Writing an Academic Essay

What is an academic essay? ‘The…academic essay aims to persuade readers of an idea based on evidence.’ (University of Harvard, 1999). Academic essay writing is an essential part of your nurse training. It will help you learn to:

• answer a question or a task whilst exploring a variety of topics and ideas

• present your ideas in a logical sequence, linked together with reasoning and evidence

• learn how to use credible and reliable resources to evaluate evidence.

Getting Started An academic essay generally follows a

standard structure and logical sequence.

However, essay writing is generally not a

linear process that begins when you write the

first word of your introduction and ends with

the last full stop of your conclusion.

Academic essay writing often benefits from a layered approach – you will need to work through

the steps a number of times and in a varying order before you end up with a finished piece of

work. For example, it may be easier to complete your introduction after you have drafted the

main body and have developed a clear idea of the direction that your essay will take.

The following guidelines work through an essay structure as it might appear in the final draft.

You do not necessarily need to tackle them in this order – it might actually help you if you

don’t!

Planning 1. Start early A good essay is like a fine wine – it takes a long time and several different steps before you

have a quality product. You need time to formulate your ideas, and even more time to let them

develop and mature; this process absolutely cannot be rushed at 2am on the day of the

deadline!

Staffordshire University has produced an

excellent resource to help you to plan your

essay. Click on the link below, type in

today’s date and the assignment deadline

and details for a ready-made planning

schedule.

Staffordshire University Assignment Survival Kit

Please note: we stand by the disclaimer that the resource is advisory only – completing your

work on time is your responsibility!

2. Define the question and evaluate the task

Before you can start your assignment, you need to identify what you have been asked to do.

In your first year of study, your tutors will probably give you detailed guidance in the form of

a writing frame. It may include a suggested structure and a recommended word count for

each section. If they are very kind, you may also be given sub-headings and a couple of

clues about how to tackle each part of the assignment. However, it helps to have a good

understanding of the key words that your topic questions are likely to contain. Generally

speaking, these include:

• Task Words tell you what you have to do; what task you need to perform

Examples may include: discuss, analyse, evaluate, compare and

contrast, state, describe or explain.

• Content Words define the essay topic area. These words will help to focus your

reading and research to the relevant area.

Examples may include consent, social influences, assessment,

care, reflection.

• Limiting Words define the topic area further, guiding you to specific areas within

the broader topic.

Examples may include: significant impact, population group,

specific identify, specific condition, particular incident,

psychological effects.

3. Draw up your first essay plan

At this level of study, it is not enough to simply write down everything you know about the

topic. You need to draw up an initial essay plan.

Your plan may take the form of a writing frame, in which you outline a draft structure and key

ideas, or you may prefer to use a mind map.

Either way, your

initial plan will be

based on what you

already know about

a topic, along with

potential questions,

directions for further

research and ideas

for the

information/evidence that you need to find.

As you begin to draft your essay, your plan will probably change. Don’t panic! This is a sign

of good drafting, not poor planning!

Literature Review

A key feature of academic writing is frequent reference to the work of other writers and

researchers. You need to do plenty of reading around your topic and learn how to use

reliable resources. These will provide the knowledge and evidence that you need to develop

your argument fully.

1. Start early

Start your literature search in plenty of time to familiarise yourself with the assignment topic.

You need to acquire relevant knowledge and take time to develop a coherent response to

new information. From there, you can begin to develop your ideas, evaluate your resources

and work out the direction that your essay is going to take.

If you are given a reading list as part of your module guide, try to read as many of the

suggested items as possible. Use the library and online resources to find an even wider

range of relevant material.

2. Develop ‘active reading’ strategies

Active reading simply means

reading to understand. It is

possible to read and re-read the

same page or paragraph and still

know nothing more than when you

started. This is called ‘passive

reading’ and it will not help you at

this level! Some good ‘active

reading’ strategies are:

• Highlight relevant passages – quotes, statistics, case studies or references to further

books or articles. You will need to use plenty of these in a full evaluation of the

evidence relating to your topic, so choose wisely!

• Make notes of what you have read – do this with the topic clearly in mind. Refer back

to the key words in the topic to help you decide if a passage is solid evidence, or

perhaps a basis for further reflection.

• Question the text as you read – is it directly relevant to the topic? Can I use it as

supporting evidence for my argument? Can I reflect on it, draw conclusions or make

further recommendations?

• Test your understanding by explaining what you have read to someone else, and ask

them to summarise what you have said.

• One very useful active reading strategy is known as SQ3R. The following extract from

the Open University’s Active Reading site explains the SQ3R technique:

SQ3R

(Open University, 2013)

Planning It Out Again

Once you have done some good research and developed your ideas, it is time to take a

second look at your essay plan. Ask yourself:

• Do I have sufficient evidence from reliable sources for a thorough evaluation?

• Do I want to adjust the scope or pitch of my argument based on my reading?

• What is a logical and persuasive order in which to present my points?

• Is all my literature relevant – is it worth ditching some of it at this stage?

1. SKIM through the text quickly to get an overall impression.

2. QUESTION. If you are reading it for a particular purpose (for example, to

answer an assignment), ask yourself how it helps. Also ask questions of the

text: Who? What? Where? When? How?

3. READ. Read the text in a focused, and fairly speedy way.

4. REMEMBER. Test your memory - but don't worry if you can't remember

much.

5. REVIEW. Read the text in more detail, taking notes. Use your own words.

Drafting & Structure

Your first draft is a ‘work in progress’ – it will definitely need further work to bring it to the

required standard. It brings together your essay plan by helping you to structure your

evaluations, to decide which examples and evidence are appropriate to support your

conclusions, and which can be discarded at this stage.

Essay paragraphs also have a recommended internal structure:

1. Topic Sentence states the main idea

2. Supporting Sentences explains and develop your point

3. Evidence properly cited evidence from your literature search

4. Analysis your own comment/interpretation of the evidence

Alternatively, the PEEE format is an easy way to remember paragraph structure:

1. Point states the main idea

2. Explain explains and develop your point

3. Evidence properly cited evidence from your research

4. Evaluation your own comment/interpretation of the evidence

The diagram on the next page outlines a standard essay structure from introduction to

conclusion. There are many examples available on the internet and in textbooks, but the

following - from the University of New South Wales Learning Centre – is one of the best.

(University of New South Wales, 2013)

Editing

Hopefully, you have left enough time to put the essay to one side for a few days before

returning to edit it. It is always helpful to give yourself a break – it allows your ideas to

develop further, which in turn, will allow you to bring a fresh perspective to your essay.

Always edit your first draft as a print out on paper. It seems to be easier to spot errors this

way. Look out for errors in spelling, punctuation, grammar, sequencing, referencing and

logic. Be especially careful of areas where you have spliced sentences or paragraphs

together – it is very easy to add or omit words – a simple ‘not’ can alter the meaning of your

entire argument!

Things to check at this stage:

• Is my essay logical and persuasive?

• Have I included enough evidence to support my argument?

• Do I have a clear structure, with effective transition signals between the introduction,

main body and conclusion?

• Have I answered all the points raised by the essay question?

• Have I cited and referenced all my research

resources in accordance with the SHHS

guidelines?

• Have I remained within the word limit, and

followed any recommended word counts in

the essay guidance?

If you have answered ‘no’ to any of the above, now

is the time to address them!

Remember to stay calm at this stage; the ability to

find fault with your first drafts is an essential part of

your development as an independent learner and

academic writer. It does not mean that your first

draft was no good, or that your essay is a disaster!

This document in the process of following its own

rules! Zoom in to see the detail.

Referencing

The School of Health and Human Sciences has produced a

clear and comprehensive guide to referencing that you will

need to follow for all your assignments. The link is provided

below:

http://www.essex.ac.uk/hhs/current/files/referencing_guidelines.pdf

This resource can also be found as an e-book on the Literacy

Moodle page.

Proofreading

It is vital to proofread your final draft

before submission. You may decide to

return to the editing stage and make

further changes before completing a final

version. Things to check at this stage

include:

• Spelling • Grammar • Punctuation

• Structure • Sequencing • Logic

• Sense and Meaning • Referencing • Presentation

Useful proofreading strategies include:

• Reading your work aloud – this feels strange at first, but it really does work

• Asking a friend or family member to proof-read it for you. Non-subject specialists can

be surprisingly good at questioning jargon, terminology or specific statements that

they don’t understand, as long as you have asked them to do just that!

Checklist for Submission

Have you:

� Evaluated the question and identified the key words?

� Read a wide range of literature around your topic?

� Used credible and reliable academic sources?

� Evaluated the evidence and established your arguments and conclusion?

� Written and revised your essay plan?

� Written your first draft and allowed to rest for a few days before returning to redraft?

� Quoted, paraphrased and/or summarised your sources correctly, without plagiarism?

� Proofread your essay?

� Asked a friend/family member to proofread your essay?

� Made any final amendments?

� Followed all word count, structure, referencing and presentation guidelines?

� Completed and checked your citations, references and bibliography?

� Created a reliable electronic back up of your work?

� Established the hand in date and time and ensured that you will meet the deadline?

When you can answer yes to all of the above, you are ready to submit your essay.

Good luck!

References Harvard University Faculty of Arts & Sciences (1999) Beginning the Academic Essay at: http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~wricntr/documents/Begin.html [Accessed on: 30 July 2013] Open University (2013) Active Reading at: http://www2.open.ac.uk/students/skillsforstudy/active-reading.php [Accessed on: 30 July 2013] University of New South Wales (2013) Essay Structure at: https://student.unsw.edu.au/writing-your-essay [Accessed on 1 August 2013] Staffordshire University (2013) ASK – Assignment Survival Kit at: http://www.staffs.ac.uk/ask/ [Accessed 1 August 2013]