Today’s programme
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Why academic writing?
Writing rules
The uses of arguments
To write the text
Metacommunication
Structure of the report
Teaching forms
Lectures
Communicating to others
Source: Rikke von Müllen
5%
80 %
Why academic writing?
On the students’ written language
As Kresten Schultz Jørgensen already two and a half years ago wrote in
Politiken many students now a days write terrible. So terrible, I would ad,
that they cannot be used in job positions where they have to represent
their organization in writing.
The reason is that incompetence is infectious. If your written language is
incompetent people will believe that you are incompetent, and if you write
incompetently in the name of your organization people will think that the
organization is incompetent.
”We always controls the quality one more time. So that you do not have to
worry if our service technician did my best.”
That won’t do, right?
Source: Henrik Dahl in Weekendavisen 12 July 2013, p. 28. (my translation)
The uses of academic writing – why?
• Because the thesis belongs to a specific genre
– so your assessors expects it
• Because good communication facilitates the academic content
better
• Because employers expect graduates to possess academic
argumentation skills
• Because academic writing and knowledge production is interconnected
”The chapter on theory is very good, I think. You have a fine
operational approach to it. You simply distil which parts of
the theories you will use without losing track, so we [the
assessors] don’t ask ‘does he actually use this anywhere?’.
You really focus on the essence and it is very clear that you
have a broader view, but you don’t disturb us with more that
you are using in this thesis. It is highly commendable”
Quotation from a supervisor in »Det lukkede rum« – en dør på klem til
specialevejledning af Hanne Nexø Jensen, lektor, ph.d., i Dansk
Universitetspædagogisk Tidsskrift nr. 8, 2010 (my translation)
Unwritten rules
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Write within the tradition – your contribution to the area of research. Al new
research builds on existing research.
To be critical - the academic way
Intersubjectivity – to be explicit on methodologies
Claims without backing does not belong in the genre ‘academic paper’
Assessments and conclusions must always be substantiated
And vice versa:
Not any conclusion will do based on a given set of data
In academic papers, it is appropriate to make reservations for results
In academic papers, it is appropriate to state the validity of results
No uncommended abstracts on theories
Do not include anything that is not applied in the research
Regard X in the light of the research question
Keep your personal viewpoints out of the thesis
Actions allowed in academic texts
Analyse
Argue
Assess
Choose
Contextualise
Define
Demonstrate
Describe
Differentiate
Discuss
Evaluate
Source:Stray Jørgensen, Peter: Videnskabelige ord – sproglig
rådgivning i videnskabelighed. I: Jørgensen, Henrik; Stray
Jørgensen, Peter (red.) (2004): På godt dansk. Festskrift til
Henrik Galberg Jacobsen i anledning af hans 60 års fødselsdag
den 4. februar 2004. Århus, Wessel & Huitfeldt.
explore
paraphrase
prioritize
prove
quote
reason
research
reflect
relate
render probable
show
substantiate
vary
Actions not allowed in academic texts
agitate
assume
belittle
believe
chat
confess
feel
lecture to
like
Source: Stray Jørgensen, Peter: Videnskabelige ord – sproglig
rådgivning i videnskabelighed. I: Jørgensen, Henrik; Stray
Jørgensen, Peter (red.) (2004): På godt dansk. Festskrift til Henrik
Galberg Jacobsen i anledning af hans 60 års fødselsdag den 4.
februar 2004. Århus, Wessel & Huitfeldt.
missionize
popularize
postulate
praise
plagiate
seem
tell
think
Writing rules
Rules for writing
• Use brief introductions before the first sentence verb. The longer
the introduktion, the harder it is for the reader to grasp the
content. Instead, reservations can be written in subsequent
sentences.
• Use brief introductions before the first significant sentence verb in
a paragraph. Reservations and qualifications can be written as
main sentences after the sicnificant sentence verb.
• Use terms that are clear and accurate – avoid loose formulations.
The more imprecise, you write, the easier it is to misunderstand
you – range of meaning.
Rules for writing
• Use the active more than the passive form. The passive makes it
more difficult for the readers to asssess whether it is you or your
literature that estimate, conclude ect.
• Use verbal nouns with caution, fx the market deviates vs. market
diviation
• Avoid a lot of insertions and particularly insertions within
insertions. A lot of insertions makes is more difficult to grasp the
meaning of the text.
• Avoid brackets. Brackets indicate that the content is not important
or that the author can’t write coherent text. If the content is
important it should be part of the main texts. If it is not important, it
shouldn’t be there at all.
Rules for writing
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Use terms and concepts familiar to your academic profile.
Remember to define key concepts.
Remember to be consistent in your use of concepts.
Consistency takes priority, but the wording should also include
variation
• Be aware of information density – sometimes empty words are
okay
• Don’t use abbreviations, unless the abbreviation is a concept in
itself, like CSR.
Rules for writing
• Always begin a paragraph with a main clause, never a
subordinate clause
• Use full stop more often than you think! Extensive sentences
makes it difficult to follow your line of thinking.
• Use proper punctuation. Incorrect punctiation disturbs the
reeding.
• Aviod adjectives, except as part of qualified assessments.
• Divide the text into paragraphs – more often than you think!
• The writing style should be action oriented and neutral, not
subjective and emotional.
Hopeless language – an example
Writing rules - exercise
Read the text and identify the errors.
Discuss in groups why it is errors and what you would do
instead.
Writing rules - exercise
Reflect upon your own practise on writing wtih respect to the writing
rules:
• What are you good at?
• Which mistakes do you often make?
Reflect and take notes for 5 minutes.
Silence pleace!
Academic argument according to Toulmin
The Toulmin Model of Argument
Qualifier (Degree of certainty)
Evidence/data
(Foundation)
Claim
(Conclusion)
Rebuttal
(Restrictions/unless)
Warrant
(Bridges the gap)
Backing
(Certifies the statement
expressed in the warrant)
Evidence2
Claim2
Warrant2
and so on
Theory of arguments can be used:
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At sentence level
At chapter level
At thesis level
To check your own manuscript
To check the arguments in the literature
Toulmin: The completed thesis as one argument:
Qualifier
The degree of certainty
Evidence
Chapters on analysis
Claim
Main conclusion
Rebuttal
Situations where the conclusion
does not hold
Warrant
When the research is conducted correctly,
the conclusion is valid
Toulmin and the structure of the master’s thesis:
1. List of content
2. Introduction
3. Literature review
4. Methodology
1st section Warrant
Make it or break it
5. A number of chapters containing the analysis
2nd section Evidence
that corresponds to the number of sub-research questions
6. Conclusion
3rd section Claim
7. Discussing the results in its overall context
8. bibliography
9. Appendix
Toulmin at chapter level:
Step 1. Formulate a main question on the content for each chapter
Step 2: Formulate sub questions or sub topics
Example:
Chapter 3
Question: Which channels of communication exists in the
organisation and how are they used?
Toulmin at chapter level - continued:
Step 3: Write the main point or a sub headline for each paragraph –
A PROCESS TOOL ONLY
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Rule of thumb: One point pr. paragraph
How does the points match the main question of the chapter?
Are some paragraphs of track?
Can paragraph 1 and 3 be read coherently without paragraph 2?
What is missing?
This tool can be used either as or after you write
Toulmin at chapter level - continued:
Answer/sub conclusion/summing up:
How does the answer fits the question?
Questions for reflection:
• What is – actually – researched in this chapter?
• Is this what you wanted or are the alterations okay?
• What are the consequences of the alterations for your research
question?
• What does the chapter not answer?
Exercise
Find your own Toulmin
Think about the entire thesis or on the chapter you are working on at
the moment:
What is your main claim and is the argument coherent?
Fill in the sheet with the Toulmin model.
10 min.
To write the text
How to build text using the Toulmin model
Evidence
1:
According to author A (on-line media is most suitable for organizational
communication).
Evidence
2:
Author B on the other hand finds that (organizational communication
requires printed media).
Reflections
on
Literature:
The research of author A focus on (organizations working with knowhow), whereas author B has looked into (organizations working with
both production and know-how around the year 2005).
Evidence
3:
The 2014 data (on employees’ understanding of organizational
communication) used in this study shows
that (their use of the communication depends on their position).
How to build text using the Toulmin model - continued:
Reflections
on Methodology:
The 2014 data used in this study is of fairly (Qualifier) good
quality, since (on the data collection process,
relevance of the data to the research question and so on).
Warrant
(implicit):
If the literature used are appropriate (the latest research,
relevant for the topic), and data is collected
according to the chosen methodology, the conclusion is valid.
Claim:
Based on the above, it is my assessment that it is highly
(Qualifier) possible that (management can rely
on on-line media).
Rebuttal:
on the condition that (the use of PCs is part of the employees
daily work).
Trick of the writing trade
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Do not start a new chapter with the first sentence. Start with the centent
Describe what the model, statistics, diagrams ect. shows:
• Is it expected?
• Based on what?
• Why/why not?
• How does this sub-analysis relate to other parts of the analysis?
• How does this sub-analysis contribute to the literature?
• How does this sub-analysis contribute to answering the RQ?
• Keep focus on knowledge production – do not interrupt your line of
thinking with constant text revision
• No analysis without writing
• Write a draft and then rewrite
• Mark unknowns in the margin and continue writing
• Create a process doc next to the manus doc
God advice when you (don’t) write:
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Remember that we all block from time to time
Go jogging
Do not turn on the TV
Always have a notebook on you – take it to bed!
Non-stop writing
Take notes about upcoming activities at the end of the day
Do the most fun or interesting parts first
Make a puzzle on the computer
Draw your thesis; diagrams, mindmaps, models
Don’t start a new chapter by writing the first paragraph
– begin with the substance
Change between activities
“THE POINT OF BANALITY”
It is only banal to you
Make sure your line of argument is explicit
Metacommunication
Metacommunication
• To metacommunicate is to write about how you write about your
topic
• Metacommunication helps you to demonstrate an overview and to
guide your reader
• Metacommunication can be part of the main text and can be used
at the beginning and at the end of each chapter.
Metacommunication – write formulations like:
1. As mentioned in the theory chapter, author A writes that…
[sumarize the authors main point regarding the argument the
reference is a part of].
2. My research in chapter 4 on the employees attitude towards the
new strategy, shows that… In this chapter I will investigate
management’s position on the same question.
3. In chapter 6 I will research in detail the internal communication in
department Y. Before that, in the present chapter I will research
into the corporate communication of the entire organization since
this influence department Y’s options when they develop their
internal communication.
Source: Vibeke Ankersborg (2011):
Specialeprocesen! Tag magten over dit
speciale, Samfundslitteratur
Metacommunication – write formulations like:
4. As I will show in chapter 5, the CEO is not satisfied with the
implementation of the new marketing strategy. In the present
chapter I will research into the attitude towards the new
marketing strategy among employees in the marketing
department and the influence this attitude has on the
implementation.
5. This chapter will mainly explore how the employees in
department Y uses the channels of communication, but first I will
describe the types of communication channels available to the
department.
Source : Vibeke Ankersborg (2011):
Specialeprocesen! Tag magten over dit
speciale, Samfundslitteratur
Metacommunication – write formulations like:
6. This chapter has shown that employees display a great deal of
resistance towards change when it comes to the new
organizational structure, but also that the employees have a
strong organizational culture. In the next chapter I will explore
how management at the same time can deal with the resistance
and support the culture.
Source : Vibeke Ankersborg (2011):
Specialeprocesen! Tag magten over dit
speciale, Samfundslitteratur
Metacommunication
In generel:
1. Create links in the language between the chapters – this way
you demonstrate overview and coherence
2. A thesis is not a detective novel, so it is okay to reveal the
murderer. The excitement lays in you unfolding the plot.
3. Are there main sections that are not connected to the rest of the
thesis? Can it be explained or are they of track?
Metacommunication
In generel:
4. Begin each chapter by telling your reader what is going to
happen.
5. End each chapter by summing up what happened and link to the
next chapter.
6. metacommunication should only be a few sentences. Underline
your metacommunication in red. Are there too much/too little?
7. Metacommunicate your research, not your process.
Exercise
• Reflex on your own writing habits in terms of metacommunication:
What are your strong and week sides?
Reflect and take notes for 5 minutes.
Silence pleace!
• Discuss with the student next to you in terms of both writing rules
and metacommunication:
How can you improve your writing habits?
10 minutes
Structure of the report
The deductive structure – what ’everybody’ do
Introduction
chap. 2 chap.3 chap. 4
chap. 5
Methodology
analysis
Theory Empirical
Make it or break it
Conclusion
Further
research
The inductive strukture – a hidden alternative
chap. 2 chap. 3 chap. 4 chap. 5
Introduction
with brief
discussion
on theory
and methodology
Empirical analysis containing
ongoing reflexions on theory and
methodology
Make it or break it: Stay on the right track
ConBroader
clusion context
The deductive structure and the iterative process
Introduction
chap. 2 chap.3 chap. 4
chap. 5
Methodology
analysis
Theory Empirical
Make it or break it
The iterative process: Write and rewrite
Conclusion
Further
research
A theoretical thesis using illustrative cases
chap. 2
IntroMethoduction dology
chap. 3 chap. 4 chap. 5
Theore- analysis
tical
Illustrative
and
cases
discussion
Conclusio
n
Further
researc
h
Plagiaism
Source: www.stopplagiat.nu
Tips for avoiding plagiarism
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Remember to put quotes in quotation marks and indicate the source of
the quote.
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Once you use something an other person or your self has written or
created, you must always make an accurate source of reference. The
reader has to be able to fully identify the source.
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When you write a text, you must clearly indicate the passages which are
the result of your own thinking and which is based on your use of others'
knowledge.
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When reading, it is a good idea to take careful notes in order to make
correct quotations possible later in the process.
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Be loyal to your sources and use them correctly and fairly.
Qiuz on Plagiarism: www.stopplagiat.nu
The next thesis seminar:
26 August: The oral defence - procedure and advice