The following resources are designed to help you assess and develop your students' understanding of writing for university.
All our resources are available for free educational use under a Creative Commons licence. You are welcome to link to them, use them and adapt them if necessary for your students, but please acknowledge Learnhigher as authors.
Activity time: 15 minutes
Types of media: Podcast, MP3This resource features a podcast which focuses upon academic writing technique. The podcast particularly concerns lecturer feedback regarding the importance of focusing on the essay title given.
Activity time: 25 MinutesTypes of media: Handout/s, PDF fileA group editorial activity aimed at highlighting examples of bad practice in academic writing. Presents the opportunty to make selective changes in order to develop academic writing skills.
Activity time: Activities range from 1-10 minutes.Types of media: Powerpoint fileWorkshop activities on academic writing, including a powerpoint download outlining activities.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Helpsheet, Word document, QuizSet of 3 short exercises, complete with answers and tutor comments. Provides a set of scenarios and challenges students to give the correct referencing protocol in each situation.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, PDF fileThis resource highlights the importance of fully considering an essay title and offers guidance on essay title interpretation. The resource suggests how identifying directive words, the topic area and limiting words may help students to organise and structure their essays effectively, and thus obtain higher grades.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, Word documentBased on the Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) approach, this resource prompts students to consider the assignment question and discuss the ways in which they would answer it prior to beginning writing. A full understanding of the assignment title or question is crucial to obtain the best possible mark.
Activity time: 30 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, HelpsheetThis resource highlights the importance of referencing to the overall assignment quality. The resource directs students to proof-read their work and identify correct use of referencing in the main body of the essay, as well as in the reference list itself.
Activity time: 15 minutesTypes of media: Handout/sA quick checklist for an effective report
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, HelpsheetThis resource identifies how attention to punctuation, particularly standard comma use, may improve coherence and grades. The main uses of commas are identified, such as listing, bracketing and joining. Explanations and examples are given for the context in which they are most commonly correctly utilised in academic work.
Activity time: 30 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, Word document, PDF file, QuizBy completing these learning resources, students will be able to:
Appreciate the limits and uses of Microsoft Word in aiding proofreading beyond built-in spelling and grammar checks.
Use A-Z sort, Find, and Find and Replace to eliminate common proofreading errors efficiently.
Find further free sources of developmental support for proofreading skills.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: Helpsheet, Word document, Interactive learning objectA downloadable workbook for students which can be tailored to different essay questions. The workbook structures enables the essay to be structured in an orderly way, allowing for the process to be learned as the assignment is completed.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Webpage, PDF fileA classroom activity, designed to help students recognise the broad functions of academic writing
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: Webpage, Helpsheet, Powerpoint fileA resource which would be particularly useful for staff teaching on a creative writing programme. Includes two structured writing exercises and information on free writing.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, Word documentThis resource encourages students to write on a given topic for a set amount of time. It is is designed to test information recall ability as well as help students improve their confidence in their writing ability.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: Slides, Powerpoint fileThis resource includes ideas for initiating discussions about writing with students, and facilitates the opportunity to begin writing assignments during the activity.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Interactive learning objectThis post provides an interactive resource testing knowledge and application of grammatical issues commonly identified in students' work. This resource aims to help students improve their spelling and grammar.
Types of media: Webpage, HelpsheetA helpsheet outling a step by step explanation of the analysis of research findings. This includes an example of the process.
Activity time: 30 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, Word documentAn overview of some techniques to get started with writing after conducting research for an assignment. Includes information about planning, freewriting, structuring and writing paragraphs.
Includes a worksheet for students to download and keep for reference.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, PDF fileThis resource highlights the importance of clear and effective paragraphing to essay coherence. The resource explains the basic aims and structure of a paragraph, along with a checklist of features. Signposting words and phrases can be particularly useful for introducing theory, linking or concluding an essay.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, HelpsheetHighlighting the importance of structure to constructing clear and effective communication, this resource offers advice on improving structure and planning in academic writing. The resource offers techniques, particularly essay focus and basic structures, which may help to improve student work.
Activity time: 17 MinutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, PDF fileA classroom activity showing the importance of tailoring writing for a specific audience. Downloads can be adapted to be subject specific.
Activity time: 25 MinutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, PDF fileA classroom activity which helps to develop understanding of the reasons why reports are organised as they are. Further to this, it highlights the differing writing styles appropriate for each section.
Activity time: Unknown timeThis guide is designed to show you how to adapt your current report writing practices for doing a longer independent research project like a dissertation. If you are planning to do a dissertation project that involves some kind of primary data...
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: Webpage, PDF file, QuizA classroom activity in which the participant must rearrange a jumbled list of report sections. Includes two list examples.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, PDF fileThis resource highlights the importance of planning work, and how this may improve essay coherence and structure. According to personal preference, the resource offers the linear, cornell or mindmapping approach to planning as guidance for achieving higher grades.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: Handout/s, PDF fileThis 71-page booklet explains when to reference, how to reference (using the Harvard style), gives examples of different forms of referencing, including some of the less common sources, and includes two assignments to demonstrate referencing in action.
Activity time: 40 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Helpsheet, Word document, QuizShort quiz, with four exercises to test your knowledge of referencing. The exercises cover 1) Is a Reference Needed? 2) Where Should the Citations Go? 3) “I Didn’t Reference the Source Because…” 4) Referencing Errors. Answers and comments are to be found at the end of the worksheet.
Activity time: 1 hourTypes of media: Helpsheet, Word document, QuizA set of four referencing exercises, complete with answers. Exercises cover:
1) Is a Reference Needed?
2) Where Should the Citations Go?
3) “I Didn’t Reference the Source Because…”
4) Referencing Errors.
Activity time: 60-90 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Helpsheet, Word document, PDF fileThese resources are designed to generate discussion among teaching and learning development staff in staff development sessions. The resources cover issues relating to why reference, referencing styles, when to reference, and on issues relating to plagiarism.
Activity time: 15 minutesTypes of media: Podcast, MP3This resource, a podcast, offers advice on revision techniques and dealing with examination stress. This includes varying peer-to-peer tips, as well as lecturer guidance.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: HelpsheetA detailed explanation of the content of subsections of a report. This includes information about titles for sections as well as suggested content.
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, Word documentThis resource provides an activity which aims to ensure students stay focused on the essay question. Students answer the essay question with a one-word answer, and then expand on this forming a basis for each paragraph, and so on.
Activity time: 15 minutesTypes of media: WebpageAn introduction to the effective use of graphical data
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: Handout/sA practical activity to show how to best include graphical data in reports. It can be used as a classroom activity, or independently by students
Activity time: 20 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, Webpage, Helpsheet, PDF fileThis resource identifies the common key features of academic writing, such as formality, correct grammar and a logical structure, and how this may be different from other forms of writing.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: HelpsheetThis resource includes a list of commonly perceived tropes of sub-standard reports as well as a detailed breakdown of suggested content of report sections.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: HelpsheetA table outlining features of essays and reports in relation to one another.
Activity time: 30 minutesTypes of media: Handout/s, PDF fileStudent essay in response to a 2009 LearnHigher competition on 'What is the point of referencing?’. Together with a tutor commentary, the essay sets out and explores three for referencing: to construct, structure, support and communicate arguments; to link work to the existing
body of knowledge; and how referencing can add credibility to academic work.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: HelpsheetAn explanation of why reports are a critical format for presenting research results. Includes a brief outline stating the identifyable traits of a good report.
Activity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: HelpsheetA helpsheet explaining how to write clearly and concisely. Includes sections on the use of long words and abbreviations.
Activity time: VariableTypes of media: WebpageStudents can browse examples of students work from a number of subject areas, and see comments from lecturers
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View this resourceActivity time: Unknown timeTypes of media: HelpsheetView this resourceActivity time: 25 MinutesTypes of media: Handout/s, PDF fileView this resourceDo you have learning and teaching resources to share? Amplify them using Learnhigher
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