What is an overview in task 1?



What is an overview?


In order for you to get above a 5 for TA, you need to write an overview, which is a summary of the most significant information given. You will be given marks for this in TA for how well you selected this information, and you will lose marks if you write information that is of less significance in it. 

This overview shouldn’t have any specific data in it; it should just summarise the key features. This means that you won’t write any numbers; you will just state that X ,for example, was the most popular brand, Y was the least popular, and X and Y were similar in that….. . 

When you are writing an overview for data that has numbers in it (not diagrams and maps), these are the most important things to write in them:

a) highest number/lowest number
b) main similarities/ main differences
c) Most dramatic change/difference and least dramatic change/difference

Look at how important an overview is in the table below from the band descriptors:

Band
Task Achievement
4
􀂃 attempts to address the task but does not cover all key features/bullet points; the format may be inappropriate
􀂃 may confuse key features/bullet points with detail; parts may be unclear, irrelevant, repetitive or inaccurate
5
􀂃 generally addresses the task; the format may be inappropriate in places
􀂃 recounts detail mechanically with no clear overview; there may be no data to support the description
􀂃 presents, but inadequately covers, key features/bullet points; there may be a tendency to focus on detail
6
􀂃 addresses the requirements of the task
􀂃 (Academic) presents an overview with information appropriately selected
􀂃 presents and adequately highlights key features/bullet points but details may be irrelevant, inappropriate
7
􀂃 covers the requirements of the task
􀂃 (Academic) presents a clear overview of main trends, differences or stages
􀂃 clearly presents and highlights key features/bullet points but could be more fully extended
8
􀂃 covers all requirements of the task sufficiently
􀂃 presents, highlights and illustrates key features/bullet points clearly and appropriately

When you write an overview, you should start off with a linker. A good linker to use for your overview is ‘Overall.

Here is a video that summarises nearly everything you need to know about overviews in around 10 minute: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIo-QPYdbTA&t



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Maira Gall