In the next two posts, we will discuss critical thinking. What is critical thinking? A number of students may receive comments on their written work that it is "too descriptive." On the face of it, description seems like a good thing. How can you have too much description? What does that mean?
Essentially, this term refers to assignments have too much information and lack conclusions and evidence. Evidence, that is quotations and researched information, is important in an essay so that the essay can explain the link between the evidence and the assertion or arguments made in the beginning of the paragraph. What is evidence? Evidence in an assignment is no different than evidence in a trial. Evidence backs up assertions made in the assignment just like evidence in the court room backs up the assertions of the crown prosecuter or the defense. Usually, an assignment makes assertions in the first sentence of the paragraph or the topic sentence.
Pattern for a Successful Academic Paragraph
Sentence 1 - Topic sentence where the main argument(an assertion) for the paragraph is made.
Sentence 2 - Sentence presents evidence to back up the main argument.
Sentence 3 - An explanation of how the evidence backs up the main argument is made.
Sentence 4 - The final explanation of how the evidence backs up the main argument is made & the sentence anticipates the next argument.
Note: Sometimes, a complex argument may require five sentence paragraphs.
Without evidence and explanation, an assignment lacks critical thinking. In the next posting, we will look at how Bloom's Taxonomy can help students to think critically by showing more complex writing and thinking patterns.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Studying: A Time to Organize
Once again, we find ourselves at that time of year, the time to study for exams. Many students believe that studying is merely about the retention of information. Of course, we need, as our ultimate goal to retain information, many other strategies are helpful to make this become possible.
First and foremost, time management is required. When you know that you have an exam on, for example, May 15th, you need to schedule extensive blocks of time to study. This studying should take place over many days and hours each week before the exam. Students should prepare themselves by blocking off time using an agenda or daytimer. The agenda/daytimer should make prepare the student for a considerable output of time over many days and weeks. You need to be prepared to fulfill your learning needs.
Why? When we learn, one of our aims should be to move information from short term to long term memory. This takes time. Information only moves into long term memory after repeated reviews of your study materials. Information in your long term memory will, of course, be more readily retained for your exams. Most students critically underestimate how much time is required to learn a subject throughly. The more complex and detailed a subject is, the more time should be spent reviewing and learning. Of course, if the student works in the field concerned, their familiarity with the information should assist them. Nevertheless, it never pays to cut corners.
Walker and Schonwetter quote McKeachie et. al as saying that studying is: "the active process that involves acquiring, organizing, and integrating information into memory." (Walker & Schonwetter, Success Secrets of University Students 156.) This organizing and acquired can be done in many ways. The text itself is organized in subtopics which can be helpful for the student as it illustrates how to divide the subject into subgroups and topics. For example, this might assist a student who is trying to write notes on a given subject.
Nonetheless,it is important to realize that students have many learning styles, not all of them related to writing outlines and notes. Some students learn better orally while others are highly verbal. Some students study best alone while others get a great deal out of working with groups. The important thing is to find a way to study that works best for you. If you work best with others, put together a study group. If you learn better orally, recite your note and listen to them on a recording. If you really like to prepare with outlines and like to organize your notes alone on paper or computer, you should prepare yourself to do just this. There is no correct answer here. The most important thing is to learn from experience and keep working on making a learning style that works for you.
First and foremost, time management is required. When you know that you have an exam on, for example, May 15th, you need to schedule extensive blocks of time to study. This studying should take place over many days and hours each week before the exam. Students should prepare themselves by blocking off time using an agenda or daytimer. The agenda/daytimer should make prepare the student for a considerable output of time over many days and weeks. You need to be prepared to fulfill your learning needs.
Why? When we learn, one of our aims should be to move information from short term to long term memory. This takes time. Information only moves into long term memory after repeated reviews of your study materials. Information in your long term memory will, of course, be more readily retained for your exams. Most students critically underestimate how much time is required to learn a subject throughly. The more complex and detailed a subject is, the more time should be spent reviewing and learning. Of course, if the student works in the field concerned, their familiarity with the information should assist them. Nevertheless, it never pays to cut corners.
Walker and Schonwetter quote McKeachie et. al as saying that studying is: "the active process that involves acquiring, organizing, and integrating information into memory." (Walker & Schonwetter, Success Secrets of University Students 156.) This organizing and acquired can be done in many ways. The text itself is organized in subtopics which can be helpful for the student as it illustrates how to divide the subject into subgroups and topics. For example, this might assist a student who is trying to write notes on a given subject.
Nonetheless,it is important to realize that students have many learning styles, not all of them related to writing outlines and notes. Some students learn better orally while others are highly verbal. Some students study best alone while others get a great deal out of working with groups. The important thing is to find a way to study that works best for you. If you work best with others, put together a study group. If you learn better orally, recite your note and listen to them on a recording. If you really like to prepare with outlines and like to organize your notes alone on paper or computer, you should prepare yourself to do just this. There is no correct answer here. The most important thing is to learn from experience and keep working on making a learning style that works for you.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Time Management: a Life Time Strategy
Time Management: A Life Time Strategy
Walker and Schonwetter write in Success Secrets of University Students (2003) that "Effectively managing your time is not just an important challenge of university, but in life. (115) Like most other people, my first attempt at "time management" was using a to-do list. I found to-do lists more or less successful. They are helpful in that they are an attempt to organize time sensitive dates. This is a good thing.
However, personally I've found agendas/daytimers (N/A) and other more complicated scheduling systems to be far more successful. For example, when you are faced with a series of exams you need to divide up your time careful to ensure that you have enough time to go over all your data several times. Stress becomes a problem when you are uncertain about a perceived goal. Thus, breaking down your study information into doable pieces allows students to succeed for two reasons. First, they have been able to take the time during study to move information from their short term to their long term memories. Information in your long term memory is more likely to be remembered. Second, the fact they they have done this study has reduced stress. Stress reduction leads to more successful exams or tests.
Students frequently procrastinate due to stress and worry about tasks (SSUS, 122-124). Some students are overconfident, rebellious or depressed. However, getting a planner and following a daily plan will reduce problems and produce positive results.
Walker and Schonwetter write in Success Secrets of University Students (2003) that "Effectively managing your time is not just an important challenge of university, but in life. (115) Like most other people, my first attempt at "time management" was using a to-do list. I found to-do lists more or less successful. They are helpful in that they are an attempt to organize time sensitive dates. This is a good thing.
However, personally I've found agendas/daytimers (N/A) and other more complicated scheduling systems to be far more successful. For example, when you are faced with a series of exams you need to divide up your time careful to ensure that you have enough time to go over all your data several times. Stress becomes a problem when you are uncertain about a perceived goal. Thus, breaking down your study information into doable pieces allows students to succeed for two reasons. First, they have been able to take the time during study to move information from their short term to their long term memories. Information in your long term memory is more likely to be remembered. Second, the fact they they have done this study has reduced stress. Stress reduction leads to more successful exams or tests.
Students frequently procrastinate due to stress and worry about tasks (SSUS, 122-124). Some students are overconfident, rebellious or depressed. However, getting a planner and following a daily plan will reduce problems and produce positive results.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Writing and Grammar - Although & However & But
Although, however, but and and
"Although"describes a situation which is opposition. Two subordinate clauses are used to indicate two things that oppose each other. It is usually in the middle of the sentence but it can be at the beginning.
Example:
Although the sun was very hot, she didn't get a sunburn.
He failed his exam although he studied for weeks.
However
"However contrasts what is in the rest of the sentence. Like therefore, moreover, and as a matter of fact, however is a "transitional expression" that "bridges between sentences or parts of sentences." (Hacker, Diana. A Canadian Writer's Reference. 199.)
"Hitler attempted to conquer the Soviet Union; however, he was defeated. (The Book of Common Errors in English; 451.)
But and and
"But" and "and" are coordinating conjunctions that appear in the middle of sentences. Coordination is used to give equal emphasis to both parts of the sentence. "And" exist to clauses and nouns to a sentence. But is used to show opposition in ideas. Technically, neither "and" nor "but" should be placed at the beginning of sentences.
Example:
The civilization of Greece gave birth to democracy but they practiced slavery. (see: The Book of Common Errors. 132.)
Among the animals found in Northern Ontario are the moose, the bear, the racoon, the fox and the bobcat.
"Although"describes a situation which is opposition. Two subordinate clauses are used to indicate two things that oppose each other. It is usually in the middle of the sentence but it can be at the beginning.
Example:
Although the sun was very hot, she didn't get a sunburn.
He failed his exam although he studied for weeks.
However
"However contrasts what is in the rest of the sentence. Like therefore, moreover, and as a matter of fact, however is a "transitional expression" that "bridges between sentences or parts of sentences." (Hacker, Diana. A Canadian Writer's Reference. 199.)
"Hitler attempted to conquer the Soviet Union; however, he was defeated. (The Book of Common Errors in English; 451.)
But and and
"But" and "and" are coordinating conjunctions that appear in the middle of sentences. Coordination is used to give equal emphasis to both parts of the sentence. "And" exist to clauses and nouns to a sentence. But is used to show opposition in ideas. Technically, neither "and" nor "but" should be placed at the beginning of sentences.
Example:
The civilization of Greece gave birth to democracy but they practiced slavery. (see: The Book of Common Errors. 132.)
Among the animals found in Northern Ontario are the moose, the bear, the racoon, the fox and the bobcat.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Plagiarism and Poor Scholarship
Plagiarism has been described as "the unacknowledged use of another person's work in the form of original ideas, strategies, and research" (Success Secrets of University Students; 185). In our programme, we use the terms poor scholarship and plagiarism. When the comments on a student's work mention that there is "plagiarism", we do not allow the student to redo the work. Hopefully, however, the student comes to understand what plagiarism is in spite of their problem. It is better if a student discovers early in the programme that they have this problem rather than when they are trying to complete their dissertation. Failure, of this kind at the dissertation level, is disasterous.
A paper that demonstrates "poor scholarship" can have a grade as low as 35%. We allow such a student to redo their work. One of the most important aspects of poor scholarship that a student must understand is that, the paper they have handed in has large pieces of "unacknowledged" work. This may mean, for example, that a student has reworded a passage from someone else's work that is relevant to their subject. They have not acknowledged this work that they have borrowed from someone else. This is "plagiarism" because the thoughts do not belong to them.
One of the problems I commonly see are three or four quotations in one passage. This leads to serious problems for students. When a quotation is included in a student's work, the student is supposed to explain the relevance of the quotation their work. The purpose of a quotation is to back up/show evidence for arguments that are being put forward in the student's paper. If a paragraph has three or four quotations, the students does not have the time and space to (a) make a clear argument about the subject (b) find a quotation that gives evidence to back up the argument (c) gives the student time to explain how the evidence puts the argument forward.
KB
A paper that demonstrates "poor scholarship" can have a grade as low as 35%. We allow such a student to redo their work. One of the most important aspects of poor scholarship that a student must understand is that, the paper they have handed in has large pieces of "unacknowledged" work. This may mean, for example, that a student has reworded a passage from someone else's work that is relevant to their subject. They have not acknowledged this work that they have borrowed from someone else. This is "plagiarism" because the thoughts do not belong to them.
One of the problems I commonly see are three or four quotations in one passage. This leads to serious problems for students. When a quotation is included in a student's work, the student is supposed to explain the relevance of the quotation their work. The purpose of a quotation is to back up/show evidence for arguments that are being put forward in the student's paper. If a paragraph has three or four quotations, the students does not have the time and space to (a) make a clear argument about the subject (b) find a quotation that gives evidence to back up the argument (c) gives the student time to explain how the evidence puts the argument forward.
KB
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Words to consider
Sometimes, the simplest of words are the most important. Today, we will consider the word "think". I would like to suggest that, in terms of our work, that two meanings of think are the most important. First, let's consider think as to "direct one's toward something or to use one's mind to actively form connected ideas." (Oxford Dictionary of English: 1833)
Thinking, especially critical thinking, is a process of putting together ideas. For example, critical thinking means that idea are supported by the correct data. Thinking also means taking the time to think over assignments and exams. Students often fail to realize that they should take time to think things over carefully and understand the direction that their thoughts should take.
Thinking, especially critical thinking, is a process of putting together ideas. For example, critical thinking means that idea are supported by the correct data. Thinking also means taking the time to think over assignments and exams. Students often fail to realize that they should take time to think things over carefully and understand the direction that their thoughts should take.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Happy New Year
First, I want to wish everyone a Happy and successful New Year. I also want to welcome anyone to this blog who hasn't been here for very long. The purpose of the blog is to assist students in the MBA programme at U of Leicester to succeed in their studies. I do this, broadly, by providing students with information of writing skills, study skills and organizational skills. Most of the subjects I discuss relate in some way to these skills.
For example, this year I plan to have short blog on expanding your word vocabulary. Vocabulary skills are really a part of writing skills. At the end of last year, I discussed mindful meditation as part of stress reduction and mind power. Stress reduction and mindfulness is a part of all components of education. When students are relaxed, they do better in all facets of their work.
Sometimes, we discuss topics such as "plagiarism" which may not be an issue for a particular student but which does affect many students throughout the programme. My point-of-view on this difficult topic is that plagiarism is a problem in education because students need to understand how to think critically and how to use good reference sources. They turn to the poor resources on the internet because they are lost. Once they learn how to use good source materials, this will stop.
My goal is to see every student improve in the New Year.
KB
For example, this year I plan to have short blog on expanding your word vocabulary. Vocabulary skills are really a part of writing skills. At the end of last year, I discussed mindful meditation as part of stress reduction and mind power. Stress reduction and mindfulness is a part of all components of education. When students are relaxed, they do better in all facets of their work.
Sometimes, we discuss topics such as "plagiarism" which may not be an issue for a particular student but which does affect many students throughout the programme. My point-of-view on this difficult topic is that plagiarism is a problem in education because students need to understand how to think critically and how to use good reference sources. They turn to the poor resources on the internet because they are lost. Once they learn how to use good source materials, this will stop.
My goal is to see every student improve in the New Year.
KB
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