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explanation of the broad ideas identified in step one. The organization will seem logical to the
reader, which helps him or her make sense of what you are communicating.
Write and rewrite until you communicate clearly.
Use the pyramid structure to provide descriptions.
The pyramid structure is familiar to journalists. It involves starting with broad information
and proceeding to specific details. Good descriptions do the same. They start by providing a
broad look at the thing described and proceed to detailed information. Here’s an example.
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Writing each part of the thesis
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The first sentence in the great majority of paragraphs is the topic sentence. This sentence
introduces a general overview of the topic and the purpose of the paragraph. The topic sentence
answers the question 'What's the paragraph about? It should be more gene rl than the body of
the paragraph.
Once the topic of the paragraph has been set up in the first sentence (or sentences), the
writer then develops this topic in the body of the paragraph. Some body sentences may
elaborate directly on the topic sentence - for example, by giving definitions, classifications,
explanations, contrasts, example s, evidence, etc. Other body sentences are linked only to
previous body sentences.
The final sentence in many, but not all, paragraphs is a concluding sentence. This sentence
does not present specific new information, but often either summarizes the content of the
body, or comments on it. It can also link to the topic of the next paragraph, by showing how
the paragraph content links to the topic sentence of the next paragraph.
You don’t have to write all your paragraphs using this structure (for example, there are
paragraphs with no topic sentence, or it comes near the end of the paragraph). However, the
structure above is a very common and clear structure, which makes it easy for the reader to
follow, and gives the reader the feeling that your thinking is also clear.
5. Writing a critical review
A critical review is a type of essay which has the purpose of evaluating all, or part of, a
research article, an artwork or some other type of work. It requires you to:
• Accurately summaries all or part of the work.
• Have an opinion about it. Appropriate types of opinion could include pointing out
some problems with the work, proposing an alternative approach which would be
better, and/or defending the work against the critiques of others.
• Provide evidence for your point of view. Depending on the specific assignment and the
discipline, different types of evidence may be appropriate, such a s logical reasoning,
reference to authoritative sources and/or research data.
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• Look for other ways to break your point of view into parts: e.g. cost effectiveness,
environmental sustainability, precision of measurement, scope of real-world
application, theoretical clarity, etc.
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Thesis writing tips
Spend time on your dissertation every day if that's possible for you (minimum five days a
week). Even if you spend only fifteen minutes with it on some days, consistent work will help
you to keep ideas and source material fresh in your mind.
Set clear, reasonable goals.
Experiment with setting goals in terms of pages and in terms of hours spent.
Break tasks into small components.
For example, your goal might be to finish a section of a chapter in a given week, not necessarily
the entire chapter. Again, see what works for you.
List specifically when you want to have each section completed, when you want to have your
first and second drafts completed, and when you want to defend. Keep in mind the time needed
for professors to review your work.
Give yourself time to think; you often will need more time to think than you do to write.
Focus on your research questions. Do not waste time on points or questions outside the scope
of your research.
Write the introduction last. Writing the introduction and conclusion together will help to tie
up the thesis together, so save it for the end.
Address the unanswered questions. “There will always be unanswered questions - don’t try to
ignore or, even worse, obfuscate them. On the contrary, actively draw attention to them;
identify them in your conclusion as areas for further investigation. Your PhD viva will go badly
if you’ve attempted to disregard or evade the unresolved issues that your thesis has inevitably
opened up.
Checking is important. On days when your brain is too tired to write, check quotations,
bibliography etc so you’re still making progress.
Don’t pursue perfectionism. Remember that a PhD doesn’t have to be a masterpiece. Nothing
more self-crippling than perfectionism.
Date drafts to remember the order in which you worked on chapters.
Establish a calendar for completing your work. Set deadlines for submitting drafts of each
chapter. Meet your deadlines even if you cannot deliver everything you promised.
List what each chapter or section should cover, including both general ideas and specific
examples.
If you need an outline for each section, be sure to make one. If you work best with an informal
structure in mind, embrace it.
Try to write every day, or at minimum five days a week. The type of writing may vary depending
on what stage of the dissertation phase you find yourself, but it is very important to do some
work on your project every day, even if some days it's only fifteen minutes.
Finding model theses or dissertations can help you gauge how much (or how little) you have to
do. A good model can also serve as an inspiration for your project. Look at theses or
dissertations that your department has accepted.
Keep a researcher's notebook in addition to taking notes on specific sources. The notebook can
keep you in continual dialogue with your sources and your topic; it also provides you with a
place to write down questions that arise during your research that you want to pursue at a later
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date, as well as reminders about other sources you may want to consult. See our page on using
a researcher's notebook.
Take summary notes as well as specific information notes. Summary notes should explain the
main ideas of texts you read, how they fit into the larger body of scholarship on your topic, and
how they shed light on your project. Include your critique so that your voice is the prominent
one. Specific information notes consist of factual content that you may want to include.
Think about how each source specifically applies to your topic. The authors of your sources are
advancing their own arguments, not yours. Therefore, you need to carefully consider which
source material you will use. In the interest of efficiency, try to limit your research to that which
is relevant to questions you are trying to answer.
By making direct reference to a thorough literature review, you must demonstrate that your
question (a) has not been previously answered, and (b) is worth answering.
Use verb tense consistently. In the first chapter and in the paragraphs at the beginning of the
chapters you will probably use the present tense to inform the reader of the upcoming event.
The rest of the thesis should be in the past tense, except for the suggestions for future research
in the last chapter.
Break everything down to small manageable parts.
Keep a journal of daily developments, ideas, references.
Plagiarism is copying somebody else’s words (even if it is common knowledge) or somebody
else’s ideas (even if you have paraphrased them) and presenting them as your own. You can
avoid plagiarism by giving credit to other work by means of citing it using a suitable
documentation style and by properly referencing in one of these ways: Quoting, Paraphrasing,
Summarizing.
Edit and edit until it read well throughout and ensure that the reader can read the language
you are using.
Time spent thinking about and planning how you will structure your thesis is time well spent.
Analysing existing theses is a good starting point to get an idea of typical structures in your
field.
Planning writers tend to have a highly structured approach to writing and if this is your
approach you may find the following tips helpful.
Under each chapter heading define a series of sections
Break these into sub-sections and keep breaking these down until you are almost at
the paragraph level
You can now work methodically through this set of short sections
Check completed sections or chapters agree with your plan.
Think, read or write more analytically
To make your writing more analytical, here are some tips:
Spend plenty of time planning. Brainstorm the facts and ideas, and try different w
ays of grouping them, according to patterns, parts, similarities and differences.
Create a name for the relationships and categories you find: e.g. advantages, disad
vantages. Build each paragraph around one of the analytical categories.
Make the paragraph structure of your paper clear to your reader, by using topic se
ntences and a clear introduction.
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Think, read or write more critically?
A simple definition of critical thinking, reading and writing is that it considers more than one
point of view or interpretation.
Here is one step-by-step process you can follow for critical thinking or reading (e.g. of a theory,
research article or recommendation):
1. Identify the important choices which have been made. (For example, what is the author’s
point of view? What methodology did the researcher choose? What type of action has been
recommended? What evidence do they offer?)
2. Think of some alternatives to those choices. (For example, what other points of view are
possible? What other methodologies, actions or evidence could have been used?)
3. Reach your own position on the alternatives. (For example, which point of view do you
agree with? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the different methodologies or
recommended actions?)
4. Find some convincing evidence for your point of view. (For example, to what books or
articles could you refer, to support your view? What examples or data can you draw on,
to show that your view is convincing?)
Critical writing requires strong writing skills. This is because you not only need to thoroughly
understand the topic and the issues, but also to develop an essay structure and paragraph
structure which will clearly analyze the different interpretations, develop an argument which
considers more than one viewpoint, and provide convincing evidence for your view.
How should I cite a reference that I found in a paper?
If you have come across a reference from one paper (A) that has been cited in another paper
(B), then A is the primary source while B is the secondary source. In such cases, you must first
read the original paper or primary source (A) and ensure that the context of the citation has
been correctly presented in B. You should always read the original article before you reference
any fact from it in your study.