dissertation workshop - october 2014
DESCRIPTION
Dissertation Workshop - October 2014TRANSCRIPT
Modern Foreign Languages
Writing a Dissertation
Dissertation
• What is a dissertation?• Selecting a topic• Formulating your title & writing the research
proposal• The supervisor• Literature reviews• Referencing• Time management
So, what is a dissertation?
• independent academic work• detailed knowledge and
understanding• original work & research set
within existing knowledge• shows critical, analytical
thinking• organisation and planning• high standard of
communication & presentation
Why do we ask students to do a dissertation ?
• Want to see evidence of the skills of analysis, synthesis and evaluation, with underpinnings of knowledge– Research skills– Communication skills– Academic English
• “Graduateness”• The ability to formulate an argument based on
evidence
To demonstrate mastery of:
Bloom’s TaxonomyBloom’s Taxonomy
ComprehensionKnowledge
Evaluation Synthesis
Analysis Application
knowledge
comprehension
application
analysis
synthesis
evaluation
What do you need to do?
• Select a topic to investigate• Carry out a literature search - READ!• Synthesise & critically evaluate current
knowledge • Identify research methods• Collect & analyse data• Draw appropriate conclusions
Select a topic which is…
• Original & useful• Interesting (especially to you)• Well-defined & narrow• Based on:
– a question – a hypothesis– a problem
What do you do with an idea for a topic?
• Write it down immediately• Think about it and talk about it• Read about the topic & make notes • Narrow the topic down (it will grow as you
work on it)• Get advice from tutors
Write a research proposal
• Formulate a working title which explains exactly what you want to find out through your research
• Complete your proposal and discuss with your supervisor
• Enables you to get approval to proceed
• Formulate your final title later in the process
The Supervisor
• What is the supervisor's role?
• What is your responsibility?
• How can you best make use of the supervisor?
A typical dissertation structure
• Abstract• Chapter 1: Introduction• Chapter 2: Literature Review• Chapter 3: Research Methods • Chapter 4: Results (Data)• Chapter 5: Discussion of Results• Conclusion• Recommendations (optional)• Bibliography• Appendices
Or headings related to your research topic
Literature Reviews
• What is a literature review?
• Where do I start?
• Reading & Synthesis
• Planning & Structure
• Reflections on a literature review
• Referencing
What is a Literature Review?
According to Bell (1999, p90):
“Any investigation, whatever the scale, will involve reading what other people have written about your area of interest, gathering information to support or refute your arguments”.
The literature review chapter
• It is a compulsory part of a dissertation• Why is it important?
It will teach you more about the subjectIt is the foundation for your own research It will help you refine your ideasIt will help you develop your subject-related
vocabulary
What should I be writing about?
• What has already been written on the topic
• What has not been written on that topic…
• … to show how your research addresses the 'gap', or ‘weakness’ in the existing knowledge base
• Reviewing the literature is not simply reproducing/summarising, but showing how the literature relates to the research project.
Useful questions to guide you
• What is already known in the area?
• Where are the inconsistencies orshortcomings in present knowledge?
• Why study (further) the research problem?
• What contribution can the present study be expected to make?
Planning the Literature Review
When you have mapped out the contents, you need to decide the order in which you are going to write about them:
– general to specific?– chronologically?– according to different schools of thought?– argument and counterargument?
Tips on StructureGroup authors who worked on similar
themes & link ideas
Make clear links between ideas inside the literature review and your own research
Don’t put any of your data in the literature review or discuss your findings
Don’t keep making the same points
Referencing
• The usual rules apply!• Know what system you are using• Be consistent• Find out the rules for referencing non-English
sources
Quotes• If you quote in text, then you must list the
source in your reference list
• Use ‘……’ around direct quotes
• Give the page number of direct quotes• Indent long quotes, & put the reference at
the end of the quote• Don’t use too many quotes!
Web references & Online Journals
• Try to find an author & use their name rather than the web address
• No author? Put (www.blah.co.uk, 2014)
• Don’t put the URL in the text – put it in the references section
• State when you accessed the page
IDEA
Library / WWW
Assemble material
Read / analyse
Write up
HAND IN
THE OPTIMIST
Time Management
IDEALibrary
Another Idea
Analyse
Check FactsCheck Library Sources
Lots of tweaking
HAND IN (phew!)
LIBRARYREAD
WRITE THINK
First of many drafts
Add missing info
Write some more
Almost final version
Finally ….
• Dissertations are a big challenge• Start NOW and work steadily• Start writing as soon as you can; writing is a
thinking process• Ask if you have any questions• Don’t put off the work until later – later may
be too late!
Set appropriate and realistic goals
ANDAvoid procrastination
Action Plan
• What should I be doing now?• Plan for key milestone dates (finish initial
reading, write 1st draft, hand–in etc) & then • Plan for that 1st meeting with my supervisor?• Clarify what help they can give• Find out about their availability
• WISER• Harris 113 for personalised support up to 3
times during the academic year • Workshops Monday & Wednesday 1pm – 3
pm Harris 113• Opening times and all details on website:
www.uclan.ac.uk/wiser• [email protected]