Research Assignment Writing & Referencing Workshop ALW NMMU 2015

INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH ESSAYSBASIC CONCEPTS FOR WRITING A RESEARCH PAPERLISA WEIDEMAN & SHENA LAMB DU-PLESSIS

Academic Literacies and WritingNelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU)2015

Assignment Writing and Referencing by Academic Literacies and Writing at NMMU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

Use your smartphone, laptop, or tablet to explain what each of the following means in terms of academic writing:

A discipline A text genre Research

KEY CONCEPTS

KEY CONCEPTS Discipline – refers to a field or area of expertise (for example, Logistics, Nursing Sciences, Tourism.)

Genre – refers to a ‘text type’ or kind or writing (for example, proposal, report, or essay)

Research – refers to a “systematic process of collecting, analysing and interpreting information (data) in order to increase our understanding of phenomena about which we are interested or concerned” (Leedy & Ormond 2000: 2).

BEGINNING A RESEARCH PAPER 1. Clarify the assignment instructions 2. Organise the structure of the paper (the outline) 3. Break the workload into sub-tasks (more manageable pieces) 4. Begin your first draft

PRE-WRITING PROCESS Think

Purpose of the paper? – the research question – what is my point of view? – what information do I need?

Search

Find sources and information that are relevant, up to date.

Read

Skim-read, if relevant read article in detail – what is the argument or the main idea of the paper?

Take notes

Make summaries and find supporting details

Re-think

Draw conclusions, evaluate the information and sources you have found

THE IMPORTANCE OF PLANNING

“The quality of everything we do is determined by the quality of the thinking we do first” (Kline 2005: 5).

STRATEGIC PLANNING Set goals for each stage of your paper

◦ deadline for the first draft (to understand the structure and organisation of the paper)

◦Get feedback on your first draft from the Writing Centre or from your lecturer/peers

◦Set a personal deadline for final draft

STRATEGY IS ALL IMPORTANT

What is the purpose of an introduction?

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

A good introduction answers these questions:

What? (background of subject – brief introduction to topic of your essay)

Why? (aim of essay)How? (map of your essay, outlines how you plan to achieve

the aim of the essay – what the essay will cover)

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

In the following example, which sentence explains the ‘What’ question?

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

This essay discusses the role of women in the workplace. The purpose of this essay is to inform women of the changes that have taken place in the workplace. In particular, the essay will focus on the growing options available to women. Firstly, the background to a woman’s role in the workplace will be outlined. Secondly, the problems women encounter will be described. Thirdly, …

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

In the example, which sentence explains the ‘Why’ question?

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

This essay discusses the role of women in the workplace. The purpose of this essay is to inform women of the changes that have taken place in the workplace. In particular, the essay will focus on the growing options available to women. Firstly, the background to a woman’s role in the workplace will be outlined. Secondly, the problems women encounter will be described. Thirdly, …

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

In the example, where does the Introduction show how the essay will achieve its objectives?

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

This essay discusses the role of women in the workplace. The purpose of this essay is to inform women of the changes that have taken place in the workplace. In particular, the essay will focus on the growing options available to women. Firstly, the background to a woman’s role in the workplace will be outlined. Secondly, the problems women encounter will be described. Thirdly, …

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

Which words in the Introduction make it easier for the reader to follow the essay’s path?

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

This essay discusses the role of women in the workplace. The purpose of this essay is to inform women of the changes that have taken place in the workplace. In particular, the essay will focus on the growing options available to women. Firstly, the background to a woman’s role in the workplace will be outlined. Secondly, the problems women encounter will be described. Thirdly, …

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

READING JOURNAL ARTICLES EFFECTIVELYSMART AND ACTIVE READING TO SAVE YOU TIME

INTRODUCTION TO ACADEMIC ARTICLES Have you ever used an academic article? What makes an academic article different from other kinds of writing? What are the benefits of using an academic article instead of a textbook?

WHAT IS AN ACADEMIC ARTICLE?

Use your device to search for the differences between an academic article and a textbook.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF USING JOURNAL ARTICLES?

Use your device to search for the benefits of using an academic article in research.

They are more current than books or textbooks (easier to publish) They are shorter than textbooks We can navigate them easily Using online databases, we can often search for articles on specific topics and get PDFs for free

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF USING JOURNAL ARTICLES?

ACADEMIC ARTICLES AS GENRE Journal articles are not the same as books or magazine articles, and so should not be read in the same way.

A journal article is made up of specific sections, which make it easier for the reader to navigate the paper:

- Abstract

- Introduction

- Literature Review

- Methodology

- Discussion of results

- Conclusion

Effective reading of an article takes advantage of these elements to save time Instead of reading a journal article as you would read a book (from beginning to end), it makes more sense to ‘jump around’ to confirm that the article is relevant to your needs

If you have been asked to summarise certain parts of the paper, it is often easier to make use of the various headings, rather than to go through the entire article

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SmOq6gENPM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyMT08mD7Ds

ACADEMIC ARTICLES AS GENRE

HOW TO READ EFFECTIVELY We can start by asking ourselves some questions:

◦ Why am I reading this?◦ What is the article’s objective?◦ Is the article relevant to my topic of research? What is the relation between this article and

my own research?◦ Do I agree with what the author is suggesting?◦ Are there any concepts in the article that I don’t understand? If so, does the author define

them?◦ Has the author helped me by using specific terms and words to guide me?

* Practise active reading with a pencil or highlighter in hand and make notes as you go along – create a conversation between the article and you

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JL0pqJeE4_w

SOME USEFUL WORDS AND PHRASES:

Phrase/Word What this signifiesFirstly, secondly, thirdly The author is making it clear that s/he is listing related

elements or else providing a clear flow of argument for you

To start with, next, following this, finally The author is making it clear that s/he is listing related elements or else providing a clear flow of argument for you

However This word often indicates a change in the direction of the discussion or a comparison between elements

On the one hand, on the other hand The author is providing an obvious comparison between two elements

As a result Often, some kind of conclusion is going to be offered when this phrase is used

Similarly Shows that the author is going to provide another source who seems to be in agreement with the source at hand

Make use of the clearly marked sections (abstract, introduction, literature review, body, discussion, conclusions)

1. Begin with abstract (a concise summary of the article, normally containing the objectives)

2. Conclusion (will show you the outcomes and value of the research)

3. Introduction (will provide a context for the research, and perhaps define some important terms)

4. Literature review (will contain definitions and explanations of concepts, as well as indicate past and current research)

5. Results

6. Methodology

*Bear in mind that the subtitles in the article can guide you towards relevant information

HOW TO READ EFFECTIVELY

THE IMPORTANCE OF EFFECTIVE READING◦ Better comprehension (don’t become weighed down by ‘heavy’ concepts –

sometimes authors can say too much)◦ Reading articles becomes less daunting◦ One can save time and energy (don’t waste time by reading irrelevant articles

or information)◦ Mastering this skill gives one a significant advantage in postgraduate research◦ Reading journal articles effectively is a crucial aspect of academic literacy, and

it will help you throughout your university career

FINDING JOURNAL ARTICLES Do you know where and/or how to find journal articles?

FINDING JOURNAL ARTICLES

FINDING JOURNAL ARTICLES

FINDING JOURNAL ARTICLES

FINDING JOURNAL ARTICLES

FINDING JOURNAL ARTICLES

LEARNING TO REFERENCE AND UNDERSTANDING PLAGIARISMIN-TEXT REFERENCING, REFERENCE LISTS, AND PLAGIARISM

WRITING STYLE1. Academic writing is formal and objective (not personal, subjective

or ‘chatty’) 2. Academic writing always supplies evidence (references) for any

claim or opinion3. Your voice shows in the references you choose and how you refer

to them.

SOURCES YOU MAY CONSULT1)Books2)Academic journals3)Newspaper articles4)Certain official websites (NOT blogs)

What is plagiarism?

Use your device to find a definition of plagiarism.

PLAGIARISM

• Unintentionally using someone else’s work without acknowledgement

• Deliberately pretending someone else’s work is your own (stealing)

Either way, it means trouble. Acknowledge your source – whether it’s a direct quote, an indirect quote or a summary.

PLAGIARISM

Make sure you know which style your department requires:

Harvard APA Chicago Vancouver

REFERENCING STYLES

Consider this example:

Singapore is known for being the smallest country in Southeast Asia (Book Reference) and, as a result of its size, it has earned the nickname, “The Little Red Dot” (Website Reference).

REFERENCING SKILLS

Using the information below, write the in-text reference and the full reference for the book and website sources. You may use a guide or the internet to help you.

Book source: Disha Devashish (author), Tourism Marketing (title), 2011 (pub year), Pearson Education India (publishers), New Delhi (place of pub), 17 (page number).

Website Source: 2012 (pub year), Singapore Tourism Board (author), Vibrance in the City (website title), 20 May 2013 (date), http://www.yoursingapore.com/content/traveller/en/browse/aboutsingapore/key-facts.html (web address).

REFERENCING SKILLS

Devashish, D. 2011. Tourism Marketing. New Delhi: Pearson Education India.

(Devashish 2011: 17)

Singapore Tourism Board. 2012. Vibrance in the City. [Online]. Available: http://www.yoursingapore.com/content/traveller/en/browse/aboutsingapore/key-facts.html [Accessed: 20 May 2013].

(Singapore Tourism Board, 2012)

REFERENCING SKILLS

HARVARD REFERENCE LISTBinder, W. 1993. Slavery in the Americas. Würzburg: Köningshausen & Neumann.

Birnie, A. 2013. An Economic History of Europe 1760-1930. London: Routledge.

Blatt, H. 2008. America’s Food: what you don’t know about what you eat. Food Yearly,

59(1), 45-60.

Bouch, C & Jones, G. 1961. A Short Economic and Social History of the Lake Counties

1500-1830. Manchester: Manchester University Press.

What observations can you make about the formatting of the list?

HARVARD REFERENCE LIST Alphabetical order Set to ‘hanging’ All kinds of sources are included in the list No bullet points or fancy details to separate the sources

HARVARD REFERENCE LIST EXAMPLES

1) Referencing a book:Tracey, D. 2011. Urban Agriculture: Ideas and designs for the new food revolution. Gabriola Island: New Society Publishers.

2) Referencing an academic journal:Mackenzie, R. 1998. Psychologist: to be or not to be? Journal of philosophical psychologists, 34(2), 345-347.

3) Referencing newspaper articles: Matomela, S. 2010. Crime rampant in Gauteng. The Sun, 29 March: 3. 4) Referencing websites:Johnston, A. 2014. The Fall of Neoliberal Politics. [Online]. Available: http://socialistreview.org.uk/351/rise-and-fall-neoliberalism [28 August 2014].

HARVARD IN-TEXT REFERENCES EXAMPLES

1) In-text reference for book sources:(Author year: page) – (Jones 2010: 4) OR Jones (2010: 4)2) In-text reference for journal article:(Author, year: pages) – (Mackenzie, 1998: 345)3) In-text reference for newspaper articles:(Author, year: page) – (Matomela, 2004: 10) OR Matomela (2004: 10)4) In-text reference for websites:(Author, year) – (Mckinnley, 2010)

HARVARD IN-TEXT REFERENCING The way you write the in-text reference depends on the way you have quoted the information. What kind of quotes can you think of?

Give only three pieces of information: surname, year, page As Strauss (2005:35) explains, “tourists need places to stay, eat and shop which creates jobs in hotels, restaurants and stores and provides money that can then be spent locally”.

DIRECT QUOTES: IN-TEXT REFERENCING

Tourists need places to stay, eat and shop. This creates jobs in hotels, restaurants and stores and provides these businesses with money that can then be spent locally (Strauss 2005:35). no inverted commas “ …” same 3 pieces of information (author, year, page)

INDIRECT QUOTES: IN-TEXT REFERENCING

don’t put only www…

always give name of author

if you REALLY can’t find an author, give the title or source of the article

e.g. (Causes of unrest in Sudan, 2005:8)

Your in-text website reference can look just like an

in- text book reference:

Archer (2008:9) lists the causes of unrest as …

REFERENCING WEBSITES: IN-TEXT

If no date is available to indicate when the article was written, use ‘no date’, or ‘n.d.’

For example: (Jones, no date) If page numbers are non-existent , use paragraph numbers, for example:

(Myers, 2005 para. 5).

REFERENCING WEBSITES: IN-TEXT

GETTING TO LIBRARY’S REFERENCING RESOURCEStudent portal: LibraryHow to … Apply reference stylesHarvard – click for list

GETTING TO LIBRARY’S REFERENCING RESOURCE

GETTING HELP FROM THE WRITING CENTRE

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Twitter: @ginofransman

Assignment Writing and Referencing by Academic Literacies and Writing at NMMU is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

Content:Lisa Weideman lisaweideman1@gmail.com Shena Lamb Du-Plessis shena.lambdu-plessis@nmmu.ac.za

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