Writing Guide
Introduction | Document structure | Style | Using references | Language, words & format |
Preparation for reproduction | Tips for writing | References on style and writing | Some final words
Introduction
Need for a guide for the preparation of written work
Publication conventions are not standard and so can be confusing. Editors of various publications can determine their own policy on layout, spelling or referencing. This Guide aims to achieve consistency in written work associated with the School. It is based on locally accepted conventions for government publications. Authors preparing material for publication outside the University should comply with the particular requirements of that publication.
Policy on written work
All units run by the Graduate School of the Environment (GSE) require written work to be handed in for assessment at regular periods. The due dates, lengths and other specific requirements of written assignments will be given by each unit coordinator in the unit outline. All assignments should conform to the rules of legibility, layout and referencing in this guide. In general, no late assignments will be accepted for marking without written application on medical grounds or other justification that would satisfy the definition of 'misadventure' given in the University Handbook. Staff will endeavour to mark the assignments promptly and return them to you, with proper feedback, in order to keep you informed of your progress in the unit.
Sources and plagiarism
All direct quotations should be acknowledged by quotation marks and page references in the text (e.g. Saddler 1981) and in full in the reference list at the end of the work. Details about referencing are given later. Failure to reference correctly will result in a penalty being imposed. Any ideas that you have drawn from someone else's work but have recast in your own words should be acknowledged e.g.:
... a number of scientifically based arguments can be put forward for the preservation of rainforest (Webb 1980).
Alternatively, you may wish to recognise an authority in the text of your essay e.g. McHarg (1969) maintained that ........
As well as references to the source of any material in the text of your work, you must also reference material appearing in tables or figures. Refer in the text to each table and figure that you give as evidence. If you copy ideas from other sources but do not give a proper reference then you are guilty of plagiarism. Plagiarism is a serious offence and can lead to failure in a unit or exclusion from a unit.