Introduction to Research Writing

Asst. Prof. Dr. Analiza Liezl Perez-Amurao

Chair, Humanities and Language Division
Mahidol University International College
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.analizaperez-amurao.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/analizaperezamurao
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COURSE MATERIALS, WEEK 7

SESSION TOPICS
I. Structuring the Body Paragraphs (continued)

A. PRE-WRITING: PLANNING

Once you have generated ideas and formulated a controlling idea about
your topic, the next step is to extract from your rewriting notes the
material you can use to develop the paragraph. This material is used to
support the opinion or attitude expressed in your topic sentence. It serves
to back up, clarify, illustrate, explain, or prove the point you make in
your topic sentence. Most often we use factual detail to support a point.
Support comes from the information you used to arrive at the view you
have expressed in your topic sentence.
SAMPLE OUTLINE

Topic Sentence:

Leah Resort has nearly solved our local employment problem.

Support:

1. The unemployment rate has dropped from 35% in 2017 to

8% in 2018.
2. The tourist industry has created many jobs.
3. Three new hotels have opened up.
A. The Statler Hotel employs 100 local residents.
B. The Modern Inn hired 50.
C. The New Wave Spa has 35 new workers.

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 4. The resort has attracted two non-tourist companies: J&M
Corp. and Menk’s Mfg. Co.

Activity 1: Study the paragraph below and outline it using the

format that follows.

Smoking cigarettes is hazardous to your health. Several years ago,

a US government study was released that linked the intake of tar and
nicotine, found in cigarettes, with the development of cancer in
laboratory animals. The evidence was so overwhelming that the US
government required cigarette manufacturers to put a warning on the
outside of each package of cigarettes which says, “Warning: The
Surgeon General has determined that cigarette smoking is hazardous to
your health.” Aside from the most serious and dreaded disease, cancer,
cigarette smoking also can aggravate or promote other health problems.
For example, smoking can give one a “smoker’s cough” and contribute
to bronchitis. Finally, recent studies have shown that cigarette smokers
are more susceptible to common colds and flu. Whether you get an
insignificant cold or the major killer, cancer, smoking cigarettes is
hazardous.

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Topic Sentence:
_________________________________________________________
_.

Support:

1. _________________________________________________
______________.
2. _________________________________________________
______________.
3. _________________________________________________
______________.
4. _________________________________________________
______________.

Conclusion:
_________________________________________________________
______.

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 B. THE DEVELOPMENTAL PARAGRAPHS

Developmental paragraphs, which range in number in the typical student

essay, are at the heart of the essay, for their function is to explain,
illustrate, discuss, or prove the thesis statement. Keep in mind these
points about the developmental paragraphs:

1. Each developmental paragraph discusses one aspect of the main

topic. If, for example, you were asked to write a paper about the
effects of smoking cigarettes on a person’s health, then each
paragraph would have as its topic an effect.
2. The controlling idea in the developmental paragraph should echo
the central idea in the thesis statement.
TS: Cigarette smoking is a destructive habit.

Topic sentences/ Developmental paragraphs:

destructiveness of the effects

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 3. The developmental paragraphs should have coherence and unity.
The order of the paragraphs should not be random.

C. BREAKING DOWN THE DEVELOPMENTAL

PARAGRAPHS

Example 1:

Thesis statement:

The village is the best environment for me to live in.

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Possible research question:

What makes it a good environment?

Possible topic sentence focus:

The cooperation among people

Sample topic sentence:

The observed cooperation among the people in the village serves

as one indicator for why it offers the best environment for me to
live in.

Activity 2: Try it out!

Its lack of pollution

Its security

Next step:

Convert each sentence focus into a complete sentence and use it to

start a new paragraph.

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 Example 2:

Thesis statement:

Watching television is not a waste of time.

Possible research question:

Why isn’t it a waste of time?

Possible topic sentence focus:

Because it is a valuable educational tool.

Because it helps us to relax.

Because it provides something for our family to discuss.

Activity 3: Try it out!

Use the given ideas above and develop each into a topic sentence.

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 D. DESCRIBING THE DATA

Describing the data along with data documentation both help you
understand your data in detail, and also helps other researchers find, use,
and properly cite your data.

Things to Document about Your Data/ Information (aka bibliographic

information/ details)
Title/s (title of the article, book, journal article, etc.)
Author/s
Publication date
Publisher
Volume number
Issues number
Editor/s’ name/s (if an edited volume/ issue)
DOI (if available)
URL (if taken from an online database/ source/ platform)

Important Things to Do: Collecting, Creating, Describing Data

1. Make a note of all file names and formats associated with the
writing project, how the data/ information was collected and
organized (primary information? secondary information?), how the
data/ information was generated (via direct quote, paraphrasing or
summarizing?; includes any equipment or software used, if any,
but for more advanced research only), and information about how
the data has been altered or processed (partial/ excerpted, full, etc).
2. Include codes or abbreviations used in the data or in the file
naming structure.
3. Keep notes about where you got the data/ information so that you
and others can find it.

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Evaluating and Describing Sources/ Information: Where to Begin
It’s difficult to evaluate and describe a source if you’re not sure where to
begin. Before getting started, it’s important to establish what genre of
research you need. Below is a breakdown of how sources are often
separated. Once you recognize the differences in sources, it becomes
easier to locate exactly what you need and evaluate whether the sources
you find seem credible.

Scholarly vs. Popular Sources

Most sources fall into two categories: scholarly and popular. Scholarly
sources are written by highly-qualified researchers and have a thorough
publication process, which usually involves peer-reviewing and an
extensive list of references at the end of the text. Scholarly sources often
have a specific audience in mind, most likely other experts in the
particular field of study. Examples of scholarly sources include books
and academic journals written by scholars and experts.

Popular sources, on the other hand, are written by and intended for a
general audience. Popular sources are not peer-reviewed, and they do
not usually include a reference list. Examples of popular sources range
from some books and magazines to websites and blogs.

If you’re unsure whether the source you’re reading is scholarly or

popular, ask yourself these questions:
Who is the intended audience?
Does the author have credentials?
Is the text peer-reviewed?
Is there a reference list or Works Cited page?

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If the source you’re examining fits the above criteria, it is most likely a
scholarly source.

Understanding the difference between a scholarly and popular source is

a crucial step in evaluating, describing and eventually integrating
credible sources.

Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Just as sources can be scholarly or popular, sources are also divided into
primary and secondary.

A primary source is a firsthand or eyewitness account of information by

an individual close to the topic. Examples of primary sources include
autobiographies, personal correspondence (e.g., diary entries, letters),
government documents, works of art and literature, statistics and data,
and newspaper articles written by reporters close to the source. Today,
even some social media posts are considered primary sources, because
they are firsthand accounts of information.

A secondary source is a source that is more removed from an event,

usually written after the event has happened. Examples of secondary
sources include biographies, interpretation of statistics and data, and
anything written after an historical event or analyzing something that
already happened (e.g., examining a work of art from 100 years ago).

When evaluating and describing sources, being able to determine

whether it’s primary or secondary is helpful as you continue in your
research.

How the Data Is Incorporated into Own Writing

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These three ways of incorporating other writers' work into your own
writing differ according to the closeness of your writing to the source
writing.

Quotations must be identical to the original, using a narrow segment of

the source. They must match the source document word for word and
must be attributed to the original author.

Paraphrasing involves putting a passage from source material into your

own words. A paraphrase must also be attributed to the original source.
Paraphrased material is usually shorter than the original passage, taking
a somewhat broader segment of the source and condensing it slightly.

Summarizing involves putting the main idea(s) into your own words,
including only the main point(s). Once again, it is necessary to attribute
summarized ideas to the original source. Summaries are significantly
shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the source
material.

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 E. INDIVIDUAL WORK

Go back to the thesis statement you have started and start producing
your developmental paragraphs following the writing principles
discussed in class today. Do the following:

1. Using your thesis statement as your jump-off point, develop three

topic sentences which you will use later for your body paragraphs.
2. Once the three topic sentences are done, start looking for specific
references from which you can get information that you will
include in each paragraph.
3. Once you have the references, read each and identify specific texts
that you can use as part of your in-text citations, either as a sub-
point (detail) or as a sub sub-point (example), or both.

F. INDIVIDUAL CONSULTATION

I will message privately those whose thesis statements still require some
polishing. If you do not hear from me, you can head straight to working
on your developmental paragraphs. If you do, you may start as well, but
be ready to join me in a breakout session when you are called in.

REFERENCES:
Purdue Online Writing Lab. (2020). Evaluating sources: Where to
begin.

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https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/conducting_rese
arch/evaluating_sources_of_information/where_to_begin.html
Purdue Online Writing Lab. (2020).Quoting, paraphrasing, and
summarizing.
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/using_research/
quoting_paraphrasing_and_summarizing/index.html
Smalley, R. L, Ruetten, M. K., & Kozyrew, J .R.. (2014).Refining
composition skills: Rhetoric and Grammar (7th ed.). Heineken &
Heinle.

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