Essaywritingguide

EssayWritingGuide

DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

TheImportanceofWritingi
Ofallareasofstudyingandlearning,themost
challengingiswriting.Thereasonwhywritingis
especiallydemandingisthatitforcesaverydeepand
powerfultypeoflearningtotakeplace.Whenmaking
theefforttousetheideasofthesubjectthatyouare
studyingandsayingsomethingforyourself,thenitmay
besaidthatyouarelearning.Theideasonlybecomea
functioningpartofyourthoughtprocesseswhenyou
cancallontheminexpressingyourselftootherpeople.

understandingtoothers.
Makesurethatyouactuallyanswerthequestion.If
youareaskedtoassess,ortochoose,ortodiscussdo
it!Donotwritedowneverythingyouknowaboutthe
subject:itmaynotallberelevant.Yourlecturersare
oftennotlookingfor`correctanswers'.Thereisno`line'
foryoutofollow.Theyareconcernedwithhowwell
youmakeyourcase.Whethertheyagreeordisagree
withyourjudgmentisnotessentialtoyourmark.
Disagreementdoesnotleadtobadmarks;badessays
do.

Ifthereareimportantargumentsagainstyourposition,
donotignorethem;dealwiththemhonestly.Give
thosewhodisagreewithyouafairgo.Trytomeettheir
argumentswithbetterones.Scholarshipisnotamatter
ofpoliticalpointscoring:youmustrespectevidence
andsuperiorarguments.Yourargumentshouldbe
consistent,andthelanguageusedshouldbeclear,
grammaticalandprecise.Furthermore,anessayisa
finishedpieceofwork,notadraftoraseriesofnotes.

Whatisanessay?

Whatdoesanessaylooklike?

Youarenolongerinhighschool,somoststudyata
tertiarylevelrequiresananalytical,notadescriptive,
approach.Writtenworkmustpresentanargument.
Essaysaregenerallyanswerstoquestionswhichask
whetherornotyouagreewithacertainstatement,or
whichaskyoutodiscusssomethingcritically,toassess
astatement,ortomakeachoice.Universityessaysare
thereforeargumentsfororagainstcertainpropositions.
Anargumentisaseriesofgeneralizationsor
propositions,supportedbyevidenceorreasoningand
connectedinalogicalmanner,thatleadtoajustified
conclusion.Youmustsustainyourargumentbygiving
evidenceandreasons.
Assertionsdonotconstituteanargument.Youmust
supportyouropinionswithgoodevidenceandvalid
reasoning.Whatcountsasgoodevidenceandvalid
reasoningyouwilllearnbyexperience,andby
consultingyourlecturers.Beingcriticalmaymean
determiningwhetherornottheevidenceavailable
justifiestheconclusionsthataredrawnfromit;orit
maymeanuncoveringandquestioningtheassumptions
whichunderlietheories.
Essaysgiveyouachancetoshowwhatyoucando:that
youunderstandthequestionasked;thatyou
understandtheissuesinvolved;thatyouhavedonethe
appropriateamountofreading.Havinggotthatfar,you
mustthenshowthatyoucancommunicateyour

Writingtendstobeaveryprivateprocess.Youknow
whatyouressayslooklikeandwhatcommentsyour
lecturerreturnsthemwith,butyouhaveverylittleidea
whatotherpeoplesessaysarelikeandwhatcomments
theyreceiveback.Oneofthemostvaluableaidsto
developingyourownstyleandabilityistohavethe
opportunitytoseehowotherstudentshaveresponded
tothesametask:notbecauseyouwanttocopy
someoneelsesstyle,buttobroadenyourvisionof
whatispossiblewhenyouareansweringanessay
question.Ifyouarestudyingwithotherstudents,you
couldarrangetomeetfromtimetotimetoreadeach
othersessays;orifyoucantmeetyoucouldexchange
essaysbyemail.
Exchangingessaysisawayofgaininginsightintoyour
strengthsandweaknesses,bycomparingyourapproach
tothatofyourcolleagues.Itisunlikelythatyoucould
copysomeoneelsesstyleevenifyoutried.Sinceitis
yourabilitythatyouaretryingtodevelop,itwouldbe
counterproductive.However;donotplagiarize.Thisis
aquickroutetogettingthrownoutofUniversity.
Theideaoflettingothersseeyourworkisrather
dauntingatfirst,butonceyouhavebrokenthebarriers
ofprivacy,otherstudentscanoftenbeatleastas
helpfulasatutorinfindingwaysforward.Allthisbeing
said,becarefultoavoidplagiarizingfellowstudents
work.Thiscanresultisseverepenalties.

EssayWritingGuide

Essaywriting
whatisgood
writing?

DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

TheShotgunTechnique
Thisisputtingdowneverythingyouknowaboutthe
subject,andisacommonfault.Itislikefiringashotgun
andhopingthatsomeofthemanypelletshithome.
Thequestionyouareaskedorthetopicyouaresetwill
bespecific,andnotoftheform`Whatdoyouknow
aboutX'.Somestudentsfeelthatbyputtingdownall
theyknow,theyimpress.Unfortunatelyitusuallyworks
theotherwayround,andpersuadesthereaderthat
youarenotverybright.
Ifyoufindyouhaveatendencytoputdowneverything
youknow,ratherthananswerthequestion,ithelpsto
practicemakingskeletonanswers.Whenyouare
actuallywritinganassignment,sticktotheskeleton.If
youaretoldthatyouranswerisunfocussed,waffleor
vagueyoumightbesufferingfromthisfault.Inthis
case,youneedtofocusmoreonthequestionasked
andsticktothemainelementsoftheanswer.
Onerathermechanicalbuteffectivewayofdoingthisis
toreferregularlytothewordsofthequestionasyou
write.Naturally,itshouldnotbedonesooftenthatit
jarsorstartstolooksilly.Itmaynotbeimpossibleto
getsidetrackedifyoukeepreferringtothewordsof
thequestionanddroppingthemintothetext,butit
doesrequireacertaintalent.Whenyouthinkyouhave
finishedtheessay,itisusefultoreaditoverwiththe
questioninlargelettersinfrontofyouandkeep
glancingatthis.Youshouldseeifyouransweris
relevantinthisway.Keepaskingyourselfthequestion
`Whatisin,thatshouldbereducedinimportance,or
takenout?'thenhavethecouragetodowhateveris
necessary.

Gettingsidetrackedfromthevery
beginning
Neverstartoffanyassignment,beitwrittenororal,by
saying`BeforeIdealwiththequestionset,Iwill....'or
`Beforewecantacklethisquestionwemust....'.You
havebeensetatopicorquestionandmustanswerit.If
yousidetrackyourselffromtheverybeginning,you
willnotimpressthemarker.Youwillprobablypersuade
themthateitheryouarenotveryintelligent,orelse
youwishadifferentquestionhadbeenset,because
youknowmoreaboutit,andthereforeintendto
changethequestionforyourself.

Skimpy(brief)lightweightwork
Thisresultsinanessaythatistooshortandlacks
sufficientcontent.Ifyoufinditisaproblemofyours,
thesolutioniseasyyouneedtodomorework!Ifyou
receivesuchacriticism,takeheed.Whenyouthinkthat
youhavefinishedwritingtheessay,youshouldreadit
overandaskyourself`Whatisoutthatshouldbein?'
thenputitin.Ifyoucannotanswerthat,theneither
youhaveaperfectanswer,oryoudefinitelyneedto
readmore.
Badlyorganized/structuredwork
Ifyoufindthisisaproblemofyours,youmightfind
thatithelpstopracticemakingskeletonanswersusing
oldexampapersorquestionsinatextbook.Youneed
notwriteouttheactualanswer.Whenpreparingthe
skeleton,seekoutsomelogicalorder(e.g.,whowas
involved,whydidithappen,whatweretheresults)and
organizeyourpointsunderyourmainheadings.You
couldtryseveraldifferentapproaches,oneskeleton
answerforeach.Youmighthavetothinkaboutwhatto
putinandhowtoorganizebetter,andyoumayfindit
difficult,buttheactualprocessofdoingthisispartof
learningandimproving.Beawarethatitmighttake
sometimebeforeyoureffortpaysoffandyourwork
improves.Butbereassuredthatyouwillbemore
effectivewhenapproachinganissuefortherestofyour
life.
TooPersonalAnswers
Thiscanbeaproblemforsome.Ifitis,youareadvised
toavoidtheword`I'andbecarefulnottoexpressyour
personalviewstoomuch,unlessthequestionactually
askswhatyouyourselfthink.Itissafertokeepitin
thirdpersonwheneverpossible.Thepassivetenseis
oftenthebest,althoughsomenowthinkthisisanold
fashionedway.Ifyoustartsaying`Ithink'thenitcan
easilybecometoopersonalanditmaycauseyoutosay
whatyouthinkwithoutsufficientevidencetobackit
up.Alternatively,youmightbefailingtoexpressoneor
morestandardexplanationsthatothershaveproposed.
Usingtheactivetenseisoftenmorevigorousin
languagebutcanbackfire.Ifyouarenotsurewhatis
meantbyactiveandpassivetenses,`Theballwas
struck'ispassive;`Istrucktheball'isactive.

EssayWritingGuide

SomeCommonMistakesinEssay
WritingandPaperPresentation

DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

Manycoursesattheoutsetofferseveraltopicsfor
essays.Chooseonecarefullyandbeginworkingonit
early.Fityourpreparationandwritingintothe
frameworkprovidedbyessaydeadlinesinother
courses.Thiswillavoidafrantic,lastminuterush.
Essaysareoftenbestdonewhenthetopicinterests
you,butbewareofbecomingconsumedbyit:your
capacityforscholarlyanalysismaybeimpaired,oryou
mayneglectyourothercoursework.

Whatisthequestionaskingyoutodo?
Beginbycarefullyexaminingthekeywordsand
conceptsinthequestion.Payparticularattentiontothe
differencebetweencommonlyusedwords.For
example:
compareexaminethecharacteristicsoftheobjectsin
questiontodemonstratetheirsimilaritiesand
differences;
contrastexaminethecharacteristicsoftheobjectsin
questiontodemonstratetheirdifferences;
analyseconsiderthevariouscomponentsofthewhole
andexplaintherelationshipsamongthem;
discusspresentthedifferentaspectsofaquestionand
problem;
evaluateexaminethevarioussidesofaquestionto
reachanormativejudgment.

Analyzethequestion
Oncethetopichasbeenclarified,youshouldbreakit
downintoitscomponentparts.Thisenablesyouto
decidewhatmaterialisrelevanttothetopic.Suppose,
forexample,thatyouchosethefollowingquestion:`Isa
twopartysystemnecessaryfortheexistenceof
representativedemocracy?'.Anappropriateanswer
wouldfocusonthesecomponents:thenatureof
representativedemocracy;theroleofpoliticalparties
inrepresentativedemocracy;thecharacteristicsofa
twopartysystem;weakenedby,atwopartysystem;a
conclusionsettingoutyourevaluationofthesepoints
andtheirgeneralcontributiontothetopic.Youthus

havethebasisforthenextstep:outliningyouressay.

Outline
Afteranalyzingthequestion,thecomponentsshouldbe
organizedtoformanessayoutline(orplan).The
outlinehelpstoensurethatyouressayhasacoherent,
logicalstructure.Italsofacilitatesthepreparationof
youressaybyguidingyourreading,notetakingand
writing.Outlinesalsoenableyoutoassignrelative
weightingtothedifferentcomponentsofyouranswer
bydifferentiatingwhichpointsarecentral,andwhich
peripheral.Theywillthusassistyourresearcheffort.
Outlines,however,arenotsetinconcrete.Beopento
revisingyouroutlineasyourresearchprogresses,but
alwayscheckthatthenewoutlinecontinuestoaddress
directlytheessaytopic.

Brainstorming
Asyoubegintoconsiderthequestionindetail,youcan
usefullyjotdownalltheideasthatoccurtoyouona
pieceofpaperandmayberoughoutasortofskeleton
answer.Inthefirstplacethismaybeeasiertodo
startingwithacircleinthemiddleofthepageand
extendinglinesoutasideasoccurtoyou.Ifyoufinda
moreformalapproachlikealistworksbetterforyou,
thenusethatmethod.Onceyouhavelotsofpoints
jotteddown,intheordertheyoccurredtoyou,then
youcanmovetothenextstagewhichiswhereyou
tentativelyputnumbersbythepoints.
Therewillbemorethanonepossiblewayandyouare
seekingtheonethatseemsbestfittedtoyou.These
numberswillbecomethedifferentparagraphsor
sectionsoftheessaywhenyouwriteitup.

Calculatetheorganizationofyouressay
Oftenyouwillbegivenaclearindicationofthelimitsof
anessay.Goingalongwayaboveorunderawordlimit
willusuallyresultinyoubeingpenalized.Thefollowing
examplewillhelpkeepyouontrackandwillalsoassist
inyourplanning.
Examplebasedona1500wordessay;
INTRODUCTION100/150words
BODY1000/1300wordsThismaybe34
mainideasof300400wordseachRoughly
Thesemaythendivideinto34paragraphs
peridea

EssayWritingGuide

EssaywritingII
Planningand
research

CONCLUSION100/150words
Afterdoingyoursumsyouthencanstartyourresearch.
Checkyourlecturenotes,andanyothernotesyoumay

DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

alreadyhavethatarerelevanttothetitleset.Gotothe
textbook(andasmanyothertextbooksasyouthink
helpful)andreadtherelevantparts.
Widereadingisessentialifyouwishtosubmitagood
essay.Withoutwidereadingyouwillnothavethe
breadthofknowledgenecessarytoevaluatetheworth
ofthematerialsandtoputtheirthemesinto
perspective.Effectiveresearchdependsonknowing
whattolookfor,soalwayskeepyouressayoutlinein
mind.
Thereadingrequirementsare,ofcourse,relatedtothe
natureofthesubjectandthetopic.Sometopicsmay
requireadetailedanalysisofasmallnumberoftexts;
yetitisrarelysufficienttoreadonlyoneortwobooks
onaparticulartopic.Mostlecturersissuereadinglists
tohelpstudentschoosematerial,buttheseshouldonly
beconsideredasstartingpoints.
Thenusethelibrarycatalogueandsearchforanything
thatmightaddtoyourknowledge,readingandnoting
whatyoufind.Furtherreferencesmaybecompiledby
usingbibliographiesintextbooks;bylookingatthe
subjectindexinthelibrary;andbyconsultingperiodical
indexesinthelibrary.
Thefollowingtypesofsourcesmaygenerallybeused:

Generaltexts
Specializedtexts
Journalarticles
Newspapersandnewsperiodicals
Abstracts,CDROMDatabases
WorldWideWeb(thoughthewebshouldbe
usedcautiouslyandmanylecturersdonot
approveofWikipediaasasource)

recorditsdetailscarefully.Keepanaccuraterecordof
thefullreference.Writedownthepagefromwhichyou
obtaineachpieceofinformation,eventhoughitmay
notbeadirectquotation.However;becarefulnotto
overquote.Quotationsshouldbeusedsparinglyand
notinlieuofyourideas.
Thenyoushouldgooverallthenotesyouhavetaken,
readthemandthinkaboutthem,jottingdownallyour
ideasorcriticismsasyouread.Atthisstageyoumight
usefullyaddtoortotallyremaketheinitialskeleton
outline.
Atthispoint,itisusefultodiscusstheissuewithothers
ifpossible.Thiswillhelpyoutoorganizeyourthoughts
andidentifyweakpointsinyourarguments,andmight
giveyousomenewpointstoincorporateorhelpadjust
thebalanceofyouranswer.Techniquesfororganizing
copiousnotesvirtuallyallinvolveeffortandabitoftrial
anderrorofdifferentwaysoftacklingthequestion.
Someadvocatewritingallthemainpointsonsmall
cardsandshufflingthesearoundandcomparing
outcomes.Othersliketoskeletonoutlines,eachona
separatepieceofpaper.
UsefulStrategies
Drafteachparagraphonaseparatepage;oneideaone
paragraph,thenrearrangethemintoalogicalorder.
Tackletheintroductionandconclusionlast.

NOTE:Inallyourreading,bealertforstatedand
unstatedassumptionswhichaffectthecharacterofthe
argument.

Notetaking
Useyouressayoutlineasthebasisoftakingnotesfrom
yourreadings.Trynottophotocopylargeslabsof
readings:itoftendelaysthehardworkofreadingand
thinking;unhappily,itsometimessubstitutesforthem.

EssayWritingGuide

Beorganizedinyournotetaking:maintainanorder
thatyoucanfollowandthatwillbeofassistancein
writingtheessay.Suchanordermightbeprovidedby
youressayoutline.Howyouchoosetomakenotesisup
toyou.Youmaypreferconnectedsentencesof
commentary,orpointform.Ifthereisanaptquotation
youwishtouseforillustrativepurposes,copyitand
DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

Writingandrevising
Theessayshouldbeacoherentandlogicalpieceof
analyticalprose.Inthefirstplaceitshouldanswerthe
questionset.Inthesecondplaceitcogentlyargues,
carefullydocuments,andclearlyexpressesyourcase.
Thestructureoftheessayhasthreeparts:an
introduction,thebodyoftheessay,andaconclusion.
Theintroductionshouldintroducethetopictobe
discussedandpreparethereaderforwhatistofollow;
itneedstobeconcise.Itshouldsummarizebrieflythe
overallthemeorargumentoftheessay,indicatingthe
mainpointstobemade.
Thebodyoftheessayistheplacetopresentyour
argument.
Theconclusionshouldrestatebrieflythekey
argumentsandtheirimplications.
Insum,thestructureofyouressayshouldfollowthe
rule:saywhatyouaregoingtosay,sayit,andsaywhat
youhavesaid.

Utilizingreferencematerial
Youneedtobeawareofhowmuchyouressayisdirect
quotation(whereyouusethewordsofanotherwriter
exactly),howmuchisindirectquotation(whereyou
paraphraseorrewordinformationgainedfroma
referencesource),andhowmuchisyourownwording.
AsaroughguideforintroductorylevelsubjectsElms
(1994,p.33)suggeststhatyoulimityourselftoone
quarterofyouressayfordirectquotations,onehalfto
indirectquotations[paraphrasing],andtheremainder
forintegratingtheotherinformation.,butIpersonally
feelthisisamuchtoogenerousfordirectquotations,
whichshouldbemoresparinglyused.Somequotations
aredesirableandcanbeinsightful,butover
employmentcanleadtotheimpressionthatthewriter
hasnothingofanyoriginalitytosayandtoalackof
criticalevaluation.Dontstringtogetherlengthy
quotations.Checkwithotherlecturerswhomaydiffer
intheirview.

Thedraft
Youwillfindithelpfultowritemorethanonedraft.Use
thefirstdrafttomapoutyourideaswithinthe
frameworkofyouressayoutline.Secondand
subsequentdraftsmustpaymoreattentiontowording
andstyle.
Essaysarenotjustexercisesinresearch;theyarealso
exercisesincommunication.
Attentiontomattersofstylewillhelptoensurethat
yourpresentationisclear,conciseanddirect.Your
researcheffortsdeservetheclearestandbest
presentationpossible.Therearemanyimportantissues
inpresentationtowhichyoushouldgivedueattention,
butconsistencyisoneofthemostimportant
considerations.
Oneproblemthatworriesalotofstudentsishowmuch
toinclude,wheretodrawtheline,andwhentostop.
Partofyourlearningprocessistogainsuchskillsandso
anyanxietyandstruggleinvolvedisnotnecessarilya
badthingasitcandefinitelypayoffforyou.Youshould
bearinmindthereisnoclearanswertosuchquestions:
theydependontheparticularapproachyoudecideto
adoptwhenansweringthequestion,aswellason
factorslikehowintelligent,hardworkingandcreative
youare.Ifyouareaimingforabarepassorahigh
distinction,theanswerswillagainbedifferent.Answer
thequestiondefinitely,butalsoconsiderifthereare
deeperissues.

Presentation
Youshouldifpossibletypeorwordprocessyour
assignments,andyoushoulddoublespacethetext.
Thismakesiteasiertoread,pleasesthemarker,and
allowsmoreroomforcomments.
Doublespacingencouragesthemarkertonoteideas
andsuggestionsthroughoutyourtext,andinthisway
youtendtogetmorewrittencommentorresponse.It
istraditionaltosendallmanuscriptstopublishersand
journalsindoublespace,soacademicsareusedto
seeingitinthisformandgenerallypreferit.
Ifyoucannottypeusingallyourfingers,youare
stronglyadvisedtolearnnow.Itiseasytoobtaina
computerprogramthatwillteachyoutotype,either
throughtheUniversityorcheaplythrough
advertisementsfortypingtutorsincomputer
magazines.Someofthepackageshaveafuntyping
gamethatencouragesyoutopractice.

EssayWritingGuide

EssaywritingIII
Writing,revising&
presentation

Alwaysincludeatitlepageattachedtoyouressay.This
isaseparateonetoanythattheuniversityprovides.

DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

Alwaysincludethesourcesofotherpeople'sideasor
directquotes.
AlwaysincludeaListofReferencesonaseparatepage
attheendofanessay.Donotcallitabibliography.
TheyareReferences.Youareadvisedtoreadthe
companionreferencingguidethatcanbefoundonmy
webpage(orwhereveryougotthis!).
Donotseparateyouressayintosubheadingsunlessyou
havebeeninstructedbyyourlecturertodoso
(lecturersmaydifferinthisrequirement).
Donotusefirstpersonunlessyouaretoldtodoso.
Thisshouldbeaformalandobjectivepieceofwriting,
sodon'tpersonalizeitbysayingIthink....Thisdoes
notmeanthatyoushouldnothaveanevidencebased
opinion.Justavoidthefirstpersonwhenexpressingit.
Donotuseanycolloquialphrases,workrelatedjargon
orclichs.Beoriginalandformalinyourexpression.
Rememberwhoyouraudienceis.Ifyouwanttouse
abbreviationsusetheminfullfirstwiththe
abbreviationinbracketsafterwards.Thisisespecially
trueforThreeLetterAbbreviations(TLA).Thereafter
youcanusetheTLA.
Usefullsentencestocommunicateyourideas.Each
sentenceshouldmakesenseonitsown.Checkyour
spelling.Useaspellingchecker,aDictionaryora
Thesauruswhenyouarewriting,butdonotrelyonthe
spelchequer!Nothingbeatsproofreadingafterwards.
Usuallyyouwillnotusetables,graphsorlistsoffactsin
anessay,butifyoudousethemthenusethem
sparinglyandalwaystalkaboutwhattheysayinthe
text.Againthough,itwilldependonthefacultyor
lecturer.Checkyourcourserequirements,unitoutline,
lecturerortutor.Idonotobjecttothesethingsifused
inmoderationastheycanbeilluminating,buttheyare
worthlessunlessthetextexplainswhatissignificant
aboutthemandwhytheyarethere.

yourownwords.Forexample;
Smith(1994,p.52)believesthatscholarshipis
moreimportantthaninspirationwhen
preparinggoodassignments.
Ithasbeenstatedthatscholarshipismore
importantthaninspirationwhenpreparing
goodassignments(Smith1994,p.52).
Notethatneitherofthesearedirectquotes.
Referencelistattheendoftheessay
ThiswillbeintheformofaReferenceListor
References(notabibliographyplease),showingallthe
sourcesthatyouhaveusedinyouressay
Donotincludematerialthatisnotcitedinthetextof
youressay.
Thinkyouhavefinished?
Havingwrittenanassignmentputitasideforafew
days.Thetimelapsewillallowyoutodevelopanew
perspectiveonyourwork.Youmaybemoreobjective
andpickupanyobscuritiesorinaccuracies.Itisalsoa
goodideatogiveittoafriendorpartnertoreadand
seeifitmakessense.
ANote
Dogetyourassignmentsinontime.Youlosemarksfor
beinglateandinaddition,onceyoufallbehindyour
studyandwritingscheduleitwillbedifficulttocatch
up.Whenthishappens,everythingtendstobecome
late.

Referencing
Themostcommonlyusedsystemsofreferencingare
theHarvardsystemorAPAsystem.Youareadvisedto
readtheaccompanyingreferenceguide.
Referencingwithinthetext

EssayWritingGuide

Anythingthatisnotcommonknowledgeshouldbe
referencedwhenyouareusinganotherperson'sideas
ordrawingconclusionsbasedonacombinationofyour
ideasandthoseofanotherperson's,youneedto
acknowledgethisbygivingtheirnameandtheyearof
publication.
Paraphrasingthisisputtinganideafromatextinto
DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

Instructionterms

contrast

Instructiontermsarecommonlyusedinessayand
examinationquestions.Theysuggesttheapproachyou
shouldtaketowardsthesubject.Theexactmeaningof
thesetermswillvarydependinguponthesubject.The
followingindicatewhattheynormallymeanforessays
andexamquestions.

criticize

Takecare
Thinkcarefullyaboutthemeaningofthese
termsinrelationtotheremainderofthe
question.
Trytounderstandexactlywhataninstruction
isaskingyoutodobutbereasonable.
Don'tlookforproblemswheretheymightnot
exist.
Ifindoubt,askyourtutor.

Setdowntheprecisemeaningofsomething.Be
preparedtostatethelimitsofthedefinition.Take
noteofmultiplemeaningsiftheyexist.
describe
Giveadetailedandcomprehensiveaccountof.
discuss
Investigateandexaminebycarefulargument.
Exploretheimplicationsandtheadvantagesor
disadvantages.Debatethecaseandpossibly
consideranyalternatives.Thisisprobablythemost
commoninstructionterm.Itisinvitingyoutosay
somethinginterestinginresponsetothetopicin
question.Youcanchooseyourownapproach.

accountfor
Explainthereasonsfor,givinganindicationofall
relevantcircumstances.Nottobeconfusedwith
'Giveanaccountof'whichasksonlyforadetailed
description.

evaluate
Makeanappraisaloftheworthofsomethinginthe
lightofitstruthorutility.Emphasizetheviewsof
authoritiesaswellasyourpersonalestimation.

analyse
Studyindepth,identifyinganddescribingindetail
themaincharacteristics.
argue
Putforwardaproposition,thenillustrateit,discuss
itssignificance,anddefenditagainstpossible
countercharges.
assess

explain
Makeplain.Accountfor.Clarify,interpret,andspell
outthematerialyoupresent,givingreasonsfor
importantfeaturesordevelopments.
howfar...
Similartoquestionswhichbegin'Towhatextent...'.
Youareexpectedtomakeyourcaseorpresent
yourargument,whilstshowinganawarenessthat
alternateorevencontradictoryexplanationsmay
exist.Carefulassessmentandweighingofevidence
arecalledfor.

Examineclosely,withaviewto'weighingup'a
particularsituation.Considerinabalancedwaythe
strengthsandweaknessesorpointsforandagainst
aproposition.Inconclusion,stateyourjudgment
clearly.
comment

illustrate

Stateclearlyandinmoderatefashionyouropinions
onthematerialinquestion.Supportyourviews
withreferencetosuitableevidenceor
explanations.

Makeclearandexplicitbythediscussionof
concreteexamples.
justify
Showadequategroundsfordecisionsor
conclusions.Answerorrefutethemainobjections
likelytobemadeagainstthem.

compare
Lookforsimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweentwo
ormorethings.

EssayWritingGuide

Giveyourjudgmentaboutastatementorabodyof
work;exploreitsimplications,discussingallthe
evidencewhichisavailable.Bespecificinyour
examination.
define

Tips:

Deliberatelysingleoutandemphasizethe
differencesanddissimilaritiesbetweentwoor
morethings.

DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity

outline
Givethemainfeaturesorthegeneralprinciplesof
asubject,omittingminordetailsandemphasizing
structureorarrangement.
relate
Showhowthingsareconnectedandhowthey
possiblyaffect,cause,orresembleeachother.
review
Makeasurveyof,examiningthesubjectcritically.
state
Presentthemainpointsinbrief,clearform.
summarize
Giveaconciseaccountofthemainpointsofa
matter,omittingdetailsandexamples.
trace
Followthedevelopmentorhistoryofatopicfrom
somepointoforigin.

RevisedfromanumberofpreviousversionsbyJ.H.
Ratcliffe,Sept07.Availableatwww.jratcliffe.net.

EssayWritingGuide

I'mnotonetoreinventthewheel,sothisguidehas
beenadaptedfromthewebsiteofCharlesSturt
Universitystudentservices
(www.csu.edu.au/division/studserv/learning/index.htm)
whichinturnhasdrawnonmaterialfromAustralian
universitiesandothersourcesforadviceandexamples.
Particularmentionmustbemadeofthefollowing:
Bucknall,K.B.(1995)Howtosucceedasastudent.
GriffithUniversity:http://www.gu.edu.au/gwis/stubod
/stuadv/stu_advice.html;Lovell,D.W.(1995)Essay
writingforstudentsinpoliticsandthesocialsciences.
AustralianDefenceForceAcademy:
http://www.pol.adfa.oz.au/essay.intro.html;Nothedge
A.(1990)Thegoodstudyguide.OpenUniversity:Milton
Keynes,U.K.

DrJerryRatcliffeDeptofCriminalJusticeTempleUniversity