Planning and Researching for Written Assessment

Academic writing is about making an answer, not finding an answer. Typically, it provides an answer to a question based on a considered exploration of the issues, and good writing exhibits a reflection of our own thinking and not just the facts. Each person in your class will present a different version of the assessment based on their understanding and their own thoughts. There is never any one right answer. However, in order to answer the question you need to appreciate what you are being asked to do.

Think about the point of the assignment. Why are you being asked to write it and how does it relate to your module? Can you explain what you are being asked to write in your own words?

Summative Assessment & Learning Outcomes

Most written assessments are set as a type of summative assessment. This means that the marker will be typically assessing your learning at the end of a module. This does not mean that you must write everything that you have learned during the module. Rather, it means that you should demonstrate and awareness of the context of your assignment within the learning outcomes of the module.

Interpreting your title and brief

In your module handbook you will find your assessment title and brief.  The assessment title will outline the topic and focus of the assignment and the scope, the remit, or circumstances within which the assignment must be addressed.  The assessment brief will outline the nature and format of the assessment. It will include the word count, referencing style, assessment weight, submission date and anticipated feedback date for the assessment.

When writing essays in particular, you must also pay close attention to the essay question or title. Essay titles contain instructional words or terms that will help you understand what you are required to do and the structure you need to adopt to answer the question relevantly.

Considering your rubric

The assessment criteria or rubric will detail the grading ranges and a description of the skills that must be demonstrated to achieve the grades. Look at your rubric and understand where the potential marks lie.  You cannot be awarded marks for anything  outside of these touch points. Some assessments will test your ability to research a topic, others will be focused on your ability to critique a particular subject. Read the assessment criteria to see exactly what your lecturer wants from you. Keep referring back to the criteria as you write and review your assessment to make sure you are meeting the requirements.

When writing it is very important to be able to clearly define what it is that you think. There are lots of techniques to help you gather your thoughts and capture your initial ideas on a topic. See below for three examples on how to capture your initial ideas on a topic area.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming involves capturing all ideas that you believe are relevant  to the question. Write down all ideas, concepts or important questions you can think of. Use post its to think freely and generate  ideas. Put each idea on a separate post it.

Take what you have written and group together any ideas that are related to each other.

Review each group and try to define the main concept that links them. Think about whether you have the evidence to support each idea or concept, or whether you need to do more research.

This method can help you to identify the main themes from your research and can prompt you to think about what the most important concepts areas and how to best structure your response.

Example of  brainstorming

Free writing

This simple technique is great to get you started.  Write down your question and write without any constraint.

Do not worry about structuring your ideas.  Just dump all of your ideas onto your page , and give yourself time to reflect on the question, your learning and your module.

This is a great way to  capture what you already know about your subject, and you will be surprised how much you know. Look over what you have written and highlight the common themes of areas.

You may discover where you have gaps in your learning and understanding, and where you might need to do reading.

By appreciating your understanding of the question, you can then organise your thoughts into a more cohesive structure.

Example of free writing

Mind Maps

Mind maps are a great way to visualise your ideas. You can  either draw your own mind map, or use a  Mindmap app like MindView.

Start by writing your assessment title in the middle of your page.  Consider your assessment question and draw branches to ideas, themes, concepts and theories that you think might be relevant to answering it.

Draw more branches from these thoughts, and keep adding  concepts until you feel like you have explored the question in full.

This is a great way to visualise related content and build connections between your ideas.

As you read add new ideas to your map, developing a hierarchy of ideas and relationships.

Example of Mindmap

Active Reading

Active reading and note making are fundamental skills for university, and you will need to approach your reading in a very different way than before.  You might get weekly reading for seminars or tutorials, and you will be expecting to do independent reading for assignment research. So, approach your reading in a strategic way to help manage your reading workload.

When reading to produce a written assessment, use your reading list  as guidance. However you must go beyond the reading list and select your own reading material and evaluate how you can best utilise the literature for your assessment. The quality of your information sources and how you interact with them is very important.

Note Making

Making notes is an important learning strategy, given the large amount of information that you will be expected to engage with and process. Generally there are two purposes for taking notes:

1. To support your learning during classes
2. To keep a record of information to facilitate assessment.

The purpose of notes for writing is to record information and ideas, but also to express questions that need to be explored, document citations, capture information to support your argument and to help keep you outcome-focused.

Your notes should be unique creations that summarise your thinking, learning, understanding, and questioning. Making effective notes is a process of reviewing, connecting, examining, and synthesising.

You will have to be selective in the information you note, and this will help you develop an original approach to your writing. When summarising you are processing information at a deeper level, and this helps when critically examining the literature.

Thorough source notes are also great for helping plan and develop writing and structure. Notes should also differentiate between your ideas and those of others, to avoid unintentional plagiarism.

Example of  Cornell Note Making Method

When you have done the necessary preparatory work -

• Understood your task.
• Developed some ideas.
• Explored some reading.
• Taken some notes.

the next step is to think about the structure of your assessment. A well structured assessment is easily developed from a good plan.

The planning stage is a good opportunity to organise your thoughts and think deeper about your topic. In planning the structure, we can review our content and refine it. At this stage you might generate new ideas or consider a new argument.

There are  general principles that can be applied to all written assessments around structure:

• A good plan is a great foundation for a well structured written assessment.
• The structure of the assessment should be coherent and have a linear, logical structure.
• Each sentence should lead logically onto the next.
• Each paragraph should have a clear, logical structure - starting with broad points and moving towards the specific.
• Each paragraph should illustrate one point and everything in the paragraph should relate to the point of the paragraph.
• Use cohesive and transitional words and phrases to signal your reader and help them navigate.
• Follow any structural guidance in your assignment  brief or from your tutor.
• Your writing should have a clear introduction, main body and conclusion.
• Your assignment should always include a fully formatted reference list.

Writing academically is different to other types of writing. There is a formality  to academic writing in order to convey professionalism and objectivity.

There are very specific conventions, characteristics and rules that need to be adhered to. We use academic writing to show our knowledge and understanding in a concise and clear way, to ensure readability and to be impactful. When expressing complex information with clarity we help our readers locate our point quickly and effectively.  Academic writing ensures that we remain professional, credible, and objective.

You will need to consider:

• your vocabulary and academic language
• your tone and academic voice
• how to embed others' ideas within your writing
• the structure of your assignment and paragraphs

Academic style means that we do not use slang words or common phrases, that we use the full versions of words and not contractions ( does not  instead of doesn't), we do not ask rhetorical questions, or use personal opinions.

Writing drafts helps you engage with your material and evaluate what is working for your argument, what you need to develop and what is irrelevant.

Drafting is also a great way to generate new ideas as there is usually a time difference between structuring your argument and drafting it.

Check that your introduction adequately sets the scene for your argument, the narrative flows and the concluding sentences suitably wrap up your argument.

Reading your work aloud will help you hear how your argument flows and what sections might need re-arranging or removing. This process continues until you have a draft of work that you are happy to submit.

Next we fix the errors in the writing to make sure the grammar, spelling, punctuation, and format are consistent and accurate.

If you have time, leave the draft for a short period of time and re-read it with fresh eyes!  This will let you approach the work with a new perspective.

Checklist for proofreading:

• check all references have an in text citation and a  fully formatted reference in your reference list
• check for common punctuation errors, and make sure sentences are concise and flow
• check for any spelling mistakes

Use Turnitin for initial feedback on your final draft or Studiosity to check spelling & grammar.

Once you have submitted your essay you may not think about it again until you receive your grade and feedback. Yet this is the final task in our assignment writing cycle.

Getting feedback is hard but remember that the comments are not about you personally, so try not to take offence.

Never compare yourself to others and focus on the positives as well as the negatives.

Try to take a pro-active approach and read, reflect, and respond. Regardless of your grade, harnessing the feedback from your marker will be invaluable in helping you improve your skills.

Positive feedback is great to keep us motivated, but advance students are eager for critical feedback to improve. Studies show that actioning feedback is more strongly and consistently related to academic achievement than any other tutor intervention.