How to write a good assignment

Structure of an assignment
Introduction: What is the essay about? What is its
question? How is it structured?
Main body: methods of data collection, data
analysis, interpretation/discussion or discussion of
relevant literature
Conclusion: summary, answer to essay question,
open questions
 Introduction
A “roadmap” to the assignment

- Clearly should mention what the essay is about

- Explain the question and outline the scope
(what the essay will cover)
- Define any key terms.
- Be sure to point out the main areas that will
follow in the main body of the assignment. For
example, in the last paragraph of your
introduction state: In this assignment, I will
discuss five factors.....
Always remember

A good introduction will give the reader a clear indication of

what the piece will contain (i.e. what will follow in the main
body and conclusion). An well-written introduction will
make the reader want to read on.
 Body of the assignment
(Usually 7 Pages)

• The body of an assignment normally consists of sections which

are organized as sub heading. When you change topic/section start
a new sub-heading too.
• Make sure you include adequate points/factors/concepts depends
on topic given.
• Always include your own evaluation and explanation. Also
provide more examples to show your in depth understanding about
the topic.
• Make sure your contents are written in a good paragraph
structure, smooth sentences structure and has flow. Also careful
with your grammar.
 Main body: data analysis
• Introduce your data: Where did you get them? How do
they help you answer the question?

• Analyse your data: What in particular do you look at and

why? What do the data show you with regard to the
question? How can you link results to the literature? You
can related by following the linkers:
“If we look at…we can see that…”
“The data clearly show that…”
“With regard to… it is evident that…”
 Main body: literature review
• Introduce your sources: What are they? How do
they help you answer the question?

• Discuss your sources: What points are made? How

do they relate to each other? Where do you differ
or agree? You can use as follow:
“Author A claims/states/reports/suggests that…”
“Author B further develops/opposes/critiques the
view that…”
 Conclusion

•Summarize your main points.

•Give your own comments.
•Use your conclusion to check your answer to the
question. A conclusion can be a good way to check
your assignment. If you have summarized your main
points, and these come together to fully address the
question, then you should have a good assignment!
 References list

• After your conclusion, list all sources in one

section

• Referencing style depends, follow any one of them

but keep it same throughout the writing.
 Essay style

 Be relevant
All material should be relevant to the question – irrelevant
material will be ignored.

 Be logical
Watch out for logical gaps − do the facts you‟re citing
really back up the point you‟re making?
 Essay style

• Be clear and concise

– Avoid long, wordy sentences: don‟t ramble!
– Don‟t use ten words when two will do
– Don‟t use a “bookish” word when an everyday
word will do
• E.g. “parsimonious” instead of “scarce”
• Exception: technical linguistics terminology (e.g.
“adjacency pair”, “morpheme”)
 Be clear and concise

• Two short sentences are better than one long sentence

• “Prescriptive grammarians have claimed that

Standard English is the best form of English and
regional dialects should be avoided, but descriptive
grammarians don‟t believe this, and instead they
believe that all different varieties of English have
equal value and so from this point of view there is no
„best‟ dialect of English.”
Good luck with your writings