Writing essays and assignments
While you are at college you will be expected to write different types of assignments such as essays, reports and reflective journals. These demonstrate to your teachers that you have understood your topic, and extended your knowledge by further reading and research. You also need to be able to communicate this knowledge via a written argument in an academic format. This page will help you learn how to plan and write assignments, and provide resources to help with spelling, punctuation and grammar.
It is important to understand what an essay question or assignment brief is asking. These guides will help you analyse the question and identify the task.
Firstly, make sure you can identify and understand the command verbs in the assignment title. These tell you what kind of assignment you are being asked to write. You may be asked to describe, evaluate or explain - each are asking for a different kind of answer. Click on the link below for a guide to understanding command verbs.
Next, analyse the question. What are the content words - these tell you what information you need to include.
Step 2: Starting to Research.
Once you have understood the question, create a list of all the ideas, theories, and examples that you already know about from class or your own reading that relate to the question. Use these as a starting point for further research. You can also go back to the textbooks on your reading list and look for your topics there.
Step 3: Writing an Essay Plan.
Deciding on a rough structure for your essay before you start writing will help ensure that your ideas are logically ordered and easy for the reader to follow. It will also make the writing process easier.
Step 4: Starting to write
There are a number of tools to help you once you start writing. It can sometimes be best to start with the main section of the assignment, and complete the introduction and conclusion later. Remember to check that you are answering the question, and that you are providing evidence to support the points you are making.
Watch this useful video to help you learn how to paraphrase effectively.
Paraphrasing means 'to state something written or spoken in different words, especially in a shorter and simpler form to make the meaning clearer' (Cambridge Online Dictionary, 2022). It simply means using your own words to express someone elses ideas and it shows you understand and can apply those arguments in your own work.
Step 5: Editing and Proof Reading
Go to our guide on Editing and Proof reading for more information on this stage