Introduction to edubirdie essay writing service
Edubirdie is an essay writing service that provides assistance to students who need help completing their academic assignments. Founded in 2013, edubirdie connects students who need essays written with freelance writers who can complete the work. While services like edubirdie aim to help students in need, their business model and practices remain controversial topics of debate within the academic community.
How the edubirdie essay writing process works
Students who want an edubirdie writer to complete an assignment for them first browse the website’s catalog of services. They specify details about their paper such as word count, academic level, deadline, and subject area. Students can then submit their assignment brief, instructions, and other materials to provide context and guidance to the writer.
Once the order details are submitted, edubirdie matches the request with a freelance writer whose qualifications and experience correspond to the assignment. Writers on the edubirdie platform hold a range of academic credentials from bachelor’s to PhD level degrees. Students can provide additional feedback to help the writer understand what is required.
Edubirdie writers then research, plan, and draft the essay following the instructions and rubric. They have access to a variety of databases and journals to find sources. The draft is submitted to quality assurance checks by edubirdie before being sent to the client. Students can request revisions and provide feedback to the writer to refine and improve the work.
Once both the writer and student are satisfied with the end result, the paper is considered complete. Edubirdie handles all transactions and payments through their website. Writers are paid a percentage of what students pay for the completed work. Turnaround times can range from a few hours for regular papers up to 20 days for more lengthy projects.
Benefits students claim to get from edubirdie
Students cite a few main benefits for using essay writing services like edubirdie:
Additional time to focus on other responsibilities. By outsourcing assignments, students argue they save time that would otherwise be spent researching and writing papers. This frees up hours to study for exams, work a job, or manage other commitments.
Assistance meeting strict deadlines. When facing last-minute due dates or busy schedules, services provide a way for students to still submit assignments on time by outsourcing the work.
Expertise of professional writers. Supporters claim the credentialed writers have extensive experience in academic research and writing and can therefore produce higher quality work.
Guidelines for self-improvement. Seeing sample papers, students argue they learn proper formatting and structure to apply to future assignments they write themselves.
Reduction of stress levels. Relying on writers to complete tasks means one less burden contributing to student stress and anxiety over academics.
Controversy and criticism of edubirdie
While edubirdie aims to provide a helpful service, their business practices remain controversial in academic circles:
Plagiarism concerns. Many argue the model encourages and enables plagiarism if students submit purchased works without attribution or significant modifications as their own. This undermines academic integrity.
Undermines learning process. Critics argue outsourcing assignments prevents students from gaining crucial experience researching, critically analyzing, organizing arguments, and communicating ideas in writing – key skills universities aim to develop.
Promotes cheating. Using pre-written works circumvents the intent of assessments to evaluate a student’s individual comprehension of material. This distorts measurement of their knowledge and progress.
Potential for low-quality work. While writers are vetted, some question consistency in outcomes given quick turnarounds. Rushing assignments risks superficial or erroneous analyses.
Costly academic “short-cuts.” Substantial fees charged by services render them unaffordable for many and potentially drive students into debt to skip important learning steps.
Exploitation of freelance writers. Terms of service agreements reserve few rights for ghostwriters, potentially subjecting them to low pay and difficult working conditions.
Alternatives to edubirdie essay writing services
Critics argue students struggling with academic writing loads have better options than outsourcing assignments, including:
Utilizing educational supports already available like campus writing centers/tutors, library resources, and professor office hours. These uphold academic standards while developing student independence and skills.
Managing time effectively by starting assignments early, scheduling focused blocks, and prioritizing responsibilities is a sustainable learning approach. Procrastination often underlies “emergency” service use.
Communicating difficulties respectfully and transparently with instructors to discuss reasonable extensions or adjustments if genuinely overwhelmed due to documented challenges out of a student’s control.
Form study groups to jointly analyze materials, exchange perspectives, and provide thoughtful feedback on one another’s drafts – deepening understanding while mutually assisting peers.
Improving personal skills through practice over time under guidance from experts, rather than circumventing challenges, is the preferred path for developing long-term academic competency. Writing services only risk propping up weaknesses.
Conclusion
Edubirdie provides a service to complete academic writing assignments but remains controversial due to some perceiving it as enabling plagiarism and undermining learning objectives of higher education assessments. While supporters tout benefits, critics argue alternatives like educational support resources, self-management, instructor communication, study groups, and persistent practice better uphold academic integrity and develop lifelong independent skills over potential “shortcuts.” Reasonable people can disagree on this complex issue.
Andrew Stroud