Writing an Assignment

Assignments will probably ask you to write or talk about something you have recently learnt or that you need to explore and find out for yourself.

You’ll need to:

• find out information

• make sense of it

• form an argument using your own words

• Present your work in the format specified

Where to start?

Where to start?• Start your assignment early!

• Read the question carefully

• Re-read it!

• What question is being asked?

• Think about the verb/s used in the question

• Highlight keywords to help break the question down.

• Think about what you already know about the subject

• Determine what you will need to find out, and where you plan to

look for this information

Where to look?• Course documents

• Your own notes

• Handouts from lessons

• Essays from previous years

• Books and other published information

• Reference works - encyclopaedias, dictionaries, Credo Reference

• Books – textbooks, collections of essays, books on your topic

• Periodicals – journals & magazines, newspaper articles

Where to look?• Internet

• eResources and subject resources pages on Interact

• Specialist sites on your area of study

• Professional bodies and governmental information sources

• Wikipedia and Tumblr

• Specific & specialist sources

• Articles from industry press

• Reports

• Legislation

• Case studies

• Best Practice documents

• Keep track of your ideas

• Make notes of key points

• Use your own words where you can

• Think how information joins up with other things you know or

have read; mind maps are good for putting down your ideas and

linking them

• Record the references of everything!

• Make a plan of the structure of your assignment early; you

can always change it, but it helps you to keep organised

What to do when reading?

…………..

Greasley, 2011, p.10 (2.1); p.13 (2.2)

Common problems & best practice