Eighth Tip:
“Unpack” or explain concepts clearly
![Decorative](https://dkou0skpxpnwz.cloudfront.net/accounts/146517/images/Unpack.png)
![Page 10 of 13](https://libapps-eu.s3.amazonaws.com/accounts/146517/images/10-13.png)
Something teachers quite often say when giving feedback on an assignment or dissertation is "You need to unpack this" What does this mean?
Basically, they want you to analyse or explain something more deeply and to clarify what you mean. This can indicate that the student needs to do more critical thinking.
For example, a student might write:
"The divorce rate is now too high"
However, this statement is not very clear and raises lots of questions, such as:
- What is "too high"?
- Does everyone agree?
- Too high compared to what?
- Is this true everywhere?
It looks like the writer had not noticed the problems with the sentence and probably needs to think a bit more about what they are trying to say.
How does this show critical thinking?
You can show the reader that you are aware of the complexity of things and also that you are not making assumptions.
Quick practice activity for unpacking
[Click Next to see the next tip, click Previous to go back]