I want it done on Bandura's theory covering all the criteria of checklist uploaded.
Questions to ask about a piece of research If you are going to write about research you must be able to read and interpret it yourself first. If you locate research that you find too complex, keep looking until you find something easier to work with because it is going to underpin the arguments in your paper. Try asking yourself a few questions to make sure that you actually understand the studies before you start writing about them. Some appropriate questions, and how they fit in with research articles, are: What did the researchers want to know? Why? You should be able to work this out from the abstract and the introduction or background to the study section. · Identifying the purpose for the study will help you recognise the importance of the work and to make links to both theory and practice. How did they decide to find out? What did they do? This will be detailed in the method section, and may be stated briefly in the abstract. · You need to know whether they did a survey, interviews, observations, an intervention etc. and any resources they used for this purpose. (Remember KISS principle when writing about it). Who did they conduct the study with? This is found under sample or participants. · This will help you identify who the research is relevant to; i.e. individuals or groups affected by the topic under consideration. It will help you to link theory with practice and discuss things like: what children of a certain age are doing/should be doing; what parental roles are; what teacher roles are...and so on. It can also reveal limitations of the study. What did the researchers find? This is in the results or results and discussion section. (Focus on the comments rather than getting bogged down in any stats). · You need to be able to comment on the key findings and highlight any noteworthy findings or issues. What did the authors have to say about their findings? This is under discussion, general discussion or results and discussion. · Look out for any comments about implications for teaching and how the findings support or contradict different theories and/or approaches re children’s development and learning. You will also find acknowledgement of the study's limitations here. What do the findings suggest for you as a future educator? · What teaching implications can you identify? How do the findings fit in with classroom practice? How do they link to what you learn in other courses (eg your Professional Experience; specific learning areas)? How do they fit in with theories of educational and developmental psychology and various practices you have been learning about in this course? Remember you need to demonstrate in your writing that you are able to reach conclusions about what the findings mean for you as an educator. ✎ If you take the time to jot down a few notes for each of the above questions (even if it is just a mind map), and do so for every study you use, it will not be time wasted. Not only will you be better prepared to discuss each one individually, in light of both theory and practice, but you will also be able to make comparisons and contrasts between the studies. Compiled by Suzanne Mitchell for EDUC 1077 essay editing tips ESSAY EDITING TIPS After putting in all the effort of carefully planning what you want to say, engaging in analytical discussion, and presenting evidence based arguments, you may feel all you need to do for final editing is just check spelling and literacy conventions. However, spell-check cannot alert you to what the reader (marker) might think or feel when they read your essay: where they might become confused, annoyed or distracted. Anticipating those responses is part of the job you take on as you edit your work. Sometimes issues that seem relatively small could be the basis of larger issues. A poorly-worded, vague or unclear sentence might just need some tweaking; however, it may also indicate that your thinking is not yet well enough developed, or that you are not quite sure what you want to say. Your language may appear to be vague or confusing because the idea itself is still confusing to you. So editing is not just about checking the finishing touches; it is about making the essay better – clarifying and deepening ideas/arguments and insights, and ensuring they are expressed in a clear and appropriate manner. The following guidelines can help: Read your essay out loud While dealing with the finer points of essay writing we can lose sight of the bigger picture: how all the sentences sound when they are read quickly one after the other (as your tutor will read them). When you read aloud, your ear will pick up some of the problems your eye might miss. Make sure all words contribute to your argument Are all of your words and phrases necessary? Are some just fillers to make up the word count? Are sentences tight and sharp, or are some words unnecessary? For instance, consider the phrase: my own personal opinion. What does own personal add? Isn’t that what my means? Do not use 14 words when five will do. You want every word in a sentence to contribute something meaningful. Even seemingly insignificant words such as ‘says’ are worth attention. Would using an alternative (argues, acknowledges, contends, believes, reveals, suggests, claims) help you present a stronger argument? Look for phrases, or even whole sentences, that are repetitive. Do they need to be repeated? Why? Does it add anything of value? Remember, every word in a sentence should contribute something meaningful, and every sentence needs to add something to your overall argument. Be tough when cutting out unnecessary sentences As you re-read your essay you may come across sentences that worked well in earlier drafts, but no longer seem to belong. This can be confronting if they are sentences you really like; however, avoid the temptation to leave them in if they are no longer necessary. Your tutor will be less influenced by the ‘brilliance’ of a sentence than its inappropriateness if it is irrelevant to the point you are making. Use precise and specific language to say what you mean Without using concrete, clear language you may not convey exactly what you intended; arguments might be too vague, or too broad. For instance, the statement society’s evils are a drain on our resources could mean many things and be interpreted differently to what the writer envisioned. Which societies? What evils? What resources? Be specific to ensure your intended meaning is clear. If you have trouble finding the right word you could consider consulting a thesaurus – but only to remind yourself of options. Never choose words whose meanings or usual contexts you do not really understand. Using language you are not familiar with can result in more ambiguity, which in turn can lead the reader (marker) to question your understanding. Beware of using embellished language Occasionally students use words and phrases that are pretentious or overly-formal in an effort to sound more authoritative or educated. However this can sometimes have the opposite effect as they end up giving the impression they are trying too hard to sound smart – a sign to the reader they are not. This is one of the traps of using a thesaurus to choose alternative words, but not fully understanding their usual contexts. If you find yourself using words or phrases because you think they sound impressive, think again. If your ideas are good, you do not need to try and impress with language; if they are not, it will not help anyway. Avoid over-quoting Try to quote only if the material you are presenting is so fundamental, evocative, or vividly-phrased that it would lose important impact, or the meaning would be completely changed, if paraphrased. Remember your tutor is trying to discern what you think. Too much quoting can suggest you do not have much to say, or that you could not be bothered to summarise. It obscures your thinking and only highlights that of the writer(s) you are referring to. The reader (marker) is trying to gauge your depth of understanding. Relying heavily on the words of others can suggest you are unable to explain certain ideas in your own words, or that you do not really understand them. Check referencing Correct referencing will be of critical importance throughout your degree. When checking this there are several aspects to consider. In-text referencing is expected whenever you discuss information or ideas that are not common knowledge. You are expected to accurately identify the source of this information. In-text referencing and reference list entries should be consistent – check that all in-text citations appear in the reference list and vice-versa. Ensure names and dates are also consistent. Both in-text referencing and reference list entries should adhere to guidelines set out in the current (2017) UniSA Harvard referencing guide. [Adapted from Harvard University guidelines: https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/resources ] EDUC 5160 EDUC 5261 Foundations of Learning and Development: A Child Centered Approach Essay Assessment Dr Lesley-anne Ey BECE (Hons), PhD
[email protected] G1-79 P 8302 4600 M 043 88 66 938 https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/en/view-image.php?image=19826&picture=sad-child-portrait 1. Find all information about the assignment Refer to your Course Outline, and the Course site Identify the following: the assignment structure and format –What type of assignment is it? –What should it look like and how should it be organised? the word count and overall weighting of the assignment –the greater the word count and weighting, the more effort required by you the due date, time and other submission details 2. Understand the assignment type Assignment types (essays, reports, literature reviews, etc.) vary in their purpose, structure and language Purpose of an essay: To present a well-informed, evidence-based argument To engage and convince your reader Structure of an essay: Introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion Reference list See Course Outline for format (font size, style, etc.) Language used in an essay: Academic and discipline-specific (for your audience) Professionally presented and grammatically correct 3. Identify key words and phrases Identify the instruction words in the assignment task (e.g. Do you need to discuss, critically evaluate, argue, compare and contrast?) These words will guide your approach to the task. If you are asked to ‘discuss something’, this will require a different approach to ‘arguing for something’. Identify the content words in the assignment task (i.e. the key words and phrases) –What do these words and phrases mean in the education