Dundalk IT
MALT Programme
Seminar on Academic Writing
for Research Reports
Professor Tony Fell
University of Bradford, UK
<A.F.Fell@Bradford.ac.uk>
Writing Skills
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IUA – Communication skills for Research Students
The nature of a Research Report / Thesis
Key issues in writing
Style
Etiquette
Report / Thesis Outlines.
Report / Thesis Planner
Structure
References
Submission
Writing Skills
IUA Graduate Skills Statement 2012
• Communication skills
– Demonstrate effective writing and publishing
skills
– Effectively use and decide on appropriate forms
and levels of communication
– Communicate and explain research to diverse
audiences, including both specialist and nonspecialist
– Teach and support the learning of undergraduate
students when involved in teaching and
demonstrating
Writing Skills
The nature of a Research Report / Thesis?
A Research Report or Thesis gives a detailed
account of a defined area of research with –
 sufficient background information on what was
known earlier, to orientate the general, interested
reader
 a clear statement of the ‘research question’ or
problem and the related aims and objectives
 a clear, logical exposition of the stages you have
gone through in order to address the research
question – creating new techniques, solutions
and results on the way
Writing Skills
The nature of a Research Report / Thesis?
A Research Report or Thesis will also –
 present your own critical analysis of the originality
and significance of the data presented, in relation
to what was known or assumed beforehand
 focus on your proposals for further developments
in the field
 (for a Thesis) be presented in a traditional format
as a permanent record for access by all
researchers, anywhere
 (for a Thesis) be published in full or in part as an
independent publication under your name after
peer review
Writing Skills
• A good Literature Review should:
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Be selective
Not be simply a list or summary of publications
Have a balance of primary and secondary sources
Put published work into perspective, relevant to the
Research Question
– Evaluate and give a critical interpretation of
published work, with appropriate reference to the
Research Question
Writing Skills
Ransom’s Rules for Scientific Writing*
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If it can be interpreted in more than one way, it’s
wrong
Know your audience; know your subject; know
your purpose
If you can’t think of a reason to put a comma in,
leave it out
Keep your writing clear, concise and correct
If it works, do it.
* Nora Ransom (Kansas State University) in M. Davis et al.,
Scientific Papers & Presentations, Academic Press, 2012
Writing Skills
Approaches to Completion
• The optimum situation is:
– Write sections more or less continuously as your
research programme moves forward
– Integrate sections to compile the first draft of your
Thesis
– Track progress systematically
– Use a Conference, Seminar or Poster paper as the
basis for part of the Report / Thesis
 This important milestone gives independent peer
support & validates your Thesis
Writing Skills
Key issues
Writing Skills
• Key issues in writing a Report / Thesis:
 Who is going to read it?
 Should it be perfect?
 How should you write it – writing styles?
Issues of style and syntax
Academic (“Oxford”) English versus the Personal
style of writing
 How should you plan and structure it?
 How can you finish in time?
 Key things to know about good referencing
 Strategies for survival – the pitfalls to avoid?
Writing Skills
Readership – Who are you writing for?
 Researchers in your general area – but not
necessarily specialists – intelligent, same general
background, not knowing all the literature in your
particular topic – ‘the intelligent, informed reader’
 Someone who may use your thesis/dissertation
as a reference work for their own research
interests
 The Examiners, who do have specialist
knowledge in the area and will enjoy reviewing
your work
 The next generation of Research Students in your
area
Writing Skills
Who else are you writing for?
 Yourself – for your own satisfaction in expressing
a deep interest in a topic, in a way that is
informative and interesting
Suggestion
 It can be helpful for an independent person to
read sections of your Thesis (eg a friend) to
comment on the style, informativeness etc – this
can be really useful for the Introduction,
Conclusions, and also the Abstract
Writing Skills
• Should your Report / Thesis be perfect?
 If only ... but remember that readers, including the
Examiners, r e a l l y don’t expect perfection either
in style or content.
 The typos, mislabelled graphs, missing
references will leap off the page at you – just as
soon as you’ve submitted your precious tome for
examination
Writing Skills
• Should your Report / Thesis be perfect?
 It’s really helpful to compile a list of typos, etc
 This is then tabled for the Examiners at the Viva
• It’s worth remembering that:
 Most Masters and PhD Theses are approved in
some form after the examination (70 to 80%)
Writing Skills
Styles
How should you write a Report / Thesis?
 With care … and with sufficient detail to describe
the important stages of your research – usually
more detail than is required (or permissible) for a
published paper
 Imagine someone tried to repeat exactly what you
did – to find where precisely you located a key
historical reference or fact; or in what language?
– or to adopt special methodology / equipment
you used or developed for critical experiments
Writing Skills
Styles
Common sense about writing styles
• Choose the appropriate style and use it
consistently:
– Write in a uniform, grammatical, fairly formal style –
clarity is of the essence, so if the syntax (structure)
is becoming complex, consider cutting back to
shorter, simpler sentences
Writing Skills
Styles
Common sense about writing styles
• The personal style versus the impersonal style
– This is often a question of personal taste or
convention:
– The personal style: I … , my … , we … , our … , etc.
– or the impersonal ‘Oxford style’:
The Author noted that …
These observations were recorded in earlier
research reports on …
Note: in some areas of Social Science, Management
etc, when referring to a third person, the use of
alternating gender is common: he … / she … &
him… / her …
Writing Skills
Styles
Common sense about writing styles
• Use paragraphs to signpost a coherent group of
related statements – they should not be too long.
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• Keep sentences at a reasonable length – this helps
avoid over-complicated statements and ensures
your writing is clear and readable
• Use the direct form rather than the impersonal form:
– Based on these data, it would seem that …
These data would indicate that …
Writing Skills
Styles
More common sense about writing styles
• Consistent use of tense
– Decide on what tense to use for writing (present,
past, etc) and be consistent – if in doubt, read it out
or read it to a friend
– If you use the past tense, you will need the ‘past in
the past’ :
e.g. The device had malfunctioned before this work
was started.
Writing Skills
Styles
Even more common sense about writing styles
• Things to avoid:
– Undefined abbreviations – make a list defining all
abbreviations and repeat the definition (at least
once) in the text
– Any form of slang
– Jargon – if unavoidable, define it
– Incomplete comparisons: e.g. These data were
better.
– ‘Over the top’ superlatives: e.g. We consider
these highly impressive results to have very
significant global implications.
Writing Skills
Etiquette
• Punctuation issues:
– The colon is often used for:
 Introducing a list of items
 Separating a general statement from a more specific one
– The comma is often used:
 For separating items in a list
 For qualifying or defining a preceding word or phrase:
The SPSS method, which is now well established, is widely
used for the analysis of data in the Social Sciences.
 Where a natural break occurs in mid-sentence:
These data seem rather dubious, although they come from
a highly reliable source.
Writing Skills
Etiquette
• More about punctuation:
– The semi-colon is often used for
Separating items within a list
Separating two closely related statements
– The hyphen is often used:
To separate parts of a sentence or to introduce
a qualifying statement – as for example here
To link adjective and noun in a single phrase
e.g. long-term therapy
To link two adjectives: e.g. red-hot, dark-blue
To link adjective and participle: e.g. easy-going
Writing Skills
Etiquette
• Even more about punctuation:
– The apostrophe is used:
To indicate possession
e.g. the system’s features (=1) and
the systems’ features (>1)
 For elision or shortening:
e.g. It’s clear that (It is …) / That’s … /
NB Exceptionally:
“its” is possessive (without an apostrophe)
They noted its significance …
(They noted the significance of it …)
Writing Skills
Etiquette
• Note: one datum point is …
– and several data points (or data) are …
• Good referencing is an essential feature of a
successful Report / Thesis
– It’s the hallmark of true professionalism
– Unfortunately plagiarism is currently one of the
big issues in Postgraduate research
– Increasing reliance by Examiners on “Turnitin”
and similar monitors of plagiarism
Writing Skills
Planning
Planning a Report / PhD Thesis
 Develop an outline time-plan for your writing-up
programme
 Remember that all plans are there to be changed –
flexibility is key
 Complete one section at a time – in many areas
it’s not essential to write sections sequentially
 Ask for feedback on drafts from your Supervisor,
a colleague or a friend
 You might consider using a simplified Gantt
Chart, for example – well known to be flexible
Writing Skills
Gantt Chart approach to Planning a Report / Thesis
Writing Skills
Report / Thesis Outlines
Writing Skills
Report / Thesis Outlines
• A Report / Thesis Outline starts with the following
sections, typically:
– Title page
– Abstract (written later in the process)
– Acknowledgements
– Lists of Contents – Tables – Figures –
– List of Appendices
– List of Abbreviations
– List of presentations made/publications submitted
• The Chapters or Sections that follow depend on the
research area – cf. ‘Science’ versus ‘Humanities’
Writing Skills
Report / Thesis Outlines
[See printed copy]
• Typical outline plan for Report / Thesis in Science,
IT, Engineering – Part 1
– Title, Abstract, List of Contents etc
– Introduction
– Literature Review
– Clear statement of Research Question (Project)
 Aims & Objectives
– Theoretical background
– Materials
– Research Methods
– Validation of Methods
[ Continued ]
Writing Skills
Report / Thesis Outlines
[See printed copy]
• Typical outline plan for Report / Thesis in Science,
IT, Engineering – Part 2
– Ethical issues (if any)
– Results & Discussion
– Conclusions & Suggestions for further work
– References (Harvard or numerical system)
– Appendices
Writing Skills
Report / Thesis Outlines
[See printed copy]
• Typical outline plan for Report / Thesis in Humanities
Liberal Arts, Media etc – Part 1
– Title, Abstract, List of Contents etc
– Introduction
– Clear statement of Research Question and related
issues
– Literature Review
– Framework and rationale for Exhibition, Display,
Performance (for Practice-based Doctorates)
[ Continued ]
Writing Skills
Report / Thesis Outlines
[See printed copy]
• Typical outline plan for Report / Thesis in Humanities,
Liberal Arts, Media etc – Part 2
– Research Methods
– Justification for selection of methods
 Sources of information, informants, samples
 Basis of selection for respondents (eg to Questionnaire)
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Ethical issues (if any)
Results & Discussion
Conclusions & Suggestions for further work
Bibliography & References
 Harvard or numerical system
– Appendices
Writing Skills
Report / Thesis Planner
Writing Skills
Research Report Planner
• The Report / Thesis Planner can be developed
as follows:
– To each Chapter Heading add 2 Sub-headings
– The Headings and Sub-headings are inserted into
the Report / Thesis Planner”
• This simple Project Planning device can be
formed using MS Word or Excel
– It helps keep track of writing progress –
– At the same time it informs Supervisors /colleagues
about progress
Generic Research Report Planner – 1
Generic Research Report Planner – 2
Writing Skills
Research Report Planner
• The Report / Thesis Planner:
Is a very flexible system
Gives an immediate overview of the writing
Empowers the author
Helps monitor progress and identify missing
sections – helps check progress
Shortens writing up time by ca 10 – 20%.
Monitors word count
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• The Planner gives strong encouragement and
confidence as writing progresses to completion
• Helps timely completion
Writing Skills
Structure & References
Writing Skills
Research Report Structure
Structure of typical Research Report or Thesis
 The Outline Plan forms the basic structural
template for your Report / Thesis
 NB Sections / Subsections / Appendices
Max number of subsections for readability is 3
– eg 1.0 – 1.1 – 1.1.1 – 1.1.1(a)
Note: If you find that there are too many
subsections, a powerful solution is to simply
raise the first subsection to Chapter level.
 The structure evolves progressively as the writing
approaches completion
Writing Skills
References
• General issues
– Computer-based records / traditional systems
– Harvard system versus Numerical system
– Section references vs Cumulative Reference List
– Reference layout – style – page-to-page?
– With or without titles?
Writing Skills
References
• General issues
– Footnotes?
– Back-up files daily – keep 2 updated copies
in d i f f e r e n t places!
– Ratio of Introductory material to the rest –
balance (ca. 1:3)
– Impersonal vs personal style – check best
practice in research area
Writing Skills
References
• Tracking the references
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Ethical issues & IPR
Citing the competition!
Duplication – non-citation – total accuracy
Reference to own publications
Citing the Internet – give URL and date accessed
• Citing Personal Communications:
– A.B. Contact, Personal communication, February
2012 – or:
– J.G. Friend (Email, 13 February, 2012)
[using reference style adopted]
Writing Skills
References
• Tracking the References (cont’d)
– Citing Unpublished Work:
M.Y. Self (Unpublished data September, 2012) or
M.Y. Self (Unpublished observations, May, 2012)
Avoid: M.Y. Self (in preparation)
– Citing submitted but so far not accepted work:
P.G. Slave and D.R. Supervisor, submitted for
publication to X.Y.Z., 12 June, 2012
– Citing accepted but so far not published work:
P.G. Slave and D.R. Supervisor, accepted for
publication by X.Y.Z., 1 December, 2012
Writing Skills
References
• Avoiding the pitfalls
– Proper acknowledgement of sources
Verbal – casual – printed but unpublished –
published
Purple patches
IPR – 2-way street
Ethics of authorship
Mutual recognition – academic generosity
Consequences . . .
Writing Skills
References
• Avoiding the pitfalls (cont’d)
 Proper acknowledgement of graphics
Figures – written permission from publishers
for each figure/diagram essential
Must add to the figure legend:
“Reproduced from X.Y. Zymbal, Arch. Data
100, 1 –20 (2008) by kind permission of the
Publishers”
A useful work-around is to change some
details in the figure itself and add to the
legend:
 “Adapted from X.Y. Zymbal, Arch. Data 100, 1-20
(2008)”
Writing Skills
• Good Practice
– Appendix out wherever appropriate (or use DVD or
CD-ROM):
 Sections of supplementary data
 Parenthetical results
 Reference materials
 Protocols
 Computer programmes
 Any text / data that distracts from the flow of the main theme
/ development
 Cite the Appendices in strict sequential order and list them
with the Contents
Writing Skills
• Good Practice
– Add a List of Abbreviations
really useful
always appreciated
– Include a list of your own presentations &
publications (if any), however modest
• Writer’s block
– Universal – including the famous
– Change to doing another section – or some other
activity
Writing Skills
Submission
• Find a friend to read your Abstract / Summary
– Find another friend to read your Conclusions for
clarity
• Check final version of Report / Thesis with
your Supervisor(s) or colleagues
– NB Make plenty of time in your planning schedule to
allow them to give their best shot
Writing Skills
Submission
• Check:
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all pages run sequentially
all Figures and Tables are listed in the Contents
all Appendices are listed in order of citation
There’s no duplication of references
Any printed materials (eg short publications,
reference materials) are put securely into the end
pocket
• Submit …
Writing Skills
Developing an Abstract
Writing Skills
Developing an Abstract
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Types of Abstract / Summary
Function
Readership
Title / Key words
Structure & Organisation
– Introduction – Aims – Methods – Results –
Conclusions
Writing Style – tense – sentence length – construction
Word count
Iterative process for development / completion
Initial & concluding sentences / statements
Dundalk IT
Seminar on Academic Writing
for MALT Students
Discussion Groups:
Developing an Abstract
/
Drafting the initial & concluding statements