How to write an assignment

What is an assignment

• An essay on a particular problem

• A review of contemporaneous evidence

• An elaboration of a particular aspect of a research

What an assignment is NOT

• Not a copy and paste of previous studies or publications

• Not a fiction

• Not an undergraduate essay without references or supporting evidence

Basic framework

• Content page

• Introduction

• Search strategy

• Review tools

• Literature review

• Discussion

• Conclusion

• References

How to start

• Read the question carefully

• Look for the key words

• Ask the tutor what exactly is asked for

Initial planning

• Search the key words to see what evidence is available

• Read original papers that will guide you to write the assignment

• Write up the plan and get it checked by tutor

Search• Search is the most important part of gathering information

and literature. It needs special care.

• Search through all sources: Google, google scholar, Pubmed, Medline, CINAHL, EMBASE, Scopus etc. That will reduced source bias.

• Contact library of your institute to gather evidence

• Look into bibliography and reference section of original papers to gather more evidence

• Contacting the authors would be way beyond the scope of an assignment. However, in Dissertation and PhD Thesis that can be justified.

Writing up the real thing

• Search again

• Write up the assignment in all relevant sections

• As you go through the papers, you would be able to modify the whole thing

• Write and re-write

• Give it to someone to look at for correction

Common mistakes

• Delay in starting

• Poor planning

• Lack of adequate search

• Grammatical error

• Plagiarism: a big issue among academic circles. It’s like a crime!

Special attention

• Overall look and style of the assignment

• Grammatical errors: use spell checker

• Stick to word count +/_ 10%

• Follow referencing style as has been advised by your institute. Commonly, Harvard style is used. But your university/ college might a have a modified version.

Final word

• You are at the driving seat to write up the assignment

• Please stick to the time frame and work hard

• Reward yourself for the hard work and punish yourself for laziness