Beyond the Book: Community Projects -- Semester 1 - ENG00175I

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Module summary

Beyond the Book is a new kind of module for the Department of English and Related Literature. It is a Community Engaged Learning (CEL) module that provides students with the opportunity to engage in a team project beyond the University. Students will collaborate with local, York area organisations and each other, to address real challenges in the community, and to make direct use of their distinct disciplinary skills such as analysis, research, and communication. They will draw on knowledge gained from literary studies and beyond related to issues that may include but are not limited to gender inequality, climate change, and economic disparity.

Beyond the Book is designed to contribute to students’ professional development and provides opportunities to gain crucial skills to enhance employability. Each semester, the University’s CEL team will work with partner organisations to identify projects for students to work on together in groups. Students will work throughout the semester to design and deliver custom materials to meet the needs of the partner organisation. Pilot projects have included: researching, writing, and producing a podcast for the Borthwick Institute of Archives; preparing a book of refugee women’s recipes for York City of Sanctuary; event design for York Festival of Ideas; collecting oral histories for York Mystery Plays.

Teaching will primarily consist of a timetabled weekly lecture and a two-hour workshop. It will be conducted both on campus and on location, with partner organisations chosen within a reasonable traveling distance. Because students are working with professionals (in our partner organisations) meetings may occasionally need to take place outside of the formal timetable.

Students enrolled on Beyond the Book will be advised of available projects before the semester starts and will rank their preferences. Project teams will then be allocated based on ranked student choices.

Module will run

Occurrence	Teaching period
A	Semester 1 2026-27

Module aims

The module aims to equip students with practical and professional experience that allows them to make use of the analytic, research, and writing skills they acquire throughout their degree. The module creates opportunities for students to draw direct connections between these skills and the practical tasks they complete as part of theirwork with partner organisations. The module will facilitate criticalthinking related to interpreting, communicating, and sharing relevant
ideas within smaller teams, professional settings, and, at times, the wider public. It also aims to teach students to evaluate and reflect on their own professional development throughout their completion of a practical experience.

Module learning outcomes

On successful completion of the module, you should be able to:

1. Demonstrate an informed understanding of and engagement with relevant literary studies skills such as analysis, research, and writing that are also crucial in workplace settings

2. Demonstrate an informed understanding of and engagement with widely applicable professional skills such as public-facing writing, podcast recording, or the creation of digital or online content

3. Examine your own professional development gained through direct experience via a reflective written assessment

4. Develop and successfully manage a collaborative project that allows students to work together to help meet the needs of a partner organisation in the local community

Indicative assessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	70.0
Oral presentation/seminar/exam	30.0

Special assessment rules

None

Additional assessment information

The module will be assessed via a critical reflective writing exercise connecting skills learned on the project with the student’s otherlearning on the course. Students will receive guidance on this reflective exercise from the module convenor.

Indicative reassessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	70.0
Oral presentation/seminar/exam	30.0

Module feedback

You will receive feedback on all assessed work within the University deadline, and will often receive it more quickly. The purpose of feedback is to inform your future work; it is designed to help you to improve your work, and the Department also offers you help in learning from your feedback. If you do not understand your feedback or want to talk about your ideas further you can discuss it with your tutor or your supervisor, during their Consultation and Feedback Hours

For more information about the feedback you will receive for your work, see the department's Guide to Assessment

Indicative reading

Textbook TBC; light reading relevant to individual projects may be assigned based on literary connections to specific themes and/or activities.