Final assignment - academic writing and research skills

Task 1 of 4 – Report (500 words max, excluding diagrams, references, and appendices)

Conduct an investigation into academic research and writing to show your understanding of:

The meaning and purpose of academic research and writing

Different academic writing conventions

Types of academic research

Task 2 of 4 – Essay (1000 words max, excluding diagrams, references, and appendices)

Write an essay demonstrating your awareness of:

Critical thinking as a concept and process

Skills required for effective academic research and writing

The importance of critical thinking in academic and other contexts

Techniques to evaluate academic arguments

Task 3 of 4 – Critique a Research Paper (1000 words max, excluding diagrams, references, and appendices)

Select a research paper (e.g. from Google Scholar) and critique it, showing you understand:

Types of sources used and their role in shaping the argument

The research process followed by the author(s)

Differences between primary and secondary research in the paper

Also, provide evidence to support or challenge:

The authors choice of sources

The reliability and validity of the research process

The quality of primary and secondary research included

Task 4 of 4 – Presentation (10 minutes / ~500 words)

Prepare a 10-minute presentation on an academic argument related to a topic of personal or career interest. You must:

Use inductive, deductive, or combined reasoning to build your argument

Justify your choice of reasoning and support it with citations

Identify key components of your argument and explain why it is reliable and valid

Use visual aids to support your presentation

Referencing

All tasks must use relevant academic and reliable sources.

Use Harvard Referencing Style for in-text citations and the final reference list.

Include a full bibliography to support all your evidence.