Purdue
University North Central
Keys Terms
Defined
The process of most writing assignments is to ask the students to do one
of the following activities as they deal with the knowledge to which they have
been exposed. Completing the
assignment correctly is easier if the student has a clear understanding of the
key terms used in the written assignment.
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Requesting
Information |
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Key Terms |
What
They Ask |
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Define |
Give
the exact meaning of the topic. How
is it different from everything else of its type? |
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Describe,
Discuss |
Tell
what happened or what the topic is like.
Concentrate only on primary incidents or most important
characteristics. |
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Explain
(why) |
Tell
the main reasons why the topic happens or happened. |
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Illustrate |
Give
examples and relate each to the topic. |
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Relate |
Show
how the topic has an effect on something else; the connection/s between things. |
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Summarize |
To
give all of the main points of a topic; to reduce it without changing it.
(Usually not what is ask for by the instructor.) |
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Trace |
Give
a series of important steps in the development of an event, a process or
any sequence of happenings. |
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Asking
for Analysis |
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Key
Terms |
What
They Ask |
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Analyze |
Break
down the topic into its parts and explain how the parts relate to each
other and to the whole. |
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Critique |
Break
the topic into its parts (analyze) explain the meaning (interpret); and
give your opinion (evaluate). |
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Evaluate |
Give
your opinion about a topic, positive or negative, coming to some
conclusion about the relative weight of good/bad points. |
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Interpret |
Explain
the meaning of the topic. Give
facts to support your point of
view. |
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Compare |
Show
how two things are alike (contrast is also often implied here). |
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Contrast |
Show
the differences between two things. |
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Asking
for Argument or Persuasion |
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Key
Terms |
What
They Ask |
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Agree
or Disagree |
Give
your stand on a topic, positive or negative, and support your stand with
data, examples, etc. |
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Defend,
Attack |
Same
as agree, disagree. |
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Asking
for Application and Speculation |
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Key
Terms |
What
They Ask |
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Could...? |
Determine
if topic can be capably handled in this manner. Start with yes or no, follow with support based on
documentable evidence. |
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How
would...? |
Determine
the probable reaction to the topic in the circumstances described. |
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What
if...? |
Based
on what already has been learned, determine the outcome for the new set of
circumstances. |
Adapted
from Writing in the Arts and Sciences
by Maimon, Belcher, Hearn, Nodine, and O’Connor. Cambridge: Winthrop
Publishers, 1981.