Effective Academic Writing: Constructing Cohesive Paragraphs and Using Transition Markers, Essays (university) of Industrial Engineering

Download Effective Academic Writing: Constructing Cohesive Paragraphs and Using Transition Markers and more Essays (university) Industrial Engineering in PDF only on Docsity! STEP 5: WRITE THE MIDDLE PARAGRAPHS When you have revised your provisional thesis statement and mapped out the supporting points you will develop in your essay, you can start writing the body of the essay. It’s advisable to begin with the middle paragraphs of the essay rather than the introductory paragraph because it’s the middle paragraphs that support the thesis statement and constitute the argument of the essay. The introductory paragraph leads up to your thesis statement and the concluding paragraph begins by restating your thesis and then wraps up the essay; first and last paragraphs function as a frame around your essay’s argument, but are not part of the argument. Once you have developed your argument through the middle paragraphs, you are better able to write an opening paragraph that positions the reader to engage with your argument. Paragraphs Keep the following points in mind when constructing your middle paragraphs: • A paragraph is a unit of thought. • Each paragraph should make one point. • A new paragraph signals to the reader that the writer has moved to a new topic or point of evidence. • Paragraphs should have internal cohesion. • Paragraphs should be linked logically to each other. The length of a paragraph depends on the complexity of the topic, the purpose of the writing, the medium, and the anticipated needs of the reader. Because most academic writing is formal writing that involves complex topics and a critical reader, it is advisable to aim for at least 100 words (up to 200 words) when you write an academic paragraph. Paragraph Structure Structure is important not only in the essay as a whole but also in every paragraph that makes up the essay. There are three parts of a paragraph: the topic sentence, which introduces the paragraph’s topic; middle sentences, which constitute the body of the paragraph; and the wrap sentence, which concludes the paragraph. Page 2 of 2 The topic sentence • States the paragraph’s main point, • Should be clear and stand out from the rest of the paragraph to make it easier for readers to grasp the main point, • Usually comes first (except in the introductory paragraph, where the topic sentence is the thesis statement and comes last), • Connects to the wrap of the previous paragraph. The middle sentences • Justify, explain, clarify, support, elaborate, give evidence, examples, fill in details, • Constitute the body of the paragraph. The wrap sentence • Closes the paragraph as a unit of thought, • Reinforces the paragraph’s main point, • Can assess the significance of what is established in the paragraph. To demonstrate this structure, we can look at the second paragraph of Model Essay One and the third paragraph of Model Essay Two. Model Essay One paragraph two In the strategic plan, paragraph two had ‘focus’ as its topic. (Note that apart from its last sentence ‘the thesis statement’ the introductory paragraph has not been written at this stage.) Thesis statement: A successful essay has three key elements: focus, organisation, and clarity. Analysis Sentence 1 (topic sentence) introduces the topic of ‘focus’, which is developed further in sentences 2, 3, and 4. Sentence 5 (wrap sentence) sums up how ‘focus’ can be achieved in writing the thesis statement. Page 2 of 2 In this example, the second sentence, although related, is not a logical contrast of the first sentence: imposing heavier penalties is a possible response that universities could make to the issue of plagiarism, but it is not an inevitable outcome of the issue. Repeat Idea Transi�on In a repeat idea transition, ideas from the first sentence are referred back to in the following sentence. The above faulty transition example can be revised using a repeat idea transition. Repeat idea transi�on example 1 Over the last five years there has been an increase in cases of student plagiarism. One strategy that universities might employ to address this problem is to impose heavier penalties on students who plagiarise. In this example, the words ‘this problem’ refer the reader back to ‘an increase in cases of plagiarism’, creating cohesion between sentences. Repeat idea transitions are also useful for creating coherence between paragraphs. Here, words in the first sentence of a new paragraph refer the reader back to ideas or information in the previous paragraph. Repeat idea transi�on example 2 …the main reason that the essay failed was that its central argument was unclear. Such a lack of clarity can be overcome by ensuring that the essay has a strong thesis statement and strategic plan. The first paragraph (giving reasons for the essay’s failure) concludes by reinforcing the main point. The following paragraph (about how the problem can be overcome) begins by referring back to the problem. Using transition phrases and idea transitions strategically to direct your reader through the stages of your argument or case helps you to convince them of the validity of your thesis statement. Cohesion within and between paragraphs reinforces the reader’s impression that you as the writer have control and authority over your material. This is exactly the impression you want to give your lecturer or marker, so mastering the use of transitions is very worthwhile. Wri�ng From Sources In developing your middle paragraphs, you will be using your lecture, tutorial, or reading notes to develop an argument or case supporting your thesis statement. Here, it’s useful to remember the process diagram from the Introduction of this course, in particular the arrow indicating the transformation needed to turn information into knowledge. Page 2 of 2 When your lecturer reads your essay, they are looking for evidence not only that you’ve attended lectures and tutorials and read the required textbooks and journal articles but also that you have been engaged in a learning process that transforms information into knowledge. To convince your lecturer that the learning process has been successful, you must express ‘in your own words’ what you have learned. If you use the words of the source text, your lecturer can’t tell whether you’ve understood the source material or whether you are just copying it. Writing in your own words does not mean that you take what the author has written and change some of the original words. Rather, it involves a process of understanding the information carried by the source text, critically evaluating and selecting information relevant to your essay, processing it through notes, concept maps, and summaries, and incorporating this processed material into your essay. Your lecturer wants to hear your own ‘scholarly voice‘ through your writing. This voice is informed by the authority of the texts you have read on your topic but expresses your own way of thinking about the topic. Getting the balance right between the authority of the source text and your own interpretation, perspective, and opinion takes some practice. Always remember that if your reader wanted to know what the source text says they would read the source text, but when they read your essay they want to know what you have to say. You take the raw material of the source text, but then you process this appropriated material so that you can use it for your essay. The following diagram represents the appropriation of material from the source text and the incorporation into your text. Note in particular that there is no direct link between source texts and your essay. Everything that you take from a source text must be processed thoroughly before becoming part of your essay. Page 2 of 2 The following provides an audio-visual representation of the Writing from sources diagram. Wri�ng from sources diagram Writing from sources diagram Restart Back Next The three most commonly used techniques for incorporating material from source texts into your own essay are: • quoting, • paraphrasing, and • summarising. All of these techniques require citation within the text and in the bibliography or reference list at the end of the essay. Quo�ng Quoting means copying the author’s exact words directly from the source text. Use quotations when you want to add the power of an author’s words to support your argument or you want to highlight particularly powerful or effective phrases. Guidelines Page 2 of 2 Sometimes you will want to change the form of a word so that the quoted material can be incorporated grammatically into your own sentence. You must signal to the reader any changes you make by enclosing the changed word or words in square brackets. Original text The predominant soil type in coastal areas of Sarawak is peat. Roads built on peat soils are particularly subject to subsidence and the development of corrugation. This makes road- building a continuing civil engineering challenge. Quotation • Arshad and Chow (2004, 76) note that ‘the predominant soil type in coastal areas of Sarawak is peat…[making] road-building a continuing civil engineering challenge.’ Paraphrasing Paraphrasing means putting the author’s thoughts into your own words. Use paraphrasing when: • You want to use your own ‘voice’ to present information. • You want to incorporate the author’s ideas into your own writing. • You want to avoid over-quotation. Faulty paraphrasing is the source of many cases identified by lecturers as ‘plagiarism’. The problem is usually that the raw material of the source text is not sufficiently processed. Paraphrasing is primarily a cognitive process; that is, it’s about concepts rather than words alone. Playing with language – changing words and phrases in the original text – is not paraphrasing. Page 2 of 2 Paraphrasing requires you to extract not the words but the meaning from the original text and to express this meaning in your notes. When you communicate the meaning of the original text in your own writing, try to work independently from the original text, drawing instead on your own notes or concept maps. Original Text Since the end of the Second World War, internationalisation of Australian higher education has gone through stages of ‘aid’ (primarily through the Colombo Plan and, more recently AAS) and ‘trade’ (the marketing of Australian university courses on- and off-shore). In the twenty-first century, Australian universities have entered a third, more mature, stage that builds on the earlier stages to constitute a more comprehensive internationalisation that involves university communities engaging with internationalisation as global citizens. Paraphrase • Smith (2005, 64) suggests that over the last sixty years international education has gone through three stages: aid, trade, and engagement. Paraphrasing Exercise Practise your paraphrasing technique by clicking on the ‘exercise‘ link at the top of the page. Summarising Summarising means providing a broad overview of one or a number of authors’ main ideas. Use summaries when: • You want to establish the background to a topic. • You want to offer an overview of a topic. • You want to describe common knowledge from several sources about a topic. • You want to communicate the main ideas of a single source. Example Studies of the Australian green tree frog and its environment reveal the possibility that the species could become extinct within the next fifty years (Ribbett 2002; Lillee 2003; and Croke 2004). In this example, you are indicating to your reader that the authors Ribbett, Lillee, and Croke all make the same claim that the species could become extinct within fifty years. Page 2 of 2 Introducing a Quota�on, Paraphrase of Summary Whenever you quote, paraphrase, or summarise from a source text, you need to integrate the appropriated material within own work don’t just insert it. The following are just a few examples of how you might introduce the appropriated material. Examples • Croke (2004) claims that some tree frogs have been known to live up to twenty years. • Croke’s argument (2004) is that environmental degradation is threatening the continued existence of the green tree frog. • As Croke (2004) asserts, green tree frogs are facing extinction. Verb Tense Getting the verb tenses correct when you appropriate material from source texts and incorporate them in your own text can be tricky. Here are a few guidelines to help you. The convention of the historical present tense applies when a writer has made a statement that you appropriate and engage with in your own writing. Example Croke (2004) discusses environmental threats to the Australian green tree frog. Although Croke wrote his journal article in 2004, you are engaging with it in the present and so you use present tense ‘discusses’ (not ‘discussed’). Similarly, Example According to Croke (2004), the life cycle of the green tree frog is uniquely adapted to the Australian climate. He speculates that tree frogs originated in Asia and migrated south during the Mesozoic period. Here, you as a reader are engaging with Croke’s speculation in the present, so you use the present tense ‘speculates’. However, Croke is speculating about events that happened in the past, so you need to use the past tense verbs ‘originated’ and ‘migrated.’ Whenever you discuss case studies or work that the author has undertaken in the past, use the past tense. Example Croke (2004) claims that the green tree frog faces extinction within the next half century. He bases his claim on field studies he conducted in the Katoomba area from 1998 to 2002. In these studies he tagged eight hundred frogs and tracked their movements over the study period. Referencing Conven�ons There are a number of different referencing conventions: APA, Chicago, Harvard, and Vancouver are probably the most common (Better Essays uses Chicago referencing). Guides to using referencing conventions are readily available online and in your university library’s reference section. You do not Page 2 of 2