Topic outline

  • 1 Text Type and Structure


    This session takes a flipped-classroom approach. So, please get started with the learning activities and assignments! 

    In Session 1, the learning activities ask you to consider your text type and its structure. What type of text are you writing? How have you structured it? Will your readers recognize your structure? Are you familiar with some common ways to structure scientific texts? 

     

    While developing your dissertation, you are handling two key items: your project and your dissertation. Moreover, it is easy to lose sight of the distinction between doing a project and writing it up. To distinguish between them, it may help to think of the former as 'writing as thinking' (part of the project work) and the latter as 'writing as assembly' (putting your presentation together). Keeping such a distinction will be important as you write up your research. To help you handle the writing-as-assembly aspect of your project, this session covers the following: reviewing the structure of four common types of research papers, examining the outline of your own paper, and checking how focused your research question is. (Although you won't write out the research question in your paper, you need it to focus your thinking and to guide your reading. You will also need to write it out in your dissertation.)

    This session contains 4 assignments, each of which has a deadline. The purpose of the deadlines is to help you keep pace with the course. Try to submit the assignments in a timely manner. Note that it is important to do these assignments before coming to the workshop (where you will discuss the assignments). If you have not completed them, you will not benefit much from coming to the workshop. Doing the learning activities and assignments before coming to class underscores the nature of a flipped classroom.

    Here is a brief overview of the assignments: 1.1 Answering eight questions about your research paper or study (submit to an assignment box); 1.2A Identifying your text type and producing a rough outline of the paper (submit to a discussion forum); 1.2B finding model texts (submit to an assignment box); and 1.3 writing your research question (submit to a discussion forum). Note that you’ll need to post to the Discussion Forums (1.2A and 1.3) before coming to the workshop.

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2 Your Writing