English For Academic Purposes - Writing Textbook

In house materials for EAP2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
UNIT 1: WRITING REPORT ................................................................................... 2
UNIT 2: PLAGIARISM ........................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
UNIT 3: REFERENCES AND QUOTATIONS .................................................... 26
UNIT 4: PARAPHRASING .................................................................................. 36
UNIT 5: QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN .................................................................. 46
UNIT 6: THINKING CRITICALLY ABOUT IDEAS ........................................... 63
UNIT 7: SUMMARIZING .................................................................................... 80
UNIT 8: STYLE AND TONE ............................................................................... 94
UNIT 9: MOCK TEST......................................................................................... 107
UNIT 10: FEEDBACK ON THE MOCK TEST AND REVISION ..................... 110
APPENDICES ........................................................................................................ 114
APPENDIX 1: ................................................................................................... 114
APPENDIX 2:..................................................................................................... 119
APPENDIX 3:..................................................................................................... 130
1
Department of Academic Foundations, VNU-IS
UNIT 1: WRITING REPORT
What will be covered in this unit?
1. An introduction to report writing

2. Differences between reports and essays
3. Structures of reports
4. Academic writing style in reports
5. Use of graphical data
6. Analysis of the findings
7. Checklist for effective reports
1. An introduction to report writing
The report form is used mainly in science, social science and business-related subjects,
and in each discipline the form will vary. It is a very flexible form of writing and can
be adapted to any investigative context - which is why it is one of the most used forms
of writing in the working world, and why students are asked to write them.
Purpose
An academic report can document a trial, experiment, investigation or intervention.

Some examples include:
• Reporting on a marketing survey

• A laboratory report (in psychology, medical or physical sciences)
• Exploring the traffic patterns through a building and making recommendations
• Exploring the efficacy of a medical treatment
Sources
Academic reports draw from both:
• research and readings and

• experiences and learning activities such as:
 Reviewing and appraising group work or work experience,
 Documenting and assessing a clinical, professional or pedagogical
activity
 Mapping and optimizing traffic patterns through a building
 Documenting and analyzing a particular business activity as a case study
2. Differences between reports and essays

2
A report is a piece of informative writing that describes a set of actions and analyses
any results in response to a specific brief. A quick definition might be: “This is what I
did, and this is what it means.”
You may also have assignments which are not called reports, but which are still pieces
of informative writing; for instance, some dissertations and project write-ups fall into
this category.
A good way to understand the key features of reports is to see how they differ from
essays as a type of academic writing.
Reports Essays
• Formally structured • Semi-structured

• Informative and fact-based • Argumentative and idea-based
• Written with a specific purpose and • Not written with a specific reader in
reader in mind mind
• Written in a style appropriate to each • Written in single narrative style
section throughout
• Always include section headings • Usually do not include sub-headings
• Sometimes use bullet points • Usually do not include bullet points
• Often include tables or graphs • Rarely include tables or graphs
• Offer recommendations for action • Offer conclusions about a question
Practice 1: Decide whether the following topics are more likely to be written as
reports or essays.
Topic Report Essay
1 The development of trade unions in South Africa
2 Two alternative plans for improving the sports centre
3 A study you conducted to compare male and female attitudes
to eating
4 An overview of recent research on the human genome
5 The arguments for and against capital punishment
3. Structure of a report
3
A key feature of reports is that they are formally structured in sections. The use of
sections makes it easy for the reader to jump straight to the information they need.
Unlike an essay which is written in a single narrative style from start to finish, each
section of a report has its own purpose and will need to be written in an appropriate
style to suit – for example, the methods and results sections are mainly descriptive,
whereas the discussion section needs to be analytical. Understanding the function of
each section will help you to structure your information and use the correct writing
style. Reports for different briefs require different sections, so always check carefully
any instructions you've been given.
Title
The title needs to concisely state the topic of the report. It needs to be informative and
descriptive so that someone just reading the title will understand the main issue of your
report. You don’t need to include excessive detail in your title but avoid being vague
and too general.
Abstract
(Also called the Summary or Executive Summary) This is the ‘shop window’ for your
report. It is the first (and sometimes the only) section to be read and should be the last
to be written. It should enable the reader to make an informed decision about whether
they want to read the whole report. The length will depend on the extent of the work
reported but it is usually a paragraph or two and always less than a page. A good way
to write an abstract is to think of it as a series of brief answers to questions. These
would probably include:
• What is the purpose of the work?

• What methods did you use for your research?
• What were the main findings and conclusions reached as a result of your
research?
• Did your work lead you to make any recommendations for future actions?
Introduction
(Also called Background or Context) In this section you explain the rationale for
undertaking the work reported on, including what you have been asked (or chosen) to
do, the reasons for doing it and the background to the study. It should be written in an
explanatory style. State what the report is about - what is the question you are trying to
answer? If it is a brief for a specific reader (e.g. a feasibility report on a construction
project for a client), say who they are. Describe your starting point and the background
to the subject, for instance: what research has already been done (if you have been
asked to include a Literature Review later in the report, you only need a brief outline
of previous research in the Introduction); what are the relevant themes and issues; why
4
are you being asked to investigate it now? Explain how you are going to go about
responding to the brief. If you are going to test a hypothesis in your research, include
this at the end of your introduction. Include a brief outline of your method of enquiry.
State the limits of your research and reasons for them, for example; “Research will
focus on native English speakers only, as a proper consideration of the issues arising
from speaking English as a second language is beyond the scope of this project”.
Literature Review
This is a survey of publications (books, journals, authoritative websites, sometimes

conference papers) reporting work that has already been done on the topic of your
report. It should only include studies that have direct relevance to your research. A
literature survey should be written like an essay in a discursive style, with an
introduction, main discussion grouped in themes and a conclusion.
• Introduce your review by explaining how you went about finding your
materials, and any clear trends in research that have emerged.
• Group your texts in themes.
• Write about each theme as a separate section, giving a critical summary of each
piece of work and showing its relevance to your research.
• Conclude with how the review has informed your research (things you’ll be
building on, gaps you’ll be filling, etc.).
Methods
(Also called Methodology) You need to write your Methods section in such a way that
a reader could replicate the research you have done. There should be no ambiguity
here, so you need to write in a very factual informative style. You need to state clearly
how you carried out your investigation. Explain why you chose this particular method
(questionnaires, focus group, experimental procedure, etc.), include techniques and
any equipment you used. If there were participants in your research, who were they?
How many? How were they selected? Write this section concisely but thoroughly – go
through what you did step by step, including everything that is relevant. You know
what you did, but could a reader follow your description?
Results
(Also called Data or Findings) This section has only one job which is to present the
findings of your research as simply and clearly as possible. Use the format that will
achieve this most effectively e.g. text, graphs, tables or diagrams. When deciding on a
graphical format to use, think about how the data will look to the reader. Choose just
one format - don’t repeat the same information in, for instance, a graph and a table.
Label your graphs and tables clearly. Give each figure a title and describe in words
5
what the figure demonstrates. Writing in this section should be clear, factual and
informative. Save your interpretation of the results for the Discussion section.
Discussion
This is probably the longest section and worth spending time on. It brings everything
together, showing how your findings respond to the brief you explained in your
introduction and the previous research you surveyed in your literature survey. It should
be written in a discursive style, meaning you need to discuss not only what your
findings show but why they show this, using evidence from previous research to back
up your explanations. This is also the place to mention if there were any problems (for
instance, if your results were different from expectations, you couldn’t find important
data, or you had to change your method or participants) and how they were or could
have been solved.
Conclusion
Your conclusions should be a short section with no new arguments or evidence. Sum
up the main points of your research - how do they answer the original brief for the
work reported on? This section may also include:
Recommendations for action
Suggestions for further research
References
(Also called Reference List or Bibliography) List here full details for any works you
have referred to in the report, including books, journals, websites and other materials.
You may also need to list works you have used in preparing your report but have not
explicitly referred to - check your instructions for this and for the correct style of
referencing to use.
Appendices
The appendices hold any additional information that may help the reader but is not
essential to the report’s main findings: anything that 'adds value'. That might include
(for instance) interview questions, raw data or a glossary of terms used. Label all
appendices and refer to them where appropriate in the main text (e.g. ‘See Appendix A
for an example questionnaire’).
6
Practice 2: For this exercise, read the following short extracts from reports found
in various journals. Decide which of the above sections they are from, and why
they are appropriate for this section.
Example 1
There were several barriers identified by the pharmacists to Informed Shared Decision
Making (ISDM). One major barrier was perceived lack of collaboration between
pharmacists and physicians. Some of the pharmacists said that they were often
reluctant to intervene because physicians were not receptive to their interventions. The
current literature agrees with this point of view, suggesting that most pharmacist-
physician relationships in the community setting are not at a stage to allow seamless
interdisciplinary collaboration. However, it was surprising to find such a large number
of pharmacists from the hospital category also express lack of teamwork as a barrier.
Example 2
In the fatal accident case outlined, health and safety legislation had been at best
misunderstood and at worse ignored. Consideration of fundamental aspects of health
and safety planning under the Construction Design and Management Regulations
(1994) was clearly lacking, with deficiencies apparent at both pre-contract and site
work stages. Moreover, there was disregard to fundamental health, welfare and safety
provision under current legislation.
Example 3
During the first 33 weeks, the mean weight decreased among those who completed the
course by 5.0 kg (6.5%) in women (p<0.001) and 11.1 kg (8.25%) in men (p<0.001).
The initial weight loss was maintained during the first year, but during the second year
some of the body weight was regained (1.2 kg among women and 6.5 kg among men).
However, at 2 years the mean weight was still significantly decreased by almost 4% in
both sexes.
Example 4
Tourism-led development is clearly an emerging theme in South African Local

Economic Development (LED) (Rogerson, 1997, 2001), with tourism promotion
geared towards community development being perceived as a viable growth option
(Goudie et al., 1999; Kirsten and Rogerson, 2002; Mahoney and van Zyl, 2002).
However, despite the prominence accorded to tourism in South Africa's broad
development vision and in many local level strategies, as Rogerson notes, in studies of
LED '...tourism-led LED is markedly under-represented and little discussed'
(Rogerson, 2002: 1).
7
Example 5
Taking a memory test not only assesses what one knows, but also enhances later
retention, a phenomenon known as the testing effect. We studied this effect with
emotionally relevant materials and investigated whether testing facilitates learning
only because tests offer an opportunity to restudy material. In two experiments,
students studied prose passages and took one to three immediate free-recall tests,
without feedback, or restudied the material the same number of times as the students
who received tests. Students then took a final retention test 5 min, 2 days, or 1 week
later. When the final test was given after 5 min, repeated studying improved recall
relative to repeated testing. However, on the delayed tests, prior testing produced
substantially greater retention that studying, even though repeated studying increased
students' confidence in their ability to remember the material. Testing is a powerful
means of improving learning, not just assessing it.
4. Academic writing style in reports
A scientific paper is a formal text written in an impersonal, objective, neutral and

professional way. The writing is concise with specific wordings and formulations. The
writing should be clear as well and lead to a deeper understanding of the subject.
• Avoid colloquial or informal language. Eliminate all 'filler' and needless

words. Biased language is not acceptable in academic writing.
• Avoid personal or familiar language. Do not directly address the reader and
do not ask rhetorical questions. Remember that the use of personal pronouns
does not fit into an objective, scientific paper.
• Avoid ambiguous, imprecise or vague words such as ‘various', 'some',
'particular', 'numerous'. Try to avoid impersonal expressions. Be clear,
concrete, specific, precise and direct. If possible, choose specific wordings
which will lead to more concise writing.
• Do not use 'wordy' expressions either. To illustrate:
o 'Since' or 'because' are easier to read than 'for the reason that' or
'owing to the fact that'.
o 'Although' is easier to read than 'despite the fact that' or 'regardless of
the fact that'.
o 'If' is easier to read than 'in the event that'.
Practice 3
Read the following extracts from reports.
In each case identify the main problem with the writing style, then rewrite the
problematic sentences so they are more suitable for an academic report.
8
Example 1
After adding the solution, the mixture in the test tube went a bright scarlet red, which
we did not expect, as this was not the same as the washed out pink color it was
supposed to go according to the book. We shook the test tube up and left it for a while
in the test tube stand. When we came back, the mixture had settled to the bottom and
dried out, which it was not supposed to have happened; this was a bit of a problem.
Example 2
The results of the aforementioned experiment were collated in a systemized manner
with all due care and attention. Once the results had been collected and processed with
the appropriate process, it was necessary to perform the analysis upon them which was
conducted using the computer statistical package previously mentioned in the
methodology.
Example 3
The questionnaire will be carried out in the pubic space next to the town hall, were
local residents can be found and stopped. If we can't find enough local people to
answer our survey, we'll do down the street and see if we can find some more in the
shopping centre as there tends to be local youths hanging around their who we could
ask.
Example 4
This is a feasibility study of the proposed extension to the property "22 Trumpington
Terrace" commissioned by the residents Mr. and Mrs. Phelps. The house is a semi-
detached, two-bedroom property with glazed windows and a red door. It is situated on
a quiet, winding street with nearby houses of a similar design and the residents have
started a local Neighborhood Watch group. The Phelps inherited the house from Mr.
Phelps' uncle and have been in residence there since 31st August 1998.
5. Using graphical data
Sometimes words are not the most effective way to communicate. Using graphs, tables
and charts can help your reader to get a clearer picture of your research findings and
how they compare with other data. Using drawings, diagrams and photographs can
clearly present information that would be difficult to explain in words. The key is to
consider what is needed to do the job you need doing. It's especially important with
drawings, diagrams and photographs to always ask yourself whether they are
necessary - what would happen if they weren't there?
9
Tables are useful when you need to

present a quantity of numerical data in an
accessible format and you need to show
exact numbers.
Line graphs are especially effective at

showing trends (how data changes over
time) and relationships (how two
variables interact).
Bar charts/graphs are good when you

want to compare discrete items. The bars
can be vertical or horizontal. Making
them different colors can help the reader
to differentiate each result.
Pie charts show the proportion of the

whole that is taken by various parts.
Drawings and diagrams can be used to

reinforce or supplement textual
information, or where something is more
clearly shown in diagrammatic form.
10
Photographs can be useful as illustrations

that help to explain what is being
discussed in the text.
6. Analyzing the findings
Analyzing critically means looking at your findings and asking yourself, 'what do I
think about this?', then taking it one step further and asking 'what is making me think
that?' Here's an example of how this process might work.
Finding 95% of the students you surveyed have problems managing

their time at university.
What do you I expected it to be less than that.

think about
this?
What makes Research I read for my literature survey was putting the figure
you think that? at 60-70%.
What There must be reasons why the figures are so different. The
conclusions sample I surveyed included a large number of mature students,
can you draw unlike the samples in the previous research. That was because
from this? the brief was to look at time management in a particular
department which had a high intake of post-experience
students.
11
Final The percentage of students surveyed who experienced problems

paragraph for with time management was much higher at 95% than the 60%
Discussion reported in Jones (2006: 33) or the 70% reported in Smith
section (2007: 17). This may be due to the large number of mature
students recruited to this post-experience course. Taylor (2004:
16-21) has described the additional time commitments reported
by students with young families and the impact these may have
on effective management of study time. The department clearly
recognizes this already (as shown by the flexibility of seminar
times described earlier). However, it may be that students
would benefit from more advice in this area.
7. Checklist for effective reports
Before you submit your work, check that it includes these features of good reports:
1. Does it answer the purpose stated (or implied) in the brief?

2. Does it answer the needs of the projected reader?
3. Has the material been placed in the appropriate sections?
4. Has all the material been checked for accuracy?
5. Are graphs and tables carefully labelled?
6. Is data in graphs or tables also explained in words and analyzed?
7. Does the discussion/conclusion show how the results relate to objectives set out
in the introduction?
8. Have you discussed how your results relate to existing research mentioned in
your literature survey?
9. Has all irrelevant material been removed?
10. Is it written throughout in appropriate style (i.e. no colloquialisms or
contractions, using an objective tone, specific rather than vague)?
11. Is it jargon-free and clearly written?
12. Has every idea taken from or inspired by someone else’s work been
acknowledged with a reference?
13. Have all illustrations and figures taken from someone else’s work been cited
correctly?
14. Has it been carefully proof-read to eliminate careless mistakes?
12
UNIT 2: PLAGIARISM
What will be covered in this unit?

1. Definitions of plagiarism
2. Types of plagiarism
3. Ways to avoid plagiarism
1. DEFINITIONS OF PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is presenting another person’s words, ideas, or visual images as if they were your
own. Plagiarism is like stealing: It is a form of academic dishonesty or cheating. Plagiarism is
a serious offense that can be grounds for a failing grade or expulsion from a college. Beyond
that, you’re hurting yourself. If you’re plagiarism, you’re not learning.
Plagiarism isn’t something that just college instructors get fussy about. In the workplace, it
can get you fired and hinder your being hired elsewhere. Plagiarism at work also has legal
implications; words, ideas, and images, especially those that describe or influence business
practices and decisions, are intellectual property. Using someone else’s intellectual property
without permission or credit is a form of theft that may land you in court. Furthermore,
plagiarism in any setting – academic, business, or civic – hurts your credibility and reputation.
2. TYPES OF PLAGIARISM
You’re plagiarizing if you…
• Buy a paper from an Internet site, another student or writer, or any other source and
pass it off as your own.
• Turn in any paper that someone else has written, whether the person has given it to
you, you’ve downloaded it from the Internet, or you’ve copied it from any other
source.
• Change selected parts of an existing paper and claim the paper as your own.
• Neglect to put quotation marks around words that you quote directly from a source,
even if you document the source.
• Copy or paste into your paper any key terms, phrases, sentences, or longer passages
from another source without using documentation to tell precisely where the material
came from. This is equally true for both library-based sources and sources you find on
the Internet.
13
• Use ideas from another source without correctly citing and documenting that source,
even if you put the ideas into your own words.
• Combine ideas from many sources and pass them off as your own without correctly
citing and documenting the sources.
• Take language, ideas, or visual images from anyone (colleagues, companies,
organizations, and so on) without obtaining permission or crediting them.
Practice 1: Work with a partner, consider the following academic situations and decide
if they are plagiarism.
Situation Yes/No
1 Copying a paragraph, but changing a few words and giving a citation. Yes
2 Cutting and pasting a short article from a website, with no citation. yes
3 Taking two paragraphs from a classmate's essay, without citation. yes
4 Taking a graph from a textbook, giving the source. no
5 Taking a quotation from a source, giving a citation but not using quotation marks. yes
Using something that you think of as general knowledge, e.g. large areas of
6 no
rainforest have been cut down in recent years.
7 Using a paragraph from an essay you wrote and had marked the previous
yes
semester, without citation.
8 Using the results of your own research, e.g. from a survey, without citation. yes
9 Discussing an essay topic with a group of classmates and using some of their ideas
yes
in your own work.
10 Giving a citation for some information but mis-spelling the author's name. yes
This exercise shows that plagiarism can be accidental. For example, situation (10) above, when the
author’s name is mis-spelt, is technically plagiarism but really carelessness. In situation (9) your
teacher may have encouraged you to discuss the topic in groups, and then write an essay on your
own, in which case it would not be plagiarism. Self-plagiarism is also theoretically possible, as in
situation (7). It can be difficult to decide what is general or common knowledge (situation 6), but
you can always try asking colleagues.
However, it is not a good excuse to say that you didn’t know the rules of plagiarism, or that you
didn’t have time to write in your own words. Nor is it adequate to say that the rules are different in
your own country. In general, anything that is not common knowledge or your own ideas and
research (published or not) must be cited and referenced.
14
3. WAYS TO AVOID PLAGIARISM

3.1. Strategies for avoiding plagiarism
You can avoid plagiarism two ways. First, be very systematic and careful when you take
content notes and when you quote, paraphrase, or summarize materials. Second, become
comfortable with the concept of DOCUMENTATION, which you need each time you use a
source. Another important way to avoid plagiarism is to dive willing into any interim tasks
your instructors build into research assignments. For example, many instructors set interim
deadlines such as a date for handing in a WORKING BIBLIGRAPHY or an ANNOTATED
BIBLIOGRAPHY. Further, some instructors want to read and coach you about how to
improve one or more of your research paper drafts. In some cases, they might want to look
over a research log, content notes, and/ or photocopies of your sources.
Here are some strategies for avoiding plagiarism:
• Use DOCUMENTATION to acknowledge your use of the ideas or phrasings or others,
taken from the sources you’ve compiled on your topic.
• Become thoroughly familiar with the documentation style that your instructor tells you to
use for your research paper. To work efficiently, make a master list of the information
required to document all sources that you quote, paraphrase, or summarize according to
your documentation style.
• Write down absolutely all the documentation facts that you’ll need for your paper,
keeping careful records as you search for sources. Otherwise, you’ll waste much time
trying to retrace your steps to get a documentation detail you missed.
• Use a consistent system for taking CONTENT NOTES, making sure to maintain the
distinction between your own thinking and the ideas that come directly from a source.
Perhaps use different colors of ink or another coding system to keep these three uses of
sources separate:
1. Quotations from a source (documentation required)
2. Material paraphrased or summarized from a source (documentation required)
3. Thoughts of your own triggered by what you’ve read or experienced in life (no
documentation required)
• Write clear, perhaps oversized, quotation marks when you’re directly quoting a passage.
Make them so distinct that you can’t miss seeing them later.
• Consult with your instructor if you’re unsure about any phase of the documentation
process.
15
Never assume that your instructor can’t detect plagiarism. Instructors have keen eyes for
writing styles that are different from the ones students generally produce and from your own
style in particular. They recognize professionally drawn visuals and charts. Instructors can
access web sites that electronically check your submitted work against all material available
online. Further, services such as http://www.turnitin.com allow instructors to check your
writing against hundreds of thousands of papers for free or for sale on the World Wide Web
and the Internet. (Also, that site adds your paper to its huge database of student papers so that
no one can plagiarize your work.) Moreover, when instructors receive papers that they suspect
contain plagiarized passages, they can check with other professors to see whether a student
paper looks familiar.
3.2. How do I work with Internet sources to avoid plagiarism?
Online sources can both greatly help researchers and create new possible problems. Because
it’s so easy to download source materials, it’s potentially easy to misrepresent someone else’s
work as your own, even if you don’t intend to be dishonest.
You might be tempted to download a completed research paper from the Internet. Don’t.
that’s intellectual dishonesty, which can get you into real trouble. Or you might be tempted to
borrow wording from what you wrongly consider an “obscure” Internet source. Don’t. Not
only is this intellectual dishonesty, but instructors will easily detect it. Even if you have
absolutely no intention of plagiarizing, being careless, especially with cutting and pasting, can
easily lead to trouble.
Guidelines for avoiding plagiarizing online sources
• Never cut material from an online source and paste it directly in your paper. You
can too easily lose track of which language is your own and which comes from a
source.
• Keep material that you downloaded or printed from the Internet separate from
your own writing, whether you intend to QUOTE, SUMMARIZE, or
PARAPHRASE the material. Be careful how you manage copied flies. Use
another color or a much larger font as a visual reminder that this isn’t your work.
Just as important, make sure that you type in all of the information you need to
identify each source, according to the documentation style you need to use.
• Copy or paste downloaded or printed material into your paper only when you
intend to use it as a direct quotation or visual. Immediately place quotation marks
around the material, or set off a long passage as a block quotation. Be sure to
document the source at the same time as you copy or paste the quotation into your
16
paper. Don’t put off documenting the passage until later because you may forget
to do it or do it incorrectly.
• Summarize or paraphrase materials before you include them in your paper. If you
have printed or downloaded Internet sources to separate files, don’t copy directly
from those files into your paper. Summarize or paraphrase the sources in a
different file, and then paste the summaries or paraphrases into your paper.
Document the source of each passage at the same time as you insert it in your
paper. If you put off this task until later, you may forget to do it or get it wrong.
• Use an Internet service to check a passage you’re not sure about. If you’re concerned
that you may have plagiarized material by mistake, try submitting one or two
sentences that concern you to http://www.google.com. To make this work, always
place quotation marks around the sentences you want to check when you type them
into the search window.
Practice 2
Read these situations and decide if they are plagiarism.
1. A student uses an internet article in researching her paper. She finds several of the
ideas in the article useful, and develops them in her own paper. Since she does not
quote from the text, she does not cite it in her paper, but she does put the reference in
the bibliography. yes
2. In researching a paper on Mary Kingsley, a student discovers that Kingsley was born
in Islington in 1862. She didn’t know this fact previously. However, every article she
reads on Kingsley reports the same fact. She does not acknowledge the source of this
information with a citation. no
3. You are taking a class that a friend has already taken. She lets you read her paper in
order to get some ideas, and tells you to use any parts of the paper you find useful.
You incorporate some of her paragraphs into your paper without citation. yes
4. A friend offers to let you read his paper in order to get some ideas, and tells you to use
any parts of the paper you find useful. You incorporate one of his paragraphs into your
paper, and you are careful to include all of the citations from his paper in your
yes
footnotes, so that the reader will be able to find the original source of the information.
5. A student finds a picture on the web that perfectly illustrates a point she wants to make
in her paper. She downloads the picture, but does not use the website’s analysis; in
17
addition, she writes her own caption for the picture. Since the analysis and caption are
her own, she does not include a citation for the picture. no
6. A student uses a data set collected by his professor in his analysis of economic trends.
Since he develops his own analysis, and since his professor has not published the data,
he does not include a citation for the data set. yes
7. You find an interesting analysis of Kant’s categorical imperative in a book on 18th

century philosophers. You do not quote directly from the text, but you mention the
author of the book as the source for this idea, and include a citation at the end of the
paragraph. no
8. A student finds some interesting information on a website that is not under copyright.
She downloads several paragraphs and incorporates them into her paper, but doesn’t
cite them, because they are in the public domain. yes
9. You are discussing your term paper with your professor. She gives you an interesting
idea about how you might interpret some of the material you have been studying.
Since the discussion was informal, and does not pertain to an area in which your
no
professor intends you publish, you incorporate her suggestions without attribution.
10. You find a very interesting quote from Gregor Mendel’s “Experimentation in Plant
Hybridization” in a book about Mendel’s life. In your paper, you include the quote,
and cite Mendel’s paper as the source. yes
3.3. What don’t I have to document?

A crucial part of honesty is using correct documentation. Documentation means making two
types of entries in your research paper each time you use a source:
1. Writing a parenthetical citation for each quotation, paraphrase, and summary you
take from sources.
2. Composing a BIBLIOGRAPHY for the end of your paper. MLA calls this list of
sources WORKS CITED, while APA calls it REFERENCES. This list needs to
include full bibliographic information on each source from which you have quoted,
paraphrased, and summarized in your paper.
Today’s bibliographies differ from those of the past. The root word biblio- means “book,” so
traditionally, the bibliographic information referred to a book’s title, author, publisher, and
place and year of publication. In the age of digital technology, researchers include in their
bibliographies not only print sources but also electronic sources.
Documentation is vital for three reasons. It tells readers where to find your sources in case
they want to consult those sources in greater depth or verify that you’ve used them properly. It
18
lends credibility and weight to your writing, strengthening your ethos as someone who has
done the careful work needed to develop well-supported papers. It also gives credit to others
for their work. A documentation style refers to a specific system for providing information on
sources used in a research paper. Documentation styles vary among the disciplines. There are
four documentation styles which are MLA, APA, CM, and CSE styles.
You don’t have to document common knowledge or your own thinking. Common
knowledge is information that most educated people know, although they may need to remind
themselves of certain facts by looking up information in a reference book. For example, here
are a few facts of common knowledge that you don’t need to document.
• Bill Clinton was the US president before George W. Bush.
• Mercury is the planet closest to the sun.
• Normal human body temperature is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit.
• All the oceans on our planet contain salt water.
Sometimes, of course, a research paper doesn’t contain common knowledge. For example,
Andrei Gurov had only very general common knowledge about the topic of déjà vu. Most of
his paper consists of ideas and information that he quotes, paraphrases, and summarizes from
sources.
A very important component of a research paper that doesn’t need documentation is your
own thinking, which is based on what you’ve learned as you built on what you already knew
about your topic. Sara Cardini, knew an extensive amount about anime from years of personal
experience and reading, so her own thinking is evident throughout her paper. Still, even that
paper might have been stronger had she included Home research to add more specific support
for her observations.
Your own thinking consists of your ANALYSIS, SYNTHESIS, and interpretation of new
material as you read or observe it. You don’t have to document your own thinking. Your own
thinking helps you formulate a THESIS STATEMENT and organize your research paper by
composing TOPIC SENTENCES that carry along your presentation of information. For
example, suppose that you’re drawing on an article about the connections between emotions
and logic in people. While reading the article, you come to a personal conclusion that
computers can’t have emotions. This idea is not stated anywhere in the article you are reading
or in any other source you use. Certainly, you need to cite the ideas from the article that led to
your conclusion, but you don’t need to cite your own thinking. On the other hand, if you find a
source that states this very idea, you should cite it. Among other things, doing so will add
force to your paper and strengthen your credibility.
19
3.4. What must I document?

You must document everything that you learn from a source. This includes ideas as well as
specific language. Expressing the ideas of others in your own words doesn’t release you from
the obligation to tell exactly where you got those ideas – you need to use complete, correct
documentation. Here’s an example in action.
SOURCE
Park, Robert L. “Welcome to Planet Earth.” The Best American Science Writing 2001. Ed.
Jesse Cohen. New York: Ecco-Harper, 2001. 302—08. Print. [This source information is
arranged in MLA documentation style.]
ORIGINAL (PARK'S EXACT WORDS)
The widespread belief in alien abductions is just one example of the growing influence of
pseudoscience. Two hundred years ago, educated people imagined that the greatest
contribution of science would be to free the world from superstition and humbug. It has not
happened. (304)
PLAGIARISM EXAMPLE
Belief in alien kidnappings illustrates the influence of pseudoscience. In the nineteenth
century, educated people imagined that science would free the world from superstition, but
they were wrong.
Even though the student changed some wording in the example above, the ideas aren’t
original to her. To avoid plagiarism she’s required to document the source, The underlined
phrases are especially problematic examples of plagiarism because they’re Park’s exact
wording.
CORRECT EXAMPLE (USING QUOTATION, PARAPHRASE, AND
DOCUMENTATION)
Robert Park calls people's beliefs in alien kidnapping proof of "the grow ing influence of
pseudoscience" (304). Centuries of expectation that eel elide would conquer “superstition and
humbug" are still unfulfilled (304), [This citation is arranged in MLA documentation style.]
The writer of the correct example above has used Park’s ideas properly through a combination
of quotation and paraphrase and documentation. For example, she correctly quotes the phrase
“the growing influence of pseudoscience,” and she paraphrases the statement “Two hundred
years ago, educated people imagined that the greatest contribution of science would be to free
the world,” rephrasing it as “Centuries of expectation that science would conquer.” She also
gives the author’s name in the sentence and twice includes parenthetical citations, which
would lead the reader to find the source on the WORKS CITED page.
20
Practice 3
Which of the following statements should be documented, and which need not be
documented?
1. The Declaration of Independence was issued in 1776.
2. The sediments on the ocean floor are the accumulation of silt carried by rivers to the
sea, volcanic, dust, coastal sands, and discarded shells of living creatures.
3. Levi Strauss, the inventor of blue jeans, came to the United States from Germany in
1848.
4. Coca-Cola is a popular soft drink all around the world.
5. According to Germaine Greer, the reason few women artists have achieved greatness
is that they have historically internalized their oppression, thereby draining the energy
required for creative work.
6. The United States is a substantially less secure society today than it was forty years
ago.
7. The Olympic Games are held every four years.
8. The initials GDP stand for the term gross domestic product.
9. As a society, we should read poetry because it makes us live more fully and live more
deeply.
10. Henry David Thoreau lived at Walden Pond for two years.
Practice 4
Consider the following scenarios, and decide whether or not you need to include a
citation.
1. In your paper for your genetics class, you note that humans have 23 pairs of
chromosomes. You didn’t know this before you took the course, but decide not to
provide a citation for this information, since all biology textbooks contain this
information.
2. You find a really good journal article about the psychology of adolescent girls with
eating disorders. You use some of the ideas, but don’t quote directly. Since nearly
every book and article you looked at referred to this article, you don’t cite it, because
it is common knowledge.
3. You decide to introduce your paper on Jane Austen with a quote from Northanger
Abbey. Since your professor will know where the quote came from, you don’t include
a citation.
21
4. You find some interesting information on fractals on the web. You don’t cite it,
because material on the web is considered common knowledge.
5. The proverb “The early bird catches the worm” seems particularly apropos to the
subject of your paper, so you decide to quote it. You go the library and find a book of
proverbs so that you can provide a citation.
3.5. Avoiding plagiarism by summarizing and paraphrasing
Quotations should not be over-used, so you must learn to paraphrase and summarize in order
to include other writers’ ideas in your work. This will demonstrate your understanding of a
text to your teachers.
• Paraphrasing involves re-writing a text so that the language is substantially different
while the content stays the same.
• Summarizing means reducing the length of a text but retaining the main points.
Practice 5
Read the following text and then compare the five paragraphs (a-e) below, which use
ideas and information from it. Decide which are plagiarized and which are acceptable,
and give your reasons in the table.
RAILWAY MANIAS
In 1830 there were a few dozen miles of railways in all the world - chiefly consisting of the
line from Liverpool to Manchester. By 1840 there were over 4,500 miles, by 1850 over
23,500. Most of them were projected in a few bursts of speculative frenzy known as the
'railway manias' of 1835-7 and especially in 1844-7; most of them were built in large part
with British capital, British iron, machines and know-how. These investment booms appear
irrational, because in fact few railways were much more profitable to the investor than other
forms of enterprise, most yielded quite modest profits and many none at all: in 1855 the
average interest on capital sunk in the British railways was a mere 3.7 per cent.
(From The Age of Revolution by Eric Hobsbawm, 1995, p. 45)
(a) Between 1830 and 1850 there was very rapid development in railway construction
worldwide. Two periods of especially feverish growth were 1835-7 and 1844-7. It is hard to
understand the reason for this intense activity, since railways were not particularly profitable
investments and some produced no return at all. (Hobsbawm, 1995: 45)
(b) There were only a few dozen miles of railways in 1830, including the Liverpool to
Manchester line. But by 1840 there were over 4,500 miles and over 23,500 by 1850. Most of
them were built in large part with British capital, British iron, machines and know-how, and
most of them were projected in a few bursts of speculative frenzy known as the 'railway
22
manias' of 1835-7 and especially in 1844-7. Because most yielded quite modest profits and
many none at all these investment booms appear irrational. In fact few railways were much
more profitable to the investor than other forms of enterprise. (Hobsbawm, 1995: 45)
(c) As Hobsbawm (1995) argues, nineteenth-century railway mania was partly irrational:
'because in fact few railways were much more profitable to the investor than other forms of
enterprise, most yielded quite modest profits and many none at all: in 1855 the average
interest on capital sunk in the British railways was a mere 3.7 per cent.' (Hobsbawm, 1995:
45)
(d) Globally, railway networks increased dramatically from 1830 to 1850; the majority in
short periods of 'mania' (1835-7 and 1844-7). British technology and capital were responsible
for much of this growth, yet the returns on the investment were hardly any better than
comparable business opportunities. (Hobsbawm, 1895: 45)
(e) The dramatic growth of railways between 1830 and 1850 was largely achieved using
British technology. However, it has been claimed that much of this development was
irrational because few railways were much more profitable to the investor than other forms of
enterprise; most yielded quite modest profits and many none at all.
Plagiarized or acceptable?
3.6. Avoiding plagiarism by developing good study habits

Few students deliberately try to cheat by plagiarizing, but some develop poor study habits that
result in the risk of plagiarism.
Practice 6
Working with a partner, add to the list of positive habits.
• Plan your work carefully so you don't have to write the essay at the last minute.
• Take care to make notes in your own words, not copying from the source.
• Keep a record of all the sources you use (e.g. author, date, title, page numbers, publisher).
• Make sure your in-text citations are all included in the list of references.
23
• ……………………………………………………………………………………….
• ……………………………………………………………………………………….
• ……………………………………………………………………………………….
• ……………………………………………………………………………………….
Practice 7
A student is writing a researched essay on social trends in the last ten years that have
influenced the popularity of tattoos. Among the sources she uses in her paper are one from the
Internet, one from a book, and one from a journal. Below you will find both the original
source material and passages from the student’s paper in which she uses the original source
material. Study each example and rewrite if she has plagiarized.
a. Example of material from internet source
Did this student plagiarize? If so, rewrite the student text so that it is not plagiarized and be
ready to provide examples to substantiate your position.
Source: Hemingson, Vince. Tattoos and the World's 100 Sexiest Women. N.p., 2002. Web. 12
Jun 2003. < http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/top100_women_tattoos.htm >.
From the original source:
How many of the world’s top 100 sexiest women have tattoos? FMH Magazine published
their annual list of the 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2002 as voted on by their readers.
The poll offers a fascinating insight into the popularity of tattoos among female celebrities. A
quick look at the Top 100 list reveals that one of the things that many of the women picked
have in common is body art, i.e. tattoos!
From the student’s paper:
Many of the world’s top 100 sexiest women have tattoos. Two years ago FMH Magazine
published their annual list of the 100 Sexiest Women in the World as voted on by their
readers. The poll offers a fascinating insight into the popularity of tattoos among female
celebrities. A quick look at the Top 100 list reveals that one of the things that many of the
women picked have in common is body art, i.e. tattoos!
b. Example of material from a book
Did this student avoid plagiarism in her attempt to summarize material from her source? Why
or why not? If it is plagiarized, rewrite the student text so that it is not plagiarized and be
ready to provide examples to substantiate your position.
Source: Addonizio, Kim and Cheryl Dumesnil. Introduction. Dorothy Parker’s Elbow:
Tattoos on Writers, Writers on Tattoos. New York: Warner Books, 2002. xiii-xvi.
24

Clearly, tattooing has emerged from the underbelly to the surface of the American landscape.
And as the popularity of tattoos has expanded, so has the art itself. No longer restricted to
Bettie Page look-alikes, muddy blue anchors, and ribbon-wrapped hearts reading “Mom,”
today’s tattoo images make bold statements of personality, as individualized and varied as any
art form. (xiii)
It’s a fact that tattoos have arisen from the underbelly to the top of the American landscape.
Tattooing has experienced a growing popularity, and so has the art itself. It is no longer
limited to sailor-style ships and blue anchors, or biker-type hearts reading “Mom.” Today’s
images include bold statements of individualized personality as diverse as any art form
(Addonizio and Dumesnil xiii).
c. Example of material from a journal
Did the student avoid plagiarism in her attempt to paraphrase the source material? Why or
why not? If it is plagiarized, rewrite the student text so that it is not plagiarized and be ready
to provide examples to substantiate your position.
Source: Clinical Nursing 10 (2001): 424-41.
Participants queried represented a wide age range—between 19 and 55. Results showed that
participants perceived few health risks involving piercing and tattooing and desired additional
piercings and/or tattoos. Individual expression was an important body alteration motivation
for both piercing and tattooing. These findings underscore the importance of health care
professionals' maintaining nonjudgmental attitudes about those who alter their bodies, there
by facilitating important health education concerning related health risks.
According to the journal Clinical Nursing, individuals who wanted to have tattoos or
piercings do not consider the health risks involved. This makes it clear that for health care
professionals, an open-minded attitude towards patients with tattoos or piercings facilitates
the optimal environment for important health education concerning related health risks.
25
UNIT 3: REFERENCES AND QUOTATIONS
Academic writing depends on the research and ideas of others, so it is vital to show
which sources you have used in your work, in an acceptable manner. This unit
explains:
• the format of in-text citation
• the main reference systems
• the use of quotations,
• the layout of lists of references.
1. Why use references?
There are three principal reasons for providing references and citations:
(a) To show that you have read some of the authorities on the subject, which will give
added weight to your writing.
(b) To allow the reader to find the source, if he/ she wishes to examine the topic in
more detail.
(c) To avoid plagiarism.
2. Citations and references
It is important to refer correctly to the work of other writers that you have used. You
may present these sources as either a summary/ paraphrase or as a quotation. In each
case a citation is included to provide a link to the list of references at the end of your
paper:
Smith (2009) argues that the popularity of the Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) is
irrational, as despite their high cost most are never driven off-road. In his view
‘they are bad for road safety, the environment and road congestion’ (Smith,
2009: 37).
Practice 1:
Underline the citations in the example above. Circle the quotation.
Giving citations
A quotation Author’s name, date of publication, (Smith, 2009: 37)

page number
A summary Author’s name, date of publication Smith (2009)
26
3. Reference verbs
Summaries and quotations are usually introduced by a reference verb:
Smith (2009) argues that . . .
Janovic (1972) claimed that . . .
These verbs can be either in the present or the past tense. Normally the use of the
present tense suggests that the source is recent and still valid, while the past indicates
that the source is older and may be out-of-date, but there are no hard-and-fast
distinctions. In some disciplines an old source may still have validity.
3.1. Common referring verbs
Most of these verbs are followed by a noun clause beginning with ‘that’.
(a) The following mean that the writer is presenting a case:
argue Claim consider hypothesise
suggest Believe think state
Example: Melville (1997) suggestedthat eating raw eggs could be harmful.
(b) A second group describe a reaction to a previously stated position:
accept admit agree deny doubt
Example: Handlesmith doubts Melville’s suggestion that eating raw eggs. . .
(c) Others include:
assume Conclude discover explain imply
indicate Maintain presume reveal show
Example: Patel (2003) assumes that inflation will remain low.
Practice 2:
Write a sentence referring to what the following writers said (more than one verb
may be suitable). Use the past tense.
Example:
Z: ‘My research shows that biofuels are environmentally neutral’.
Z claimed/ argued that biofuels were environmentally neutral.

27
(a) A: ‘I may have made a mistake in my calculations on energy loss’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(b) B: ‘I did not say that women make better doctors than men’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(c) C: ‘Small firms are more dynamic than large ones’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(d) D: ‘I support C’s views on small firms’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(e) E: ‘I’m not sure, but most people probably work to earn money’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(f) F: ‘After much research, I’ve found that allergies are becoming more common’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(g) G: ‘I think it unlikely that electric cars will replace conventional ones’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(h) H: ‘Somebody should investigate the reasons for the increase in winter storms’.
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
(i) I: ‘There may be a link between crime and sunspot activity’.
___________________________________________________________
28
___________________________________________________________
3.2. Further referring verbs
A small group of verbs is followed by the pattern
(somebody/ thing + for + noun/ gerund):
Example: Lee (1998) blamed the media for creating uncertainty.
blame censure Commend condemn criticise
Note: All except ‘commend’ have a negative meaning.
Another group is followed by:
(somebody/ thing + as + noun/ gerund):
Terry interprets rising oil prices as a result of the Asian recovery.
assess characterise classify define describe
evaluate identify interpret portray present
Practice 3:
Rewrite the following statements using verbs from the lists in (4).
Example:
K: ‘Guttman’s work is responsible for many of the current social problems.’
K blamed Guttman’s work for many of the current social problems.
(a) L: ‘She was very careless about her research methods’.
___________________________________________________________
(b) M: ‘There are four main types of children in care’.
___________________________________________________________
(c) N: ‘That company has an excellent record for workplace safety’.
___________________________________________________________
(d) O: ‘The noises whales make must be expressions of happiness’.
___________________________________________________________
(e) P: ‘Wind power and biomass will be the leading green energy sources’.
29
___________________________________________________________
(f) Q: ‘Darwin was the most influential naturalist of the nineteenth century’.
___________________________________________________________
(g) R: ‘An insect is a six-legged arthropod’.
___________________________________________________________
(h) S: ‘Law students are hard-working but open-minded’.
___________________________________________________________
4. Reference systems
There are various systems of referencing in use in the academic world, so you should
ask your teachers if you are not sure which to use. With any system, the most
important point is to be consistent.
(a) The Harvard system, generally used for English Language and Business,
illustrated in (2) above.
(b) The Vancouver system, widely used in Medicine and Science. Numbers in
brackets are inserted after the citation and these link to a numbered list of references:
Example: Jasanoff (5) makes the point that the risk of cross-infection is growing.
(5) Jasanoff, M. Tuberculosis: A Sub-Saharan Perspective. New York: Schaffter

(2001)
(c) The footnote system (also known as endnotes), commonly used in the
Humanities, in which sources are listed at the bottom of the page and again at the end
of the paper. The numbers in superscript run consecutively throughout the paper:
The effects of the French Revolution were felt throughout Europe3.
3 Karl Wildavsky, The End of an Era: Spain 1785–1815 (Dublin: University

Press, 2006), p. 69
Note: Referencing is a complex subject and students should use an online reference
guide for detailed information. Their university library may provide one.
For a full guide to the use of the Harvard system see:
www.home.ched.coventry.ac.uk/caw/harvard/
30
For the Vancouver system see:

www.imperial.ac.uk/Library/pdf/Vancouver_referencing.pdf
For the footnotes system see:
www.resources.glos.ac.uk/shareddata/dms/9F4295CDBCD42
A0399BA0A2A6E688835.pdf
Note: The Harvard system is used in INS1015 (see Appendix 2 for “a guide to
Harvard Referencing System)
Practice 4:
Find and correct the errors in this reference list according to Harvard
Referencing System.
1. Clegg, S., ‘Managing organization futures in a changing world of

power/knowledge’, in H. Tsoukas & C. Knud (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of
organization theory, Oxford, Oxford University Press, pp. 536-567, 2003.
2. Irvine, J. 2005, Commodity boom is over: Access, ‘Sydney Morning Herald’, 27

July, p. 19.
3. A.J. Kim, 2002, Community building on the web, Safari Tech Books, Boston,
Mass., http://proquest.safaribooksonline.com/0201874849.
4. Duffield, C., Macneil, H.F., Bullock, C., & Franks, H. 2000, ‘The role of the
advanced casualty management team in St John Ambulance’, Australian Health
Review, vol. 28, no. 1, pp. 191-199.
Practice 5:
Seven publications of various formats are described below.
Try expressing the reference details for each in the Harvard style and putting
them into alphabetical order in a reference list.
1. A book with the title: 'Occupational health and safety', published in Sydney in 2004
by McGraw-Hill, with authors M. Stewart and F. Heyes. This is the second edition.
2. A book with the title: 'Internal control and corporate governance', with authors K.
Adams, R. Grose, D. Leeson and H. Hamilton, published in Frenchs Forest, NSW by
Pearson Education Australia in 2003.
31
3. An article by M. Scardamalia and C. Bereiter, called 'Schools as knowledge-

building organizations', published in 1999 in a book edited by D. Keating and C.
Hertzman, called 'Today's children, tomorrow's society' in New York by Guilford as
pages 274 to 289.
4. An article by J. R. Savery and T. M. Duffy, called 'Problem based learning: an

instructional model and its constructivist framework', published on pages 31 to 38 in
the journal 'Educational Technology', volume 35, number 5, in 1995.
5. An article called 'Integration and thematic teaching: integration to improve teaching

and learning' by S. Lipson, S. Valencia, K. Wixson and C. Peters, published in 1993 in
the journal 'Language Arts', volume 70, number 4, pages 252 to 263.
6. A videorecording of a television documentary called 'Embers of the sun', produced

in 1999 by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in Sydney.
7. A Web page with the title 'Telstra conferencing - video overview', found at the
address: http://www.telstra.com.au/conferlink/videoconf.htm on 11 August 2004. No
date on it, though Mozilla gives a last modified date of 4 July 2004.
5. Using quotations
Using a quotation means bringing the original words of a writer into your work.
Quotations are effective in some situations, but must not be overused. They can be
valuable:
• when the original words express an idea in a distinctive way
• when the original is more concise than your summary could be
• when the original version is well-known
All quotations should be introduced by a phrase that shows the source, and also
explains how this quotation fits into your argument:
Introductory Author Reference Quotation Citation

phrase Verb
This view is As stated: ‘Inflation is the one (1974: 93).

widely shared Friedman form of taxation that
can be imposed without
legislation’
(a) Short quotations (2–3 lines) are shown by single quotation marks. Quotations
inside quotations (nested quotations) use double:
32
As James remarked: ‘Martin’s concept of “internal space” requires close

analysis.’
(b) Longer quotations are either indented (given a wider margin) or are printed in
smaller type. In this case quotations marks are not needed.
(c) Page numbers should be given after the date.
(d) Care must be taken to ensure that quotations are the exact words of the original. If
it is necessary to delete some words that are irrelevant, use points . . . to show where
the missing section was:
‘Few inventions . . . have been as significant as the mobile phone.’
(e) It may be necessary to insert a word or phrase into the quotation to clarify a point.
This can be done by using square brackets [ ]:
‘modern ideas [of freedom] differ radically from those of the ancient world.’
6. Organising the list of references
At the end of an essay or report there must be a list of all the sources cited in the
writing.
In the Harvard system, illustrated here, the list is organised alphabetically by the
family name of the author. You should be clear about the difference between first
names and family names. On title pages the normal format of first name then family
name is used:
Sheila Burford, Juan Gonzalez
But in citations only the family name is used:
Burford (2001), Gonzalez (1997)
In reference lists use the family name and the initial(s):
Burford, S., Gonzalez, J.
Practice 6
Read the reference list below and answer the following questions.
REFERENCES
1. Bialystock, E. (1997) ‘The structure of age: In search of barriers to second
language acquisition’. Second Language Research, 13 (2) 116-37.
33
2. Dörnyei, Z. (2009). The Psychology of Second Language Acquisition. Oxford:

Oxford University Press.
3. Flege, J. (1999) ‘Age of learning and second language speech’ in Birdsong, D.
(ed.) Second Language Acquisition and the Critical Period Hypothesis. London:
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates 101-32.
4. Gass, S. & Selinker, L. (2001) Second Language Acquisition: An
Introductory Course. London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
5. Larson-Hall, J. (2008) ‘Weighing the benefits of studying a foreign language at
a younger starting age in a minimal input situation’. Second Language
Research. 24 (1) 35-63.
6. Myles, F. (nd) ‘Second language acquisition (SLA) research: its significance
for learning and teaching issues’. Subject Centre for Languages,
Linguistics and Area Studies. Available at: www.llas.ac.uk/resources/gpg/421.
(Accessed 1 May 2010).
7. The International Commission on Second Language Acquisition (nd) ‘What is
SLA?’. Available at: http://hw.ac.uk/langWWW/icsla/icsla.htm#SLA. (Accessed 6
May 2010).
(a) Find an example of:
(i) a book by one author
(ii) a journal article
(iii) a chapter in an edited book
(iv) an authored undated website article
(v) an anonymous webpage
(vi) a book by two authors
(b) What are the main differences in the way these sources are referenced?
(i) ________________________________________________________
(ii) ________________________________________________________
(iii) ________________________________________________________
34
(iv) ________________________________________________________
(v) ________________________________________________________
(vi) ________________________________________________________
(c) When are italics used?
(d) How are capital letters used in titles?
(e) How is a source with no given author listed?
(f) Write citations for summaries from each of the sources.
(i) ________________________________________________________
(ii) ________________________________________________________
(iii) ________________________________________________________
(iv) ________________________________________________________
(v) ________________________________________________________
(vi) ________________________________________________________
(vii) _______________________________________________________
35
UNIT 4: PARAPHRASING
This unit explains:

• the concept of paraphrasing
• the elements of paraphrasing
• the techniques for paraphrasing
1. What is Paraphrasing?
Paraphrasing means changing the wording of a text so that it is significantly different

from the original source, without changing the meaning. Effective paraphrasing is a
key academic skill needed to avoid the risk of plagiarism: it demonstrates your
understanding of a source. This unit focuses on techniques for paraphrasing as part of
the note-making and summarizing process.
2. The elements of effective paraphrasing
Paraphrasing and summarizing are normally used together in essay writing, but while
summarizing aims to reduce information to a suitable length, paraphrasing attempts to
restate the relevant information. For example, the following sentence:
There has been much debate about the reasons for the industrial revolution
happening in eighteenth-century Britain, rather than in France or Germany.
could be paraphrased:
Why the industrial revolution occurred in Britain in the eighteenth century,
instead of on the continent, has been the subject of considerable discussion.
Note that an effective paraphrase usually:
• has a different structure to the original
• has mainly different vocabulary

36
• retains the same meaning
• keeps some phrases from the original that are in common use
e.g. ‘industrial revolution’ or ‘eighteenth century’
Practice 1
Read the text below and then evaluate the three paraphrases (1=best), giving
reasons.
Original text 1
THE CAUSES OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
Allen (2009) argues that the best explanation for the British location of the industrial
revolution is found by studying demand factors. By the early eighteenth century high
wages and cheap energy were both features of the British economy. Consequently,
the mechanisation of industry through such inventions as the steam engine and
mechanical spinning was profitable because employers were able to economise on
labour by spending on coal. At that time, no other country had this particular
combination of expensive labour and abundant fuel.
(a) A focus on demand may help to explain the UK origin of the industrial
revolution. At that time workers’ pay was high, but energy from coal was inexpensive.
This encouraged the development of mechanical inventions based on steam power,
which enabled bosses to save money by mechanising production (Allen, 2009).
(b) The reason why Britain was the birthplace of the industrial revolution can
be understood by analysing demand in the early 1800s, according to Allen (2009). He
maintains that, uniquely, Britain had the critical combination of cheap energy from
coal and high labour costs. This encouraged the adoption of steam power to mechanise
production, thus saving on wages and increasing profitability.
(c) Allen (2009) claims that the clearest explanation for the UK location of the
industrial revolution is seen by examining demand factors. By the eighteenth century
cheap energy and high wages were both aspects of the British economy. As a result,
37
the mechanisation of industry through inventions such as the steam engine and
mechanical spinning was profitable because employers were able to save money on
employees by spending on coal. At that time, Britain was the only country with
significant deposits of coal.
Original text 2
Critical care nurses function in a hierarchy of roles. In this open heart surgery unit,
the nurse manager hires and fires the nursing personnel. The nurse manager does not
directly care for patients but follows the progress of unusual or long-term patients.
On each shift a nurse assumes the role of resource nurse. This person oversees the
hour-by-hour functioning of the unit as a whole, such as considering expected
admissions and discharges of patients, ascertaining that beds are available for
patients in the operating room, and covering sick calls. Resource nurses also take a
patient assignment. They are the most experienced of all the staff nurses. The nurse
clinician has a separate job description and provides for quality of care by orienting
new staff, developing unit policies, and providing direct support where needed, such
as assisting in emergency situations. The clinical nurse specialist in this unit is
mostly involved with formal teaching in orienting new staff. The nurse manager,
nurse clinician, and clinical nurse specialist are the designated experts. They do not
take patient assignments. The resource nurse is seen as both a caregiver and a
resource to other caregivers. . . . Staff nurses have a hierarchy of seniority. . . . Staff
nurses are assigned to patients to provide all their nursing care. (Chase, 1995, p. 156)
(a) Chase (1995) describes how nurses in a critical care unit function in a
hierarchy that places designated experts at the top and the least senior staff nurses at
the bottom. The experts - the nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse
38
specialist - are not involved directly in patient care. The staff nurses, in contrast, are
assigned to patients and provide all their nursing care. Within the staff nurses is a
hierarchy of seniority in which the most senior can become resource nurses: they are
assigned a patient but also serve as a resource to other caregivers. The experts have
administrative and teaching tasks such as selecting and orienting new staff, developing
unit policies, and giving hands-on support where needed.
(b) In her study of the roles of nurses in a critical care unit, Chase (1995) also
found a hierarchy that distinguished the roles of experts and others. Just as the
educational experts described above do not directly teach students, the experts in this
unit do not directly attend to patients. That is the role of the staff nurses, who, like
teachers, have their own “hierarchy of seniority” (p. 156). The roles of the experts
include employing unit nurses and overseeing the care of special patients (nurse
manager), teaching and otherwise integrating new personnel into the unit (clinical
nurse specialist and nurse clinician), and policy-making (nurse clinician). In an
intermediate position in the hierarchy is the resource nurse, a staff nurse with more
experience than the others, who assumes direct care of patients as the other staff nurses
do, but also takes on tasks to ensure the smooth operation of the entire facility.
(c) Critical care nurses have a hierarchy of roles. The nurse manager hires and
fires nurses. S/he does not directly care for patients but does follow unusual or long-
term cases. On each shift a resource nurse attends to the functioning of the unit as a
whole, such as making sure beds are available in the operating room, and also has a
patient assignment. The nurse clinician orients new staff, develops policies, and
provides support where needed. The clinical nurse specialist also orients new staff,
mostly by formal teaching. The nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse
specialist, as the designated experts, do not take patient assignments. The resource
nurse is not only a caregiver but a resource to the other caregivers. Within the staff
nurses there is also a hierarchy of seniority. Their job is to give assigned patients all
their nursing care.
39
3. Techniques for paraphrasing
(a) Changing vocabulary by using synonyms:
argues => claims wages => labour costs
eighteenth century => 1700s economise => saving
NB. Do not attempt to paraphrase every word, since some have no true synonym, e.g.
demand, economy, energy.
(b) Changing word class:
explanation (n.) => explain (v.)
mechanical (adj.) => mechanise (v.)
profitable (adj.) => profitability (n.)
(c) Changing word order:
. . . the best explanation for the British location of the industrial revolution is found
by studying demand factors.
=> A focus on demand may help explain the UK origin of the industrial revolution.
Practice 2
Read the following text and then practise the techniques illustrated above.
40
FOUR WHEELS GOOD
The growth of the car industry parallels the development of modern capitalism.
It began in France and Germany, but took off in the United States. There Henry
Ford adapted the moving production line from the Chicago meat industry to
motor manufacturing, thus inventing mass production. In the 1920s Alfred
Sloan’s management theories helped General Motors to become the world’s
dominant car company. After the second world war the car makers focused on
the styling of their products to encourage more frequent model changes. From
the 1970s there was criticism of the industry due to the inefficiency of most
vehicles, which used petrol wastefully. At the same time, trades unions became
increasingly militant in defense of their members’ jobs. Today the industry owns
some of the most famous brands in the world. However, many car makers are
currently threatened by increased competition and saturated markets.
(a) Find synonyms for the words underlined.
(i) The growth of the car industry parallels the development of modern
capitalism.
Example: The rise of the automobile industry matches the progress of

contemporary capitalism.
(ii) It began in France and Germany, but took off in the United States.
(iii) There Henry Ford adapted the moving production line from the Chicago
meat industry to motor manufacturing, thus inventing mass production.
(b) Change the word class of the underlined words, and then re-write the sentences.
(i) In the 1920s Alfred Sloan’s management theories helped General Motors to
become the world’s dominant car company.
Example: In the 1920s, with help from the managerial theories of Alfred Sloan,
41
General Motors dominated the world’s car companies.
(ii) After the second world war the car makers focused on the styling of their
products, to encourage more frequent model changes.
(iii) From the 1970s there was criticism of the industry due to the inefficiency
of most vehicles, which used petrol wastefully.
(c) Change the word order of the following sentences (other changes may be
needed).
(i) At the same time, trades unions became increasingly militant in defence of
their members’ jobs.
Example: At the same time increasingly militant trades unions defended their
members’ jobs.
(ii) Today the industry owns some of the most famous brands in the world.
(iii) However, many car makers are currently threatened by increased

competition and saturated markets.
(d) Combine all these techniques to paraphrase the paragraph as fully as possible.
42
Practice 3
Use the same techniques to paraphrase the following text.
THE PAST BELOW THE WAVES
More than three million shipwrecks are believed to lie on the seabed, the result of
storms and accidents during thousands of years of sea-borne trading. These wrecks
offer marine archaeologists valuable information about the culture, technology and
trade patterns of ancient civilisations, but the vast majority have been too deep to
research. Scuba divers can only operate down to 50 metres, which limits operations
to wrecks near the coast, which have often been damaged by storms or plant growth.
A few deep sea sites (such as the Titanic) have been explored by manned
submarines, but this kind of equipment has been too expensive for less famous
subjects. However, this situation has been changed by the introduction of a new kind
of mini submarine: the automatic underwater vehicle (AUV). This cheap, small craft
is free moving and does not need an expensive mother-ship to control it. Now a team
of American archaeologists are planning to use an AUV to explore an area of sea
north of Egypt which was the approach to a major trading port 4,000 years ago.
43
4. Steps to effective paraphrasing
Step 1. Read the material that you plan to paraphrase. Read it several times so that you
understand it well.
Step 2. Set the original aside, and write your paraphrase on a note card.
Step 3. Jot down a few words below your paraphrase to remind you later how you
envision using this material. At the top of the note card, write a key word or phrase to
indicate the subject of your paraphrase.
Step 4. Compare the length of what you have written to the original text. They should
be the same length. Remember, a paraphrase does not condense material.
Step 5. Use quotation marks to identify any unique term or phraseology you have
borrowed exactly from the source.
Step 6. Record the source (including the page) on your note card so that you can credit
it easily if you decide to incorporate the material into your paper.
Note: The paraphrase should make sense in its own right. This means that you are
writing a sentence or paragraph so it should still read like one. If the paraphrase
doesn’t make sense, revise it.
Practice 4
Follow the steps in part 4 and write a paraphrase of each of the following passages.
1. "The Antarctic is the vast source of cold on our planet, just as the sun is the source
of our heat, and it exerts tremendous control on our climate," [Jacques] Cousteau
told the camera. "The cold ocean water around Antarctica flows north to mix with
warmer water from the tropics, and its upwelling help to cool both the surface
water and our atmosphere. Yet the fragility of this regulating system is now
threatened by human activity." From "Captain Cousteau," Audubon (May
1990):17.
2. The twenties were the years when drinking was against the law, and the law was a
bad joke because everyone knew of a local bar where liquor could be had. They
were the years when organized crime ruled the cities, and the police seemed
powerless to do anything against it. Classical music was forgotten while jazz
spread throughout the land, and men like Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, and
Count Basie became the heroes of the young. The flapper was born in the twenties,
44
and with her bobbed hair and short skirts, she symbolized, perhaps more than
anyone or anything else, America's break with the past. From Kathleen Yancey,
English 102 Supplemental Guide (1989): 25.
3. Of the more than 1000 bicycling deaths each year, three-fourths are caused by head
injuries. Half of those killed are school-age children. One study concluded that
wearing a bike helmet can reduce the risk of head injury by 85 percent. In an
accident, a bike helmet absorbs the shock and cushions the head. From "Bike
Helmets: Unused Lifesavers," Consumer Reports (May 1990): 348.
4. Matisse is the best painter ever at putting the viewer at the scene. He's the most
realistic of all modern artists, if you admit the feel of the breeze as necessary to a
landscape and the smell of oranges as essential to a still life. "The Casbah Gate"
depicts the well-known gateway Bab el Aassa, which pierces the southern wall of
the city near the sultan's palace. With scrubby coats of ivory, aqua, blue, and rose
delicately fenced by the liveliest gray outline in art history, Matisse gets the
essence of a Tangier afternoon, including the subtle presence of the bowman, the
sentry who sits and surveys those who pass through the gate. From Peter Plagens,
"Bright Lights." Newsweek (26 March 1990): 50.
5. While the Sears Tower is arguably the greatest achievement in skyscraper

engineering so far, it's unlikely that architects and engineers have abandoned the
quest for the world's tallest building. The question is: Just how high can a building
go? Structural engineer William LeMessurier has designed a skyscraper nearly
one-half mile high, twice as tall as the Sears Tower. And architect Robert Sobel
claims that existing technology could produce a 500-story building. From Ron
Bachman, "Reaching for the Sky." Dial (May 1990): 15.
45
UNIT 5: QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN
This unit is intended to help the students to:

· Understand the attributes of a well-designed questionnaire, and
· Adopt a framework for developing questionnaires.
I. USING SURVEYS IN SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH

In social science research, a variety of methodological approaches exist for individuals
interested in conducting research. Selection of a research approach depends on a number of
factors, including the purpose of the research, the type of research questions to be answered,
and the availability of resources.
One of the most common approaches to the conduct of research is using surveys. Survey
research is defined as "the collection of information from a sample of individuals through
their responses to questions" This type of research allows for a variety of methods to recruit
participants, collect data, and utilize various methods of instrumentation. Survey research can
use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items),
qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e.,
mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behavior, surveys are
therefore frequently used in social and psychological research. Survey research may use a
variety of data collection methods with the most common being questionnaires and
interviews.
Questionnaires may be self-administered or administered by a professional, may be
administered individually or in a group, and typically include a series of items reflecting the
research aims. Among the types of information that can be collected by means of a
questionnaire are facts, activities, level of knowledge, opinions, expectations and aspirations,
membership of various groups, and attitudes and perceptions.
Questionnaires may be in paper form and mailed to participants, delivered in an electronic
format via email or an Internet-based program such as Survey Monkey, or a combination of
both, giving the participant the option to choose which method is preferred. Using a
combination of methods of survey administration can help to ensure better sample coverage
(i.e., all individuals in the population having a chance of inclusion in the sample) therefore
reducing coverage error. For example, if a researcher were to only use an Internet-delivered
questionnaire, individuals without access to a computer would be excluded from participation.
46
Self-administered mailed, group, or Internet-based questionnaires are relatively low cost and
practical for a large sample.
Conducting interviews is another approach to data collection used in survey research.
Interviews may be conducted by phone, computer, or in person and have the benefit of
visually identifying the nonverbal response(s) of the interviewee and subsequently being able
to clarify the intended question. An interviewer can use probing comments to obtain more
information about a question or topic and can request clarification of an unclear response
Interviews can be costly and time intensive, and therefore are relatively impractical for large
samples.
Some authors advocate for using mixed methods for survey research when no one method
is adequate to address the planned research aims, to reduce the potential for measurement and
non-response error, and to better tailor the study methods to the intended sample. For
example, a mixed methods survey research approach may begin with distributing a
questionnaire and following up with telephone interviews to clarify unclear survey responses
Mixed methods might also be used when visual or auditory deficits preclude an individual
from completing a questionnaire or participating in an interview.
II. DESIGNING A QUESTIONNAIRE
A questionnaire is often the first tool that people consider when undertaking a research
project. However, designing a questionnaire is complex and time-consuming and the quality
of the data collected is determined by the quality of the questionnaire used. Therefore, one
needs to carefully consider the advantages and disadvantages of using questionnaire as
suggested below:
Advantages Disadvantages
 The data gathered is standardised and therefore,  Responses may be inaccurate, especially through
easy to analyse; mis-interpretation of questions in self-completing
 Data can be gathered quickly from a large questionnaires;
number of respondents;  A reasonable sample size is needed before the
 It is possible to compare your results with responses can be used to represent the population as
similar surveys used in other institutions; a whole;
 Respondents can answer anonymously which  Response rates can be poor, people may lack the
may produce more honest answers; motivation to complete or return the questionnaire.
 Online surveys are relatively inexpensive; Consequently, some sort of incentive may have to be
 One person can administer the whole process if included, for example, a prize draw;
they have the necessary skills.  The complexity of designing, producing,
distributing, and analysing the questionnaires may
make them expensive and time consuming;
47
 Quantitative data (i.e, research that produces

numbers and percentages etc.) may not be enough to
answer the questions you are seeking to answer in
your research. More in-depth interviews or focus
groups may be needed.
2.1. Structures of questions
One important aspect of questionnaire design is the decision on structure of the questions
as this decides the types of data one gets for later analysis. Broadly speaking, survey questions
can be classified into three structures: closed, open-ended, and contingency questions.
2.1.1. Closed questions
Closed (or multiple choice) questions ask the respondent to choose, among a possible set of
answers, the response that most closely represents his/her viewpoint. The respondent is
usually asked to tick or circle the chosen answer. Questions of this kind may offer simple
alternatives such as ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. They may also require that the respondent chooses among
several answer categories, or that he/she uses a frequency scale, an importance scale, or an
agreement scale.
How often do your parents ask you about your homework?
(Please, circle one answer only)
Never . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
1 or 2 times a week . . . . . . . . 2
3 or 4 times a week . . . . . . . . 3
Nearly every day . . . . . . . . . . 4
The main advantages of closed questions are:

• the respondent is restricted to a finite (and therefore more manageable) set of responses,
• they are easy and quick to answer,
• they have response categories that are easy to code, and
• they permit the inclusion of more variables in a research study because the format enable
the respondent to answer more questions in the same time required to answer fewer open-
ended questions.
The main disadvantages with closed questions are:
• they can introduce bias, either by forcing the respondent to choose between give
alternatives or by offering alternatives that otherwise would not have come to mind,
• they do not allow for creativity or for the respondent to develop ideas,
• they do not permit the respondent to qualify the chosen response or express a more complex
48
or subtle meaning,
• they can introduce bias, where there is a tendency for the respondent to tick systematically
either the first or last category, to select what may be considered as the most socially desirable
response alternative, or to answer all items in a list in the same way, and
• they require skill to write because response categories need to be appropriate, and mutually
exclusive.
The response format for closed questions can range from a simple yes/no response, to an
approve/disapprove alternative, to asking the respondent to choose one alternative from 3 or
more response options.
The possibility of format effects or response bias for this type of question can be reduced by
changing the sequence of response categories and values. For example, if responses to an item
range from 1 to 5, going from negative to positive, then a number of items in the
questionnaire can be designed to have 1 as the most positive alternative and 5 as the most
negative. This is a particularly important technique for the construction of attitude scales.
Some closed questions may have a dichotomous response format, which means only two
mutually exclusive responses are provided.
What is your sex? (Please tick one box only)
Male Female
For the above example a dichotomous response format is appropriate. However, this type
of format should not be overused in a survey because it elicits much less information than
multiple choice formats. For example, if seeking information on degree of interest in public
affairs, the question “Do you read a daily newspaper?” yields a yes/no response. This could be
reworded to: “How many times per week do you read a daily newspaper?”, to which multiple
choice responses could be:
1. Seven times a week
2. Five to six times a week
3. Three to four times a week
4. One to two times per week
5. Less than once per week
6. Never
Such a multiple category response format would provide more specific and more useful
information than the dichotomous one.
2.1.2. Open-ended questions
Open-ended or free-response questions are not followed by any choices and the
49
respondent must answer by supplying a response, usually by entering a number, a word, or a

short text. Answers are recorded in full, either by the interviewer or, in the case of a self-
administered survey, the respondent records his or her own entire response.
What are your favourite TV programmes? (Please specify their titles) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
...........................................................................
...
What do you like most about school? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
....
The main advantages of open-ended questions are:
• they allow respondents to express their ideas spontaneously in their own language,
• they are less likely to suggest or guide the answer than closed questions because they are
free from the format effects associated with closed questions, and
• they can add new information when there is very little existing information available about
a topic.
The main disadvantages of open-ended questions are:
• they may be difficult to answer and even more difficult to analyze,
• they require effort and time on behalf of the respondent,
• they require the development of a system of coded categories with which to classify the
responses,
• they require the respondent to have some degree of writing ability, and respondent
handwriting can be illegible.
There is always the possibility with open-ended questions that responses may come in very
different forms, and these may lead to answers that cannot be systematically coded for
analysis. For example, if asked “When did you leave school?”, the respondent may answer in
a variety of ways: “Seven years ago”. “When I got my first job”. “When my brother started
going to high school”. “When my parents moved into this house”.
If the survey is administered by an interviewer, appropriate probing helps clarify such
answers. In the case of a self-administered survey, guidance by writing specific instructions
on how to answer the question can often minimize the number of responses that have very
different dimensions.
Care should be taken in writing open-ended questions so as to avoid formats that elicit a
dichotomous yes/no or agree/disagree response. In addition, the wording of questions should
seek to reduce the possibility of eliciting responses that are aligned along very different
dimensions and therefore cannot be systematically coded. For example, asking “What do you
think about your school?” can elicit responses such as ‘nothing’ or ‘school is useless’.
50
However, asking “What recommendations would you have for improving your school?”
would be more likely to elicit informative answers.
A good case for using open-ended questions is when the aim is to have the respondents
reply spontaneously, or when the investigator is pilot testing the first version of the
questionnaire, or when the investigator wants to collect evidence on the parameters of an issue
with the aim of later formulating a multiple choice or closed version of a question.
Generally, open-ended questions can produce useful information in an interviewer
administered survey, provided that the interviewers are alert and trained to probe ambiguous
responses. In self-administered surveys, it is useful to provide instructions on the format of
the response that is required so as to minimize opportunities for the respondents to answer the
question according to very different dimensions.
2.1.3. Contingency questions
A contingency question is a special case of a closed-ended question because it applies only
to a subgroup of respondents. The relevance of the question for a subgroup is determined by
asking a filter question. The filter question directs the subgroup to answer a relevant set of
specialized questions and instructs other respondents to skip to a later section of the
questionnaire.
The advantage of contingency questions is that detailed data may be obtained from a
specific subgroup of the population. Some questions may apply only to females and not to
males; others may apply only to people in school, and not to those who are employed. At the
base of good contingency questions are clear and specific instructions to respondents.
The formats for filter and contingency questions can vary. One option is to write directions
next to the response category of the filter question.
Are you enrolled in secondary school?
1. Yes (answer the following question)
2. No (skip to question 5)
Alternatively, the contingency question can be placed at the end of the questionnaire set
apart from ordinary questions that are to be answered by everybody:
ANSWER THIS FINAL SET OF QUESTIONS ONLY IF YOU PLAN ON ENTERING

AN ADULT EDUCATION COURSE NEXT YEAR.
OTHERWISE, YOU HAVE NOW COMPLETED THE QUESTIONNAIRE.
51
2.2.Guidelines for writing questions

There are no all-purpose rules that, if followed, will automatically result in a well-written
questionnaire. There are, however, some basic principles that, when violated, usually result in
respondent confusion, misunderstanding, lack of comprehension, or response bias.
2.2.1. Keep the vocabulary simple
A first rule concerns the vocabulary used in writing questions and answer categories. The
rule is ‘keep it as simple as possible’. This implies using simple words, avoiding acronyms,
abbreviations, jargon, technical terms, and abstract or general words.
If a rare or technical term has to be used, then its meaning should be explained. For
example, a question concerning the frequency with which teachers teach their students to
understand different styles of text should be accompanied by a definition of each kind of text.
• Narrative: texts that tell a story or give the order in which things happen.
• Expository: texts that provide a factual description of things or people or explain how
things work or why things happen.
• Documents: tables, charts, diagrams, lists, maps.
Acronyms and abbreviations should always be spelled out in the questionnaire. Do not
assume that respondents will or should know what an acronym represents.
When a general term is used, concrete examples should be given to clarify its meaning. For
example, a question on learning activities included in the International Educational
Achievement (IEA) Reading Literacy Teacher Questionnaire included the following items, for
which the respondent had to answer on a four-point frequency scale.
How often are your students typically involved in the following activities?
• silent reading in class
• learning new vocabulary systematically (for example, from lists)
• learning to use illustrations (for example, graphs, diagrams, tables)
The words ‘systematically’ and ‘illustrations’ were too general to be understood in the
same way by all respondents. Examples were therefore provided to clarify their intended
meaning.
Finally, it is recommended to avoid words that may have an ambiguous meaning. In
education, the word ‘hour’ may have different meanings. For example, many education
systems refer to a lesson length or period as an hour even though the lesson is only forty-five
minutes long. In order to measure the yearly instructional time at a given educational level, it
is therefore necessary to know the length (in minutes) of an ‘hour’ of instruction, the number
of minutes of instruction per week, and the number of school weeks per year. If this
52
information is known, then calculations can be made later for instructional time per day, or
week, or year.
2.2.2. Keep the question short
Closely related to keeping vocabulary simple is avoiding lengthy questions. Generally, it is
recommended to hold questions to 25 words or less. If a longer sentence is used then it should
be broken up so that there will be several shorter sentences.
2.2.3. Avoid double-barrelled questions
These are single questions that ask for two things and therefore require two answers. “Do
you have your own table or your own room to do your homework?” “Do you think it is good
idea for children to study geography and history in primary school?” In such instances,
respondents do not know what to do if they want to say ‘Yes’ to one part of the question but
‘No’ to the other.
2.2.4. Avoid hypothetical questions
Evidence has shown that hypothetical questions such as “Would you use this resource in
your class if it were available?” are not good for the prediction of behaviour. People are
generally poor predictors of their own behaviour because of changing circumstances and
because so many situational variables intervene. Investigators are able to collect more valid
data if they question respondents’ about their past behaviour and present circumstances,
attitudes, and opinions.
2.2.5. Don’t overtax the respondent’s memory
It is risky to ask the respondent to recall past behaviour over a long retrospective period.
This is true especially when recurrent events or behaviours are concerned. No student,
especially young students, will be able to answer reliably a question such as “In the last month
how many hours of homework did you do on an average day?” because the time is just too
long to remember what happened in detail. If such a question must be asked, a one-week
recall period might be more appropriate for this type of event.
2.2.6. Avoid double negatives
Double negatives, either in the question or an answer category (or both), create difficulties
for the respondent. For example a statement such as ‘Student self-evaluation should not be
allowed’ followed by agree/disagree is problematic to answer for respondents who are in
favour of students’ self-evaluation, that is those who do not agree that students’ self
evaluation should not be allowed. It is usually possible to solve problems of this kind by
formulating the initial statement in a positive way.
53
2.2.7. Avoid overlapping response categories

Answer categories should be mutually exclusive. It should not be possible to agree with or
choose more than one category – unless the instructions explicitly allow the respondent to
check more than one alternative. Examples of questions with overlapping categories are:
Do teachers generally receive their salaries: (Check one only)
usually on time ……………...1
sometimes a week late ………2
more than a week late ……….3
How old are you?

under 20……………1
20-30 ……………... 2
30-40 ……………... 3
40-50 ……………... 4
50-60 ……………... 5
60 or more …………6
The categories of the first question could be made mutually exclusive by removing the
qualifiers ‘usually’ and ‘sometimes’. In order to avoid overlap in the second question it should
be modified as follows.
How old are you?

under 20……………1
21-30 ……………... 2
31-40 ……………... 3
41-50 ……………... 4
51-60 ……………... 5
61 or more …………6
2.2.8. Beware of ‘leading’ questions
A leading question is a question phrased in such a way that it seems to the respondent that
a particular answer is expected. For example:
“Do you favour or oppose school on Saturday morning?”

might read in a leading question as:
“You wouldn’t say that you were in favour of school on Saturday morning, would
you?”,
54
or in a more subtle form:

“Would you say that you are not in favour of school on Saturday morning?”
2.2.9. Examples of bad questions and ways to correct

Double Barreled question:
Please indicate how much you agree or disagree with each of the following statements
about the childcare program.
Incorrect:
I feel welcomed by staff and other youth at the center
Correction:
I feel welcomed by staff at the center I feel welcomed by other youth at the center
Biased/leading question
Incorrect:
Community organizing is hard. Do leadership trainings help you feel prepared for community
organizing?
o Much more prepared
o Somewhat more prepared
o Slightly more prepared
o Not more prepared
Correct:
The leadership trainings prepare me for community organizing.
Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree
Double Negative
Incorrect
Does it seem possible or does it seem impossible to you that the Nazi extermination of the
Jews never happened? (22%)
Very possible Possible Impossible Very impossible
Correct
Do you doubt that the Holocaust actually happened or not? (9%)
Very possible Possible Impossible Very impossible
2.3. A checklist for reviewing questionnaire items
The following list of questions provides a framework for reviewing each item that is to be
included in a questionnaire.
• Will the item provide data in the format required by the research questions or the
55
hypotheses?
• Is the item unbiased?
• Will the item generate data at the level of measurement required for the analysis?
• Is there a strong likelihood that most respondents will answer the item truthfully?
• Do most respondents possess sufficient knowledge to answer the item?
• Will most respondents be willing to answer the item, or is it too threatening or too
sensitive?
• Does the item avoid ‘leading’ respondents to a specific answer?
• Is the language used in the questionnaire clear and simple – so that all respondents are able
to understand all of the questions?
Practice 1
1. Explain the uses of closed, open, and contingency questions.

2. Draft five closed and open questions related to some aspect of educational research.
3. Formulate a contingency question with accompanying instructions.
4. The following are additional examples of bad survey questions. As a group, apply our class
discussion, evaluating each question and its response choices to identify one error in each
question (ie. double barreled). Explain the problem that your group identifies in each question
and propose an alternative that solves the problem.
Question 1. More people have attended the movie, Gone with the Wind, than any other
motion picture produced this century. Have you seen this movie?
Yes No
Question 2. In your opinion, how would you rate the speed and accuracy of your work?
Excellent Good Fair Poor
Question 3. Did you first hear about the bombing:
______ from a friend or relative
______ from your spouse
______ at work
______ from a newspaper
______ from the television or radio or other electronic media
Question 4. How do you feel about the following statement? We should not reduce military
spending.
Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree
Question 5. People grow up in all different types of families. What type of family did you
grow up in?
56
______Mom as single parent

______Dad as a single parent
______Both Mom and Dad
Question 6. Where do you get most or all of your information about current events in the
nation and the world? __Radio __Newspapers __Magazines __Internet
Question 7. Higher than single-family density is acceptable in order to make housing
affordable.
Strongly Undecided Disagree Strongly Disagree
Agree Agree
1 2 3 4 5
3. FINALIZING A QUESTIONNAIRE
3.1. Sequence of the questionnaire
Two widely-used patterns of question sequence in questionnaire design have been found to
motivate respondents to co-operate and fully complete a questionnaire. They are called the
funnel sequence and the inverted funnel sequence.
The characteristic of the funnel sequence is that each question is related to the previous
question and has a progressively narrower scope. The first question can be either open format,
or multiple choice. It should be very broad, and is used to ascertain something about the
respondent’s frame of reference on a topic. This ordering pattern is particularly useful when
there is a need to prevent further specific questions from biasing the initial overall view of the
respondent.
• Would you say that the general quality of education provided by primary schools in
your community is:
o very good
o good
o uncertain
o bad
o very bad
• How would you rate the overall quality of the primary school attended by your
child?
o very good
o good
o uncertain
o bad
o very bad
• Do you think your own child is receiving a good primary school education?
o Yes
o No
• Given the opportunity, would you have your child attend another school in your
area?
57
o Yes
o No
In the inverted funnel sequence, specific questions on a topic are asked first, and these
eventually lead to a more general question. This sequence requires the respondent to think
through his or her attitude before reaching an overall evaluation on the more general question.
Such a question order is particularly appropriate when there is reason to believe that
respondents have neither a strong feeling about a topic, nor a previously formulated view.
The placement of items in a questionnaire requires careful consideration. Good item
placement can increase the motivation of respondents – which in turn results in more valid
data.
General guidelines for item placement
• Non-sensitive demographic questions should be placed at the beginning of the
questionnaire because they are easy to answer, non-threatening, and tend to put the respondent
at ease.
• Items of major interest to the research study should be placed next since there is greater
probability of the respondent answering or completing the first section of the questionnaire.
• Sensitive items that cover controversial topics should be placed last so that potential
resentment that may be provoked by these items does not influence responses to other
questions.
• Items on the same topic should be grouped together. However, care should also be taken to
prevent one item influencing responses to later items.
• Items with similar response formats should be grouped together when several different
response formats are being used within a questionnaire.
• Section titles should be used to help the respondent focus on the area of interest.
3.2. Introductory paragraph
In all questionnaire, before any questions, it is necessary to enclose an introductory
paragraph. This paragraph should do the followings:
• Identify the organization conducting the study (for example, the Ministry of Education);
• Explain the purpose of the study;
• Assure the respondent that information provided will be managed in a strictly confidential
manner and that all respondents will remain unidentified;
• Expression of appreciation for the respondent’s help.
58
The following questionnaire is part of an International study of Reading Literacy and

attempts to identify differences in English instruction. It is recognized that teachers are
likely to respond quite differently to the enclosed questions.
Please answer all questions in such a way as to reflect most clearly your teaching practices.
Most questions will require you to circle your selected response. Others will require you to
write down a number. Do not leave blanks.
We thank you for your contribution to this important research.
3.3. Drafting instructions for answering questions

Writing instructions for answering questions is a very important part of the questionnaire
layout. If the questionnaire is to be administered by an interviewer, then the instructions will
be addressed to him or her. Such instructions are usually written in capital letters, as follows.
Who was your employer on your last job
(PROBE FOR CORRECT CATEGORY)
o Private
o National Government
o City
o Self-employed
o Public, non profit
o Others (please specify) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..
o Doesn’t know
In a mailed or self-administered questionnaire, it is very important to provide clear

instructions because there is no resource person to help clarify respondents’ queries.
Instructions can be for a single question or for a set of questions.
INSTRUCTIONS TO A RESPONDENT FOR A SET OF QUESTIONS
INSTRUCTIONS: For each of the following questions, please mark the answer that comes
closest to the way you feel about learning mathematics. There is no right or wrong answer.
Answer the questions in the order in which they appear on the paper. Thank you for your
co-operation.
INSTRUCTIONS TO A RESPONDENT FOR A SINGLE QUESTION

About how many different teaching positions have you held during your life? (Count only
those teaching positions that you have held for at least one full academic year)
The following examples provide illustrations of different instructions given for the same
question. In the first example, the instructions relate to an interview. In the second example
the instructions relate to a self-administered questionnaire. Note that the question is multiple
choice, followed by an open ended contingency question.
59
SELF-ADMINISTERED FORMAT
1. Thinking about the government facilities provided for schools, do you think your
neighborhood gets better, about the same, or worse facilities than most other parts of the
city?
o Better 1 (answer 1A below)
o About the same 2
o Worse 3 (answer 1A below)
o Don’t know 8
1A. If better or worse: In your opinion, what do you think is the main reason why your
neighbourhood gets (better/worse) facilities? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3.4. Pre-testing the questionnaire

Pre-testing the questionnaire is an essential step before its completion. The purpose of the
pretest is to check question wording, and to obtain information on open-ended questions with
a view to designing a multiple choice format in the final questionnaire. Pre-testing has a
number of very important advantages.
• Provides information on possible ethical problems overlooked previously.
• Helps determine if the research questions or hypotheses are appropriate.
• Helps determine if the levels of measurement are appropriate for the selected variables.
• Provides a check that the population is appropriately defined.
• Provides information on the feasibility and the appropriateness of the sampling method.
• Helps determine sample size by allowing estimation of variance from the pre-test sample.
• Provides additional training for interviewers, instrument administrators, experimenters,
coders, and data editors.
• Helps determine the length of the questionnaire.
After training the interviewers and questionnaire administrators, the next step in pre-testing
is to select a small pilot sample of respondents that covers the full range of characteristics of
the target population. In the field of education this usually implies that the pilot sample
includes appropriate gender balance and covers a range of richer/poorer and rural/urban
communities.
Pre-testing should never be carried out on a ‘convenience sample’, (for example, the
researcher’s friends or family, or schools in one neighbourhood of the Capital city). For
interview questionnaires 50 interviews will provide solid material for verifying question
wording, sequencing, instructions and general quality of the instrument. However, larger
samples of around 200 are required to calculate various statistics such as discrimination co-
efficients.
Note that even questions ‘borrowed’ from existing questionnaires need to be pre-tested to
60
ensure that they will work as required with the ‘new’ respondents. This is particularly the case
with questionnaires administered to schoolchildren and with questions that are translated from
other languages.
The first version of the pre-test questionnaire often contains considerably more questions
than the final questionnaire. This can be upsetting for the respondents – especially if many
questions are asked in an unstructured and open form so that the amount of time required to
complete the questionnaire is considerable. If absolutely necessary, the questionnaire could be
divided in two or three parts (of equal length and answering time) for the first tryout, so that
each respondent answers only a fraction of the questions. For each form at least 50
respondents should be asked to participate. The information collected in this first pre-test
should provide sufficient information to produce a second version of the questionnaire for
final pre-testing.
This second version of the questionnaire will then be administered in one single form in
order to further verify the functioning of the items and answer categories, as well as that of
the questionnaire overall structure, layout, and accompanying instructions.
This process of pre-testing has a number of goals:
• To reformulate or eliminate ambiguous or superfluous questions
• To provide material to design the answer categories for open questions that need to be
closed
• To determine whether the questionnaire is balanced in its structure, and to discover whether
instructions were properly followed
Basic steps in pre-testing
1. Select a sample similar in socio-economic background and geographic location to the one
that will be used in the main study. This sample will not be included in the final survey. Make
sure you have a sufficient number of copies of the questionnaire for the pre-test.
2. Instruct interviewers or questionnaire administrators to note all respondents’ remarks
regarding instructions or question wording.
3. Administer the questionnaires.
4. Debrief the interviewers and check the results:
• Is each item producing the kind of information needed?
• What role is the item going to play in the proposed analysis?
• Are the questions meaningful to the respondents?
• Are respondents easily able to understand the items?
• Can respondents use the response format for each item?
61
• Did the interviewers feel that they were receiving valid information?
• Was the question order logical and did the interview flow smoothly?
• Did some parts of the questionnaire arouse suspicion?
• Did other parts of the questionnaire seem repetitive or boring?
• Were interviewers able to read the questions without difficulty?
• Were respondents able to follow all instructions?
• Was the questionnaire too long?
Practice 2
1. Explain the difference between funnel and inverted funnel sequences.

2. List three aims that a good introductory paragraph of a questionnaire should address.
3. State the main objectives of a trial-testing programme.
62
UNIT 6: THINKING CRITICALLY ABOUT IDEAS
Students are expected to adopt a critical approach to sources, which requires a full
understanding of written texts. This unit explains:
• the concept of critical thinking.
• the elements of critical thinking.
• the way to access the reasoning process critically.
1. What is critical thinking?
Thinking isn't something you choose to do, any more than a fish chooses to live in
water. To be human is to think. But while thinking may come naturally being
deliberate about how you think doesn't.
Critical thinking means taking control of your conscious thought processes. If you
don't, you risk being controlled by the ideas of others. For example, consider the claim
"Because climate change is natural, we shouldn’t worry about global warming." It's
true that the earth's climate has varied over the millennia, but critical readers won't
immediately accept that statement without further thought. They might ask, for
example, whether the same conditions that caused climate change in the past are the
ones causing change today. They might wonder whether the kinds of change
happening today are similar to the changes in the past. They might wonder how most
scientists would respond to the assertion. It could be true that we shouldn't worry about
global warming (though evidence does support the contrary), so a critical reader might
ultimately accept the original claim-but not without careful analysis.
The essence of critical thinking is thinking beyond the obvious-beyond the flash of
images on a television screen, the alluring promises of glossy advertisements, the
evasive statements by some people in the news, the half-truths of propaganda.
Thinking critically means identifying the weaknesses-and the strengths-of an idea, a

text, an image, or a presentation. It means analyzing the quality of evidence and how
63
writers or speakers make their cases. It means interpreting considering implications,

imagining alternatives, connecting information and ideas in one situation to
information and ideas in another.
The word critical here has a neutral meaning. It doesn't mean taking a negative view
or finding fault, as when someone criticizes another person for doing something
incorrectly. Rather, the term means examining ideas thoroughly and deeply.
2. What are the elements of critical thinking?
Steps in the critical thinking process
1. Comprehend or summarize. Understand the literal meaning: the "plain"

meaning on the surface of the material. Be able to extract and restate its main
message or central point or to accurately and objectively describe an image,
event, or situation. Add nothing. Read "on the lines."
2. Analyze. Examine the material by breaking it into its component parts. Ask
about the nature or meaning of each part and how it contributes to the overall
meaning or effect.
3. Infer. Read "between the lines" to see what's not stated but implied.
4. Synthesize. Connect what you've summarized, analyzed, and inferred with
your prior knowledge or experiences, with other ideas or perspectives, or with
other readings, texts, or situations.
5. Evaluate. Read "beyond the lines." Judge the quality of the material or form
your own informed opinion about it. Answer such questions as: "Is it
reasonable? Fair? Accurate? Convincing? Ethical? Useful? Comprehensive?
Important?
2.1. How do I read to comprehend?
When you read to comprehend, you try to understand the basic, literal meaning of a
text. Your goal is to discover the main ideas, the supporting details, or, in a work of
fiction, the central details of plot and character.
64
a. Reading closely and actively
Reading is an active process-a dynamic, meaning-making interaction between the page

and your brain. The secret to reading closely and actively is to annotate as you read.
Annotating means writing notes to yourself in a book or article's margins and using
asterisks and other codes to alert you to special material. Some readers start annotating
right away, while others wait to annotate after they've previewed the material and read
it once. Experiment to determine what works best for you. We recommend your using
two different ink colors, one for close reading.
Close reading means annotating for content. You might, for example, number and
briefly list the steps in a process or summarize major points in the margin. When you
review, your marginal notes help you glance over the material and quickly recall what
it's about.
Active reading means annotating to make connections between the material and your
own knowledge or experiences. This is your chance to converse on paper with the
writer. Consider yourself a partner in the making of meaning, a full participant in the
exchange of ideas that characterizes a college education. Active reading is a key to
ANALYSIS, INFERENCE, SYNTHESIS, and EVALUATION.
b. Reading systematically
To read systematically is to use a structured plan: Preview, Read, and Review.

Preview: Before you begin reading, start making predictions. When your mind is
reading actively, it is guessing what's coming next, either confirming or revising its
prediction, and moving on to new predictions. For example, suppose you're glancing
through a magazine and come across the title "The Heartbeat." Your mind begins
guessing “Is this a love story? Is this about how the heart pumps blood?” Maybe, you
say to yourself, it's a story about someone who had a heart attack. Then, as you read
the first few sentences, your mind confirms which guess was correct. If you see words
like electrical impulse, muscle fibers, and contraction, you know instantly that you're
in the realm of physiology.
65
To preview a particular reading (for example, a chapter or an article), read all

the headings, large and small. Note the boldfaced words (in darker print), and all
visuals and their captions, including photographs, drawings, figures, tables, and boxes.
Check for introductory notes about the author and head notes, which often
precede individual works in collections of essays or short stories
Jot a few questions that you expect-or hope-the reading will answer.
Read: Read the material closely and actively. Identify the main points and start
thinking about how the writer supports them.
Review: Go back to questions you jotted during previewing. Did the reading answer
them? (If not, either your predictions could have been at the annotations you made
through close and active reading. What do these add up to? Where are places you need
to go back? Keep in mind that collaborative learning can reinforce what you learn
from reading. Ask a friend or classmate to discuss the material with you and quiz you.
2.2. How do I analyse a reading?
To analyze something is to break it into parts, just as a chemist does, for example, in
order to figure out the compounds in a particular mixture. However, it is easier to
define analysis than to understand and apply it to reading. The key is knowing what
parts to examine and how.
Elements of analysis
a. Separate facts from opinions
b. Identify the evidence
c. Identify cause and effect
d. Describe the tone
a. Separating facts from opinions
A helpful step in analyzing a reading is to distinguish fact from opinion. Facts are
statements that can be verified. Opinions are statements of personal beliefs. While
facts can be verified by observation, research, or experimentation, opinions are open to
66
debate. Problems arise when a writer blurs the distinction between fact and opinion.
Critical readers will know the difference.
For example, here are two statements, one a fact, the other an opinion.
1. Women can never make good mathematicians.
2. Although fear of math isn’t purely a female phenomenon, girls tend to drop
out of math classes sooner than boys, and some adult women have an aversion
to math and math-related activity that is akin to anxiety.
Reading inferentially, you can see that statement 1 is clearly an opinion. Is it worthy of
consideration? Perhaps it could be open to debate, but the word never implies that the
writer is unwilling to allow for even one exception. Conversely, statement 2 at least
seems to be factual, though research would be necessary to confirm or deny the
position.
You may find it practical to label key sentences "facts" or "opinions" as part of your
analysis. You could put an "F" or "O" in the margin next to those sentences. Or, you
could include a brief note to yourself explaining why certain sentences are opinions.
Practice 1:
Determine which sentences state facts and which state opinions.
1. Nuclear fusion releases energy.
2. Nuclear fusion is a possible solution to our energy problems
3. Solar energy has attracted a great deal of public attention over the past decade.
4. Many people hope that it will produce a clean, nonpolluting means of heating our
homes and offices.
5. Oil and gas production in the United States has been falling for over a decade.
6. The petroleum industry is shrinking yearly.
7. In the interest of national security, the petroleum industry should be encouraged by
government legislation.
8. The early pioneers generated energy from the wind on the frontier.
67
9. Such nonpolluting means of creating energy should immediately replace those pro-
duced by fossil fuels.
10. Because natural gas, methane, is a clean fuel, the government should encourage its
use.
b. Identifying the evidence
For any opinions or claims, you next need to identify and analyze the evidence that the
writer provides. Evidence consists of facts, examples, the results of formal studies, and
the opinions of experts. A helpful step in analysis is to identify the kind of evidence
used (or what evidence is missing).
RECOGNIZING PRIMARY VERSUS SECONDARY SOURCES

Primary sources are firsthand evidence based on your own or someone else's original
work or direct observation. Primary sources can take the form of experiments, surveys,
interviews, memoirs, observations (such as in ETH-NOGRAPHIES), original creative
works (for example, poems, novels, paintings and other visual art, plays, films, or
musical compositions).
Secondary sources report, describe, comment on, or analyze the experiences or work
of others. The following example illustrates the difference.
Examples of differences between primary and secondary sources
Primary Source Secondary Source

• Professor Fassi interviews thirty • Time magazine summarizes
single parents and reports his Professor Fassi's study in a longer
findings in a journal article article on single parents.
• Medical researcher Molly Doran • The Washington Post runs an

publishes the results of her experi- article that summarizes findings
ments with a new cancer drug in from Doran's study.
68
the New England Journal of

Medicine.
• The National Assessment of • National Public Radio refers to the
Educational Progress (NAEP) NAEP study in a story on reading
publishes test results on the in America.
reading abilities of ninth graders.
• A team of researchers at Bowling • Scholar Maya Dai conducts a
Green State University survey study of politics in Colorado; in
2,259 Ohio citizens about their her review of literature section of
voting patterns and write an article her study, she summarizes the
explaining their findings. Bowling Green study, along with
studies in four other states.
• Rosa Rodriguez writes a memoir • Writer Phil Gronowski discusses
about life as a migrant worker Rodriguez's memoir in his daily
blog.
• Gerhard Richter exhibits his • The Chicago Tribune publishes a
paintings at the Art Institute of review of Richter's exhibition.
Chicago.
Practice 2
Indicate for each of the passages below whether it contains primary or secondary
evidence.
A. Midland has the kind of air that hits you like a brick. After a few min-utes, your
throat burns. After a few days, your skin feels powdery, your eye-lids stick, your hair
feels dusty and rough. The longer you spend there, the more you become a little bit
like the land-you dry out and cake and crack. Not until I spent time in Midland did I
fully appreciate the fact that the earth has an actual crust, like bread that has been
slowly baked. I became convinced that if I stayed for a while, I would develop one,
too.
-Susan Orlean, "A Place Called Midland"
69
B. According to a 2005 report of the International Centre for Prison Studies in London,
the United States-with 5 percent of the world's population--houses 25 percent of the
world's inmates. Our incarceration rate (714 per 100,000 residents) is almost 40
percent greater than those of our nearest competitors (Bermuda, Belarus, and Russia).
Other industrial democracies, even those with significant crime problems of their own,
are much less punitive: Our incarceration rate is 6.2 times that of Canada, 7.8 times
that of France, and 12.3 times that of Japan.
-Glenn Loury. "America incarcerated"
C. Ordinary human foods can be dangerous to dogs, and the list of potentially
hazardous items is growing. Reports from pet owners can prompt an investigation,
says Eric Dunayer, senior toxic at the ASPCA's Animal Poison Control Center in
Urbana, Ilinois. In 2006, the center's hotline fielded roughly 116,000 calls. Nearly 200
asked about xylitol, a sugar substitute gaining popularity in baked goods, candy, and
gum. "We often see vomiting, followed by weakness, staggering, collapse, and
possibly seizures as blood sugar drops," says Dunayer.
-Catherine L. Barker, "Spotting Pet Threats"
EVALUATING EVIDENCE
You can evaluate evidence by asking the following questions to guide your judgment:
- Is the evidence sufficient? To be sufficient, evidence can't be skimpy. As a rule, the
more evidence, the better. Readers have more confidence in the results of a survey that
draws on a hundred respondents rather than on ten. As a writer, you may convince
your reader that violence is a serious problem in high schools on the basis of only two
examples, but you'll be more convincing with additional examples.
- Is the evidence representative? Evidence is representative if it is typical. As a
reader, assess the objectivity and fairness of evidence. Don't trust a claim or
conclusion about a group based on only a few members rather than on a truly typical
sample. For example, a pollster surveying national political views would not get
representative evidence by interviewing people only in Austin, Texas, because that
group doesn't represent the regional racial, political, and ethnic makeup of the entire
US electorate.
- Is the evidence relevant? Relevant evidence is directly related to the conclusion
you're drawing. Determining relevance often demands subtle thinking. Suppose you
70
read that one hundred students who had watched television or more than two hours a
day throughout high school earned significantly lower scores on a college entrance
exam than one hundred students who had not. Can you conclude that students who
watch less television perform better on college entrance exams? Not necessarily. Other
differences between the two groups could account for the different scores:
geographical region, group, or the quality of schools attended
- Is the evidence accurate? Accurate evidence is correct and complete. To be
accurate, evidence must come from a reliable source, whether it is primary or
secondary. Equally important, evidence must be presented honestly, not
misrepresented or distorted
- Is the evidence qualified? Reasonable evidence doesn't make extreme claims,
Claims that use words such as all, always, never, and certainly are disqualified if even
one exception is found. Conclusions are more sensible and believable when qualified
with words such as some, many, may possibly, often and usually. Remember that
today's "facts" may be revised as time passes and knowledge grows. It's a fact today
that no life has been found on Mars; a future space mission could change that, however
unlikely it might be.
c. Identifying cause and effect
Cause and effect describes the relationship between one event (cause) another event
that happens as a result (effect). The relationship also works in reverse: One event
(effect) results from another event (cause). Whether you begin with a cause or with an
effect, you're using the same basic pattern.
Cause A → produces → effect B
You may seek to understand the effects of a known cause
More studying → produces → ?
Or you may seek to determine the cause or causes of a known effect.
? → produces → current headaches.
When you are analyzing a reading, look for any claims of cause and effect. (Of course,
not all readings will have them.). For any that you find, think carefully through the
relationship between cause A and effect B.
A happened before B or because A and B are associated with each other doesn’t
mean A caused B.
71
Assessing cause and effect

• Is there a clear relationship between events? Related causes and effects
happen in sequence: A cause occurs before an effect. First the wind blows;
then a door slams then a pane of glass in the door breaks. But
CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER merely implies a cause-and-effect relationship.
Perhaps someone slammed the door shut. Perhaps someone threw a base ball
through the glass pane. A cause-and-effect relationship must be linked by
more than chronological sequence. The fact that B happens after A doesn't
prove that A causes B.
• Is there a pattern of repetition? Scientific proof depends on a pattern of
repetition. To establish that A causes B, every time A is present, B must occur.
Or, put another way, B never occurs unless A is present. The need for
repetition explains why the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) runs
thousands of clinical trials before approving a new medicine.
• Are there multiple causes and/or effects? Avoid oversimplification. The
basic pattern of cause and effect-single cause, single effect (A causes B)-rarely
represents the full picture. Multiple causes and/or effects are more typical of
real life. For example, it would be oversimplification to assume that a lower
crime rate is strictly due to high employment rates. Similarly, one cause can
produce multiple effects. For example, advertisements for a liquid diet drink
might focus on the drink's most appealing effect, rapid weight loss, while
ignoring less desirable effects such as lost nutrients and a tendency to regain
the weight.
Practice 3
Supply answers for the blanks in the sentences that follow, checking each choice
by the guidelines for evaluating cause and effect to be sure that it is accurate.
1. Frequently eating food with high sodium content can cause ______.
2. _______ can lead to a traffic violation.
3. Regular exercise produces _________.
72
4. ________ is a leading cause of ______.

5. Because she _________, she is expected to be named Gourmet of the Year.
6. Her mother refuses to intervene so that _______.
7. If you don’t quit _____, you are likely to end up in a lawsuit.
8. She decided to stay in college when she learned that _____.
9. More funding for preschool education is needed in order to ______.
10. _______ has resulted in increased numbers of homeless people in our major cities.
Practice 4
For each of the sentences below, explain how the effect might not be a result of
the cause given.
EXAMPLE
The number of shoppers downtown increased because the city planted more
trees there.
Explanation: Of course, planting trees might have made the downtown more attractive
and drawn more shoppers. However, perhaps there are other reasons: new stores
opening, more parking, a suburban mall closed down, and so on.
1. Attendance at baseball games declined because the team raised prices.

2. Test scores improved because the school instituted a dress code.
3. Because of the Internet, Americans are reading fewer books than they did twenty
years ago.
d. Describing the tone
Tone refers to the attitude conveyed in writing, mostly by the writer's word choice. A
tone can be formal, informal, laid back, pompous, sarcastic, concerned, judgmental,
sympathetic, and so on. We discuss tone at greater length in Unit 8. For now, however,
as a critical reader, be suspicious of a highly emotional tone in writing. If you find it,
chances are the writer is trying to manipulate the audience. As a writer, if you find
your tone growing emotional, step back and rethink the situation. No matter what point
you want to make, your chance of communicating successfully to an audience depends
on your using a moderate, reasonable tone.
2.3. How do I draw inferences?
73
When you read for inferences, you're reading to understand what's suggested
or implied but not explicitly stated. Here's an example.
The band finally appeared an hour after the concert was scheduled to start. The
lead singer spent the first two songs staring at the stage and mumbling into his
microphone, before finally looking at the audience and saying, "It's great to be
here in Portland." The only problem was that they were playing in Denver. At
that point the crowd was too stunned even to boo. I started texting some friends
to see if they had any more interesting prospects for the evening.
Literally this paragraph describes what happened at a concert. But there's clearly more
going on. Among the inferential meanings are that (1) the band wasn’t very
enthusiastic about this concert; and (2) this wasn't a very pleasant experience for Jenny
or probably, others at the event. The writer doesn't say this directly, but it's clear from
her choice of details.
Drawing inferences takes practice. The following box lists questions help you read
"between the lines."
Drawing inferences during reading

- What is the point, even if the writer doesn't state it outright?
- How might the writer's position influence his or her perspective?
- Can I detect bias in the material?
- What are the implications of the reading?
a. The writer's position

As a reader, when you can "consider the source" - that is, find out exactly who made a
statement - you can open up new perspectives. For example, you would probably read
an essay for or against capital punishment differently if you knew the writer was an
inmate on death row rather than a nominate who wished to express an opinion.
Although considering the source can help you draw inferences, take care that you don't
fall prey to ARGUMENT TO THE PERSON. Just because someone you don't respect
voices an opinion doesn't mean that the position is necessarily wrong.
b. Bias
74
For inferential reading, you want to detect bias, also known as prejudice. When
writing is distorted by hatred or distrust of individuals, groups of people, or ideas, you
as a critical reader want to suspect the accuracy and fairness of the material. Bias can
be worded in positive language, but critical readers aren't deceived by such tactics.
Similarly, writers can merely imply their bias rather than state it outright. For example,
suppose you read, "Poor people like living in crowded conditions because they're used
to such surroundings" or "Women are so wonderfully nurturing that they can't succeed
in business." As a critical reader you will immediately detect the bias. Therefore,
always question material that rests on a weak foundation of discrimination or narrow-
mindedness.
c. What are implications of the reading?
An implication takes the form, "If this is true (or if this happens), then that might also
be true (or that might be the consequence.)" One way to consider implications,
especially for readings that contain a proposal, is to ask, "Who might benefit from an
action, and who might lose?" For example, consider the following short argument.
Because parking downtown is so limited, we should require anyone putting up a
new building to construct a parking lot or contribute to parking garages.
It doesn't take much to infer who might benefit: people driving downtown who are
looking for places to park. With a little more thought, you can see how store owners
could benefit if shoppers have an easier time finding parking. Who might lose? Well,
having to provide parking will add to building costs, and these may be passed to
customers. More room for parking means less room for building, so the downtown
could sprawl into neighborhoods. More parking can encourage more driving, which
contributes to congestion and pollution.
Now, benefits may outweigh losses-or the other way around. The point is that if you
think about the implications of ideas in a reading, you can generate some inferences.
Practice 5
Consider the implications of the following short argument focusing on who might
gain and lose from the following proposal:
"In an effort to enhance its prestige, DaVinci College will reduce its enrollment from
10,000 students to 7,000 over the next four years. It will accomplish this reduction by
75
increasing the admissions requirements and more selectively recruiting across the
country, not only in the local region."
2.4. How do I synthesize?
To synthesize is to put things together. When analysis and inference generate specific
ideas, try to put them together with things you know from your exprience or previous
learning or from other readings. For example, suppose you read an opinion that
reminds you of a similar opinion by an expert you respect. Making that connection is
an act of critical thinking. It takes you beyond the reading itself. Or suppose that
someone provides evidence for a claim, but that some further reading shows you that
their facts are incomplete or even inaccurate. This synthesis allows you to read the first
source more critically.
Synthesis also happens between a reading and your own experience. Take the
following example.
Probably no time in life is as liberating or stimulating as the college years.
Freed from the drudgery of a career and the obligations of family life, college
students have the luxury to explore new ideas and pursue new paths of
knowledge. College is a joyful time of endless possibility.
If you're a single parent taking classes at night or someone who is working a couple of
jobs and worrying about paying back loans, your perspective probably differs from the
author's. Synthesizing the reading and your experience would result in a critical
evaluation.
2.5. How do I evaluate?
When you read to evaluate, you're judging the writer's work. Evaluative reading comes
after you've summarized, analyzed, and synthesized the material. “Reading between
the lines” is usually concerned with recognizing tone, detecting prejudice,
differentiating fact from opinion, and determining the writer's position. Reading to
evaluate “beyond the lines” requires an overall assessment of the soundness of the
writer's reasoning, evidence, or observations, and the fairness and perceptiveness the
writer shows, from accuracy of word choice and tone to the writer's respect for the
reader.
Evaluating is the step where you make judgments. Ultimately, should we trust the
author or not? Should we accept his or her conclusions and recommendations? An
76
important additional strategy for answering questions like these is assessing reasoning
processes.
3. How do I assess reasoning processes critically?
To think, read, and write critically, you need to distinguish sound reasoning from
faulty reasoning. Induction and deduction are two basic reasoning process, natural
thought patterns people use every day to help them think through ideas and make
decisions.
3.1 Inductive reasoning
Inductive reasoning moves from particular facts or instances to general principles.
Suppose you go to the Registry of Motor Vehicles to renew your driver's license and
have to stand in line for two hours. A few months later you return to get new license
plates, and once again you have to stand in line for two hours. You mention your
annoyance to a couple of friends who say they had exactly the same experience. You
conclude that the registry is inefficient and indifferent to the needs of its patrons.
You've arrived at this conclusion by means of induction. The box below shows the
features of inductive reasoning.
Inductive reasoning
- Inductive reasoning moves from the specific to the general. It begins with specific
evidence - facts, observations, or experiences-and moves to a general conclusion.
- Inductive conclusions are considered reliable or unreliable, not true or false. Because
inductive thinking is based on a sampling of facts, an inductive conclusion indicates
probability - the degree to which the conclusion is likely to be true - not certainty.
- An inductive conclusion is held to be reliable or unreliable in relation to the quantity
and quality of the evidence on which it's based.
- Induction leads to new "truths." It can support statements about the unknown based
on what's known.
3.2. Deductive reasoning

Deductive reasoning is the process of reasoning from general claims to a specific
conclusion. Suppose you know that students who don't study for Professor Sanchez's
history tests tend to do poorly. If your friend tells you that she didn't study, you can
77
make a reasonable conclusion about her grade. Your reasoning might go something
like this:
PREMISE 1: Students who don't study do poorly on Professor Sanchez's exams.
PREMISE 2: My friend didn't study.
CONCLUSION: Therefore, my friend probably did poorly on the exam.
Deductive arguments have three parts: two premises and a conclusion. This three-part
structure is known as a syllogism. The first and second premises of a deductive
argument may be statements of fact or assumptions. They lead to a conclusion, which
is the point at which you want to think as precisely as possible because you're into the
realm of validity.
Whether or not an argument is valid has to do with its form or structure. Here, the
word valid isn't the general term people use in conversation to mean "acceptable" or
"well grounded." In the context of reading and writing logical arguments, the word
valid has a very specific meaning. A deductive argument is valid when the conclusion
logically follows from the premises; a deductive argument is invalid when the
conclusion doesn’t logically follow from the premises. For example:
VALID DEDUCTIVE ARGUMENT
PREMISE: 1 When it snows, the streets get wet. (fact)
PREMISE: 2 It is snowing. (fact)
CONCLUSION: Therefore, the streets are getting wet.
INVALID DEDUCTIVE ARGUMENT
PREMISE 1: When it snows, the streets get wet. (fact)
PREMISE 2: The streets are getting wet. (fact)
CONCLUSION: Therefore, it is snowing.
Here's the problem with the invalid deductive argument: It has acceptable premises
because they are facts. However, the argument's conclusion is wrong because it
ignores other reasons why the streets might be wet. For example, the street could be
wet from rain, from street-cleaning trucks that spray water, or from people washing
their cars. Therefore, because the conclusion doesn't follow logically from the
premises, the argument is invalid.
Another problem in a deductive argument can occur when the premises are implied but
not stated-called unstated assumptions. An argument can be logically valid even
78
though it is based on wrong assumptions. To show that such an argument is invalid,

you need to attack the assumptions, not the conclusion, as wrong. For example,
suppose a corporation argues that it can't install pollution - control devices because the
cost would cut deeply into its profits. This argument rests on the unstated assumption
that a corporation should never do something that would lower its profits. That
assumption is wrong, and so is the argument. To show that both are wrong, you need
to challenge the assumptions. Similarly, when a person says that certain information is
correct because it's written in the newspaper, that person's deductive reasoning is
flawed. The unstated assumption is that everything in a newspaper is correct-which
isn't true. Whenever there's an unstated assumption, you need to state it outright and
then check that it's true.
Practice 6
Working individually or with a peer-response group, determine whether each
conclusion here is valid or invalid. Be ready to explain your answers.
1. Faddish clothes are expensive.
This shirt is expensive.
This shirt must be part of a fad.
2. When a storm is threatening, small-craft warnings are issued.
A storm is threatening.
Small-craft warnings will be issued.
3. The Pulitzer Prize is awarded to outstanding literary works.
The Great Gatsby never won a Pulitzer Prize.
The Great Gatsby isn't an outstanding literary work.
4. All states send representatives to the United States Congress.
Puerto Rico sends a representative to the United States Congress.
Puerto Rico is a state.
5. Finding a good job requires patience.
Sherrill is patient.
Sherrill will find a good job.
79
Unit 7: SUMMARIZING
Making oral summaries is a common activity, for example when describing a film or a
book. In academic writing it is a vital skill, allowing the writer to condense lengthy
sources into a concise form. Like most skills it becomes easier with practice, and this
unit explains the basic steps needed to achieve an accurate summary.
1. Definition
- A summary is a short version of a text. Its purpose is to give the reader a clear idea of the
most important information in that text.
- A summary can be of any length, depending upon the student's goal in writing it.
Summaries generally range from one sentence to about one-fourth the length of the
original.
- A summary is written in your own words rather than copied from the original. Thus, to
become an effective summary writer, you must polish the skill of paraphrasing.
2. Reasons for summarizing
There are several good reasons why a student should want to become proficient at summary
writing.
- In the first place, it is a valuable study technique. Students who get into the habit of
summarizing on paper what they have read end up with a clearer understanding of the
material.
- Likewise, writing down summaries of what has just been heard in a class lecture helps to
show students how well they have understood what has been said, and it forces them to
crystallize and organize their thought about the lecture.
- Summary writing thus becomes an invaluable tool in studying for examinations. Since
exams usually cover the important paints in a subject area, the summarizing of texts and
lectures represents a very efficient way to prepare for these exams. Rather than rereading
all the material covered- sometimes hundreds of pages students can refresh their memory
on the major points covered, then refer selectively to texts and notes from lectures in those
areas where there are still problems.
- In addition, many professors require formal summaries of articles, sometimes as many as
one a week. A student who has a good grasp of what is involved in writing a summary
will have less difficulty with this kind of assignment than one who has never had
80
systematic practice in summary writing. Thus, knowledge of the principles of good

summary writing makes a student more careful both as a reader and as a writer.
3. Summary components
To write a good summary, it is first necessary to thoroughly understand the text to be
summarized. Use a dictionary to clarify the meanings of unfamiliar words or phrases. Two or
more readings may well be required: the first should be devoted to understanding the authors
controlling idea or thesis, as well as the purpose of the text; subsequent readings can then
serve to help you gain a better grasp of the details of the text
Once you have read - and reread! - the text and are satisfied that you have understood what
the author is trying to say, you should decide how much of this information will go into your
summary. This is always a difficult decision to make of course, and your choice will depend
to some extent on the length and purpose of your summary. However, some general
guidelines can be given.
A Good Summary Usually Includes
a. the controlling idea.
b. the major thought relationships used by the author to provide support.
c. any important definitions of key terms (the use of informal definition techniques - dash,
commas, parentheses. i.e., that is, or - are particularly effective in giving short
definitions in a summary).
d. an indication of the author's attitude toward the subject matter -is the author describing,
praising, or criticizing is he certain or uncertain about.
The thought relationship of exemplification deserves special consideration. Ordinarily, minor
examples and details are not included in a summary; on the other hand, there are situations
where certain examples and details should be included. The guidelines which follow can help
you to determine when examples might be included in a summary and when it might be better
to omit them.
- In a very short summary (a one-sentence summary, for example), restate only the
controlling idea; mention no examples or details.
- As your summary gets longer, you can include more of everything: a lengthier version of
the controlling idea and of the primary thought relationships, as well as some examples or
detail. If a text is made up almost entirely of examples, a few should be included in even a
moderately short summary to accurately reflect the original text: choose only the ones that
you consider to be most representative of the authors’ thought.
81
- If the concepts in the text are so complex that the summary could not be understood
without examples, include a few.
4. Guidelines for summary writing
Read the original text carefully: Identify the controlling idea and the relationships
among the major supporting. Decide which examples are necessary for a clear
understanding of the text.
Make use of the pre-paraphrasing techniques studied so far (avoid plagiarism).
Write a first sentence which includes the source of your summary and the controlling
idea. (Note: Never use summary to present your thesis statement).
Indicate whether the author is uncertain of the facts or is expressing a personal
opinion.
Restate the article’s/lecturer’s conclusion in one sentence.
Avoid making comments about or adding information to the text.
Check the summary to ensure it is accurate and nothing important has been changed or
lost
Make the summary approximately one fourth to one-third the length of the original.
Give a full reference for the citation.
5. Summary languages
Write an introductory paragraph that begins with a frame:
In-text citation of the source + author +reporting verb
ARTICLE:
In his/her article (or lecture) " (title, first letter capitalized),” + (author/lecturer's last name) +
(year) argues/ claims/ reports/ contends/ maintains/states that + (main idea/argument; S +
V + C)
In his article "Michael Dell turns the PC world inside out," Andrew E. Serwer (1997)
describes how Michael Dell founded Dell Computers and claims that Dell’s low-cost, direct-
sales strategy and high quality standards account for Dell’s enormous success.
BOOK:
In his book The Pearl, John Steinbeck (1945) illustrates the fight between good and evil in
humankind.
INTERVIEW:
In my interview with him/her (date), __________________(first name, last name) stated
that…
82
In a longer summary, remind your reader that you are paraphrasing by using "reminder
phrases," such as:
• The author goes on to say that ...
• The article (author) further states that ...
• (Author's last name) also states/maintains/argues that ...
• (Author's last name) also believes that ...
• (Author's last name) concludes that
6. Summary samples
ORIGINAL (TANENBAUM'S EXACT WORDS)
Until recently, most Americans disapproved of cosmetic surgery, but today the stigma is
disappearing. Average Americans are lining up for procedures. Two thirds of patients
report family incomes of less than $50,000 a year and many of them return for more.
Younger women undergo “maintenance” surgeries in a futile attempt to halt time. The
latest fad is Botox, a purified and diluted form of botulinum toxin that is injected between
the eyebrows to eliminate frown lines. Although the procedure costs between $300 and
$1000 and must be repeated every few months, rough 850,000 patients have had it
performed on them. That number will undoubtedly shoot up now that the FDA has
approved Botox for cosmetic use. Even teenagers are making appointments with plastic
surgeons. More than 14,000 adolescents had plastic surgery in 1996, and many of them
choosing controversial procedures such as breast implants, liposuction, and tummy tucks,
rather than the rhinoplasties of previous generations
SOURCE Tanenbaum, Leora. Catfight: Women and Competition. New York: Seven Stories, 2002. 117-
18. Print. [This source information is arranged in MLA documentation style.]
UNACCEPTABLE SUMMARY (UNDERLINED WORDS ARE PLAGIARIZED)

Average Americans are lining up for surgical procedures. The latest fad is Botox, a toxin
injected to eliminate frown lines. This is an insanely foolish waste of money. Even
teenagers are making appointments with plastic surgeons, many of them for controversial
procedures such as breast implants, liposuction, and tummy tucks (Tanenbaum 117-18)
ACCEPTABLE SUMMARY
Tanenbaum explains that plastic surgery is becoming widely acceptable even for
Americans with modest incomes and for younger women. Most popular is injecting the
toxin Botox to smooth wrinkles. She notes that thousands of adolescents are even
requesting controversial surgeries (117 - 18). [This citation is arranged in MLA
documentation style.]
83
The unacceptable summary above has several major problems: It doesn't isolate the main
point. It plagiarizes by taking much of its language directly from the source. Examples of
plagiarized language include all the underlined. Finally, the unacceptable summary includes
the writer's interpretation “This is an insanely foolish waste of money” rather than objectively
representing the original. The acceptable summary concisely isolates the main point, puts the
source into the writer’s own words, calls attention to the author by her name in the summary,
and remains objective throughout.
Practice 1: Read the following text and the summaries (a)–(c). Rate them 1 (best) – 3.
MECHANICAL PICKERS
Although harvesting cereal crops such as wheat and barley has long been done by large
machines known as combine harvesters, mechanizing the picking of fruit crops such as
tomatoes or apples has proved more difficult. Farmers have generally relied on human
labor to harvest these, but in wealthy countries it has become increasingly difficult to find
pickers willing to work for the wages farmers are able to pay. This is partly because the
demand for labor is seasonal, usually in the autumn, and also because the work is hard and
demanding. As a result, in areas such as California part of the fruit harvest is often
unpicked and left to rot.
There are several obvious reasons why developing mechanical pickers is challenging. Fruit
such as grapes or strawberries comes in a variety of shapes and does not always ripen at the
same time. Outdoors, the ground conditions can vary from dry to muddy, and winds may
move branches around. Clearly each crop requires its own solution: machines may be
towed through orchards by tractors or move around by themselves using sensors to detect
the ripest fruit.
This new generation of fruit harvesters is possible due to advances in computing power and
sensing ability. Such devices will inevitably be expensive, but will save farmers from the
complexities of managing a labor force. In addition, the more intelligent pickers should be
able to develop a database of information on the health of each individual plant, enabling
the grower to provide it with fertilizer and water to maintain its maximum productivity.
(a) Fruit crops have usually been picked by hand, as it is difficult to mechanize the process.
But in rich countries it has become hard to find affordable pickers at the right time so
fruit is often wasted. Therefore intelligent machines have been developed that can
84
overcome the technical problems involved, and also provide the farmer with useful data
about the plants.
(b) Developing machines that can pick fruit such as tomatoes or apples is a challenging task,
due to the complexity of locating ripe fruit in an unpredictable outdoor environment,
where difficult conditions can be produced by wind or water. But recent developments in
computing ability mean that growers can now automate this process, which should save
them money and increase their profits.
(c) Strawberries and grapes are the kind of crops that have always been hand-picked. But
many farmers, for example in California, now find it increasingly difficult to attract
enough pickers when the fruit is ripe. However, computing advances have produced a
solution to this problem, which will save farmers from worrying about the pickers, and
also collect vital data.
Practice 2
Read the following text and underline the key points
WEALTH AND FERTILITY
For most of the past century an inverse correlation between human fertility and economic
development has been found. This means that as a country got richer, the average number
of children born to each woman got smaller. While in the poorest countries women often
have eight children, the rate fell as low as 1.3 in some European countries such as Italy,
which is below the replacement rate. Such a low rate has two likely negative
consequences: the population will fall in the long term, and a growing number of old
people will have to be supported by a shrinking number of young. But a recent study by
researchers from Pennsylvania University suggests that this pattern may be changing.
They related countries’ fertility rates to their human development index (HDI), a figure
with a maximum value of 1.0, which assesses life expectancy, average income and
education level. Over 20 countries now have an HDI of more than 0.9, and in a majority
of these the fertility rate has started to increase, and in some is approaching two children
per woman. Although there are exceptions such as Japan, it appears that ever higher levels
of wealth and education eventually translate into a desire for more children.
Complete the notes of the key points below.

(a) Falling levels of fertility have generally been found
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
85
(b) In some, number of children born

__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
(c) Two results: smaller populations and
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
(d) Recent research claims that
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
(e) Comparison of HDI (human development index:_______________________________)
which found that in most highly rated (+0.9) countries,
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Join the notes together and expand them to make the final summary. Check that the
meaning is clear, and no important points have been left out. Find a suitable title.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
This summary is about 35 per cent of the original length, but it could be summarized
further. Summarize the summary in no more than 20 words.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Practice 3: Read the story; then answer the questions that follow.
The Gift of the Magi - Based on a story by O. Henry
(1) One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all she had. And the next day would be
Christmas. Della flopped down on the shabby old couch and cried. She wanted so much
to get something special for her husband Jim, but she only had $1.87. Della stood and
looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes were red. She didn't want Jim to know she'd
86
been crying. She let her hair fall to its full length, almost to her knees, and began to
brush it. Jim loved her soft, long hair. The only thing he liked more was the gold watch
that had belonged to his father and grandfather.
(2) Suddenly Della had an idea. She piled her hair on top of her head, put on her old brown
jacket and hat, and fluttered out the door and down the steps to the street. She stopped
at a door that read: Madame Sofron, Hair Goods Della ran in and asked, "Will you buy
my hair?"
"Take off your hat and let me see," said Madame Sofron. She looked at Della's shiny
(3)
hair and said, "I can give you 20 dollars."
(4) For two hours, Della went from store to store, looking for a special gift for Jim. At last,
she found it . . . a simple gold watch chain. It would replace the old leather strap he now
used on his beloved watch!
(5) When Della got home, she fixed her head in short close-lying curls. She looked in the
mirror, satisfied with the new look. She had dinner ready by 7 o'clock, but Jim had not
come home. Della began to worry; he was never late. At last she heard him come up the
steps. The door opened and in walked Jim. "You've cut off your hair!" he said sadly
when he saw Della.
(6) "I sold it," said Della. "But I'm still me, aren't I?"
"Of course," Jim said softly as he took a package from his coat pocket. "But if you'll
(7)
unwrap this package you'll see why I am sad."
(8) Della's fingers tore at the string and paper. Inside she found a set of combs she'd once
admired in a shop window. They were beautiful, with jeweled rims that would have
looked magnificent in her handsome, long hair.
"Oh, Jim, how lovely," she cried. "I shall wear them when my hair grows. It grows fast.
(9)
But see," she added happily, "I have a gift for you!"
Della held out the watch chain in her open palm. "I hunted all over town to find it. Give
(10)
me your watch. I want to see how it looks on it!"
Instead, Jim sat on the couch and began to laugh. "Oh, Della," he said, "I sold my watch
(11)
to get the money to buy your combs!"
(12) Della sat beside him and together they laughed. They were happy, yet sad, to know that
each had given up a prized possession for the love of the other. It was a special
Christmas that year, a day filled with love.
87
1. A summary is a retelling of a story that

a. is always shorter than the original text.
b. must be at least two paragraphs long.
c. has no ending.
d. gives new information that was not in the story
2. Which is the best one-sentence summary for paragraph 1?
a. Della is sad because Jim sold his watch.
b. Della is sad because she doesn't have much money to buy a gift for Jim.
c. Della is sad because her mother can't come to visit.
d. Della is sad because she has no new coat to wear.
3. Which would NOT be important to include in a summary of the story?
a. Della has beautiful long hair
b. Jim has a gold watch that belonged to his father and grandfather.
c. Della wanted something special for Jim.
d. Della and Jim lived in an apartment.
4. Which is the main idea of the story?
a. Della changes her hairstyle.
b. Jim and Della plan a special Christmas dinner.
c. Jim and Della sacrifice to get each other special gifts.
d. Della only has old clothing to wear.
5. Write a summary of the story.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
88
Practice 4: Read the passage; then answer the questions that follow.
Water, Water, Everywhere!
(1) Is a flood ever good news? How can it be? When river water overflows and floods the
land, people can lose their homes . . . even their lives! So to people who live in flood-
prone areas, a flood is always bad news. But in ancient Egypt, things were different. The
people looked forward to a yearly flood and saw it as good news!
(2) Many Egyptians lived and farmed by the Nile River, which flooded every summer. They
eagerly anticipated the event because they knew that when the water receded, the land
would be better for crops. That's because floodwaters carry along washed-away soil and
sediment, then drop it somewhere else. There, the nutrients in the sediment sink into and
nourish the land. Then the farmland is richer and ready for crops.
(3) The Egyptians weren't sure why the flood came each year. Many believed it was a gift
from the spirits, who sent great clouds of rain to fall near the source of the Nile. But
actually, that wasn't the case. The annual flood was caused by natural events that began
high in the mountains of Ethiopia.
(4) In June, strong winds from the South Atlantic Ocean blow over the rainforests of Africa.
When the winds reach Ethiopia's mountains, some of which are 13,000 feet (4,000 m)
high, giant rain clouds drop their contents in huge thunderstorms. The rain continues, and
mountain streams fill to the brim. Then the streams join together to form a sizeable river.
It speeds along to meet the Nile, carrying lots of soil and sediment with it. By July, the
rushing water reaches Egypt, where it produces a flood in the Nile.
(5) The yearly flooding of the Nile wasn't all good news. Sometimes buildings and fences
were swept away and property lines disappeared. But landowners just marked off their
territories and put up new fences for another year.
(6) Today, floodwaters from Ethiopia are stopped soon after they reach Egypt. A large dam
on the river holds back the rushing, rising water and forms a large lake. This is good
news. Now buildings and fences aren't swept away. And today farmers can plant two
crops a year instead of just one.
(7) But the dam is bad news, too. The waters of the yearly flood always kept the fields fertile.
Today, farmers use fertilizers that get into the mud and water of the Nile. Fish that once
thrived in the Nile are gone. And a serious disease is spread by snails that live in the
slow-moving waters of the great river.
(8) So back to our original question: Is a flood ever good news? As you can see, it can be, if
89
the good benefits outweigh the bad.
6. Which is the best one-sentence summary for paragraph 2?

a. A yearly flood in Egypt did a lot of damage.
b. A yearly flood in Egypt brought sediment that helped the land.
c. A yearly flood brought more people to Ethiopia.
d. A yearly flood in Egypt was caused by rain over the Pacific Ocean.
7. Which is the best summary for paragraph 4?
Winds from the Atlantic drop rain on Egypt at the source of the Nile. The rain floods
a.
large cities near the river.
b. Rain over the Atlantic comes on shore in Egypt and floods the Nile.
Rain in France forms a river that travels to Egypt and dumps into the Nile. Then the
c.
Nile floods Egyptian farmland beside the river.
Winds from the Atlantic drop rain on Ethiopia and rain-filled streams form a river. It
d.
dumps into the Nile, which floods Egyptian farmland beside the river.
8. Which would be an important detail to include in a summary of the article?
a. The Nile River is in Egypt.
b. People sail boats on the Nile.
c. The capital of Ethiopia is Addis-Ababa.
d. The Mississippi River also floods sometimes.
9. Write a summary of the whole article. Try to summarize in just two or three sentences.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
90
Practice 5
Summarize the following text in about 50 words.
THE LAST WORD IN LAVATORIES?
Toto is a leading Japanese manufacturer of bathroom ceramic ware, with annual

worldwide sales of around $5 bn. One of its best-selling ranges is the Washlet lavatory,
priced at up to $5,000 and used in most Japanese homes. This has features such as a
heated seat and can play a range of sounds. This type of toilet is successful in its home
market since many flats are small and crowded, and bathrooms provide valued privacy.
Now Toto hopes to increase its sales in Europe and America, where it faces a variety of
difficulties. European countries tend to have their own rules about lavatory design, so
that different models have to be made for each market. Although Toto claims that its
Washlet toilet uses less water than the average model, one factor that may delay its
penetration into Europe is its need for an electrical socket for installation, as these are
prohibited in bathrooms by most European building regulations.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Practice 6: Read the passage below and answer the question that follows.
One piece of exercise equipment is becoming so popular that some people can't bear to face
a workout without it: the television. Just as many people are glued to their TVs at home, so
they are at the gym, intently focused on CNN or American Idol.
Almost every gym offers some form of TV entertainment and the more magnificent the
club, the better the options. Big complexes feature individual screens integrated into cardio
machines allowing exercises to watch whatever they like. Others have banks of wall or
ceiling mounted screens, some offering headsets, so users can listen to particular shows.
More clubs are buying or contemplating buying equipment with integrated television
screen, and many even have televisions in strength training areas, where concentration --
especially around free weights -- is critical.
91
Wireless headsets are now available, allowing gym members to wander while listening to
one of 14 digital audio programs. Soon there may be video Ipods able to interface with a
club system. Eventually, members would be able to select from a bank of movies and
programs and view between those and wellness data such as heart rate and blood pressure.
Fun, sure, but this may not be the best way to wade through a workout. Survey the cardio
areas of a gym and invariably a few people will be engrossed in a show to the point that
they are going through the motions of exercising - slowly pedaling the trainer, inching
along on the treadmill - and barely sweating or breathing hard.
Certainly, it is more productive than napping, most fitness experts agree. But it may sell
exercisers short, making them wonder why they haven't seen significant improvements in
their bodies after weeks or months at the gym. The reason -- their workout is lackadaisical,
and they are not exercising at the appropriate level.
But clubs need to stay competitive with the market and please members, many of whom are
tech-savvy and have the latest gadgets such as mega-screen plasma TVs and video cell
phones. More fundamentally, exercise, for many, isn't too exciting -- especially for
someone trudging along monotonously on a cardio machine. One of the main problems is
to keep people in the program, club owners say and anything that attracts people to an
exercise program is helpful. Even low levels of physical exertion can have significant
health benefits, say academics and researchers. It helps to lower blood pressure, reduce
body fat and improve cardiovascular function.
Studies do show that television can help people with an exercise program. Those who are
new to exercise need something to divert them from the pain and discomfort, at least in the
first six months when dropout rates are high. But for the more experienced exerciser or
someone whose weight loss or fitness goals are more defined, there may be fewer
advantages to constantly fixating on a TV screen. Ideally, people ought to be in tune with
their bodies while exercising, staying aware of their intensity level, heart rate and
perspiration.
Beyond the first six months people should be more conscious of how long they are
exercising and at what intensity and should build adherence firs before building
physiological changes.
A barrage of stimuli from television could certainly interfere with the concentration
required for more complex workouts. The brain can handle two tasks as long as they are
controlled by different areas. But combining two cognitive functions like monitoring heart
rate while keeping up with a football game could cause problems as the person is engaging
92
in activities in the same domain in the brain.

Growing technology is going to provide more distractions, not fewer. That may not be such
a problem for people in their 20s who are used to constant distractions but for the older
generation, this would be harder. Thus, other alternatives ought to be considered apart from
the gym such as walking or jogging or even sports.
Based on the passage given, write a summary about

1. why TV entertainments have become popular at gymnasiums
2. the disadvantages of having TVs in gyms
Note: Credit will be given for use of own words, but care must be taken not to change the
original meaning. Your summary must be in continuous form and not longer than 130
words, including the 10 words given below.
Begin your summary as follows:
"Television has become popular at gymnasiums for distraction during workouts ..."
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
93
UNIT 8: STYLE AND TONE
Do you wear the same thing to the beach as you do to a job interview? Of course not! 
Likewise, your words should not wear the same thing in a Facebook post as they do in an
academic paper. Most of our everyday writing is informal. Academic writing is formal.  
Formal writing can be distinguished from informal writing by its tone and style.
There is no one correct style of academic writing, and students should aim to develop their
own style. This unit gives some guidelines for an appropriate style.
1. TONE
1.1. Definition
Tone is the author’s attitude toward the topic. The author’s attitude is expressed through the
words and details he or she selects.
For example, textbooks are usually written with an objective tone which includes facts and
reasonable explanations. The objective tone is matter-of-fact and neutral. The details are
mostly facts. On the other hand, fiction and personal essays are usually written with a
subjective tone. A subjective tone uses words that describe feelings, judgments, or opinions.
The details are likely to include experiences, senses, feelings, and thoughts.
1.2. Basic types of tone in writing

Any emotion, any attitude, and any perspective can lay the foundation for a specific tone in
writing. If you can come up with an adjective, then that can be a tone. This means if you look
at tone with specificity, there is an infinite number that can be used.
Following are some basic types of tone in writing, but that doesn’t mean a writer is limited to
using just one tone as they compose something. It is possible to use all of these tones in some
way in specific instances.
Joyful Optimistic Pessimistic Serious Horror
Humorous Objective Sad Subjective Informal
Formal Bitter Sentimental Factual Tolerant
Critical Boastful Sympathetic Plain Straightforward
94
1.3.Practice
Practice 1
The following statements each express different attitudes about a shabby apartment.
Choose appropriate tone from these 6 different tones: optimistic, bitter, tolerant,
sentimental, humorous, and objective.
1. This place may be shabby, but since both of my children were born while we lived here, it
has a special place in my heart. 
The tone is ………………..
2. This isn’t the greatest apartment in the world, but it’s not really that bad.  
The tone is ……………….. 
3. If only there were some decent jobs out there, I wouldn’t be reduced to living in this
miserable dump. 
4. This place does need some repairs, but I’m sure the landlord will be making improvements
sometime soon. 
5. When we move away, we’re planning to release three hundred cockroaches and tow mice,
so we can leave the place exactly as we found it. 
6. This is the apartment we live in. It provides shelter.  
Practice 2
Read the passage and answer the following questions.
Tony’s Place is crammed into a tiny building next to the Fine Arts Theater. The owners
offer a menu of Italian food. They’ve got the checkered table clothes, dim lights, and crusty
bread. They also know how to make a hearty red sauce. Too bad they use it to drown
delicate fish. They also seem to lace everything with truckloads of garlic.
The service needs some work, too. Our waiter didn’t know what the specials were. Nor did
he think to refill our water glasses before we asked. With a combination of fake-friendly
95
chatter and outright nagging, he made us order, finish up, and clear out. He seemed to see
us only as automatic tip machines. The food and low prices bring the customers in the door.
The service should not push them out.
• The tone of the passage is

a. sad.
b. boastful.
c. plain and factual.  
d. critical, or finds fault.  
• The writer says, “He seemed to see us only as automatic tip machines.” The tone of
this sentence is  
a. very serious
b. threatening.
c. sympathetic.  
d. sarcastic.  
• The writer’s main purpose is to
a. inform the reader.  
b. caution and entertain the reader.  
c. flatter the reader.
d. sell something to the reader.
• In which sentence does the author use exaggeration to make a point about the food?
a. The owners offer a menu of Italian food.  
b. They also know how to make a hearty red sauce.  
c. They also seem to lace everything with truckloads of garlic.  
d. The food and low prices bring the customers in the door.  
Practice 3
Choose the tone word from the box that best describes each item.
a. sympathetic   d. sarcastic
b. straightforward e. irritated
c. sad f. threatening  
96
___1. “Please note in your checkbook how much money you spent using your ATM card
today.”
___2. “Hey, lay off, you don’t have to nag me. I was going to do it anyway!” 
___3. “When are you going to take the garbage out? Sometime this year, maybe?”
___4. “I know it’s been hard. And I appreciate all you are going through right now. If you will
just put the receipts on the counter, I will take care of the paperwork for you.”
2. STYLE
Every author has his or her own style to make his or her writing recognizable. When you read
several books by the same author, you become accustomed to the author’s style of writing and
sometimes you look for authors with a similar style. Style is the way the author uses words,
phrases, and sentences.
Good style connects right word to right word to make the right sentence. Bad style uses either
the wrong word or the wrong level of diction for its subject matter.
An author’s style may look like this:
1. T-shirt and jeans 2. Business casual attire 3. Tuxedo and gown

Informal style Semi-formal style Formal style
2.1. Functions of style
 Style helps to characterize the speaker. A good writer, careful of style, uses
connotations or associations to characterize.
 Style creates tone, which is the value, that style or gesture gives to words.
 Style can convey an author’s judgement of a character.
 Style is also a means of persuasion.
 Style is discovery. In striving to say exactly what he wants to say, the
97
writer discovers a more accurate expression of what he wants to say.
 Style results from linguistic choices; the more frequently these choices
are exercised and the more wide-ranging they are, the higher the probability they will
effectively express the writer’s unique thought and feeling.
 Style sharpens expressive meaning as well as referential meaning.
 Style is not mere ornament; rather it conveys important subtleties of meaning and
evaluation, especially as they define the nature of the writer, his basic attitudes, his
pre-suppositions, his moral stance, and his relation to his subject and his reader.
2.2. Elements of style
Many different elements go into what makes up an author's "style". So, when analyzing an
author’s style, we need to consider:
 Author’s purpose
 Sentence’s length
 Sentence structure
 Sentence’s order
 Diction / Word choice
 Tone
 Level of formality
 ...
2.2.1. Purpose
Purpose is the reason an author writes about a topic.
An author writes to share a main idea about a topic. An author’s main idea is directly related
to the author’s purpose. One of the three following purposes will drive a main idea: to inform,
to entertain, and to persuade.
 To inform – to give information about a subject. Authors with this purpose wish to
provide facts that will explain or teach something to readers. 
Example: Pain is a normal part of a physical process that lets us know something is wrong.
 To entertain – to amuse and delight; to appeal to the reader’s senses and imagination.
Authors with this purpose set out to captivate or interest the audience.
Example: “Yes, I have gained weight. I weighed only 8 pounds when I was born.” 
98
 To persuade – to convince the reader to agree with the author’s point of view on a
subject. Authors with this purpose may give facts, but their main goal is to argue or prove
a point to readers.
Example: The death penalty is deeply flawed and should be abolished. 
NOTE: An author may have a more specific purpose in mind other than to inform, entertain,
or persuade. The following chart shows examples of specific purposes.
General and Specific Purposes
To inform To entertain To persuade
To analyze To argue against
To clarify To amuse To argue for 
To discuss To delight To convince 
To establish To frighten To criticize
To explain To inspire (motivate a change)
Practice 1
Directions: Read the descriptions of each item and determine the author’s main purpose (to
entertain, persuade, or inform). Then, in a sentence or two, explain your answer.
1. A story about a family trying to stick together and survive through the Great Depression in
the Midwest in the 1930s.
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
2. A section in a history book describing the conditions and causes of the Great Depression
in the Midwest in the 1930s..
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
3. An instructional booklet describing how to operate a smart phone.
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
4. An article where the author argues that an iPhone is better than an Android phone.
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
5. A poem about why the iPhone is the greatest consumer electronic device ever made.
Author’s Purpose:
6. The story of a young athlete who takes steroids and his life and future fall apart.
99
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________

7. A medical report describing the effects of steroids on the human body.
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
8. A speech written by a professional athlete listing the negative effects of steroids and
urging young athletes to not use steroids.
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
9. A booklet containing the school rules and the consequences for violating those rules.
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
10. A story written about a young boy who moves to a new school and is bullied, but he gains
self-confidence by joining a sports team and learns to stand up for himself.
Author’s Purpose: _______________________________________________________
2.2.2. Sentence length

• Are the sentences telegraphic (shorter than 5 words in length), medium
(approximately eighteen words in length), or long and involved (thirty words or
more in length)?
• How does (or does not) sentence length reflect the subject matter, what variety of
lengths is present? Why is the sentence length effective?
• How does (or does no) the sentence length variety impact meaning?
2.2.3. Sentence structure
Some elements to consider are listed below:
2.2.3.1. Sentences can be classified by purpose:
 Declarative - makes a statement

 Interrogative – asks a question
 Imperative – gives a command
 Exclamatory – interjects a feeling
2.2.3.2. Sentences can also be classified by structure:
 Simple sentence - one subject and one verb

 Compound sentence - two independent clauses joined by a coordinate conjunction
(and, but, or) or by a semicolon
 Complex sentence - one independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses
100
 Compound-complex sentence - two or more principal clauses and one or more

subordinate clause
2.2.3.3. Sentences can be classified by arrangement:
 A loose sentence makes complete sense if brought to a close before the actual ending:
Example: We reached Edmonton that morning after a turbulent fight and some exciting
experiences.
 A periodic sentence makes sense only when the end of the sentence is reached:
Example: That morning, after a turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, we reached
Edmonton.
Practice 2
Place the correct punctuation in the boxes to end each sentence. Identify each sentence
as either declarative, interrogative, imperative or exclamatory.
1. Pick up some more milk when you pass by the supermarket

2. Just try and figure out what the new password is
3. How beautiful your rose garden is
4. May I have a clean plate
5. Did the door lock behind you
6. Use at least five hundred words in your essay
7. Take a good look at this financial chart
8. There is no way I am going to let you get a tattoo
9. Clean out the gutters with this plastic scooper I bought
10. I am sick and tired of this rainy weather
11. Go get another paper towel from the kitchen
12. This closet is where we keep the spare batteries
13. This phone bill is highway robbery
14. What was in the box that was left outside
15. You can find more paper towels in the cabinet under the sink
16. Did you enjoy the lasagna I cooked for you
17. My iPod was here just a minute ago, and now it’s gone
Practice 3
Read the following sentences. Write “simple” if it is a simple sentence. Write

“compound” if it is a compound sentence. Write “complex” if it is a complex sentence.
101
1. We have to go to bed when the clock chimes ten o’clock.
2. Jennifer liked William’s friend, and she also liked his cousin.
3. The big brown dog ran after the blue and red ball.
4. James and Eve rode their bicycles after they ate lunch.
5. The teacher and the principal met in the hall near the library.
6. Many brave soldiers fought in the war, and they received medals.
7. The drummers played a long time, but the piano players stopped early.
8. Before the queen rode in the parade, she gave a speech.
9. After midnight the ghosts will come out of the haunted attic.
10. She dropped the pan and the plate, but she held on to the spoon.
2.2.4. Sentence order

 Natural order of a sentence involves constructing sentences so the subject comes
before the predicate, e.g., Oranges grow in California.
 Inverted order of a sentence (sentence inversion) involves constructing sentences so
the predicate comes before the subject, e.g., In California grow oranges. This is a
device in which normal sentence patterns are reversed to create an emphatic or
rhythmic effect.
 Split order of sentences divides the predicate into two parts with the subject coming
in the middle, e.g., In California oranges grow.
2.2.5. Word choice / Diction
Diction (choice of words) – Describe diction by considering the following and give examples
from the selection to support your point of view.
 Are the words monosyllabic (one syllable in length) or polysyllabic (more than one
syllable in length)? What impact does this have?
 Are the words mainly colloquial (slang), informal (conversational), formal (literary) or
old-fashioned? What impact does this have?
 Are the words mainly denotative (containing an exact meaning), e.g. dress, or
connotative (containing a suggested meaning), e.g. gown. What impact does this
have?
 Are the words concrete (specific) or abstract (general)? What impact does this have?
102
 Are the words may be euphonious (pleasant sounding) or cacophonous (harsh

sounding) What impact does this have?
 Are the verbs active and varied? Or passive and repetitive?
Practice 4
Choose a short word or phrase from the list to replace a word / phrase in each sentence.
about change during because help
a) The subject's illness caused a variation in mood.  
b) I would be happy to facilitate the group.  
c) In view of the fact that the budget is limited, applications for funding must be considered
carefully.
d) The presentation with regard to management styles was very entertaining  
e) In the course of my scholarship, I hope to travel to Uluru.  
Practice 5
Delete any unnecessary words in these sentences.
a) It should be noted that this behaviour can be unlearnt.  
b) The floods in the Philippines were a serious crisis.  
c) As a matter of fact, Liao agrees with Dominguez.  
d) Immunisation programs do not completely eliminate diseases.  
e) An equitable solution is not impossible.  
2.2.6. Level of formality and personality

Style and tone operate together through a combination of the varying levels of formality and
personality that you employ.
2.2.6.1. Level of formality

The level of formality in writing can be roughly divided into three categories.
Formal writing belongs in the structures and language of ceremonies, contracts, policies, or
some literary writing. Formal writing, by the way, doesn’t mean dull and drab material.
Indeed, lively language always enhances such material.
Informal writing is casual, colloquial, and sometimes playful, usually found in emails, text
messages on cell phones, Facebook postings, and in certain blogs.
103
Semiformal writing, which sits between these poles, is the style and tone found in academic,
as well as in much business and public writing. For and audience expecting such
communication, its style is clear and efficient, and its tone is reasonable and even handed.
Generally, when you write for an audience about whom you know a little, a somewhat more
formal style and tone is appropriate, though an entirely formal presentation isn’t desirable.
Here are examples of writing in the three levels of formality.
Informal: It totally sweet how gas makes stars.
Semiformal: Gas clouds slowly transform into stars.
Formal: The condensations of gas spun their slow gravitational pirouettes, slowly
transmogrifying gas clouds into star.
Carl Sagan, “Starfolk: A Fable”
2.2.6.2. Personality
Personality refers to how much the writer reveals about him or herself with patterns of
sentence structure and choice of words.
An intimate style and tone, which treats the reader as a close friend, includes specific personal
experiences and opinions.
A familiar or polite style and tone includes some experiences or personal thought, but only of
a kind you might share in a professional relationship with an instructor, supervisor, or
colleague. In such writing, the reader can glimpse the writer behind the language, but not as
fully as in intimate writing because the emphasis is on the ideas or subject matter.
An impersonal style reveals nothing about the writer, so that the content is all that the reader
is aware of.
Intimate: When your eighth grade teacher assigned Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, I got
cranky and angry after the first chapter. Why did he lay something so hard on us? I couldn’t
catch the story or figure out what the dialect was saying.
Familiar / Polite: The next day in class, I was greatly relieved to discover that most other
students had run into the same problems as I had reading Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.
Impersonal: Our teacher explicated the story line and clarified how to decode the dialect,
which enabled the class to appreciate the narrative and its underlying message.
Practice 6
104
Describe the style of each of the following paragraphs in terms of formality and
personality.
A. I would be willing to bet serious money that right now in your kitchen you have olive oil,
garlic, pasta, parmesan cheese, and dried basil (maybe even fresh basil!). Nothing exotic
there, right? They’re ingredients we take for granted. But their appearance in our kitchens
is a relatively recent phenomenon. Believe me, those big-favor items did not come over on
the Mayflower. It tools generations, even centuries, for Americans to expand their
culinary horizons to the point where just about everybody cooks Italian and orders
Chinese take-out. Heck, the supermarket in my little Connecticut hometown even has a
sushi bar.
Thomas J. Craughwell, “If Only the Pilgrims Had Been Italian”
B. Google has yet to hit upon a strategy that combines the innovation it is known for with an
appeal to the self-interest that is the currency of the capital’s power brokers. One reason
AT&T and Microsoft have succeeded in stocking antitrust interest against Google - quite
ironic, given that both companies have been subject to a large government antitrust
actions - is that they’re better versed in the fine points of lobbying. Both companies, for
example, hold sway over many lawmakers by frequently reminding them how many
employees lives in their districts (“jobs” is a metric lawmakers respond to).
Joshua Green, “Google’s Tar Pit”
C. Prices are rising for the black sludge that helps make the world’s gears turn. If you think
we’re talking about oil, think again. Petroleum prices have tumbled from their record
highs. No sooner was there relief at the pump, however, than came a squeeze at the pot.
That jolt of coffee that a majority of American adults enjoy on a daily basis has gotten
more expensive and could go even higher this year…
New York Times, “Joe Economics”
D. Use form W-9 only if you are a U.S. person (including a resident alien), to provide your
correct TIN to the person requesting it (the requester) and, when applicable, to:
1. Certify that the TIN you are giving is correct (or you are waiting for a number to be
issued),
2. Certify that you are not subject to backup withholding, or
3. Claim exemption from backup withholding if you are a U.S. exempt payee
Internal Revenue Service, Directions for Form W-9
105
E. I remember vividly the moment that I entered the world of literacy, education, institutional
“correctness”, and, consequently, identity. I was demonstrating to my older sister how I
wrote my name. the memory comes after I had been literally taught how to do it - which
strokes of the pencil to use to create the symbols that equate to my name.
Elise Geraghty, “In the Name of the Father”
UNIT 9: MOCK TEST
Write a 400-to-500-word critical response essay to the article “What makes a prodigy”
by David Z. Hambrick in Scientific American magazine.
Notes: - Textbooks and other printed materials can be used.
- No electronic devices are permitted.
106
What Makes a Prodigy?
By David Z. Hambrick on September 22, 2015
This January, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, classical music’s original wunderkind, turns
260. Before his untimely death, at age 35, Mozart composed 61 symphonies, 49
concertos, 23 operas, 17 masses, and scores of other works. He was said to be
composing on his deathbed. But through a dozen or so major biographies and the 1984
movie Amadeus, what has most captivated the popular imagination are Mozart's
childhood accomplishments. As the historian Paul Johnson recounts in Mozart: A
Life, Mozart began playing the clavier at age 4 and was composing at 5. The following
year, he played for the Holy Roman Empress of the Habsburg Dynasty and her musically
inclined daughter, Marie Antoinette. At age 7, he toured Germany and played for Louis
XV at a dinner party in Paris, and by age 14, he had composed an opera. Thus did
Mozart accomplish more by the age that someone today would enter high school than
one of his contemporaries would hope to accomplish in a long composing career?
What explains prodigies? How can a person accomplish so much and so fast?
Psychologists have long debated this question. According to one account, it is possible
that most anyone could be a prodigy, with the right environment. As the late
psychologist Michael Howe argued, "With sufficient energy and dedication on the
parents' part, it is possible that it may not be all that difficult to produce a child
prodigy." Extraordinary opportunity is indeed a theme that runs through the
biographies of many prodigies. Mozart’s father, Leopold, was a highly sought after
music teacher, and gave up his own promising career as a musician to mange his son’s
career. More recently, Tiger Woods’ father introduced him to golf at age 2. When Venus
and Serena Williams were children, they moved with their family from California to
Florida so they could train at an elite tennis academy.
However, recent research indicates that basic cognitive abilities known to be

influenced by genetic factors also play a role in prodigious achievement. In the most
extensive study of prodigies to date, the psychologist Joanne Ruthsatz and her
colleagues administered a standardized test of intelligence to 18 prodigies - five in art,
eight in music, and five in math. There was a wide range of IQs in the sample, from 100 -
the average for the general population - to 147 - well above the usual cutoff for
“intellectually gifted.” However, with an average score of 140 (above the 99th
percentile), nearly all of the prodigies did extraordinarily well on the tests of working
memory. Analogous to the central processing unit of a computer, working memory is a
cognitive system responsible for carrying out the mental operations involved in complex
tasks such as problem solving and language comprehension. It is what you use when
you compute a tip for a dinner check in your head, or when you hold in mind the steps
107
of a complex skill you are trying to learn.
Working memory is measured with tests that involve both remembering information
for a short period of time and manipulating that information in some way. For example,
in backward digit span, the test-taker is read a sequence of random digits, such as 8 3 2
9 5 1 3 7 5 0. The goal is then to recall the digits back in the reverse order - 0 5 7 3 1 5 9
2 3 8 for the preceding sequence. As measured by tests like these, people differ
substantially in the capacity of their working memory system - some people have a
“bigger” working memory than other people. Moreover, this variation is substantially
influenced by genetic factors, with estimates of heritability typically around 50%.
Prodigies also exhibit an unusual commitment to their domain, which the

developmental psychologist Ellen Winner calls a “rage to master”. Winner describes
children who possess this quality in the following terms: “Often one cannot tear these
children away from activities in their area of giftedness, whether they involve an
instrument, a computer, a sketch pad, or a math book. These children have a powerful
interest in the domain in which they have high ability, and they can focus so intently on
work in this domain that they lose sense of the outside world.” Winner argues that this
single-mindedness is a part of innate talent rather than a cause of it - a convergence of
genetically-influenced aptitude, interest, and drive that predisposes a person to
obsessively engage in some activity. And “rage to master” is a good description of
Mozart’s personality. In her landmark biographical study of 301 geniuses, Catherine
Cox noted that “before his 6th year, Mozart’s sole absorbing interest was in music, and
even the games he played had some musical element.”
Consistent with Winner’s thesis, results of a recent study of more than 10,000 twins
by Miriam Mosing, Fredrik Ullén, and their colleagues at Sweden’s Karolinska Institute
revealed that a common set of genes influence both music aptitude and the propensity
to practice - an example of a phenomenon known as genetic pleiotropy, which occurs
when one gene (or set of genes) influences multiple traits.
Taken together, these findings add to a growing body of evidence indicating that
exceptional performance in music, the arts, sports, science, and other complex domains
is, at its core, determined multiply - the product of both environmental factors and of
genetically-influenced traits. More generally, psychologists who study expertise are
moving beyond the question of whether experts are “born” or “made.” As the
psychologist Jonathan Wai put it, it is increasingly clear that “Experts are born, then
made.”
Source: www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-makes-a-prodigy/
Notes:
108
Scientific American (informally abbreviated SciAm) is an American popular science

magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein, have contributed articles in
the past 170 years. It is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the
United States (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia).
David Z. Hambrick is a professor in the Department of Psychology at Michigan State

University. His research focuses on individual differences in intelligence and skill. He is
an associate editor of the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, and has written
for the New York Times, Huffington Post, and Slate.
UNIT 10: FEEDBACK ON THE MOCK TEST AND REVISION
1. Feedback on the mock test
2. Review of the useful language for critical response
Summary language
109
• This article / book is divided into two / three parts. First...

• While the title might suggest...
• The tone is deliberately...
• Title is the first / second volume in the series Title, edited by...The books / articles in
this series address...
• The second / third claim is based on...
• The author challenges the notion that...
• The author tries to find a more middle ground / make more modest claims...
• The article / book begins with a short historical overview of...
• Numerous authors have recently suggested that...(see Author, Year; Author, Year).
Author would also be once such author. With his / her argument that...
• To refer to title as a...is not to say that it is...
• This book / article is aimed at... This intended readership...
• The author’s book / article examines the...To do this, the author first...
• The author develops / suggests a theoretical / pedagogical model to…
• This book / article positions itself firmly within the field of...
• The author in a series of subtle arguments, indicates that he / she...
• The argument is therefore...
• The author asks "..."
• With a purely critical / postmodern take on...
• Topic, as the author points out, can be viewed as...
• In this recent contribution to the field of...this British author...
• As a leading author in the field of...
• This book / article nicely contributes to the field of...and complements other work by
this author...
• The second / third part of...provides / questions / asks the reader...
• Title is intended to encourage students / researchers to...
• The approach taken by the author provides the opportunity to examine...in a
qualitative / quantitative research framework that nicely complements...
• The author notes / claims that state support / a focus on pedagogy / the adoption
of...remains vital if...
• According to Author (Year) teaching towards examinations is not as effective as it is
in other areas of the curriculum. This is because, as Author (Year) claims that
examinations have undue status within the curriculum.
110
• According to Author (Year)…is not as effective in some areas of the curriculum /

syllabus as others. Therefore the author believes that this is a reason for some
school’s…
Evaluation language
• This article / book is not without disappointment from those who would view...as...
• This argument has been dubbed the straw man / is a double edged sword
as...furthermore it commodifies / rationalizes the...
• Over the last five / ten years the view of...has increasingly been viewed as
‘complicated’ (see Author, Year; Author, Year).
• However, through trying to integrate...with...the author...
• There are difficulties with such a position.
• Inevitably, several crucial questions are left unanswered / glossed over by this
insightful / timely / interesting / stimulating book / article. Why should...
• It might have been better for the author to have written this book / article as...
• This chosen framework enlightens / clouds...
• This analysis intends to be...but falls a little short as...
• The authors rightly conclude that if...
• A detailed, well-written and rigorous account of...
• As a Korean student I feel that this article / book very clearly illustrates...
• The beginning of...provides an informative overview into...
• The tables / figures do little to help / greatly help the reader...
• The reaction by scholars who take a...approach might not be so favourable (e.g.
Author, Year).
• This explanation has a few weaknesses that other researchers have pointed out (see
Author, Year; Author, Year). The first is...
• On the other hand, the author wisely suggests / proposes that...By combining these
two dimensions...
• The author’s quick introduction to...may leave the intended reader confused as it fails
to properly...
• Despite my inability to...I was greatly interested in...
• Even where this reader / I disagree(s), the author’s effort to...
• The author thus combines...with...to argue...which seems quite improbable for a
number of reasons. First...
111
• Perhaps this aversion to...would explain the author’s reluctance to...

• As a second language student from ...I find it slightly ironic that such an anglo-centric
view is...
• The reader is rewarded with...
• Less convincing is the broad-sweeping generalisation that...
• There is no denying the author’s subject knowledge nor his / her...
• The author’s prose is dense and littered with unnecessary jargon...
• The author’s critique of...might seem harsh but is well supported within the literature
(see Author, Year; Author, Year; Author, Year). Aligning herself with the author,
Author (Year) states that...
• As it stands, the central focus of Title is well / poorly supported by its empirical
findings...
• Given the hesitation to generalise to...the limitation of...does not seem problematic...
• For instance, the term...is never properly defined and the reader left to guess as to
whether...
• Furthermore, to label...as...inadvertently misguides...
• In addition, this research proves to be timely / especially significant to... as recent
government policy / proposals has / have been enacted to...
• On this well researched / documented basis the author emphasises / proposes that...
• Nonetheless, other research / scholarship / data tend to counter / contradict this
possible trend / assumption...(see Author, Year; Author, Year).
• Without entering into detail of the..., it should be stated that Title should be read
by...others will see little value in...
• As experimental conditions were not used in the study the word ‘significant’ misleads
the reader.
• The article / book becomes repetitious in its assertion that...
• The thread of the author’s argument becomes lost in an overuse of empirical data...
• Almost every argument presented in the final section is largely derivative, providing
little to say about...
• She / he does not seem to take into consideration; however, that there are fundamental
differences in the conditions of…
• As Author (Year) points out, however, it seems to be necessary to look at…
• This suggest that having low…does not necessarily indicate that…is ineffective.
• Therefore, the suggestion made by Author (Year)…is difficult to support.
112
• When considering all the data presented…it is not clear that the low scores of some
students, indeed, reflects…
Conclusion language
• Overall this article / book is an analytical look at...which within the field of...is often
overlooked.
• Despite its problems, Title, offers valuable theoretical insights / interesting examples /
a contribution to pedagogy and a starting point for students / researchers of...with an
interest in...
• This detailed and rigorously argued...
• This first / second volume / book / article by...with an interest in...is highly
informative...
• This book is a must read for mature students / researchers of...and those involved
with...
113
APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1: REPORT TEMPLATE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SUMMARY ......................................................................................................................................
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................
FINDINGS ........................................................................................................................................
I. Data Collection ............................................................................................................................
II. Data Analysis .............................................................................................................................
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ..............................................................................
APPENDICES ...................................................................................................................................
BIBLIOGRAPHY .............................................................................................................................
114
SUMMARY
This report was to ……………
The investigation was done by ………………
The main findings were that ……………
It was concluded that ………………
The recommendations are that ……… should be …………….
115
INTRODUCTION
1. Purpose
The purpose of this report is to ………………..
(Or: The objective(s) of this report is/are to …………………….)
2. Scope
The report examines …… It does not examine ………. because …………
3. Sources
The information for this report was gathered from the following sources:
• …………………………………
• ………………………………….
• ………………………………….
• ………………………………….
116
FINDINGS
I. Data collection
1. Questionnaires (Compulsory)
In order to find out the students’ evaluation on…, the questionnaire was used as an
instrument (reasons for using). → (Questionnaire description)
Questionnaires were delivered to … (number) participants on….(date). It took the
participants …(number) minutes to finish their surveys. Right after that, …….
(number) questionnaires were collected by the researcher.
Or: The survey was conducted by means of …………. → (Questionnaire
description).
… (number) participants took part in answering the questionnaire. They spent …
(time) to do it. …(number) questionnaires were given back to the researcher right
after that.
2. Observation (Optional)
3. Interviews (Optional)
II. Data Analysis
1. Questionnaires (Compulsory)
2. Observation (Optional)
3. Interviews (Optional)
117
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
If any conclusions may be drawn from this report, they are, perhaps, as follows:
(Or: On the basis of information in this report, it can be concluded that:
Or: The main conclusion that can be drawn is therefore that …..)
From these conclusions, it is therefore recommended that:
(Or In the light of these conclusions, I recommend that ……..should be ….)
118
APPENDIX 2:
A GUIDE TO HARVARD REFERENCING SYSTEM
In-text references
In the text of your essay or thesis you should identify your source by giving, in parentheses,
the author's name and year of publication of the work to which reference has been made.
From the textual reference, the reader can turn to the alphabetical list of references for full
publication details. Page numbers are essential if directly quoting from a work, use single
quotation marks and relevant page number. If a work being referred to is long then page
numbers may be useful to the reader.
For example:
Larsen (1971) was the first to propound the theory.
OR
The theory was first propounded in 1970 (Larsen 1971).
For example:
Larsen (1971, p. 245) noted ‘many of the facts in this case are incorrect’.
OR
’Many of the facts in this case are incorrect’ (Larsen 1971, p. 245).
For example:
Larsen (1971, p. 245) questions certain aspects of this case.
OR
Many aspects of this case have been questioned (Larsen 1971, p. 245).
If citing multiple works at one point in the text it is recommended that the authors’ names
be ordered alphabetically inside the parentheses, with a semicolon to separate them.
For example:
Other studies of globalization focus on its cultural and human implications (Bauman
1998; Tomlinson 1999).
Reference List
At the end of your work you should include a list of ALL the references you have cited in
your text. The Reference List is arranged alphabetically by author, and thereafter
chronologically, starting with the earliest date.
For example:
Jones, AB 2000, …
Jones, B 1995, …
Smith, AK 1990, …
Smith, AK 1995, …
Stein, B 2003 …
Stein, B & Reynolds, JS 1995, …
Stein, B & Reynolds, JS 2000, …
Style manual for authors, editors and printers 2002, …
Yarbro, CH, Frogge, MH, Goodman, M & Groenwald, SL 2000, …
Young, JC 1988a, …
Young, JC 1988b, …
The format of the citation depends on the nature of the work, ie. whether it is a book, journal
article, website, etc. In general the order of elements contained within each reference should
119
include: author – date – title of work – title of larger work (if any) – publishing details – date
of access (if electronic). Apart from the author and date, each element is separated from the
others with a comma and the citation finishes with a full stop.
Abbreviations
Acceptable abbreviations in the reference list for parts of books and other publications
include:
app. appendix
c. circa
ch. chapter
ed. (eds.) editor (Editors)
edn. edition
et al. and others
n.d. no date
n.p. no place
no. number
p., pp. page/s
para. paragraph
pt. part
rev. revised
suppl. supplement
vol. volume (as in Vol.4)
vols. volumes (as in 4 volumes)
Examples
Authors
Whatever type of work you are referencing, the way you list the authors’ names depends on
the number of authors.
In-text citation Reference list
One author (Jones 1995) Jones, B 1995, Sleepers, wake!:

or technology and the future of work,
Jones (1995) states…… 4th edn, Oxford University Press,
Melbourne.
Two or three authors (Stein & Reynolds 2000) Stein, B & Reynolds, JS 2000,
or Mechanical and electrical
Where there is more than
Stein and Reynolds (2000) equipment for buildings, 9th edn,
one author, the in-text
argue….. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
citation in parentheses will
use an ampersand (&) to
join them, whilst if the
reference is part of the
sentence you use the word
‘ and .’
Four or more authors (Yarbro et al. 2000) Yarbro, CH, Frogge, MH,
120
or Goodman, M & Groenwald, SL

If there are four or more
Yarbro et al. (2000) have 2000, Cancer nursing, 5th edn,
authors only include the
found…… Jones and Bartlett, Boston.
first author in your in-text
citation, adding the words ‘
et al. ’ meaning ‘and
others.’ However the
Reference List should
include all authors.
Multiple works at one (Bauman 1998; Tomlinson Bauman, Z 1998, Globalization

point in the text 1999) and culture, Polity Press, Oxford.
Authors’ names should be
ordered alphabetically Tomlinson, J 1999, Globalization:
inside the parentheses, with the human consequences,
a semicolon to separate Routledge, London.
them.
Several works by same (Heyland 2001) Heyland, DK 2001, ‘In search of

first author and year or the magic nutraceutical: problems
Heyland (2001) reports….. with current approaches’, Journal
Single author entries
of nutrition, vol. 131, no. 9, p.
precede references with
2591S.
multiple authors beginning
with the same name. ------ & Novak, F 2001,
‘Immunonutrition in the critically
A 2-em rule can be used to (Heyland & Novak 2001)
ill patient: more harm than good?’,
replace the authors’ or
JPEN: Journal of parenteral and
name(s) that are repeated. Heyland and Novak
enteral nutrition, vol. 25, no. 2, p.
(2001) reports…..
S51.
Several works by same (Porter 2001a) Porter, ME 2001a, 'Japan: what

author and year (Porter 2001b) went wrong', Wall Street Journal -
or Eastern Edition, vol. 237, no. 56,
If you are referring to
Porter (2001a) states…. p. A22.
several works by the same
or
author or group of authors ---- 2001b, 'Strategy and the
according to Porter
from the same year, Internet', Harvard Business
(2001b) …
designate these a, b, c, …. Review, vol. 79, no. 3, p. 62.
with the order of the listing
based on the letter-by-letter
alphabetical order of the
title of the work.
No author given Style manual for authors, Style manual for authors, editors
editors and printers (2002) and printers 2002, 6th edn, John
Where an item has no
or Wiley & Sons, Australia.
named author it is cited by
According to the Style
its title.
manual for authors,
editors and printers (2002)
…
121
Editor/s (eds. Muller, Cloete & Muller, J, Cloete, N & Badat, S

Badat 2001) (eds.) 2001, Challenges of
Use the abbreviation ed.
or globalisation: South African
for editor or eds. for
edited by Muller, Cloete debates with Manuel Castells,
multiple editors.
and Badat (2001) Maskew Miller Longman,
Pinelands, Cape Town.
Books
Book
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year, Title of book, Edition, Publisher, Place of publication.
Example:
Jones, B 1995, Sleepers, wake!: technology and the future of work, 4th edn, Oxford
University Press, Melbourne.
Book chapter
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year, ‘Title of chapter’, [in] Author of book (if different), Title of
book, Edition, Publisher, Place of publication, Page number(s).
Examples:
Crawford, RJ 1998, 'Plastics available to the designer', in Plastics engineering, 3rd edn,
Heinemann-Butterworth, Oxford, pp. 6-18.
E-book from a database

Note: Style manual for authors, editors and printers (2002) does not distinguish between
printed sources and those sourced electronically. The following is a suggested procedure for
referencing e-books.
If an e-book is retrieved electronically from a library database in page image format, eg. in an
Acrobat (PDF) file, cite it the same as the original printed book. Where alternative formats are
available, it is recommended to choose page image format.
If an e-book is retrieved from a library database where it has been reformatted, eg. as HTML
or plain text, or from a website, you should cite the source you have used, as images, charts,
page numbers, etc. may have been removed. Where the source is a library database give the
database name, or if it is from the internet give the URL.
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year of publication, Title of book, Edition, Publisher, Place of
publication, viewed day month year, database name.
Example:
Kung, SY, Mak, MW & Lin, SH 2004, Biometric authentication: a machine learning
approach, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ., viewed 5 August 2005, Safari Tech Books
Online.
122
E-book from the Internet

printed sources and those sourced electronically. The following is a suggested procedure for
referencing e-books.
If an e-book is retrieved electronically from a library database in page image format, eg. in an
Acrobat (PDF) file, cite it the same as the original printed book. Where alternative formats are
available, it is recommended to choose page image format.
If an e-book is retrieved from a library database where it has been reformatted, eg. as HTML
or plain text, or from a website, you should cite the source you have used, as images, charts,
page numbers, etc. may have been removed. Where the source is a library database give the
database name, or if it is from the internet give the URL.
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year of publication, ‘Title of chapter’, [in] Author of book (if
different), Title of book, Edition, Publisher, Place of publication, viewed day month year,
<URL>.
Example:
Chen, C & Farruggia, S 2002, ‘Culture and adolescent development’, in Lonner, WJ, Dinnel,
DL, Hayes, SA & Sattler, DN (eds.), Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, Unit 11,
Chapter 2, Center for Cross-Cultural Research, Western Washington University, Bellingham,
Washington USA, viewed 15 September 2005,
<http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~culture/Chen_Farruggia.htm>.
Encyclopaedia or dictionary
Encyclopaedias and dictionaries should be cited in the in-text reference only, NOT in the
Reference List.
Examples:
(Literacy in America: an encyclopedia 2001, p.25) states……
The Macquarie dictionary (1997) defines it as……
Secondary citation
While primary sources are essential, sometimes the source you wish to refer to may be
unavailable and you must refer to someone else's citation of that source. This is a secondary
source and in this case you must include both names in the in-text reference. The Reference
List example would include only the source you have seen.
In-text citation example:
MacDonald (1993, cited in Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill 2003, p. 48) states …
or
(MacDonald 1993, cited in Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill 2003, p. 48)
Reference List example:
Saunders, M, Lewis, P & Thornhill, A 2003, Research methods for business students, 3rd edn,
Pearson Educational, Essex, p. 48.
No date
Works that do not have a publication date may be cited using the expression n.d. (no date).
(Brown n.d.)
123
or
Brown (n.d.)
Reference List example:
Brown, S n.d. B. B. Bernard, Sunshine Press, London.
Journal articles
Note: Capitalise the first letter of the first word, and each of the major words of the journal
name.
Do not use capital letters for words such as on, for, in, and
example: The Australian Journal of Language and Literacy
Journal article
Format:
Author(s) of article - surname and initials Year of publication, ‘Title of article’, Journal name,
volume number, issue number, page number(s).
Example:
Zivkovic, B & Fujii, I 2001, 'An analysis of isothermal phase change of phase change material
within rectangular and cylindrical containers', Solar Energy, vol. 70, no.1, pp. 51-61.
E-journal article from a database

journal articles from printed sources and articles sourced electronically. The following is a
suggested procedure for referencing electronic journal articles.
If a journal article is retrieved electronically from a library database in page image format, eg.
as an Acrobat (PDF) file, cite it the same as the original printed article. Where alternative
formats are available, it is recommended to choose page image format.
If a journal article is retrieved from a library database where it has been reformatted, eg. as
HTML or plain text, or from a website, you should cite the source you have used, as images,
charts, page numbers, etc may have been removed. Where the source is a library database
give the database name, not the URL.
Format:
Author(s) of article - surname and initials Year of publication, ‘Title of article’, Journal name,
volume number, issue number, page number(s), viewed day month year, database name.
Example:
Easthope, G 2004, 'Consuming health: the market for complementary and alternative
medicine', Australian Journal of Primary Health, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 68-75, viewed 30 March
2005, Australian Public Affairs Full Text.
In press article
Format:
Author(s) of article - surname and initials in press, ‘Title of article’, Journal name, viewed
day month year, database name (if applicable).
Example:
Mundermann, A, Wakeling, JM, Nigg, BM, Humble, RN & Stefanyshyn, DJ in press, 'Foot
orthoses affect frequency components of muscle activity in the lower extremity ', Gait and
posture, viewed 15 September 2005, ScienceDirect.
124
Newspaper articles
Note: Capitalise the first letter of the first word, and each of the major words of the newspaper
name.
Note: if the newspaper article does NOT have an author then provide details as an in-text
citation only, NOT in the Reference List.
For example: The Australian (10 July 2002, p.1) states……
Newspaper article
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year of publication, ‘Title of article’, Newspaper name, day month,
page number(s).
Example:
Tobler, K & Kerin, J 2002, ‘Hormone alert for cancer’, The Australian, 10 July, p. 1.
Newspaper article from a database

articles from printed sources and articles sourced electronically. The following is a suggested
procedure for referencing electronic newspaper articles.
If a newspaper article is retrieved electronically from a library database in page image format,
eg. as an Acrobat (PDF) file, cite it the same as the original printed article. Where alternative
formats are available, it is recommended to choose page image format.
If a newspaper article is retrieved from a library database where it has been reformatted, eg. as
HTML or plain text, or from a website, you should cite the source you have used, as images,
charts, page numbers, etc may have been removed. Where the source is a library database
give the database name, not the URL.
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year of publication, ‘Title of article’, Newspaper name, day month,
page number(s), viewed day month year, name of database.
Example:
Timmins, N 2005, ‘Delay raises doubt in public sector’, Financial Times, 20 July, viewed 21
July 2005, Factiva.
Internet sources
Discussion list message

Format:
Author <author’s email address> Year of posting, ‘Title of posting’, description of posting,
date and month of posting, name of list owner, viewed day month year, <URL>.
Example:
Shively, E <chminf-l@listserv.indiana.edu> 1997, ‘CA pre-1967 information’, list server, 1
July, Chemical Information Sources Discussion List, viewed 3 July 2003,
<http://listserv.indiana.edu/archives/chminf-l.html>.
125
Newsgroup message
Format:
date and month of posting, name of newsgroup owner, viewed day month year, <URL>.
Example:
Milinkovich, M 2005, ‘Oracle PL/SQL in Eclipse’, newsgroup, 12 July,
News.Eclipse.Technology, 15 September 2005,
<http://dev.eclipse.org/newslists/news.eclipse.technology/msg01045.html>,
Blogs
Format:
date and month of posting, name of list owner, viewed day month year, <URL>.
Example:
Steffen, A 2005, ‘Bird flu can we out-collaborate a pandemic?’ blog, 15 August, World
Changing: another world is here, viewed 15 September 2005,
<http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/003310.html>.
Website documents
Many electronic sources do not provide page numbers, unless they are in PDF format. If
quoting or paraphrasing from a website, that is NOT a PDF, then use as part of the in-text
reference either:
• a section heading, (eg. Stone 2004, Usage and prognosis section)
• a paragraph number (eg. Stone 2004, para.11)
Format:
Author/editor. Year of document, Title of document, name of the sponsor of the source, date
of viewing, <URL>.
Reference list example:
Stone, A 2004, Headaches due to Wind Cold, Al Stone Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese
Herbal Medicines, viewed 10 September 2006, <
http://beyondwellbeing.com/headaches/wind-cold.shtml >.
It is stated that: “this formula is about 85% targeting the symptoms of headache and stuffy
nose, while only 15% directly addresses the cold or allergies” (Stone 2004, Usage and
prognosis section)
or
It is stated that: “this formula is about 85% targeting the symptoms of headache and stuffy
nose, while only 15% directly addresses the cold or allergies” (Stone 2004, para. 11)
Reports
Government publications
These may include departmental reports, reports of commissions of inquiry, committees of
review and committees of parliament.
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year of publication, Title of report, Report series code and number,
Sponsoring body or body issuing report series, Publisher, Place of publication.
126
Examples:
Kogan, P, Moses, I & El-Khawas, EH 1994, Staffing higher education : meeting new
challenges : report of the IMHE project on policies for academic staffing in higher education,
Higher education policy series, no. 27, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London.
OR
Australia, Parliament 1976, Department of Foreign Affairs annual report 1975, Parl. Paper
142, Canberra.
Many government publications are available on the Internet. The following document
appeared as a Parliamentary paper, but is also available from the relevant authority's website.
The way you access a document may affect your citation.
Examples:
Australia, Parliament 2003, Fraud control arrangements in the Australian Customs Service,
Parl. Paper 32, Canberra.
AND
Australian National Audit Office 2003, Fraud control arrangements in the Australian
Customs Service, viewed August 4 2003, <http://www.anao.gov.au/WebSite.nsf/
Publications/2F8FE1D39613A8B8CA256CF300709A62>.
Australian Bureau of Statistics

Format:
Author’s name, Year of publication, Title of report, cat. no., Publisher, Place of publication.
Example:
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2005, Australian social trends 2005, cat. no. 4102.0, ABS,
Canberra.
OR
Format:
Author’s name, Year of publication, Title of report, cat. no., Publisher, Place of publication,
viewed day month year, database name.
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2004, Mental Health In Australia: A Snapshot, cat. no.
4824.0.55.001, ABS, Canberra, viewed 18 August 2005, AusStats.
Legislation and Legal cases
Legislation
When referring to Commonwealth Acts, Ordinances and Regulations, the title must be
reproduced exactly, without changing the capitalisation or spelling. The words Act and Bill
are generally written with a capital letter.
An Act or Ordinance may be cited by the short title, which is usually drafted into modern
legislation. The first reference must always include the short title in italics. Subsequent
references may refer to it by an undated, descriptive title in roman type.
Legislation is usually numbered as well as dated. The number follows the date.
For Australian State legislation, the State must be included in roman type.
127
Acts of Parliaments of the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Canada and the United States, use
roman type.
Bills currently before Parliament are presented in roman type, not italics.
Examples:
Interstate Road Transport Act 1985 (Cwlth)
Interstate Road Transport Act
Air Navigation Act 1920 (No. 50) (Cwlth)
Firearms Act 1936 (NSW)
Badgers Act 1974 (UK)
Legal cases
To fully cite legal authorities list name of case; (date) or volume number, or both; abbreviated
name of report series; and beginning page.
Example:
Greutner v. Everard (1960) 103 CLR 177
Other sources
Conference paper
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year of publication, ‘Title of paper’, [in] Editor (if applicable),
Title of published proceeding which may include place held and date(s), Publisher, Place of
publication, page number(s).
Example:
Kovacs, GL 1994, ‘Simulation-scheduling system using hybrid software technology’, in
Computer Integrated Manufacturing and Automation Technology: Proceedings of the 4th
International conference, Troy, New York, October 10-12, 1994, IEEE Computer Society
Press, Los Alamitos, California, pp.351-356.
Thesis
Format:
Author’s surname, Initials Year of preparation of thesis, ‘Title of thesis’, Award, Institution
under whose auspices the study was taken.
Example:
Garland, CP 1986, ‘Structure and removal of non-cellulosic components of eucalypt woods’,
MApplSci thesis, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology.
Patent
Format:
Name(s) of inventor. Name(s) of assignees, Patent title, Patent number Date of patent
(including day and month).
Example:
Wilmott, JM & Znaiden, AP Avon Products Inc., Cosmetic preparation incorporating
stabilized ascorbic acid, U.S. patent 4,983,382 Jan. 8 1991.
128
CD-ROM
Format:
Author/editor’s name, Initials Year, Title, Edition, CD-ROM, Publisher, Place of publication.
Example:
Young, B & Heath, J 2000, Wheater's functional histology : a text and colour atlas, 4th edn,
CD-ROM, Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh.
129
APPENDIX 3:
CRITICAL RESPONSE ESSAY TEMPLATE (400-500 WORDS)
I. Introduction
- Background / general information to introduce the topic area
- Introduce the article: Title, Author, Date
- Briefly summarize the main overall view of the author (one sentence)
- Thesis statement (e.g. This essay will respond to….. /This essay is a
response to ……)
II. Body
1. Summary: (about 100 words)
2. Evaluation:
+ author, source (of the article and sources used in the article)
+ arguments,
+ evidences (sufficient/ representative/ relevant/ accurate/
qualified?)
+ language
+ style (level of formality, level of sentence complexity, word
choice/ sentence structure, overall tone?)
3. Synthesis: Putting things together: combining specific ideas given in the

article with the knowledge provided in “Topics for today” and/or other
readings/ previous learning on the same topics.
III. Conclusion
- Restate the author’s main ideas.
- Give a brief summary of the main strengths and weaknesses of the

author and (based on this) which is stronger overall.
- Considering the views of the author, give your own comments on the
topic. This can include your opinion/ recommendations/ final thoughts
on the topic.
130

English For Academic Purposes - Writing Textbook

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

English For Academic Purposes - Writing Textbook

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

In house materials for EAP2

UNIT 1: WRITING REPORT ................................................................................... 2

UNIT 2: PLAGIARISM ........................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

UNIT 3: REFERENCES AND QUOTATIONS .................................................... 26

UNIT 4: PARAPHRASING .................................................................................. 36

UNIT 5: QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN .................................................................. 46

UNIT 6: THINKING CRITICALLY ABOUT IDEAS ........................................... 63

UNIT 7: SUMMARIZING .................................................................................... 80

UNIT 8: STYLE AND TONE ............................................................................... 94

UNIT 9: MOCK TEST......................................................................................... 107

APPENDICES ........................................................................................................ 114

APPENDIX 1: ................................................................................................... 114

APPENDIX 2:..................................................................................................... 119

APPENDIX 3:..................................................................................................... 130

UNIT 1: WRITING REPORT

What will be covered in this unit?

1. An introduction to report writing

1. An introduction to report writing

An academic report can document a trial, experiment, investigation or intervention.

• Reporting on a marketing survey

Academic reports draw from both:

• research and readings and

2. Differences between reports and essays

• Formally structured • Semi-structured

Topic Report Essay

1 The development of trade unions in South Africa

2 Two alternative plans for improving the sports centre

3 A study you conducted to compare male and female attitudes

4 An overview of recent research on the human genome

5 The arguments for and against capital punishment

• What is the purpose of the work?

This is a survey of publications (books, journals, authoritative websites, sometimes

Recommendations for action

Suggestions for further research

Tourism-led development is clearly an emerging theme in South African Local

4. Academic writing style in reports

A scientific paper is a formal text written in an impersonal, objective, neutral and

• Avoid colloquial or informal language. Eliminate all 'filler' and needless

Read the following extracts from reports.

5. Using graphical data

Tables are useful when you need to

Line graphs are especially effective at

Bar charts/graphs are good when you

Pie charts show the proportion of the

Drawings and diagrams can be used to

Photographs can be useful as illustrations

6. Analyzing the findings

Finding 95% of the students you surveyed have problems managing

What do you I expected it to be less than that.

Final The percentage of students surveyed who experienced problems

7. Checklist for effective reports

1. Does it answer the purpose stated (or implied) in the brief?

What will be covered in this unit?

3. WAYS TO AVOID PLAGIARISM

7. You find an interesting analysis of Kant’s categorical imperative in a book on 18th

3.3. What don’t I have to document?

3.4. What must I document?

3.6. Avoiding plagiarism by developing good study habits

From the original source:

UNIT 3: REFERENCES AND QUOTATIONS

1. Why use references?

(c) To avoid plagiarism.

2. Citations and references