POM Writing for assignments

Hello,

Students often lose marks in an assignment because the assignment question is answered incorrectly or due to poor referencing and presentation. The following list contains some suggestions to help you avoid some of the common mistakes made by students when writing assignments. For a full description of the assessment requirements you should refer to the Unit Specification Booklet (USB), the Referencing Requirements for Assessments document, and the toolbox on cd or web.  Content: 1.      Read the assignment question a number of times before you start writing. Answer the question using a logical sequence of ideas and materials. 2.      Avoid giving unnecessary information. The information provided should be relevant to the assignment question.3.      The assignment should largely be written in your own words. Avoid excessive use of direct quotations.4.      Read the criteria for assessing content as outlined in the Evaluation Summary form that is contained in your Unit Specification Booklet (USB). Note that one of the assessment criteria is the evidence of creative/conceptual thinking and not just regurgitating the study materials.5.      Use plenty of references and examples from different sources. Referencing: 1.      Each time you paraphrase, summarize or quote someone else’s idea or statement, you should cite the source within the text of the assignment. This is called in-text referencing. This requirement applies to tables, graphs and diagrams too.2.      In-text referencing normally contains a limited amount of information such as author’s surname, year of publication and page numbers in some instances. Full details should be contained in an alphabetical list of references at the end of the assignment.3.      This department uses the Harvard system of referencing. Refer to the Referencing Requirements for Assessments document on how to cite your sources of information correctly. The sample assignment ‘Steve’s Automotive’ is a good example of the correct manner of referencing.4.      Lack of referencing is considered plagiarism (cheating) and is dealt accordingly.5.      If no references are provided, the maximum mark possible in an assessment item is 30% of the total value. Presentation: 1.      Refer to the Presentation and Style Guide in your tool box. Use font size 12 and a minimum line spacing of 1.5.2.      Include the word count on the cover page. Your assignment length should be within 10% of the specified length.3.      Each assignment should include a cover page, an abstract or executive summary, table of contents, conclusion, and list of references.4.      Construct paragraphs and sentences carefully. Refer to the advice provided in your toolbox under the heading ‘Writing for Assessments’. Good luck.

Prashant