How to put your reading into your writing

Workshop objectives You should feel more confident about: Summarising the ideas of others Recognising themes and organising your notes accordingly What synthesis is and why it is important Synthesis = synthesis noun (syntheses) 1 the process of putting together separate parts to form a complex whole. 2 the result of such a process. […] from Greek syn together + thesis a placing. [http://www.chambers.co.uk/search.php?query=synthesis&title=21st ]

Writing an assignment Submission Editing conclusion draft paragraphs with critical thoughts introduction synthesis of key ideas summarise sources plan your writing literature searching question analysis

Multiple sources – show your tutor that you have: Read and understood a wide range of sources i.e. evidence Been able to analyse and evaluate those sources Recognised the relationship/patterns between those sources Been able to paraphrase central ideas and synthesise to justify/support your conclusion

Summarising – True or False? You have to summarise each point in the text You must rewrite the original and use complex sentences You should keep the points in the same order as the original You can add your own opinions/examples/emotion You must write in Academic English style: impersonal and objective You should illustrate your points with examples You can change the meaning of the original slightly You should never cite the author Your summary should be shorter in length than the original Task 1

Why summarise? Helps your understanding of the text. Creates a more ‘usable’ version of the text, which is more manageable if you have multiple texts. Good summarising helps avoid plagiarism by citing and paraphrasing as you go. Stops your desk looking like this! summarise sources

Survey SQ3R method Question Read Recall Review https://vimeo.com/136299925 Survey Question Read Recall Review Watch video https://vimeo.com/136299925   summarise sources

Practice – summarising Summarising activity Task 2

Reporting verbs Often used to refer to the work of other authors, and indicate: What they did (study, measure, use) What they found (find, observe, show) What they thought or said (think, believe, write, state) draft paragraphs

Reporting verbs – examples Refer to the author(s) with phrases like: X (year) argues/ believes / states / claims/ offers/ suggests that … It is X’s opinion (year) that … According to X (year), … In a study by X (year), … X (year) has supported this conclusion … Research by X (year) indicates that … Several researchers (X, Year; Y, Year and Z, Year) have investigated this issue and make recommendations regarding … Tip: The Manchester Phrasebank is an excellent source of inspiration for further helpful phrases: http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk/referring-to-sources/ draft paragraphs

Identify the reporting verbs Find the reporting verbs in the extract below from a research article about dressings. How the intervention might work Lawrence (1998) observed that dressings can act as a physical barrier to protect wounds until the continuity of the skin (epithelialisation) has been achieved. This occurs within about 48 hours of surgery, and to absorb exudate from the wound, keeping it dry and clean with the aim of avoiding bacterial contamination from the external environment. This was found to be the case in the research of Hutchinson, 1991; Mertz, 1985 and Ubbink, 2008. Another reason for using a dressing is to prevent contamination of the surrounding area by any wound discharge, as was reported by Downie in 2010, although this is mainly applicable for clean-contaminated, contaminated, and dirty or infected wounds. Some studies have identified that the moist environment created by some dressings accelerates wound healing (Dyson, 1988), although others believe that it is a disadvantage, as excessive exudate can cause maceration (softening and breakdown) of the wound and the surrounding healthy tissue, a view stated in Cutting (2002).   Toon CD, Lusuku C, Ramamoorthy R, Davidson BR, Gurusamy KS. Early versus delayed dressing removal after primary closure of clean and clean-contaminated surgical wounds. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2015, Issue 9. Art. No.: CD010259. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD010259.pub3. Task 3

Reporting verbs – answers Find the reporting verbs in the extract below from a research article about dressings. How the intervention might work Lawrence (1998) observed that dressings can act as a physical barrier to protect wounds until the continuity of the skin (epithelialisation) has been achieved. This occurs within about 48 hours of surgery, and to absorb exudate from the wound, keeping it dry and clean with the aim of avoiding bacterial contamination from the external environment. This was found to be the case in the research of Hutchinson, 1991; Mertz, 1985 and Ubbink, 2008. Another reason for using a dressing is to prevent contamination of the surrounding area by any wound discharge, as was reported by Downie in 2010, although this is mainly applicable for clean-contaminated, contaminated, and dirty or infected wounds. Some studies have identified that the moist environment created by some dressings accelerates wound healing (Dyson, 1988), although others believe that it is a disadvantage, as excessive exudate can cause maceration (softening and breakdown) of the wound and the surrounding healthy tissue, a view stated in Cutting (2002).   Toon CD, Lusuku C, Ramamoorthy R, Davidson BR, Gurusamy KS. Early versus delayed dressing removal after primary closure of clean and clean-contaminated surgical wounds. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2015, Issue 9. Art. No.: CD010259. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD010259.pub3. draft paragraphs

Sort out the reporting verbs! What they did What they found What they thought or said studied informed measured used identified thought confirmed observed reported disputed found persuaded believed challenged argued showed demonstrated evaluated claimed stated wrote Task 4

Sort out the reporting verbs! What they did What they found What they thought informed found believed identified demonstrated challenged showed studied argued observed thought used reported disputed measured confirmed wrote evaluated stated persuaded Suggested answers! claimed Task 4

Synthesis This includes summarising and analyzing evidence, and then drawing a conclusion from that evidence. Summarise evidence from your reading into your writing. The evidence should be organised by theme/point into paragraphs Ideas should fit together clearly to build a strong argument and support your opinion synthesis

Practising synthesis Task 5 Look at this essay title: “Discuss why assignment essays are common assessment tasks in undergraduate tertiary coursework, and evaluate the effectiveness of assignments as an avenue for learning” You have found four relevant articles. Here are your notes. You now need to identify and organise themes/key points. synthesis Task 5

Key themes are: Students needing feedback (Jones et al., 2004, pp. 36-37; Peters, 2009, p. 79) Effect of exams on students ( Peters, 2009, p. 79; Wonderland University, 2006) Subject discourse (Jones et al., 2004, pp. 36-37; Peters, 2009, p. 79; Wonderland University, 2006) synthesis

Bringing it all together Bring these themes and ideas together in a structured paragraph: Bringing it all together synthesis Task 6

Skills – a process for synthesis Read and take notes (summarise) Organise notes into groups/themes Write a topic sentence for each paragraph Construct each paragraph – compare, contrast and link points Draw a conclusion summarise sources synthesis introduction draft paragraphs conclusion

Writing good paragraphs Paragraphing Linking ideas together introduction draft paragraphs conclusion Tasks 7 &8

Academic skills are employment skills Assessing information Writing a report Copyright TM infringement Summarize and synthesize sources Compare and contrast options Effective report reading Taking useful notes at meetings Planning and drafting a report or a project proposal Building an argument Recognising lines of reason

Workshops on a range of academic skills Further help Library online workbooks Ask a Librarian Workshops on a range of academic skills Study skills webpages Ask a Librarian – link http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/library/ UWE Study skills webpages - http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/students/studysupport/studyskills.aspx