How to Write an Academic Essay

Опубликовал Admin
20-10-2016, 01:35
6 405
0
This is an overview on how to construct an academic essay for any subject matter.

Understanding the essay question

  1. Understand the question asked of you. This is a crucial step; you must go through the question over and over until you grasp thoroughly what the question requires of you when answering. If you don't understand a certain word, look it up in a dictionary or online; or, use contextual clues.
    • If you're stuck, consult your instructor and ask what he or she wants you to answer. However, on opinion questions, your lecturer or teacher most likely won't provide an answer.
  2. Examine the topic for your essay. This is easier if you are assigned a topic with a specific text. If it is an open ended essay, choose a topic you know you can find plenty of legitimate resources for research.

Preparing for writing the essay

  1. Research the topic. Do this in the library or on the internet––or using both means. Find relevant information that will bolster the content of your essay.
    • It can help to write the information you find on large index cards, to help you to stay organized.
  2. Write an outline. An outline is an organized list of points you wish to make in your essay, in the order they make sense and should be written. Getting your thoughts organized before hand makes writing the actual essay much quicker and easier, since you know what direction you're going in.
    • Do not skip this step. Although this seems to be like a painstaking process, if you don't write an outline, you will have a lot more work in your essay owing to disorganized information. Use index cards and find similar information. Pair this information together in the same paragraph. Do not write the information on the outline. Number your index cards so that you can look at the information when you write the essay.
  3. Read your rubric or question to help you figure out how many paragraphs the essay must contain, or how many pages it must be. You can also go back to your instructor.

Writing the essay

  1. Write your thesis. A thesis in an academic essay is usually written at the end of the introduction. It is the statement you intend to prove with the rest of the essay. For example, you can use a certain action by a literary character as ground that he or she is insane, and expand upon it.
  2. Write the first draft of the essay. This will not be the final product, so you should not treat it as such. Write what first comes to mind following your outline, it is okay if it doesn't meet the length requirements quite yet.
    • Try to put in all the punctuation, capitalize beginning letters and proper nouns, and follow your outline.
  3. Divide your thoughts into paragraphs. Each point on your outline should be its own paragraph. A paragraph should contain a minimum of three sentences to stand on its own.
  4. Try to follow a pattern of 'Claim' followed by 'Evidence'. Then follow it with 'Impact'.
    • The claim is a statement, which is then supported by the evidence such as a reference or a quotation in context.
    • The impact is an intelligent review of how or why that claim is important in the context of the essay. The 'impact' then becomes the claim of the following paragraph, and so on.
  5. Write the second draft. Beef up any paragraphs that don't provide much information or argument. Additional research may help you in this process.
  6. Use transitional phrases. A transitional phrase eases the reader from one paragraph to the next. If your outline was written well, these phrases should link the content in one paragraph to the next.
  7. Edit the draft. After you've written the second draft, edit it. Start in general: fix spelling, capitalize beginning letters, add periods, etc. If you are experienced with grammar, you can start sentence by sentence.
    • Eliminate rhetorical questions, or passive verbs such as was, were, is, etc, and make passive sentences active ones.

Finalizing the essay

  1. Write your final draft. Be sure this is in the correct format (many teachers and professors require you to use MLA format but ask first, assume nothing). Use both the computer's spell-check, and read it over yourself as well. If you are unsure of your spelling or grammar, have a friend, classmate or family member read it before you print the copy you plan on handing in.

Sample Essays

Tips

  • Do not mess with the font and/or margins to make your paper look longer. Most teachers and professors will actually deduct points for attempts to make the paper look longer. Just stick to the defaults, in fact, strangely, smaller text looks more substantial than larger text.
  • Take a break! You may think of something genius to write while raiding the fridge or taking your dog for a walk.
  • If you find yourself using the same words over and over again, use a thesaurus. If you don't own a physical one, there are plenty online. In fact, your word processing program likely has a thesaurus built in. Just ensure that you know how to use the synonym that you choose well before inserting it into your text.
  • Use proper English. For example, 2 is not a word; it is a symbol denoting a quantity of two. Never use text or colloquial language, this is not an email or text to your friends; it is an academic paper.
  • Manage your time. Unless you are good at writing quick papers under stress, give yourself plenty of uninterrupted time to complete your assignment.
  • Don't make your essay a research report. A common mistake of many students, but you will frustrate your teacher or lecturer to no end.
  • A paragraph is not just three sentences. Paragraphs should be at least six sentences, but don't make your paragraphs too long.

Warnings

  • Stick to the paragraph, page or word limit or you will likely be penalized.
  • There are various search engines and applications that allow teachers and professors to input your paper in and search to see where you got your information from. This can result in failure, withdrawal from the course, and even suspension or expulsion. If you are unsure about something you have written being your own words or idea, just cite it from your research materials. Citations will save you.
  • Do not plagiarize. Your readers expect the writing to be your own, with your ideas and your words. If you use the words or ideas of others and don't indicate where they came from, you're misleading your readers. It's dishonest, a form of cheating, and it's usually easy to see.
Теги:
Information
Users of Guests are not allowed to comment this publication.