ACSK4001 Academic Skills Portfolio: Evaluating Sources & Data Analysis

This Academic Skills Portfolio, submitted for the ACSK4001 module in Autumn 2018, encompasses several key academic skills. Task 1 involves evaluating three sources, including a report and news articles, assessing their authority, currency, content relevance, and accuracy. Task 2 focuses on data analysis, presenting a graph on UK gas usage, analyzing the data, and discussing its implications, including the impact of Brexit. Task 3 requires academic writing on the impact of Brexit on the oil and gas industry, including an introduction, discussion, and conclusion, supported by references. Task 4 involves a presentation on an important academic skill, and Task 5 is a reflective writing piece. The portfolio demonstrates the student's ability to critically engage with texts, analyze data, write academically, and reflect on their learning, fulfilling the assessed learning outcomes of understanding core academic skills, applying critical thought, and reflecting on strengths and weaknesses.

Autumn2018
Academic Skills Portfolio
(module code: ACSK4001)
Name: TAOFEEQ AFOLABI SMITH
Student number: 59674
Degree studied:
ACSK lecturer name:
ACSK tutor name:
This is your Academic Skills Portfolio, which should be submitted by Thursday 20th December, 2pm via your
student portal.
Please save a copy on your computer and back it up regularly (e.g. by saving it on your computer / in the cloud
(e.g. Google Drive) / emailing it to yourself).
Please refer to suggested word counts for each task included within this portfolio.
Submission deadline: Thursday 20th December, 2pm
Table of Contents
Task Page Week LO
1
Assessed Learning Outcomes (LOs):
1. Show evidence of understanding core components of academic literacy/skills.
2. Apply critical thought to a range of tasks, and do so with a minimum of external guidance in
particular situations.
3. Reflect, analyse and discuss strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities personally and
academically.
4. Use appropriate technologies to facilitate the completion of self-analysis/reflection.

Task1: Evaluating sources & critically engaging with texts 3 3 1&2
Task 2: Discussing data 4 6 1&2
Task 3: Academic Writing 7 1-10 1
Task 4: Presentation 8 9 1
Task 5: Reflective writing 10 9-10 3&4
Word count: 1,800 (+/- 10%)
 Task 1: 300 words
 Task 2: 300 words
 Task 3:700 words
 Task 4: 200 words
 Task 5: 300 words
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TASK 1
Evaluating sources & critically engaging with texts (to be completed in
week 3)
(Word count: 300 words)
Evaluate 3 texts by completing the following table. Text A is the same for every student and is shown next to the
citation/reference box. For Texts B and C you can choose texts that you are planning to use as references in your
academic writing task. You can use texts from your reading list or texts you have found yourselves or texts
recommended by your lecturer. Make notes for Texts A, B, C below.
Text A↓
All students should use the text shown in the
box(also available on GSM Learn).
Text B ↓
This is a text of your choice.
Text C ↓
This is a text of your choice.
Citation/reference
Cambridge Econometrics (2018) Greater
London Authority: Preparing for Brexit.
Available
at:https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/def
ault/files/preparing_for_brexit_final_rep
ort.pdf (Accessed: 19 September 2018).
https://
www.oilandgaspeople.com
/news/
https://
www.worldoil.com/news
Resource type
(e.g. book, journal et.c.)
Is a report base on
econometrics
News News
Authority
(Who is the author? Is
he/she qualified to
speak on this topic?)
Is qualified to talk on the
topic
Oil Companies World oil Companies
Currency
(Is the text up-to-
date?)
2018, up to date 2019, up to date 2018, up to date
Content
(Is the content relevant
to your topic?)
Is relevant to the topic
( e.g. oil and gas )
Yes it is Yes it is
Accuracy
(Are any facts & ideas
supported with
evidence?)
It can be used for
research , 2018
Yes facts from any
countries and the
government
Yes, it’s a news site
Audience
(Who is this text
written for?)
Is forced on a public side, Professionals Professionals
Further notes/
comments
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TASK 2
Discussing data (to be completed in week 6)
(Word count: 300 words)
Part I: Presenting data
Cut and paste the graph you used in the tutorial here and give it a title. You can find it on theAcademic
Skills page on GSM Learn. Remember to write a full Harvard or OSCOLA reference for it and add a title.
Title: Uk Gas used on oil and gas
Graph:
Reference:
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/uk-s-lack-of-gas-security-is-storing-up-trouble-
hn2930ppk
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Part II: Analysing data– Compulsory in-class task(ACSK tutorial, week 6)
Write a handwritten paragraph in your week 6 tutorial class addressing the areas in the box below.
Remember to refer to the graph/chart using correct OSCOLA or Harvard style in-text citation.
1. A description of your data (What is it? Where does it come from? What area is
it focussing on?).
The graph is based on the data showing the average usage of the UK gas per day in 2016
and the percentage of usage on natural gas in the UK in comparison to other countries in
the EU for the years 2015 and 2016. The data was collected from a report by Marcus Leroux
(2017), named ‘UK’s lack of gas security ‘is storing up trouble’, in The Times.
2. A summary on what the data shows in general.
It is seen that the in 2016, power generation sector consumed the largest
proportion of the UK gas on a typical day with 36.2%, followed by the domestic
sector which includes households and that consumed 34.7%. The industrial
sector consumed much lesser proportion of the UK gas with only 18.5% and the
least amount of UK gas was used by the commercial sector with only 10.6%.
Among the other EU members, the UK holds the 2nd position in the consumption
of natural gas in 2015 and 2016, preceded by only Germany.
3. One or two areas of the data looked at in detail and an explanation of why you
think they are significant. The important trends and differences/comparisons in
the areas you have chosen.
From the data, it is seen that the gas usage has increased in the UK in 2016 from that of
2015, which is a concern, especially after the Brexit referendum. UK will lose access to the
single market of EU and imports will be costlier, putting a pressure on the forex reserves of
the country. Leroux (2017) also highlighted in the report that the gas storage capacity of
the UK is very low compared to rest of the Europe and hence, with the rising consumption of
natural gas on an average in all types of sectors, it must increase its gas production and
also focus on renewable energy sources for a cost effective long term solution.
4. Possible explanations for what the data is showing (remember to reference
wider research to back your ideas up).
The rise in the natural gas consumption over the years in the UK was shown in another
article ‘Energy Consumption in the UK (ECUK) 1970 to 2018’, by the Department for
Business, Energy & Industrial strategy (2019). The chart is provided below, and this also
shows that the consumption level is very low in transport, industry and services, which
supports the graph provided above.
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Figure 1: Change in consumption by sector and fuel, 2017 to 2018
(Source: Department for Business, Energy & Industrial strategy 2019)
It indicates the growth of the economy, resulting in increased demand for gas in the
domestic sector.
5. A recommendation for further action that could arise from this data.
It can be recommended that as the storage capacity for gas is low for UK and the level of
usage is high, it should invest more in the exploration and production of natural gas and
reduce the dependency on the gas imports, especially from the EU countries when the
Brexit happens.
References
Department for Business, Energy & Industrial strategy, 2019. Energy Consumption in the UK (ECUK) 1970
to 2018. [online]. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/
uploads/attachment_data/file/820843/Energy_Consumption_in_the_UK__ECUK__MASTER_COPY.pdf
[Accessed 20 Aug, 2019].
Leroux, M., 2017. UK’s lack of gas security ‘is storing up trouble’. The Times. [online]. Available at:
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/uk-s-lack-of-gas-security-is-storing-up-trouble-hn2930ppk
[Accessed 20 Aug, 2019].
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1. (COMPULSORY TASK, to be completed in-class): Paste a picture of the handwritten paragraph you wrote
in-class, with your tutor’s signature, here. Please do NOT type the paragraph here.
Note: If you could not attend your week 6 tutorial class, please e-mail the module leader.
2. (To be completed independently): Re-write the paragraph you wrote in-class, making improvements.
Type your improved paragraph below.
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From this data (graph) I understand that it the cutting it rough of the natural gas in the European
union. The graph shows the numbers of percentage of natural gas used in the uk compared with
other EU countries within the years 2015 and 2016. It can clearly be seen that the uk Is the second
biggest natural gas consumer after Germany followed by Italy, France, Spain and Ireland. On the
graph its shows that the Uk s gas usage almost double in the year 2016, also shows that the demand
and the dependent on the European union is very high.
The impact of Brexit as on the natural gas for the uk is huge as the uk will have to pay double the
amount of money their pay as they aren’t in the European union.
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TASK 3
Academic Writing (to be completed in weeks 1-10)
(Word count: 700 words – suggested word counts for each section are outlined below)
Check the assessment section of the Academic Skills page on GSM Learn for your programme-specific topic. You
must choose a different sub-topic from the one you may have chosen in a previous attempt.Write your answers in
the boxes below (please do NOT insert PDFs or screenshots).
Remember: The presentation of your writing should reflect the type of text you have been asked to write (e.g.
reports need to have appropriate headings).
All students are reminded that Plagiarism, Collusion and Ghost writing are forms of cheating which will be investigated in
accordance with GSM’s Academic Misconduct Regulations.
Law students with a proven academic offence (as outlined above) are reported to the Solicitors Regulation Authority and
The Bar Council, which can prevent a student from being admitted into the legal profession.
Part I: Introduction
Type your introduction in the box below (approx.100-150 words).
The impact of Brexit after 2016 on oil and gas industry is huge has the UK
“Half-billion-pound bill if EU exit talks end with the UK leaving on World Trade
Organisation rules, Theresa May has been warned”.” The costs for trading £73bn
worth of oil and gas annually would jump from £600m a year now to £1.1bn in a
worst case WTO scenario, analysis for the industry trade body found.
At best, if the UK could strike more favourable tariffs with non-EU countries, the
cost of trade might fall to £500m, Oil and Gas UK said”.
Part II: Discussion
Type your discussion part in the box below (approx.400-500 words).
“The warning comes in Oil and Gas UK's latest economic report.
It said delays in accessing labour markets from EU countries have the potential, in
some instances, of leading to production being shut in.The UK government said
employers could continue recruiting from Europe up until 2020.The report said
about 5% of workers in the UK oil and gas sector come from other EU countries.
That figure rises to seven percent for the offshore workforce.
The report said it was "vital that arrangements are in place between the UK and
EU to allow the continued frictionless movement of people".
One example related to emergency response vessels stationed close to platforms,
which require skilled engineers to operate. To minimise the impact of Brexit, Oil
and Gas UK said it was vital that the UK government secured frictionless access to
markets and labour, maintained a strong voice in Europe for the industry, and
protected the internal energy market.
The 2018 Economic Report revealed that oil prices in the first half of the year
were 30% higher than 2017, averaging more than $70 per barrel.
Along with the continued drive to bring down costs, that was estimated to have
created more than £10bn of free cash flow.
But it said investors "will continue to favour a conservative outlook" because of
the continued volatility of the oil price. Chief executive Deirdre Michie said:”
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Part III: Conclusion
Type your conclusion in the box below (approx.100-150 words).
In the research I have come up with a conclusion that the Brexit has a really big
impact has it effect the workers and price, which in return effect the day to day
people.
Part IV: References
Type your references below.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/may/03/hard-brexit-oil-gas-
industry-wto-freedom-of-movement
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-45474989
https://oilandgasuk.cld.bz/Economic-Report-2018/18/
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TASK 4
Presentation(to be completed in weeks 7 - 9)
(Word count: 200 words)
You will deliver a 7-minute presentation (including visual aids) to other students in your tutorial class in week 9.
You should base your presentation on one academic skill you consider important for university students
on your programme of study. You can use sources from the academic skills reading skills on GSM Learn
to prepare your presentation.
You can use the following structure for guidance with suggested timings:
 Title page (your name and a title for your presentation)
 Overviewof what your 7-minute presentation will cover (30 secs)
 Introduction: Identify one academic skill and briefly describe it (1minute).
 Explain how it can be developed (1-2 minutes).
 Explain why this skill is important (2-3 minutes).
 Finish your presentation with a summary? (1min)
 Ask your audience for questions / observations.
 Reference list
Part I: Presentation planning (slides or notes / weeks 7-9)
Provide evidence here to show that you have planned your presentation. This could take the form of a
detailed plan or your PowerPoint slides (no PDF files). If you copy your slides here, please make sure
that they are legible.
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