Critical Skills for Academic Assignments: A Student Toolkit 1e

Based on the authors two decades of experience in lecturing and teaching academic skills within a higher-education setting, the work is a response to the challenges facing today’s students in understanding the principles of critical thinking and applying it to their University studies. Critical Thinking for Academic Assignments is an invaluable tool for any student wanting to understand what is meant by critical thinking and how to apply these skills to the different stages of the assessment process.  Unlike most textbooks within this area on the market, it focuses solely upon practical advice rather than adopting a philosophical, more abstract, understanding of critical thinking. This practical approach to the topic allows students to move from lower to higher-level thinking skills. Written in an engaging and concise style, the work is a guide designed to be accessible to students from across multiple disciplines who want key pieces of information that can be easily translated to their studies. The book is interactive and engaging, raising the student’s involvement with the subject area through practical activities and examples. Its easy-to-use structure and approach take’s the student on a logical journey starting at the beginning of the assessment process through to engaging with feedback and critical thinking for the job market. At the same time the five-part structure with subchapters allow students to quickly ‘dip in’ and ‘dip out’ of any part of the book to meet their own individual learning needs. While the main focus is on assessment, the text also highlights the importance of these skills for employability

Table of Contents:
Part One: An introduction to critical thinking within the higher-education context 1 Critical thinking in everyday life 2 What does your lecturer mean when they say critical thinking? 3 Adopting a critical mindset Part Two: Deconstructing the assignment and the complexities of understanding and formulating the argument 4 Deconstructing the assessment task 5 What is an argument? 6 Planning a critical assignment Part Three: From planning to reading and researching for the assignment 7 The selection process: choosing your sources wisely 8 Reading critically for your assisgnment 9 The critical detective: identifying unfounded claims and misleading evidence 10 Note taking Part Four: Critical writing skills, focussing on the use of language and structuring a coherent piece of work 11 Writing your introduction 12 Building your paragraphs 13 Descriptive versus analytical writing 14 Vocabulary for critical writing - toolkit 15 Vocabulary for critical writing - beyond the essay 16 Critical thinking for research projects Part Five: An innovative look at critical thinking post assignment hand-in, encouraging students to apply these skills to the workplace in an increasingly competitive global economy 17 Critically engaging with feedback 18 Using critical thinking in the job-application proces