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This site provides important information for students relating to assessment schedules for specific patterns of study in Years 7 through to 12. Students can also find tips and advice related to successfully planning for the undertaking of assessment tasks.
ASSIGNMENT SKILLS - PLAN TO SUCCEED!
ASSIGNMENT SKILLS - PLAN TO SUCCEED!
In a nutshell, getting started early is the key to success. Take a look at the following tips which will help you when planning out your best approach to completing your assignments.
An assignment mostly requires you to:
research
identify the most relevant information
consider your own ideas which will have come as you researched
determine a way to present your assignment to ensure it is answering the question
write and present it.
All this can seem daunting, particularly if there is no set structure or guidelines for the assignment. It’s not a piece of work that can be left until a few days before it is due, indeed you will need to put in many hours of work before you even start writing the final assignment.
Below you will find some general guidelines to give you structure, because when you have a “road-map” to follow, completing an assignment can be relatively easy. Having structure will make a huge difference.
Whilst each subject may have specific requirements for the assignment there are some common approaches that will help you.
1. GET YOUR BRAIN THINKING ABOUT THE TOPIC
1. GET YOUR BRAIN THINKING ABOUT THE TOPIC
GET YOUR BRAIN THINKING ABOUT THE TOPIC:
Even if your assignment isn’t due for weeks, start thinking about it immediately. At the very least, answer the key starter questions (in Step 1 below) on the day you get your assignment. Even if you are not thinking about it directly, your subconscious will be hard at work.
2. DON't ONLY USE GOOGLE, Find library resources!
2. DON't ONLY USE GOOGLE, Find library resources!
FIND LIBRARY RESOURCES: Although the school or local library will probably not be your main source of reference, you should drop in soon after receiving the assignment. Your teacher may have alerted the school librarian to the assignment and reference books, magazines etc may well be displayed. These will disappear quickly if the whole class has the same assignment. Books, periodicals, magazines can sometimes be a useful general overview for an assignment and they help to clarify a direction as you begin to immerse yourself into the assignment topic. It is not a good idea to only use Google!
3. Discover other resources
3. Discover other resources
DISCOVER OTHER RESOURCES: You could also ask your local librarian for any additional direction on where to look for resource material for your assignment. Librarians are often your best source of information. They know how to help people access relevant and appropriate information, in books, the Internet or computer based references. One of the challenging aspects of Internet based searches for school students is the complexity, language and purpose of websites (not to mention bias and reliability - which will be explained later on).
4. START EARLY!
4. START EARLY!
STARTING EARLY MEANS MORE TIME TO EXPLORE & ASK FOR HELP IF NEEDED:
If you do some initial research on the assignment points you’ve identified through the library, references your teacher may have given you, school textbooks, and general Internet search engines, you could find yourself having more direction in your research. For example: Perhaps there isn’t enough information, or perhaps you find you don’t understand important concepts, or perhaps you need to speak to your teacher to get further clarity. If you find this out early, you will still have plenty of time to plan, research, write and present your assignment. Imagine if you didn’t start your assignment for a week or so, and then discovered you needed more guidance. You could easily run out of time.
5. Create A safety net!
5. Create A safety net!
SAFETY FIRST: GIVE YOURSELF A SAFETY NET
Starting your assignment immediately will give you a safety net in case you get sick, or something unexpected happens. Assignments usually require a large amount of time; students must plan a strategy or schedule to ensure they are completed. You should always have a schedule that allows for the unexpected.
UNLOCK YOUR ASSIGNMENT IN 15 minutes
UNLOCK YOUR ASSIGNMENT IN 15 minutes
Here is a simple key to unlocking your assignment in 15 minutes, and give you an idea of what’s required. You should be able to answer these questions from the teacher’s assignment question or assignment notification sheet. Once you have the answers to these questions, you can then start to plan.
Read the assignment notification carefully (perhaps highlighting as you go) and note:
When is the assignment due?
What is the purpose* of the assignment?
What is the assignment asking you to do
What presentation format** is required?
Are there any guidelines or directions to follow?
Are there specific references/resources given?
Is there a marking criteria? How will the assignment be graded?
It is a good idea to ask a relative or friend to let you briefly explain your answers to each of the questions above, just to make sure you can put this in your own words.
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