Embedding Literacy Skills in Academic Teaching

A central feature of university study is academic texts that can be very challenging to make sense of, for all the reasons set out in Chapter 2. Such challenging texts include both course readings and spoken lectures. Although meaning-making is a prerequisite of genuine learning, students are often left to struggle to understand these texts as best they can. This includes students for whom English is another language, and those who have come to university through alternative pathways, but also includes many students who come to university through standard pathways of matriculation from secondary school and still struggle to understand academic texts. One result is that students may not attempt course readings, or may not understand what they are reading. As readings are often intended to prepare students for the lectures that follow, these students may not adequately understand the lectures. Another consequence is that students may not have sufficient control of either course content or academic language to write their assignments effectively. These problems are not merely aberrations in academic practice; they are central issues for educators in universities today.