diagram in essay

Diagrams in Essays: Exploring the Kinds of Diagrams Students Generate and How Well They Work

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• Emmanuel Manalo 14 &
• Mari Fukuda 15  

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• International Conference on Theory and Application of Diagrams

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Using appropriate diagrams is generally considered efficacious in communication. However, although diagrams are extensively used in printed and digital media, people in general rarely construct diagrams to use in common everyday communication. Furthermore, instruction on diagram use for communicative purposes is uncommon in formal education and, when students are required to communicate what they have learned, the usual expectation is they will use words – not diagrams. Requiring diagram inclusion in essays, for example, would be almost unheard of. Consequently, current understanding about student capabilities in this area is very limited. The aim of this study therefore was to contribute to addressing this gap: it comprised a qualitative exploration of 12 undergraduate students’ diagram use in two essays (in which they were asked to include at least one diagram). Analysis focused on identifying the kinds of diagrams produced, and the effectiveness with which those diagrams were used. Useful functions that the diagrams served included clarification, summarization, integration of points, and provision of additional information and/or perspectives in visual form. However, there were also redundancies, as well as unclear, schematically erroneous, and overly complicated representations in some of the diagrams that the students constructed. These findings are discussed in terms of needs, opportunities, and challenges in instructional provision.

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Students’ Spontaneous Use of Diagrams in Written Communication: Understanding Variations According to Purpose and Cognitive Cost Entailed

The impacts of domain-general vs. domain-specific diagramming tools on writing, towards a general diagrammatic literacy: an approach to thinking critically about diagrams.

• Self-constructed diagrams
• Essay writing
• Effective communication
• Student instructional needs

1 Introduction

Alongside problem solving and thinking, communication is one of the areas of human activity where diagram use is considered to be beneficial. When appropriately used, diagrams can clarify and/or complement verbal information presented in speech or text, so that both verbal and visual channels of working memory are utilized, thus facilitating more efficient cognitive processing [ 1 , 2 ].

Diagrams can contribute to both message encoding and decoding (i.e., the production and the comprehension of communication), thus being of value to both the communicator and the communication receiver. Especially in contexts where there are some constraints or limitations to conveying the message through verbal means, diagrams can be indispensable. They can supplement speech or text by providing complementary or alternative means of conveying the intended message. Examples of such contexts include communicating complicated procedures, like furniture assembly [ 3 ], and communicating with people who speak a different language [ 4 ].

However, despite the apparent usefulness of diagrams in communication, its actual use remains very limited. Pictures and various kinds of diagrams, including illustrations, are regularly used in books, magazines, websites, and various forms of printed and digital media, but most of those visual representations are commercially or professionally created. They are not generated by regular people in everyday communication contexts. Regular people are often only receivers of such visual representations. In most communication contexts, they do not generate their own diagrams: they rely almost exclusively on written or spoken words. In formal education provided in modern societies, diagram use for communicative purposes is rarely taught. Despite the recognition in research and policy documents of the value of being able to use multiple forms of representation [ 5 , 6 ], students seldom receive explicit instruction about how to create and use diagrams. In both school and higher education, when students are asked to communicate what they have learned and what they think (e.g., in essays, which are focused pieces of writing intended to inform or persuade), the general expectation is that they will express that information in words – without the use of any diagrams [ 7 ].

Considering that much of the knowledge and ideas that students have to engage with, learn, and then communicate are quite complex, and diagrams have the capacity of representing complex ideas effectively [ 8 ], the general lack of attention in education to cultivating skills in diagram use is troubling. Like words, diagrams can be used effectively or ineffectively [ 9 ], so the question of the extent to which instruction or guidance may be necessary would appear important to address. In tasks like problem solving and information organization in subjects like mathematics and science, the kinds of diagrams that students generate and use have previously been investigated [ 10 , 11 , 12 ]. However, very few studies have examined diagram use in communicating information in the social sciences [ 13 ], where traditionally a greater emphasis has been placed on the quality of language that is used. In fact, the present authors are not aware of any studies that have examined students’ diagram use in essays . Our current understanding of student capabilities in using diagrams in such contexts is very limited, including what we know of the potential benefits that such use might afford.

The present study was motivated by this knowledge gap, and it comprised a qualitative exploration of student diagram use in two essays they produced for an undergraduate-level introductory course in educational psychology. In the two essays, the students were asked to include at least one diagram to portray processes or mechanisms of moderately complex ideas. Both essays were expository-type essays, hence requiring the students to demonstrate not only knowledge of the topic, but also the ability to communicate information clearly – which the appropriate use of diagrams is supposed to facilitate. The following were the main questions we addressed:

What kinds of diagrams would students use to portray processes/mechanisms?

In what ways do students use diagrams effectively in their essays?

In what ways do they not use diagrams effectively?

This investigation comprised analysis of the contents of two essays that students produced as part of their coursework. No experimental manipulation was involved. The analysis was conducted following completion of the course, so it had no bearing on the students’ grading. Permission was obtained from all the students for use of their essays.

There were 12 students in the course (females = 4), 7 of whom were in their first year of study, while the remaining 5 were in their second year or higher. Nine of the students were Japanese, and 3 were international students from other East Asian countries. All had English as a foreign language, but were adequately proficient in that language (a requirement for acceptance to the university). The course was conducted entirely in English, and all assignments (including the essays) had to be written in English.

The essays were each worth 20% of the students’ final grade, and they dealt with topics covered in the course. However, both essays required students to seek additional information (beyond what was covered in class), and to provide explanations that could not simply be obtained from the instructions provided in the course. The first essay required the students to research and then explain one theory about how young children develop their understanding of the world around them. The second required them to undertake research on formative assessment and explain how it can promote more successful learning. In both essays, the students were asked to include at least one diagram, which was allotted 3 points (out of 20) in the grading rubrics (in this case, for “demonstrating a clear understanding of the mechanisms or processes that it illustrates”). Diagrams can assist in clarifying ideas [ 8 ] and so, from a pedagogical perspective, one purpose of asking the students to include the diagram was for them to better understand key processes covered in the course. The diagram had to be self-constructed (i.e., not copied-and-pasted from some other source). In the first essay, the instruction given to the students indicated that the diagram was to “help in explaining the progress in understanding that children develop ”, while in the second essay the diagram was to “help in clarifying how formative assessment facilitates learning ”. No other instruction was provided on what form the diagram should take or how they should construct it, and no diagrams relating to those or other similar mechanisms/processes were shown during instructions provided in class. During grading of the essays, apart from the score out of 3 on the grading rubrics (see above), no explicit comment or feedback was provided on the type, content, or quality of construction of the diagrams the students included.

In the analysis, firstly the number and kinds of diagrams included in the essays were determined with the use of a coding schema comprising categories from previous research [ 10 , 11 , 13 ]. Apart from the first author’s coding, the second author, who initially was not involved in this research, also independently coded the diagrams. Initial inter-coder agreement was 75%. Differences were then discussed and subsequently agreed upon. Second, the diagrams were evaluated in terms of how effectively they were used. For this, key questions asked were: Does the diagram contribute to clarifying the process it refers to – and, if so, how? Apart from clarification, does it serve other useful functions? When diagrams did not appear to work well, the reasons were also carefully considered. Again, both authors independently coded the diagrams (initial inter-coder agreement was 92%), and then discussed differences to reach agreement.

Examples of diagrams belonging to each of the categories that were identified

3 Results and Discussion

3.1 kinds of diagrams used to portray processes/mechanisms.

Table 1 shows the kinds/categories and corresponding frequencies of diagrams the students included in their first and second essays, and in total, while Fig.  1 shows examples of the diagrams belonging to each of those categories. In the first essay four of the 12 students included more than one diagram (two student with 3 diagrams, and two with 2 diagrams), and in the second essay two students included more than one diagram (both with 2 diagrams). The frequencies shown in Table 1 include all the diagrams the students generated.

All except one student included self-constructed diagrams (as the assignments required). We were fairly confident about this because the language use in and appearance of the diagrams included suggested non-native and/or non-professional creators. The one student who included diagrams that obviously came from some Internet source (they were both watermarked) did so in both the first and second essays. Both diagrams were in the category of illustrations.

Although a “list” on its own does not – technically speaking – count as a diagram, it has been included in the categories because one student erroneously included a list as one of his 3 diagrams for the first essay, and three other students included lists as part of their “combination” diagram.

The kind of diagram most frequently used was a flow diagram: apart from the total of 10 flow diagrams shown in Table 1 , 7 of the 9 combination diagrams comprised a flow diagram with another kind of diagram. This is probably understandable given that flow diagrams (also known as “flow charts”) are meant to depict processes, procedures or sequence of steps, and cause-and-effect relationships. An interesting point to note is how the number of flow diagrams increased from the first to the second essay. No instruction or hint was given to the students about what diagram to use, so this increase could have been due to a number of other possible reasons, including differences between the two essays in the procedures/mechanisms that needed to be represented, the students seeing other diagrams their peers have generated (although there were no indications of copying), and development in the students’ understanding of what works well (or not) in using diagrams to communicate particular kinds of information.

It is also worth noting that although we often consider flow diagrams as being most appropriate for representing processes and mechanisms, other forms of diagrams can work as effectively when designed well to match their intended purposes. For example, Panels C and F in Fig.  1 show two examples depicting the progression through the stages of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, using a table in C, and a combination of illustration (of steps) and line diagram in F. Although they differ in appearance, the diagrams can be considered as working equally well not only in showing the proposed stages of the theory, but also in conveying the incremental progression through key cognitive abilities with increasing age (corresponding to those stages).

3.2 Ways that Diagrams Were Used Effectively

The majority of the students did not refer to their diagrams in the text of their essays: only two students did in both essays. Thus, this is perhaps an academic writing method that undergraduate students (like these students) could usefully be instructed to do. However, in general, the students placed their diagrams appropriately, following the text where they deal with the information that is portrayed in the diagram – thereby making the connection between text information and the diagram more apparent.

Concerning the question of whether the diagrams that the students constructed contributed to clarifying any of the processes or mechanisms they were explaining: in the first essay, 7 of the students were considered to have satisfactorily achieved this with at least one of their diagrams, while 8 of them were considered to have done so in the second essay. In each of these cases, the diagrams served a useful function in the essay, to the extent that if they were not included, something sufficiently important in the essay would have been lost, not achieved, or not conveyed as adequately. In most of the cases, the diagrams clarified how the stages or processes referred to in the essay text connect or relate to each other and progress through particular sequences: Panels A and D in Fig.  1 are good examples of this. However, in a few cases, the diagrams also made clearer concepts that – to those unfamiliar with them – could be difficult to understand, such as what is involved in developing the ability of conservation (Panel B of Fig.  1 ).

In some cases, the diagrams also showed or clarified the connections to other components, such as children’s abilities in connection to the progression of developmental stages in the previously referred to Panels C and F in Fig.  1 . In a way, some of the diagrams that worked well served a summarizing function: they visually represented key components and showed more saliently how they were related to each other – which were not as easy to apprehend in sentences because of temporal/sequential separation. This is one of the reasons diagrams are considered effective: they integrate all information that is used together, reducing the need and effort for searching [ 14 ].

In the majority of cases where the diagrams worked well, they visually represented content that was already represented in words in the text – albeit with some enhancements like integration, as noted above. However, in a few exceptional cases, the diagrams also introduced content that was not present in the text of the essays. Figure  2 provides two examples of this. In Panel A, the diagram includes details in the lower part about unsuccessful (arrows with x) and successful (arrows with o) outcomes which require different responses. These details were not explicitly provided in the text but they enable readers to better understand how formative feedback is used in the example of solving story problems. Likewise, in Panel B, the diagram shows details not duplicated in the text about how different categories of complexes are formed, leading eventually to the formation of concepts [ 15 ]. The illustrations of different object combinations make the categories of complexes easier to grasp and distinguish from each other.

Examples of diagrams that introduced content or elaborations not present in the text

3.3 Ways that Diagrams Were Not Used Effectively

There were also numerous instances when the diagrams the students included did not appear to serve any useful function in the essay. In a couple of those cases, the diagrams were redundant: they showed images that portrayed information from the text that was simple enough not to require visual clarification. The illustration in Panel A in Fig.  3 is an example of this. Another ineffective use manifested was when the schematic structure of the diagram was unclear or erroneous. Examples of this are shown in Panels B and C of Fig.  3 . In Panel B, both the intended message and the connections between the components shown are unclear. In Panel C, the meaning of the arrows, and therefore what process might be depicted by the diagram, is unclear. In addition, there were a few diagrams, like the one shown in Panel D of Fig.  3 , which were quite complicated and therefore hard to understand. The contents of Panel D were also referred to in the text of the student’s essay, but the relationships shown in the diagram are new configurations that are not obvious and not explained explicitly in the text. It is therefore difficult to grasp its possible contribution to explaining, in this case, children’s development of understanding of the world around them.

Examples of diagrams that did not effectively serve their intended purpose in the essay

3.4 Implications for Theory, Research, and Practice

The many purposes that diagrams can serve in enhancing communication have been established in previous research [ 2 , 5 , 8 ], and the findings of the present study provide additional evidence for those in the area of student essay writing at the tertiary level. The findings also provide support for the idea that the same communicative purpose can be served by different kinds of diagrams [ 14 ]. Thus, for example, conveying the progression of a particular process can effectively be achieved using a flow diagram – or a table … or an illustration. This means that, in the same way that different words can convey the same meaning, different diagrams – if used/constructed appropriately – can communicate the same meaning. However, in future research, it would be useful to examine the range of communicative purposes that different kinds of diagrams can serve as there are probably important limitations to it. For example, if the communicative purpose is to describe what something looks like , other kinds of diagrams may not be quite as effective as an illustration (e.g., a table or a flow chart would be quite limited in conveying qualities pertaining to appearance).

The findings of the present research also suggest that many students, even at the tertiary level, would likely benefit from receiving some instruction or guidance on the use of diagrams not only in essays but also other forms of communication. While some students were able to generate diagrams that served useful functions in their essays, there were also quite a few who did not manage to do this. However, the findings of this exploratory study were based on a small sample of students taking the same course, so future investigations about spontaneous use and the effects of instruction provision ought to be conducted with larger and more diverse student groups.

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Acknowledgment

This research was supported by a grant-in-aid (20K20516) received from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

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Catherine Legg

Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

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Petrucio Viana

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Manalo, E., Fukuda, M. (2021). Diagrams in Essays: Exploring the Kinds of Diagrams Students Generate and How Well They Work. In: Basu, A., Stapleton, G., Linker, S., Legg, C., Manalo, E., Viana, P. (eds) Diagrammatic Representation and Inference. Diagrams 2021. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 12909. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-86062-2_56

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Using Graphic Organizers for Writing Essays, Summaries and Research

Ask any student – essay writing is one of the most despised tasks of their educational career. Perhaps there is so much displeasure associated with the task because it’s perceived as too linear – there isn’t enough visual and creative appeal. But if you use graphic organizer for writing essays then you can make writing enjoyable – or at least less terrible.

Not only enjoyable but graphic organizers (or diagrams) can make the writing process a snap. They’ll help you think outside the box, draw conclusions you wouldn’t normally observe, and make the entire process faster and more efficient.

Why Use Graphic Organizers for Writing

The phrase “graphic organizer” is just a fancy way of saying “diagram” or “visual aid.” Basically, they are a visual representation of the information you’ve acquired in the research process. There are quite a few reasons why you should use them when writing essays or summaries.

• Helps you visualize your research and how elements connect with each other
• Enhance your essays, summaries and research papers with visual elements
• Track correlations between your thoughts, observations, facts or general ideas

When it comes to essay writing, the most common graphic organizers are webs, mind maps, and concept maps .

Using Webs for Brainstorming

Webbing is a great way to see how various topics are interrelated. This graphic organizer is particularly useful during the brainstorming step of the writing process.

A web can sometimes get a bit messy. Usually, there are lots of arrows to connect overlapping ideas. However, even with lines crisscrossing every which way, it is still a great way to visualize your thoughts. If you’re using an online diagramming software like Creately you can overcome some of this because we automatically arrange the object for you.

Once you’ve created a map to document all your ideas and establish connections, you can easily transition to other forms of diagramming to better organize the information.

For example if you’re writing a research paper about the food web of the Australian bushes you can start creating a food web diagram similar to the one below. This way you can easily visualize the web while writing the paper. This is a simple example but graphic organizers become even more important when the subject gets complex.

Although simple this example shows the importance of using graphic organizers for writing summaries. A comprehensive diagram pretty much does the summation for you.

Using Mind Maps as Graphic Organizers

Mind maps are a great way to depict a hierarchy. What is hierarchical organization ? The concept is simple: a singular topic dominates with each subsequent idea decreasing in importance.

Usually, the mind map starts with the thesis (or main idea) at the center.  From there, you can branch out with your supporting evidence.

Use this process to replace your traditional note taking technique – note cards, outlines, whatever. You’ll quickly realize a mind map is a great way to formulate the structure of your essay. The thing to note here is that the nature of the mind maps force you think about sub topics and how to organize your ideas. And once the ideas are organized writing the essay become very easy.

Above is a mind map of a research proposal. Click on it to see the full image or you can see the fully editable template via this link . As you can see in this mind map the difference areas of the research proposal is highlighted. Similarly when your writing the research paper you can use a mind map to break it down to sub topics. We have more mind map templates for you to get started.

Concept Maps

A concept map will help you visualize the connection between ideas. You can easily see cause and effect – how one concept leads to another. Often times, concept mapping includes the use of short words or phrases to depict the budding relationship between these concepts.

If you look closely you can see that its very similar to a mind map. But a concept maps gives more of a free reign compares to the rigid topic structure of a mind map. I’d say it’s the perfect graphic organizer for writing research papers where you have the license to explore.

By creating a concept map , you can also see how a broad subject can be narrowed down into specific ideas.  This is a great way to counter writers block.  Often, we look at the big picture and fail to see the specifics that lead to it.  Identifying contributing factors and supporting evidence is difficult. But with a concept map, you can easily see how the smaller parts add up to the whole.

Why Bother With Graphic Organizers?

If you already detest the writing process, adding another step might seem insane. However, there really are several advantages of using them.  If you haven’t already accepted the benefits of each individual diagram style, here are some more perks of graphic organizers in general:

• Quality essays are based on detail. No one is going to accept your opinions and reasoning just because you say so. You’ll need proof. And organizing that proof will require attention to detail. Graphic organizers can help you see that detail and how it contributes to the overall concept.
• Graphic organizers are flexible. You don’t need one of those giant pink erasers. You don’t need to restructure your outline. All you have to do is draw a few arrows and bam – the relationship has totally changed.
• No matter what you are writing about, a graphic organizer can help. They can be used to structure an essay on the Great Wall, theoretical physics, or Spanish speaking countries.
• If you write an outline, can you easily see how point A influences point X? Probably not. But if little thought bubble A is sitting out there all by itself, you can visualize the way it ties into point R, T and X.
• Some of us find it difficult to put our opinions, thoughts, and ideas into writing. However, communicating our feelings with little doodles and sketches is far less threatening.
• As a writer, our brain often feels like a 2-year-old’s toy box – a big jumbled mess. Taking that mess and putting it onto paper with some semblance of organization is challenging. Rather than trying to take your thoughts from total chaos to a perfectly structured list, just try to get them out of your brain and onto paper in the form of a diagram.
• A graphic organizer helps you establish validity and relevance. You can easily nix the ideas that don’t support or enhance your thesis.

The next time you are faced with a writing project, take a few minutes to explore the efficiency of graphic organizers. You can find a wealth of templates here.

Have you ever used a graphic organizer to structure an essay? How did it go? Do you have a diagram suggestion for the writing process that wasn’t mentioned here? Let us know!

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Diagrams in Essays: Exploring the Kinds of Diagrams Students Generate and How Well They Work

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Can an Essay have Charts? How to Insert Graphs and Pictures

using charts in an essay

Writing convincing essays is key to pass your class well and score high grades. One of the ways to convince your professor is to include graphs, screenshots, and pictures. In this informative piece, I will explain if an essay can have charts, graphs or graphics, and how to do that effectively.

After you read through it, you will get great tips to make your essay convincing. However, if you have no time to do that, you can hire essay writers to complete your essays and get that grade. But read on to handle it yourself.

Need Help with your Homework or Essays?

Can an essay have charts.

Using charts and graphs in an essay is good and can improve the grades by backing up your arguments in an essay. However, it is good to know when to use them and when not to.

Charts can be used in an essay if it is long enough to accommodate them or the instructions allow you to insert them.

You can use charts and graphs in a paper long as they add meaning to your arguments in a reasonable way.

They should fit in well with the essay’s context and should not be viewed as just decoration.

Charts should clearly explain the ideas you present and make it easy for readers to understand the ideas. Charts help you demonstrate facts, information, and figures that you obtain from research.

With that said, some institutions do not allow for the use of charts in essays. These institutions view an essay as a free-flowing piece of writing that should be continuous.

This also leaves no chance for the use of bullets and arrows in essays. Using charts in your essays in such institutions may prove costly to your grades or make your essays be looked down upon.

How to Effectively Insert Charts and Graphs in an Essay?

If a chart you create fits in effectively with the context you are explaining in your essay, then inserting the chart in your essay should not be a problem.

Graphs and charts should be large enough for clear visibility. As you insert a research paper graph in a paper, be sure to have them drawn or data analyzed. The following should be included when inserting a chart in your essay.

1. Label the Chart

Always include a caption under your chart. The caption should be clear. It can contain the topic of the chart or just a description.

This caption helps a reader relate the surrounding texts to the information included in the charts. For example, (‘Figure 2’ Age Distribution in New Zeeland.)

2. Mention the Chart in the Text

Reference the chart before introducing an essay. This helps the reader have a clue about what the chart will be all about.

If your chart illustrates a point in your essay you can include the following line before introducing your chart. ‘Figure 2 below shows an example of this.’ Here is an example.

3. Cite Charts Obtained from Different Sources

Just as you quote someone in an essay, you need to cite charts found from other sources to avoid plagiarism.

How you cite usually varies depending on the referencing format you are using. When using the author-date referencing format, always include the name of the author of the source and the year of publication.

Other referencing formats also may require you to include the page that the chart was obtained from. The source should not only appear on the chart but also the reference list of the whole essay.

 The style of writing you use in your essay also determines the type of referencing format you use. APA references are different from MLA references and Chicago format references.

4. Using Meaningful Titles

A title you give your graph or chart should represent what your graph or chart is all about. The title should be simple to make the reader understand straightaway the information that will be represented on the graph.

Graph titles are always located above the graphs while the titles of charts and figures are located below the charts.

It is also important to look at some of the things you should not do when inserting charts and graphs in your paper:

• Never restructure data from another source to fit in your chat or graph without acknowledging the source. Data from tables and figures should not be directly transferred to charts and graphs.
• Never use charts and figures in your essay without referring to its existence in your essay or without it making relevance in your arguments in the essay.
• Point out significance in your charts and graphs without using extensive explanations and descriptions in the contents of the charts. 

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Importance of Charts and Diagrams in an Essay or Paper

Charts and diagrams are used to communicate information. Symbols, signs, and pie charts are some examples of diagrams that are used to convey particular information.

Charts and diagrams provide a better way for people to relate to the information and process its importance. The following are some of the benefits of using charts and diagrams in a paper:

1. Visualizing Concepts

Instructors can see and conceptualize with materials represented in the form of charts and diagrams in essays. The instructors can engage with the material more even without much more explanation from the essay.

Different types of diagrams have different ways of representing information. This varies on different topics. For example, Venn diagrams place words that are interrelated in bubbles to represent the interrelation of concepts.

Using charts and diagrams, therefore, makes complicated topics easily understandable. This makes it easier for the essay writer to represent information in a way easily understandable by the instructor.

2. Diagrams and Charts say more

Explaining concepts such as statistical data and information concerning the performance of system functions is easily done through diagrams and charts.

Explaining concepts also is quicker and avoids the strain and the use of resources. Using diagrams and charts is without a doubt more effective in an essay than not.

For example, medical students can explain the functioning of different organs of the human body, such as the heart, the kidney, and the digestive system using pictures, charts, and diagrams of the organs.

The use of diagrams is also crucial in business-based essays, where information dissemination needs comprehension, speed, and accuracy of information. 

3. Diagrams and charts catch and maintain attention

Attention is usually important among readers. Attention can determine whether the information you are presenting is accepted and absorbed by readers or if they will turn it down.

Diagrams and charts maintain your readers’ attention by giving them something they can look at and engage with. This allows for the easy absorption of information in understandable and memorable bits.

Students can use diagrams to make instructors understand their research easily. This is by using a diagram to break down the research plan into simple, understandable concepts.

4. Charts and Diagrams are Effective for Comparison Essays

Analysis of data can be done effectively using charts and graphs. Pie charts represent different quantities of data, while graphs can plot variables on the x and y planes for comparisons. There can’t be a better way of analyzing data than this.

FAQs on Essays having Charts

Can an essay have pictures.

An essay can have pictures because they can help drive a point home in your essay. Pictures are indeed worth a thousand words and they may be what you need. However, some institutions are against it. Therefore, it is important to inquire before using pictures in your essay.

Pictures in essays should serve a rhetorical purpose, not as a way of padding your essay. How you use a paper in your essay should be per the writing format you used.

This further helps to make your arguments more convincing. Pictures should be placed where they make the most sense in your essay.

In MLA style documents pictures should be inside your I-inch margins and should contain reference in the caption crediting the source.

The caption should be referred to in the body of your essay to give the reader an insight into what it will be all about.

In APA style if the picture spans one column it should be between 2-3.25 inches.

If it takes two columns, it should be 4.25 inches to 6.875 inches. Captions in this style should use the sans-serif font and be between 8-12 font sizes.

Can an essay have Tables

One can use tables in an essay and in some courses, it is highly encouraged. However, the use of tables on essays depends on the style requirement of the place the easy will be published or submitted to. No rule prohibits the use of tables in an essay.

This leaves the institution with the discretion to decide the use of tables in essays. Institutions that prohibit the use of tables in essays believe that they are a form of expanding a page count without writing many actual words.

Such institutions believe that essays should consist of words only, therefore, prohibiting graphs, pictures, and other diagrams.

Many publishers and some institutions are not against the use of tables in essays. They view tables as a good method that can be used to represent and explain information better.

Can an essay have Graphs

Graphs can be used appropriately in essays to represent dense information in paragraphs. These paragraphs may prove hard to understand but graphs help break them down into an easily understandable diagram.

With graphs references of figures made later in the essay are easily identifiable. Without graphs, the reader will have to search for a particular line in the easy to refer to.

When you have a lot of numbers to share with readers, graphs are the perfect representation format. The most used types of graphs are; line graphs, bar graphs, and pie charts.

With over 10 years in academia and academic assistance, Alicia Smart is the epitome of excellence in the writing industry. She is our managing editor and is in charge of the writing operations at Grade Bees.

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Figure Setup

All types of visual displays other than tables are considered figures in APA Style. Common types of figures include line graphs, bar graphs, charts (e.g., flowcharts, pie charts), drawings, maps, plots (e.g., scatterplots), photographs, infographics, and other illustrations.

This page addresses the basics of figure setup, including figure components, principles of figure construction, and placement of figures in a paper. Note that tables and figures have the same overall setup.

View the sample figures to see these guidelines in action. Information is also available on how to use color to create accessible figures .

Figure components

APA Style figures have these basic components:

• number: The figure number (e.g., Figure 1) appears above the figure title and image in bold font. Number figures in the order in which they are mentioned in your paper.
• title: The figure title appears one double-spaced line below the figure number. Give each figure a brief but descriptive title, and capitalize the figure title in italic title case .
• image: The image portion of the figure is the graph, chart, photograph, drawing, or other illustration itself. If text appears in the image of the figure (e.g., axis labels), use a sans serif font between 8 and 14 points .
• legend: A figure legend, or key, if present, should be positioned within the borders of the figure and explains any symbols used in the figure image. Capitalize words in the figure legend in title case .
• note: Three types of notes (general, specific, and probability) can appear below the figure to describe contents of the figure that cannot be understood from the figure title, image, and/or legend alone (e.g., definitions of abbreviations, copyright attribution, explanations of asterisks use to indicate p values). Include figure notes only as needed.

This diagram illustrates the basic figure components.

Figures are covered in the seventh edition APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Sections 7.22 to 7.36 and the Concise Guide Sections 7.22 to 7.32

Related handout

• Student Paper Setup Guide (PDF, 3MB)

Principles of figure creation

The most important principle to follow when creating a figure is to present information in a way that is easy for readers to understand. Provide sufficient information in the figure itself so that readers do not need to read the text to understand it.

When creating a figure, ensure you meet the following standards:

• images are clear
• lines are smooth and sharp
• font is legible and simple
• units of measurement are provided
• axes are clearly labeled
• elements within the figure are clearly labeled or explained

Use graphics software to create figures in APA Style papers. For example, use the built-in graphics features of your word-processing program (e.g., Microsoft Word or Excel) or dedicated programs such as Photoshop or Inkscape.

Placement of figures in a paper

There are two options for the placement of figures (and tables) in a paper. The first is to embed figures in the text after each is first mentioned (or “called out”); the second is to place each figure on a separate page after the reference list.

An embedded figure may take up an entire page; if the figure is short, however, text may appear on the same page as the figure. In that case, place the figure at either the top or bottom of the page rather than in the middle. Also add one blank double-spaced line between the figure and any text to improve the visual presentation.

View the sample figures for more information on figures.

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Can I include diagrams in essays for complex topics?

I know that it breaks the general format of essays and that you should generally not include diagrams in essays. I just find it hard to keep clarity for parts that can be misunderstood, if interpreted differently. In the context of my essay, is it ok to use diagrams?

The essay is an analysis of the factors that contributed to an air crash. The image below is a small part of the essay.

• 1 This depends entirely on what "specifications" you have for an essay. If it's a school assignment, you may be directed to not use diagrams, on purpose, in order to test your writing skills. If you're doing it for work, it depends entirely on what your client/boss/requirements demand(s). In professional technical writing, it's quite normal to use diagrams--obviously, they really do help. –  sesquipedalias Commented Apr 16, 2019 at 9:16
• Yes, this college assessment is not so much about academic writing ability but more about content. –  Mathieu Commented Apr 16, 2019 at 9:35
• 2 Unrelated to your question per se, but wing chord, angle of attack and critical AoA are about pitch, not roll or yaw. While excessive yaw can (even deliberately be used to) induce additional drag and thus require more engine power for the same flight profile, and roll tends to induce yaw, your illustration would probably be just about exactly correct if it were showing movement in the vertical plane; that is, not a steep turn, but sharply pulling out of a dive. That would seem to be the standard warning about how airfoils stall at a given angle of attack, as opposed to a particular airspeed. –  user Commented Apr 16, 2019 at 9:48
• Ideally you should get a clarification on how this will be graded / what specifically is required. Failing that, the compromise suggested by @Liquid seems to me is your best choice. –  sesquipedalias Commented Apr 16, 2019 at 11:34
• 1 I used to teach Tech Writing -- I would actually require diagrams (or some graphic element). Be sure you're citing the source and labeling it properly as required. (And as a good practice, for accessibility, be sure to add a Description for the picture (Word) or Alt-Text (HTML). ) –  April Salutes Monica C. Commented Apr 16, 2019 at 13:04

2 Answers 2

I think that in this case you may want to keep both ways open.

Diagrams are usually allright in academic and technical contexts, but you mentioned this is a college assessment and your ability to write clearly is going to be graded.

I would include the image for clarity, while describing the contents of the image at the same time. Writing an accurate description on such topic is surely a difficult task, but you are probably supposed to undertake it anyway.

Graphics and artwork get a bad rap in essays and similar length nonfiction because so many authors and editors make stupid decisions.

How many stock photos of beautiful young people in posed action shots have you seen adorning articles? Or maybe it's a stock photo of a computer or a kitchen. In your case, perhaps an airplane.

But you don't want a photo, you want a diagram. Here you go.

When people say "please God no, no graphics" they mean, don't grab things to pretty up the essay that don't serve any purpose.

Sometimes though, pictures and diagrams are essential to understanding, or they really add to the work. Figuring out if this is the case, and then creating the right graphics to go with the work, is a lot harder than you might think.

Since you're dealing with academic work, you need to ask your teacher what s/he does and doesn't want. When you're a student, you write for your audience just like anybody else. The difference is that a student's entire audience is made up of the teacher (and and those working with her/him).

For published works, you go with what the publisher wants (and can afford). In some media, like blogging, every essay will have pictures because that's how the medium works. Essay, article, blog post, etc. They are more alike than they are different. Just the presentation varies.

I would find it odd for an article about airplane moves that lead to crashes not to have any graphics. I'm not sure yours is the right one (to be honest, it didn't aid in my understanding of the problem), but it makes sense to have something. What is a critical angle and how does it work with turns? That's what you need your graphics to get across.

• 1 As to your closing point "what is a critical angle [...]?", that depends very much on the audience being written for. Any student pilot should be able to tell you the definition of critical angle of attack, for example, so spending time or text explaining that to an audience of pilots would be a waste of breath unless that is a deliberate lead-in to the actual point that's being made. If the audience is more along the lines of aviation enthusiasts, maybe; if the audience is the general public, definitely, but they won't know what angle of attack is in the first place, so will need even more. –  user Commented Apr 17, 2019 at 11:07
• @aCVn Absolutely. So if the article is aimed at people who already know what a critical angle is and how it relates turning, then what is the use of the attached diagram in the question? Is there any audience it's useful for? –  Cyn Commented Apr 17, 2019 at 13:58
• With appropriate elaboration, and ideally clarification of the diagram, I do think that such an audience is a possibility. It would depend a lot on the focus of the text, though. –  user Commented Apr 17, 2019 at 14:06

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Figures and Charts

What this handout is about.

This handout will describe how to use figures and tables to present complicated information in a way that is accessible and understandable to your reader.

Do I need a figure/table?

When planning your writing, it is important to consider the best way to communicate information to your audience, especially if you plan to use data in the form of numbers, words, or images that will help you construct and support your argument.  Generally speaking, data summaries may take the form of text, tables or figures. Most writers are familiar with textual data summaries and this is often the best way to communicate simple results. A good rule of thumb is to see if you can present your results clearly in a sentence or two. If so, a table or figure is probably unnecessary. If your data are too numerous or complicated to be described adequately in this amount of space, figures and tables can be effective ways of conveying lots of information without cluttering up your text. Additionally, they serve as quick references for your reader and can reveal trends, patterns, or relationships that might otherwise be difficult to grasp.

So what’s the difference between a table and a figure anyway?

Tables present lists of numbers or text in columns and can be used to synthesize existing literature, to explain variables, or to present the wording of survey questions. They are also used to make a paper or article more readable by removing numeric or listed data from the text. Tables are typically used to present raw data, not when you want to show a relationship between variables.

Figures are visual presentations of results. They come in the form of graphs, charts, drawings, photos, or maps.  Figures provide visual impact and can effectively communicate your primary finding. Traditionally, they are used to display trends and patterns of relationship, but they can also be used to communicate processes or display complicated data simply.  Figures should not duplicate the same information found in tables and vice versa.

Using tables

Tables are easily constructed using your word processor’s table function or a spread sheet program such as Excel. Elements of a table include the Legend or Title, Column Titles, and the Table Body (quantitative or qualitative data). They may also include subheadings and footnotes. Remember that it is just as important to think about the organization of tables as it is to think about the organization of paragraphs. A well-organized table allows readers to grasp the meaning of the data presented with ease, while a disorganized one will leave the reader confused about the data itself, or the significance of the data.

Title: Tables are headed by a number followed by a clear, descriptive title or caption. Conventions regarding title length and content vary by discipline. In the hard sciences, a lengthy explanation of table contents may be acceptable. In other disciplines, titles should be descriptive but short, and any explanation or interpretation of data should take place in the text. Be sure to look up examples from published papers within your discipline that you can use as a model. It may also help to think of the title as the “topic sentence” of the table—it tells the reader what the table is about and how it’s organized. Tables are read from the top down, so titles go above the body of the table and are left-justified.

Column titles: The goal of column headings is to simplify and clarify the table, allowing the reader to understand the components of the table quickly. Therefore, column titles should be brief and descriptive and should include units of analysis.

Table body: This is where your data are located, whether they are numerical or textual. Again, organize your table in a way that helps the reader understand the significance of the data. Be sure to think about what you want your readers to compare, and put that information in the column (up and down) rather than in the row (across). In other words, construct your table so that like elements read down, not across. When using numerical data with decimals, make sure that the decimal points line up. Whole numbers should line up on the right.

Other table elements

Tables should be labeled with a number preceding the table title; tables and figures are labeled independently of one another. Tables should also have lines demarcating different parts of the table (title, column headers, data, and footnotes if present). Gridlines or boxes should not be included in printed versions. Tables may or may not include other elements, such as subheadings or footnotes.

Quick reference for tables

Tables should be:

• Centered on the page.
• Numbered in the order they appear in the text.
• Referenced in the order they appear in the text.
• Labeled with the table number and descriptive title above the table.
• Labeled with column and/or row labels that describe the data, including units of measurement.
• Set apart from the text itself; text does not flow around the table.

Table 1. Physical characteristics of the Doctor in the new series of Doctor Who

Table 2. Physical characteristics of the Doctor in the new series of Doctor Who

Using figures

Figures can take many forms. They may be graphs, diagrams, photos, drawings, or maps. Think deliberately about your purpose and use common sense to choose the most effective figure for communicating the main point. If you want your reader to understand spatial relationships, a map or photograph may be the best choice. If you want to illustrate proportions, experiment with a pie chart or bar graph. If you want to illustrate the relationship between two variables, try a line graph or a scatterplot (more on various types of graphs below). Although there are many types of figures, like tables, they share some typical features: captions, the image itself, and any necessary contextual information (which will vary depending on the type of figure you use).

Figure captions

Figures should be labeled with a number followed by a descriptive caption or title. Captions should be concise but comprehensive. They should describe the data shown, draw attention to important features contained within the figure, and may sometimes also include interpretations of the data. Figures are typically read from the bottom up, so captions go below the figure and are left-justified.

The most important consideration for figures is simplicity. Choose images the viewer can grasp and interpret clearly and quickly. Consider size, resolution, color, and prominence of important features. Figures should be large enough and of sufficient resolution for the viewer to make out details without straining their eyes. Also consider the format your paper will ultimately take. Journals typically publish figures in black and white, so any information coded by color will be lost to the reader.  On the other hand, color might be a good choice for papers published to the web or for PowerPoint presentations. In any case, use figure elements like color, line, and pattern for effect, not for flash.

Additional information

Figures should be labeled with a number preceding the table title; tables and figures are numbered independently of one another. Also be sure to include any additional contextual information your viewer needs to understand the figure. For graphs, this may include labels, a legend explaining symbols, and vertical or horizontal tick marks. For maps, you’ll need to include a scale and north arrow. If you’re unsure about contextual information, check out several types of figures that are commonly used in your discipline.

Quick reference for figures

Figures should be:

• Labeled (under the figure) with the figure number and appropriate descriptive title (“Figure” can be spelled out [“Figure 1.”] or abbreviated [“Fig. 1.”] as long as you are consistent).
• Referenced in the order they appear in the text (i.e. Figure 1 is referenced in the text before Figure 2 and so forth).
• Set apart from the text; text should not flow around figures.

Every graph is a figure but not every figure is a graph. Graphs are a particular set of figures that display quantitative relationships between variables. Some of the most common graphs include bar charts, frequency histograms, pie charts, scatter plots, and line graphs, each of which displays trends or relationships within and among datasets in a different way. You’ll need to carefully choose the best graph for your data and the relationship that you want to show. More details about some common graph types are provided below. Some good advice regarding the construction of graphs is to keep it simple. Remember that the main objective of your graph is communication. If your viewer is unable to visually decode your graph, then you have failed to communicate the information contained within it.

Pie charts are used to show relative proportions, specifically the relationship of a number of parts to the whole. Use pie charts only when the parts of the pie are mutually exclusive categories and the sum of parts adds up to a meaningful whole (100% of something). Pie charts are good at showing “big picture” relationships (i.e. some categories make up “a lot” or “a little” of the whole thing). However, if you want your reader to discern fine distinctions within your data, the pie chart is not for you. Humans are not very good at making comparisons based on angles. We are much better at comparing length, so try a bar chart as an alternative way to show relative proportions. Additionally, pie charts with lots of little slices or slices of very different sizes are difficult to read, so limit yours to 5-7 categories.

The chart shows the relative proportion of fifteen elements in Martian soil, listed in order from “most” to “least”: oxygen, silicon, iron, magnesium, calcium, sulfur, aluminum, sodium, potassium, chlorine, helium, nitrogen, phosphorus, beryllium, and other. Oxygen makes up about ⅓ of the composition, while silicon and iron together make up about ¼. The remaining slices make up smaller proportions, but the percentages aren’t listed in the key and are difficult to estimate. It is also hard to distinguish fifteen colors when comparing the pie chart to the color coded key.

The chart shows the relative proportion of five leisure activities of Venusian teenagers (tanning, trips to Mars, reading, messing with satellites, and stealing Earth cable). Although each of the five slices are about the same size (roughly 20% of the total), the percentage of Venusian teenagers engaging in each activity varies widely (tanning: 80%, trips to Mars: 40%, reading: 12%, messing with satellites: 30%, stealing Earth cable: 77%). Therefore, there is a mismatch between the labels and the actual proportion represented by each activity (in other words, if reading represents 12% of the total, its slice should take up 12% of the pie chart area), which makes the representation inaccurate. In addition, the labels for the five slices add up to 239% (rather than 100%), which makes it impossible to accurately represent this dataset using a pie chart.

Bar graphs are also used to display proportions. In particular, they are useful for showing the relationship between independent and dependent variables, where the independent variables are discrete (often nominal) categories. Some examples are occupation, gender, and species. Bar graphs can be vertical or horizontal. In a vertical bar graph the independent variable is shown on the x axis (left to right) and the dependent variable on the y axis (up and down). In a horizontal one, the dependent variable will be shown on the horizontal (x) axis, the independent on the vertical (y) axis. The scale and origin of the graph should be meaningful. If the dependent (numeric) variable has a natural zero point, it is commonly used as a point of origin for the bar chart. However, zero is not always the best choice. You should experiment with both origin and scale to best show the relevant trends in your data without misleading the viewer in terms of the strength or extent of those trends.

The graph shows the number of male and female spaceship crew members for five different popular television series: Star Trek (1965), Battlestar (1978), Star Trek: TNG (1987), Stargate SG-1 (1997), and Firefly (2002). Because the television series are arranged chronologically on the x-axis, the graph can also be used to look for trends in these numbers over time.

Although the number of crew members for each show is similar (ranging from 9 to 11), the proportion of female and male crew members varies. Star Trek has half as many female crew members as male crew members (3 and 6, respectively), Battlestar has fewer than one-fourth as many female crew members as male crew members (2 and 9, respectively), Star Trek: TNG has four female crew members and six male crew members, Stargate SG-1 has less than one-half as many female crew members as male crew members (3 and 7, respectively), and Firefly has four female and five male crew members.

Frequency histograms/distributions

Frequency histograms are a special type of bar graph that show the relationship between independent and dependent variables, where the independent variable is continuous, rather than discrete. This means that each bar represents a range of values, rather than a single observation. The dependent variables in a histogram are always numeric, but may be absolute (counts) or relative (percentages). Frequency histograms are good for describing populations—examples include the distribution of exam scores for students in a class or the age distribution of the people living in Chapel Hill. You can experiment with bar ranges (also known as “bins”) to achieve the best level of detail, but each range or bin should be of uniform width and clearly labeled.

XY scatter plots

Scatter plots are another way to illustrate the relationship between two variables. In this case, data are displayed as points in an x,y coordinate system, where each point represents one observation along two axes of variation. Often, scatter plots are used to illustrate correlation between two variables—as one variable increases, the other increases (positive correlation) or decreases (negative correlation). However, correlation does not necessarily imply that changes in one variable cause changes in the other. For instance, a third, unplotted variable may be causing both. In other words, scatter plots can be used to graph one independent and one dependent variable, or they can be used to plot two independent variables. In cases where one variable is dependent on another (for example, height depends partly on age), plot the independent variable on the horizontal (x) axis, and the dependent variable on the vertical (y) axis. In addition to correlation (a linear relationship), scatter plots can be used to plot non-linear relationships between variables.

The scatter plot shows the relationship between temperature (x-axis, independent variable) and the number of UFO sightings (y-axis, dependent variable) for 53 separate data points. The temperature ranges from about 0°F and 120°F, and the number of UFO sightings ranges from 1 to 10. The plot shows a low number of UFO sightings (ranging from 1 to 4) at temperatures below 80°F and a much wider range of the number of sightings (from 1 to 10) at temperatures above 80°F. It appears that the number of sightings tends to increase as temperature increases, though there are many cases where only a few sightings occur at high temperatures.

XY line graphs

Line graphs are similar to scatter plots in that they display data along two axes of variation. Line graphs, however, plot a series of related values that depict a change in one variable as a function of another, for example, world population (dependent) over time (independent). Individual data points are joined by a line, drawing the viewer’s attention to local change between adjacent points, as well as to larger trends in the data. Line graphs are similar to bar graphs, but are better at showing the rate of change between two points. Line graphs can also be used to compare multiple dependent variables by plotting multiple lines on the same graph.

Example of an XY line graph:

The line graph shows the age (in years) of the actor of each Doctor Who regeneration for the first through the eleventh regeneration. The ages range from a maximum of about 55 in the first regeneration to a minimum of about 25 in the eleventh regeneration. There is a downward trend in the age of the actors over the course of the eleven regenerations.

General tips for graphs

Strive for simplicity. Your data will be complex. Don’t be tempted to convey the complexity of your data in graphical form. Your job (and the job of your graph) is to communicate the most important thing about the data. Think of graphs like you think of paragraphs—if you have several important things to say about your data, make several graphs, each of which highlights one important point you want to make.

Strive for clarity. Make sure that your data are portrayed in a way that is visually clear. Make sure that you have explained the elements of the graph clearly. Consider your audience. Will your reader be familiar with the type of figure you are using (such as a boxplot)? If not, or if you’re not sure, you may need to explain boxplot conventions in the text. Avoid “chartjunk.” Superfluous elements just make graphs visually confusing. Your reader does not want to spend 15 minutes figuring out the point of your graph.

Strive for accuracy. Carefully check your graph for errors. Even a simple graphical error can change the meaning and interpretation of the data. Use graphs responsibly. Don’t manipulate the data so that it looks like it’s saying something it’s not—savvy viewers will see through this ruse, and you will come off as incompetent at best and dishonest at worst.

How should tables and figures interact with text?

Placement of figures and tables within the text is discipline-specific. In manuscripts (such as lab reports and drafts) it is conventional to put tables and figures on separate pages from the text, as near as possible to the place where you first refer to it. You can also put all the figures and tables at the end of the paper to avoid breaking up the text. Figures and tables may also be embedded in the text, as long as the text itself isn’t broken up into small chunks. Complex raw data is conventionally presented in an appendix. Be sure to check on conventions for the placement of figures and tables in your discipline.

You can use text to guide the reader in interpreting the information included in a figure, table, or graph—tell the reader what the figure or table conveys and why it was important to include it.

When referring to tables and graphs from within the text, you can use:

• Clauses beginning with “as”: “As shown in Table 1, …”
• Passive voice: “Results are shown in Table 1.”
• Active voice (if appropriate for your discipline): “Table 1 shows that …”
• Parentheses: “Each sample tested positive for three nutrients (Table 1).”

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

American Psychological Association. 2010. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association . 6th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Bates College. 2012. “ Almost everything you wanted to know about making tables and figures.” How to Write a Paper in Scientific Journal Style and Format , January 11, 2012. http://abacus.bates.edu/~ganderso/biology/resources/writing/HTWtablefigs.html.

Cleveland, William S. 1994. The Elements of Graphing Data , 2nd ed. Summit, NJ: Hobart Press..

Council of Science Editors. 2014. Scientific Style and Format: The CSE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers , 8th ed. Chicago & London: University of Chicago Press.

University of Chicago Press. 2017. The Chicago Manual of Style , 17th ed. Chicago & London: University of Chicago Press.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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How To Write an IELTS Process Diagram Essay

An IELTS process diagram question can contain a wide variety of different types of graphics. It could be a natural process such as the water cycle, a manufacturing process or a diagram of a system.

Using these 5 steps will help you to write a high-scoring process diagram essay:

1)  Analyse the question

2)  Identify the main features

3)  Write an introduction

4)  Write an overview

5)  Write the details paragraphs

In this lesson, we’re going to work through the 5 stages step-by-step as we answer a practice question.

Before we begin, here’s a model essay structure that you can use as a guideline for all IELTS Academic Task 1 questions.

Ideally, your essay should have 4 paragraphs:

Paragraph 1  – Introduction

Paragraph 2  – Overview

Paragraph 3  – 1 st  main feature

Paragraph 4  – 2 nd  main feature

We now have everything we need to begin planning and writing our IELTS process diagram essay.

Here’s our practice question:

The diagrams below show a structure that is used to generate electricity from wave power.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

Generating Electricity From The Sea

Source: Official website IELTS Essentials

Step 1 –  Analyse the question

The format of every Academic Task 1 question is the same, with the instruction sentence (highlighted below) identical in every question. Here is our practice question again.

Every question consists of:

• Sentence 1 – A brief description of the graphic
• Sentence 2 – The instructions
• The graphic – diagram, chart, graph, table, etc.

Sentence 2 tells you what you have to do.

You must do 3 things:

1.     Select the main features.

2.     Write about the main features.

3.     Compare the main features.

All three tasks refer to the ‘ main features ’ of the graphic. You  do not  have to write about everything. Just pick out 2 or 3 key features and you’ll have plenty to write about.

Step 2 – Identify the Main Features

The graphic in IELTS process diagram questions should not be difficult to understand. There are not usually any numbers to analyse as in other types of question, just a diagram to interpret or, as in our practice question, two diagrams which each show part of the process.

All you are looking for are the main features. These should be the easiest things to spot. There will be lots of information in the graphic to help you identify them, especially, titles, labels and captions.

Here are some useful questions to ask?

1) Is it a linear or a cyclical process?

A linear process starts and finishes at different places. It will often involve the manufacture or creation of something, starting with the raw materials going in at one end and the finished product coming out the other end. An example of this can be seen in this diagram from a past IELTS process diagram question about the manufacture of bricks.

Linear process

A cyclical process, on the other hand, is a process that goes back to the beginning and repeats over and over again, such as the life cycle of a frog or a butterfly.

Cyclical process

2) Where does the process start and end?

For a linear process this will usually be obvious. It may be harder to determine for a cyclical process so it’s important that you examine the graphic carefully to find out.

3) How many steps are there to the process?

If there are a lot, it can be helpful to number them from 1 to whatever number the final stage is.

4) Can the process be easily broken down into stages?

In the brick-making graphic, for example, there are three stages:

a) Creating the bricks from clay

b) Manufacturing the finished product by drying and firing

c) Packaging and delivery

In the life cycle graphic above, there are also three distinct stages as the frog passes through different stages of development – egg, juvenile, adult.

5) What are the raw materials? What is produced at the end of the process?

These questions obviously apply only to manufacturing processes.

For other types of process, it might be more appropriate to ask the following question.

6) What is the end result of the process?

This question is relevant for our practice IELTS process diagram question which shows a process that creates something using a particular structure. The end result is the production of electricity.

So, what main features stand out in our practice graphic? Here it is again.

This graphic doesn’t contain very much detail. There are only two stages to the process:

Stage 1:  Electricity is generated as the wave flows into the structure (Diagram A).

Stage 2:  Electricity is also created as the receding wave draws air back down the column (Diagram B).

Other diagrams are more complex and you have to go through them stage by stage to work out what’s happening and then pick out just 2 or 3 main feature to write about.

The key features you select will be the starting point for your essay. You will then go on to add more detail later. However, with just 20 minutes allowed for Task 1, and a requirement of only 150 words, you won't be able to include many details.

We’re now ready to begin writing our essay. Here’s a reminder of the 4 part structure we’re going to use.

Step 3 – Write an Introduction 

In the introduction, you should simply paraphrase the question, that is, say the same thing in a different way. You can do this by using synonyms and changing the sentence structure. For example:

Introduction (Paragraph 1): 

The two diagrams illustrate a method of creating electricity from the force of waves using a specifically designed man-made construction.

This is all you need to do for the introduction.

Step 4 – Write an Overview (Paragraph 2)

In the second paragraph, you should give a general description of the diagram/s or process. The detail comes later in the essay.

State the information simply using synonyms where possible. No elaborate vocabulary or grammar structures are required, just the appropriate words and correct verb tenses.

For example:

Overview  (Paragraph 2): 

The structure, consisting of a wave chamber and a tall column containing a turbine, is erected on a steeply sloping coastal cliff or sea wall where it is subject to the movement of the ocean waves.

Step 5  – Write the 1st Detail Paragraph

Paragraphs 3 and 4 of your IELTS process diagram essay are where you include more detailed information. In paragraph 3, you should explain the first key feature in more detail.

For this question, we will expand on the first stage of the process. Here it is again:

Stage 1: Electricity is generated as the wave flows into the structure (Diagram A).

And this is an example of what you could write:

Paragraph 3 :

The first diagram shows how the incoming wave fills a large chamber and forces the air inside this space up the column and through the turbine. The pressure of the air rotates the turbine which generates a current of electricity. The process does not end there for the structure is able to continue producing power as the sea recedes as can be seen in the second diagram.

Step 6  – Write the 2nd Detail Paragraph

For the fourth and final paragraph, you do the same thing for your remaining key features or, for this question, the second stage of the process.

Here it is again:

Stage 2: Electricity is also created as the receding wave draws air back down the column (Diagram B).

Here’s an example of what you could write:

Paragraph 4 :

As the water now flows away from the structure, it draws air back down the column and downwards through the turbine in the same direction as the previous upward flow of air. The turbine continues to turn thus generating even more electricity. 

Here are the four paragraphs brought together to create our finished essay.

Finished IELTS Process Diagram Essay

This sample IELTS process diagram essay is just over the minimum word limit so you can see that you don’t have space to include very much detail at all. That’s why it is essential to select just a couple of main features to write about.

Now use what you’ve learnt in this lesson to practice answering other IELTS process diagram questions. Start slowly at first and keep practicing until you can plan and write a complete essay in around 20 minutes.

Want  to watch and listen to this lesson?

Click on this video.

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Ielts academic writing task 1 – all lessons.

IELTS Academic Writing  –  A summary of the test including important facts, test format & assessment.

Academic Writing Task 1  – The format, the 7 question types & sample questions, assessment & marking criteria.  All the key information you need to know.

Understanding Task 1 Questions  – How to quickly and easily analyse and understand IELTS Writing Task 2 questions.

How To Plan a Task 1 Essay  –  Discover  3 reasons why you must plan, the 4 simple steps of essay planning and learn a simple 4 part essay structure.

Vocabulary for Task 1 Essays  –  Learn key vocabulary for a high-scoring essay. Word lists & a downloadable PDF.

Grammar for Task 1 Essays   – Essential grammar for Task 1 Academic essays including, verb tenses, key sentence structures, articles & prepositions.

The 7 Question Types:

Click the links below for a step-by-step lesson on each type of Task 1 question.

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Diagrams in Essays: Exploring the Kinds of Diagrams Students Generate and How Well They Work

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Bibliometrics & citations, view options, recommendations, constraint diagrams: a step beyond uml.

The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a set of notations for modelling object-oriented systems. It has become the de facto standard. Most of its notations are diagrammatic. An exception to this is the Object Constraint Language (OCL) which is ...

Generating Euler Diagrams

This article describes an algorithm for the automated generation of any Euler diagram starting with an abstract description of the diagram. An automated generation mechanism for Euler diagrams forms the foundations of a generation algorithm for ...

Inductively Generating Euler Diagrams

Euler diagrams have a wide variety of uses, from information visualization to logical reasoning. In all of their application areas, the ability to automatically layout Euler diagrams brings considerable benefits. In this paper, we present a novel ...

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University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK

Lancaster University in Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany

Deakin University, Burwood, VIC, Australia

Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

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Venn Diagrams to Plan Essays and More

• M.Ed., Education Administration, University of Georgia
• B.A., History, Armstrong State University

A Venn diagram is a great tool for brainstorming and creating a comparison between two or more objects, events, or people. You can use this as a first step to creating an outline for a  compare and contrast essay .

Simply draw two (or three) large circles and give each circle a title, reflecting each object, trait, or person you are comparing.

Inside the intersection of the two circles (overlapping area), write all the traits that the objects have in common. You will refer to these traits when you  compare  similar characteristics.

In the areas outside the overlapping section, you will write all of the traits that are specific to that particular object or person.

Creating an Outline for Your Essay Using a Venn Diagram

From the Venn diagram above, you can create an easy outline for your paper. Here is the beginning of an essay outline:

1. Both dogs and cats make great pets.

• Both animals can be very entertaining
• Each is loving in its own way
• Each can live inside or outside the house

2. Both have drawbacks, as well.

• They can damage property
• Both can be costly
• Both require time and attention

3. Cats can be easier to care for.

• Leaving for a day

4. Dogs can be better companions.

• Going to the park
• Going for walks
• Will enjoy my company

As you can see, outlining is much easier when you have a visual aid to help you with the brainstorming process.

More Uses for Venn Diagrams

Besides its usefulness for planning essays, Venn Diagrams can be used for thinking through many other problems both at school and at home. For example:

• Planning a Budget: Create three circles for What I Want, What I Need, and What I Can Afford.
• Setting Priorities: Create circles for different types of priorities: School, Chores, Friends, TV, along with a circle for What I Have Time for This Week.
• Choosing Activities: Create circles for different types of activities: What I'm Committed to, What I'd Like to Try, and What I Have Time for Each Week.
• Comparing People's Qualities: Create circles for the different qualities you're comparing (ethical, friendly, good looking, wealthy, etc.), and then add names to each circle. Which overlap?
• Write a Compare and Contrast Essay
• How to Compare Two Novels in Comparative Essay
• 501 Topic Suggestions for Writing Essays and Speeches
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Diagrams in Essays: Exploring the Kinds of Diagrams Students Generate and How Well They Work

Diagrammatic Representation and Inference

Using appropriate diagrams is generally considered efficacious in communication. However, although diagrams are extensively used in printed and digital media, people in general rarely construct diagrams to use in common everyday communication. Furthermore, instruction on diagram use for communicative purposes is uncommon in formal education and, when students are required to communicate what they have learned, the usual expectation is they will use words – not diagrams. Requiring diagram inclusion in essays, for example, would be almost unheard of. Consequently, current understanding about student capabilities in this area is very limited. The aim of this study therefore was to contribute to addressing this gap: it comprised a qualitative exploration of 12 undergraduate students’ diagram use in two essays (in which they were asked to include at least one diagram). Analysis focused on identifying the kinds of diagrams produced, and the effectiveness with which those diagrams were use...

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The use of diagrams in learning and communication is generally considered efficacious and an important skill to cultivate, especially among science students. At the same time, previous research has revealed many problems in student diagram use, including a lack of spontaneity in such use, but the extent to which these problems persist into the tertiary level had not been investigated. The present study examined science and engineering university students’ use of diagrams in note taking to learn information from a written passage, and in a subsequent task of constructing an explanation of that information for another person. The results showed that the students used significantly fewer diagrams in explaining compared to when they were note taking, suggesting that many students may lack awareness of the usefulness of diagrams in effectively communicating information to others. The results also revealed that the students used significantly more diagrams in taking notes from and explaining a passage with higher imageability (i.e. easier to visually imagine) compared to one with lower imageability. Educational implications of the findings are discussed.

This paper looks at the particular role which diagrammatic representations, and external representations more generally, play within an educational context. In particular, it considers the way in which the demands on diagrammatic representational systems in educational settings differ with respect to other settings (e.g. professional): in some instances, these demands are increased, while in others, the demands are markedly different. The paper considers three key issues: the question of whether diagrams make certain tasks easier (and whether this is desirable from an educational point of view), the generalisation and transfer of diagrammatic skills once learnt, and the possible problems associated with simultaneously learning domain knowledge and a novel representational system. The paper then considers a number of sub-issues, and concludes by highlighting areas of particular interest for future AI research.

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Although diagrams are considered effective tools for communication, students have been reported as lacking sufficient spontaneity in using diagrams when explaining what they have learned. This study examined the possible mechanism that relates text to diagram production in the process of providing written explanations. It puts forward the hypothesis that the production of text and diagrammatic representations shares the same cognitive processing resources, the allocation of which is influenced by individual factors like language ability and task-related factors like imageability of what needs to be explained. This hypothesis was tested on Japanese university students who were administered a passage (two versions varying in imageability) to read and subsequently explain in English or Japanese. A significant correlation was found between diagram use and English language competence (measured by TOEIC scores) – but only among students asked to explain the passage with lower imageability, and in English, providing support for the hypothesis.

The use of diagrams as external aids to facilitate cognitive abilities is not new. This paper looks into cognitive studies for insight into when, why and how diagrams are effective in problem solving. A case study examines the use of diagrammatic representations as thinking tools and tools for communicating information. The purpose is to examine whether diagramming could be used as a design method, as part of the designer's creative process.

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IELTS Writing task 1: describing a diagram

In this lesson you will learn how to describe a diagram in IELTS Writing task 1 .

We will deal with a process diagram . Although diagrams are not very common in IELTS, they do appear in Writing and are very different from other types of graphs you can get. So it's a good idea to learn how to structure your answer when describing a diagram.

• See IELTS Writing digram question
• Learn how to write a band 9 answer
• Learn useful vocabulary
• See video tutorial

As an example, let's take a look at the following question card:

The diagram illustrates how steel rods are manufactured in the furniture industry.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

You can watch a video tutorial on how to describe diagrams in IELTS Academic Writing task 1:

• Introduction
• General overview
• Specific features

Now we'll take a look at each part of the answer.

1. Introduction

The first paragraph of your answer should be an introduction. For the introduction, you need to paraphrase the topic in your own words. It shouldn't be longer that 2 sentences.

And this is a possible way to write your introduction:

You could also write the introduction in another way:

In fact, there are plenty of ways to write your introduction. Just keep in mind that you should use synonyms and paraphrase the topic from your question card.

2. Overview

• how the process begins and ends
• the number of stages

If the diagram has loops or repeating stages, or your process is cyclic - write that in your overview too!

Here is a good way to write a general overview:

Overall, the process consists of eleven stages, beginning with the raw material and ending up with the product’s inspection.

Always use word overall to start your overview. This way you will indicate the examiner that you’re describing general trends.

3. Specific features

After you've given the overview, you should write about specific details of your diagram. To do that, you need to describe each stage of your process in detail . Don't forget that you should provide information in a logical way!

This is a possible way of describing the specific features of our diagram:

First of all, iron ore, yellow ore and carbon are collected to serve as a raw material for steel rods manufacturing. After that, the raw material is melted in a melting slit, where it is heated to a temperature in range of 1300-1500 °C. The melted mass is then transferred to a smelting cabin to undergo refinement. Next, the candescent metal is put in a pouring machine and poured into ingots.

In the next stage, the ingots are connected to a cooling reservoir, where the temperature falls to 60-100 °C. Metal goes through special nozzles and cools down, forming strands. Following this, the metal strands proceed to rollers that change their shape. Next, the products are put into a heating machine, where they undergo heat treatment. Subsequently, a measuring automaton completes a surface check of the products.

After that, the metal rods are sized by special cutters and get ID stamping. Finally, the products undergo inspection and are ready for use.

Using connectors

• first of all
• in the next stage
• following this
• subsequently

Using additional information

Your diagram will often provide you some additional information and hints for most stages of the process. Make sure that you use all that information while describing specific features of your diagram!

However, sometimes you may see that some stage lacks information for description . For example, we only know that the third stage of our process is called refinement and it happens in a smelting cabin . But we don't know what exactly happens during this stage.

In this case, you can use a verb to undergo . To undergo = to experience. For example, you can write: " the material undergoes refinement in a smelting cabin ".

And don't forget that you should NOT write a conclusion in Writing task 1 as you're not giving your opinion, you're describing the data.

Practice. Choose the correct options:

• The table shows the amount of students who study abroad in 2001 and 2011. The table shows the number of students who study abroad in 2001 and 2011.

Amount or number? Note that students are countable.

• The graph illustrate China's annual growth rate of exports of goods. The graph illustrates China's annual growth rate of exports of goods.

Look at the verb that follows the word graph . Hmm, the graph should be singular, so illustrates is the correct option.

• The line graph shows how many Finnish people went to the cinema between June and October 2014. The line graph shows how much Finnish people went to the cinema between June and October 2014.

You can say how much water or how much effort (these nouns are uncountable). But people are countable, so you should use how many in this case.

• The pie charts compare the world population of 1900 with 2000 . The pie charts compare the world population in 1900 and 2000 .

You should use phrase in + year , not of + year or at + year . Moreover, it seems like you compare population with year in the first sentence.

• The bar chart gives information about average household expenditure in Japan. The bar chart shows information about average household expenditure in Japan.

You can use either gives information about or shows , but not both at the same time.

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• Comparing and contrasting in an essay | Tips & examples

Comparing and Contrasting in an Essay | Tips & Examples

Published on August 6, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

Comparing and contrasting is an important skill in academic writing . It involves taking two or more subjects and analyzing the differences and similarities between them.

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Table of contents

When should i compare and contrast, making effective comparisons, comparing and contrasting as a brainstorming tool, structuring your comparisons, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about comparing and contrasting.

Many assignments will invite you to make comparisons quite explicitly, as in these prompts.

• Compare the treatment of the theme of beauty in the poetry of William Wordsworth and John Keats.
• Compare and contrast in-class and distance learning. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each approach?

Some other prompts may not directly ask you to compare and contrast, but present you with a topic where comparing and contrasting could be a good approach.

One way to approach this essay might be to contrast the situation before the Great Depression with the situation during it, to highlight how large a difference it made.

Comparing and contrasting is also used in all kinds of academic contexts where it’s not explicitly prompted. For example, a literature review involves comparing and contrasting different studies on your topic, and an argumentative essay may involve weighing up the pros and cons of different arguments.

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As the name suggests, comparing and contrasting is about identifying both similarities and differences. You might focus on contrasting quite different subjects or comparing subjects with a lot in common—but there must be some grounds for comparison in the first place.

For example, you might contrast French society before and after the French Revolution; you’d likely find many differences, but there would be a valid basis for comparison. However, if you contrasted pre-revolutionary France with Han-dynasty China, your reader might wonder why you chose to compare these two societies.

This is why it’s important to clarify the point of your comparisons by writing a focused thesis statement . Every element of an essay should serve your central argument in some way. Consider what you’re trying to accomplish with any comparisons you make, and be sure to make this clear to the reader.

Comparing and contrasting can be a useful tool to help organize your thoughts before you begin writing any type of academic text. You might use it to compare different theories and approaches you’ve encountered in your preliminary research, for example.

Let’s say your research involves the competing psychological approaches of behaviorism and cognitive psychology. You might make a table to summarize the key differences between them.

Or say you’re writing about the major global conflicts of the twentieth century. You might visualize the key similarities and differences in a Venn diagram.

These visualizations wouldn’t make it into your actual writing, so they don’t have to be very formal in terms of phrasing or presentation. The point of comparing and contrasting at this stage is to help you organize and shape your ideas to aid you in structuring your arguments.

When comparing and contrasting in an essay, there are two main ways to structure your comparisons: the alternating method and the block method.

The alternating method

In the alternating method, you structure your text according to what aspect you’re comparing. You cover both your subjects side by side in terms of a specific point of comparison. Your text is structured like this:

Mouse over the example paragraph below to see how this approach works.

One challenge teachers face is identifying and assisting students who are struggling without disrupting the rest of the class. In a traditional classroom environment, the teacher can easily identify when a student is struggling based on their demeanor in class or simply by regularly checking on students during exercises. They can then offer assistance quietly during the exercise or discuss it further after class. Meanwhile, in a Zoom-based class, the lack of physical presence makes it more difficult to pay attention to individual students’ responses and notice frustrations, and there is less flexibility to speak with students privately to offer assistance. In this case, therefore, the traditional classroom environment holds the advantage, although it appears likely that aiding students in a virtual classroom environment will become easier as the technology, and teachers’ familiarity with it, improves.

The block method

In the block method, you cover each of the overall subjects you’re comparing in a block. You say everything you have to say about your first subject, then discuss your second subject, making comparisons and contrasts back to the things you’ve already said about the first. Your text is structured like this:

• Point of comparison A
• Point of comparison B

The most commonly cited advantage of distance learning is the flexibility and accessibility it offers. Rather than being required to travel to a specific location every week (and to live near enough to feasibly do so), students can participate from anywhere with an internet connection. This allows not only for a wider geographical spread of students but for the possibility of studying while travelling. However, distance learning presents its own accessibility challenges; not all students have a stable internet connection and a computer or other device with which to participate in online classes, and less technologically literate students and teachers may struggle with the technical aspects of class participation. Furthermore, discomfort and distractions can hinder an individual student’s ability to engage with the class from home, creating divergent learning experiences for different students. Distance learning, then, seems to improve accessibility in some ways while representing a step backwards in others.

Note that these two methods can be combined; these two example paragraphs could both be part of the same essay, but it’s wise to use an essay outline to plan out which approach you’re taking in each paragraph.

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• Comparing and Contrasting in an Essay

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Some essay prompts include the keywords “compare” and/or “contrast.” In these cases, an essay structured around comparing and contrasting is the appropriate response.

Comparing and contrasting is also a useful approach in all kinds of academic writing : You might compare different studies in a literature review , weigh up different arguments in an argumentative essay , or consider different theoretical approaches in a theoretical framework .

Your subjects might be very different or quite similar, but it’s important that there be meaningful grounds for comparison . You can probably describe many differences between a cat and a bicycle, but there isn’t really any connection between them to justify the comparison.

You’ll have to write a thesis statement explaining the central point you want to make in your essay , so be sure to know in advance what connects your subjects and makes them worth comparing.

Comparisons in essays are generally structured in one of two ways:

• The alternating method, where you compare your subjects side by side according to one specific aspect at a time.
• The block method, where you cover each subject separately in its entirety.

It’s also possible to combine both methods, for example by writing a full paragraph on each of your topics and then a final paragraph contrasting the two according to a specific metric.

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Harvard Referencing Style: Images or Diagrams

• Introduction to In-text Citations
• Introduction to Referencing
• Internet Sources
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• Images or Diagrams

Images, Tables, Diagrams etc

IN-TEXT CITATION

Mintzberg(1979) ...

.... (Mintzberg, 1979)

"....." (Mintzberg, 1979:186)

• ​Any image, diagram, table etc. needs a caption as well as an in-text citation to the original work
• If the image, diagram, table etc. being cited belongs to the author of the book, then cite the book as normal, but include the page number as if you were performing a direct quote.
• If the image, diagram table etc. being cited does not belong to the author of the book, then you will need to add additional information.

FORMAT OF A REFERENCE TO A IMAGE OR DIAGRAM

Author' s Surname, Initial. Year. Title of the Work. [Material Type]. In Author/Editors' surname, Initial. Year.  ​Title.  Place of Publication: Publishers. page number.

EXAMPLE OF A REFERENCE TO AN  IMAGE  FROM A PRINT BOOK

Mintzberg, H. 1979. The basic parts of organisations – Mintzberg’s model. [Diagram] In: Cole, G.A. 2004. Management theory and practice . 6th ed. London: Thomson. 186.

A caption should always include:

• The word  Figure  (with a capital letter and in italics)
• A number (from 1, in numerical order)
• A title for the figure 
• An in-text citation for the reference of the source, which includes the Author(s), date and page number of the source, i.e. (Saunders et al, 2007:102)
• The caption always appears under the image, figure etc
• They are always referred to by their number in the text.

​ ​EXAMPLE OF A DIAGRAM WITH A CAPTION

Figure 6: The Research Onion (Saunders et. al, 2007:102)

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