Thesis Writing Presenter: Maeve Gallagher Content: Dr. Mark Matthews Student Learning Development

Learning Objectives 1.Learn about the writing process – 2.Identify self-management strategies to aid process 3.Consider the structure of a thesis 4.Share strategies, experiences & tools

R. Murray’s Model (2002) Social  Interactions, discussion  Support Psychological  Motivation, goal setting, self-monitoring Rhetorical = Writing  Regular writing  “Snack” writing + “binge” writing

We write theses A professional thesis writer? Learn how to write Learn how to think Learn how to conduct research Plus much more

Preconceptions It takes 6 months You do it at the end You can cut and paste from papers

Where & When do I start? Immediately – keep a journal Read theses

Start with…. A thesis statement Research Statement (25-30 words) Get feedback on it Discuss with supervisor Reach agreement as early as possible

Then develop an abstract A tool to think about your thesis/research

Outline / Table of Contents Planning before you build

Drafting, re-drafting, re-drafting

10 ways to not write 1. Open your at the start of the day and never quit it. 2. Keep your writing goals quite general. 3. Don’t talk about your writing-in-progress. 4. Only seek feedback when you have a full draft. 5. Don’t write unless you know exactly what you want to say. 6. Wait till you’re ready to write. 7. Don’t bother defining sub-goals – you know what you have to do. 8. Don’t bother with the 5-minute warm up for writing -- you know what to do. 9. Always write in large chunks of time. 10. Try and find more time for writing. Rowena Murray

Habit of Writing

Tools? Academic Writing: What do you use?

Rule of Three Within each chapter, repeat yourself 3 times –Intro. We will show.. –Body. Show them.. –Concl. We have shown.. Within thesis, repeat your contributions 3 times –Intro chapter –Main chapters –Conclusion chapter But don’t bore reader –E.g. in introduction be brief, in conclusions be broader

What are examiners looking for? Review of literature –Is the literature relevant? –Is the review critical or just descriptive? –Is it comprehensive? –Does it link to the methodology in the thesis? –Does it summarize the essential aspects? Methodology –Is there a clear hypothesis? –Are precautions taken against bias? –Are the limitations identified? –Is the data collected appropriately? –Is the methodology justified?

What are examiners looking for? Presentation of results –Have the hypotheses in fact been tested? –Are the results shown to support the hypothesis? –Is the data properly analysed? –Are the results presented clearly? –Are patterns identified and summarized? Discussion and Conclusions –Are the limits of the research identified? –Are the main points to emerge identified? –Are links made to the literature? –Is there theoretical development? –Are the speculations well grounded?

Core Strategies Goal Setting Writing Strategies – Getting started Creating Structure

Writing Timetable Deadlines –Hard deadlines –Soft deadlines Your thoughts and experiences?

Getting Started Topic Issue or Problem –Subject –Context –Variable Benefit or contribution Research design

Writing Strategies Book/journal Write to prompts Freewriting Generative writing Writing Sandwich Practicalities

Writing to prompts What writing have I done and what would I like to do? Where do my ideas come from? How does what I read compare with my own views? What I want to write about next is… What do I want to write about next?

Freewriting Writing for 5 minutes Without stopping In sentences Private – no external reader No structure needed Topic related to your research Like brainstorming in sentences

Generative writing Writing for 5 minutes Without stopping In sentences Focusing on one topic (maybe from your freewriting To be read by someone else

Writing Sandwich Writing – 10 minutes Talking – 10 minutes Writing – 10 minutes

6 / Outline Before you start writing Structure Flow Logic Sections meaningful titles Feedback

Outlining – Level 1 Background Objectives Method Findings Conclusions

Outlining – Level 2

Level 3

Structure Outline Generic thesis structure Allocate word count for each section Design sub-sections Table of contents feature Write in layers

7 / The Habit of Writing Writing at the end of a long list of tasks – no fixed deadline “I can’t find the time for writing….” “I have no energy for writing…”

2 / Best Practice 1.Make a rough plan 2.One section at a time 3.Use a word processor 4.At least 3 drafts 5.Spend 2/5 hours each week 6.One quiet place 7.Set goals and targets 8.Invite feedback (Hartley and Branthwaite 1989: 449)

5 / Abstracts words Structure Precise, clear & interesting Avoid generic statements like: “The results we be discussed” “Methods are presented” “Future research is discussed”

SPSE Technique Situation: Describe the general background / setting in which your research takes place Problem: Describe a problem that the research addresses. Solution: What did you do or try to address this problem? Evaluation: How did you evaluate the proposed solution and what were the results? In pairs, ask each other these questions. Take notes 10 mins

5 / Abstracts 1.Who are the intended readers? (name 3-5) 2.What did you do? (50 words) 3.Why did you do it? (50) 4.What happened? (50) 5.What do the results mean in theory? (50) 6.What do the results mean in practice? (50) 7.What is the key benefit for readers? (25) 8.What remains unresolved? (50) (Brown 1994/95)

5 / Abstracts In your handouts, answer Brown’s 8 questions. Write in full sentences Stick to the word count 10 minutes

3 / Warming Up What I want to write about today is….. (30 words) This is important because…. (30 words) Today, I will not write about…… (30 words) 5 minutes

Balance Where you work When you work What you do

Writing in layers Write a list of chapter headings Write a sentence or two on contents of each chapter Write lists of headings for each section in each chapter Make notes for each heading on how you will develop the section Write an introductory paragraph for each chapter Write the word count, draft number and date at top of first page

Overcoming blocks? Freewriting & Generative writing Writing with others Mind-mapping Verbal rehearsal Write down all you know about ‘X’ Write down all your ideas on ‘X’ Visualise completed thesis Combine strategies

Tips for successful writing Plan to write regularly Make a time plan and stick to it Write up section as soon as it’s ready Stop writing at a point where you could go on – makes it easier to start next time! Decide where and when best for you Don’t write when exhausted Seek support

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