Thinking around task design on the pre-sessional (summer of 2023)

by Grant Hartley and Tony Prince

Addressing a need

CALD’s pre-sessional courses attracted around 580 students this past year, with roughly 80% studying online, all with the hope of being better prepared for their PG or UG courses at the University of Bristol. As such, the focus of the course is on providing students with an experience where they can become more used to the demands and expectations they will meet in their disciplinary studies. With this in mind, students are taken through a weekly cycle of learning activities, starting with accessing academic texts receptively, before being asked to generate a response to that content. (more…)

EAP in Prisons: working together to map out alternatives

by Diana Scott
Deputy Head of Pre-sessional Programmes, Durham University

I’m writing to all who share the mission of helping students respond effectively to their academic demands. You know who you are!

I want to flag up a category of HE student you may not have reached yet.  There are multiple initiatives to bring higher education into prisons (see https://www.prisonerseducation.org.uk/pupil). A popular model involves delivering a UG/PG module inside prison to a ‘mixed’ class of prisoners and run-of-the-mill university students.

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