LLAS Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies

Bridging the Gap: University of Manchester

Julie Lawton and Annie Morton and Thomas Despositos and Susana Lorenzo and Elena Polisca - 18 January 2005

The University of Manchester's Bridging the Gap project to help students transition between GCSE, As and A2 level is described. Various forums and committees were set up to identify gaps in their respective syllabuses and events days were run at a Language College to help fill these gaps. Feedback on the events was good and it is hoped that this type of event will encourage more students to take languages at university level.

An interim assessment of the introduction of accredited portfolios in introductory French courses

- 12 January 2005

This paper reports on the introduction of accredited portfolios into an ab initio French language course at the University of Stirling. These were introduced to help students progress from a teacher-led learning environment into one in which a more autonomous approach was required. Student feedback was mainly positive, whilst a slight improvement in grades was also reported. However, some areas of difficulty would benefit from further development.

Spanish students in British universities: developing a support resource to improve their academic writing skills

Maria Carmen Gil Ortega - 5 February 2003

A substantial number of Spanish students enter British universities each year. Those students, like other international students, have to adapt not only to a new academic environment, but also to a new culture and a new way of communicating in a language that is not their native one. This piece of PhD research has analysed the difficulties that Spanish students have to face when studying in higher education in Britain.