ATS2371 Chap.12 Research and Writing for the Three Assessed Tasks
Research and Writing for the Three Assessed Tasks
This chapter is the assessment craft the unit teaches alongside the anthropology. The three tasks form one sequence: the observation exercise trains description and interpretation, the annotated bibliography builds the source base for the essay, and the essay puts theory and case together.
All three are marked on rubrics that score the same underlying qualities, with the concepts and analysis criteria carrying the largest share and referencing carrying a criterion of its own. This chapter sets out what each rubric rewards band by band, records the penalties the rubrics state, and flags the one point on which the unit's own documents give two different instructions, which is the referencing style.
What this chapter covers
- 01
The three tasks as one sequence: describe, then research, then argue
- 02
What the observation exercise rubric scores: field description, argument and analysis, expression, structure, reflection and references
- 03
What the annotated bibliography rubric scores, including relevance of scholarly sources as its own criterion
- 04
What the essay rubric scores, and the additional highest band it carries above the other two
- 05
Penalties recorded in the rubrics: lateness per day, referencing style, and the two word count thresholds
- 06
The referencing conflict inside the unit's own documents, and how to resolve it before you submit
- 07
Theory and case study: connecting a framework to a specific ethnographic example rather than asserting either alone
Turn a description into an interpretation that earns the analysis marks
- 1Add the observation grid the description criterion asks for: how many participants, how arranged, how long, who spoke and in which language, and whether the opening and closing were formulaic.
- 1Name the concept the sequence instantiates, for example a rite of passage moving a person between statuses, and say which element carries the transition.
- 1Attach a source: a named writer whose account of that concept you are applying, cited in the body with author, date and page.
- 1Add the reflection the rubric scores separately: what the experience did to you as an observer, and what you were unable to establish about what it meant to participants.
Key terms
- Annotated bibliography
- A set of source entries that each give full reference details, the method used, the argument made, the strengths and limits of the study, and its relevance to the essay problem being addressed.
- Harvard style
- The author, date and page number citation format used inside the running text, with the full list of references placed at the end, which the observation brief and the essay tips document both direct students towards.
- Marking criterion
- One scored row of a rubric, carrying its own mark range and its own band descriptors, which is why an essay can be strong overall and still lose a whole criterion.
- Band descriptor
- The written statement of what work at a given grade level looks like for one criterion, which is the closest thing to an instruction the rubric provides.
- Case study
- A specific example drawn from an ethnographic study that demonstrates a theoretical concept in practice, which the unit's essay guidance requires alongside the theory rather than instead of it.
- Word count tolerance
- The permitted margin above or below the stated length, ten per cent in this unit, beyond which the rubrics record a penalty.
Research and Writing for the Three Assessed Tasks FAQ
What do all three rubrics have in common?
Their two largest criteria. Understanding of key concepts and the quality and coherence of argument and analysis carry the most marks in every one of them, and both are scored on evidence of independent critical thinking rather than on coverage. Referencing is scored as a separate criterion in all three.
Which referencing style should I actually use?
Confirm it on Moodle for the specific task, because the unit's documents differ. The observation exercise brief and the essay tips both direct you to Harvard, author, date and page, while the essay page asks for APA 7th or Chicago 18th. Ask your tutor rather than choosing, since references carry their own criterion and a style penalty of up to five per cent.
What are the penalties?
The rubrics record a late penalty of 10 per cent per day, up to five per cent for not following the referencing style guidelines, five per cent once you are more than ten per cent over or under the word count, and ten per cent once you are more than fifteen per cent out. Confirm the current figures on Moodle before relying on them.
Can I reuse my weekly readings in the annotated bibliography?
No. The task states that the four texts cannot come from the weekly readings, because the point is to conduct research on your own essay topic rather than revisit material already covered in lectures and tutorials. The essay tips add that most students need to look beyond the four.
Is there a mismatch in the observation exercise rubric?
There is, and it is worth raising with your tutor. Its six criteria are labelled as worth 20, 20, 10, 10, 10 and 15 per cent, which adds to 85, while the mark bands beside them run out of 20, 20, 15, 15, 15 and 15, which adds to 100. The other two rubrics do not have this mismatch.
Assessment move
Read the rubric for a task before you plan it, not after you draft it, and write your plan as one line per criterion. In this unit the two analysis criteria carry twice the weight of structure or expression, so a plan that spends its effort on presentation is optimising the smaller half of the marks.
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