Designed to help students with the problems they face in their academic writing, this guide demonstrates the best approaches to reading, taking notes, interpreting and comprehending.

Are you struggling to meet your coursework deadlines? Finding it hard to get to grips with your essay topics? Does your writing sometimes lack structure and style? Would you like to improve your grades? This text covers everything a student needs to know about writing essays and papers in the humanities and social sciences. Starting from the common difficulties students face, it gives practical examples of all the stages necessary to produce a good piece of academic work: • interpreting assignment topics • drawing on your own experience and background • reading analytically and taking efficient notes • developing your argument through introductions, middles and conclusions • evaluating and using online resources • understanding the conventions of academic culture • honing your ideas into clear, vigorous English. This book will provide you with all the tools and insights you need to write confident, convincing essays and coursework papers.

Offers strategies to analysing a topic, reading and research, planning, drafting and editing the final version of an essay.

Social workers are required to communicate in writing for a range of purposes and audiences. The new edition of this best-selling book aims to raise the profile of writing skills in social work practice. It encourages the development of writing techniques which will stand the reader in good stead throughout their professional career. Examples of the types of writing covered include: - Case-notes - Reports - Proposals - Literature reviews - Journal articles - Funding applications. Reflective exercises, hot tips for effective writing and further reading are included in each chapter. The book is also linked to the professional standards that structure training, practice and continuing professional development. It will be an essential study guide for all students, practitioners and managers in social work settings.

SAGE Course Companions are an exciting new series from SAGE offering students an insider's guide into how to make the most of their undergraduate courses and extend their understanding of key concepts covered in their course. Social Research Methods provides student readers with essential help with their research project, with revising for their course exams, preparing and writing course assessment materials, and enhancing and progressing their knowledge and thinking skills in line with course requirements on Research Methods courses. This Course Companion is designed to augment, rather than replace, existing textbooks for the course, and will provide: " Helpful summaries of the course curriculum to aid essay and project planning " Key summaries of the approach taken by the main Methods textbooks " Guidance on the essential study skills required " Help with developing critical thinking " Route-maps to aid the development of wider learning above and beyond the textbook " Pointers to success in course exams and written assessment exercises " A tutor's-eye view of what course examiners are looking for " An insider's view of what key course concepts are really all about SAGE Course Companions are much more than revision guides for undergraduate; they are an essential tool to taking your course learning and understanding to new levels and in new directions that are the key to success in undergraduate courses.

This text covers all aspects of academic essay writing from understanding the question to the presentation of the finished essay. The guidance notes may be used as a programme of advice or as a source of reference. Five model essays are included which successfully answered questions on politics, history, philosophy, sociology and literary studies. The book also contains suggestions for further reading.

"This book is an indispensable and uniquely placed resource for any social work student daunted by the prospect of the dissertation, or indeed for practitioners who are starting out in research. Malcolm Carey has managed the difficult task of producing a guide which is not only accessible and full of practicable advice, but is also grounded in theory and strongly informed by social work values. As a social work PhD student, I would highly recommend this book to fellow students at all levels of qualification." Hannah Jobber, PhD student, University of York, UK "Malcolm Carey has written an excellent second edition. It combines discussion of theoretical issues with practical guidance, supported with clear examples. It achieves a rare balance of conceptual sophistication combined with the provision of down-to-earth advice. Students at undergraduate and postgraduate levels will find it answers the majority of their questions about how to do a dissertation in a very clear and accessible way." Professor Steven M Shardlow, The University of Salford, UK and Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of Social Work "I have recommended the first edition of this book to undergraduate and postgraduate students undertaking dissertations and I will definitely be recommending this 2nd edition. It is a very clearly written and accessible guide to the process of writing a research-based dissertation from first thoughts through to final writing up. The book is well laid out with excellent summaries of key points in table form. Carey takes the student through the research process discussing the importance of the different stages in contributing to the dissertation as a whole. This new edition has been updated to take account of new areas such as the growth of systematic reviews and remains an excellent sourcebook for students and anyone taking their first steps in undertaking research." David Saltiel, Lecturer in Social Work, School of Healthcare, University of Leeds, UK "This book conveys complex information pertaining to research in a clear and accessible way… this is a comprehensive guide which is easy to follow." Val Sylvester, Senior Lecturer, The School of Health and Social Care, Birmingham City University, UK Research is now identified as comprising an integral part of everyday practice within health and social care. The second edition of this popular book equips students and practitioners within social work with the skills and knowledge to effectively undertake research and complete their dissertation. Written in a clear and straight forward way, the book demystifies tasks which may at first seem difficult, such as the literature review or interviews with practitioners, and clarifies the research process by providing a straightforward guide to the basics. Topics include: Deciding a topic Setting a research question and clear objectives The stages followed whilst completing a dissertation How to undertake a literature review Analysis and writing up Ethical issues This new edition has been fully updated to include more guidance on doing a literature review and literature based research, how the internet can be used to undertake research and more details of ethics and writing up. This book provides an essential guidebook to qualitative research methodology for social work students and practitioners.

"Excellent piece of knowledge packed into a book. I love it and would recommend it to friends and family intending to engage in research." 5 Star Amazon Review, 2013 • Why is accurate referencing important? • How do I reference print and digital sources correctly? • What must I do to avoid plagiarism in my written work? • How can I use referencing to assert my own ideas? The Complete Guide to Referencing and Avoiding Plagiarism, Third Edition demystifies the referencing process and provides essential guidance on how to avoid plagiarism when writing for university. It provides clear guidelines on why and when to reference, as well as how to correctly cite from a huge range of sources. The book explains what is considered good referencing practice and ensures you have a watertight understanding of what plagiarism is and isn't, and how to avoid it in your written assignments. Thoroughly updated throughout, this new edition has also been carefully restructured to make it easier to find the precise solutions to all your referencing dilemmas. It offers: • Practical examples of writing and referencing in action - how to ensure you are citing correctly and critically to meet your lecturers’ requirements • Referencing advice for all students new to higher education, and particularly international students studying in the UK for the first time • A new chapter with clear instructions for correctly referencing online material • A chapter of worked examples referencing over 30 different types of sources, plus answers to Frequently Asked Questions and quizzes to ensure you get your references right every time. Tried and trusted by thousands of Higher Education students, The Complete Guide to Referencing and Avoiding Plagiarism 3e is an essential book for anyone engaged in academic writing.

As English gains prominence as the language of higher education across the world, many institutions and lecturers are becoming increasingly concerned with the implications of this trend for the quality of university teaching and learning. With an innovative approach in both theme and scope, this book addresses four major competencies that are essential to ensure the effectiveness of English-medium higher education: creativity, critical thinking, autonomy and motivation. It offers an integrated perspective, both theoretical and practical, which defines these competences from different angles within ELT and Applied Linguistics, while also exploring their points of contact and applications to classroom routines. This approach is intended to provide practical guidance and inspiration, in the form of pedagogical proposals, examples of teaching practice and cutting-edge research by scholars and university teachers from all over the world. To that end, a leading specialist in the field introduces each of the four competencies, explaining concepts accessibly and synthetically, exposing false myths, presenting an updated state of the art, and opening windows for future studies. These introductions are followed by practitioner chapters written by teachers and scholars from different cultures and university contexts, who reflect on their experience and/or research and share effective procedures and suggestions for the university class with English as a vehicle for instruction.

This excellent new edition will continue to demystify the referencing process and provide essential guidance on making sure you are not committing plagiarism. It provides clear guidelines on why and when to reference as well as how to correctly cite from a huge range of sources.