E-Test

independent/self-directed learner taking responsibility for your own learning.

academic integrity being honest, trustworthy and responsible in all aspects of academic work.

plagiarism using other authors’ ideas and words without clearly acknowledging the source of information/using another author’s ideas but made it appear as if the ideas were your own.

lateral reading the process of validating an author’s claims and conclusions by looking for confirmation/support from other sources.

scholarly sources written by academics, researchers and other experts in a particular field of study. (shares recent research, theories, insights, current thoughts, etc.)

peer-review an editorial process where scholarly sources such as journal articles, get sent to other experts (peers) who are in the same area as the author/s, and they review them before they are published.

skimming strategy involving reading quickly and superficially.

scanning strategy where you look for something specific.

referencing it permits legitimate use of others’ work and enable readers to identify and follow up on sources that a writer has used. Maintains academic integrity.

referencing styles specific rules for how you should reference someone else’s research ideas in your academic writing.

in-text reference/citation provided in the body of your writing every time you discuss ideas found in other sources. (give author’s surname and year of publication). E.g., ‘Severe weather patterns appear to be increasing in intensity around the world (Jackson, 2018).’

author-prominent referencing (type of in-text reference) where you emphasise the importance of the author/s as the source of the idea that you have borrowed. E.g., ‘Birch and Magnolia (2024) suggest that…’ OR ‘…human behaviour at times, according to Birch and magnolia (2024).’

information-prominent referencing (type of in-text reference) where you focus on the borrowed ideas you are using rather than the author/s who developed the idea. E.g., ‘…display human behaviour at times (Birch & Magnolia, 2024).’

end-text reference provide this at the end of your writing in the form of a reference list.

paraphrasing taken a source in your own words rather than using the words of the authors.

summary a condensed version of the original text. (make longer arguments into shorter statements, and delivers the main points of the source.)

quoting using the exact words from another source.

writer’s voice how you exhibit control over the assignment topic you are responding to/your insights into the topic after completing your research process.

synthesising combining information form multiple sources in order to support your overall stance. (shows you’ve read widely on the topic and capable of linking between different sources towards strengthening your argument.)

paragraphs the building block for any form of academic writing.

transition markers creates links/cohesion between ideas. E.g., and, also, in addition, however, in other words, that is, for example, for instance, although, even though, to summarise, to conclude, clearly, in particular, therefore, thus, as a result, etc.

simple sentence/main clause one complete idea with a subject and verb. E.g., the sun is shining.

complex sentence one main clause & one subordinate clause (can’t stand alone). E.g., although it’s winter, the sun is shining.

compound sentence 2 main clauses joined by a comma and a conjunction (and, but, yet). E.g., he worked hard, yet he didn’t achieve high marks.

active sentence the subject does the action. E.g., the nurse dressed the patient’s wound.

passive sentence the subject receives the action. E.g., the patient’s wound was dressed by a nurse.

conjunctions joins 2 main clauses together to form a compound sentence. FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).

comma splices when you incorrectly use a comma to join 2 or more main clauses together in a single sentence. E.g., I repaired all the structural errors in my paper, I turned it in.

sentence fragments an incomplete sentence. May be missing a subject or main verb.

run-on sentences a sentence in which several main clauses are strung together without proper punctuation, so it looks like one sentence. E.g., they gossip about many things at lunch they always have the most to say about their co-workers.

faulty parallel structures using the same grammatical pattern in a list of 2 or more elements in a sentence to indicate that they have the same level of importance. E.g., reading, writing and counting are basic skills (correct ending in ing). E.g., …emphasises diligence, integrity and being cooperative (incorrect must be one word).

dangling modifiers phrase/clause which describes the concept that is placed next to it. Happens when it’s not clearly and logically related to the words. E.g., Reading a nature magazine, an article on the dangers of ice fishing caught my eye. (incorrect). E.g., While I was reading a nature magazine, an article on the dangers of ice fishing caught my eye. (correct)

peer evaluation involves students submitting work to their peers (classmates) to read and evaluate. Students make comments on each other’s work, highlighting good points and areas for improvement.