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Lastly this essay will discuss referencing and the format used in an academic essay. To begin with, what is an academic essay and what does one use it for? At university level one will be required to write many academic essays. Essays are written for many reasons, to explore, challenge, convince, entertain, etc. The academic essay is usually written to answer a question. It involves accurate research to inform the reader correctly. There is no foolproof method to produce a quality assignment. Every’ student will approach it differently; however, there are basic steps that have to be followed when writing an academic essay (Sessile, 1999).
When doing research e should have an understanding of what is required, attending lectures or classes will help with this (Aries, 2010:4). Research is a very important part to an essay. Without research we will not be able to give the reader a true depiction of information. Extensive research is fundamental to providing the reader with a wide range of knowledge. When doing research one should remember to use many different sources. Using techniques such as skimming, over viewing and scanning will help you to gain an overall understanding of the information being researched quickly.
The topic of your assignment should always be kept in mind. One should not go overboard, stick to the relevance of your topic when doing research. Always remember to take bibliographic details of the sources from where the information was sourced (Sessile, 1999). When looking for research be sure the source that is being used is creditable, especially when using the internet. Using a source such as Wisped is not safe; the information on that website is not all of the time accurate. If one is not sure about the information that has been obtained double check it. When planning ones essay there are many things to look at. A common failing in essays is the absence of any sense of overall unity and coherence. Teachers and lecturers frequently complain that, in writing their essays, students seem to write a paragraph and then pause to think, ‘now what can say next? ‘ , then another paragraph, another pause and so on. The points made in the essay seem to have been set down in random order, with little connection between them, and no sense of a coherently developing argument” (Viziers, 1 992: 14) (Aries, 2010:4). As we can see what Viziers is stating is that it is essential to plan, without planning one will end up with a mess.
Once the information has been gathered one has to structure it. Most academic essays follow three elements: introduction, body and conclusion (Sessile, 1999). The introduction should be a short paragraph introducing the topic on which the essay will be written about. It should show what aspects your essay will be focusing on. The introduction is important in grabbing the reader’s attention. The body follows the introduction. It will be made up of many paragraphs. Each paragraph will discuss a topic in detail. The order of the paragraphs should be logical.
One must use reliable evidence in your body helping to make the information as accurate as possible. Lastly you will have a conclusion. The conclusion will be a brief summary of the points you have discussed. The conclusion should not be long, only a short paragraph (Aries: 2010:5). When writing an academic essay there is a few things that can guide you. Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in text. Do not use a long word where a short one will be fine. If it is possible to cut out a word then cut it out. Never use the passive when you can use the active.
Don’t use scientific words or jargon when you can use plain English (Door, 2010). Do not use first errors referencing or second person referencing. An academic essay should always have a rough draft. The rough draught should be the first ideas that come to your head. It is okay if it IS not well structured or the length requirement. Your final draft should be well edited; spell checked and be in the correct format. This is the draft that will be assessed (Crisis, 2008). Plagiarism means: “to copy someone else’s ideas, words, or work and pretend that they are your own” (Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, 201 0: 1 1 15).
Plagiarism is an extremely serious matter when it comes to writing an essay. Stealing someone else’s ideas is a crime and should not be taken lightly. Each idea used needs to be acknowledged with a footnote or in-text citation. If a direct quote is going to be used it must be enclosed in quotation marks. Ideas that have been gained from a source must be attributed to that source. All the sources that have been used must be listed in a source list or a bibliography. “The copyright act that is used in the academic field states: Never copy more than a reasonable portion of work, I. . Not more than 10% of a book or one article in a single periodical/journal. The act (98 of 1 978) tabulates that photocopying is permitted only if “not more than one copy of a reasonable portion of work is made, having regard to the totality and meaning of the work”. Students may make only one copy for private research or study purposes only (Potter, 2012:9). Failure to do so can result in a fine or imprisonment (Burger, 1992). The best way to avoid plagiarism is to reference correctly. Referencing is giving acknowledgement to the sources that you have used (Potter, 201 2:11).
In academic writing different referencing systems are used, each with their own style and rules. The Harvard method, PAP, Vancouver and footnotes are all used by different faculties. Why exactly should you reference? It shows that appropriate information has been consulted and that your ideas relate to those of the experts, this ads authority to your argument. Correct referencing will also enable the reader to locate and consult the information that has been used to verify your data (2003). In following these basic guidelines one should be able to right an academic essay of high standards.
Important things to remember is once all your research is gathered proper planning will ensure that your essay is well trucked and not a mess. Following the basic guidelines to the layout will give the reader good understanding of the text that is being read. Plagiarism is a crime and referencing should be done correctly to give credit where it is due and to avoid the implications of theft. With these ideas in mind ones essay will be a success. The Academic Essay: Final Draft will discuss all the things to know in regard to writing an academic essay.
Firstly this essay will discuss how to conduct research for an academic essay, and explain in detail what research should be considered. Secondly this essay ill also discuss the planning and drafting of an academic essay of which the exact format will be assessed. Thirdly this essay will also discuss plagiarism and how it should not be committed in any form of academic writing. Lastly this essay will discuss referencing and the format used in an academic essay. To begin with, what is an academic essay and what is it used for? At university level one will be required to write many academic essays.
Essays are written for many reasons, to explore, challenge, convince, entertain, etc. The academic essay is usually written to answer a question. It involves accurate research to inform the reader correctly. There is no foolproof method to produce a quality assignment. Every student will approach an essay differently; however, there are basic steps that have to be followed when writing an academic essay (Sessile, 1999). When doing research a basic understanding is required, attending lectures or classes will help with this (Aries, 2010:4). Research is a very important part to an essay.
Without research the essay will not be able to give the reader a true depiction of information. Extensive research is fundamental to providing the reader with a did range of knowledge. When doing research many different sources should be used. Using techniques such as skimming, over viewing and scanning Will help to gain an overall understanding of the information being researched. The topic of the assignment should always be kept in mind. Do not go overboard, stick to the relevance of the topic when doing research. Always remember to take bibliographic details of the sources from where the information was sourced (Sessile, 1999).
When looking for research make sure the source that is being used is creditable, especially when using the internet. Using a source such as Wisped is not safe; the information on that website is not accurate all Of the time. If not clear about the information that has been obtained it is better to double check it. When planning an essay there are many things to look at. “A common failing in essays is the absence of any sense of overall unity and coherence. Teachers and lecturers frequently complain that, in writing their essays, students seem to write a paragraph and then pause to think, ‘now what can I say next? , then another paragraph, another pause and so on. The points made in the essay seem to have been et down in random order, with little connection between them, and no sense of a coherently developing argument” (Viziers, 1992:14) (Aries, 2010:4). Once the information has been gathered it needs to be structured. Most academic essays follow three elements: introduction, body and conclusion (Sessile, 1999). The introduction should be a short paragraph introducing the topic on which the essay will be written about. It should show what aspects the essay will be focusing on. The introduction is important in grabbing the reader’s attention.
The body follows the introduction. It will be made up of many paragraphs. Each paragraph will discuss a topic in detail. The order of the paragraphs should be logical. Reliable evidence must be used in the body, helping to make the information as accurate as possible. Lastly there will be a conclusion. The conclusion will be a brief summary of the points that have been discussed. The conclusion should not be long, only a short paragraph (Aries: 2010:5). When writing an academic essay there is a few things that can guide a person. Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which one is used to seeing in text.
Do not use a long word where a short one will be fine. If it is possible to cut out a word then cut it out. Never use the passive when the active can be used. Don’t use scientific words or jargon when plain English can be used (Door, 2010). Do not use first person referencing or second person referencing. An academic essay should always have a rough draft. The rough draft should be the first ideas that come to mind. It is okay if it is not well structured or the length requirement. The final draft should be well edited; spell checked and in the correct format. This is the draft that will be assessed (Crisis, 2008).
Plagiarism means: “to copy someone else’s ideas, rods, or work and pretend that they are your own” (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 2010: 1 1 15). Plagiarism is an extremely serious matter when it comes to writing an essay. Stealing someone else’s ideas is a crime and should not be taken lightly. Each idea used needs to be acknowledged with a footnote or in-text citation. If a direct quote is going to be used it must be enclosed in quotation marks. Ideas that have been gained from a source must be attributed to that source. All the sources that have been used must be listed in a source list or a bibliography. The copyright act that is used in he academic field states: Never copy more than a reasonable portion of work, I. E. Not more than 10% of a book or one article in a single periodical/ journal. The act (98 of 1978) stipulates that photocopying is permitted only if ‘not more than one copy of a reasonable portion of work is made, having regard to the totality and meaning Of the work’. Students may make only one copy for private research or study purposes only’ (Potter, 201 29). Failure to do so can result in a fine or imprisonment (Burger, 1992). The best way to avoid plagiarism is to reference correctly.
Referencing is giving acknowledgement to the sources that has been used (Potter, 201 2:1 1 In academic writing different referencing systems are used, each with their own style and rules. The Harvard method, PAP, Vancouver and footnotes are all used by different faculties. Why exactly should one reference? It shows that appropriate information has been consulted and that the ideas relate to those of the experts, this ads authority to the argument. Correct referencing will also enable the reader to locate and consult the information that has been used to verify the data.