Slide 1: Analysing Essay questions with mind maps
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Slide 2: Unpacking the Question
This involves reading and analysing it carefully to identify if there is a Topic Focus Instruction (Viewpoint)
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Slide 3: Identifying the Topic
Each assignment title should contain a general topic which indicates the overall range of the subject matter Example How important was colonialism in the development of anthropology?
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Slide 4: Identifying the Focus
Addressing the general topic is not sufficient. What aspect of the subject matter is the question about? Example How important was colonialism in the development of anthropology?
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Slide 5: Identifying the instruction or comment
This tells us what we need to do: How important was colonialism in the development of anthropology?
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Slide 6: Possible questions that need to be asked
What do I understand by the terms anthropology & colonialism? Was colonialism important? Yes/No? How important? In what ways? Other factors that affected its development? Was colonialism the most important factor? How can we prove its influence?
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Slide 7: The viewpoint
Sometimes questions are framed to include a particular viewpoint Example ‘Colonialism was the most important factor in the development of anthropology.’ Discuss. You would be required to give evidence to support or challenge this viewpoint. Most cases are not clear cut so there is usually evidence to support or challenge a particular viewpoint to a certain extent.
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Slide 8: Answer the Whole Question
What, in general, do you have to write about? ( topic) What particular aspect of the topic do you have to address? (focus) What do you have to do? (instruction) What do you need to support or challenge? (viewpoint)
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Slide 9: Example Questions
Identify the topic, focus and instruction in these assignment titles
1. In what ways is the study of social exclusion relevant to criminologists? 2. Discuss uses, advantages and dangers of performance appraisal.
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Slide 10: Getting Started
Spend a few minutes on this exercise: Write your next assignment title in the middle of a blank piece of A4 paper Draw a circle around it and identify the key words (topic, focus, instruction) Draw lines out from these words and jot down anything that relates to them
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Slide 11: Talking it over
Turn to the person next to you and explain how these ideas connect to each other. Draw lines between the different parts to show these connections
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Slide 12: Developing your plan
You will need to do further reading around the topic but before this, can you visualise a possible structure to this essay (number the sections on the mind map)
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Slide 13: Using the mind map
List all the questions you need to find answers for and use this as a reading guide. This should help you to avoid reading that is not relevant to the essay question
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Slide 14: References
Effective Learning Website: Tony Buzan (1993)The Mind Map Book.London: BBC
http://www.lancs.ac.uk/depts/celt/sldc/materials/writing/general.htm
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