Marta Claytonfor The PR Academy

27/4/13

What we’ll cover• The marker: a fire-breathing dragon?• Why think about the marking process?• The marker’s perspective• Understanding the marker’s psychology• Appreciating how the marker reads your

dissertation• Understanding what the marker’s looking for• Holes to avoid falling into• Examples of typical marker feedback: the good, the

bad & the ugly• What not to forget

The marker: a fire-breathing dragon?

• Writing a dissertation = construction• Marking a dissertation = deconstruction• Marker’s aim is to take the dissertation apart to

see how it fits together – or doesn’t in some cases• Think like a marker because:

• You’ll be more reflective & self-critical about your work

• It’s your job to communicate what you want to say, not the marker’s job to decipher it

• You’ll have the edge over other students, if you get to grips with marking criteria

Why think about the marking process?

• Understand the marker’s psychology• Appreciate how he/she may set about

reading your dissertation• Understand what he/she’s looking for• Identify holes to avoid falling into

The marker’s perspective

• The marker wants a quiet, uncomplicated life• Marking mediocre dissertations can be tedious• The marker likes to see dissertations that:

• Are clearly written and easy to read• Provide interesting discussion e.g. an under-

explored area within a topic• Show good familiarity with a relevant body of

literature• Provide a logical premise for the research &

methodology• Present well-reasoned findings and conclusions

Understanding the marker’s psychology

• Some markers will start at page 1 and read through to the end

• Others will do what I do:• Flick through the pages to get a feel for the work

• Most experienced markers will be able to make a fairly accurate estimate of the quality of a dissertation – it’s so revealing

• Look at the reference list and analyse it• Long, short, old, new?• May check every cited author/source in the

body of work against the reference list and vice versa

Appreciating how the marker reads your dissertation

• Has a lot of dissertations to read and wants to sail through them

• First priority is to self-orientate – wants to know immediately what it is about in the first paragraph, not by page 5 or 10

• Second priority is a road map – to be kept informed about where he/she’s going:• Good intro that tells the marker what’s coming next• No ‘mystery tours’ with gaps in the narrative – it’s not

a novel where you want to keep the reader guessing!• Third priority is to remind the marker where he/she’s been

• Clear summaries and conclusions are important• Familiarise yourself with the diploma marking sheet!

Understanding what the marker’s looking for

• The title – does it make sense? Or does it include terms that appear nowhere else?

• Definitions – failure to define key concepts• Faking references – trying to impress by quoting

lots of references which haven’t been used in the work or citing references not found in the reference list

• Stating objectives at the start which don’t seem to relate to the literature review (and which are never referred to again)

Holes to avoid falling into #1

• Carrying out a survey where questions in the questionnaire don’t obviously relate to research questions stemming from lit review

• Gaps in the argument• Missing out steps in arguments which make the

marker ask “Why am I reading this? What’s this all about?”

• Failure to answer the “So what?” question at the end

• Vacuous conclusions which have no implications or don’t seem to relate to objectives

Holes to avoid falling into #2

• Unsubstantiated assertions• AVOID - “It is well known that…”• STATE – Who says so? When? Where?

Reference?• Obvious, but students do it

• Text littered with errors & typos• Can hinder comprehension - & irritate

marker!• Proof reading’s your job, not your

supervisor’s or marker’s• May draw marker’s attention to more

fundamental flaws in the work

Holes to avoid falling into #3

What do you mean?

• Apart from simple textual errors, watch out for:• Mismatch between contents list & section

titles• Appendices not referred to in main body of

dissertation• Insertion of diagrams & tables not referred to

in the text• Inconsistencies in bullet points & section

numbering• Inaccurate referencing

Holes to avoid falling into #4

• The student showed an excellent grasp of the relevant theories and provided a thoughtful critique of the literature.

• The approach to the research question was very clear and good justification was provided for the chosen research methods, as well as an understanding of the limitations.

• Findings were well presented with an understanding of the research limitations and well-argued recommendations.

Examples of typical feedback: The Good

• The literature review had a tendency to be descriptive rather than providing a critical perspective of the theory and relating it to the sector under investigation.

• Presentation of findings could have been improved by indicating more clearly which results related to which survey questions, which weren’t numbered in the questionnaire provided in the appendix.

• Some referencing was inaccurate with authors listed in the references but not cited in the work and vice versa.

Examples of typical feedback: The Bad

• There were numerous research objectives, which didn’t link back to the literature review, therefore the research lacked the sense of purpose and direction it needed.

• Lengthy transcripts from interviews were well presented but barely discussed.

• Appraisal of the qualitative research would have been easier for the marker if transcripts had been provided for the interviews.

Examples of typical feedback: The Ugly

Order or chaos?

• The dissertation will not write itself – no substitute for getting seriously knowledgeable about your topic

• The marker will be looking for linkages – if elements of dissertation do not relate to each other, he/she will find this out and draw own conclusions

• Make sure you allow your supervisor to see a draft before submission (lit review & methodology)

• Have a go at deconstructing a dissertation yourself!

What not to forget

• Call 07714 622337

• Email marta@smartapr.co.uk

• Tweet @mostlymarta

• Visit www.smartapr.co.uk

• Read more CIPR assignment tips on the Smarta PR blog – www.smartapr.co.uk/blog/latest.html

Any questions?