*Writing SkillsPreparation and Critical thinking for an academic essay

*At the end of this sessionYou will improve your essay preparationYou will appreciate the importance of using critical skills in an academic essay.

*Plan your strategy Strengths - What do you know already about the topic? A focussed approach.Weaknesses What ideas do you need to develop further and spend more time on. What is the question/learning outcome(s) or objective of a given assignment including time framework?

*RelevanceUnited Kingdom material is authoritative.USA/ Canada etc may be persuasive but usually not relevant to be avoided in most respectsCheck the accuracy of any current statutory/regulatory provisions referred to, e.g. the NMC code of Professional Conduct.Official government websites e.g. DOH are a must and should always be used.Most importantly, answer the QUESTION

*6 Hierarchical levels of learningEvaluationSynthesisAnalysisApplicationComprehensionKnowledge(Bloom 1956)

*Structure of assignmentIntroduction define parameters, say what you are going to discussMain body - what are the issues - your sources Discussion compare and contrast your own ideas where you bring together your understanding and critical analysis.Brief conclusion reflecting on your discussion, you may wish to say what lessons have been learnt from the study/ project. A little at a time/ use the Harvard Referencing system

Assemble the ingredients

You may not need to know where everything comes from when you are baking bread, but in an assignment, provenance matters: so make sure that you keep a log of all reading and references.Most kinds of bread need a leavening agent, usually yeast. What is the leaven in your assignment? What is the personal angle which will make it rise above simply being a re-hash

*Stage 2 Mix

Mix them all together. You can do this by putting them on cards and arranging them in various configurations to see how one view or opinion interacts with another. You are not particularly bothered about the actual order of presentation, yet.

Knead it

Physically, this is the hard work ofbaking. It involves pulling and folding - two tiny particles which started offnext to each other can end up separated in an unpredictable fashion.Our counterpart is about ordering thecontent about determining which bits toput first

Shape itYour loaf may go into a tin, i.e. conform to a certain required shape, such as word length your essay now needs to acquire its final shape, which means:Does it meet the requirements? Does it address the title or the set outcomes? Will it hold its shape? Pay attention now to the conclusion, and finally to the introduction, which specifies what the shape is

Leave it to Rise It's the failure to engage in this and the next two stages which leads to so-called "half-baked" essays. It is not aproblem with the baking, it's aproblem with the rising andafter.

Knock it Back

The risen dough does not gostraight into the oven. Bakers"knock it back", and pummelthe air (redundant ideas andpadding) out of it, then theyknead it

Bake it

Write it. There is no real need to have booted up your word-processor until now. Indeed, even with outlining and cut-and-paste facilities, to have fixed anything into a linear sequence before this stage may well be creating more work for yourself, despite the superficial impression of achievement.

- Get it to the consumer(assessment)Hand it in, confident in its nutritious and tasty quality!But remember, baked dough which has not risen properly and been knocked back sits heavily on thestomach, and may cause indigestion.

Baking an essay[On-line] UK; Available: http://www.doceo.co.uk/tools/baking.htmAccessed: 19April2004

* Essay IngredientsYour response should focus on the question to be answered.The construction should be structure to include1. the introduction, 2. main body with logical paragraphs and, 3. conclusion.

You should demonstrate a depth of knowledge understanding and application of the topic to the level in questionTo include critical analysis, synthesis and evaluationAttention should be paid to presentation of the script with good use of referencing.

*Critical analysisIntroduction should state the issue define your objective what you are going to say.Analyze critically.Synthesise the ideas you discussed.Evaluate the relevance of the evidence for supporting your discussionApply it to clinical practice

*4 components of critical thinkingIdentifying & challenging assumptionsBecoming aware of the importance of context in creating meaningImaging & and exploring alternativesCultivating reflective scepticism(Brookfield, 1987)

*7 factor framework for critical analysis of an issue/ topic (Gopee 2002)Identify & examine all components or elements of the topic or situationIdentify & select existing knowledge or information Examine & recognise the relationship between the elements and their function

*ContAscertain the context in which the topic is being analysedIdentify & challenge assumptions for accuracy & validityImagine & explore alternativesDraw conclusions about the situation & make a decision

*After Critical Analysis

Synthesis: suggestion/recommendation of new Method or approach, own ideas At the end Evaluation: appraise the value of the suggestions, what lessons have been learnt & possibly draw conclusions and make some recommendations.

*ParagraphingA paragraph should be about 5 8 sentences where ideas or aspects of an argument should be developed;A sentence stating the main ideaA definition or explanation of any new terms to be included.Critical analysis of the ideaEvidence, the basis of your argument/theme

*Developing an argumenta fact or assertion offered as evidence that something is true; "it was a strong argument that his hypothesis was true" www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn

Hart (1998) states that an argument involves putting forward reasons to influence someone's beliefs that what is being proposed is in fact the case.

*And finally, practical tipsAvoid use of passive tense and Use of the first person.Avoid tautology which is redundancy of information.Use of Capital letters for names of people and places.Spellings use spell-check.Other specifications, e.g. double spacing.Read out aloud to someone patient enough or to the cat if no one will listen.Ask someone to proof read your work for you, the less knowledgeable the better

GOFFMAN E (1975) Frame Analysis: an essay on the organization of experience Harmondsworth; Penguin