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ENG-30112 - Module Specification
School of Humanities
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

For academic year: 2024/25 Last Updated: 09 May 2024

ENG-30112 - English Independent Study Project
Coordinator: James Peacock Room: CBB0.025 Tel: +44 1782 7 33140
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 6
Credits: 30
Study Hours: 300
School Office: 01782 733147

Programme/Approved Electives for 2024/25

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None


Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2024/25

The English Independent Study Project module offers an opportunity for students to produce a substantial piece of work that engages in original work in the field of English literature. You can choose either to write a dissertation, based on a topic agreed between you and your assigned supervisor, or produce a modern edition of a literary work (or part of a literary work). The ISP will allow you to draw on your own interests as developed during your progress through the English degree programme and will benefit from the research expertise of relevant supervisors in the School of Humanities. The successful completion of the ISP will represent a substantial piece of final-year undergraduate work that will demonstrate writing and/or editing skills relevant to a number of different careers.

Aims
This module is designed to provide students with the opportunity to engage in advanced research and scholarly inquiry in the field of literature written in English. It allows students to pursue their specific interests within the discipline and culminate their undergraduate studies with a significant research project: either a long piece of critical writing or a literary edition.

Intended Learning Outcomes

plan and manage a substantial piece of research in a recognised area of English literature: 1
produce an extended, structured piece of writing or editing: 1
critically evaluate current research and scholarship in the field of English literature: 1
engage in careful, detailed, and intensive independent research: 1

Study hours

Workshops - 6 hours
Supervision - 7 hours
Researching topic - 207 hours
Writing up - 80 hours


School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Project weighted 100%
A scholarly edition or a substantial piece of critical writing
Students will pick one of two options. They will either: 1) produce a substantial piece of written work of between 8,000 and 10,000 words on a topic of their choice, normally subdivided into an introduction, conclusion and an appropriate number of chapters. The dissertation should demonstrate original research, a well-structured argument, and a comprehensive engagement with relevant sources. 2) choose a literary text (or extract from a text) and produce a modern edition of it. The text will be selected with the help and guidance of a supervisor. It will usually be of a work written before 1800, but it may be from later than that if the student and supervisor identify a more recent text that nevertheless offers substantial editing challenges (e.g. it only exists in manuscript form). The chosen text may be in the form of prose, poetry or drama. The precise length of the text or textual extract chosen should be agreed between the student and supervisor, as some texts will require much more extensive notes and glosses than others, but it will normally be in the range of 5,000-10,000 words. The student will choose what kind of edition to create (e.g. modernised or original spelling), based on the imagined target audience. They will edit the text accordingly; and write an introduction, footnotes and glosses, plus a short piece (c. 3-400 words) reflecting on the editorial decisions they had to make during the course of the project. The total length of the paratextual apparatus + reflection will be 5000-7000 words (+ edited text, which will have a nominal weighting of 3000 words).

Please note that for the 2022/23 Academic Year programmes may be adapted to operate in accordance with a flexible, digital approach. This means that there may be some changes made to how modules are delivered and assessed. The latest information will be provided to you by your School in module handbooks. We endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes and details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/student-terms-and-conditions/

Last Updated: 09 May 2024