Tutor Notes: UWE HE ESSAY PREPARATION AND PLANNING

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1 : UWE HE ESSAY PREPARATION AND PLANNING AIMS OF WORKSHOP: Student Handout (A) To identify and explore different learning styles To explore and try out some strategies for essay planning Pre session Preparation Activity Learning styles questionnaire: What kind of learner are you? Students can prepare for the Essay Preparation and Planning session by completing an up to date assessment of their preferred learning style(s). There are many different learning style resources online for example VARK Questionnaire at WORKSHOP SESSION 1: 45 minutes HE ESSAY PREPARATION AND PLANNING SESSION Power point presentation; HEADING HIGHER PASSPORT PLUS HE STUDY SKILLS INTRODUCTION Slide 3 Writing for academic purposes what s expected? Who is the audience? What format is required essay or report or reflection on experience? Academic styles of writing writing in a logical and `objective way vs writing from personal experience Academic conventions plagiarism You may wish to draw on student s own experiences of writing essays/assignments at Level 3 to illustrate the bullet points above. What type of audiences have they had to write for in their school/college career so far? Which school subjects require essays, factual reports, creative writing, examples of writing from personal experience (CV, job application, UCAS application) What is plagiarism?

2 LEARNING STYLES Slide 4 5, Student Handout (B) Visual, Auditory, Kinaesthetic Which degree subjects involve learning through Visual/ Auditory/ Kinaesthetic styles? Are there any subject s that at some point will involve all (VAK)? Summary an individual may be very strongly biased to learning and communicating in only one style (eg Visual, however, successful HE learners are flexible and adapt or develop to learn and communicate using all styles. TIPS FOR ORGANISING YOURSELF Slide 6 Plan ahead estimate time required and schedule in working time Find and read source materials/carry out research well in advance Begin to read and make notes Talk to tutors if in doubt about anything (but read assignment guidelines carefully first!) Make a plan PLANNING YOUR ESSAY Read and interpret the question: process words Slide 7 10, Student Handout (C) Questions/ clarification of definitions? Any terms that are new to them? What other examples of process words are students aware of? Summary - Essay preparation work out specifically what it is that the assignment title requires Find an approach which suits you Slide Wordstorming Spider diagrams Concept maps/mind maps Example: Is intelligence innate or learned? Wordstorm: nature/nurture biology genes hormones culture social class

3 education spatial skills emotional intelligence verbal skills logical reasoning Spider diagram: Slide 12 Concept map: Slide 13 You will have other examples. There are also further examples of VARK based learning strategies in VARK Helpsheets ACTIVITY 1 (In pairs or small groups) Slide The advantages of going to university at 18 outweigh the disadvantages. Discuss. What are the process words? What are the key words or concepts, arguments you want to get across? What do you think are the advantages of going to university at 18? What do you think are the disadvantages of going to university at 18? What evidence do you have to support your argument? Try using a wordstorm or spidergram or mindmap to help you organise your thoughts. Summary - this is the beginning of planning an essay on the topic ACTIVITY 2 Slide 17 In pairs organise key words and ideas into an essay plan Summary example essay plan Slide 18 PLENARY DISCUSSION Beginning Introduction Middle Process words End - Conclusion

4 WORKSHOP SESSION 2: 45 minutes HE ESSAY PREPARATION AND PLANNING SESSION Power point presentation; HEADING HIGHER PASSPORT PLUS HE STUDY SKILLS Slides This activity follows on from HE Preparation and Planning Session 1 Students will need; HANDOUT (D) UWE First Year HE Essay/Assignment titles HANDOUT (C) Process Words List Highlighter pen Using Handouts (D) & (C) Students compare essay/assignments from the whole list. Encourage them to draw out similarities across the different subjects e.g. pick out process words, specific instructions, etc. Also to consider if there are any specific differences between subject disciplines in the expectations made of students to meet the requirements of the assignment. Which type of assignment do they feel more confident/less confident to tackle? How long do they think it would take to complete this type of assignment? NB. University staff will not chase students! Additional activity: create a time line of what to do when to meet an assignment deadline What other tasks are involved in completing an assignment (reading, research, lectures, practical lab/studio, tutorials, etc.)? Some assignments in HE will be group based individuals will be graded on the performance of the group as a whole. So team work skills are needed for effective planning, preparation and completion of an assignment.

5 ACTIVITY 3 Slide 20 In small groups students choose ONE essay title from the list N.B. If students choose the Healthcare Reflective Practice Essay, please follow the instructions on the Handout for this activity ie. they should reflect on a recent, active learning, experience. For example a trip, enterprise activity, practical, or part-time job Students may need the difference between formative and summative assessment to be explained. UWE explanation for students; Formative Assessment The essence of formative assessment is that undertaking the assessment constitutes a learning experience in its own right. Writing an essay or undertaking a class presentation, for example, can be valuable formative activities as a means of enhancing substantive knowledge as well as for developing research, communication, intellectual and organisational skills. Formative assessment is not often included in the formal grading of work, and indeed many believe that it should not be. Summative Assessment In contrast, summative assessment is not traditionally regarded as having any intrinsic learning value. It is usually undertaken at the end of a period of learning in order to generate a grade that reflects the student's performance. The traditional unseen end of module examination is often presented as a typical form of summative assessment. For DfE definition; Assessment-monitoring-and-evaluation/All/m08p005b.html#