HLSC111: Essay Writing
Semester 1, 2012
Academic Skills Advisers
ACU National, North Sydney Campus
Assessment Task 1: Essay
Topic: Discuss the important developmental factors in
the response of a 10 year old child to the death of a
parent.
• In your essay you should examine the cognitive and
psychosocial development of a typical 10 year old
child.
• Also examine how a child at this developmental
stage (1) perceives and (2) responds to loss.
• You need to find and evaluate appropriate literature
to support your discussion.
This essay task has 2 stages
• Stage 1 is a group exercise and requires a
concept map and essay plan (including
references).
• Stage 2 Submitting the final essay.
“Managing writing is largely a process
of managing time. Writing is a
process, occurring over time, and like
any process, it can be done efficiently
or inefficiently. Unfortunately, most
of us have pretty inefficient writing
processes” (Davis, 2005).
Steps of the Process
Planning
(40%)
Drafting
(20%)
Revising
(40%)
Planning
Should take about 40% of your time and energy:
– Analyse the task to identify the purpose
of your writing
– Examine the marking criteria to know
how you will be assessed
– Brainstorm to craft a tentative response
to the task
– Create a plan for your writing
– Locate and collect your resources
– Identify useful information within
those resources
– Identify where you use that information
as evidence
This will
take
place in
Stage 1
Analysing the task
You need to be able to identify key words:
• Topic words
– tell you what you are going to write about
– define the topic, indicating areas to concentrate on
• Task words
– describe how you will write your assignment
– are usually verbs
• Limiting words
– provide boundaries for your research and reading
Analyse your task
Look for topic words, task words, and limiting words
Topic: Discuss the important developmental factors in
the response of a 10 year old child to the death of a
parent.
• In your essay you should examine the cognitive and
psychosocial development of a typical 10 year old
child.
• Also examine how a child at this developmental
stage (1) perceives and (2) responds to loss.
• You need to find and evaluate appropriate literature
to support your discussion.
Analyse your task
Look for topic words, task words, and limiting words
Topic:
Discuss the important developmental factors in the
response of a 10 year old child to the death of a parent.
In your essay you should examine the cognitive and
psychosocial development of a typical 10 year old child.
Also examine how a child at this developmental stage
(1) perceives and (2) responds to loss.
You need to find and evaluate appropriate literature to
support your discussion.
Marking Criteria I
• Introduction and Focus or Position Statement
The position statement names the topic, outlines the main points & provides
a clear, strong statement of arguments to be discussed.
• Sequencing
Arguments and support are provided in a logical order ... and all supportive
facts and statistics are reported accurately.
• Closing Paragraph
Effective restatement of the position statement begins the closing
paragraph. A variety of thoughtful transitions are used. They clearly show
how ideas are connected.
• Sentence and Paragraph Structure
Sentences well constructed ... All paragraphs include introductory sentence,
explanations or details, and concluding sentence.
Marking Criteria II
• Evidence and Examples
Clear articulation of how the ... stages are applied. Each key
point is supported by ... outstanding support from current
evidence.
• Sources and Referencing
All sources used for quotes, statistics, and facts are credible
and both intext citations and reference list are correct and use
APA style.
• Mechanics – Grammar Spelling and Punctuation
Author makes no errors ... that distract the reader from the
content or flow.
Creating your concept map
and essay outline
• The map is a visual representation of
connections between main ideas and
concepts
• The outline is a plan for how those ideas will
come together in a piece of writing (structure,
structure, structure!)
• Developed as a group and presented during
tutorials as an opportunity for feedback
Choosing your sources
Authority
Is the author an expert
in the field?
Is the author cited by
others in the field?
Audience
Originality
Who is the material
intended for: Experts?
Beginners? Professionals?
The general public?
Does the source report
original research? (Is it a
primary source?)
Is the intended audience
familiar with the field of
knowledge?
Is the publisher
reputable?
Has the author relied on
summaries or paraphrases of
information from other
sources instead of carrying
out their own research?
Objectivity
Does the author declare a
bias or conflict of interest?
Why is the research being
conducted or the
information distributed?
Who paid for the research
or the publication?
Currency
Accuracy
Has the author used
credible sources of
information?
Are the data reliable and
current?
Were the research
methods appropriate?
How long does information
remain current in this area of
knowledge?
Is this the most recent edition of
the work?
Does more recent research
contradict or over-ride
information from this source?
Coverage
Is the source an in-depth
investigation of a topic,
or an overview?
Is the author’s evidence
drawn from a number of
sources?
Drafting (Stage 2)
Should take about 20% of your time and energy:
– Write a very rough draft, following your original
plan (or adapting your group plan, if necessary)
– Do not edit at this stage
– Include some time to step away from your writing
Essay structure
General
About 10% of
your word count
Specific
Body
Supports claim or
position with evidence
About 80% of
your word count
Specific
Conclusion
General
Brings arguments to a
close
About 10% of
your word count
Structure of the
introduction
General topic statement
Linking statements
General
Thesis statement
(Essay map)
Specific
Parts of a body paragraph
Body
paragraph
Topic sentence
Essay
Introduction
Main idea of the
paragraph
Main idea of the essay
Supporting
sentences
Body
Explanations, examples &
evidence
Concluding
sentence
Summary & linking
Explanations, examples,
& evidence
Conclusion
Summary &
contextualising
Each body paragraph is a mini-essay!
Unity
Logical
structure
Characteristics
of a wellwritten body
paragraph
Adequate
development
Coherence
Parts of the Conclusion
Specific
Thesis
restatement
Reminds readers of
essay purpose
Summary of main ideas
Shows how main elements of essay
combine to achieve that purpose
General
Final statement
Actual conclusion of essay – may include a recommendation,
prediction, warning or direction for future research
Ties
evidence and
arguments
together
No new
ideas
Characteristics
of a wellwritten
conclusion
Valid
Logical
Planning your structure
• Introduction and conclusion = approx 10% of
word count (100 words each)
• Body = approx 80% of word count (800 words)
– Break this 800 words into proportional sections
– How many main points can you cover in 800 words?
– How many pieces of evidence will you introduce in
each section?
Revising
Should take about 40% of your time and energy:
– Rework your draft, focusing on:
• content (eg: theme, arguments, evidence)
• organisation (eg: structure, presentation, mechanics)
– Seek assistance if necessary
– Produce the completed essay and reference list
Citing your sources
• Use APA style for Health Sciences units
• Collect bibliographic information for every
source
• Work as you go
• Save time during revision to work on your
reference list
• Get help if you need it
For more information...
• The ACU Study Guide: Skills for Success
• Online materials from the Academic Skills Unit at
http://students.acu.edu.au/371871
• APA Style blog at
http://blog.apastyle.org/