Spring 2018 Academic Skills Portfolio ACSK4001 Submission

This academic skills portfolio, submitted by KIKELOMO MUSTAPHA for the ACSK4001 module, showcases a comprehensive evaluation of academic skills. It includes a self-evaluation checklist completed at the beginning and end of the course, a personal SWOT analysis, and an evaluation of three different texts, analyzing their resource type, citation, authority, currency, and content. The portfolio also demonstrates the synthesis of key ideas from the evaluated texts and explores various writing skills. Section A focuses on portfolio evidence, including self-evaluation, SWOT analysis, source evaluation, synthesis, structuring writing, presenting data, and editing. Section B comprises writing tasks, including a report or essay and a reflective summary. The portfolio highlights strengths like accountability, loyalty, and empathy, while addressing weaknesses such as lack of patience and confidence. Opportunities include career advancement, while threats involve workplace dynamics. The work demonstrates a commitment to personal and professional development within the context of academic skills acquisition.

Spring 18
Academic Skills Portfolio
(Module code: ACSK4001)
Name: KIKELOMO MUSTAPHA
Student number: 58113
Degree studied:
Lecturer name:
Tutor name:
This is your Academic Skills Portfolio, which should be submitted by Thursday 26th April, 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 26th April, 2pm
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.

Table of Contents
Task Page Week LO
SECTION A: PORTFOLIO EVIDENCE (These tasks will be drafted in class and are designed to inform the
written tasks in section B.)
Portfolio evidence 1: Self-evaluation checklist 3 1 & 10 3&4
Portfolio evidence 2. Personal SWOT analysis 4 1 3&4
Portfolio evidence 3. Evaluating sources & critically engaging with texts 5 2 1&2
Portfolio evidence 4. Synthesising 7 3 & 5 1&2
Portfolio evidence 5. Structuring your writing 9 3, 4, 5, 6,
7 1&2
Portfolio evidence 6: Presenting & analysing data 10 4 1&2
Portfolio evidence 7: Presentation 12 7-9 1
Portfolio evidence 8: Editing & proofreading 14 9 & 10 1&3
SECTION B: WRITING TASKS (These written tasks should be developed throughout the semester).
Writing Task 1 (Report or Essay) 16 1-10 1
Writing Task 2 (Reflective Summary) 17 10 3&4
Word count (+/- 10%):
Section A: a minimum of 600 words in total.
Section B: Writing Task 1 (900 words), Writing Task 2 (300 words)
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 2

SECTION A: PORTFOLIO EVIDENCE
Task 1: Self-evaluation Checklist (to be completed in weeks 1 & 10)
Below is a list of the skills you will need during your university and professional career. Tick ( ) the appropriate box✓
for each skill, according to how well you think you can do this. You should complete this task twice; first, at the
beginning of this course (week 1), and, second, at the end of this course (week 10).
Skills How well do I feel that I know/can do this in weeks 1 and 10?
Information skills
Do not know
about this
Find this
difficult/ can’t
do this
Can partially
do this
Can do this
well
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
Identify which books/journals/websites to use ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Select relevant parts of a text ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Evaluate sources ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Acknowledge sources of information ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Synthesize information from more than one sources ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐
☐
☐
☐
☐
Write a reference list correctly ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Avoid plagiarism ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Planning / writing skills
Do not know
about this
Find this
difficult/ can’t
do this
Can partially
do this
Can do this
well
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
Brainstorm ideas ☐ ☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐
Plan written work ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Link ideas effectively ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Paraphrase & summarise ideas ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Write an introduction ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Write a conclusion ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Critically edit written work ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Independent study skills
Do not know
about this
Find this
difficult/ can’t
do this
Can partially
do this
Can do this
well
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
Work independently (without lecturers) ☐ ☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐
Work as part of a (study) group ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Oral presentation skills
Do not know
about this
Find this
difficult/ can’t
do this
Can partially
do this
Can do this
well
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
Give a presentation on my work ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐
Brainstorm ideas with peers ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Discuss written work in a tutorial ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Deal effectively with questions ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
IT skills
Do not know
about this
Find this
difficult/ can’t
do this
Can partially
do this
Can do this
well
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
WEEK
1
WEEK
10
Access the internet ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐ ☐
☐
☐
Use search engines ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Create word documents ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Use PowerPoint ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 3

SECTION A: PORTFOLIO EVIDENCE
Task 2: Personal SWOT analysis (to be completed in week 1)
Watch this video: HYPERLINK "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBOtnyt7BP4"https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=PBOtnyt7BP4 .
In-class activity: In pairs conduct interviews to create a personal SWOT analysis.
INTERNAL (coming from me)
STRENGTHS
[Things within my control]
WEAKNESSES
[Personal barriers; things stopping
me, but still within my control]
How are you going to overcome your
weaknesses?
(approx. 50 words)
1. I believe that my Strength is
my account accountability. I
make sure that I am able to
take the responsibility of the
mistakes or the achievements.
1. I suffer from the lack of
patience. I often get impatient
and make several mistakes in
my work.
I will undertake many meditation classes
and try to check my patience limit.
I will undertake some physical exercises
as it helps me in controlling my anger. I
will also try to divert my mind from that
matter for some time that makes me
angry.
I will follow many seminars that will help
me gain confidence. I will work on
increasing my concentration.
I will have to take risks so that I can
afford to take
2. I am very loyal and dedicated
towards the works that I do.
2. I lose my control over my
anger. I often get very angry
and then make many mistakes
in the work
3. I am empathetic. I try to
place myself in the position of
others and then try to solve
their feelings.
3. I often suffer from lack of
enough confidence.
4. I am always trying to inspire
others.
4. I often suffer from lack of a
proper decision making power.
EXTERNAL (coming from outside)
OPPORTUNITIES
[People, resources, opportunities]
THREATS
[Things outside of my control]
How are you going to minimise the
threats?
(approx. 50 words)
1. I will try to work very hard
and not miss the opportune it
of promotion
1. Co workers taking advantage
of my empathetic nature
I will have to valance my personality in a
proper way. I will not let anyone take the
undue advantage of the good qualities
that I have. I will also make sure that My
management is not taking the undue
advantage of my loyalty and my
dedication. After stepping into the
professional word I cannot really stick to
my emotions all the time. I will handle my
emotions and my actions tactfully. I will
try to maintain all the office ethics so that
my bosses do not hold any grudges
against me. I know it is a competition and
in order to win here I will have to utilize
each and every opportunity to learn from
my seniors and other co workers who
have more experience and knowledge
from me.
2. I will take lessons from my co
workers on fields outside my
area of expertise
2. My co workers having greater
experience than me will pose a
threat
3. I will see the leaders as role
models and enrich my
knowledge
3. My superiors having personal
grudge on me
4. I will try to work on the
creative and innovative
knowledge that I get from
colleagues
4. Co workers escalating against
me on false charges
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 4

SECTION A: PORTFOLIO EVIDENCE
Task 3: Evaluating sources & critically engaging with texts (to be
completed after week 2)
In your study groups, evaluate 3 different texts from your reading list, or texts you have found yourselves. You can
also find texts on the Academic Skills area on GSM Learn page. Make notes below.
Text A ↓ Text B ↓ Text C ↓
Resource type
(e.g. book, journal et.c.)
Book book book
Citation/reference
Dowson, Paul. Personal and
professional development for
business students. Sage,
2015.
Hazzan, Orit, et al. Application
of Management Theories for
Stem Education: The Case of
Swot Analysis. Springer, 2017.
Fleisher, Craig S., and
Babette E.
Bensoussan. Business and
competitive analysis:
effective application of new
and classic methods. FT
Press, 2015.
Authority
Employees working in
different management
areas.
Management professionals Employees in different
offices and the aspiring
students.
Currency
Published 2015 Published 2017 Published 2015
Content
The Book mainly says that
there is a direct
relationship between
personal development
and business
responsibility. Hence, It is
needed that the
employees are aware of
their strengths,
opportunities and also
their weaknesses so that
they can work on them
accordingly.
This book mainly talks
about the gap which often
exists between the leaders
or tea hers and the
organization. There are
many gaps that exists
between these two and can
be solved to some extent
by using SWOT
Personal SWOT is of
utmost importance for
knowing the strengths,
weakness and the
opportunities that helps in
helping the individuals in
improving themselves and
working on their decision
making power.
Accuracy
Accurate and authentic.
All points supported with
evidence and analysis
Accurate and authentic Accurate and authentic
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 5

Audience
Event industry, EU,
Government.
Government, Event
Industry and European
Union.
Students, people working
in different offices as
managers
Further notes/
comments
The author talks about
some of the steps that
might be followed in
order to increase the
confidence level and
other areas of personal
development
The author talks about the
importance of personal
swot
How to balance the
elements of personal
strengths and weakness.
SECTION A: PORTFOLIO EVIDENCE
Task 4: Synthesising (to be completed in weeks 3 - 5)
Part I: Identifying key ideas
Read the 3 texts you used in the previous task.
Think about the extent to which the authors of those 3 texts agree or disagree with each other.
Write (in note form/bullet points) the key ideas of those 3 texts. Use your own words (paraphrase). Don’t forget to
complete the references information.
Text A:
Key ideas:
The main idea of this book is that the future generations will be facing a lot of crisis
due to the increasing stress and competition. They will be working during a very
dangerous time. They will have to feel the pressure of an age of immense
competition1. So, it is for this reason that all the individuals must consider doing a
personal SWOT in order to get a clear idea about the strengths, opportunities,
weaknesses and threats of their own personality.
 In-text
citation/Oscola
footnote (Law)
 reference list
Dowson, Paul. Personal and professional development for business students. Sage, 2015.
Text B:
Key ideas:
This book focuses on the usefulness of the personal SWOT analysis of the
individuals in general and the employees in particular. This will be a very big
advantage for all the business organization2.
 In-text
citation/Oscola
footnote (Law)
 reference list
Hazzan, Orit, et al. Application of Management Theories for Stem Education: The Case of Swot
Analysis. Springer, 2017.
1 Dowson, Paul. Personal and professional development for business students. Sage, 2015.
2 Hazzan, Orit, et al. Application of Management Theories for Stem Education: The Case of Swot Analysis. Springer, 2017.
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 6

Text C:
Key ideas:
Personal SWOT is of utmost importance for knowing one’s own strengths, weakness and
the opportunities that helps in helping the individuals in improving themselves and
working on their decision making power.
 In-text
citation/Oscola
footnote (Law)
 reference list
Fleisher, Craig S., and Babette E. Bensoussan. Business and competitive analysis: effective
application of new and classic methods. FT Press, 2015.
Part II: Synthesising (suggested word count: 200 words)
Think about the areas the authors of the 3 texts you made notes on agree or disagree.
Write up a paragraph which synthesises (combines) the main points of the 3 texts you used in Part I and shows
how the authors agree or disagree.
Remember to include in-text citations or OSCOLA footnote (Law) and link your ideas using linking words!
The three authors in all these three books have mainly focussed on the usefulness of the personal
SWOT analysis of all the individuals both in their personal and in their professional lives as well. This
will help the individuals to understand the strengths, the opportunities, weakness and the threats
that they might face due to their own personality3. They will be able to work on their strengths and
nurture hem further. They will also get the opportunities that they will be utilizing for the future
purposes4. Most importantly they will get the knowledge about the weakness and the areas of their
improvement. They will also get a clear idea about the weaknesses that might obstruct their paths of
progress. So, they will be able to develop themselves accordingly and will be able to improve
themselves. They will be able to work on their decision making powers. This in turn will be helpful for
the companies where they are working as this will help them to grow and develop themselves into a
more responsible and decision making person.
References
Dowson, Paul. Personal and professional development for business students. Sage, 2015.
Hazzan, Orit, et al. Application of Management Theories for Stem Education: The Case of Swot Analysis. Springer, 2017.
Fleisher, Craig S., and Babette E. Bensoussan. Business and competitive analysis: effective application of new and classic
methods. FT Press, 2015.
3 Fleisher, Craig S., and Babette E. Bensoussan. Business and competitive analysis: effective application of new and classic
methods. FT Press, 2015.
Dowson, Paul. Personal and professional development for business students. Sage, 2015.
4 Hazzan, Orit, et al. Application of Management Theories for Stem Education: The Case of Swot Analysis. Springer, 2017.
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 7

SECTION A: PORTFOLIO EVIDENCE
Task 5: Structuring your writing (to be completed in weeks 2,3,4,5,6,7)
During your lecture and tutorial you will learn how to organise your academic writing in section B.
This is more or less the way you should structure your academic writing in section B:
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 8
INTRODUCTION
(150 words in final text) [use evidence/ research throughout]
 What is your question about? (give the background to your topic)
 Include some detail on the topic (narrow your focus; what exactly are you
focusing on?) Who are the key ideas/ people involved/ organisations etc.?)
 What will your report show? Be specific [you should write this section last]
DISCUSSION POINT 1: ………………………………
(300 words in final text) [use evidence/ research throughout]
 Identify one point from your area of focus and say why it is a key issue.
 Describe how leaving the EU will impact on this.
 What are the opportunities it could create?
 What are the possible problems?
 What can you conclude from this? What are the implications?
DISCUSSION POINT 2: ………………………………
(300 words in final text) [use evidence/ research throughout]
 Identify another point from your area of focus and say why it is a key issue.
 Describe how leaving the EU will impact on this
 What are the opportunities it could create?
 What are the possible problems?
 What can you conclude from this? What are the implications?
CONCLUSION
(150 words in final text) [refer back to what you discussed in previous parts]
 Give a summary of your key points from 2 & 3
 Include a summary of your key conclusions from both 2 & 3
 What would you recommend needs to happen now?

Follow the structure in the previous page to write notes (outline) below about what you will include in
your academic writing task (report or essay). Your notes do not need to be written in full sentences and
you can use symbols/abbreviations/listings and other note-making techniques.
Your notes should show what information you are planning to put in each section. You can add or
remove things later, if you change your mind.
My academic writing task outline
Topic:
(Find the subject specific
topics on GSM Learn).
Developing proper decision making skill
An introduction will mainly consist of the brief description of the topic and its importance.
Decision making skills are of utmost importance in the modern day scenario. People who suffer from
decision making skills will have a lot of problem in surviving in today’s modern business world. There are
many complications that do not allow the employees to take proper decisions on right time. It is for this
reason that people must do personal SWOT analysis so that they get to know the areas of their
weakness.
The body will mainly deal with the benefits of personal SWOT analysis. This will help in knowing the
strength, the weakness, the opportunities and the threats of the employees. The employees will get to
know a detailed description about their own personality. This will help them to start adopting practices
that will help them to work on their weaknesses and develop themselves. They will also be able to take
the necessary measures that will help them to work on the flaws of their characters. In the due course of
time they will be able to develop themselves as well. They will overcome their weaknesses and utilize the
opportunities. They will be able to understand the complications present within their organizations and
will seriously develop themselves.
Thereby, it can be concluded that each and every organization must encourage the employees to
undertake the personal SWOT analysis of them. This will help them and eventually their professional
fields as well.
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 9

SECTION A: PORTFOLIO EVIDENCE
Task 6: Presenting & analysing data (to be completed in week 6)
Part I: Presenting data
Cut and paste the graph you discussed in the tutorial here and give it a title. You can find it on the
Academic Skills page on GSM Learn. Remember to write a full Harvard or OSCOLA reference for it and
add a title.
Title: Growth digital advertising revenue in the UK from the year 2015 to 2018
Graph:
Reference: Fleisher, Craig S., and Babette E. Bensoussan. Business and competitive analysis: effective
application of new and classic methods. FT Press, 2015.
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 10

Part II: Analysing data (approx. 300 words)
Discuss the graph in the previous page with other students. Focus your discussion on the points below:
1. A description your data (What is it? Where does it come from? What area is it
focussing on?).
2. A summary on what the data shows in general.
3. One or two areas of the data looked at in detail and an explanation of why you
think they are significant.
4. The important trends and differences/comparisons in the areas you have
chosen.
5. Possible explanations for what the data is showing (remember to reference
wider research to back your ideas up).
6. A recommendation for further action that could arise from this data.
Individually, analyse the graph below. Write a paragraph (approx. 300 words) including the areas in the
box above. Remember to refer to the graph/chart using correct OSCOLA or Harvard style in-text citation.
The graph shows the data given by Brexit. This shows the amount of growth in the digital marketing
through the social platforms from the year 2015 to the year 2018.
The general idea that was available from this data is that UK could not really control the increase in
the number of users using the digital marketing service. This was mainly because people are very
much associated with the usage of the social media platforms like the Face book, twitter and many
other such platforms. As per as the survey carried by the world of the internet, the people in the UK,
US and also the customers are the ones who spend a huge amount on the online advertisements.
The significant area is the large scale popularity of the facebook users. This is because facebook
seems to be one of the most user friendly and easy methods of checking out the advertisement of
the different products. There were many new advertisements coming upon the news feeds of the
face book accounts5.
The trend is an increase in the number of people using the social media as a platform for making the
online transactions and using this opportunity, the biggest social media sites are trying to gain a
monopoly power.
5 Marketingweek.com (2016), Marketers gloomy following Brexit vote as ad spend forecast slumps,
Available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/2016/07/14/marketers-gloomy-following-brexit-vote-as-
ad-spend-forecast-slumps/ [Accessed on 22 Nov 2017]
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 11

The data mainly shows that the rate of users of the digital advertisements will be increasing day by
day. About 50percent of the population in UK will be getting access to the smart phones. This means
that those people will be getting easy and free access to the usage of the online marketing
transactions as well.
Marketingweek.com (2016), Marketers gloomy following Brexit vote as ad spend forecast slumps,
Available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/2016/07/14/marketers-gloomy-following-brexit-vote-
as-ad-spend-forecast-slumps/ [Accessed on 22 Nov 2017]
Academic Skills Portfolio (ACSK4001) 12