Writing Style
It is usually best to write your initial draft in the default settings of your software without formatting. Use the following guides in your writing.
Purpose and Audience: use the correct genre and language style expected for the particular task.
Language: use “Plain English” for all technical writing. More information about this language style can be found at www.plainenglish.co.uk/free-guides.html.
Use spelling and grammar software tools to check your writing. Edit your document.
Standards: always use:
• Australian spelling standards (Macquarie Dictionary)
• SI (International System of Units) units of measurement
• ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) for writing dates and times for international documents. For example yyyy-mm-dd or hh-mm-ss. However, for most applications it is more helpful to present the date in full as 26 August 2010.
Graphics and Tables should:
• be numbered
• have an appropriate heading and/or caption
• be fully labeled
• be correctly referenced.
Presentation
Unless otherwise instructed, all assignment submissions should be wordprocessed using spell-check and grammar-check software. Work should be well edited before submission. Use the following default settings.
Page Setup: set margins at no less than 20mm all round.
Paper: print on A4 bond, double -spaced and preferably double-sided, left justified.
Font: use the software default style to provide consistency. The recommended style includes:
• 10 - 12 pt font
• consistent formatting with a limited number of fonts
• lines no more than 60 characters (use wider margins or columns if you need to make lines shorter)
Header: should include
• your name and student number
• the title of the paper or task.
Footer: should include the page number and current date.
Cover sheet and statement of originality: all work submitted for assessment must be the original work of the student(s) submitting the work. A standard faculty cover sheet (see over) must be attached to the front of the submission. Any collaboration between the submitting student and others must be declared on the cover sheet.
Referencing
All sources of information used in the preparation of your submission must be acknowledged using the Harvard system of referencing. This includes all print, video, electronic sources.
Phrases, sentences or paragraphs taken verbatim from a source must be in quotation marks and the source(s) cited using both in-text referencing and a reference list.
Plagiarism is the failure to acknowledge sources of information. Students should be fully aware of the meaning of plagiarism and its consequences both to your marks, position at the university and criminal liability. The plagiarism in your assignment submissions can be assessed both in hard copy and in soft copy through submission to such sites as Turnitin.