毕业论文写作讲座（二）. Paper Writing Foreign Language Department West Anhui University October, 2009

毕业论文写作讲座（二）

Paper Writing

Foreign Language Department West Anhui University

October, 2009

1.1 Types of Research Papers

a) What is a Research Paper?

b) Types of Research Papers

1. Report research paper

2. Argumentative research paper

1.2 Steps in Writing a Research Paper (1)

Choose a subject suiting both your interest and practicality

Find your supervisor

Writing literature review and preparing research tools

Hand in your research proposal to your supervisor

Set your title

Continue reading and taking notes if your supervisor agree


Draft the body of the paper

Are you satisfied? (Remember that you have limited time)

Redraft all or part of the paper

Deliver questionnaires, do interviews, observations,

tests, etc. if you use them as research instruments

Draft the introduction and conclusion

Collect data and then analyze them

Edit for mechanical errors (such as spelling and punctuation)

Are you satisfied that there are no other errors?

Relax!

Add the cover page (with your name, the title, etc.)

Hand the paper in to your supervisor

Add citations and bibliography


1.6 What makes a good dissertation?

Quality of writing (detailed) Economy of language. e,g., condense clauses into phras

es; manage long sentences by connecting and pausing (e.g., pause before elaborating); break long sentences into shorter units; use parallel structure to make the connection for the reader

Precise word choice. e,g., use the most exact / appropriate words that capture your meaning (not necessarily long)


Specific & concrete detail. Precise language and good detail go hand in hand.

Focus on sound, rhythm & variety. e,g., use long and short sentences rhythmically


Quality of writing: well-written, and free of errors in grammar, syntax, punctuation and spelling need learn to avoid common errors through careful editing and proofreading

e.g., parts of speech?


e.g., active or passive voice? In quantitative study - more formal and not referenced to author - passive voice usu. used. Some qualitative studies better suited for active voice such as personal reflections.

NOTE: Differences in qualitative & quantitative writing can at times be subtle. What may be acceptable in one, might not be in another. Ask your supervisor. Use one or the other consistently.


e.g., verb tenses? Most of the dissertation should be written in the past tense. However,

‘Ellis introduced’ → ‘Ellis introduces’

‘Cook listed’ → ‘Cook lists’;

inferences and conclusions that are true now are discussed in the present tense.


Some tricky words in English. e.g., “data” is plural. The data are accurate. “Datum” is the singular. “Effect” is a countable noun (e.g., … has an effect on …).

Careful use of articles: “the” and “a” or “an”


** There is no simple way to eliminate all errors in writing.

Use American or British English consistently


Characteristics of a good dissertation:

= Evaluative criteria (goals/right route)

References

Menasche, L. (1997). Writing a Research Paper. Revised edition. Ann Arbor:

The University of Michigan Press.

Zhang, H. X. Dissertation Writing. Unpublished PPT Files. School of Foreign

Studies, Anhui University, 2006.

杨永林著 . 《“易得”—论文设计与学术写作专家系统》 (Research Deve

lopment Made Easy ---A Computer-based Design System for Academic Writi

ng). 北京：高等教育出版社， 2005.8

2.1.4 Reading source materials (1)

Books

Books are among the best sources in which to discover a topic for research. You should always remember that you are only trying to find materials for your topics. Therefore, what you need to do is to skim a book’s introduction, contents, index and a few chapters in order to see whether this book is appropriate to your own interests.


Periodicals

Periodicals are usually published monthly, bimonthly or quarterly. They contain more current information, opinions and up-to-date reports. In addition, the information provided by periodicals may also be more specific and detailed, which better facilitates relevant research.


Internet resources

Most students have easy access to the Internet. They can log on to look for materials needed for their research. Online resources are helpful both for finding a topic and for searching for specific information. When deciding on a topic, students may surf on the net for related topics, essays and books that might trigger an idea for a topic.

The most frequently used search engines in China includ

e “www.google.com”, “www.baidu.com”, and “www.sina.com”, etc.

2.3 Vocabulary use in paper writing (1)

a) Avoid using long words just because they sound more academic, especially if you are not totally sure of their meaning.

b) Check the spelling of common words, so as to pick up errors such as ‘affect’/ ‘effect’ confusion, it’s/ ‘its’ and ‘their’/ ‘there’ confusion.


c) Avoid informal, spoken style: it does not sound very serious. Use formal academic written words.

Not ‘someone’ but ‘a person’ or ‘a speaker’ ‘you’ ‘one’, ‘learners’, ‘students’, ‘children’, ‘a lot of’ ‘much’, ‘many’, ‘a great many’, ‘several’, ‘numerous’, ‘a number of’, ‘a great number

of’, ‘a large number of’, ‘a great amount of’, ‘a large amount of’, ‘a great deal of’ ‘really’ ‘highly’, ‘greatly’, ‘very’, ‘somewhat’, ‘decidedly’, ‘undoubtedly’, ‘certainly’, ‘proven’, ‘totally’.


d) Avoid contractions: they sound informal and rushed. Use uncontracted forms.

Not ‘don’t’ but ‘do not’ ‘can’t’ ‘can not’ ‘won’t’ ‘will not’ ‘I’ve’ ‘I have’ ‘I’ll” ‘I will’ ‘I’m’ ‘I am’ ‘let’s’ ‘let us’ e) Write words out in full rather than abbreviations such as

‘ads’ and ‘info’.


f) There is a language policy to observe equal opportunities. Here are some of our recommendations:

Avoid gender-specific words e.g. male-sounding nouns, when you want to

refer to males and females: it sounds as if you are not considering half the population.

Use nouns that could be male or female or both. Not ‘man’ or ‘men’ but ‘humans’, ‘workers’, ‘students’ ‘the child….his’ ‘children….their’ ‘businessmen’ ‘business people’ ‘a man’ ‘a person’ ‘mankind’ ‘humanity’ ‘headmaster’ ‘head teacher’ ‘camera-men’ ‘camera-operators’ ‘chairman/woman’ ‘she is the Chair’


Avoid using the pronoun ‘he’ and adjective ‘his’ to refer to people of both sexes. For example, use:

‘All students must hand their work in on time.’ Not ‘Every student must hand his work in on time.’

Avoid starting sentences with connectors that are short and conversational: it does not sound serious and organized. Use more weighty connectors.

Not ‘And’ but ‘In addition’, ‘Moreover’ ‘But’ ‘However’, ‘On the other hand’, ‘By contrast’.


Avoid dropping the ‘that’ at the beginning of subordinate clauses: it is conversational. Academic language contains the full form.

Not ‘the language they use’ but ‘the language that they use’ ‘the way the natives do’ ‘the way that the natives do’ ‘I think it is good’ ‘I think that it is good’ ‘I do not think there will be’ ‘I do not think that there will be’

Chapter 3 Taking Notes

3.1 Why taking notes?

Taking notes while reading the collected literature helps students to record the information, to document the source, to understand and organize the ideas stimulated by their reflections on what they have read.

Careful note-taking can ensure that the students appropriately credit authors for their original ideas, facts, and direct quotations. In addition, well-written and well-organized notes make it easier and more efficient to write the paper.

Some people like to take notes on sheets of paper or in a notebook; some prefer to take notes on cards while others choose to take notes on computers.

3.2 Finding relevant books and articles

An essential step at the beginning of your research is to find out what sources will help you locate relevant books and articles in your subject area. Typically, these sources are catalogs, indexes, and bibliographies:

Catalogs Indexes Bibliographies (or reference lists)

3.3 Evaluation of sources

It is necessary to evaluate the sources before starting reading and taking notes. Students should not always take what is in print as correct.

Pay attention to all the information about the publication. Pay attention to information which leads to the author’s

attitude. Pay attention to the sources. Pay attention to the objectivity of the sources.

3.4 Content of notes

The content of a note includes whatever a student thinks he or she might need for his or her research paper. Important thoughts, ideas, quotes, facts or statistics often make up the content of a note.

To be specific, a note usually includes the following items:

1. The background information; 2. A summary of general ideas supporting the preliminary

thesis statement; 3. Explanatory information such as definition, a plot

summary and bibliographical data; 4. Direct quotations, examples, facts and anecdotes; 5. Statistics such as percentages, weights, amount of money,

ratios and dates.

3.5 Tips on Note-taking (1)

3.5.1 Documenting sources Document the source before writing down the

information, i.e. write down the author, the title, the place of publication, the publisher, the date of publication or the copyright date, and the page number (s) where the information is found. The documentation varies according to types of sources: books, magazines, journals, newspapers, electronic databases, and the Internet.


3.5.2 Being thorough and concise

Write down neither too much nor too little in taking notes. In other words, “be both thorough and concise”. Write down what is necessary, namely, what is relevant to the topic of the paper but unknown in or different from other sources.


3.5.3 Putting one item on one card

Write each item on a separate card. If more than one piece of information is put on one card, the student might mix the topics or sources, and as a result, get confused when he or she goes about writing the paper. One item on one card

helps the student reshuffle and rearrange information.


3.5.4 A sample

Definition of learning strategies

“Learning strategies are the particular approaches or techniques that learners employ to try to learn an L2.”

Ellis, Rod. Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1997:76-77

heading of the note

the body of the card with ideas, information or quotations

documentation

3.6 Types of notes

There are four major types of notes: direct quotations paraphrase notes summary notes combination notes

3.6.1 Direct quotation notes Use direct quotations only when other words, phrases, structures fail to

express the information better than those in the original source. e.g.

However, direct quotations must be used discriminately because it generally accounts for only ten to twenty percent of a paper.

Sociolinguistics

‘Sociolinguistics is the field that studies the relation between language and society, between the uses of language and the social structures in which the users of language live.”

Spolsky, Bernard. Sociolinguistics. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1998:3

3.6.2 Paraphrase notes Paraphrase means accurately restating the original

information in one’s own words and phrasing, without any additional comments or elaborations.

A paraphrase note is usually of the same length

with the original. Although quotation marks are not used in paraphrase notes, proper documentation is necessary.

3.6.3 Summary notes

A summary note summarizes the major points of the original by restating them in the writer’s own words. Some key words of the original may be used, but they must be put in quotation marks. Again a summary note must be properly documented.

3.6.4 Combination notes

A combination note, as the name implies, is one that combines direct quotation, paraphrase and summary. Its advantage lies in the fact that it adopts flexible note-taking methods.

3.7 Taking notes on computers

Some guidelines for taking notes on computers: 1. Be familiar with a word processing program such as Microsoft Word; 2. Begin a new note on a new page; 3. Write some keywords on each page; 4. Put the notes with the same keywords into a single file.

3.8 Avoiding plagiarism

Plagiarism is “the use of facts, opinions, and language taken from another writer without acknowledgement” (Ding and Wu 151). It is defined in dictionaries as stealing and using the ideas or writings of another person as one’s own. It must be clearly understood and carefully avoided by anyone writing a research paper.

Plagiarism is a grave offence and a serious breach of ethics in higher education. Neither lack of intent nor claiming that one does it accidentally can protect him or her from severe penalty, which might be the failure of a course, the deprival of his or her diploma, or permanent expulsion.

Emphasizing the importance of avoiding plagiarism does not mean that other people’s opinions and ideas cannot be used. On the contrary, it is a good indication of one’s extensive research and sincere attitude of study if one quotes properly.

3.8.1 Forms of Plagiarism Plagiarism can be deliberate or accidental.Deliberate plagiarism happens when one copies the

work of others and pretends that it is his or her own without acknowledgement.

Accidental plagiarism or unconscious plagiarism happens when one does not intend to plagiarize, but fails to cite the sources appropriately. Unconscious plagiarism can be paraphrases with no citation or misplaced citations.

Paraphrases with no Citation

Paraphrase is an accurate restatement of the original in one’s own words. Plagiarism occurs when one uses the original words in his or her paraphrase or uses the original sentence structure though in his or her own words and phrases, but fails to include a citation.

Misplaced Citations

All cited materials from the same sources if used several times must be documented separately. Otherwise, the quotation will be regarded as plagiarism because other people would think what is placed after the reference of the source as the writer’s own comment or reflection.

3.8.2 Tips on Avoiding Plagiarism Careful note-taking and a clear understanding of th

e rules of quotation, paraphrase, and summary can prevent one from plagiarism. Meriwether’s guidelines may be helpful:

1. Always put quotation marks around any direct statement from someone else’s work;

2. Give credit to the author for any paraphrase of his or her ideas or statements, even though quotation marks are not used, because these ideas are clearly not your own;

3. Reference any material, ideas, or thoughts you found in a specific source if it is evident that they came from your reading and are not common knowledge;

4. Do not reference material that is common knowledge.

5. Reference any summary-even if it is in your own words-of a discussion from one of your sources;

6. Reference any charts, graphs, or tables that are created by others or that you make with someone else’s information. Put the reference immediately below the title of the chart, graph, or table.

Chapter 4

Writing the Paper

4.1 Developing thesis statement and working out an outline

(usually a single sentence that formulates both the topic and the point of view of a paper.

It can enable the student to see where he or she is heading and help him or her remain on a productive path during the process of planning and writing.)

What is a thesis statement and its function?


There are two important factors to be

considered in writing a thesis statement:

1) the purpose of the paper;

2) the audience the student has in mind.


(a useful framework that assists in the organization and writing of the research paper.

Preparing an outline can help students reevaluate the materials and decide which pieces of information are relevant to the purposes of the paper and discover the connections between the pieces.)

What is an outline and its function?


It is true that students may use whatever form they find comfortable in working out an outline. Here we recommend a type of outline called ‘decimal outline’, in which decimal divisions indicate successive headings:


1. Major heading 1.1 Minor heading 1.1.1 Detail heading 1.1.1.1 Example heading 1.1.1.2 Example heading 1.1.1.2.1 Minor example heading 1.1.1.2.2 Minor example heading 1.1.2 Detail heading 1.2 Minor heading 2. Major heading …

A Sample Outline Outline: 1. Major Steps in the Writing Process 1.1 Organizing 1.2 Writing the first draft 1.3 Evaluating 1.4 Revising 2. Writing Programs for the Microcomputer 2.1 Types of Programs and Their Relationship to the Writing Process 2.1.1 Thought 2.1.1.1 Use in organizing … 3. Future Possibilities of computer Programs for Writing 3.1 Rapid change …

4.2 Producing a first draft

With the thesis and outline done, now it is time to get ready to produce a first draft. First of all, let’s see the following several questions:

Which part to begin with? Should elements of the outline fit into the paper as

expected? At this stage, which is more important? ideas or

grammar, punctuation and spelling? (flow of creative juices)


4.2.1 Writing the introduction

An introduction has two essential purposes:

1) to engage the reader

2) to explain clearly what the paper is

about.

The idea is to both interest and inform the reader.


Lester believes that the introduction must establish several things within the first few paragraphs:

Subject (identify your specific topic, and then define, limit, and narrow it to one issue)

Background (Provide relevant historical data) Problem (Point of a research paper is to explore or

resolve a problem) Thesis sentence (use it to establish the direction of

the study and to point your readers toward your eventual conclusions)


There are a few ways to begin an introduction. The following are widely practised.

Starting with an Anecdote Providing Background Information Defining a Key Term Challenging an Assumption or an Authority


Generally speaking, your introduction should cover at least the following several points:

Stating the general context of your topic Indicating what your paper will focus on Giving a very brief summary of the main

points


4.2.2 Writing the Body

The body is the most important part of a research paper. It usually takes up to 80% of the whole paper, and it develops the thesis statement logically. Lester sets the following checklist in writing the body of a paper:

Analysis

Presentation

Paragraphs


There may be several parts in the body, but one major idea should be advanced at a time. Each paragraph should have only one main idea, which is well supported by theories, data and examples and followed by the next logical transitional point.


4.2.3 Writing the conclusion Generally, a good conclusion to a research paper i

s the logical outcome of all that has been said earlier:

Repeating thesis statement Recommending certain actions or further research Restate the main points of your paper in a very su

mmarized form and in different words.

4.3 Using Quotations

Direct quotations or indirect speech? How much of direct quotations is

usually acceptable?

4.4 Linking parts of the paper: transitions

When you have written enough on each separate section of the paper to put together a reasonable preliminary draft, give careful thought to joining the parts with good transitions (also called connectors, linking elements, or cohesive devices) .

Between major sections

Between paragraphs

Between sentences

4.5 Integrating ideas from sources

Unlike a personal essay, a research paper makes many references to the writings of others. It is essential that you carefully distinguish in your paper which words, opinions, and ideas are your own and which ones are from sources.


As we mentioned before, there are two specific skills for integrating the ideas of other writers into your paper:

1) direct quotation 2) paraphrase

Paraphrasing requires the grammar and vocabulary skills needed to restate others’ ideas without plagiarizing. It also requires that you use a lot of reported (indirect) speech as you state the ideas of others. Some common verbs used in reporting are the following:


state maintain imply

say observe suggest

remark emphasize explain

comment declare propose

claim contend report

assert argue


Some useful common phrases (where X = name (s) of author (s)) are

according to X

in the opinion of X

X expresses the view that

X presents the idea that

as X say

as reported by X


Some examples of useful expressions referring to studies and research are:

the study shows that her research reveals that their results demonstrate that this research proves that

Chapter 5

Documenting Sources

5.1 Purpose of Documentation

1) What is documentation?

the information in the thesis that tells what sources you have used and where you take it.

2) What are the major purposes of documentation?

① to acknowledge the contributions of the previous research.

② to offer the accurate and detailed sources of information for future research.

5.2 Major Formats and Styles of Documentation

1) Following the required format and

style. 2) Be consistent in your thesis for citing

and listing sources.

Two Major Tasks of Documentation :

Citing sources Listing sources

In English, there are three major formats and styles of documentation. They are:

Chicago manuscripts (widely used in humanities and social science)

MLA (Modern Language Association) (mainly used in the disciplines of literature, history, art and others)

APA (American Psychological Association) (widely used in the social sciences, in education, psychology, linguistics and many other fields)

5.3 Within the Text

This is how you should refer to authors’ works. These conventions must be strictly followed.

“Discourse communities use codes” (McCarthy and Carter, 1994:123)

“Discourse communities use codes” (Grice,1975; Leech, 1983; Levinson, 1983)

Kreckel (1981:36) says that discourse communities use codes.

If you say ‘linguists have said this’ or ‘it has been widely observed’ you must say who said or observed it, give the name, the date, and possibly the page.

e.g. Linguists have said that intonation should be taught from the early days of language learning (Brown, 1996; Davis, 1997; Smith, 1995).

Even though you use a little phrase from an author e.g. ‘graded sets of intonation patterns’, you should acknowledge whose it is and give the year and page. However nice it is, do not pretend it is yours. The reader will always know.

Now see some examples: 1) not (Brown, G. 1996) or (Brown, Gillian 1996) or

(Dr. Brown 1996) →but (Brown, 1996).2) not (Brown) → but (Brown, 1996).3) not (Brown, 1996 ‘The Good Language Learner’) and

not (Brown, 1996 3rd Edition) → but (Brown, 1996).4) not ‘Brown mentioned the usefulness of visual aids

(Brown 1996: 139)’ → but ‘Brown mentioned the usefulness of visual aids (1996: 139)’.

5) not (Brown, 1996)(White, 1997) → but (Brown, 1996; White, 1997).

6) Web-based sources.

When you repeat a reference to a book so soon after a previous reference like this, all you really need to put is ‘(ibid)’ (It’s Latin for ‘that which has gone before’!). You do not have to write the name and date again. Only use ‘ibid’ if the previous reference is in the same paragraph.

When you are quoting more than one line, you should start to quote on a new line and indent the whole quotation, like this:

The majority of language learners prefer to have their learning reinforced with visual aids, and this appeals to the sense of hearing and sense of seeing at the same time. (Brown, 1996: 139).

Summary:

Precise, brief and detailed documentation is required in the acknowledgement of sources. The student must demonstrate to the audience exactly what was taken from each source and exactly where in the work the material was found. All the parenthetical citations should correspond to full bibliographical entries in the list of references at the end of the paper.

5.4 In the Reference List at the End

References Bibliography

The following are some guidelines for listing References or Bibliography:

1. Begin the list of sources on a separate page after the text of your paper.

2. Type the heading References or Bibliography on top of a separate page, neither underlined, nor italicized or in quotation marks.

3. List all the sources by the authors’ last names in the alphabetic order. If the author of a source is unknown, alphabetize the source by the first major word of the title.

4. Begin each entry with the left margin. Do not indent the first line of each entry, but indent five spaces in the subsequent lines.

Usually a complete entry for a book should be like this:

Author’s last name, initials for the first and middle names, (publication date). Title. Additional information. City of publication: publisher.

Sample Entries: Books* A book by one author Bambrough, R. (1963). The philosophy of Aristotle. New

York: The New American Library.

* A book by two or more authors Atwan, R., Mcquate, D., & Wright, J. (1979). Edsels, Lucki

es, and Frigidaires: Advertising the American way. New York: Dell.

* Organization as author American Psychological Association. (1994). Publication

manual of the American Psychological Association. 4th ed. Washington: American Psychological Association.

* Anonymous author

The New York Times atlas of the world. (1980).

New York: New York Times Books.

* Two or more books by the same author

Bloom, H. (1973). The anxiety of influence: A

theory of poetry. New York: Oxford UP.

Bloom, H. (1975). A map of misreading. New

York: Oxford UP.

* A book with an editor or editors Glotfelty, C., & Fromm, H. (Eds.). (1996). The ecocriticism reader: landmarks in literary ecology. Athens: The U of Georgia P.

* A book with an author and an editor Jung, C. G. (1959). Basic writings. (V. S. de Laszlo, Ed.). New York: Modern Library.

* A book with a translator Freud, S. (1961). Civilization and its discontents. (J. Strachey, Trans.). New York: Norton.

* Edition after the first Fromkin, V., & Rodman, R. (1993). An introduction to language (5th ed.). Ft. Worth: Harcourt. * A work in a book or anthology Wellek, R. (1963). Romanticism re-examined. In N. Frye (Ed.), Romanticism reconsidered (pp. 55- 98). New York: Columbia UP. Hall, S. (1993). Minial Selves. In A. Gray & J. McGuigan (Eds.), Studying culture (pp. 131-142). Arnold: Hodder Headline Group. * A multivolume work Plato. (1926). Laws (2 vols.). New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons.

Sample Entries: Articles

The four basic elements for an article entry are the same as those for books, but please note the slight differences in the treatment of dates, titles and publication data.

* An article in a journal paginated by volume Maguire, J. H. (1980). The Canon and the ‘Diminished thing.’ American Literature 60, 645-52.

* An article in a journal paginated by issue Davis, S. H. (1998). The Zen art of prewriting. New Mexico English Journal 12 (1), 21-23

*An article in a monthly or bimonthly periodical

Weiss, P. (1994, January). The book thief: A true

tale of bibliomania. Harper’s, 37-56.

* An article in a weekly or biweekly periodical

Hoagland, E. (1989, May 7). Standing tough in the

desert. New York Times Book Review, 44-45.

* An article in a newspaper

Intraub, Anna Jiangwang. (2002, January 13).

How I Learned to Read. New York Times.

Section 4, Column 6, Page 16.

New bank attracts depositors with high rates.

(1996, June 22). Edinboro Gazette, pp. 1, 5.Note: This article has no author, and has discontinuous pages.

* Conference paper: Published in conference proceedings

Barclay, L. P., Bateson, R., & Obiakor, T. F. (1996). Making computers talk. In P. R. Wigmore (Ed.), Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Artificial Intelligence (pp. 135-141). Amsterdam: De Bruijn Press.

* Conference paper: Unpublished Jameson, P. E. (1997, January). Light filters in high-speed medical photography. Paper presented at the meeting of the California Association of Medical Photography Technicians, Sacramento, CA.

* Doctoral dissertation: Unpublished

Juffs, A. (1993). Learnability and the lexicon: Chinese

learners’ acquisition of English argument structure.

Unpublished doctoral dissertation, McGill University,

Montreal, Canada.

* Review of a book

Forman, P. (1995). Truth and objectivity. [Review of the

book A social history of truth] Science, 269, 707-710.

Electronic Publications

World Wide Web: Article in electronic journal

Ling, R. (1996). Cyber McCarthyism: Witch hunts in the living room. Electronic Journal of Sociology, 2. Available: http://olympus.lang.arts.ualberta.ca: 8010/vol002.001/Ling.Article.1996.html [1997, January 3]

World Wide Web: ArticleWeaver, R., Servesco, R., & Tian, J. (1996). Determining the destiny of plastic. Available: http:// dirac.py.iup.edu/ college/chemistry/chemcourse/plastic.html

CD-ROM The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. (1992). [CD-ROM]. Oxford: Oxford UP.

NOTES: The names should be listed in

alphabetical order: Brown – Davis – Smith.

There is no need to number the references at the end 1,2,3 etc.

Only list the authors who you have quoted or referred to within your essay.

5.5 中文参考文献格式：专著、编著、译著杜维明 . 东亚价值与多元现代性 [M]. 北京：中国社会科学出版社 , 2001申丹 . 文学文体学与小说翻译 [M]. 北京：北京大学出版社 , 1995 柳卸林主编 . 世界名人论中国文化 [Z]. 武汉 : 湖北人民出版社 , 1991索绪尔 . 普通语言学教程 [M]. 高名凯译 . 北京 : 商务印书馆 , 1996

论文集文章冯庆华 . 论译者的风格 [A]. 谢天振 . 翻译的理论建构与文化透视 [C]. 上海 : 上海外语教育出版社 , 2000. 329-338

别林斯基 . 论俄国中篇小说和果戈里君的中篇小说 [A]. 伍蠡甫 . 西方文论选：下册 [C]. 上海：上海译文出版社， 1979.

期刊文章程爱民 . 原型批评的整体性文化批评倾向 [J]. 外国文学 , 2000(5): 67-74张权 . 英语动词名词化的认知结构分析 [J]. 外国语 , 2001(6): 29-34报纸文章冯宪光 . 借鉴与重构 : 西方马克思主义文学批评

在中国 [N]. 文艺报 , 1999/11/23(3)参考文献（即引文出处）的类型以单字母方式标识：

M—— 专著， C—— 论文集， N—— 报纸文章， J—— 期刊文章，D—— 学位论文， R—— 报告， S—— 标准， P—— 专利， A －－论文集中的析出文献；对于不属于上述的文献类型，采用字母“ Z” 标识。

Chapter 6

Research Instruments

6.1 Introduction

Usually there are two approaches to research: qualitative approach and quantitative approach.

Qualitative approach: interviews, observations and text analysis

Quantitative approach: experiments and questionnaires, etc.

Whatever approach you use just depends on your research context and research questions. For example, “Is Chinese food better or more delicious than English food?” ( interview + questionnaire).

Here we will pick out 3 frequently used approaches and introduce them to you.

6.2 Observation

Three questions to ask yourself:

1) Who and what should I observe? Why?

2) How many people or events should I

observe? Why?

3) What observation and recording

technique are appropriate? Why?

For example:

RQ: How do EAP teachers start their

EAP classes?

Who and what should I observe: who→teachers what→How they start teaching?→How many teachers are you going to observe? (You should

have reasons for that)→How many classes are you going to observe? (You should

have reasons for that)→TA: starting by greeting and then.... TB: ….. TC: …..

We can use an observation schedule like this:

Teacher

Way

TA TB TC TD

By greetings √

By activities √ √

By playing video √

By asking questions

…….

Usually observing involves three basic steps: Planning the visit Observing and note-taking Writing up the notes

6.3 Interviewing

Interviewing is one of the commonest methods used in small scale educational research. This is not surprising. In the teaching profession, when you want to get information, canvass opinion, or exchange ideas, the natural thing to do is to talk to people.

Interviewing usually involves at least the following two aspects: planning and writing up the notes.

6.3.1 Planning the Interview

1) Whom to interview

2) Why you need to interview the individual,

how important this interview is to you

3) Be prepared with a number of questions

4) Remember to bring your tools: a notebook (with a firm back) and a tape recorder/pencorder.

6.3.2 Writing up the Notes

Right after the interview, find a quiet place to review and add to your notes, reflect upon the interview, and summarize it: What are your main impressions? What are the most memorable quotations? What are the most striking details?

Some points about interviewing and semi-structured interviewing in particular. Semi-structured interviewing:

Is a very flexible technique, suitable for gathering information and opinions and exploring people’s thinking and motivations

Yields rich information and guarantees good coverage Takes time to do and analyse and so requires realistic planning Cannot cover large numbers (use a questionnaire for that) Requires a degree of skill (but that comes with practice) Is useful in mini-surveys and case studies Can be used along with other methods

6.4 Questionnaire

1. A questionnaire is a tool for collecting data.

2. Two types of questionnaire: Descriptive (describing the features of a group) and analytical (explaining the process of an event).

3. Questionnaires do not show causal relations.

4. Questionnaires usually do not produce 100% response rate.

Design of questionnaires: Four steps in design: 1. Deciding a questionnaire is what you want to use:

questionnaire, interview, or observation? This depends on the research question.

2. Deciding upon relevant research objectives: What are relevant to the phenomenon that you want to study?

3. Translating the objectives into questions: Do not use your research question as a question in the questionnaire.

4. Phrasing the questions: so that they do not influence the answers in any way.

a. Questions should suit the research objectives. b. Questions should be clear, unambiguous, and unvague. c. Questions should be encouraging. d. Questions should be short. e. Put questions about similar topics together. f. Avoiding hypothetical questions (eg. “if…, …)

g. Avoid leading (loaded) questions. h. Avoid questions relying on memory. i. Avoid technical terms. j. Avoid negative questions. k. Avoid double questions. (eg. “when & where

…?” ) l. Avoid calculating questions.

m. Avoid sexist and racist questions. n. Put open questions at the end of the

questionnaire. m. In multiple choice questions, do not give

too many or too few choices. q. Design the questionnaire in a way that it

will be easy for you to analyse (try to use

questions that will be answered by ticking

boxes or circling numbers).

A questionnaire should have the following 3 sections:

1. Opening Section 2. Middle Section 3. Closing Section

Types of questions:

1) open (wh- questions)

2) close (yes/no questions, limited

responses).

Three types of scales:

1. the Linkert Scale (in the form of statements):

Example: the course is dense.Strongly agree agree undecided disagree strongly disagree

5 4 3 2 1

Example: the course is dense.Strongly agree agree undecided disagree strongly disagree

1 2 3 4 5

2. Semantic-differential Spectrum:

Example: How did you find this course?

Unpleasant 1 2 3 4 5 Pleasant

3. Ranking

Example: rank the following courses from the most (1) to least (5) useful.

history, geography, science, English, maths.

In deciding on the type of the questions, you need to think about the data that you want as answers. You might want:

a. a yes/no or agree/disagree answer

b. a numerical answer

c. a factual statement

d. an opinion or reason

Some points to be paid attention:

1. Make your questionnaire short

2. Responses must be measurable

3. Write only on one side of the paper

4. Leave space between questions

5. Leave a wide margin for analysis

6. Pilot your questionnaire (try it out) about the layout, questions, and order.

Example for designing a questionnaire:

RQ: What is the attitude of Chinese students towards English?

Objectives: Do they like English people? Do they like the English language? How do they think about the English language? How do they think about the English people?

You can list the following questions in your questionnaire: Do you enjoy meeting English people? Do you usually speak English with your

classmates? Do you like to go to England? Do you approach English tourists who came to

China? Do you watch English-speaking satellite? …

A Copy of the Questionnaire

Vocabulary Learning Strategies Questionnaire

You can start your questionnaire like this: The purpose of this questionnaire is to find what

vocabulary learning strategies university students use to learn the vocabulary of English as an additional language. I would be grateful if you could complete the following questionnaire. Thanks for your time and effort.

And finish it like the following:Thank you very much for your time and coop

eration.Mahshid Fazaeli (

[email protected])MA TESOL studentSchool of Education and Lifelong LearningUniversity of Sunderland

Chapter 7

Writing Abstracts, Appendices and Acknowledgements; and Preparing for the Final Draft

7.1 Writing the Abstract

7.1.1 Major types and contents of abstracts

1) Two typical types of abstracts:

descriptive

informative

2) Usually abstracts should be composed of the following elements:

① purpose or scope of the paper,

② method of writing or method of the

research discussed in the paper,

③ results, conclusions and/or

recommendations.

3) Length of abstracts

7.1.2 Tips about writing the abstract

1) In writing the abstract, select important information such as purpose, methods, scope, results, conclusions, and recommendations from the paper. The headings, outline heads, table of contents, introduction and conclusion are useful sections;

2) Copying sentences directly from the sections of the paper should be strictly avoided. Instead, synthesize the information in the major sections into clear, concise statements;

3) Avoid reference to other literatures;4) Avoid using the first person “I” or “we”,

although some researchers tend to use them nowadays;

5) Begin the first sentence with the phrase “this paper” or “this study”;

6) Use non-evaluative language; report rather than comment upon the findings;

7) Remember the word limit set by your supervisor or your school (department).

8) Convey information in the original document accurately and concisely, with an absence of any attempt to arouse emotion. The exclamation mark (!) is never used in an abstract, and question mark (?) is seldom used.

9) Use standard terms. Try to avoid using abbreviations and symbols.

Verb tenses in the abstract Generally speaking, the verb tenses in the abstract are directly related to those that have

been used in the corresponding sections of the paper. For example, sentences of background information are usually written in the present tense; major activities are put in the past tense or the present perfect tense; methodology is usually put in the past tense, results in the past tense, and conclusion in the present tense.

7. 2 Writing Appendices1) Why open an appendix?

2) What materials are usually put in the

appendix?

Note: All materials in an appendix must have been referred to in the

text; Each document should be included in a separate appendix

which should be numbered and titled and begin on a new page.

7. 3 Writing Acknowledgements

In most cases, it is almost impossible to write an academic research paper without referring to related literature or without any help. Acknowledgements help researchers to extend thanks and indebtedness to people who have helped during the research. These people may include the supervisors, colleagues, peer students, funding or sponsoring associations or instructions, etc. Therefore, acknowledgements are an important part of a research paper although it is optional.

One example:Acknowledgements

On the completion of my thesis, I should like to express my deepest gratitude to all those whose kindness and advice have made this work possible.

I am greatly indebted to my tutor Professor Liu Jianbo who gave me valuable instructions, and urged me to begin my research work as soon as possible. His effective advice, shrewd comments and quick corrections have kept the theses in the right direction.

I am grateful to Professor Chen Zhi’an, Professor Lili, Professor Liu Jiarong and Professor Zhou Rong of the School of Foreign Languages of Southwest China Normal University. They have improved me in language and in research methodology and have shown me into the fascinating world of English literature and western culture.

My gratitude is to ….

7.4 Preparing for the final draft

7.4.1 Major elements of graduation thesis

1) Title page

2) Abstracts

3) Table of contents

4) Body

5) Notes

6) Bibliography

7.4.2 Proofreading your thesis

When you finish your first draft after revising and editing, it is time to proofread it. Proofreading is the process of checking your thesis for errors in spelling, grammar, usage, level of language, capitalization, punctuation, and documentation. Proofreading is a tedious process. However, it is important.

A carefully proofread thesis indicates a professional and serious attitude to the reader. Therefore, you should make the final copy of your graduation thesis flawless, without any mistakes or incorrect information. The following checklist will help you to proofread your thesis.

A Proofreading Checklist

Be certain you particularly check these elements in your final proofreading session:

Spelling errors Mixed up homophones Incorrect word usage Sentence fragments Citation format Ambiguous references and pronouns (especially

it, that, this, these, and those) Comma usage

Check all titles to make sure that they are properly presented.

Quotations (make sure that they are accurate) Quotation marks (make certain all quotations have

quotation marks at the beginning and end of the quoted section)

Capitalization Punctuation Consistent verb tense Check every sentence to make sure that it has an

end mark.

7.4.3 Checklist for the final draft

Are my topic, thesis statement, and general approach clear to the reader?

Have I proven my thesis statement beyond the shadow of a doubt?

Have I made my argument fully and persuasively?

Does every paragraph in the thesis clearly relate to the thesis statement?

Does every paragraph in the thesis center on a single point that is clear to the reader?

Do paragraphs and sentences flow together? Have I included transitions that connect sentences and paragraphs together?

Have I supplied all of the information a reader needs to understand all of my points? Have I anticipated any questions a reader might have and included the answers within the thesis?

Have I cut out any excess words, sentences, or paragraphs that don’t contribute anything substantial to the thesis?

Have I varied my word choices? Have I altered my sentence patterns? Have I used all of the words correctly and in the

right context? Have I proofread for grammar, spelling, and

punctuation errors?

Have I cited all quoted and paraphrased sections? Have I used the proper citation format? Have I included a bibliography written in the proper format?

Have I typed up a clean, final copy? Is it double-spaced and stapled together? Does each page have a page number? Have I included a title, and other information on the title page?

Have I made an extra copy of the thesis to keep?

Chapter 8

Preparing for

the Oral Defense

8.1 Guidelines for oral defence

In some universities in China － but not all, a thesis defense is required. Thesis defense is usually taking place in oral format. Your thesis will be read by a group of committee members. Then, you are asked to present your final paper to the committee and answer their questions. Here are some guidelines about how you can prepare for your oral defense effectively.

Talk to your tutor/supervisor and get his/her evaluation and revise your thesis before you circulate your thesis to the other committee members.

Read your completed thesis after you turn it in and be familiar with its structure, contents, research method, major findings and major argument.

Usually you will be given 5-10 minutes to explain your thesis briefly. Ask your tutor/supervisor how long it will be and prepare accordingly.

Prepare your presentation either in ppt format or written form. Your focus should be

① define your topic or scope of your paper

briefly;

② your research method or perspective of

your analysis;

③ your major research findings or argument.

Be ready to support your argument with

clear, brief and convincing examples or

evidence.

Think about the questions the committee will ask and prepare your answer in advance. Work with your friends or classmates and see how you will respond to the main objections of alternative argument or counter-argument.

In the defense itself, be confident and relaxed as best you can. Listen to committee members’ specific questions and present your answers to the point. Please speak clearly and in normal speed and not to talk too fast.

In case you are not clear what they are asking about, just say “Pardon”, and let them repeat or explain their questions.

If you do not have the ready answer to the difficult questions, do not feel panic. You can either say something related to the issue, or give them a broad smile and say “I don’t know” and you are ready to learn.

Sometimes some committee members may make comments on your thesis or suggestions for improving your research. You need not have to defense at this moment and should respond politely with gratitude for their suggestions.

In sum, Thesis defense is not seeking to fail students’ graduation thesis. It is an opportunity for you to demonstrate your understanding of your research topic and share your argument with your teachers and students. Sometimes teachers would like to challenge you with a difficult question or counter argument to create a mood of debate and argumentation. Then, do your best, join them and have fun.

Thank You!

Documents

毕业论文写作讲座（二）. Paper Writing Foreign Language Department West Anhui University October, 2009