Things To Keep In Mind While Writing Assignment

Things to keep in mind while writing Assignment

Each student has to face the task of writing assignments throughout his academic years. Like it or not, but the assignment is one thing no one can get rid of, as they are a means of evaluating your skills and learning, which later contribute to your grades too. And to add more to the troubles, each subject has its own numbers of assignments, each requiring the student to work in a different way. Reports, essays, thesis, observation analysis, article etc all going at the same time can certainly turn into a horrendous task for the students. Hence, it is a necessity to perform well in the assignments given to you in order to maintain your academic performance.

What issues result in a poor assignment?

It is observed that students repeat or mistakenly go through certain mistakes that lower the quality of their work. Hence, it is important to understand the reasons why errors happen first.

1. Beginning at the last minute

Yes, we all have done it and regret later. Beginning the work right during the crisis hour is the most common reason behind a bad assignment. Students often keep making themselves believe that they can present a splendid report even if they start just hours before the deadline. And things do not go as planned then, giving you annoying remarks for your work later. 

2. Insufficient or incorrect research

If the information you need to mention in your assignment is not adequate or erroneous, the assignment is bound to become a faulty one too. Students often ignore the importance of correct and sufficient information for a successful project and realize it when the scores go down. 

3. Copying from others

Believe it or not, but taking a sneak peek from your friends’ ideas and trying to compare your work with others’ work also plays a role in killing the quality of your work. One needs to understand that each person will be working on a different subject, thus they will have different objectives, analysis, facts, evidence etc. Sometimes, students also get misguided by trying to work like others. To avoid such issues, you must have confidence in your own work and put it the best of your efforts. 

4. Misguiding use of language

Success or failure of a piece of writing also depends on the way you use words to express your ideas, often at which students fail to impress. Either they write plain sentences without an in-depth description of facts, go try out too much of creative writing. Both of them can play a major factor in misguiding the reader.

5. Ignoring citation and referencing

Without mentioning the sources from where you have collected the information, it is usually hard to believe that the work is original. Also, the work may also lose its authenticity as well. It is a must to mention all the websites, books, journals, articles, magazines etc that you have gone through to collect the relevant information.

What are the important elements of a good assignment?

As certain ingredients are required to make a good dish, a good assignment too should include some elements which add-on to its quality. They are discussed a follows:

1. Word count

If you are asked to write an essay of 1000 words, stick to it. It won’t fetch you great marks if you write 2500 words. Instead, your hard work would rather go down the drain as well. Keep away from overwriting as much as you can. 

2. Bullets and numbering

If you have a number of ideas to discuss, the best way to write them is to list them with proper numbering. Writing it in a paragraph form would steal away the clarity of your ideas, as the points would seem all mixed up.

3. Relevant examples and evidence

To support your statement, proofs are a must to be included. While you gather information for your topic, look out for a relevant and sufficient number of examples and evidence to justify your ideas.

4. Continuity of ideas

An essay with a flow in the presentation and order of ideas is easy for the readers to understand. Plan in advance the occurrence of ideas, facts and examples which are to be described. 

How to write a successful assignment?

1.Draft an outline before you begin

Before going to a meeting or discussing important terms over a call, one revises the points to discuss and makes a rough plan about how to discuss the things. There are various things to be described in an assignment, and it would be hard to remember each of them individually. A basic sketch of the thoughts in your ideas would help you to:

2.  Structure the flow of content for the assignment.

Reduce the time spent in writing down the actual assignment, as you would already have a plan of the things to be included. Also, the focus should be on improving the use of language to be used in the assignment.

3. Initiate well in advance before the deadline arrives

To avoid the last minute calamity, start your work early. It is a must to have sufficient time to collect information from various sources, plan a good outline, write a thorough and in depth essay and edit it. 

4. Do a thorough planning before beginning

Brainstorm as much as you can. Bring out as many ideas as you can and once you have exhausted your brain into it, start planning on the following parts of your assignment:

• Title

The title should be crisp and attention gaining, as it is the first line of your assignment that the readers would read. It should be capable of creating an urge to read further.

• Introduction

It is the introduction where the subject is introduced to the readers. Describe your topic briefly and explain the objective behind working on it. The introduction must be strong and interesting to make the audience read further.

• Content

Once you begin planning the content of your assignment, organize the flow of your ideas well. The sequence of the information should be organized well and should be supported with relevant evidence and examples. For example, if you are talking about the birth of the universe, talk about the Big Bang Theory first, discuss first what it states and how it has been justified. 

Later, you can include the modern day researches which are being conducted to find deeper aspects about the start of the universe. The sequence of your ideas must be planned well, in order to maintain logic and genuineness of your assignment.

• Conclusion

The conclusion should leave a strong impression in the readers’ mind, as it is the last section they would read and remember later. Make a brief note about how your study has been justified and your learning from the process. If your work has a message to be communicated to the society, the conclusion is the right path to include it.

5. Segregate the subtopics well

Jumbled up ideas would not make much sense, and may even bring down the quality for your essay. To present your ideas with clarity, divide one paragraph for each subtopic accordingly. Using bullets and numbering is also important to neatly explain your ideas.

6. Editing

Omit the lines or sections which are not much important or only making the assignment lengthy. The final assignment which you would be submitting should carry the necessary details with relevant evidence. Unnecessary data often confuses or bores the readers.

7. Recheck for errors

Spelling errors are the most common, followed by grammatical errors. Once completed the writing task, read it over, again and again, to pick out any error. It is better to correct your mistakes yourself before someone else points them out!

8. Follow the standard formats

Most universities ask students to write as per the guidelines of standard formats, such as MLA, APA Chicago etc. going as per the formats would help you avoid the errors too.

9. Citing and references

To justify that you have worked on the assignment on your work and that your work is original, do not forget to mention the sources of information. As discussed earlier, assignments without citing and referencing lose their authenticity and maybe even stated as copied work. Thus, including the references at the end of your essay, written in the correct format.