| |
|
|
Writing Essays, Research Papers and Reports
Baker, Sheridan. The Practical Stylist. New York:
Harper & Row, Publishers, 1985.
The Practical Stylist examines essay writing, from determining a
thesis statement to writing grammatical sentences. The chapter on writing
a thesis is particularly effective. There is a good section on revision
and examples of essays for different disciplines.
Buckley, Joanne. Fit to Print. Toronto: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, 1991.
Fit to Print is a brief guide to essay writing that covers the
essentials without belaboring the point. It's a book to use as an aid to
writing essays because it follows the natural course from selecting a
topic to revising and proof reading.
Carney, Tom, and Barbara Carney. Liberation Learning:
Self-Directed Learning for Students. Windsor, Ontario:
Para-Publishing Enterprises, 1988.
Liberation Learning: Self-Directed Learning for Students presents
information and approaches to virtually every issue that university
students encounter during their studies. The first chapter examines
writing and suggests strategies for overcoming blocks. Another chapter
examines learning and teaching styles and the relationship between them.
Chapters on time management assume that the students are just out of high
school so not be appropriate for mature adult students.
Deese, James, and Ellin K. Deese. How to Study. New
York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1969.
How to Study is an introduction to study skills for on-campus
students. The book covers time management, reading, and essay writing, and
also provides tips for studying foreign languages, math, and science.
Ellis, David B. Becoming a Master Student. Rapid City,
South Dakota: College Survival, Inc., 1993.
Becoming a Master Student is one of the best study skills books
available. The book is updated yearly but the essential ideas remain
constant. Ellis believes that studying is a skill that can be learned and
improved. There are chapters on just about any issue that can perplex
students, from time management to memory, reading, note taking,
relationships, health and money. The ideas, exercises, and self-tests,
encourage students to interact with others and become active learners. The
writing style and layout are informal. The pages have bold, colorful
headings and illustrations, charts to emphasize main points, and lots of
white space for notes.
Fleet, Joan, Fiona Goodchild, and Richard Zajchowski.
Successful Learning. London, Ontario: University of Western
Ontario, 1987.
Successful Learning is an introduction to study skills, an earlier
version of Learning for Success. There is an inventory at the
beginning to help students identify their strengths and weaknesses
followed by chapters on time management, essay writing, science problem
solving, exam preparation, and others. The authors encourage students to
be strategic, to study "smarter not harder."
---. Learning for Success. Toronto: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, 1990.
Learning For Success covers the usual study skills?topics, such as
writing and note taking, as well as non-typical topics such as memory and
seminar presentation. Much of the information is presented in points,
exercises, and inventories. At just under 150 pages, the book is one of
the briefest introductions to study skills.
Frew, Robert, Richard Guches, and Robert Mehaffy. Writer's
Workshop. Palo Alto, California: Peek Publications, 1984.
Writer's Workshop provides information and exercises on every
aspect of writing, from sentences to formal essays. The book is effective
for acquiring new skills or as a reference book for writers. It contains a
thorough table of contents and index.
Kennedy, Mary Lynch, and Hadley M. Smith. Academic Writing.
Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1986.
Academic Writing examines, analyzes, and gives exercises for
understanding university readings and for writing many types of
assignments. The book also discusses how to approach various kinds of
essay topics (e.g. compare and contrast).
Lewis, Roger, and John Inglis. Report Writing.
Cambridge: National Extension College, 1982.
Report Writing is a clear and concise book that demonstrates an
approach to writing effective reports for school or business. The book
contains numerous examples and exercises to help the reader interact with
the information.
MacFarlane, Polly, and Sandra Hodson. Studying
Effectively and Efficiently: An Integrated System. Toronto:
University of Toronto, 1983.
Studying Effectively and Efficiently: An Integrated System provides
a brief introduction (46 pages) to study skills. Topics include
concentration, time scheduling, listening and lecture note taking, reading
and learning from textbooks, writing papers, and preparing for exams. The
book contains a brief, clear explanation of the mechanisms of learning and
memory.
Nilsson, Virginia. Improve Your Study Skills.
Athabasca, Alberta: Athabasca University, 1989.
Improve Your Study Skills is a handbook in seven modules covering
everything from reading to note taking, essay writing, and maintaining
motivation. The modules present study skills that research has shown to be
effective with adult students. Athabasca University students can obtain
the modules, free of charge, from the Athabasca University Students
Association (AUSA).
Norton, Sarah, and Brian Green. The Bare Essentials, Form B.
Toronto: Holt, Rinehart and Winston of Canada, Limited, 1988.
The Bare Essentials, Form A or Form B, is an excellent source of
information on spelling, grammar, and essay writing. The spelling section
uses standard Canadian spelling. The Bare Essentials uses a
conventional, top down approach to essay writing: finding a thesis,
writing an outline and draft, and polishing the final draft. The book is
in standard textbook format, but the content is presented in workbook
form. The language is informal and encouraging.
---. Essay Essentials. Toronto: Holt, Rinehart
and Winston of Canada, Limited, 1991.
Essay Essentials is a thorough guide to planning, researching,
writing, and revising essays. There are chapters on grammar, punctuation,
and spelling. The authors describe the book as combining the "bottom
up" and "top down" approaches to essay writing. The bottom
up approach uses free writing and brainstorming whereas the top down
approach proceeds from defining a topic, to writing, revision, and a final
draft. Students may be inclined towards one method or another depending on
their experience and the topic. The book is organized with headings,
sub-headings, tables, anecdotes, exercises, and self-tests.
Roth, Audrey J. The Research Paper: Process, Form, and Content.
Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publising Company, 1986.
The Research Paper: Process, Form, and Content is a book that takes
you through the process of writing a research paper. The book begins with
a planning guide and proceeds to examine each topic in detail. Although
the information on library searches is dated?libraries have changed
dramatically in the past few years?the information is sound and helpful.
Smith, H. Wendell. Readable Writing. Belmont,
California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1985.
Final drafts of students? essays can sometimes fail to live up to the
students? or their professors? expectations. Readable Writing is a
book that can help. The author uses a step-by-step approach to manuscript
preparation, examining everything from writing the first draft, to
revising for substance, order, and clarity. There is a detailed table of
contents and index, and check lists for revising drafts.
Strunk, William, and E. B. White. The Elements of Style.
New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1972.
If you have time to read only one book on writing, make it this 92-page
classic, The Elements of Style. There are chapters on grammar,
composition, and an especially useful one on word usage that could save
students from embarrassing errors.
Sullivan, Kathleen E. Paragraph Practice. New York:
Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1984.
If professors or tutors criticize students' paragraphs, Paragraph
Practice can help. It explains what a paragraph is and how it differs
from other writing. The author breaks the paragraph down into its parts,
and shows how several of them can be united to form a brief
composition?the kind of composition written for exams and tutor marked
assignments.
English Grammar
Frew, Robert, Richard Guches, and Robert Mehaffy. Writer's
Workshop. Palo Alto, California: Peek Publications, 1984.
Writer's Workshop provides information and exercises on every
aspect of writing from sentences to formal essays. The book is effective
for acquiring new skills or as a reference book for writers. It contains a
thorough table of contents and index.
Lewis, Norman. Instant Spelling Power. New York: Amsco
College Publications, 1976.
Instant Spelling Power may not be quite as fast as the title
promises but does provide tactics for remembering how to spell tricky
words. There are chapters on words with "ly" endings, "ie"
or "ei" in the middle, and many others. If you know that
particular types of words sabotage your best efforts, you can choose a
specific chapter to help.
Norton, Sarah, and Brian Green. The Bare Essentials, Form B.
Toronto: Holt, Rinehart and Winston of Canada, Limited, 1988.
The Bare Essentials, Form A or Form B, is an excellent source of
information on spelling, grammar, and essay writing. The spelling section
uses standard Canadian spelling. The Bare Essentials uses a
conventional, top down approach to essay writing?defining a thesis,
writing an outline and draft, and polishing the final draft. The book is
in standard textbook format, but the content is presented in workbook
form. The language is informal and encouraging.
---. Essay Essentials. Toronto: Holt, Rinehart and
Winston of Canada, Limited, 1991.
Essay Essentials is a thorough guide to planning, researching,
writing, and revising essays. There are chapters on grammar, punctuation,
and spelling. The authors describe the book as combining the "bottom
up" and "top down" approaches to essay writing. The bottom
up approach uses free writing and brainstorming whereas the top down
approach proceeds from defining a topic to writing, revision, and a final
draft. Students may be inclined towards one method or another depending on
their experience and the topic. The book is organized with headings,
sub-headings, tables, anecdotes, exercises, and self-tests.
Strunk, William, and E. B. White. The Elements of Style.
New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1972.
If you have time to read only one book on writing, make it this 92-page
classic, The Elements of Style. There are chapters on grammar,
composition, and an especially useful one on word usage that could save
students from embarrassing errors.
Sullivan, Tony. Grammar. Cambridge: The National
Extension College, 1979.
Grammar is an introduction to the subject for those who have never
studied it formally, or don't remember what they studied.
Reprinted with permission from
Selected Study Skills Books in the AU Library
http://www.athabascau.ca/html/services/advise/ssbib.htm#sec6
An Annotated Bibliography by Arlene
Young
Counselor, Athabasca University
(January 5, 1999)
Feedback to improve
this page
(please specify which page)
The Study Guides and Strategies web site was created and is
maintained by Joe
Landsberger,
academic web site developer at the University
of St. Thomas (UST), St. Paul, Minnesota. It is collaboratively
maintained across institutional and national boundaries, and last revised
September 04, 2002 .
Permission is granted to freely copy, adapt, print,
transmit, and distribute
Study Guides in settings that benefit learners. On the WWW, however, please link
rather than put up your own page since pages are frequently modified and
improved in consideration of educational research. No request to link is
necessary. Additional contributions and translations are warmly
received.
|
 |
