analysis from a range of suitable procedures
• critically evaluate current teaching methodologies related to analysis of texts
• synthesise theory, principles and application of textual analysis for teaching and learning

Assessment Information

Folio

Students will have the opportunity to write two folio pieces (1000 words per piece)during the first two blocks of teaching. These folio pieces will demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of approaches to textual analysis. Tutor responses to these pieces should inform the writing of the assignment.
Weighting: 30%

Assignment

Either
Students will produce a written assignment of approximately 2000 words. In this assignment students will focus on a text or texts of their choosing. They will analyse the text(s) or an aspect of the text(s) using a specific approach drawn from course teaching and their own study. They will give an extensive rationale for their choice of text and the analytical approach(es) they have chosen as well as a detailed analysis of the text(s).

Or
This assignment (2000 words) can be practice based , in which case students will be expected to give a rational for, describe, analyse and evaluate a particular piece of teaching of text