Guidelines For Undertaking Assignment 1

Assignments concern the generation of a defensible written argument supported by logic and evidence. They use a different style or genre of language from that of day to day conversation. The assignment is not a blog entry. It demands formality.

Assignment writing is NOT common speech, written down. Reflection is needed to select appropriate/ precise words and clear sentences to write logically with evidence. Blog writing lacks these criteria. Blogs adopt colloquial, chatty English. To summarise, assignments aim to demonstrate a written product presenting a clear, logical argument supported with evidence. The following is advice for you to consider when undertaking Assignment 1. There are five themes which structure this advice:

· Do what the assignment specifies

· Planning, reading and writing for a Master’s assignment involves substantial time.

· Adopting accurate logical academic writing is important

· Demonstrating quality academic writing

· Barriers to accurate academic writing

Do What The Assignment Specifies.

Do not “massage” the meaning of the assignment to suit yourself. If you do not address the assignment agenda, the highest grading is 10/50. See Rubric. The following is the Assignment 1 topic: You are to explore in depth one perspective in educational leadership addressed in EDLE 680. You do this by critically reading an appropriate book of substance. The assignment invites you to explain and justify how your insights generated from your critical reading, enhance your understanding of leadership. This is not a book review.

Your introduction must clearly state:

· the purpose of the assignment

· your response/thesis

· your structure

A quality introduction clearly and concisely states the purpose of the assignment, then you state your summarised response (thesis) concerning that purpose. Your understanding becomes the basis for a conceptual structure that scaffolds the assignment.

The structure presented in the introduction aims to guarantee the assignment agenda is being concisely addressed in the body of the text, by writing a logical narrative supported with evidence. The structure is the framework, scaffolding the body of the narrative. The structure uses appropriate themes or headings/ subheadings to signpost each of the arguments adopted to address the question. There are multiple paragraphs under each heading. When writing a paragraph under a specific heading, regularly ask yourself whether your paragraph directly assists in addressing the assignment agenda. If not, delete. Do not deviate from the assignment purpose by engaging in personal chatter.