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Essay writing
Preparing for examinations
Marking guidelines
1. Essay writing :
Answer the Question :
Write the question at the beginning of your essay and in your introduction explain how you will go about answering the question. Clarify the meanings of key words in the question. Keep checking that every paragraph in your essay is relevant to the issue that you are trying to discuss. Your conclusion should normally refer back to the original question and draw attention to particular points you have made.
Write in Your Own Words :
"TAKE CARE TO ENCLOSE IN QUOTATION MARKS ALL CITATIONS FROM BOOKS YOU HAVE READ, THEREBY ACKNOWLEDGING THE SOURCE OF VIEWS OR COMMENTS OBVIOUSLY NOT YOUR OWN". It is easy to end up copying sentences and phrases from your notes into an essay without acknowledging the source. Sentences, paragraphs or more, lifted from other sources and not acknowledged, is PLAGIARISM (see definition in Departmental Requirements, § 8 and notes on essay submission form)
Presenting Arguments :
When you present arguments or a writer's opinion about something, you should acknowledge that you are taking over a point that someone else has made (see above). Do not just repeat it as if you had thought it for yourself. At the same time, eventually you do need to make it clear whether you agree or not. Avoid the use of expressions such as 'in my opinion'. It is better just to give your view. An expression such as 'X argues that... but this overlooks...' may be useful or you can also say 'I would argue that'. In other words such an expression makes it clear that you recognise that you are in a debate where your opinion is valid but not necessarily the only authoritative position. Remember that your own views, expressed in your own words, are especially valued but they must be informed and supported by convincing evidence.
Quotations should be indented if they are more than two lines, and put into quotation marks with a reference underneath or possibly in a footnote, for example,
'The main themes are the old themes: the political divisions introduced and perpetuated by the papacy; the folly of relying on mercenaries; the decay of civic morale and - topic given bitter emphasis - the fatal results of civic faction'(Hale,1965, p.162).
The full details of the book would then be given in the bibliography. Examples of two systems follow. Whatever you use, be consistent.
Example A :
N. Hewitt, Modern French Writers, Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 1981.
Rudolph, O., 'Über die verschiedenen Abstufungen der Darmstädter Mundart', Hessiche Blätter für Volkskunde 26, (1927), p. 46-58.
Example B :
Sciascia, L. 1989. La Sicilia come metafora, Milano: Oscar Mondadori.
Rudolph, O. 1927. 'Über die verschiedenen Abstufungen der Darmstädter Mundart', Hessiche Blätter für Volkskunde 26, p. 46-58.
Footnotes :
For a footnote put a number beside the quotation with the reference at the bottom of the page or at the end of the essay, e.g.
The conclusion of N. Hewitt would seem accurate. "Céline was more a man of politics than a man of sentiment".1
1 N. Hewitt, Modern French Writers, Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 1981, p. 123.
(With word-processing packages such as Word for Windows use Insert Footnote, write the footnote in the space offered, it will number footnotes automatically; then double- click on the number to go back to the main text.)
Bibliography :
Give author, title of article (in quotation marks), or book (in italics, or underlined if hand-written), title of journal (in italics, or underlined if hand-written) and number, place of publication (of book), publisher and date. For examples, see above under Quotations and consult bibliographies in various works.
Spelling and Punctuation :
Re-read your essay with a view to checking for spelling mistakes. Get to know the words you cannot spell or often get wrong. Use a dictionary for difficult words. (Learn to word-process: nearly all systems nowadays will offer you a spell-checker.)
DO NOT PUT COMMAS, SEMI-COLONS, COLONS OR FULL STOPS AT THE BEGINNING OF A LINE. Learn to distinguish between semi-colons and colons.
Marking :
The normal marking range used in the Department is from 15% to 85%. Most students will obtain essay marks between 50% and 85%
70 plus - first class
60-69 - upper second
50-59 - lower second
40-49 - third class
2. Preparing for examinations :
Revision :
1. Organise your notes :
If you do not already have notes for lectures you may have missed, you should obtain photocopies from a friend or friends. Make sure, at least, that you have copies of all lecture handouts. It is probably not easy to retrieve all the work you have missed but try to have some idea of the material covered in order to gain an overview of the whole course. Remember - it is your responsibility not only to have the text books required for a module but to be informed fully about assignments to be handed in, any material, notes, handouts you may have missed.
2. Aims, general themes and overview :
Look carefully at the course outline. Consider the aims and themes of the course and think about the way that different lectures fit into these or pick up aspects of them. Use a general book to help you consolidate this overview and then consult more specific books on topics you have chosen to study in more detail.
3. Past papers
Look at past questions but remember that past papers may not be based on exactly the same course material that you are studying. So, before you panic, try out some notes for particular questions and see how much you know.
4. Read around and write condensed notes :
Pick particular lectures or particular aspects to study carefully. Write condensed notes on topics you are studying in depth and make sure you build on your lecture/seminar notes with additional reading. You always need to know more than you put down in order to be able to manipulate information and ideas effectively.
5. Be selective but do not assume you can 'spot' questions :
You will not be able to study all the material available on a given course; you will find that the more you study the more you realise how little you know. Of course you may be lucky to 'spot' possible topics and questions but always be careful to cover enough of the course to be able to merge material in different ways. Questions may quite often combine material from different lectures but questions always relate to material that has been covered in the course.
In the Examination :
1. Answering the question :
The single most common mistake in examinations is not to answer the question properly. It is probably worth writing it out at the top of your answer just to help it sink into your brain. Pick out the key words in the question and make sure you think about what they imply. Consider how the question fits into the issues addressed in the course (not just the facts) as there will nearly always be a link.
2. Timing
Timing is vital in examinations. You need to set aside time for planning. Avoid spending too long on the first question and therefore running out of time; you can rarely do so well on one question that it will make up for not finishing the paper. If you feel very unsure of writing exam questions in the time allowed try out a whole essay.
3. Reading carefully :
Read through the paper carefully and choose the questions you think you want to tackle. It may be worth writing notes and plans for all the questions before you start the essays. But do not make the notes too long. It is worth having a place where you can add points to your notes as they come into your head - even whilst you are writing other questions. It may help you to start writing quite quickly to build your confidence and then plan out the other(s) before you start writing up in essay form.
For language papers, make sure you read through and understand the passage, not only what it says but the situation /circumstances/ background. Think of paraphrases in your own language for difficult words/expressions. Make sure that the register ( i.e. the degree of formality) of your translation corresponds to the register of the original. Check carefully grammatical details in the target language: agreements, verb endings, etc. Many candidates leave language examinations early, when time could often be profitably used to eliminate basic errors.
4. Answer all questions :
Always answer the number of questions asked. If you run out of time write notes for the last question. A good set of notes can gain you quite a reasonable mark and is much better than an introductory paragraph beautifully written.
5. Writing effectively :
Avoid questions if you are not sure whether you understand them; you may find that there is such a question on just the material you would like to write about, so try your best to explain your approach, even your difficulty with interpretation. It is always useful to state how you are going to interpret the question or tackle the answer and then do it. Always try to have a concluding paragraph that pulls ideas together at the end. Read again the question and sum up how your essay responds to the issues raised by it.
In an examination, time is too short to indulge in providing irrelevant material. It is usually better to offer a detailed analysis of the issues than long description/accounts especially if they are not pulled into the discussion effectively. ALWAYS show the relevance of your material to the question.
Study skills - Further Reading - There are a number of publications on study skills and these will always include a discussion of examinations. You may find them useful, e.g. Andrew Nortbedge The Good Study Guide, Open University, 1991
3. Marking Guidelines :
Marking Scales and Classifications :
All marked work will normally be returned to you with a numerical mark, usually in the form of a percentage. Non-percentage marks (e.g. marks out of 10 or 20) can be arithmetically converted to percentages and the following observations will still apply.
Marking of assessed work and examination papers alike is intended firstly to place work in a bracket corresponding to a degree class, and secondly to define its position within the class allocated. This system is used at all levels and irrespective of whether the work is Honours work or not. Naturally, what is deemed ‘first class’ or ‘third class’ (etc.) in the final year of a degree course will be qualitatively superior to work awarded the same mark at Part 1. Classes and percentages are matched as follows:
First class: - 70% and above
Upper second (II.1 or IIA) - 60%-69%
Lower second (II.2 or IIB) - 50%-59%
Third class - 40%-49%
Pass degree - 35%-39%
Fail - 34% and below
Inevitably, exactly what an examiner is looking for will vary from subject to subject, but work falling into a particular class will normally display some or all of the following characteristics. This list is not meant to be a prescriptive marking guide, but an outline of the type of criteria used in assessment.
First class: clear, organized, articulate exposition, with outstanding grasp of the material; significant evidence of independent reading, and some evidence of original ideas; fluent, sophisticated writing, well proof-read, well-presented, showing complete familiarity with layout conventions; in language work, consistent precision and grammatical accuracy (no major flaws or faults); wide range of structures and vocabulary; reads (or sounds) like authentic (i.e., native) language; in oral work, accurate pronunciation approaching native-speaker competence; good and varied use of idiom; use of appropriate register and capacity to vary register.
Upper second: clear, organized, exposition, with good grasp of the material; signs of original reading; evidence of having thoroughly understood and digested the material to the point of being able to redeploy, extrapolate from, and develop it; clearly written, carefully proof-read, reasonably well-presented, but layout conventions not always consistently or correctly followed; in language work, consistent grammatical accuracy (not too many major flaws or faults); good range of structures and vocabulary; reads well (or sounds acceptable) without undue clumsiness or (where applicable) interference from the source language; in oral work, accurate pronunciation with reliable phonological distinctions; good use of idiom; use of appropriate register and some capacity to vary register.
Lower second: organized exposition, reasonable grasp of the material, evidence of having understood the material, clearly written with reasonable spelling, acceptably presented, but needs more familiarisation with layout conventions; in language work, acceptable level of grammatical accuracy (though probably with major flaws and faults); ability to use structures and vocabulary to convey what is meant, although probably with some clumsiness or (where applicable) interference from the source language; in oral work, acceptable pronunciation, regularly observing major phonological distinctions; ability to use idiom; use of appropriate register.
Third class: comprehensible exposition; very basic grasp of the material; some evidence of having understood the material at a fairly elementary level, perhaps with evidence of misunderstandings; lack of clarity in the writing, poor spelling and proof-reading, some serious gaps in familiarity with layout conventions; in language work, rudimentary level of basic grammatical accuracy (with numerous major flaws and faults); limited ability to use structures and vocabulary to convey what is meant, although with systematic interference from the source language; in oral work, pronunciation comprehensible to a tolerant native, although often with major phonological distinctions neglected; adequate vocabulary; some limited ability to use idiom; ability to communicate at a basic level; failure to use appropriate register.
Fail: work not achieving the standards required for a Pass degree.
Allowances may be made, especially in examinations, for people who are known to be dyslexic. The problem should be less acute if work is word-processed, and essays should be, whenever possible.
Within these classifications, there are of course gradations. Thus (for example) a mark of 52% indicates a low (but secure) lower second class performance, whereas a mark of 58% indicates a high lower second but still firmly within that degree class. The normal marking range used in the Department is from 15% to 85%. Only exceptionally good first-class work will be awarded marks in the higher 70s and beyond; only exceptionally bad (or more often, missing) work will fall below 15%.
Whilst there is no such thing as an ‘average’ mark, the ‘average’ degree is probably a lower second by a narrow margin, and the vast majority of students (at least three-quarters) can expect to graduate with a second-class degree of some sort. First-class marks are rare; first-class degrees, because of the need for consistently first-class performance, even more so. Consistent marks of 60+, or marks which produce an average of above 60%, are indicative of very good progress.
And finally ... in most if not all cases, students who fall below the level required for a lower second do so because of poor attendance, lack of assessed work (and thus loss of marks: assessed work counts for 30%-40% of the marks for all written modules), and lack of work, not because of lack of ability.
For information on reference works on study skills follow this link.
English grammar.
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