Writing Well 2 : Building Traction and Triumph into co-Authorship - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Writing Well 2:

Building Traction and Triumph into co-Authorship

Suzanne M. Kresta, John A. Nychka Roger Graves*, Jacob Masliyah, Murray Gray

*Director, Writing Across the Curriculum, English and Film Studies

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Write ll Stay well well… well…

this is what we learned!

http://www.finlosreviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/blank_page.jpg

…this is what we learned!

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Key Points

• Graduate students can benefit from:

informed methods of reading reading & writing writing technical literature – informed methods of reading reading & writing writing technical literature – many ways of outlining

• utlining

– developing writing in a stepwise stepwise manner – a writing recipe recipe d d d i – tremendous peer eer and advisor support support – limited levels of edit levels of edit at each stage – deadlines and timely feedback feedback deadlines and timely feedback feedback

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Graduate School: A New Game

• New graduate students tend to:

– start reading for content

• Mature graduate students tend to:

– read for validity of proposed start reading for content – gather information – memorize facts read for validity of proposed arguments – make connections between concepts – reach their limits quickly in a research environment (a new genre) – know their limits – have been transformed into creators

• f knowledge from data

genre) – not know how research really works

• f knowledge from data

Undergraduate Education ≠ Graduate Education

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Journal Articles: A New Genre

In a nutshell:

• Hard reading!
• Hard reading!
• Much content
• Conflicting ideas

Conflicting ideas

• Array of quality and style
• Varying levels of detail

y g

Undergraduate Reading ≠ Graduate Reading and Writing and Writing

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Levels of Editing

• Give timely and constructive feedback.
• Students can only absorb feedback on one or two

y major points at a time

• Many levels of edit will happen, for example:

Many levels of edit will happen, for example:

– Presentation of data and figures (Visual) – Structure and Arguments g – Editorial polishing – Big picture

B k d lf d f h

• Be kind to yourself – stop editing after an hour.

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Reading and Writing Exercises

• Start early
• S

ti i t ti

• Supportive environment – group meetings
• Two examples

B d d – Beginning and End – Visual Abstract – Art of the Argument – in the paper

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Example #1: The Beginning and Ending

Goal: identify key elements in a “story”

• Edit d ti l
• Edited article:

– No citation information at all – Introduction abstract and conclusion removed – Introduction, abstract, and conclusion removed

• Students read article and fill in missing info
• Compare and contrast their results with original
• Compare and contrast their results with original

(advisor feedback)

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Example #2: Visual Abstract

Goal: make conceptual connections about research (preparation for t t lli ) story telling)

Start here

• Students are given a

h t t ti b t short presentation about visual thinking

• How to make connections
• How to make connections

with images

“The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures,” Dan Roam, Expanded Edition, Portfolio, New York, 2009)

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• Each student is given:

k l b b h f

• 1 week to prepare a visual abstract about a research topic of own

choosing

• Visual abstract must be on a small cocktail na

small cocktail napkin! kin! p

• Present, and explain if necessary, their visual abstract at group meeting –

repeat and refine as necessary repeat and refine as necessary

Napkin: J.A Nychka

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Example #3: The Art of the Argument

G l h Goal: extract the argument structure

– Article selection:

hi h h d k ll l d

• content which the student knows well already
• disparate views in literature
• good and poor argument structures

g p g

– Students determine:

• Is the problem identified clearly? What is known?

Wh h h b

• What are the authors contributing?
• What is their main argument?
• Is their evidence convincing? What is missing?

g g

• What makes the paper memorable?

– Discuss with advisor (or in a journal club)

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Outlines – use many tools!

• Traditional linear outline does NOT work well –

especially for sequential learners! p y q

• Alternatives:

– The Godess Nike (Just Do It!) (J ) – Figures First (What is the story?) – Draft Abstract and Conclusions (What are the main points?) – Beetle or Spider diagrams (Sort the laundry) – Concept Maps (Construct the sequence) – Partial construction of paragraphs Partial construction of paragraphs

• Help the student learn to construct the story!

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The Goddess Nike

Many students find it easiest to write a fast brain dump to get all of their p g thoughts on paper, then sort them out and begin a serious draft! and begin a serious draft!

http://www.ask.com/wiki/Louvre http://symbolyzer.blogspot.com/2009/09/swoosh.html

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Figures first

• Many papers start as a presentation!

Children’s picture books work from images and captions – Children s picture books work from images and captions – students like this idea of starting from a storyboard

• The story is written around the data and images

The story is written around the data and images

– Sketch the visuals first – plot everything vs everything – Construct the argument and main points – Draft figure captions and finalize best figures

• This is the core of the results and discussion

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Main Points?

• What are the three most important points in the

? paper?

• What are the most important contributions to

k l d knowledge?

• Draft Abstract and Conclusions

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Beetle or Star or Spider Diagrams

• No need to

know what know what comes first

• Sort ideas

Sort ideas

• Fast!

*Website CMAP tools – free drawing software for concept maps Chemic Chemical and al and Materials Engineering Materials Engineering

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Concept Maps: Making Connections

• Construct the

argument in order

• Add connecting

Add connecting words in the logic

Images from: Callister, W.D., “Materials Science and Engineering, An Introduction,” 7th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 2007. Eng-Tips Forums, Failure of Boiler Tubes, thread330-191127, http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=191127&page=80, accessed on June 25, 2010.

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Concept Maps: Making Connections

Images from: Callister, W.D., “Materials Science and Engineering, An Introduction,” 7th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 2007. Eng-Tips Forums, Failure of Boiler Tubes, thread330-191127, http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=191127&page=80, accessed on June 25, 2010.

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...my current order of attack

1. Experimental 2. Select key figures 2. Select key figures 3. Visual Abstract and Conclusion – Draft 4 Outline 4. Outline 5. Review figures 6 R lt 6. Results 7. Introduction d b d l l l 8. Edit Abstract and Conclusions; Select Title

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Conclusions

• Graduate students can benefit from:

informed methods methods of reading & writing technical literature – informed methods methods of reading & writing technical literature – reading and writing practice practice in a stepwise manner – new ways of outlinin

• utlining

y g – tremendous peer peer and advisor support support – limited levels of edit levels of edit at each stage d dli d i l f d f db k b k – deadlines and timely fee eedb dbac ack

Chemic Chemical and al and Materials Engineering Materials Engineering

Faculty Forum, Feb 11, 2014 Faculty Forum, Feb 11, 2014