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Writing at Postgraduate Level - Critical Reading and Writing

This document provides guidance on writing at the postgraduate level. It recommends using journal articles as models and focusing on critical reading, structure, developing a clear voice, and integrating sources effectively. For critical reading, the document advises understanding the key points and relationships, questioning claims and evidence, and evaluating arguments. For structure, it outlines planning for length and content, with introductions comprising 10% of the word count, conclusions also 10%, and the main body making up the remaining 80%. The document also stresses the importance of finding your own voice within the field while drawing on and comparing the work of other scholars.

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Ronnan Hussain
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
182 views23 pages

Writing at Postgraduate Level - Critical Reading and Writing

This document provides guidance on writing at the postgraduate level. It recommends using journal articles as models and focusing on critical reading, structure, developing a clear voice, and integrating sources effectively. For critical reading, the document advises understanding the key points and relationships, questioning claims and evidence, and evaluating arguments. For structure, it outlines planning for length and content, with introductions comprising 10% of the word count, conclusions also 10%, and the main body making up the remaining 80%. The document also stresses the importance of finding your own voice within the field while drawing on and comparing the work of other scholars.

Uploaded by

Ronnan Hussain
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Writing at postgraduate level

To up your game to
postgrad level, look at
journal articles as a
model for writing.

Cath Senker
Author, editor, teacher
Contents
ß  1 Finding appropriate
sources
ß  2 Critical reading

ß  3 Structure

ß  4 Finding your voice


and integrating sources
ß  5 Academic writing style
1 Finding appropriate sources
Use Use with caution
ß  Journal articles ß  Conference papers

ß  Published books ß  Academia.edu

for professional ß  Student papers


audience ß  Websites
ß  Published scholarly
ß  Grey literature
books for a general
audience
Grey literature
Published or unpublished material without
ISBN or ISSN number, e.g.
ß  Magazines and newspapers

ß  Doctoral dissertations

ß  Official reports from governments or

research groups; patents; personal diaries;


trade catalogues
ß  Look for European materials on OpenGrey

www.opengrey.eu
Essay title keywords
ß  Directive words – words that tell you
what to do
ß  Topic area – the topic/s or theme/s

in the question
ß  Limiting/focus words – words that

provide boundaries for the essay


Keyword example
Researchers disagree about the importance
and desirability of assessment and testing at
primary level (Rea-Dickins’ & Rixon 1999).
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of
testing young learners’ achievements in
English, and explain how schools could
improve the quality of tests and/or other forms
of assessment.
2 Critical reading
In the shift towards deeper critical thinking, the text shifts:
ß  Towards a focused structure
ß  Towards including argument/comparison
ß  From dealing with surface characteristics of the words and
ideas to a deeper consideration
ß  From a descriptive text to one in which questions are raised
and responded to
ß  Towards dealing with and reasoning about emotions
ß  From unjustified opinion to a conclusion based on evidence
with a note of limitations of the thinking
ß  From a one-dimensional account to a recognition of other
points of view
ß  Towards taking into account prior experience and its effects
on judgement
ß  Towards reflexivity and metacognition (understanding of
one’s own thought processes).
Critical reading strategy
1 Understanding
ß  What are the key points?
ß  What’s the relationship between them?

ß  How successfully are the points made?

ß  Relevance to your topic?

ß  Be aware of the epistemologies used,


e.g. work experience, quantitative
research, culture specific
http://www2.open.ac.uk/students/skillsforstudy/critical-reading.php
2 Questioning

ß  Does the author use reasoning and debate


to argue their case?
ß  Is the argument backed up with solid
evidence from appropriate sources?
ß  Is the writing balanced or biased towards a
particular viewpoint?
ß  What are the author’s underlying values?
3 Evaluating
ß  Compare with other perspectives on the topic.
ß  Identify strengths and weaknesses:
How robust are the arguments?
How robust are arguments against?
ß  Do they fit with professional literature?
ß  Are arguments useful to you? Can you apply
them to your topic?
ß  Any amendments that would make them more
useful?
3 Planning and structure
ß  Planning for length and content
ß  Structure: intro, conclusion, main text
Planning for length
Intro: 10% of word count
Main body text 80% of word count.
Divide into 3 or 4 sections:
Section 1: point A, B, C (no. of points
will vary)
Section 2: point A, B, C
Section 3: point A, B, C
Section 4: point A, B, C
Conclusion: 10% of word count
See Essay Planner on S3
Planning for content
Plan every paragraph
Ÿ Draft topic sentence (main point)
Ÿ Evidence
Ÿ Explanation/Analysis
Ÿ Concluding sentence
Introduction c. 10%
ß  Punchy first sentence – arouse reader’s
interest
ß  Context: set the scene
ß  Explain how you interpret the question
ß  Define key terms
ß  Outline the issues that you are going to
explore, in the right order
ß  Introduce your main argument
Conclusion (c. 10%)
ß  Summarise main themes and state general
conclusions.
ß  Make it clear why those conclusions are significant.
ß  Set the issues in a broader context.
ß  You could mention what you haven’t been able to
cover or suggest further questions of your own.
ß  End with a strong concluding sentence. You may want
to sum up your argument briefly, linking it to the title.

Note: do not introduce new material – but a great quote


summing up your argument can be good.
Main body
ß  description/definition of issue and why it’s
important
ß  review of what others have said and your
critical assessment of those views
ß  presentation of your views on the subject,
with evidence to support them
4 Finding your voice and
integrating sources
ß  Become aware of the current knowledge in your
field
– read broadly
– synthesise information: ‘clump’ related arguments
– consider where you stand
ß  At PG level, you are expected to contribute
personally to the knowledge in your field
– think creatively: present information in a new way;
apply previous research to a new problem; prove a
thesis
– Always support your ideas with evidence
Adapted from Birkbeck University, London
A clear voice – structure
ß  Be bold – make your point in your topic
sentence
ß  Bring others into the conversation to show
how your ideas fit within the field
ß  Compare and evaluate their ideas
ß  Conclude your point
Good integration of sources
Group authors who share similar views:
Smith (2009) and Bromely (2011) state that….
Similarly, Hutchinson (2012) points out that
This is supported by Henderson (2013) who
argues that…

Note areas where authors disagree:


Marley (2012) suggests that ….. However,
Hartman opposes this by stating that… / In
contrast… Hartman found that…An alternative
point of view is suggested by Phillips…
5 Academic writing style
ß  Present ideas in a logical order
ß  Present objective analysis that is critical without
being too positive or negative

ß  Use formal style


ß  Writing style does not have to be complicated/
elaborate
ß  Use clear precise language
ß  Avoid emotive language
Descriptive versus critical analytical writing
ß  Your writing should be critical/
analytical not descriptive
ß  Compare and contrast literature
ß  Find similarities and differences
between ideas and research
ß  Notice gaps, inconsistencies
and over-generalisations
ß  Consider facts versus
assumptions/opinions
(all academics have a bias)
Further help
University of Sussex S3
• Study Skills one-to-one tutorials
• One-to-one tutorials with a Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow:
www.sussex.ac.uk/library/guides/rlf
• PG study skills guide www.sussex.ac.uk/s3/?id=185
University of Sussex BMEc – Business, Management and
Economics: Guidelines for Masters Students on writing essays
and dissertations
Open University PG study skills guide
http://www2.open.ac.uk/students/skillsforstudy/postgraduate-
study-skills.php
Lecture: Critical thinking and scholarly writing
www.academia.edu/4480218/
Critical_Thinking_and_Scholarly_Writing

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