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Professional & Research Skills - COM00139M

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  • Department: Computer Science
  • Module co-ordinator: Dr. Katrina Attwood
  • Credit value: 10 credits
  • Credit level: M
  • Academic year of delivery: 2021-22
    • See module specification for other years: 2022-23

Module summary

This module provides an introduction to research and writing skills necessary for advanced study in Computer Science, and of the legal, ethical and professional context in which such study is undertaken and applied. It provides a sound basis for the Independent Study Module, undertaken during the MSc.

Module will run

Occurrence Teaching period
A Autumn Term 2021-22 to Spring Term 2021-22

Module aims

This module aims to provide students with the research, critical and writing skills needed to demonstrate systematic understanding and critical awareness of complex issues in contemporary Computer Science, to structure research into such issues and to communicate the findings of their research appropriately to a variety of audiences.

More detailed aims are as follows:

  • The module aims to provide students with the skills needed to identify, select and evaluate source material in a variety of forms, in order to build an understanding of the context of complex issues;
  • The module aims to give students experience of writing a critical evaluation of literature and other source material relating to a current issue in Computer Science;
  • The module aims to help students appreciate a range of presentation styles and formats, and to give them experience in presenting their research appropriately for a range of intended audiences;
  • The module aims to help students develop an awareness of the methods and techniques available for further investigation of the problem, including designing investigations, collecting appropriate results, analysing the results and evaluating the results and the process by which they have been achieved;
  • The module aims to provide students with an understanding of the legal, ethical and professional context of Computer Science, in its applied context.

 

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, a student shall:

  • Be able to identify literature and other source material relevant to a defined problem, take adequate notes and summarise its content;
  • Be able to critically evaluate that source material, relative to a defined problem, and use the material effectively to support a discussion of the context of the problem, appropriate for an academic audience;
  • Be able to support his/her discussion with appropriate references, using an appropriate referencing style;
  • Be able to demonstrate an understanding of different ways in which material can be presented, and select an appropriate presentation style and format depending on the intended audience and the purpose of the presentation;
  • Have an appreciation of different approaches and techniques for the collection, analysis and presentation of statistical data, and of issues involved in the selection of various techniques for various purposes;
  • Be able to prepare and give an oral presentation on an academic subject, to a fixed time-limit.
  • Have an appreciation of the legal, ethical and professional issues relevant to the study, practice and application of Computer Science in the contemporary world.

 

Module content

This module will be team-taught using a mixture of lectures and workshops, as detailed below. The bulk of the students' work will take place outside the contact hours, in the preparation of the major deliverable - an extended critical evaluation report providing the context for a complex problem suggested by the course tutor or supervisor - and for the additional formative assessments described in 'Assessment and Feedback' below. In addition to the lectures and workshops, it is envisaged that each student will receive up to an hour's discussion time with the supervisor (in three 20-minute meetings) during preparation of the critical evaluation report.

There will be 10 1-hour lectures, as follows:

Identifying and Reading Literature (2 lectures)

  • Different kinds of literature and their purposes
  • Search skills - search engines, search terms, initial identification of candidate literature, pitfalls
  • Interactive reading - specialist dictionaries, notetaking, precis

Critical Evaluation (1 lecture)

  • Assessing relevance, significance and quality
  • Science as argument

Writing Skills for Engineers and Scientists (3 lectures)

  • Audiences and Intentions - different kinds of writing (press release, oral presentation, project report, literature review, executive summary, industrial report)
  • Planning your work
  • Keeping yourself writing - motivation, organisation and writer's block
  • Structuring an Argument
  • Using literature effectively to support an argument
  • Style - for different types of writing and different audiences, analysing how examples of good science writing and good student writing work
  • Formatting and presentation
  • Oral presentation skills

Designing, Evaluating and Presenting Statistical Information (2 lectures)

  • Overview of common techniques, their strengths and weaknesses in particular contexts
  • Gathering statistics to support your argument
  • Analysing statistical information and evaluating your results
  • Presentation of statistical information - audience considerations, intention, format
  • Presentation of other graphical information

Academic Integrity (1 lecture)

  • Plagiarism and collusion, and how to avoid them
  • Appropriate referencing - IEEE Style
  • Turnitin

Legal, Professional and Ethical Issues for Computer Science Research (1 lecture)

  • Research Ethics - data storage, permissions, experimentation ethics, University process
  • Applied Ethics - Professional codes of ethics
  • Legal issues - duty of care, liability, negligence

There will also be two two-hour workshops, as follows:

  • Legal, Professional, Societal and Ethical Issues - group-based discussion and exercises relating to issues arising from modern applications of CS, for example implications of autonomy (development and introduction), cyber-security (privacy and surveillance), data security, safety of computer-based systems, introduction of IT in healthcare...
  • Presentations - each student will give a 10-minute presentation as part of a two-hour workshop, to an audience of peers. The presentation will be based on the student's critical evaluation, and will form part of the formative assessment of the module (the intention is to feed this experience into the final project presentation).

 

 

 

Assessment

Task Length % of module mark
Essay/coursework
3500 word critical evaluation		 N/A 100

Special assessment rules

None

Reassessment

Task Length % of module mark
Essay/coursework
3500 word critical evaluation		 N/A 100

Module feedback

Formative Assessments:

The student will receive brief written feedback on the press release writing task from the course tutor by the end of the Autumn Term.

The student will receive informal feedback on the Critical Evaluation Plan from the supervisor by Week 4 of the Summer Term.

The student will receive written feedback on the presentation from the course tutor by the end of Week 7 of the Summer Term.

Summative Assessment:

The student will receive written feedback on the Critical Evaluation report from the supervisor (moderated by the course tutor) by the end of Week 8 of the Summer Term.

 

Indicative reading

J. Zobel, Writing for Computer Science 3rd edition (London, Springer, 2014)

R. Barrass, Scientists Must Write 2nd edition (London, Routledge, 2002)


The information on this page is indicative of the module that is currently on offer. The University is constantly exploring ways to enhance and improve its degree programmes and therefore reserves the right to make variations to the content and method of delivery of modules, and to discontinue modules, if such action is reasonably considered to be necessary by the University. Where appropriate, the University will notify and consult with affected students in advance about any changes that are required in line with the University's policy on the Approval of Modifications to Existing Taught Programmes of Study.