I Forgot to Hand Write a Typed Assignment

What this handout is about

The first stride in any successful college writing venture is reading the assignment. While this sounds like a unproblematic task, it tin be a tough one. This handout volition aid y'all unravel your assignment and brainstorm to craft an effective response. Much of the post-obit advice will involve translating typical assignment terms and practices into meaningful clues to the type of writing your teacher expects. Meet our short video for more tips.

Basic beginnings

Regardless of the assignment, department, or instructor, adopting these two habits will serve yous well:

Read the assignment carefully as soon equally you receive it. Practice not put this chore off—reading the assignment at the beginning will relieve you lot fourth dimension, stress, and bug after. An assignment can look pretty straightforward at first, particularly if the teacher has provided lots of information. That does non hateful information technology will not take time and attempt to complete; you lot may even have to larn a new skill to complete the assignment.
Ask the teacher about anything yous do not empathise. Do not hesitate to approach your teacher. Instructors would prefer to set yous directly before y'all hand the paper in. That'south besides when you volition find their feedback most useful.

Assignment formats

Many assignments follow a basic format. Assignments often begin with an overview of the topic, include a central verb or verbs that describe the chore, and offer some additional suggestions, questions, or prompts to get y'all started.

An Overview of Some Kind

The teacher might set the stage with some general discussion of the field of study of the assignment, introduce the topic, or remind you of something pertinent that you lot take discussed in class. For example:

"Throughout history, gerbils have played a key part in politics," or "In the concluding few weeks of class, we accept focused on the evening clothing of the housefly …"

The Task of the Assignment

Pay attention; this part tells y'all what to do when you write the paper. Expect for the primal verb or verbs in the sentence. Words like analyze, summarize, or compare direct you to retrieve about your topic in a certain manner. Also pay attention to words such as how, what, when, where, and why; these words guide your attention toward specific information. (Run into the section in this handout titled "Fundamental Terms" for more information.)

"Clarify the result that gerbils had on the Russian Revolution", or "Propose an estimation of housefly undergarments that differs from Darwin's."

Boosted Material to Recollect nigh

Here you volition notice some questions to use as springboards as you brainstorm to call back about the topic. Instructors usually include these questions every bit suggestions rather than requirements. Do not feel compelled to reply every question unless the teacher asks you to do so. Pay attention to the lodge of the questions. Sometimes they advise the thinking process your instructor imagines you will need to follow to begin thinking most the topic.

"You may wish to consider the differing views held by Communist gerbils vs. Monarchist gerbils, or Can in that location be such a thing as 'the housefly garment industry' or is it simply a dwelling-based craft?"

Style Tips

These are the teacher's comments about writing expectations:

"Be curtailed", "Write effectively", or "Argue furiously."

Technical Details

These instructions usually indicate format rules or guidelines.

"Your paper must be typed in Palatino font on gray paper and must not exceed 600 pages. It is due on the anniversary of Mao Tse-tung's decease."

The assignment'southward parts may not appear in exactly this order, and each office may be very long or really short. Nonetheless, existence aware of this standard blueprint can assistance you empathize what your instructor wants you to do.

Interpreting the consignment

Enquire yourself a few basic questions equally yous read and jot down the answers on the assignment canvas:

Why did your instructor ask you to practice this detail job?
Who is your audience?
What kind of evidence do you need to support your ideas?
What kind of writing style is acceptable?
What are the absolute rules of the newspaper?

Try to wait at the question from the bespeak of view of the instructor. Recognize that your instructor has a reason for giving you lot this consignment and for giving it to you at a particular betoken in the semester. In every assignment, the instructor has a challenge for you. This challenge could be anything from demonstrating an ability to recall clearly to demonstrating an ability to use the library. Run across the assignment non as a vague suggestion of what to do only equally an opportunity to show that you lot can handle the course material as directed. Newspaper assignments give y'all more than a topic to talk over—they ask you to exercise something with the topic. Keep reminding yourself of that. Be careful to avoid the other extreme as well: do non read more into the assignment than what is in that location.

Why did your instructor ask you to exercise this particular task?

Of course, your teacher has given you an assignment then that he or she will exist able to assess your understanding of the class material and requite yous an appropriate grade. Merely there is more than to it than that. Your instructor has tried to design a learning experience of some kind. Your instructor wants you to think nigh something in a item way for a detail reason. If yous read the course description at the beginning of your syllabus, review the assigned readings, and consider the assignment itself, you may brainstorm to see the plan, purpose, or approach to the subject matter that your teacher has created for you. If yous still aren't sure of the assignment'south goals, effort asking the teacher. For assist with this, run across our handout on getting feedback.

Given your instructor's efforts, it helps to answer the question: What is my purpose in completing this assignment? Is it to get together research from a variety of exterior sources and present a coherent film? Is information technology to take material I have been learning in class and use it to a new situation? Is it to testify a bespeak i style or another? Key words from the assignment can help you figure this out. Look for key terms in the grade of active verbs that tell you what to do.

Fundamental Terms: Finding Those Active Verbs

Here are some common central words and definitions to aid you think about assignment terms:

Information words
Inquire you to demonstrate what you know about the subject, such as who, what, when, where, how, and why.

define—give the subject's meaning (according to someone or something). Sometimes y'all have to give more than i view on the subject'due south meaning
draw—provide details about the subject area by answering question words (such as who, what, when, where, how, and why); you might likewise requite details related to the five senses (what you lot see, hear, experience, gustatory modality, and smell)
explain—give reasons why or examples of how something happened
illustrate—give descriptive examples of the subject field and bear witness how each is continued with the subject field
summarize—briefly listing the important ideas you learned near the field of study
trace—outline how something has changed or developed from an earlier time to its current form
inquiry—gather cloth from exterior sources about the bailiwick, often with the implication or requirement that you volition analyze what you accept found

Relation words
Ask you to demonstrate how things are continued.

compare—testify how two or more things are similar (and, sometimes, different)
contrast—show how two or more things are different
apply—use details that you've been given to demonstrate how an thought, theory, or concept works in a particular situation
cause—evidence how one event or series of events made something else happen
relate—bear witness or describe the connections between things

Interpretation words
Ask you to defend ideas of your own near the subject. Do non see these words as requesting opinion alone (unless the assignment specifically says then), but as requiring stance that is supported past concrete evidence. Remember examples, principles, definitions, or concepts from course or inquiry and utilize them in your interpretation.

appraise—summarize your opinion of the subject and measure out information technology against something
testify, justify—requite reasons or examples to demonstrate how or why something is the truth
evaluate, respond—country your opinion of the subject as practiced, bad, or some combination of the 2, with examples and reasons
support—requite reasons or evidence for something you lot believe (be certain to land conspicuously what it is that you believe)
synthesize —put 2 or more things together that have not been put together in grade or in your readings before; do not just summarize one and then the other and say that they are similar or dissimilar—you must provide a reason for putting them together that runs all the mode through the paper
analyze—determine how individual parts create or relate to the whole, figure out how something works, what information technology might hateful, or why information technology is of import
argue—take a side and defend it with evidence against the other side

More Clues to Your Purpose
As you read the assignment, think about what the instructor does in course:

What kinds of textbooks or coursepack did your instructor choose for the grade—ones that provide background information, explain theories or perspectives, or argue a point of view?
In lecture, does your instructor inquire your opinion, effort to evidence her bespeak of view, or use keywords that bear witness up again in the consignment?
What kinds of assignments are typical in this discipline? Social science classes ofttimes look more than research. Humanities classes thrive on estimation and analysis.
How do the assignments, readings, and lectures piece of work together in the form? Instructors spend time designing courses, sometimes even arguing with their peers about the near effective course materials. Figuring out the overall blueprint to the class will help you understand what each assignment is meant to achieve.

Who is your audience?

At present, what about your reader? Most undergraduates think of their audience every bit the teacher. Truthful, your instructor is a skilful person to keep in mind equally you write. But for the purposes of a good paper, think of your audition as someone like your roommate: smart plenty to understand a clear, logical argument, just not someone who already knows exactly what is going on in your item paper. Recollect, even if the teacher knows everything there is to know well-nigh your paper topic, he or she still has to read your paper and appraise your understanding. In other words, teach the material to your reader.

Aiming a paper at your audience happens in two ways: y'all make decisions well-nigh the tone and the level of data you want to convey.

Tone means the "voice" of your paper. Should you lot be chatty, formal, or objective? Usually you will discover some happy medium—you practice not want to alienate your reader by sounding condescending or superior, only you do non want to, um, like, totally wig on the man, you know? Eschew ostentatious erudition: some students think the way to sound bookish is to apply big words. Be careful—you can sound ridiculous, especially if you lot use the wrong big words.
The level of information yous utilise depends on who you think your audience is. If yous imagine your audience every bit your instructor and she already knows everything you have to say, y'all may find yourself leaving out cardinal information that can cause your statement to exist unconvincing and illogical. But y'all do not accept to explain every unmarried give-and-take or issue. If yous are telling your roommate what happened on your favorite science fiction Goggle box show concluding night, you lot do non say, "Offset a dark-haired white man of average height, wearing a adjust and carrying a flashlight, walked into the room. Then a purple alien with fifteen arms and at least 3 eyes turned around. Then the homo smiled slightly. In the groundwork, yous could hear a clock ticking. The room was fairly nighttime and had at least two windows that I saw." Yous also practise not say, "This guy found some aliens. The cease." Detect some residuum of useful details that support your main betoken.

You'll find a much more detailed discussion of these concepts in our handout on audition.

The Grim Truth

With a few exceptions (including some lab and ethnography reports), you are probably being asked to make an argument. You must convince your audience. It is piece of cake to forget this aim when you lot are researching and writing; as you lot become involved in your subject affair, you lot may get enmeshed in the details and focus on learning or simply telling the information you lot accept found. Yous need to practise more than just repeat what you take read. Your writing should have a indicate, and you should be able to say it in a judgement. Sometimes instructors call this sentence a "thesis" or a "merits."

And so, if your teacher tells you to write about some aspect of oral hygiene, you practise non want to merely list: "Start, you brush your teeth with a soft brush and some peanut butter. Then, yous floss with unwaxed, bologna-flavored string. Finally, gargle with bourbon." Instead, you lot could say, "Of all the oral cleaning methods, sandblasting removes the virtually plaque. Therefore information technology should be recommended past the American Dental Association." Or, "From an aesthetic perspective, moldy teeth can be quite charming. Nonetheless, their joys are brusque-lived."

Convincing the reader of your argument is the goal of academic writing. It doesn't have to say "argument" anywhere in the assignment for you lot to need ane. Await at the assignment and think about what kind of argument you could make well-nigh it instead of just seeing it every bit a checklist of data y'all have to nowadays. For help with understanding the role of argument in academic writing, see our handout on argument.

What kind of evidence do y'all need?

There are many kinds of evidence, and what type of evidence will work for your consignment can depend on several factors–the discipline, the parameters of the consignment, and your teacher'south preference. Should you lot use statistics? Historical examples? Practise you need to bear your ain experiment? Can you rely on personal feel? See our handout on prove for suggestions on how to use prove appropriately.

Brand sure you are clear nearly this office of the assignment, considering your use of evidence will be crucial in writing a successful newspaper. You are not simply learning how to argue; you are learning how to fence with specific types of materials and ideas. Ask your instructor what counts as acceptable evidence. You can also ask a librarian for help. No affair what kind of evidence you utilize, exist certain to cite it correctly—see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial.

What kind of writing style is acceptable?

You cannot always tell from the assignment just what sort of writing style your teacher expects. The instructor may be actually laid back in class only still look you to audio formal in writing. Or the instructor may be adequately formal in class and ask you to write a reflection newspaper where y'all need to apply "I" and speak from your ain experience.

Try to avert false associations of a item field with a style ("art historians like wacky inventiveness," or "political scientists are boring and but give facts") and wait instead to the types of readings you accept been given in class. No one expects you to write like Plato—merely use the readings as a guide for what is standard or preferable to your teacher. When in doubt, ask your instructor about the level of formality she or he expects.

No matter what field y'all are writing for or what facts you are including, if you practice not write so that your reader tin can understand your chief idea, you have wasted your time. So brand clarity your main goal. For specific help with style, see our handout on style.

Technical details near the assignment

The technical data you lot are given in an assignment always seems similar the easy part. This section can actually give you lots of little hints nigh budgeted the task. Observe out if elements such every bit page length and citation format (come across the UNC Libraries commendation tutorial) are negotiable. Some professors practice not have strong preferences every bit long equally yous are consistent and fully reply the consignment. Some professors are very specific and will deduct big points for deviations.

Usually, the page length tells you something of import: The instructor thinks the size of the paper is appropriate to the assignment's parameters. In plain English language, your instructor is telling you how many pages it should take for yous to respond the question every bit fully every bit yous are expected to. And so if an assignment is two pages long, you cannot pad your newspaper with examples or reword your main idea several times. Hit your one point early, defend information technology with the clearest example, and cease speedily. If an consignment is ten pages long, you tin be more than complex in your main points and examples—and if you can but produce five pages for that assignment, you need to see someone for help—as before long as possible.

Tricks that don't work

Your instructors are not fooled when you lot:

spend more than time on the comprehend folio than the essay—graphics, cool binders, and cute titles are no replacement for a well-written newspaper.
apply huge fonts, broad margins, or extra spacing to pad the page length—these tricks are immediately obvious to the eye. Well-nigh instructors employ the same word processor you lot exercise. They know what's possible. Such tactics are especially damning when the instructor has a stack of 60 papers to course and yours is the simply i that low-flying plane pilots could read.
utilize a paper from another class that covered "sort of similar" cloth. Once more, the instructor has a detail job for you to fulfill in the assignment that usually relates to course material and lectures. Your other paper may not cover this material, and turning in the aforementioned paper for more than than in one case course may constitute an Honor Code violation. Enquire the teacher—it tin can't hurt.
get all wacky and "creative" earlier you respond the question. Showing that you are able to recollect across the boundaries of a simple assignment can be good, but you must do what the assignment calls for first. Once more, check with your instructor. A humorous tone tin be refreshing for someone grading a stack of papers, just information technology will non get you a good grade if you have not fulfilled the chore.

Critical reading of assignments leads to skills in other types of reading and writing. If y'all become skillful at figuring out what the real goals of assignments are, yous are going to be better at understanding the goals of all of your classes and fields of study.

Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs four.0 License.
Y'all may reproduce it for non-commercial use if y'all use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Colina

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Source: https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/understanding-assignments/