1. Top 10 Undergraduate Writing Tips Beth Oyler Writing Tutor

2. Introduction Agenda: 10 Undergrad Writing Tips Goal: Introduce students to academic writing Overview of the basics Introduce students to the Writing Center’s website 45 minutes Questions Issues? GoToWebinar support: http://support.gotomeeting.com/ics/support/default.asp?dept ID=5641 http://support.gotomeeting.com/ics/support/default.asp?dept ID=5641

3. Overview 1.Constructing an argument 2.Thesis statement 3.Organization 4.First person 5.Personal experience 6.Biases 7.APA formatting 8.Citing sources 9.References list 10.Grammar and sentence structure

4. 1. Constructing an Argument What is academic writing? Arguing Proving or showing something to the reader Explaining why your argument is important Basing ideas on research Includes: analysis, explanations, and a thesis What isn’t academic writing? Summary Overview of a topic Based on personal experiences

5. 2. Thesis Statement An essential part of an argument is a thesis statement Thesis statement: arguable statement of what you will show or prove to the reader in your paper Your argument should be centered around your thesis statement

6. 2. Thesis Statement What is a thesis statement? Arguable: argue for or against something Supportable: support with sources Specific: not too broad for the scope of your paper Example of a thesis statement “Electric cars are a fuel-efficient alternative to gas-fueled cars.”

7. What wouldn’t be a thesis statement? “My electric car works really well.” Personal opinion Isn’t supported by sources “Electric cars are important.” Not specific enough Can’t be proved “Five percent of all gas stations support electric cars.” Not arguable 2. Thesis Statement

8. 3. Organization Academic arguments should always include three parts: Introduction Body Conclusion Introduction: Introduce the reader your topic Include the thesis statement Prepares the reader for the argument you’ll be making

9. 3. Organization Body: Main points supporting thesis Explanation Sources Conclusion: A summary of all your main points Rephrasing of your thesis statement Not meant to introduce new ideas

10. 4. First Person Usually acceptable in academic writing “I” and “my” Replace phrases like “the researcher” and “the author”

11. 4. First Person Not used to express personal opinions or experiences Phrases like “I believe…” and “In my opinion…” Tend to be too informal Indicate an argument based on beliefs or opinions “I believe that Freud was correct in saying…” changed to: “Freud was correct in saying…”

12. 5. Personal Experiences Usually aren’t used Limit to experiences that only relate to your argument What does a personal experience include? Anecdotes “When I was a kid…” Hypothetical situations “Imagine you were a student in…” Beliefs “I believe that…”

13. 6. Biases Focus on presenting ideas in an unbiased, objective way What topics does being objective extend to? Age, gender, racial and ethnic identities, sexual orientation, and disabilities

14. 6. Biases How do we avoid biased statements? Use: “People-first” language “the child with autism” not “the autistic child” Parallel language “Black and White” not “African-American and White”

15. 6. Biases Gender-neutral pronouns “His/her,” “him/her,” “their,” or “they” not “his,” or “he” Acknowledging differences “Most” or “many” not “all” or “never” statements

16. Additional Resources Writing Resources: http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/Scholarly-Writing.htm http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/Scholarly-Writing.htm Includes additional resources about: Constructing an argument Thesis statement Organization First person Personal experience Biases

17. 7. APA Formatting APA formatting Used by all Walden University programs APA includes rules for: In-text citations of sources Reference lists Capitalization Numbers and statistics Cover pages Headers Headings

18. 7. APA Formatting APA takes a lot of practice to learn, just like academic writing. Whole section of our website devoted to explaining its basic rules We also provide templates for you to follow Course Paper template

19. 8. Citing Sources Sources used need to be cited using APA Citing sources: Gives credit to the source Indicates where the source is in your reference list Shows you are supporting your statements with source Any source used in the body of your paper should be included in your reference list and vice versa

20. 8. Citing Sources Basic citations include the author’s last name and the year: (Author, Year) According to Smith (2010)… OR …nurses need more training (Smith, 2010).

21. 8. Citing Sources Include page or paragraph numbers for quotes: (Author, Year, p. xx) “…nurses need more training” (Smith, 2010, p. 1). Quotes of 40 or more words are block quotes Formatted differently: Indented.5 inches No quotation marks Start on a new line

22. 9. References List Tell the reader how to find the sources you used Includes an entry for each source Personal communications are an exception Formatting varies Basic format: Author. (Publication Year). Title of source. Publication information.

23. 9. References List Print Book: Author, A., & Author, B. (Year). Title of the book here. City, XX: Publisher. Print Article: Author, A. (publication year). Title of article in plain font and sentence case. Title of Journal in Italics, X(x), xx- xx.

24. 9. References List Basic formatting rules and common examples on our website Electronic sources require additional identification information Electronic articles: DOI: permanent link to the article URL: the URL of the journal’s home page Swann, W. B. (2006). The roots of the precarious couple effect. Social Psychology Bulletin, 32 (1), 93-103. doi:10.1177/0146167205279584

25. Additional Resources APA Style: http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/APA.htmhttp://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/APA.htm Includes additional resources about: Formatting In-text citations Reference list entries

26. 10. Grammar and Sentence Structure Important in presenting a polished paper Website has information about specific grammar areas Grammarly: helps identify areas of your writing that have grammatical or word choice errors The big green button on our home page

27. Additional Resources Grammar: http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/Grammar-and- ELL.htmhttp://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/Grammar-and- ELL.htm Includes additional resources about: All aspects of grammar and sentence structure Grammarly (home page)

28. Additional Resources Writing Tutoring FREE! Help you with all of the areas we’ve covered To use our services: 1.Read the Student User Guide: http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/285.htm http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/285.htm 2.Register for the WIRE: http://www.rich37.com/waldenu/ http://www.rich37.com/waldenu/ 3. Make a reservation and upload your paper

29. Questions? Contact us at: WritingSupport@waldenu.edu