Essays A Guide

Essays  Extended piece of writing on a single theme  Is in the form of continuous text  In the form of introduction, main section, conclusion  Often used to develop an argument

Types of Scientific Writing  Factual account of accepted knowledge  Textbooks, many student essays  Reporting what has been found  Lab reports, research papers  Arguing a point of view  interpreting data  making a case

Guidelines essay questions  Read the given title or tasks carefully  Be sure you are clear what is being asked  Organise your information  Produce an outline plan  Write your essay

Look at the title  The words used in the title give a clue to what is needed  A factual account will contain words like describe, explain, illustrate in the title.  An essay want a case making will contain words like discuss, evaluate, analyse.  Sometimes comparisons are wanted; e.g. compare, contrast, distinguish.

Planning  A plan is an outline of your answer  It should show the shape of your answer without giving detail  It can be in the form of headings and sub headings or as a diagram

Sample plan 1  Title  Introduction  Main argument  evidence for  evidence against  evaluation of evidence  Other issues  Conclusion

Sample plan 2

Writing your Essay  Once you have your plan,  Write the essay  When you have finished, read it through  Make any changes you think necessary  You have about 45 min for each essay  Allow about 5 – 10 min. each for planning and reviewing at the end.