3.2 Clear and logical thinking in academic writing
There is the potential for many errors to be made when attempting academic writing, particularly when using it for assessment purposes. One of the most common errors is not reading the question properly or misinterpreting the topic. It is important to think through what the question requires (rather than what you would like to write about) and to be able to apply the appropriate thinking and structure to the question.
Activity 3c
- Read through the section on Clear and Logical Thinking on pages 450-457 of the textbook. Do not be put off by the complex nature of this section. It is simply providing different perspectives on the thought process. Concentrate on the examples the textbook provides to clarify your understanding. Take particular note of the material on critical thinking (the checklist for evaluating the main message is a very useful one for checking the validity of your work), techniques for sound thinking (it is important to differentiate between facts that are supported by the research and your opinion that may be unsupported by research; unsupported information is not useful in an academic report) and common errors in thinking .
- Remind yourself that original thinking is sometimes helpful by considering the problem of the debtor with a beautiful daughter in Reading 3.6.
Back Page