February 2021 – Dr. Rachel

Report Writing

Rachel Horrocks Birss Essays, Lightning Sessions 24th February 2021Academic Skills, Lightning Sessions, reports, research, university, writing 0 Comment

Report writing is a skill required in many disciplines, such as Life Sciences, Engineering, Business, and some Medical disciplines. It is different from essay writing in a number of key respects but follows many of the conventions of academic writing.

We normally write reports in response to a problem: something has gone wrong and we require a solution. This is particularly true in industry and business where processes can break down and solutions need to be found and evaluated. Reports are very rarely written when everything is working perfectly!

Most reports that students write will be relatively short and normally be part of a response to a particular experiment or situation you have been presented with.

Watch our Lightning Session to learn more about report writing, then scroll down for our top three tips!

Tip 1: Know the Purpose

What is the purpose of your report? Before you start writing, it’s important to know what your report is for, and who will be reading it.

Here are a few reasons why we write reports:

To describe something
To specify (technical)
To evaluate options and make recommendations
To enable discussion

It is worth considering who your audience is for your report, and to be aware of their needs in terms of how technical (or otherwise) your report ought to be.

Tip 2: Know the Format

The format of a report varies depending on what’s known as the “House Style” of your discipline. I’ll outline a generic report writing format below, but I always advise students to become familiar with the requirements of their discipline: this will often be outlined on your Module Handbook or in the VLE Module for that subject.

In very broad-brush terms, here is a standard format for a report:

Abstract
Introduction/background/aims & objectives
Methods & Materials
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
Recommendations for future action
Bibliography
Appendices

Tip 3: Know the Style

The style of writing adopted in a report can be more factual than you might use in an essay, and be more to-the-point, i.e., less discursive. However, particularly in the discussion and conclusion sections you will still be expected to discuss and analysis the results of the work you have presented, so there will still be elements of essay writing style in your report.

Reports rarely use the 1^st person, and lists, tables and bullet points are perfectly acceptable as part of your writing. Headings are also encouraged in report writing whereas they are discouraged in essays. Appendices may be used as a way to include more detailed information that is useful for your reader, but not required for the main part of your report, i.e., the questions for a survey or data tables, for example.

There are examples of reports in all walks of life, but the best way to improve your report writing is to read academic reports in your own discipline. Reading published reports in your discipline will give you a better idea of the expectations your tutors will have of your work.

This blog post was written by Michael Allardice (Academic Skills Centre).

Finding Your Academic Voice

Rachel Horrocks Birss Essays, Lightning Sessions 23rd February 2021academic, Academic Skills, challenges, Essays, Lightning Sessions, university, writing 0 Comment

Have you ever been told you need to ‘write more academically’? Ever had feedback that you need to develop a more academic voice’? Ever wished you knew how to ‘write like an academic’?

Such feedback is not uncommon and, whilst the advice itself is often valid, when it’s framed in these ways the comments can be confusing, demotivating and in some cases downright unhelpful.

It is important to communicate your ideas, arguments and findings in an appropriate and confident manner. But this is sometimes presented as a greater challenge than it really should be. Whatever your level of writing, you can – over time – develop a style of writing (and presenting) that is appropriate to your discipline area.

Have a look at the recording of our Lightning Session on ‘Finding your Academic Voice’ then scroll down for a summary of the three key steps you can take to develop your confidence in this area.

Step 1: Apply the simple conventions of academic writing

There’s no single set of conventions that apply to every bit of academic communication. For example, there is a clear distinction between the style of writing in Science subjects compared to say Humanities. Likewise, the ‘rules’ may change slightly depending on whether you’re writing ay a formal essay, a piece of reflection, or a report.

So it’s important to recognise the conventions for the specific type of writing you are doing, and then to apply these conventions to that work. We explore the common ones in the Lightning Session, so go back and have a look at that part of the recording if you’re still not sure what they are.

Step 2: Talk the language of your subject

As well as the general conventions mentioned above, every subject or discipline has its own language or technical vocabulary – words and phrases that someone outside of the discipline may struggle to understand but which instantly convey meaning to those in the know. Using this language confidently and competently is a key step in developing a confident and effective academic voice.

One of the great ways to develop your confidence here is to pay attention to the reading that you do. How do other people write about your subject? What kind of language do they use? Beyond just the vocabulary though, pay attention also to how they make arguments, how they use evidence, how they attempt to persuade you as the reader.

Step 3: Keep it simple, clear and authentic

People often fall into the trap of trying too hard to sound ‘academic’. Academic voice does not mean writing torturously long sentences or having a thesaurus beside you so you can find a fancy long word to replace a perfectly adequate short one.

If you’re following steps 1 & 2 then you’re well on your way to developing an authentic and effective academic voice. The final step is to write as clearly and simply as possible. The great thing about this is that, as you develop your confidence, that ‘simple’ level of writing will naturally increase, so that over time you will find yourself using more complex language and putting more of your personality into the writing.

But don’t force it – if you’re at the start of that journey, focus on doing the basics well and things will evolve naturally from that point.

This blog post was written by Dr Gordon Spark (Academic Skills Centre)

Reflective Writing

Rachel Horrocks Birss Uncategorised 17th February 2021 0 Comment

Reflective writing is increasingly becoming a part of university assignments, as well as professional practice. Reflection is highly beneficial, as it can help us improve by connecting theory to practice and showing us what we can do better next time.

While reflection is essential, it can also be challenging. It’s often difficult to know how to be critical about our personal experiences, or how to connect our practice to the appropriate theory and evidence.

To find out more about reflective writing, watch our Lightning Session on the topic, then scroll down for our top tips!

Tip 1: Be Personal

Reflection should be personal. Your reflection should deal with your own experiences/practice, rather than speaking generally about the topic. While it’s often tempting to cover big, general situations, your reflection will be stronger if you engage with specific situations you’ve encountered and how you responded. Being too vague is the enemy of good reflection!

Tip 2: Be Critical

One central aspect of academic reflection is criticality. While reflection is personal, it isn’t subjective. To write critically about your personal experience, you should drill down into the details of your situation, and connect your experience with theory and evidence. Reflection should involve discussion about your own thoughts and feelings, but it should always connect those emotions and beliefs to external sources.

Tip 3: Be Purposeful

Reflection must be purposeful. One essential aspect of reflection is the final step: the “now what?” question. Since reflection is all about improvement, it’s important to end your reflection by discussing what you’ve learned. You may consider questions like “what would I do differently next time?” or “how has my behaviour changed because of this event?” This “now what” stage is often the most difficult, but it’s central to effective reflection.

Want more help? There are many excellent models you can use to structure your reflection. We discuss one in the lightning session, but if you’d like to learn about some more complex models, this short video will explore a few of the most common.

Focus and Motivation

Rachel Horrocks Birss Blended Learning, Lightning Sessions, Study Skills 8th February 2021Academic Skills, Blended Learning, challenges, focus, Lightning Sessions, motivation, Procrastination, productivity, self-care, stress, time management, wellbeing, work 0 Comment

Learning how to focus well and motivate yourself are essential skills for university, as well as for the workforce and the rest of your life. If we can motivate ourselves to get going and focus intensely on our work, we can accomplish difficult tasks quickly and efficiently. If, however, we struggle to focus or get motivated, doing any work will always be a slog.

Particularly in stressful times, like the current lockdown, focus and motivation can be really challenging. Whether you find yourself with far too much to do (perhaps you’re trying to homeschool or care for an elderly relative alongside your uni work), or far too little (maybe your packed social calendar has been reduced to a string of lonely evenings), these tips can help you shake off the cobwebs and get back to productive, fulfilling work!

Watch our Lightning Session on Focus and Motivation, then keep reading for more tips!

Motivation

In essence, motivation is all about empowerment. It’s about believing we have the ability to do something that matters. After all, if we believe we can’t do something, or that it won’t make any difference, then why bother?

If you’re struggling to get motivated for a particular task, ask yourself these questions:

1: Can I do it?

2: Will it make a difference?

If the answer to either of these questions is no, ask yourself, why not? If you don’t believe you can do it, maybe you need some additional support or training. If you don’t believe it will make a difference, you should spend some time reflecting on whether completing this task with help you reach your goals.

Focus

Focus is essential to good work. When you focus on the task at hand, you can get more done in less time. So, how do we avoid distractions and focus on our work?

1: Work in Short Chunks. Strategies like the Pomodoro Method suggest setting a timer for 25-minutes, then taking a 5-minute break, then working for another 25-minutes. Whether you focus for 25 minutes for 55, working in short, focussed bursts is more efficient than hours at a time.

2: Eliminate Distractions. Put your phone on silent and close any social media tabs on your computer. Our brains are wired to pay attention to distractions, so do yourself a favour and shut them down before they start!

3: Take Breaks. Counterintuitively, breaks actually make us more productive! Taking intentional breaks away from the screen, whether that’s making a cup of tea or going for a long walk, allow our brain to reset so we can go back to our work with renewed energy and more creative ideas.

Getting the Most from Recorded Lectures

Rachel Horrocks Birss Blended Learning, Lightning Sessions, Study Skills 8th February 20218th February 2021Academic Skills, Blended Learning, challenges, Lightning Sessions, online lectures, recall, recorded lectures, revision, university, work 0 Comment

Recorded lectures are a now-familiar feature in many modules and degree programmes. As more and more of us spend more and more of our time engaging with online recorded lectures, it’s important that we understand how to engage effectively with this ‘new’ way of learning.

Sometimes, you can both attend the lecture ‘live’ online and watch the recording afterwards. In other cases, there is no live option and viewing the recording is your only way of engaging with that lecture.

Either way, recorded lectures present both benefits and potential challenges. While they let you organise your time flexibly, it’s also easy to feel overwhelmed by the volume of material you need to get through. Likewise, although looking over content again can be helpful in certain circumstances, it’s easy to find yourself spending an unsustainable amount of time on each recording.

The solution is to understand what you need to get out of these lectures and to develop an effective set of strategies for engaging with the material. That’s just what we discussed in the Lightning Talk on ‘Getting the Most from Recorded Lectures’, so why not watch the recording of that workshop now, then scroll down for our top tips?

Tip 1: Do some Prep

One way you can engage more effectively with recorded lectures (in fact with any kind of lecture) is to do some preparation to work out what you need to get out of the lecture.

For example, you might begin by brainstorming what you already know about that topic. If parts of the lecture cover things you’re already aware of, there’s much less need for you to make notes on those sections.

Doing this also helps you to highlight questions that you might have about the topic – you can then be particularly on the lookout for parts of the lecture that cover the things you don’t yet understand fully.

Tip 2: Watch Straight Through

One of the downsides of recorded lectures is that it becomes very easy to spend hours on each lecture. While it’s tempting to keep pausing the lecture replaying sections in order to make more detailed notes, this will likely result in an impossible workload.

So, try not to press the pause button. Instead, if there’s a bit you might want to go back to later, quickly note down the time in the video but keep watching. It may be that after you’ve watched the rest of the lecture it makes more sense anyway, but if not, you’ll easily be able to go back and fill in the gaps.

Tip 3: Review, Recall, but don’t Repeat

Don’t be tempted to listen to the lecture over and over. It’s good to have the recordings there as a safety net, but they’re not recorded with the intention that you should spend hours and hours on each one. Instead, review what you’ve taken from the lecture and identify any gaps in your knowledge and understanding.

For example, simply take a blank piece of paper and quickly brainstorm everything you can remember from the lecture, then use your notes to work out where the gaps might be. You can then revisit selected parts of the lecture to shore up those gaps, or you could do some additional research into the topic.

For more information on review and recall, including more suggested strategies, see our Revision Bites resource, and particularly the section on Building Recall.