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The Academic Essay
A clear understanding of what you are expected to do is crucial to writing a quality assessment item. Make sure you understand what issue/problem has to be addressed. Analyse the wording of the question carefully to gain an understanding of what is being asked. There are three aspects of the question to consider:
Be mindful of exactly what process is required. Following is a table of commonly used directions:
| account for | explain (reason) |
| analyse | examine closely, examine in parts, show how the parts contribute to the whole |
| argue | present a case for and/or against |
| assess | decide the value of, judge, measure the importance of |
| compare | discuss two or more things in terms of their similarities and differences |
| critically evaluate | weigh arguments for and against something, assessing all evidence. Decide which opinions, theories, models or items are preferable. |
| define | explain, give full meaning(s), make clear what is meant by, use definition/s to explore the concept of |
| describe | give a detailed account of the features of something without interpreting the information |
| discuss | present and give a judgement on the value of arguments for and against, consider all angles |
| distinguish | bring out the differences between two possibly confusable items |
| enumerate | an item-by-item account, such as all the steps in a process |
| evaluate | judge, criticise in terms of impact/significance, and investigate the implications |
| examine | make clear the details/meaning of, look in particular at reasons causes and effects, account for, give reasons, justify |
| explore | describe in detail, and note impact |
| illustrate | use examples to show a concept |
| indicate | focus on specific areas (similar to illustrate) |
| interpret | make clear the meaning of, consider implications |
| narrate | concentrate on saying what happened, telling a story |
| outline | describe main features, a broad but thorough account, identify briefly the main features of |
| prove | show by logical argument |
| relate | show similarities and connections between two or more things |
| review | describe chief features, criticise generally (important parts) |
| to what extent | consider how far something is true or not true, consider how far something contributes to a final outcome |
| trace | identify and describe the development or history of |
| what is | describe |
Adapted from:
Cottrell, S 1999, The study skills handbook, MacMillan Press, London.
Marshall, L & Rowland, F 1993, A guide to learning independently, Longman Cheshire, Melbourne.
Open Learning Network 1992, Writing and reading in tertiary education: study guide, Author, Brisbane.
These words indicate the areas on which the essay will focus. Use these key content words to guide your research.
Delimiting words
Be mindful of words that limit:
An example of analysing a model question follows.
| Analysis of a model topic | ||
| Question: Discuss the impact of tertiary study on mature aged students. | ||
| Operational word: | discuss | |
| Content words: | impact of tertiary study/mature aged students | |
| Delimiting words: | tertiary studies/mature aged students | |
NOTE: In tertiary studies, sometimes questions are posed to test your ability to interpret the set question and develop your own topic. This involves narrowing the topic to make it more specific and manageable. After checking with your lecturer that you can narrow the topic, make sure you make your interpretation of the question explicit in your introduction. In a case such as this, a sentence of intent will be required. In this sentence you must address how you have limited your topic.
Click on the following links for information about the Stages of the Essay:
CQUniversity CRICOS Provider Codes: QLD-00219C; NSW-01315F; VIC-01624D
