Academic Skills Advice
E-advice – Writing Skills
Name &
UoB
XXXXX XXXXXXXXX
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Writing Sample #
Date
Writing Skills
Analysis and/or
Argument
1
-
Advice, Tips, Critical Question Prompts &
Recommended
Development Resources
This gives
some ideas about
areas
of successful academic
Critical
analysis
writing
that
In essays
likewe
this,might
it is rareprovide
that things will simply be descriptively listed,
instance and
R9 simply
gives a lengthy
skillsforadvice
guidance
on. set of features. Instead, it is more
Such as:
likely that these features of a professional role would need to be
 Addressing the assignment
discussed as part of an analytical stance on the essay question.
question or brief
I recommend reading Chapter 3 of Critical Thinking Skills by Stella
 Developing a line of
Cottrell (available from the library) for a detailed overview of what
reasoning
‘analysis’ means, if you feel unsure.
 Progressing logically towards
a conclusion
 Critically analysing the overall Accurate and logical understanding
topic, subtopic or issues
Take care when analysing the issues
in a topic and the sources
you want
Recommendations
for
 The
Critically
analysing
key ideas,
skills
advice
you
to use. It is possible that a marker may think that the logic has not been
concepts, theories, debates
follow-on reading and
need
to apply across all
fully thought through or that the understanding demonstrated is
or designs
 Critically reflecting on issues,
‘superficial’. For instance, the source
resources
in R7 is used
we
to think
show what
you
has
of your academic
practice, skills and
happened in the past decade but another decade has passed since it was
might find useful as an
competencies
writing.
published in 2003.
independent HE learner.
Investigation/Research,
Source Use &
Referencing
Such as:
 Application of course’s preferred
referencing system in citations
 Application of course’s preferred
referencing system in reference
list and/or bibliography
 Use of sources for range of
purposes
 Use of wide range of sources to
show independent
investigation/competent analysis
 Use of sources appropriate to
professional/high level of
learning and practice
Evidencing using sources
-
-
Take care to evidence all of your assertions and observations. For
instance, in R5 and R14 the statements read as firm assertions about the
issue you are investigating but no evidence is provided to support your
view that this is the case.
Make sure the reference list is done in the style your course stipulates
once the draft is finalised (R18). See
http://www.bradford.ac.uk/library/help/referencing/citation-andreferencing for details on how to order information about sources into
lists.
Citations
-
Citations in brackets should all consistently follow the referencing system
your course uses. Example R8 is useful here, as it is written accurately for
the Harvard Referencing your course uses. Others have punctuation
missing between author and year.
www.brad.ac.uk/academic-skills/
Academic Structure
Such as:
 Basic structuring
principles
 Logical sequence of points
 Signposting & Flow
 Paragraphing
Writing Introductions
-
-
Academic style
Such as:
 Presentation of paper
 Professional or academic
vocabulary
 Coherence & expression
 Spelling, grammar &
punctuation
This currently needs further work. A good introduction should achieve the
follow-on skills
following (See R1 from yourLinks
writingto
example):
o
set up the aim/purpose
of
the
paper
do in R3 in your
resources
we(which
thinkyouyou
example)
might
useful as an
o
define any useful key
terms find
if needed
o
establish the overall
background context
independent
HE learner.
o
tell the reader how the paper is organised and if there are any
‘housekeeping’ additions that do not occur in every
essay/report/assignment.
http://www.bradford.ac.uk/academic-skills/Resources/Writing-Essays/InfosheetWhat-should-go-into-an-Introduction-and-Conclusion.pdf
Clarity of vocabulary choice
-
We use the sample of your writing we see to
Sometimes, the writing assumes the reader knows exactly what you’ve been
asked
tailor
to doour
for assessment
advice as
andmuch
how you’ve
as possible.
decided to handle
These
it – sound
papers don’t do this. In example R17, having already referred to an ‘element’
numbers match to a place in your text so that the
this is mentioned again but with no clear picture for the reader of what is
tips,
oracademic
criticalstyle
question
prompts
meant
by suggestions
this. When using an
be as specific
as possible – this
means
that
in
your
essays
words
that
are
ambiguous
should
be explained
draw on actual examples within your work.
This or
even avoided.
means our guidance can be seen in context.
Proofing skills
-
Some of the basic typographical errors in the text could have been avoided
by applying the spell-check in Word (see R4, R8 & R11 for some notable
examples). If even basic non-manual checking does not take place the
marker is unlikely to give higher marks because they may think the draft
never underwent editing, redrafting and finally, checking.
Human development is a process of unfolding, expanding, becoming fuller, more complex and more
complete. Many philosophers have been so far interested in the study of how knowledge and
understanding develop in children. A lot of them have come up with different types of theories attempting
to elucidate human development and most of them have brought into being different views in why
cognitive ability transforms over a period of time. Debatably, behaviourists define human development as a
These numbered
determinant
of environmental or social interaction (nurture), while biologists attribute to genetic
determination
(nature). Siegler (1998) described cognitive development as an expression or a phrase that
examples match
embraces language, memory, reasoning, awareness, learning and problem solving. In this piece of writing,
someisof
the
thetoauthor
interested
in comparing and contrasting Jean Piaget’s cognitive development theory and Lev
Vygotsky’s
social
advice given and cultural development theory.
where
If above
only these
two an
striking minds of Piaget and Vygotsky had had the chances of sharing ideas, some
uncertainty
would
illustration
is have been lessened, but Vygotsky’s untimely death prohibited those chances. Jarvis and
Chandler (2001) noted that Piaget and Vygotsky had the same ideas that children’s cognitive development
needed.
occurs
in stages and they were concerned about intellectual development even though each practised
different problems. Piaget believed that cognitive development is made up of four main stages of cognitive
growth and has an end point in goal while, in contrast ,Vygotsky believed that development is a process
that commences at birth until death and is too intricate to be defined in stages, Driscoll (1994) and
Hausfather (1996). Both Piaget and Vygotsky visualised knowledge as adaptation and believed that
learning and development were self regulated. However, they differed in their opinions.
Comment [R1]:
Comment [R2]:
Comment [R3]: