Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

Tips for Better Writing: How to Tackle the Exam Essay

Tuesday, April 14, 2015, By Kathleen Haley
Share
Writing-Center-2.TWO

The Writing Center—and its writing consultants—assist students from across campus.

This is another piece in the Tips for Better Writing series in collaboration with the Writing Center, which is part of the Writing Program in the College of Arts and Sciences and available to all University students. In this edition, Stacey Wright, a professional writing instructor in the Writing Program, offers some advice on short answer and essay writing on exams.

Q: What’s the first thing to consider once you have read an essay question?

A: The first thing to do is really pay attention to the key words that are in the question. Does it say discuss, analyze, argue, explain? For example, arguing needs to have much more persuasive language and take a stance on what the writer has discovered. Analysis is writing critically from multiple perspectives on a topic—not stating that one perspective is better than the other.

Also, from class to class, the word “argue” has different requirements. In one class, argue might mean to write a one-sided persuasive essay. In another, it might mean to write a debate—arguing for one side, acknowledging the opposition and then refuting it. Yet still, arguing may be trying to argue a way to understand something without taking a side. You have to think about what kind of argument you are being asked to produce and be attentive to what you’ve been doing in class all semester long.

Stacey Wright

Stacey Wright

From there, be aware of terminology that your instructor wants you to explain and what kind of content you are being asked to write about. There may be particular terms to remember and certain sources to use from class or outside sources.

Q: Is it helpful to work up an outline first?

A: I was just talking to someone who was feeling anxious about a test. She said she jumps right into answers, and she asked what I would suggest. I said, “Don’t just jump in. That’s the worst thing you can do.”

Once you understand what the prompt asks of you, imagine in your head some of the possible topics you can write about. Jot those down and then give yourself a loose order, maybe numbering the order that you may logically put those topics in. I think giving yourself a rough outline, whether it’s numbers or bullets, is very helpful.

However, you do have to be flexible. Halfway through your work, you may decide to revise some ideas. So you should be open to that kind of change.

Q: Even for short essays, do they need to have an introduction, narrative and conclusion?

A: You should always have some type of a topic sentence. If it’s a two- to three-paragraph answer, you might have one or two sentences that establish what you will be doing in that piece of writing. If you have a one- to two-sentence opening, then you should have a one- or two-sentence closing just to have some sense of closure at the end. Even if it’s a one-paragraph answer, you should still have a solid topic sentence and then a solid sentence at the end in conclusion.

Q: What sort of quick copyediting should you do on an exam essay?

A: If you have two weeks to work on a paper or take-home exam, there is going to be a different level of expectations than writing for an in-class exam that you only have an hour to work on.

Writing-Center-9.TWO

Consider including a topic sentence and a conclusion to summarize your essay.

Content is always the most important, but of course, if you don’t use the right punctuation, then that can actually create miscomprehension in a sentence. Some students are aware that they have spelling errors or they know they struggle with commas, so just being aware of what they struggle with is helpful.

When you are done with the content, go back through your writing. I always suggest picking one or two things to look at at a time. Skim through your paper at first and look at each sentence; for example, “Did I put commas in the right place?” And then go back and look at your spelling.

Sometimes it’s even helpful to look at each sentence one at a time, starting at the end and then working your way to the beginning. Focus your attention not on the content but on the sentence structure. What happens sometimes is that you know what you meant to write, so you read right over any errors, especially if you’ve looked at something over and over in an in-class test and there’s a certain level of anxiety.

It is natural to have one or two mistakes, but there is a difference between the person who has just one or two mistakes versus someone who struggles.

At the Writing Center, we can help provide strategies. We don’t correct papers, but we will talk to students and say, “Let’s talk about why you need to have commas or verb agreement and how to do that,” so when they leave they are equipped with that knowledge.

 

  • Author

Kathleen Haley

  • Recent
  • University Musicians, West Point Band to Perform Together This Weekend As Part of Events Around Military Appreciation Day
    Friday, September 22, 2023, By Christine Weber
  • Turning Young Enthusiasts Into Scientific Researchers
    Friday, September 22, 2023, By Wendy S. Loughlin
  • Languages Unlock Opportunities for English for Lawyers Alumna
    Thursday, September 21, 2023, By Hope Alvarez
  • Fall 2023 Career Week: Helping Students Achieve Professional Goals
    Thursday, September 21, 2023, By Gabrielle Lake
  • A Commitment to Arts and Sciences Excellence
    Thursday, September 21, 2023, By Dan Bernardi

More In Campus & Community

University Musicians, West Point Band to Perform Together This Weekend As Part of Events Around Military Appreciation Day

The spirit of the Orange will unite with the precision of the United States Army’s oldest active-duty band, the West Point Band, for several events this weekend at the University, including a public concert with the University’s Wind Ensemble in…

Fall 2023 Career Week: Helping Students Achieve Professional Goals

“It’s never too early to begin taking action to achieve your unique professional goals,” is advice frequently shared by school, college and unit career teams in partnership with Syracuse University Career Services. Supporting students within their unique trajectory to career…

The State of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility at Syracuse University With Mary Grace Almandrez

As the University’s vice president for diversity and inclusion, Mary Grace Almandrez was paying close attention to the Supreme Court rulings that were issued towards the end of the court’s term in June. In particular, Almandrez and her Office of…

A Commitment to Arts and Sciences Excellence

A welcoming community where students of varying backgrounds thrive. An infrastructure that nurtures top-tier research and academics. These are two cornerstones of the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) experience. Over the past six years, A&S has shown important strides…

Study Abroad and the Academic Experience

Sophie Creager-Roberts ’24 is a senior double major in environment, sustainability and policy and history in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs with a minor in atrocity studies and the practices of social justice in the School of…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2023 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.