SOLUTION: Essay Writing the Basics | My Assignment Tutor

LEAP Online University of Bolton ©2017Essay Writing the BasicsWhat is an essay?An essay is a continuous piece of writing which enables students to provide theiranswer to the question set by the logical presentation of academic arguments andevidence.Why do you need to write essays?Essays enable you to demonstrate your understanding of a topicYou can demonstrate your ability to critically analyse the information you havegathered to develop your own answer.Essays allow you develop your own viewpoint based on evidenceEssay allow you to learn to persuade the reader of your viewpoint and why it is valid.What do you need to write an essay?Evidence – To answer an essay question you will need to gather information frombooks, journals and other sources (see the Finding Information section). Youropinion is only valid when supported with academic evidenceA critical approach – To be able to answer an essay you need to think, read and writecritically. (See critical thinking section)Academic writing – essays are written in a formal academic writing style (see theacademic writing style)The essay writing processAnswer the question set.As essays is not a just a collection of facts on topic!Do not just regurgitate the information you have gatheredYou must include your academic argument or interpretation – focus on why and sowhat, not just what and how.LEAP Online University of Bolton ©2017Examine the essay title – plan your essay: What is the essay about? What are you being asked to do? Look for two types of information in the title Subject words Directive words Subject wordsIdentify the keywords of the topic that is the subject of the essay – these will form thebasis of the search terms used in your research. Make sure you define any keywords if you are unsure of the meaning – use dictionaries or relevant text books. Seethe section on Finding Information for examples and help with searching.Directive wordsYou need to look for the directive or instructional words in your essay title that definethe kind of reasoning you should be using e.g. why, how, analyse, compare,evaluate, argue etc. View a list of directive words and their meanings.Common examplesExplore: adopt a questioning approach and examine different points of view.Evaluate: present your judgment about something by presenting the advantages anddisadvantages relevant to that situation.Discuss: give a complete or detailed examination of a topic by means of argument,debating the pros and cons of the subject.Describe: convey the main details or characteristics of a subject in an objective way.Illustrate: give examples that help clarify issues.Define: give the exact meaning of something. If there is more than one explanation,give them all.Mind-mapping or brainstormingThe directive and subject words should prompt ideas to form in your mind.Make a note of the ideas as they happenDon’t worry about order or importance at this stageLet your ideas flow!Pattern notes are particularly useful – out your main topic in the middle and let ideasor factors radiate out (illustrate)Once you have generated a mind-map you may wish to re-write into a logical order,rank the more important points first and group related pointsIf you don’t know much about your topic, you may leave it at the mind-mapping stageand write your notes in a more logical flow once you have read around on the topic.LEAP Online University of Bolton ©2017Gathering evidenceYou need to read and collect as much academic information and evidence as youcan based on the points you have identified. Your evidence should consist of specificexamples or the opinions of others which support and illustrate your own view. Youneed enough evidence to make a strong statement.Statements made without supported evidence may result in you losing marks.You may need to consult both primary (original texts, such as a journal article givingan account of research carried out by the authors of the article. Another examplewould be an autobiography, photograph, film) and secondary (opinions orcommentary on other people’s work. Authors of books and journal articles often referto previous related work, these accounts are secondary sources. These can includetextbooks, journal articles and biographies) sources of information according to yourassignment brief. Where possible you should consult the primary source.You should use the widest variety of sources to form and support your own views,but make sure that you use reliable and appropriate sources such as academicbooks and journals rather than relying on websites. Remember to critically evaluatethe material that you are consulting, do not simply collect the opinions of others andrearrange them.As you examine the literature on your essay topic you may identify further points thatyou hadn’t considered in your initial brainstorming activity, so you will have to factorthese into your essay outline.Add in the evidence you need for each point.ReferencingMake sure that you make a note of every book, article and website you haveconsulted as you carry out your research, so that you can create a bibliography orlist of references when you come to write the essay. You may wish to create aRefworks account to manage your references. See the referencing section for furtherguidance.LEAP Online University of Bolton ©2017Basic essay structureIntroduction – say what you’re going to say!Main body – say it!Conclusion – say what you have said!SummaryIdentify subject/directive wordsBrainstorm – identify your main pointsGather evidenceAmend your essay plan notesWrite your essayReferencingAccess LEAP Online at: www.bolton.ac.uk/leaponline