1. Highlighting the Global Structure
Unit 6
Highlighting the Global Structure
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2. Contents 6.1 Defining the global structure
6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
6.4 Indicating transitions
6.5 Chinese students’ common problems in highlighting the global structure
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3. 6.1 Defining the global structure
Discuss
What does the global structure” mean in this book?
Do you think it is necessary to highlight the global structure in thesis/paper writing?
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4. 6.1 Defining the global structure
The global structure, in this book, has to do with how the main ideas or topics covered in the chapters of a thesis or the sections of a chapter are organized.
Though it is optional to highlight the global structure, the thesis or chapter would be much more accessible to its readers if it does include such a component.
Generally, the simple present tense is employed in this part of writing.
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5. Contents 6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
6.1 Defining the global structure
6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
6.4 Indicating transitions
6.5 Chinese students’ common problems in highlighting the global structure
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6. 6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
The last section in the Introduction part (as stated in 4.1) of a thesis usually consists of three moves:
(a) claim the importance of the present research (Move A),
(b) state the objective(s) of the current research (Move B), and
(c) describe the focuses of the following chapters in sequence (Move C).
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7. 6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
How many moves does the following example have?
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8. 6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
How many moves does the following example have?
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9. 6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
How many moves does the following example have?
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10. Contents 6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
6.1 Defining the global structure
6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
6.4 Indicating transitions
6.5 Chinese students’ common problems in highlighting the global structure
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11. 6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
The indication of the global structure of a chapter
not only tells the reader what information will follow and how the rest of the chapter is structured or divided into sections,
but also specifies the logical relations between adjacent sections, that is, the rationale for transiting from one section to another.
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12. 6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
The description of the global structure of a certain chapter usually consists of two moves:
the move of stating related background knowledge or presenting the rationale for composing the chapter (Move A), and
that of reporting the focus of every section in the chapter (Move B).
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13. 6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
How many moves does the following example have?
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14. 6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
How many moves does the following example have?
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15. Contents 6.4 Indicating transitions 6.1 Defining the global structure
6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
6.4 Indicating transitions
6.5 Chinese students’ common problems in highlighting the global structure
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16. 6.4 Indicating transitions
Heppner & Heppner (2009: 61): Well-worded transitions help the reader get from the last point to the subsequent point.
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17. 6.4 Indicating transitions
How does the following excerpt transit from one chapter to another?
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18. 6.4 Indicating transitions
How does the following excerpt transit from one section to another?
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19. Contents
6.1 Defining the global structure
6.2 Highlighting the global structure of a thesis
6.3 Highlighting the global structure of a chapter
6.4 Indicating transitions
6.5 Chinese students’ common problems in highlighting the global structure
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20. 6.5 Chinese students’ common problems
A. Using personal pronouns
B. Having no transitions
C. Lacking introductory paragraphs
D. Capitalizing improperly
E. Lacking variety
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21. What is the problem?
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22. What is the problem?
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23. What is the problem?
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24. What is the problem?
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25. What is the problem?
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26. Check Your Understanding
1. The global structure refers to the major constituency of a thesis or dissertation.
2. It is compulsory to highlight the global structure of a thesis in academic writing.
3. Due to its simplicity in content, the chapters of Introduction and Conclusion frequently do not include an introductory paragraph to highlight the structure of chapters.
4. The global structure of a thesis frequently consists of three moves: the move to state the significance of the study, the move to describe the focus(es) of study, and the move to portray the major concerns of each chapter.
5. Pronouns like I are frequently found in regular research papers. F F T T F
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27. In-Class Activities
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28. 1. Discussion
(1) What tenses are predominantly employed in the two descriptions?
Due to its position in the thesis and nature of its function, the description predominantly takes on three tense forms:
the simple present tense, as in (1);
the simple future tense, as in (2) (except for the first two sentences
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29. 1. Discussion
(2) Is there any other tense that can be observed in the two descriptions?
The present perfect tense can be adopted to describe what have been stated or reported in the research paper, so it is frequently found in the first or two sentences in the description, as Sentence ① indicates in (2).
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30. 1. Discussion
(3) Can you explain why the second description employs three tense forms?
The tense shift in (2) is acceptable:
the present perfect tense is employed to describe what has been stated in the paper,
the simple future tense is oriented to report what will follow, and
the use of the simple present tense is confined by the choice of the verb “contain”.
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31. 1. Discussion
(4) What linguistic expressions are used to introduce the purpose of each part?
For example,
… are stated,
… is provided,
… describes
… are discussed,
… are provided.
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32. 2. Discussion
(1) What moves does this description comprise? Are they of equal importance? Which one is optional?
This description consists of two moves: the move to present the research focus (Move B) and the move to portray the focuses of the following chapters (Move C).
The two moves are not equally important, for Move B is optional while Move C is compulsory for such a description.
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33. 2. Discussion
(2) Is the description well drafted? If not, how would you improve it?
The description needs improvement.
For example, too many “I”s are used in the description.
In addition, the author used five “presents” in the description, which are supposed to be avoided for the sake of monotony.
Still, the description lacks transition from one chapter to the next. The highlighting of each chapter is initiated by “Chapter + number”, like Chapter 2 presents, Chapter 3 presents, Chapter 4 presents, etc.
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34. 3. Discussion
(1) How many moves does this introductory paragraph include?
The description includes two moves: the move to correlate the present study with previous ones (Sentence ①); and the move to present the concerns of the following sections (Sentence ② and ③).
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35. 3. Discussion
(2) Why is the first sentence included in such a description?
The first sentence is designed to correlate the present study with the previous literature.
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36. 4. Discussion (1) What types of errors does the above excerpt suffer?
The excerpt mainly suffers from the following types of errors:
(a) Inaccurate labeling. The constituents of a thesis should be labeled as “chapters” instead of “parts”;
(b) Use of pronouns. This excerpt used too many “I”s, in which place unanimated subjects are more acceptable;
(c) Improper use of plural forms. For example, “data” by itself is the plural form of the word “datum”; in addition, “research” has no plural form at all;
(d) Improper dividing of chapters. “Conclusion”, together with the “Problems” and “Directions”, falls into the same chapter instead of two.
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37. 4. Discussion
(2) How would you improve the description to make it more acceptable?
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38. Post-Class Tasks
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39. 1. Discussion
(1) Can you categorize the following structures in terms of the chapters they are designed for?
Introduction: (d) & (h);
Literature Review: (b) & (f);
Methodology: (a) & (j);
Results and Discussion: (e) & (g);
Conclusion: (c) & (i).
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40. 1. Discussion
(2) Are (d) and (h) designed to describe the same chapter? Why do they use two different tenses? Are they both acceptable?
Yes, they are all designed for the chapter of Introduction.
Sentence (d) takes the simple present tense, while (h) takes the present perfect tense. The reason for the different use of tenses is that the author adopts different perspectives. Anyway, they are all acceptable in this context.
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41. 2. Discussion
How many moves does this excerpt consist of? Are the left-out moves essential for highlighting the global structure of a thesis?
This description consists of one move, that is, Move C alone.
The moves of claiming the importance and stating the objectives are left out; they are optional in describing the global structure of a thesis.
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42. 2. Discussion
Does the author transit smoothly from one chapter to another? How would you improve the transition?
The transition between paragraphs is not very smooth.
Open.
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43. 3. Discussion
What title can you provide for each chapter according to this description?
Chapter One: Introduction;
Chapter Two: Literature Review;
Chapter Three: Methodology;
Chapter Four: Results and Discussion;
Chapter Five: Conclusion.
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44. 3. Discussion
What tenses have been used in this description? Are they all appropriate in this context?
The description uses two tenses: the simple present tense and the simple past tense.
No. The simple past tense for Chapter 1 is not acceptable in this context.
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45. 3. Discussion
How does the description transit from one chapter to another? What improvements can you make to this description?
The description lacks smooth transition.
Open.
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46. 4. Discussion
What do you think of the description? What improvements can you make?
It is not well composed.
The description of Chapter 2 (the first paragraph) is unnecessarily lengthy. It is too detailed compared with the following paragraphs.
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47. 4. Discussion
What linguistic structures or expressions are replicable in your own thesis writing?
Open.
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