LNGE40049 - Essay Writing for University

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit will guide you through the process of writing an academic essay. You will be introduced to the culture of academic writing at university and the common features of academic essays. You will develop strategies to read, evaluate and summarise information, and then use that information to develop and support an academic argument. Throughout the unit, you will develop critical thinking, note-making, formal writing and referencing skills necessary for academic writing.

Details

Level Non-award
Unit Level Not Applicable
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites There are no pre-requisites for the unit.

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2025

Term 1 - 2025 Profile
Bundaberg
Cairns
Gladstone
Mackay
Online
Rockhampton
Townsville
Term 2 - 2025 Profile
Bundaberg
Cairns
Gladstone
Mackay
Online
Rockhampton
Townsville
Term 3 - 2025 Profile
Online

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Non-award unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Annotated bibliography 20%
2. Portfolio 30%
3. Essay 50%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 92.45% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 25.36% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: Teaching team
Feedback
Students benefit from reflective practice and guidance on the use of feedback.
Recommendation
Add the requirement of a guided short reflection to the final assessment so students can reflect on their previous feedback and how they have applied it.
Action Taken
A short guided reflection has been added to the final assessment, encouraging deeper engagement with feedback and supporting academic integrity through reflection on the learning and writing process.
Source: Teaching team
Feedback
Students value active public forums that provide opportunities to ask questions and communicate with other students and tutors.
Recommendation
Update and streamline the Student Forum on Moodle.
Action Taken
The Student Forum on Moodle has been updated and streamlined to enhance usability, encouraging more meaningful peer interaction and fostering a stronger learning community.
Source: Teaching team
Feedback
Students value assessment rubrics that are clear and that support skill development across the term.
Recommendation
Update and align the Assessment 2 and Assessment 3 rubrics.
Action Taken
The rubrics for Assessments 2 and 3 have been updated and aligned, ensuring a more consistent marker feedback approach across the two assessments and clearer student expectations.
Source: Unit Coordinators and teaching team
Feedback
Students value practical guidance that enables them to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) confidently and ethically in their assessments.
Recommendation
Create a one-page, student-friendly pamphlet guide to using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in assessments, including sample prompts and clear academic integrity guidelines.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Unit Coordinators and teaching team
Feedback
Students value engaging research topics that support access to reliable sources and structured writing.
Recommendation
Trial two new research topics that are current, and designed for use of accessible sources and distinct subtopics for paragraphing.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Unit Coordinators and teaching team
Feedback
Students value clear, concise rules and reminders that help them avoid unintentional breaches of academic integrity.
Recommendation
Update Academic Integrity breach warnings on assessments and add a “3 Simple Rules for AI Use” infographic in the unit Moodle site.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Evaluate information for relevance, authority, objectivity and currency
  2. Paraphrase, quote and summarise information using appropriate referencing conventions
  3. Plan and write an academic essay that integrates sources to support a reasoned argument.


Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3
1 - Annotated bibliography • •
2 - Portfolio • •
3 - Essay • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3
2 - Communication • •
3 - Information Literacy • • •
4 - Information Technology Competence • •
6 - Critical Thinking • • •
8 - Ethical Practice • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
2 - Portfolio • • • • •
3 - Essay • • • • •
1 - Annotated bibliography • •