Tips for Planning
On this page:
- Getting to know your assignment brief
- Module outcomes (also known as learning outcomes)
- Marking criteria
Get to know your assignment brief by breaking it down into its component parts. Assignment briefs can be found on your Moodle page under Assessment and Feedback.
You might be asked to write an essay, produce a presentation or write a report. Before starting work, it is important to be clear on exactly what you are being asked to do. This information can usually be found in the Assessment Task Details section of your assignment brief. Have a look at the example, taken from a real brief at Wrexham University...
Module outcomes (often referred to as learning outcomes) serves as a guide for students to understand what they are expected to achieve by the end of the module and provide a framework for assessing progress and success. Look at the module outcomes from our model brief...
Look for a section called ‘Marking Criteria’ in the brief. This provides a structured framework used by marker to evaluate an academic assignment. Often aligned to the module outcomes, this will give a clear focus for achieving the desired grade.
All sections of the brief are important, which is why we would always recommend printing it out and highlighting other key information such as word count, submission deadline and assessment weighting.
You may be provided with suggestions on how to structure your work, as shown in the following example from a different Wrexham University brief...
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Assessment task details |
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From the key concepts explored in this module, create a 2,000-word ‘key concepts’ document. Recommended content and structure: Select four-five concepts from the list below. For each concept selected you should provide an academic definition and deeper discussion of the meaning and value of the concept in a health, mental health and wellbeing context. Unlike some other assessments, you do not need an introduction or conclusion for this assignment. You can begin straight away with your first concept. Concepts: capital; culture; figurations; globalisation; habitus; ideology;
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| Module outcomes assessed |
1. Recognise what a key concept is and the value of key concepts for studying health, mental health and wellbeing. 2. Explain key concepts from sociological and psychological theories. 3. Apply key concepts from sociological and psychological theories to real life issues in health, mental health and wellbeing fields. |
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Grade boundaries % |
0 |
1-29% |
30-39% |
40-49% |
50-59% |
60-69% |
70-79% |
80-89% |
90-100% |
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Learning outcome 1 |
Non submission
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Unsatisfactory
Does not meet the learning outcome and criteria to pass the assignment.
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Minimal
Minimum knowledge of relevant theories unsupported by research. Lacks evaluation, arguments lack planning and structure. Ideas are poorly communicated.
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Satisfactory
Basic knowledge of relevant theories supported by basic research.
Limited evaluation, arguments lack planning and structure. Ideas are not communicated effectively |
Fairly good
Reasonable knowledge of relevant theories supported by a fair range of research.
Some evaluation, arguments show some planning and structure. Adequate communication of ideas. |
Good
Good knowledge of relevant theories supported by a good range of research. Good evaluation, arguments are planned and structured. Good communication of ideas. |
Excellent
Excellent knowledge of relevant theories supported by wide ranging research. Excellent evaluation, arguments show excellent planning and structure. Excellent communication of ideas. |
Exceptional
Exceptional knowledge of relevant theories supported by extensive research. Exceptional evaluation, exemplary arguments, original and insightful. Exceptional communication of ideas. |
Outstanding
Outstanding knowledge of relevant theories supported by extensive research. Outstanding evaluation, exemplary arguments, unique and insightful. Outstanding communication of ideas. |
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Assessment task details |
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Assessment Brief
Record a 3 minute TED-style talk on the topic of ‘How I got here, and where I’m going’.
Content and structure
Some general guidance is as follows:
• The title can be interpreted very broadly, so you can make it unique to you • Your recording should showcase your professional verbal and non-verbal communication skills • Your talk should have a beginning, middle and end • Do not use any slides - this should just be you talking • Your talk must NOT contain any other persons or personally identifiable information (e.g. make sure that there are no photographs behind you) • Your talk must respect confidentiality, and so should only be about yourself (not family members, friends etc) • Your talk should not be edited in any way
Assessment Brief Video
An assessment briefing guidance video is provided in the ‘Assessment and Feedback’ area of the module page, during which the Module Leader explains the brief above in more detail. |
As you can see, the assessment task details states students DO NOT need to include an introduction or conclusion so it is important to be aware of this. Students are also guided towards a set list of concepts to choose from so it would be important to choose from this selection rather than identify your own.
When considered alongside the task details, while students are not expected to write an introduction for this assignment, it would perhaps be important to include a paragraph at the start to address module outcome one.
Consideration of module outcome two could be demonstrated through picking up on the language used in the brief. For example, if choosing ‘habitus’ as a key concept, you might say something like this:
‘From a sociological perspective, habitus originates primarily from the work of… (citation).’
‘From a psychological perspective, habitus can be understood in terms of… (citation).’
Remember to include clear citations to show where you have sourced your information.
