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There are a range of key steps in producing academic writing.
The first and perhaps the most important is analysing the task.
This video will show you how to do that.
First, analysing the question. Now, note when I use the word 'question' in academic
context, the question is the task, what you've been asked to do by your academic.
So the first thing you do in the process of producing any work,
is to analyse the question you've been given.
Make sure you understand what you are writing about.
Now, that's the topic, and what you need to do with the topic.
That's the focus.
All writing you do is aimed at answering that particular question you've been given.
So you need to stay on task and be relevant at all times.
Let's look at an example. Take 30 seconds to read through this.
Make note of key things you see.
A first question. The topic.
What are we talking about? What's the larger issue here?
Health issues is what we're looking at.
Second, move onto the focus. What is the limitation of the focus
area of that larger issue?
And here we have to make a choice of one of those things
smoking, diabetes, etc..
There is another limitation. We're looking at those health issues in the context of
Australia, not the UK, not Canada, not France, Australia.
This is really important to remember because it's about relevance.
Writing what you've been asked to do.
The sections, how many are there? Let's have a look.
We have to consider the extent and nature of the issue, causes, consequences.
Now they may be together. We'll talk about a bit more later.
And we need to critically examine what's been done to address the issue we have chosen.
We can choose to highlight a key successful program.
So depending on whether you put causes and consequences together in one section, there'll
be four or five major sections.
Now, this informs your planning.
It's crucial.
Let's look at the sections more closely.
We have to analyse the extent and nature of the issue.
So we're asking ourselves. What is the issue?
We may need to define it or scope it.
Causes, what are they?
Consequences, what are they? We have to critically examine what has been done.
So we're asking ourself. What has been done?
Highlighting a key program. What is it?
Why is it successful? So start asking yourself these questions.
These questions will drive your reading.
Is there anything else we have to look at?
There are two things, you may choose to highlight a key successful program.
Should you? Use at least three key readings and three more of your choice.
Do you need to? The answer for all of these questions is yes.
Whenever academics put something like, you may choose to highlight, they're basically
saying, I want you to highlight. Use at least three key readings.
You have to use those three key readings.
Three more of your choice. You need to go and find three more.
So task analysis, why do this?
It gives us our structure, the order and the sequence of the paper.
It gives us knowledge of what we have to write about, so we can be relevant staying on task.
It tells us what we need to focus on in order to complete the task,
and which terms to use in the paper.
The key terms which do need to appear.
And there we've got some examples: cause, consequence, an important example of a program.
And the other things we need to do.
So citation system, inclusions or exclusions, things we shouldn't be putting in there.
Now, importantly there are set of direction words we use in academic writing.
There are some examples there.
Analyze, examine, argue, compare.
And they each have a function.
You need to know what to do with that direction word, because
that tells you what the academic marker expects you to do.
So if the the direction word is describe, you need to tell us about something.
If it says interpret, you to give us the implications or the deeper level, meaning.
If it's comparing, you'll be looking at two or three things and talking about how this
similar.
So in conclusion, analyze every question first.
Identify the key words and these key words need to appear in the response.
It tells you the key components, number of sections.
Now this drives your planning if you know the sections.
You know what to plan for. You know where to read.
And it gives you a topic focus. It tells you what you are writing about
and what you need to do with the direction you need to take with it.
So a big tip.
Look at the task brief together with the rubric.
These two documents are your roadmap.
For more tips and resources, search for Academic Skills Unimelb .
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