General Advice
Time Management Tips
1. Begin thinking about the task as soon as it is allocated by your teacher.
2. Writing an essay or assignment is not necessarily a linear process. Begin where you feel comfortable, but check back to ensure you have included all the required elements.
Understanding the Topic/Question:
Before you begin researching or writing, think about the specific topic you are dealing with. Remember, you are not being asked just to collect facts, but to show your understanding of the topic or question.
STEPS: A more detailed explanation of these steps is provided on the subsequent pages.
1. Breakdown the question. Identify the key terms, looking for the words that name the topic (content words), the words that isolate the aspects of the topic involved (limiters) and those words that give directions for dealing with it (task/action words). The task words, sometimes called command terms, indicate the kind of reasoning you should be using: why, how, analyse, compare, evaluate, argue, etc.
Ensure you understand the specific meanings of these terms before you begin.
2. Identify what the final product of the task/assignment needs to be. Has your teacher dictated the way you will present your findings or has he/she allowed you to choose the method of presentation? Are you required to work in a group or develop you own response to the task/question?
Whatever the task, your teacher will expect you to demonstrate an understanding of the language specific to that topic/subject (e.g. scientific terms) as well as the course concepts and ways of thinking?
3. Identify what you already know about the topic. If you know nothing, conduct preliminary research in reference works such as encyclopaedias, to improve your understanding of the topic.
If you know something, you need to ask yourself questions about the specific topic:
- What do you need to find out to answer the question and/or complete the task?
- What will you use as a point of comparison, if required, or what aspects of the topic require discussion or analysis etc?
- Can you answer the question using only secondary sources or is a combination of primary and secondary sources more appropriate?
- What type/format of information do you require (e.g. diagrams, maps, data, hypothetical or realistic examples etc.)
- How up-to-date does the information need to be? (i.e. recent if science or technology, could be older if historical) and
- What would be the best source of that information? (i.e. database, journal, encyclopaedia etc.)
4. Formulate a tentative thesis statement, if an essay of argument is required. A "thesis" is a statement of your own position on the controversy or interpretive question. This might change as you discover more about the topic but, at this stage, it will help to focus your research.
These steps will provide a good jumping off point to begin your research, even if you eventually choose another approach to the topic.
You can now begin gathering and analysing your specific research on the topic. (See Taking notes)