Frequently Asked Questions
What is Academic Skills for Independent Learners? (ASIL)
Academic Skills for Independent Learners (ASIL) is for students to self-study, practise and improve the English that they need for their university studies. Students can self-enrol in this site.
What are the Assessments?
is used to show Assessments. When you see this icon, your score counts towards your final grade.
Where are the materials? Which materials should I use?
Click on
Course on the menu above to access the material. There are two main sections: APA/Harvard for subjects such as Design, Nursing, Business and SHTM; and IEEE for subjects such as Engineering and Computing. Within each section there are nine units covering Academic style, Referencing, Essay writing, Report writing, Academic Presentations, and Researched Discussions.
Can I download the videos?
If you would like to download the videos, go to "Download video here" which is right below each course content video and click on the link.
What time zone is used in the course?
Are there any prerequisites?
There are no prerequisites for
Academic Skills for Independent Learners, although the course is designed for students entering an English speaking university. Interested participants please remember to join other ELC Open Online Courses, for example:
Read to Know! , Learning4Life and
Upgrading Your Grammar.
What level of English do I need?
If you understand most of the
first video by Jeff, then your English level is good enough to complete the course. We recommend that participants have an English level
equilvalent to IELTS Band 5 (TOEFL score 35). You can
test your English level here. A score from this test recommending you take Cambridge English First Certificate (FCE) means that your English is good enough for this course.
What kind of English is used in Academic Skills for Independent Learners?
British English spelling is used in the materials on this course. Note that some of the extra materials link to sites in North America. You should always try to be consistent when writing in English. Use British
or American spelling; do not mix them.
What do the different icons mean?
is used to show How the activity can help you. Every activity in this course has a purpose. These short descriptions explain how doing the activity can help you better understand the course.
is used to show Assessments. These count towards your final grade.
is used to show Quizzes. These do not count towards your final grade.
is used to show Discussions. You are encouraged to take part in discussions as much as you can.
is used to show Further Learning Materials. Here we encourage you to dive deeper, and enjoy the extra readings and videos which we think you will find useful.
is used to show Listening Activities. These are extended listening activities, on interesting topics which will help to broaden your general knowledge, expand your vocabularly, as well as giving you something interesting to listen to and improve your listening skills!
Who wrote the course and appeared in the videos?
This course has written by many staff members in the
English Language Centre, of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Who is the leader of this project?
Adam Forrester is the leader of the project. He is an Associate Director at the ELC, and has an interest in how technology can be used to help teachers teach more effectively and learners learn more productively.
I like online materials, but I also want some face to face help. Where can I go?
If you are a student at the HK PolyU, please
visit CILL and make use of its facilities such as the
WAP and
SAP , and the
Teacher Help Desk.
These courses are great! Do you offer any more?
All our self paced online courses are on this page. Please take a look and join those courses that interest you.
I have spotted a typo / I have a suggestion for some new materials. Who do I contact?
Please go to the
About Page and contact one of the people listed on that page.