The course Academic Communication Skills (ACS)  explains the writing process from start to finish: where each stage is demonstrated and practised, from selecting suitable sources, reading, note-making and planning through to re-writing and proof-reading. Students who are not native speakers of English often find the written demands of their courses very challenging. In addition to the vocabulary of academic English they have to learn new conventions of style, referencing and format. Furthermore, their lecturers are often concerned by their lack of critical thinking skills, and also mention students’ failure to answer the specific question and their inability to develop answers logically. 

Objectives:Academic Communication Skills has been developed to help students with their written assignments in English at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. 

The four main modules of Academic Communication Skills allow teachers and students to easily find the help they need. Each part is divided into short sections, which contain examples, explanations and exercises, for use in the classroom or self-study. 

To deal with these students are guided through the stages of the writing process in Module 1 and then the related writing skills are explained and practised in Module 2. Module 3 is designed as a reference guide to tackle the main problems of accuracy, while Module 4 provides examples of some common formats. 

MODULE 1THE WRITING PROCESSThis follows the process of writing from the reading stage through to proof-reading.

MODULE 2. ELEMENTS OF WRITINGThe key writing skills, organised alphabetically from argument to working in groups.

MODULE 3. ACCURACY IN WRITING. This section revises and practises areas of grammar and vocabulary, again arranged alphabetically, from abbreviations to verb tenses.

MODULE 4. WRITING MODELS. Gives examples of letters and emails, CVs, reports, case studies and longer essays.