05 02 assignment instructions

Welcome to the new OASIS website! We have academic skills, library skills, math and statistics support, and writing resources all together in one new home.

• Walden University
• Faculty Portal

Undergraduate Writing: Understanding the Assignment

Introduction, common writing terms.

Analyze = explain a multifaceted text or idea by breaking it into its parts.

Example: Analyze the relationship between hand sanitizer and disease transmission in hospitals.

Tips: Remember to state what the relationship is, but also why . The why involves critical thinking to determine all the factors in the scenario.

Assess or evaluate = determine the significance or value of something by examining it closely.

Example: Evaluate whether hand sanitizer decreases disease transmission.

Tips: Come to an overall, educated opinion on the issue based on course readings, other research, and reasoning. Write a thesis statement at the beginning of your paper to tell the reader what that opinion is.

Compare and contrast = to examine two items to discover similarities and differences.

Example : Compare and contrast three brands of hand sanitizer for effectiveness and cost.

Tips : To provide a well-rounded comparison, give equal attention to the similarities and the differences. Follow our compare/contrast guidelines before submission.

Paraphrase =  restate a passage in your own words.

Example : Paraphrase the CDC's recent announcement on the use of hand sanitizer.

Tips : It can be tempting to directly quote the statement, but paraphrasing builds your academic skills. Read the announcement carefully and then open a new document on your computer. Without looking back, reword the announcement using your own vocabulary. Finally, compare yours to the original.

Reflect =  think about an idea deeply and consider its impact.

Example : Reflect on your own use of hand sanitizer in the medical profession.

Tips : You might find that sitting in a quiet place, away from the computer, allows you to think easier. Even if you are reflecting on a bad situation in your workplace, remain neutral and objective when writing about the incident. 

Summarize =  express the main points of a reading in a shorter form.

Example : Summarize Chapter 3 of your course text on disease transmission.

Tips : While reading, pay attention to the who, what, why, where, and how in the text. It could be helpful to take notes or highlight the important information that jumps out at you.

Support your work/ideas =  justify your point of view by providing evidence.

Tips : Evidence can come in the form of statistics, examples, or other research. Such evidence is usually accompanied by a citation crediting the original source.

Once you understand the assignment instructions, jot down each component or outline the paper. Keep these tools handy as you write.

Still unsure what a word or concept means? Look it up in Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary .

Related Resources

Didn't find what you need? Email us at [email protected] .

• Previous Page: Assignment Resources
• Next Page: Discussion Posts
• Office of Student Disability Services

Walden Resources

Departments.

• Academic Residencies
• Academic Skills
• Career Planning and Development
• Customer Care Team
• Field Experience
• Military Services
• Student Success Advising
• Writing Skills

Centers and Offices

• Center for Social Change
• Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services
• Office of Degree Acceleration
• Office of Research and Doctoral Services
• Office of Student Affairs

Student Resources

• Doctoral Writing Assessment
• Form & Style Review
• Quick Answers
• ScholarWorks
• SKIL Courses and Workshops
• Walden Bookstore
• Walden Catalog & Student Handbook
• Student Safety/Title IX
• Legal & Consumer Information
• Website Terms and Conditions
• Cookie Policy
• Accessibility
• Accreditation
• State Authorization
• Net Price Calculator
• Cost of Attendance
• Contact Walden

Walden University is a member of Adtalem Global Education, Inc. www.adtalem.com Walden University is certified to operate by SCHEV © 2024 Walden University LLC. All rights reserved.

Degree Level

FINANCIAL AID

STUDENT SERVICES

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Writing Tips 101: Understanding Assignment Instructions

October 31st, 2017 by Kellie Nappa

As the Student Writing Specialist for JWU Online, professors often tell me that their students struggle with understanding assignment instructions.

Here’s how to tackle the sometimes frustrating process of following complex or lengthy directions.

1. Read all assignment instructions carefully as soon as you receive them.

This will save you time and stress later on! If there is something you do not understand, be sure to reach out to your instructor as soon as you are able, as this is when their feedback will be most useful.

2. Circle or highlight all portions of the assignment that you absolutely must know in advance.

This includes due dates, length, source requirements, and formatting (APA, MLA, font type, etc.).

3. Be sure to highlight key vocabulary in both the overview and the actual task.

This includes these directives: argue, criticize, define, evaluate, reflect on, compare and contrast, and summarize. The five “reporter’s questions” (how, what, when, where, and why) will help guide your attention to specific information and tell you what kind of tasks/s your instructor expects you to perform.

4. Be sure to also note all other course-specific terms.

If you are unsure of their meaning, check them against a reliable dictionary. Course-specific terms might include “corporate culture,” “autocratic behaviors,” and “mixed-methods study.”

5. Think about how you will address the assignment.

Look closely at your instructor’s comments about writing expectations (i.e., “be concise,” “write effectively,” or “argue furiously”). Remember that instructions always contain clues as to how you should approach them; these clues may appear in questions, bulleted information, or in the wording of the prompt itself. Think about every idea and number them – that way, you will be sure to address each.

A good rule of thumb for starting out (i.e., during the drafting process): Restate the question being asked, or begin your introduction with, “The purpose of this research study is to…”

Once you have begun, keep the following questions in mind. What is the purpose of this assignment? Why did my instructor ask me to perform this particular task? (To provide information? To construct an original argument based on current research? To form a counterargument to the research?) Who is my audience? What are their needs and expectations? What resources do I need? How many sources are required? What kind of writing style is acceptable?

I hope these guidelines will serve you well when it comes time to address your next assignment!

For even more tips and strategies, please visit my Student Writing Support website .

To learn more about the Johnson & Wales University College of Online Education and how one of our degree programs can help further your career, complete the “Request Info” form on this page or call 855-JWU-1881 or email [email protected] .

By clicking Get Started below, I consent to receive recurring marketing/promotional e-mails, phone calls, and SMS/text messages from Johnson & Wales University (JWU) about any educational/programmatic purpose (which relates to my inquiry of JWU) at the e-mail/phone numbers (landline/mobile) provided, including calls or texts made using an automatic telephone dialing system and/or artificial/prerecorded voice messages. My consent applies regardless of my inclusion on any state, federal, or other do-not-call lists. Consent is not a condition for receipt of any good or service. Carrier charges may apply. Terms and conditions apply .

Request info

Now accepting applications

• Resources Home
• Technologies

Course Design

Communicating assignment instructions.

Updated on March 14, 2024

Once you know what a particular assignment is assessing, you can focus on how to convey this information to your students. An assignment prompt can take many forms, including a narrative description, a checklist, and/or a rubric. 

Clear assignment instructions will help students understand the purpose of the assignment, the steps students will need to take to successfully complete it, and how the assignment will be graded. Lack of clarity in any of these components can lead to student confusion, which can result in them not knowing how to start, spending time on tasks that are not essential to the assignment, or a final product that does not meet your expectations and perhaps does not accurately represent their learning. Alternatively, when the assignment instructions are written with transparency and clarity in mind, students know what they are supposed to be learning and can better engage in intentional practice, study, and reflection that supports deep learning. This page draws on research into transparent assignment design to surface strategies for more clearly communicating assignment expectations. 

Just as the process of determining assignment-level learning goals is iterative, you may find yourself revising your assignment instructions every time you reuse them. When designing a new assignment, you may need to be a bit vaguer than you would like, since you still need to figure out exactly what you’re looking for. Some instructors find it helpful to create an internal fleshed out rubric they can use as they grade, and a briefer version of the assignment expectations for their students. Over time, as you have a better sense of how students perform on the assignment and what your expectations are, you can work towards having just one rubric that is both shared with students and used by you when you sit down to grade the final product.

Transparent Assignment Design

The research generated by the Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) project has shown that increasing transparency of assignments can improve student learning, motivation, and persistence, particularly among traditionally underrepresented populations ( Winkelmes et al 2016 ). Below are questions to reflect on as you design an assignment and consider how to convey this information to your students.

What is the purpose of the assignment?

Students may not immediately understand how an assignment connects to the content they have been studying or the learning goals of the course. Or, they may know the content an assignment is assessing but not how they are expected to engage with that content. 

For example, if a student is learning new formulas, knowing whether they need to memorize the formulas, identify which formula to use in which situation, and/or explain when each formula should be used and its limitations will change how they study the material. Or, if you ask students to write an essay, you may want to clarify the kinds of evidence they should incorporate, including whether or not connecting course content to personal experiences is appropriate.

Questions about assignment purpose:

• In what way(s) do you want students to engage with the course content? Consider the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy to help you answer this question.
• How is this assignment relevant to the larger goals of the course? Of the curriculum? Of your students? How can you motivate students by helping them recognize the alignment between the assignment and the relevant goals?

When deciding whether or not the purpose of the assignment is transparent, it is important to consider the title of the assignment, which can help convey what you are looking for. Calling an assignment a “book review” may prompt your students to provide a summary of a text, while calling it a “reading response” could encourage students to draw connections between a text and their own lives. Take a moment to check that the title of your assignment accurately communicates your expectations.

 What is the task the assignment demands of students?

Students may find it difficult to “unpack” an assignment into smaller components or know how to get started and the key steps towards completing an assignment successfully. Rather than just telling students to study for an exam or write a paper, a breakdown of the tasks can benefit even the students in an upper level course. The questions below ask you to unpack your assignment and use that information to help you discover potential challenging parts of an assignment and, therefore, moments when students might need some guidance  in order to do the work you most want them to engage through the assignment. 

Unpacking the task of the assignment gives you an opportunity to plan for students to have opportunities to practice and receive feedback on the task before they will have to do it in a high-stakes environment, like an exam or major paper. Having the assignment’s purpose in mind when articulating the task also gives you another chance to check for alignment. Do the tasks you are assigning to students correspond with the assignment’s purpose? 

Questions about the task of the assignment:

• What are the steps you imagine most students would need to take in order to complete the assignment?
• What steps are they likely to skip? What unnecessary detours might they take?
• What elements of the task are important for students to figure out for themselves? Where would students’ benefit from explicit guidance (e.g. so they don’t waste their time/energy on less essential components)?
• How will you scaffold the assignment, or break down the assignment into smaller component parts, to give students opportunities to practice necessary skills before submitting the assignment? (More information on scaffolding is available on our Providing Opportunities to Practice  page.)

What criteria will you use to evaluate the assignment?

The same assignment can be graded in numerous ways. Thus, explicitly telling students how they will be evaluated will clarify your expectations and impact how they prepare and what they submit. Students find it most helpful to know these criteria as they are getting started, and they will better understand them if they can practice assessing an example assignment. Sometimes, seeing a less proficient example of an assignment can clarify what not to do, especially if there are common pitfalls you want students to avoid.

For example, when grading a word problem, how much weight will you give to having a correct answer and how much to students showing the steps they took to get that answer? How much will you take off for a minor miscalculation? When grading an essay, what components will you be looking at more closely? How important are correct grammar and citation style?

Questions about evaluation criteria

• What evidence will you be looking for as you evaluate whether a student has successfully met the criteria?
• How will you communicate those criteria to students (a checklist, a rubric)?
• Will students be able to use those criteria to help them self-assess how well they’re meeting the assignment expectations? Could you build in opportunities for students to apply the criteria by providing feedback to their peers?
• Can you provide students with examples of good work, or examples of what not to do?

For more resources related to Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT), see the TILT Website . Here is an assignment template you are welcome to adapt for your own purposes and a checklist for designing transparent assignments if it is useful to you.