UNSW Masters of Business and Technology Study Skills presentation given as a webinar. NOTE: An earlier version is also available as an open course on Blackboard CourseSites. Please note this PowerPoint version is not CCSA licensed. ZTo ask for permission to use or to issue a takedown notice please contact a.chambers@unsw.edu.au

1. Australian Graduate School of Management
MBT Orientation Day
Study Skills Workshop
Andrew Chambers
Educational Development Manager

2. Workshop Overview and Learning Outcomes
 Explore basic study skills e.g.
1. What learning in the MBT involves
2. Organisation and time management
3. Assessments and Participation
4. Reading
5. Note taking
6. Tackling assignments
 Answer your questions about starting the MBT Program
 Find out about sources of help with your study
 Clarify expectations of participants and the facilitators role
Ensure you read the speakers notes after this session!

3. MBT Learning Model

4. Typical MBT course structure
 12 weekly units (on “paper”/PDF/Cloud)
 Weekly classes or online discussions
 Weekly Activities
 Assessments
Typical MBT assessment scheme
 Participation (10% - 15%)
 2 assignments (may be individual or group)
 Examination (exam, take home exam or project)

5. Studying Smarter
 Read the course overview - Learning Outcomes, summaries.
What is important to understand and be able to do at completion
of course?
 For each unit read Learning outcomes. What is important for this
specific topic?
 Ask your self: Why am I doing this piece of work
o e.g. reading, discussion, assignment, exam prep?
 Reflection, evaluation & application more important than
time spent ‘studying’– This is an applied Masters program

6. Unit Level Learning Outcomes - Unit 1example
At the completion of this Unit you should be able to:
 justify the importance of understanding the history of
management theory
 discuss the historical context of management and the
precursors to modern management theory
 summarise and evaluate each of the mainstream theoretical
perspectives and note their relevance to contemporary
management practice
etc…

7. More Studying Smarter
 Remember to do activities in the weekly units. They help with
self assessment and memorization/recall. Cooperate with others
in seeking answers to questions posed.
 Remember to take an active part in online discussions. Tied to
the weeks unit the activities and discussion help you reflect on
what you have learned.
 Leverage the online courses and make use of online meeting
tools and weekly forums.

8. The Participation
Rubric used in
most courses

9. Skill: Higher Order Critical Thinking – Bloom’s Taxonomy

10. Skill: Time Management
ORGANISATION
Resources Goal setting
• Materials Long, medium
• Study space & short term
Goals
Study time
• When? • Must be done
• No interruptions • Should be done
• Could be done
Personal time AVOID
IMPORTANT PROCASTINATION

11. Individual Activity: Planning
Using the supplied Weekly Planner:
1. Block out your commitments – work, sport, socialising, home life
2. find your study blocks
You need to find at from 3-5 2 hour blocks of study time
Suggested pattern: Reading: Discussion/Activities: Reflection/Application
When will the footy fit? Are you a morning person or a late night Java type?

12. HOMEWORK:
Complete the Semester Planner: Assignments/Exams
Remember we teach –
Week 0 + 12 taught weeks + 2 weeks for exams.
Are all your weeks free?
Pattern – Study > Assignment(s) > Study > Exam

13. Dealing with procrastination
• Have a plan
• Establish and monitor how long tasks typically take
• Set small goals
• Be aware of your own learning habits
• Develop a routine
• Do something straightaway
• Start with something easy or particularly interesting to you
• Associate your study place with „serious work‟
• Remove distractions
• Reward yourself for completing set tasks
• At the end of each study session, plan and prepare for the next one
• Seek cooperation from family & friends
• Maintain a balanced lifestyle
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2007-01-12-procrastination-study_x.htm

14. Taken From Stephen Covey: First Things First

15. Skill: Reading (and note-taking)
Many different kinds of reading –e.g. novels, TV Guide, reference books.
Our program uses “Academic sources” so requires more rigorous
systematic reading and note-taking.
Other useful resources:
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/read.html
http://www.uefap.com/reading/readfram.htm
http://www.une.edu.au/tlc/aso/aso-online/academic-reading/academic-
reading.php

16. The SQ3R Reading Method
SQ3R Reading to Remember Method
Survey – Question – Read – Recite/Recall - Review
Resources:
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/pdf/sqw3r.pdf
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/read1.html
(Supplied as a handout)

17. Individual Activity: Reading and note-taking skills
10 mins
Read the supplied “Reading”.
Undertake the first 3 parts of the SQ3R method:
Survey
Question
Read
 Take brief notes…

18. Group Activity: Reading and note-taking skills
5 mins
 Compare your notes/understanding of the reading with your
neighbour(s).
– Have you both uncovered the same “facts” and details?
– What has influenced your recall i.e. your learning?

19. Congratulations!
 You have just learned the basics of reading, note-taking,
discussion and reflection!
 You will use the same skills each week when reading and
discussing the course topics, content and taking activities in the
online learning environment
 Remember to revisit your notes as you reflect on each week.
Keep a diary, learning journal or audio notes about your
reflections.

20. Break: 10-15 Minutes (negotiated)

21. An Effective Note Taking Strategy
Notes Page no. Comments
Author‟s name, title of How does this relate to other texts I have
publication, date & place of read?
publication, publisher Links to other topics?
How is this relevant?
Paraphrased notes Always write page Any new ideas here?
number What don’t I understand?
Direct quotes (use Do I agree or disagree? Why?
quotation marks and write Does this author contradict others‟ opinions /
exact words) findings?
What conclusions can I make?

22. Notetaking
 Traditional:
Pen and Paper, Post-it sticky notes
 Modern:
Word processor
Mind mapping
Annotating PDF‟s

23. Skill:
Assignment
Analysis
A „Typical‟ MBT
Assignment

24. Analysing the task
Task words Tell you what you have to do
Content words Tell you what the topic is
Limiting Words Limit the topic so that it is workable
Whole Class Activity:
Australia is a nation of multiple and complex identities. Discuss the factors
that contribute to the diversity of Australia’s identities.
Task words
Content words
Limiting words

26. Study Skills

27. Writing your assignment
 Common Formats:
– Report Present Information
– Critical Review
– Essay Make an Argument
Essay
• Introduction
• Body
• Conclusion

28. Reports
Pages 46-52 of the MBT Learning Guide
 Shorter more concise paragraphs than an essay
 More structured than an essay
– Headings and Subheadings
See Page 47 for a typical structure

29. Case Analysis Reports
Pages 49 of the MBT Learning Guide
 Common in the MBT
 Asked to look at a business case or scenario and perform an
analysis
– Identify the problem provided in the case
– Analyse the issues
– Develop and compare alternative solutions
– Select best solution

30. Critical Thinking: An academic skill
 Critical thinking does not mean fault finding
 Applying “skilful judgement” a more accurate description or
more simply “thinking in depth”
 Creative thinking is the creation or generation of ideas,
processes, experiences or objects. Critical thinking is concerned
with their evaluation.
 Asking questions, analysing situations, relating theory to
practice, making links between ideas, making claims and
supporting them.
 Cf. Critical reading

31. IPSO - One strategy for critical reading/thinking/writing –
Analysing an argument
 Issue: What is the problem or question
 Position: What is the major position of the argument put forward
 Support: What evidence, reasoning or persuasion is used
 Outcome: What will happen if the argument is accepted

32. What is an academic argument?
The argument should:
 Express your point of view
 Be developed in a systematic and balanced way
 Lead to a clear conclusion.
 Must be supported by evidence.
This evidence comes from other authors and your understanding of
the readings.

33. Developing a critical argument
1. Outline the problem/s or issue/s
2. Introduce your argument
3. Present relevant evidence
4. Evaluate the evidence
5. Link your evaluation to your overall argument clearly and
repeatedly
6. Draw your conclusions
Cf. Discussion skills for tutorials, seminars and online discussion:
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/disc.html

34. Discussion Skills
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/disc.html
To 'argue' in an academic context is to put forward an opinion
through the process of reasoning, supported by evidence. An
argument attempts to persuade through rational and critical
judgement. In academic writing an argument is sometimes
called a claim or a thesis statement, which is also supported
with evidence.

35. Discussion Skills: Voicing an Opinion
3 steps:
Have a valid opinion
A reason why
Evidence
See also „Arguing at Uni‟
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/disc.html

36. More resources for effective writing
Reading and Writing Critically – UNSW Learning Centre
www.lc.unsw.edu.au/dload/STEPUP_readwritecritical2011.pps
Critical Review
www.lc.unsw.edu.au/dload/PGDAY2011_critrev.pps

37. Assignment Feedback

38. Referencing/ Acknowledging sources
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is using the words or ideas of others and presenting them as your own.
Plagiarism is a type of intellectual theft.
It can take many forms, from deliberate cheating to accidentally copying from a
source without acknowledgement.
It is most often caused by underdeveloped academic study skills

39. Common Forms of Plagiarism
 Copying: using the same or very similar words to the original text or idea
without acknowledging the source or using quotation marks.
 Inappropriate paraphrasing: changing a few words and phrases while mostly
retaining the original structure and information without acknowledgement.
Piecing together quotes and paraphrases into a new whole, without referencing
and a student‟s own analysis to bring the material together.
 Collusion: working with others but passing off the work as a person‟s
individual work.
 Duplication: submitting your own work, in whole or in part, where it has
previously been prepared or submitted for another assessment or course at
UNSW or another university.
See: https://my.unsw.edu.au/student/academiclife/Plagiarism.pdf

40. Additional Plagiarism Resources
UNSW Learning Centre
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/plagiarism/index.html
Complete the ELISE and/or ELISE Plus tutorials from the
UNSW Library:
http://elise.library.unsw.edu.au/home/welcome.html
http://eliseplus.library.unsw.edu.au/

41. Referencing
 A tool to combat plagiarism
 A system to help you acknowledge your sources of information
All courses except for the Business Law course use the “Harvard”
system.
Additional Resources: UNSW Learning Centre Harvard pages:
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/ref.html

42. Referencing: General principles of the Harvard System
In-text citations
The Harvard system of referencing requires you to include three pieces
of information about a source within the text of your work. This information includes:
1. The name of the author or authors
2. The year of publication
3. The page number (if the information/idea can be located on a particular page;
particularly when directly quoted).
End of text: List of References
At the end of your text, you must include a List of References. This includes all sources
of information referred to in your assignment. Full bibliographic information must be
included. Reference lists are ordered alphabetically, using the surname of the first
author. The order of information must be consistent.

43. In Text Referencing Examples
The theory was first developed by Browne (Gibbs 2007).
Gibbs (2007, p. 81) states that Browne was the first to develop the
theory of…
Gibbs (2008) first developed a model to explain…
List of References
Journal Example:
 Gibbs, A 2007, „ Management as a tool‟, Harvard Business
Review, 80, pp. 79-81.

44. Giving us Feedback
 Direct to Class Facilitator
 Through Student Services Team
 Program, course and facilitator evaluation
 Direct to Course Coordinator

45. Further Support
UNSW Learning Centre
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au
ASB Learning and Teaching
http://www.asb.unsw.edu.au/learningandteaching/studentservices