{"id":468,"date":"2019-11-04T12:36:53","date_gmt":"2019-11-04T12:36:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.napier.ac.uk\/academicskills\/?page_id=468"},"modified":"2025-07-02T09:27:37","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T09:27:37","slug":"glossary","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.napier.ac.uk\/academicskills\/resources\/glossary\/","title":{"rendered":"Academic glossary"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Academic<\/p>\n

\"Academic<\/p>\n

Academic work has its own vocabulary. Consult the glossary below for definitions of words and phrases commonly used at university. Looking for more advice? Consult our interactive skills guides<\/a> or have a browse of our resource bank<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A<\/a> | B<\/a> | C<\/a> | D<\/a> | E<\/a> | F<\/a> | G | H | I<\/a> | J | K | L<\/a> | M<\/a> | M | N | O | P<\/a> | Q<\/a> | R<\/a> | S<\/a> | T<\/a> | U | V | W<\/a> | X | Y | Z<\/p>\n

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abstract (n.)<\/strong> – a short piece of writing typically found at the top of a journal article, which describes its aims, methods, results and implications<\/p>\n

\n

academic integrity (n.)<\/strong> – the approach to university work with certain ideals and methods in mind, e.g., honesty, diligence and care, committed research and careful acknowledgement of research materials (see also ‘referencing’)<\/p>\n

\n

annotated bibliography (n.)<\/strong> – a list of related sources accompanied by short descriptions and evaluations of each<\/p>\n

\n

appendix (n.)<\/strong> – information attached to the end of a text, such as documents referred to in that text, or large data sets that cannot be incorporated into the text without disrupting its continuity<\/p>\n

\n

argument (n.)<\/strong> – a claim made, or position taken, in the course of a piece of work, e.g. an essay or dissertation; arguments should be carefully developed and supported by reliable evidence (see also ‘peer review’)<\/p>\n

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body of text (n.)<\/strong> – the substantial part of a piece of writing; excludes features like abstracts, reference lists, and appendices<\/p>\n

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citation (n.)<\/strong> – formal mention of a source studied while preparing a piece of work, e.g. an essay, report etc.; a citation is typically short, appearing in the body of a text (see also ‘reference’)<\/p>\n

\n

coursework (n.)<\/strong> – written or practical work completed during a course of study, usually for purposes of assessment<\/p?<\/p>\n

\n

dissertation (n.)<\/strong> – an extended study of a topic or related topics, carried out with clear research aims decided in advance; conducted over several months or more, and written up in distinct sections<\/p>\n

\n

essay (n.)<\/strong> – a text, usually written, though sometimes presented verbally, dedicated to a topic or related topics; unlike a report, an essay does not require an explicit structure, i.e. headings, sub-headings and a table of contents<\/p>\n

\n

executive summary (n.)<\/strong> – a short piece of writing typically found at the start of a report; describes aims, methods, results and implications<\/p>\n

\n

feedback (n.)<\/strong> – responses to a student\u2019s work, usually written by their teachers, which can be used to improve future work and develop skills and understanding<\/p>\n

\n

formative assessment (n.)<\/strong> – an assessment that does not count towards a student’s overall module outcome; formative feedback should help students as they approach summative assessments<\/p>\n

\"Source:<\/p>\n

independent study (n.)<\/strong> – learning outside of class that supports and extends learning in class; includes as finding and reading sources, taking notes, group study preparing coursework, and revising for exams\/tests<\/p>\n

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lecture (n.)<\/strong> – a verbal presentation on a specific subject, usually given by a university teacher with larger groups of students, and often supported by visual materials, e.g. on-screen slides (see also ‘tutorial’)<\/p>\n

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literature review (n.)<\/strong> – a piece of writing intended to summarise, compare and scrutinise important research relating to a particular subject; a literature review can exist on its own, though it more often forms a part of a dissertation or thesis<\/p>\n

\n

marking criteria\/rubric\/scheme (n.)<\/strong> – a table which lecturers use to mark assessments; states how much each element of the assessment is worth, and what is required to achieve each grade<\/p>\n

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paraphrasing (n.)<\/strong> – the act of describing ideas from another text in one’s own words; used extensively in academic writing (see also ‘quotation’)<\/p>\n

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peer review (n.)<\/strong> – the process by which experts in a certain field of study srutinise new texts prior to their publication<\/p>\n

\n

plagiarism (n.)<\/strong> – the act of using existing words, images, concepts, data, etc., in a new piece of work without proper acknowledgement of having done so (see also ‘referencing’)<\/p>\n

\n

portfolio (n.)<\/strong> – a collection of different pieces of work that demonstrates a student\u2019s learning and development over time<\/p>\n

\n

practical (n.)<\/strong> – a class in which students develop skills by undertaking activities, tasks and experiments, or using equipment; also known as a workshop<\/p>\n

\n

presentation (n.)<\/strong> – the act of conveying ideas to an audience; often supported by audio\/visual materials (e.g a slideshow)<\/p>\n

\n

primary research (n.)<\/strong> – the process of gathering new data for the writing of a report, dissertation etc.<\/p>\n

\n

qualitative (adj.)<\/strong> – refers to research that deals with non-numerical data and involves observational methods<\/p>\n

\n

quantitative (adj.)<\/strong> – refers to research that deals with numerical data and involves mathematical methods<\/p>\n

\n

quotation (n.)<\/strong> – material copied exactly from one text into another; usually words, though sometimes images<\/p>\n

\n

reference (n.)<\/strong> – mention of a source of information in an essay, report etc.; a reference typically contains extensive publication details, which help to direct a reader to that source; references often, though not always, appear at the end of a text (see also ‘citation’)<\/p>\n

\n

reference list (n.)<\/strong> – a set of references relating to all the sources used in a text; typically found at or near the end of that text<\/p>\n

\n

referencing (n.)<\/strong> – the practice of formally acknowledging the sources which have informed and shaped a new piece of work, e.g., an essay or report (see also ‘reference’ and ‘citation’)<\/p>\n

\n

report (n.)<\/strong> – a piece of writing dedicated to a topic or related topics, which typically relies on distinct sections and an explicit structure, e.g. headings, sub-headings and a table of contents (see also ‘essay’)<\/p>\n

\n

secondary research (n.)<\/strong> – the process of examining existing evidence in order to offer new insights into a topic or idea; these findings are then presented in a report, dissertation etc.<\/p>\n

\n

seminar (n.)<\/strong> – a class in which specific topics are discussed amongst teachers and smaller groups of students; students are expected to prepare in advance (e.g. reading and taking notes) and contribute to discussion; seminars are sometimes larger and more structured than tutorials, though the terms are often used interchangeably (see also ‘lecture’)<\/p>\n

\n

source (n.)<\/strong> – a text, e.g. a journal article, that has influenced the creation of a new piece of work<\/p>\n

\n

study (n.)<\/strong> – the act of dedicating oneself to a subject or concept in an effort to know and understand it better<\/p>\n

\n

summative assessment (n.)<\/strong> – an assessment that is graded and therefore contributes to a student’s overall module outcome<\/p>\n

\n

text (n.)<\/strong> – a broad term used to describe something that is the product of human thought and activity, and which gives expression to ideas; texts can consist of words, images and sounds, or a combination thereof<\/p>\n

\n

thesis 1. (n.)<\/strong> – an extended study of a topic or related topics, carried out with clear research aims decided in advance; conducted over several months or more, and written up in several distinct sections<\/p>\n

\n

thesis 2. (n.)<\/strong> – the central argument or claim made throughout a piece of work<\/p>\n

\n

tutorial (n.)<\/strong> – a class in which specific topics are discussed amongst teachers and smaller groups of students in a semi-structured way; students are expected to prepare in advance (e.g. reading and taking notes) and contribute to discussion; tutorials are sometimes smaller and less structured than seminars, though the terms are often used interchangeably (see also ‘lecture’)<\/p>\n

\n

workshop (n.)<\/strong> – a class in which students develop skills by undertaking activities, tasks and experiments, or using equipment; also known as a practical<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Academic work has its own vocabulary. Consult the glossary below for definitions of words and phrases commonly used at university. Looking for more advice? Consult our interactive skills guides or have a browse of our resource bank. A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | Read more about Academic glossary<\/span>[…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":218,"featured_media":0,"parent":286,"menu_order":8,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-fullwidth-no-title.php","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-468","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nAcademic glossary - Academic Skills Resource Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.napier.ac.uk\/academicskills\/resources\/glossary\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Academic glossary - Academic Skills Resource Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Academic work has its own vocabulary. 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