Preparing a Plan For Writing or Presenting

Assessment writing involves a process. Often the best results will occur when you approach it as a series of steps.

An assessment scaffold is a useful approach to organising your ideas and guiding your reading and writing. Here is an example of a scaffold for a 2000-word Drugs And Crime report (Criminology & Justice). Note how word count is allocated to each section of the assessment. Allow up to 10% of the total word count for the introduction and the conclusion. Then divide the remaining word count equally between each main topic. Take notes in the scaffold using dot points. These notes will help you write your first draft ensuring it is written in a logical order and addresses each element listed in the assessment marking criteria. It is also important to note that each assessment type has specific formatting requirements you will need to apply. A blank 'Assessment Scaffold' (Word document) can be downloaded below.

Drugs And Crime (Report)

Section	Info for each section (dot points)	Words
Introduction	• Background of war on drugs • Signpost 'war' failed to reduce - rate of drug use, availability of drugs, burden on prison system • Thesis statement - Increased harm reduction and decriminalisation strategies are more effective methods to combat drug use and addiction	200
Section 1: The war on drugs	• Brief explanation and context • Facts to support 'war'	300
Section 2: Rate of drug use	The war on drugs has failed to reduce the rate of drug use • Evidence/examples to support statement	300
Section 3: Availability of drugs	The war on drugs has failed to reduce the availability of drugs • Evidence/examples to support statement	300
Section 4: Burden on the prison system	The war on drugs has failed to reduce the burden on the prison system • Evidence/examples to support statement	300
Section 5: Harm reduction and decriminalisation	Increased harm reduction and decriminalisation strategies are more effective methods to combat drug use and addiction • Evidence/examples to support statement	300
Conclusion	• Summary of main points • Restate thesis statement • Final comments	200