l3 academic writing lecture 1
TRANSCRIPT
Academic WritingPamela Vang
• Lecture 1 Structuring your writing
• Lecture 2 Writing in English
• Lecture 3 How to avoid plagiariam
Why do we write?
• To communicate
• As a tool for thinking processes
Traditionalviews
Process-Orientedviews
Lennart Björk, Christine Räisänen, Studentlitteratur 2003
Fig.1 Writing
How can we use writing?
Lennart Björk, Christine Räisänen,Figure 2, uses of writing
Writing is used tocommunicate
Communication• What?
• Why?
• To whom?
The Shannon / Weaver Communication Model
SignSender Receiver
How accurate is this model?
Fig.3 Shannon/Weaver modet
Bühler Communication Model
Sender Sign Receiver
Things
THINGSTHINGS
What sort of things? What can they be?
Fig.4 Bühler Communication Model
Making sense of a text is an act of interpretation that depends as much on what the reader puts into the text as
what the author puts into it. Interpretation can be seen as a set of procedures.
Procedural approaches to reading and understandingemphasis the role of the reader in actively buildingthe text, based on his/her experience of the world and how statesand events are characterisitically manifested. The reader is ACTIVE in making inferences and constantly assessinghis/her interpretation in the light of the situation and aimsand goals of the text as he/she perceives them.
Michael McCarthy 1991
Reader-Oriented Writing
•Audience•Expectations•Prior knowledge
Texts are like blank cheques …. the readersput their own signatures on them. (adapted from Thornton Wilder)
Considerations in academic writing
Swales & Feak, 2004, p.1
Fig.5 Considerations in academic writing
Structure/Organisation
• A whole is that which has a beginning, a middle, and an end.
• Aristotle, Poetics
• Word the smallest unit we will consider
• Sentence difficult to define. Sometimesconsidered a single thought, sometimes by its structure.
• Paragraph `a subdivision of a piece of writing or a speech that consists of one or more sentences and develops in an organized manner one point of a subject or gives the words of one speaker´. (Webster’s) A paragraph always starts on a new line.
Ways of structuring texts
The Purpose or objective of the text willdetermine the structure.
Instruct?
Convince?Present new findings?Challenge old results?Fulfil course requirements?Etc.etc
Some different text types
• Causal-analysis• Proposals to solve problems• Argumentation• Summarising• Critique• Report• Research paper
Basic features of Causal-AnalysisTexts
• A clear presentation of the trend or phenomenon
• An analysis of the causes• A clear outline/structure• A reasonable, but authorative tone
Björk and Räisänen
Analysis of the causes
• Offer convincing arguments in favour of the cause(s) you suggest.
• Indicate awareness of possible objectionsto your suggestions.
• (mention, integrate or refute)• Indicate an awareness of alternative
causes (which can be mentioned, refutedetc.)
Björk and Räisänen
Clear Outliune/Structure
• There are two main patterns for structuringa causal analysis.
• a) the main cause(s) first?• b) the minor cause(s) first?
• You must always consider which is moreeffective in your case?
Björk and Räisänen
Tone
• Although you should not be too shrill or aggressive, being too cautious in your argumentation undermines your authorityand can be boring for the reader.
• Do not use ”perhaps”, ”in my opinion” toooften.
Björk and Räisänen
Björk and Räisänen
Proposals to solve problems
• What does the reader want to know?• What is the problem?• What would happen if the problem is left
unsolved?• How can it be solved?• What will the benefits of the proposed
solution be?• What other possible solutions are there?
Björk and Räisänen
Argumentation
Fig.6 Argumentation; Basic model
Björk and Räisänen
Fig.7 Argumentation with examples
Summaries
• When and why do we writesummaries?
• Abstracts, • president’s report, • own notes, etc.
What are the basic features of a summary?
• (Full, clear information about original)• Overall purpose of the original• Main supporting points• Use your own words!• Objective• Coherent• Summary markers (The author argues,
maintains, suggests etc) • The reader who has NOT read the original
should get an adequate understanding of the original.
Examples of summary phrases
• Benfield and Howard state that ……..• (What alternatives to `state´ are there?)• The author goes on to say….• They further state that ….• X…. Also believes that…..• In the second half of the paper, X presents …….• Goodman goes on to say ……. The author
further argues………• (adapted from Swales and Feak (2004)p.168)
Abstracts
• An abstract is an abbreviatedrepresentation of the contents of a document, preferably prepared by itsauthor(s) for publication with it. (ANSI, 1979:1)
(American National Standards Institute)
The abstract tells the reader
• What the author did(Purpose)
• How the author did it(Methodology)
• What the author found(Results)
• What the author concluded(Conclusions)
Critiques• Positive or negative• (book, film reviews common examples)• In academic life• To ensure that reading assignments are done• To assess understanding• To develop analytical reading• To train students in integrating new knowledge
with previous knowledge• To begin to understand what is expected in their
research.
Summaries vs Critiques
• Summaries provide an accurate accountof source material
• Critiques evaluate• Different fields have different emphasis:• Humanities: ”interesting” arguments• Social sciences: methodology• Natural sciences and engineering:
results and implications
Things to consider when making a critique.
• The physical presentation of the paper(page numbers, headings,generalorganisation, organisation of the different sections, figures, contents, referencesetc.)
Does the paper do what it claims to set out to do?What is the strength of the paper?Is the reader over/underestimated?
Give clear reasons for criticism
• Give suggestions for improvement.
• Peer critique or feedback is a very useful learning tool. Use it to help each other!
Reports
• Structure: (title page, contents page)
• Summary/ abstract/introduction (headings, sections, numbering)
• Problem/purpose• Method diagrams etc.• Findings statistics etc.
• Conclusions and Recommendations
N.B.This is a standard structure for a long report. There are manyvariations
Research papers
• Title• Abstract• Introduction• (methods)• (results)• Discussion• Acknowledgements• References
What do we need to think about?
• CONSTRAINTS• Time plan• Topic• Assessing readers• Collecting material• Organising material• Tone• Credibility• Sources• Quotations
General-Specific Texts
Swales&Feak2004,p.45
Fig.7, General-Specific model
Overview of a research paper
Introduction General
Specific
Methodsand Materials
Results(and analysis)
DiscussionSpecific
General
IMRADFig. 8 IMRAD model
IntrodutionCARS (Swales)
• Create a research space
a) by showing that the area is important, interesting, problematic, relevant etc.
b) by introducing and reviewing previous research in thearea
Establish a nicheBy indicating a gap in the previous research or by extendingexisting knowledge
Occupy the niche by
Outlining purpose or stating the present researchListing research questions and hypothesesAnnouncing principle findingsStating the value of the present researchIndicating the structure of the paper
Student Dissertation Introductions(Dudley-Evans 1989)
• Move 1: Introducing the field• Move 2: Introducing the general topic
(within the field)• Move 3: Introducing the particular topic
(within the general topic)• Move 4: Defining the scope of the
particular topic by• (i) introducing research parametres• (ii) summarising previous research
Move 5: Preparing for present research by
• (i) indicating a gap in previous research• (ii) indicating a possible extension of
previous research
Move 6: Introducing present research by(i) stating the aim of the research
or(ii) describing briefly the work carried out(iii) justifying the research
Results
• Find the right strength in your claim
• Highlight the results presented in the data
• Totally objective presentation• Simply report the data
Discussion
• Comment on the results section• Highlight the strengths of the study• Discuss possible weaknesses• Comment on the objectives• Widen the scope of the research territory• Compare with results from other
researchers/ scientists• Future research
Discipline
• What is a discipline?• An `identity´• ”A discipline is defined as a domain, a
collection of methods, a body of claimsthat are considered true, a game made up of rules and definitions and of techniquesand instruments.” (Foucault, The Order of Discourse, 1971)
Academic Genres
Björk and RäisänenFig.9, Academic Genres
Genre• A genre is a recognised communicative event with a shared public
purpose and with aims mutually understood by the participants in that event.
• F. Davies(1988) in Academic Writing: Process and Product, ELT Documents 129.
Most academic institutions have a well-developed schemata for academic discourse and clear, stable views about what is appropriate.
Make sure you know what your host institution expects and requires!
To build genre awareness
• READ!
• READ!
•READ!•Actively!
Traditional forms of academicdiscourse, especially in science and social science, demand an impersonalstyle, and part of the `apprenticeship´of a student in an academic discipline is the effacing of prior identities in academic writing in order to join the new `discourse community´.
Fairclough, N. (1995) p.227 Critical Discourse Analysis
`….there is an intimate relationhipbetween the development of people’s critical awareness of language and the development of their own language capabilitiesand practices´
Fairclough, N. (1995) p.227 Critical Discourse Analysis
Appropriacy
• ”That’s all I can think of to write now. Goodbye”
taken from Jordan,R.R.(1997)p.244English for Academic Purposes
Aristotle• Appropriateness
• The hearers /readers• The nature of the subject• The character of the speaker/ writer
(Rhetoric)
Judgement.
The academic writer’s approach to his or hermaterial is:
Analytical impressionistic
Intellectual rather than subjective
Rational polemic
The academic writer’s tone is:
Serious conversational
Impersonal rather than personal
Formal colloquial
Readerfriendliness
What makes a text reader friendly?
• Structure• Lay out• Appropriateness• Style/Language
• We judge by APPEARANCES!!!!
Style
The foundation of good style is correctnessof language:
connecting wordsterms which are not vagueavoidance of ambiguitycorrect indication of grammatical number
Aristotle, Rhetoric
List of Sources• Aristotle Poetics (1997) translated by S.H. Butcher Dover Thrift Edition
Dover Publications, New York(1997)• Aristotle Rhetoric (2004) translated by W.Ryhs Roberts, Dover Thrift
Edition Dover Publications, New York• Björk, Lennart and Christine Räisänen (2003) Academic Writing, A University
Writing Course, Studentlitteratur , Lund• Fairclough, Norman (1995) Critical Discourse Analysis, the Critical Study of
Language Longman, England• Foucault, Michel (1971) Diskursens Ordning translated to Swedish by Mats
Rosengren, Brutus Östlings Bokförlag Symposium Stockholm 1993• Jordan, R.R (1997) English for Academic Purposes, A guide and resource
book for teachers Cambridge University Press• Swales, John, M and Christine Feak (2004) Academic Writing for Graduate
Students Essential Tasksand Skills Second Edition The University of Michigan Press Ann Arbor
• Webster’s New Encyclopedic Dictionary, (1993) Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers Inc. New York
Recommended Reading• Bell, Judith (1999) Doing your research project (education and social
sciences) Third Edition Open University Press• Björk, Lennart and Christine Räisänen (2003) Academic Writing, A
University Writing Course, Studentlitteratur , Lund• Clark, Stewart and Graham Pointon, (2009) Words: A User’s Guide Pearson
Longman • Heffernan, James A. and John E. Lincoln, (1994) Writing: A college
Handbook Norton & Company • Swales, John M. and Christine Feak (2004) Academic Writing for Graduate
Students The Universityof Michigan Press, Ann Arbor• Swan, Michael (1995) Practical English Usage Oxford Univerity Press
• A good monolingual dictionary such as Collins Cobuild Advanced Dictionary• Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English(2009) with DVD-ROM, Online
and mobile functions) Pearson Longman• A grammar with explanations and exercises such as Hewings Advanced
Grammar in Use with exercises
Academic Writing Seminar I: Critiquing a source
• Read the following text: • Brown, Lester 2004. ‘Blueprint for a Better
Planet’ in Mother Earth News. February/March 2004. p.90-98. (access available through the LiULibrary Journals subscription, i.e. free access from a LiU computer or with your LUKAS account: http://www.bibl.liu.se/english/tidskrifter/per-e.asp Search for Mother Earth News. You find the article is on the second page of the February/March issue of 2004)
Then write a critique of it by asking:
• 1) Who is talking/writing – who’s the sender? • 2) Who’s the object in mind – who’s the receiver? • 3) On what societal arena/context are the message or
text talking place? (on a local, regional, national or international political arena, in an educational environment, in the world of amusement, among children, etc, etc….)
• 4) What kind of perspective/perspectives is present in the text? (economical, moral, ideological, technological, gender related, environmental, etc, etc….)
• This critique should be a short report (about one page). Bring it to the seminar.
Tomorrow
• We are going to look at writingcorrectly and appropriately in a
reader-friendly manner inENGLISH!
Pamela Vang