They shouldn’t take up too much space, but still leave some room for you to add them in. I’d suggest making as many subtitles as you can that relate to your main EPQ question. on How to get a 100%, A* EPQ mark – some tips, Beds, Scientific Instruments and more: a few new websites, “Faces Of The Year” Printable Christmas Picture Quiz UK. It’s mainly about studying, but the same things can be said for planning your EPQ essay. To make sure you get your mind maps right, you might want to follow this. Many students take EPQs each year, and many students fail because they make this mistake. It's also really important to keep a clear record of where you've gained your information for your references and bibliography. As I've listened more and more to my readers to hear what they need help with and what problems they have I have learned more and understood more about the field of study skills. Allocating word counts can make your life a whole lot easier when writing that EPQ essay. How To Make Effective Flashcards (That Actually Work). You may have found an EPQ topic that interests you, but it might still be hard to write 5000 words on it. My essay will also confine its reference to the use of mammals only. And besides, who doesn’t want help reaching the massive 5000 word count? That’s a lot of research, and you can see from this figure that quality research is crucial to your success. Choosing an obscure topic may leave you with a limited amount of information which can make it difficult to construct your arguments. You’re essentially making a mood board for whatever EPQ idea you’ve chosen, and it will help you get in the right mindset for the task ahead. Make sure you stay focused on your title and structure all the time that you're doing your research. Academic literature has been at the forefront of your EPQ project. You can go for less subtitles, but that means a higher word count for each individual subtitle. In addition to this, whilst creating your mind map you may even decide to change your topic entirely. Does it all make sense? When Should You Start Revising For Your GCSEs? Get Someone To Proof Read It To Make Sure There Are No Errors. How To Write An EPQ Essay (Step-by-Step Guide), 1. EPQ Guide ~ Essay structure. Sometimes just a few marks can be the difference between an A and an A*, so you need to maximize your chances of success. How to Revise GCSE English Language Masterclass, How to Revise English Literature Masterclass, Self-Care for the Whole Family in the Exam Years Masterclass, Copyright 2020 by Lucy Parsons. Just keep a clear focus on your EPQ essay question, and you can’t go wrong. I’d suggest doing a little background research into your question before you start writing your EPQ essay. I’d suggest doing a little background research into your question before you start writing your EPQ essay. . This kind of self-directed learning is something that you often have to do at university, which is one of the reasons why it is so well-respected by university courses. Your conclusion should be about the same size as your subtitles, but maybe just a little bit bigger. Remember, the EPQ is not about your project itself, but about the process of planning and executing it. Author: Created by ascal. He interviewed real people for comments, created an illustration in Adobe Illustrator and found out how to use Microsoft Excel for a Gantt Chart. count into smaller, more manageable parts. Whatever the reasons were for you choosing to write an EPQ, the grade you get is most definitely important to you. Free. 16 subtitles will mean the best productivity for you when you actually come to write your EPQ essay. This is because anybody can access anything, and usually the information you see online is edited by people who aren’t professionals. I hope these tips really help you to write a brilliant EPQ as easily as possible. In order to successfully write your EPQ, you need to keep a log of everything you do. To find an EPQ topic that genuinely interests you, you just have to think about what you like. If you choose a question with lots to write about, you can use that to your advantage when trying to reach those 5000 words. If you don’t proof read your EPQ essay, you may miss some pretty crucial mistakes…. If you don’t give the right proportions for your research and explanation subtitles, your EPQ can become lopsided. Presentation by Mrs J Makselon, Tanglin Trust School, (Extended Essay students are not required to prepare a presentation), (don't forget, an abstract is NOT required for EPQ), Term Time: 7:30am to 6pm (Term1) or 7pm eval(ez_write_tag([[728,90],'thinkstudent_co_uk-box-3','ezslot_2',121,'0','0'])); It’s important to choose an EPQ you’re interested in, or you may run into some problems. Privacy Policy. If you don’t work hard for it, you won’t get good marks – and therefore there’s less point in even taking it in the first place, A more interesting EPQ essay topic will mean that your focus is better. There are much better alternatives out there, like Google Scholar for example. Remember that you can ask your EPQ mentor/supervisor for guidance if you aren't sure. I’ve already mentioned it, but you want to write about 300 words per subtitle. If you know of any other really useful EPQ resources then leave a link in the comments below. Try ordering your subtitles by the order of most important to least important. If all else fails, just read through your structure and think about it from an examiners’ point of view. Your structure is essentially a summary of the argument you want to make in your essay. You could also try more subtitles if you want, but that then means you’d write less per subtitle. To make life easy for yourself you should now allocate a word count to each section. Many students take EPQs each year, and many students fail because they make this mistake. That’s a lot of research, and you can see from this figure that quality research is crucial to your success. . Everybody’s different, and some people have better writing skills than others. . This will allow you just enough space to answer the subtitle, without repeating yourself or going overboard. I did exactly this with my book. eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'thinkstudent_co_uk-netboard-2','ezslot_22',136,'0','0'])); If you reckon you’ve got all these elements in the right order and the right sizes, you should be good to go. 3 things to do (other than studying) to get better grades, How to prevent long-term damage to your child’s future because of extended school closures, The Pomodoro Technique for GCSE and A Level Students: How to get more done, not get bored and save your energy when you’re studying, Revision Guides: Why I don’t like them and what you should do instead. . Especially with the internet, you may come across facts and information that isn’t entirely accurate. It’s worth setting effective word counts for your EPQ essay elements for those extra marks. If you choose to work on a subtitle that doesn’t wholly relate to your EPQ question, you risk filling up your word count with irrelevant information. How to write an EPQ introduction The first thing to do is to establish the purpose of the essay – in doing this, we want to break down the question that is being answered and examine the components of it. You’ll come up with lots of different things you can write about, and that will make the essay a lot easier. With my book, the title dictated the structure that the book would take. I’d say about 400 words, your conclusion should sum up everything you’ve talked about in your EPQ essay. For many students they choose to write an argument based essay with their research looking at the different reasons for each sides. Would you rather be playing videogames, watching Netflix, or literally anything else? One of the most important aspects of an EPQ is the research. Try to explore every possibility within your subtitle. Proof reading your EPQ essay is so, so, SO important to your success, . For those of you that don’t know, EPQ stands for Extended Project Qualification and it is another subject taken on by many A Level students. In order to successfully write your EPQ, you need to keep a log of everything you do. Created: Sep 23, 2013 | Updated: Jun 2, 2015. The Student Room, Get Revising and Marked by Teachers are trading names of The Student Room Group Ltd. Register Number: 04666380 (England and Wales), VAT No. Many students forget to think about this, but it’s probably the most important part of your EPQ. View the privacy policy here. There are many ways to research, with the most common being the internet, and books. You’ll actually want to wait until the end of your EPQ essay to write either of these paragraphs, so it might help to add placeholders until you get to writing them. Without a question, you won’t have anything to write about, and 5000 words will be a lot harder to reach…. Is it interesting? This information from The Student Room gives some really useful background information about the EPQ: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/Extended_Project_Qualification, This post from the UCAS student blog helps you with where to start with your EPQ: https://www.ucas.com/connect/blogs/epq-where-start, You can download this essay guide from the TES website: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/epq-guide-essay-structure-6359383. eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'thinkstudent_co_uk-portrait-1','ezslot_23',139,'0','0'])); Proof reading your EPQ essay is so, so, SO important to your success. I got an A for my project, so I think it's fine to use that format. Any fewer, and you’ll struggle to reach that gargantuan. Now is the time to fill in the gaps in your knowledge by doing your research. Start the school year the right way to set yourself up for the best results next summer. Examiners will easily spot this and take away precious marks. As you're doing your research, and particularly once you've finished it, you'll need to review your structure. 16 subtitles at 300 words each will put you at just under 5000 words – 4800, to be exact. It was utterly painless. i call it " persuasive essay " argument essay" , " i have several articles that tell you how to write that sort of essay. It may seem odd not to start with the introduction, but everything happens for a reason…. Think about what you like, and focus your EPQ essay on that. When I sat down to write each chapter I wrote a list of what I wanted to include in each of those chapters and decided in what order it was logical and sensible to write about each of those things. I credit my thorough planning process for this praise. . Just go for a massive brainstorm (potentially using your mind map) to try and come up with lots of subtitles. Having a second opinion ensures that everything you’ve written is accurate and concise, and it’s better than just checking through it yourself. I was going to start it like a newspaper article - some facts and then rhetorical questions etc. Better still, get someone else to do it. Hopefully you won't have so much trial and error! It's also helpful to study something that furthers your larger aims. I have finished my exams and have now resumed work on my EPQ. An abstract must be included for the IB Extended Essay but not for the A-level Extended Project Qualification (EPQ). . View my privacy policy here. . . It may seem odd not to start with the introduction, but everything happens for a reason…, Start with your subtitles to get the main bulk of your EPQ essay underway. For example, I read a book called ‘Mini Habits' by Stephen Guise – and used that book as the basis for a blog post. Books tend to be slightly more reliable than the internet, especially if they have an ‘exam-board approved’ label on them. Im in the same boat, when you structure your essay, do you need to evaluate each point and do you put persobal opinions in, how often do you reference? Believe it or not, over the last eighteen months or so my brain dump has been my blog! When you create your subtitles for your EPQ essay, you’re essentially writing down all the mini-topics you’ll write about. Your email address will not be published. My son’s project was eventually picked up by a campaigning group which I belong to, and published on their website. Literature Review for EPQ Projects and Essays. If you find an EPQ topic to write your essay on that genuinely peaks your interest, you’ll find it much easier to get better grades in it. However, through my blog, reading and coaching I gained more insights about my own experience and what really helped others. I’d recommend keeping your subtitle count between 14 and 18. . Setting yourself short-term goals like this will help you stay focused and make your EPQ that little bit better. Empty words = no marks, which is what you definitely don’t want. Closed on weekends and public holidays, 2nd Floor, Sixth Form Center My book is furthering my long-term aims (as well as being something I've always wanted to do – yippee for being a published author!). . Then, write an introduction, build the body of the essay, and state your conclusion. However, remember that you can always change your structure if what you find in your research deems it necessary. It helped me to stay focused on what I needed to include as well as exclude. Mind maps are more useful than most students think…, A Question Related To Your Main EPQ Topic, Whether your chosen EPQ topic is Maths, English, Science, or anything else – you’ll need a question to write about. [Exam Cram] Ask AQA all of your Chemistry questions! You’ll be much more open to different ideas and approaches whilst actually writing the EPQ, and examiners will see this and give you extra credit. If you choose a question with lots to write about, you can use that to your advantage when trying to reach those 5000 words. 6 Take shorts breaks between writing: Having plenty of time for writing doesn’t automatically mean you can write without taking a break for long periods. You’ll want to make the layout of your subtitles as sensible and as easy to follow as possible for your examiner, Try ordering your subtitles by the order of most important to least important. 5. The amount of words you write per subtitle can also depend on how many subtitles you. . If you write your introductory paragraph last, it’ll be a lot more accurate than if you’d have done it at the start. One thing I'd definitely suggest is to comment on each source you use, i.e. The question relating to your EPQ topic of choice is what you’ll spend your time working on, . That will leave you just enough room to add a short introduction too. If you make your word count per subtitle too high, then you’ll struggle when it comes to actually writing your EPQ essay. eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'thinkstudent_co_uk-portrait-2','ezslot_24',140,'0','0'])); This site is owned and operated by Think Student Ltd. You also need to include the dates you accessed each source too. How much you do and the quality of it will affect your final grade, so it’s good to spend a lot of time researching. the website he created to showcase the work here, The odd tale of Alphascript Publishing and Betascript Publishing, A workaround for the Google Docs "cannot transfer ownership" problem, A list of brothers who have played football in the First Division (or Premier League), Bryant Victoria Kitchen Extension - Roll the Credits, Virgin Media TV Anywhere iPad app: hands-on user review, Scandinavia and Russia Cruise - a Port Guide and Tips, Our Experience of Moving House in Cambridge. He did so, and his project was eventually marked 100% (A*) in 2019. It’s how I laid my EPQ essay subtitles out, and I got an A* – so I’d suggest doing the same. I hope to stick to this as much as possible; I have included the sub headings I hope to use and a few things I want to include under those subheadings. I’d also recommend keeping track of all the sources of your information, as you’ll have to write a bibliography at the end of your EPQ. eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'thinkstudent_co_uk-narrow-sky-1','ezslot_19',131,'0','0'])); You’ll want an introductory paragraph to start with, and that should only take about 200-300 words. I'm Lucy. This will result in a better EPQ, meaning more marks when you hand it in. That is why I have written this (hopefully) detailed guide on how to write an EPQ. My book, The Ten Step Guide to Acing Every Exam You Ever Take, will be published by John Catt in February 2017. Having a fresh perspective on your work broadens the chances of catching every mistake you make. to all folks who were retaking a-levels this year, The Current Year 13 Chat Thread (2020-2021), The Current Year 12 Chat Thread (2020-2021), Urgent Advice- might get kicked out of Sixth Form, OCR A AS Physics 2019 Breadth (14th May) Unofficial Markscheme, A-level and AS-level Exam Discussions 2019, Edexcel IAL January 2020 and October 2019 pastpapers. Any more subtitles, and you run the risk of overcomplicating your EPQ. Disclaimer: These EPQ ideas are only here to inspire you and (hopefully) help point you in the right direction. For example, the core product from my son’s project was always going to be a dissertation. The amount of words you write per subtitle can also depend on how many subtitles you have. Once you've come up with an idea brain dump everything you already know about it. What happens if you DON'T continue education after 16? For busy sixth-formers to find the time or the motivation requires some dedication. Making your EPQ essay subtitles this long means you’ll find it easier and less monotonous, and therefore you’ll enjoy it more. If you have less subtitles, you write more words per subtitle, and vice versa – simple maths. I knew that I had ten basic chapters plus an introduction, foreword and other bits and pieces. Not only that, but it’ll probably be worse in terms of grade too. . You’ll want to make the layout of your subtitles as sensible and as easy to follow as possible for your examiner. eval(ez_write_tag([[336,280],'thinkstudent_co_uk-leader-4','ezslot_16',138,'0','0'])); It’s a good idea to write your introduction paragraph after you’ve written all of your subtitles. Preview and details Files included (1) pdf, 554 KB. If you can’t be bothered to look up EPQ questions, then there’s an alternative, Writing down subtitles for your EPQ question means that, you’ll have a better idea of what’s actually going into your EPQ essay, When you create your subtitles for your EPQ essay, you’re essentially writing down all the mini-topics you’ll write about. Whilst it may not be a large percentage of your marks, you still need to make sure that you take your time to get it right. Of course, if you think you can express yourself in more or less than 300 words, go for it. Students tend to use them when revising to work out what they, know, whilst also helping them consolidate what they, In terms of your EPQ essay, a mind map will provide a loose structure for you to follow. The next stage of this long process is to write down subtitles for your EPQ question. . That means less room for the important stuff, and less marks for you. Not only that, but it’ll probably be worse in terms of grade too. Introduction for family essay, essay on dividend of democracy. 4. If you don’t work hard for it, you won’t get good marks – and therefore there’s less point in even taking it in the first place. My best advice is to reverse-engineer the whole exercise. You'll need to reference every time you use material which isn't your own. . Students tend to use them when revising to work out what they don’t know, whilst also helping them consolidate what they do know. How to cite websites in an essay life of pi critical essay. A good way to ensure your EPQ essay is perfect is to get someone else to look through it. You can ask friends, family, or even your teachers/tutor – just get it proof read before you send it off to be marked. eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'thinkstudent_co_uk-large-mobile-banner-1','ezslot_11',130,'0','0'])); If you please your examiner like this, they’ll be more inclined to give you more marks. The perfect way to do this is to write a book about it. Drafting it out and improving it two or three times is a good way to ensure that it is at a high standard, especially as you have the time to do this (unlike in exams where you sometimes have to construct an essay in 45 minutes). If they don’t, you could run into some serious problems. I mean the mistakes where you contradict yourself, go off topic, or even just get your facts wrong. (we haven't been told much either) but in terms of referencing, we got told to do a bibliography at the end for every time we reference a quote from a text or a statistic etc. Yeah, me too. The first person to read my book after I'd finished it was my editor. What I mean by this is that you start with your question, move onto research, then explanations, and finally a conclusion. eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'thinkstudent_co_uk-mobile-leaderboard-1','ezslot_17',133,'0','0'])); Research should make up about 40%-50% of your total EPQ essay. If you go too far over 300 words, you risk either repeating yourself or just extending your points so much that your words become empty. If you don’t take an EPQ you’re interested in, you’ll have no motivation to work on it. and examiners like to see EPQ essays that are laid out like this. . The next step is to order your subtitles, for easier reading. I learned my lesson and soon put a system in place so that I could always identify where my notes, ideas and quotes came from! Throughout your research you need to ensure that you're finding information that will help you to answer this question. In this case, you’d be writing down all the ideas and concepts surrounding your. You’ll want an introductory paragraph to start with, and that should only take about 200-300 words. . In the end some of the chapters are slightly shorter and others are slightly longer than this but I easily hit the 30,000 word marker by making sure I was reaching the word count for each chapter as I went along. This meant that when I came to re-write the book I had more to say so that I had to change the structure to accomodate all this new understanding and knowledge. Loading... Save for later. Listen carefully to the advice that they give you and incorporate it as best you can into your work. You can personalise what you see on TSR. The 5000 words you write will be about this question, and so, It’s also important, however, that you choose a question where there’s a lot to write about. I then spent two weeks reviewing and editing as well as writing the introduction. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. What Is The Best Calculator For GCSE Maths? Importance of reading books in our life essay. You’ll obviously want to write your conclusion paragraph after everything else, or you’ll have nothing to conclude. There are lots of different things you can do, but you only get to choose once – so choose carefully. My plan was so detailed and I'd done so much research over the preceeding eighteen month period that the writing bit was just easy. eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'thinkstudent_co_uk-mobile-leaderboard-2','ezslot_18',134,'0','0'])); Try to stay away from websites like Wikipedia, where anybody can change the information you see. Read more. Laying out your subtitles this way will show your examiner that you’ve really thought about your EPQ and understand what they want to see. Mind maps are more useful than most students think…. The final step in this long process is to proof read your work. Setting yourself short-term goals like this will help you stay focused and make your EPQ that little bit better. Whether your chosen EPQ topic is Maths, English, Science, or anything else – you’ll need a question to write about. You also take up space that could be used for your conclusion, which is, It’s a good idea to write your introduction paragraph after you’ve written all of your subtitles. I've literally been told nothing, Not sure about evaluating etc. this week i have been working on creating start a essay plan to help me create a coherent essay. When I was writing my book I had the overall structure which started with four parts and the ten chapters were divided up between those four parts. That way you can listen and check for anything that’s not quite right, and sort it out in time for your EPQ essay to be examined. You should have around 16 subtitles ready to go, in chronological order or order of importance. It’s also important, however, that you choose a question where there’s a lot to write about. There are much better alternatives out there, like, Whereas with books, they have to go through a long-winded process to ensure they’re accurate.