MSCO7202 SCHOLARLY WRITING AND PUBLICATION

INTRODUCTION AND CONTEXTUAL BACKGROUND

As a graduate student, what do you do?
✓ You are involved in many activities some of which are you must write as
a scholar and you must make use of available scholarly sources in your
writing. You equally engage in scholarly discussions and many more
intellectual activities.
Who is a scholar?
o In simple term, a scholar is one who uses his or her intellectual and
academic pursuit to distinguish himself/herself by applying their
expertise in a specific area of study or knowledge. Here emphasis is on
expertise and intellectual pursuit. The expectation is that a scholar
demonstrates his/her mastery of knowledge in the area of research
interest.
There are however many convincing ways of deploying applying scholarly
pursuit. It could be in any of the following ways:
• -Through the writing of your Master’s Thesis
• -Through other published works like research papers in class
• -Through presentations at conferences where one is engaged in sound
academic discussions and contributions
• -It could also be through your professional aspirations and career
growth.

One could be a teacher, a Professor or researcher all you are involved in is

sharing of knowledge or scholarship through intellectual analysis and
meaningful discussions on issues of critical societal importance and
relevance. In all, a scholar is one with huge knowledge in his chosen area
of study.

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1. WHAT IS THE JUSTIFICATION FOR BEING A SCHOLAR?

Is there any justification why one should aspire to become a scholar?

o The answer is yes. When you develop a scholarly status, it helps you in
many ways. It makes you to grow and develop in your field and outside
area of research. In this context, becoming a scholar promote a sense of
networking. Today we are in a world firmly established on social
networking with people of similar aspirations. The over- all essence is to
forge a working relationship and sustain connection that becomes
beneficial to both parties in future. We should note that what who you
know means a lot in helping you to attain the next higher level in life.

Therefore as graduate students, you need to maintain a good networking

relationship with your lecturers in the Department and Faculty as this will
provide you the strategic support you need in life especially when you are
writing your thesis. Being in good working relationship with your Professors
can be beneficial in many ways. One the ways is in time of need for a letter
of recommendation either for employment or scholarship. Your Professor
can link you up to other connections outside the University environment. In
another related circumstance, as a postgraduate student, you may as well
attend a conference and participate as a panel member. That provides an
opportunity for you to build a network of friendship with other conference
participants in your professional line or in your academic area beyond that
conference. This singular exposure becomes an automatic door opener for
you. Therefore developing to become an expert in your area of study and
gathering all the resources needed as an expert will go a long way in
enhancing your professional achievement.

2. HOW DO ONE BECOME A SCHOLAR?

Becoming a good scholar requires engagement in many intellectual

activities that promote better thinking and performance. The starting point is
to get this right is by engaging in public discussions such as attending
academic conferences as this will provide opportunity for more robust and
enhanced discussions with other scholars thereby improving on your
personal development.

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At this stage of one’s engagement, opportunities for collaboration and
partnership are created among scholars from diverse communities. You
share ideas, information and available opportunities among yourselves and
strive to sustain the relationship with each other. It is even more enriching
when you present a good and credible paper in such a forum as that will
becomes a super high way to build on your scholarship profile.

Significantly too, engaging in being an avid reader is an interesting way to

improve on your scholarship because when you follow the trend of public
discussions, that will help you to stay connected with current ideas in your
area of research.. It is very important to read outside your area of study for
purpose of acquiring more knowledgeand expanding your intellectual
scope.

Furthermore, trying to make an impression on others ie equally an

important way of developing professional and networking relationships
during networking. Some- time a departure from your usual comfort zone to
venture into fresh and challenging academic adventures helps in building
one’s mind to exciting and inspiring ideas in your field of study as this will
stimulate your scholarship potentials.

Away from the above, the is a hidden power in joining responsible social
and professional clubs that will beneficial to the people. Such clubs helps in
expanding your daily experiences as you interact and share your views on
issues that affects your existence. In the instance those clubs are made up
of members from different backgrounds and professional callings. Such
diversity becomes a source of strength and learning as the main focus of
such clubs in on building for responsible leadership.

3. CHARACTERISTICS OF A SCHOLAR

A scholar is associated with the following characteristics:

-Definition of focus: A scholar must have a sharp focus that delimits

his/her area of inquiry in which he works. A scholar can only carve a niche
y defining his/her area of research interest. In that way he becomes
outstanding in dealing with issues of his/her research focus.

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• -Disposition: A scholar is distinguished by what could be called
academic poise. The term poise stands for Pace, Ownership,
Innateness, Simplicity and Exactness. Therefore every scholar should
be associated with the above terms.
• -Immersion: A scholar must intimately be familiar with and demonstrate
knowledge of classical and contemporary literature in his/her area of
research interest.
• -Authority: The power of articulateness and oratorical prowess are the
most profound attributes of a scholar. A scholar must demonstrate in
convincing way precise conviction of knowledge in his/her area of
professional dealings. He has to show authority and clarity about what is
the central concern of what is being researched, why and with what
hypothesis he is working on.
• -Persistence: This is one of the defining attribute of a scholar. As a
scholar, you have to show resoluteness in the course of seeking
knowledge through deep and intense explanations of issues, concepts
and research perspectives. In the midst of challenges and frustrating
situations, a scholar has to demonstrate persistence in the process of
investigation.
• -Passion: scholar must show passion and seek to be passionate in the
course of his/her research.
• -Connections: A scholar must prove to be well connected in the field of
his scholarship with other reputable scholars in other institutions across
the world.
• -Recognition: A scholar can easily be recognize by his/her peers by
traits of brightness and constant invitations to take up responsible
assignment or research engagements in such as chairing important
professional annual events/programs, providing leadership during
serious academic sessions all because of the scholar’s distinct sterling
qualities in the area of research.
• -Productivity: This is a sterling characteristic of a scholar. A scholar
must be productive as he seeks opportunities to compete for grants
writing, reputable scholarship awards and other kinds of competitions
that lead to outstanding recognition.

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• -Ethics: A scholar follows strong professional ethics that breeds
honesty, transparency and integrity in his academic transactions. He/she
accept criticisms that are constructive, he/she show courteousness in
his/her relationship with others and above all always respectful of other
members of the academic community.
• -Loyalty: As a scholar, you must be loyal to your University and does all
within his/her powers to defend and protect the corporate image of the
University. A scholar contributes significantlyto the growth and
development of the University in terms of ideas and strategic support
required.
• -Mentorship: This stands out as the most significant quality of any
scholar. As a scholar you are expected to have inherent desire to
mentor the younger academics who would take over from you on your
exit. You mentor the younger faculty members in your area of study and
other professional colleagues. This is achieved by teaching them,
exposing them to challenging opportunities and linking the to rewarding
opportunities.

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DIFFERENCES BETWEEN A SCHOLAR AND AN ACADEMIC

A scholar: is a person with deep knowledge or professional expertise

in a particular field of study or area of research. An academic on the
other hand is a person who is on the employment list of a university or a
college with the full mandate to teach research and carry out other
community service.

While the two terms can be used almost alternately, however, a scholar
may not necessarily be an academic for instance, a person may show deep
knowledge of a particular field, but such a person may not have been
employed by a college or a university, hence, will not be considered an
academic but a scholar.

A scholar is someone engaged in intellectual inquiry or intensive study.

This term covers a wide range of career stages and types such as
advanced student, researchers employed at universities or hospitals or
think tanks in an organization. There are people who devote their
timeinvestigating on issues of religion, economy, sports, freelance journalist
or other independent researchers.

An academic is a person employed to carry out teaching, research and

other creative works in an institution of higher learning. This term is
generally applied to those who graduate from a postgraduate program and
are interested in pursuing a career in higher education.

MEANING OF WRITNG

Writing is the practice of combining words to form coherent thoughts.

Great writing goes a step further to involve using clear and compelling
language that conveys ideas that deeply inform or inspire. Grammar,
punctuation, word choice, tone and even proofreading all play a role on
how effective your writing is.

WHAT IS SCHOLARLY WRITING?

Scholarly or academic writing is writing which communicate ideas,

information and research findings to the wider academic community.

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Kevin Kessler (2020) defined scholarly writing as an academic writing.
The author explained that this is the type of writing used in academic
institutions for purpose of sharing and disseminating knowledge
among members of the academic community. It is simply a standard
style of communication adopted by members of the academic
community across clime.

Scholarly writing can most times be intimidating and challenging

because of its peculiar context of usage and rules application.
However, understanding the guiding principles will make it much easier to
express your thoughts and accomplish your research plan. This type of
writing takes time to be mastered because it need some time to be
developed.

Scholarly writing could also mean academic writing. It is a generic writing

used in academic field. Certainly scholarly writing is not better than
journalism, fiction or poetry. It is just a different category of writing.
Considering that some of you are not used to scholarly writing, it may
sound unfamiliar and at the same time intimidating. This is like a skill that
must be acquired through constant practice with scholarly literature.

WRITING AT THE GRADUATE LEVEL

The demand of writing at the postgraduate level is quite different from

writing at the undergraduate level. It is however more challenging writing at
the postgraduate level because it seems intimidating. It is some time
difficult to determine exactly what scholarly voice is and the transition to
writing at graduate level. In writing for the benefit of scholarly audience,
there are certain elements to consider such as choice of words, tone
of expression and use of concrete evidence. All that is required is to
apply scholarly voice rules and certainly you will master the art of writing at
the postgraduate level.

Therefore the following should be considered when writing:

-Am I being objective in what I am writing?

-Could my piece be offensive to readers?

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-Could this limit my readership?

-Am I writing as a social scientist?

-Am I using the literature to support my assertions?

The above are the applied ground rules for scholarly writing to ensure you
are speaking as a social scientist. In applying these rules, your writing will
be clear and concise and your approach will allow your content to be free
and flowing.

What is academic writing?

Academic writing is a formal style of writing that educators and

researchers use in universities and for scholarly publications. This
form of writing guides the reader's comprehension of the subject by
concentrating on factual arguments and logical reasoning. Writers use this
approach to pinpoint and evaluate an idea before proposing a hypothesis
or logical conclusion. Depending on their sector, professionals may employ
this type of writing in various ways. Scientists use the academic style of
writing to describe their studies and justify their conclusions, while literary
critics use it to present a persuasive case based on factual research.

Features of academic writing

The key features of this form of writing include:

o Citation style guides

A style guide is perhaps the most critical feature of academic literature.

Academic articles have specific writing guides and features and may result
in loss of credit when ignored. The main style guides used in formatting this
type of writing include:

• APA Style: This is an official writing guide of the American

Psychological Association (APA), currently in its seventh edition. APA
style is the writing guide approved by the social sciences, including
courses such as social work, psychology, sociology and medicine.
• MLA Style: Courses that deal with humanities mostly use the Modern
Language Association (MLA) style in their papers. Students who use this
style include artists, theatre students and English major students.
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• CMOS Style: The Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) is the style common
for students of humanities courses, such as literature or the arts,
especially those studying at advanced levels.

o Resource usage

Academic work provides a medium for writers to display their knowledge of

a subject, support their arguments with evidence and cite their sources,
usually including a bibliography with their writing. A bibliography is a list of
all the books, scholarly articles and other sources that a writer has used
when writing their text. Citing sources is vital when writing for academic
purposes, as it acknowledges other people's work and helps to verify the
important points of your research.

o Proper structure

Using a proper structure allows you to present concepts in a way that is

rational and concise and form ideas in a clear, logical sequence. An
academic article always contains an introduction, a thesis statement and a
conclusion amongst others. The thesis statement is usually in the
introductory paragraph, presenting the definition and summary of the major
points in the document. The body of the article builds on the points of the
thesis statement and the conclusion summarizes the points, explaining the
deductions and their importance.

o Formal tone

Academic writers communicate their thoughts using a formal tone to

display their knowledge and professionalism about a subject. The formal
style ensures that they present the research consistently throughout
several texts, allowing readers to objectively examine and compare the
study in question to other studies. They commonly use a third-person point
of view in writing to show neutrality. The formal writing tone helps to give
credibility to the writer's thoughts.

o Objective argument

Academic pieces of literature relay information unbiasely and support all

points with corresponding proofs instead of assertions, as the aim is to
base arguments on the evidence under consideration, rather than simply
stating the writer's opinion. Including the work of other researchers in your
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research fairly and accurately may help you avoid impartiality. This involves
presenting a clear outline of your method and commenting on the
shortcomings of your research.

Academic writing aims to present an argument that has evidence to support

it. Writers use facts and evidence from substantial research to back up their
remarks and major arguments. They convey an argument objectively,
without mentioning their personal opinions or preconceptions, by using
evidence and analysis.

o Consistency and accuracy

Along with basic grammar rules, citation and punctuation, consider

consistently applying stylistic conventions regarding capitalization of terms,
punctuation and spelling differences between American and British English,
using verb tenses in different sections, introducing abbreviations and
writing numbers. There are many acceptable writing styles you can use but
consider being consistent throughout the article and also ensure you
proofread before submitting. If an article is free of errors, it helps readers
view it as a credible source.

Other features include: precision, balance, evidence, and criticality.

Types of academic literature

Below are the types of academic literature:

o Dissertations and theses

Doctoral students write a dissertation while concluding their course of

study, while master's students write a thesis at the end of their course. The
major difference between these two terms is that students write a thesis
based on existing research, while doctoral students conduct their own
research to write a dissertation. Both projects are lengthy and display the
writer's competence for the award they are seeking to obtain. These works
usually require the writer to pose a convincing argument or intellectual
question. Writers work on their dissertations and theses under the
supervision of an academic advisor.

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o Annotated bibliography

An annotated bibliography is a complete list of sources on a subject with

brief descriptions or reviews for each source. It summarises various
sources in paragraph form so that a reader may comprehend the overall
context of each. For example, the writer may mention the source's major
argument, conclusion and dependability. These bibliographies are self-
contained papers that summarise the research and findings on a certain
topic for the reader.

o Technical report

A technical report outlines how technical research progresses or the

outcomes. Researchers commonly write these reports to submit to the
sponsor or organisation that funded the study programme. It may provide
suggestions based on the findings of the research. They seldom subject
these documents to peer review. As a result, researchers frequently use
these reports as a first draft, which they may then revise before submitting
their work to scientific journals.

o Research article

A research article is a detailed examination of original research on the part

of the author. It outlines the researcher's procedures and methodologies,
demonstrating how they went about things. It uses additional data and
resources to support the research findings. Writers usually submit these
articles to academic journals or other publications. Peers in the business
frequently examine these pieces before publication.

o Chapters

Scholarly authors can contribute chapters to an edited volume or collection

that includes contributions from various authors. These edited publications
can provide a variety of perspectives on the same topic or concept. These
chapters may follow other writing styles, and they may include less
background information because readers are more likely to know
something about the subject already. The authors of these chapters have
frequently produced scholarly works on the subject and may submit shorter
versions or similar pieces of writing to include in the collection.
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o Essay

An essay is a brief piece of writing that offers an idea or argument and is

usually between 1,500 and 2,000 words long. Typically, an essay uses
research and analysis to persuade the reader of a point of view. To support
their point, the writer gives background information about the issue.
Academic essayists frequently publish their work in scholarly publications.
o Literary analysis
A literary analysis is a critical examination of a literary work, such as a book
or a collection of poems. Authors of literary analyses set out their
interpretation of a literary notion or concept. This analysis frequently offers
sufficient background and context for the author's argument. It
concentrates on a single aspect of a literary work, such as a character or a
topic.
ACADEMIC WRITING TIPS
Below are a few tips for writing successfully:
▪ Cite all the resources you use
It's vital to have a consistent approach when citing sources. It allows the
reader to comprehend how you have interpreted other people's work to
arrive at your conclusion. You can apply style guidelines from various
associations as a reference to enable you to construct these citations,
depending on your academic subject. Correctly citing your sources can
show that your work results from independent thought and analysis.

▪ Make your writing concise and summarize

While academic works, such as a thesis, might be lengthy papers, it's

critical to make your writing brief to summarise your main ideas. It can
make it easier for readers to follow your argument, especially when writing
about complex subjects. Look for instances in your writing where you might
have repeated themes you've already mentioned or used duplicate terms.
Divide sentences with over 25 words into two or more sentences if
possible. This strategy might increase the text's readability and make it
easier for readers to comprehend your thoughts.

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations

mentioned in this article are affiliated with Indeed.

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TYPES OF ACADEMIC WRITING

The four main types of academic writing are descriptive, analytical,

persuasive and critical. Each of these types of writing has specific language
features and purposes.

In many academic texts you will need to use more than one type. For
example, in an empirical thesis:

• you will use critical writing in the literature review to show where there
is a gap or opportunity in the existing research
• the methods section will be mostly descriptive to summarise the
methods used to collect and analyse information
• the results section will be mostly descriptive and analytical as you
report on the data you collected
• the discussion section is more analytical, as you relate your findings
back to your research questions, and also persuasive, as you
propose your interpretations of the findings.

1. Descriptive

The simplest type of academic writing is descriptive. Its purpose is to

provide facts or information. An example would be a summary of an article
or a report of the results of an experiment.

The kinds of instructions for a purely descriptive assignment include:

'identify', 'report', 'record', 'summarise' and 'define'.

2. Analytical

It’s rare for a university-level text to be purely descriptive. Most academic

writing is also analytical. Analytical writing includes descriptive writing, but
also requires you to re-organise the facts and information you describe into
categories, groups, parts, types or relationships.

Sometimes, these categories or relationships are already part of the

discipline, while in other cases you will create them specifically for your
text. If you’re comparing two theories, you might break your comparison
into several parts, for example: how each theory deals with social context,
how each theory deals with language learning, and how each theory can be
used in practice.

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The kinds of instructions for an analytical assignment include: 'analyse',
'compare', 'contrast', 'relate', and 'examine'.

To make your writing more analytical:

• spend plenty of time planning. Brainstorm the facts and ideas, and try
different ways of grouping them, according to patterns, parts,
similarities and differences. You could use colour-coding, flow charts,
tree diagrams or tables.
• create a name for the relationships and categories you find. For
example, advantages and disadvantages.
• build each section and paragraph around one of the analytical
categories.
• make the structure of your paper clear to your reader, by using topic
sentences and a clear introduction.

3. Persuasive

In most academic writing, you are required to go at least one step further
than analytical writing, to persuasive writing. Persuasive writing has all the
features of analytical writing (that is, information plus re-organising the
information), with the addition of your own point of view. Most essays are
persuasive, and there is a persuasive element in at least the discussion
and conclusion of a research article.

Points of view in academic writing can include an argument,

recommendation, interpretation of findings or evaluation of the work of
others. In persuasive writing, each claim you make needs to be supported
by some evidence, for example a reference to research findings or
published sources.

The kinds of instructions for a persuasive assignment include: 'argue',

'evaluate', 'discuss', and 'take a position'.

To help reach your own point of view on the facts or ideas:

• read some other researchers' points of view on the topic. Who do you
feel is the most convincing?
• look for patterns in the data or references. Where is the evidence
strongest?

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 • list several different interpretations. What are the real-life implications
of each one? Which ones are likely to be most useful or beneficial?
Which ones have some problems?
• discuss the facts and ideas with someone else. Do you agree with
their point of view?

To develop your argument:

• list the different reasons for your point of view

• think about the different types and sources of evidence which you can
use to support your point of view
• consider different ways that your point of view is similar to, and different
from, the points of view of other researchers
• look for various ways to break your point of view into parts. For example,
cost effectiveness, environmental sustainability, scope of real-world
application.

To present your argument, make sure:

• your text develops a coherent argument where all the individual claims
work together to support your overall point of view
• your reasoning for each claim is clear to the reader
• your assumptions are valid
• you have evidence for every claim you make
• you use evidence that is convincing and directly relevant.

4. Critical

Critical writing is common for research, postgraduate and advanced

undergraduate writing. It has all the features of persuasive writing, with the
added feature of at least one other point of view. While persuasive writing
requires you to have your own point of view on an issue or topic, critical
writing requires you to consider at least two points of view, including your
own.

For example, you may explain a researcher's interpretation or argument

and then evaluate the merits of the argument, or give your own alternative
interpretation.

Examples of critical writing assignments include a critique of a journal

article, or a literature review that identifies the strengths and weaknesses of
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existing research. The kinds of instructions for critical writing include:
'critique', 'debate', 'disagree' and 'evaluate'.

You need to:

• accurately summarise all or part of the work. This could include

identifying the main interpretations, assumptions or methodology.
• have an opinion about the work. Appropriate types of opinion could
include pointing out some problems with it, proposing an alternative
approach that would be better, and/or defending the work against the
critiques of others.
• provide evidence for your point of view. Depending on the specific
assignment and the discipline, different types of evidence may be
appropriate, such as logical reasoning, reference to authoritative
sources and/or research data.

Critical writing requires strong writing skills. You need to thoroughly

understand the topic and the issues. You need to develop an essay
structure and paragraph structure that allows you to analyse different
interpretations and develop your own argument, supported by evidence.

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Resources

This material was developed by the Learning Hub (Academic Language

and Learning), which offers workshops, face-to-face consultations and
resources to support your learning. Find out more about how they can help
you develop your communication, research and study skills.

A GUIDE TO ONTOLOGY, EPISTOLOGYAND PHILOSOPHICAL

PERSPECTIVES FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCHERS’

BY KATIE MOON AND DEBORAH BLACKMAN

How can understanding philosophy improve our research? How can an

understanding of what frames our research influence our choices? Do
researchers’ personal thoughts and beliefs shape research design,
outcomes and interpretation?

These questions are all important for social science research. Here we
present a philosophical guide for scientists to assist in the production of
effective social science (adapted from Moon and Blackman, 2014).

Understanding philosophy is important because social science research

can only be meaningfully interpreted when there is clarity about the
decisions that were taken that affect the research outcomes. Some of these
decisions are based, not always knowingly, on some key philosophical
principles, as outlined in the figure below.

Philosophy provides the general principles of theoretical thinking, a method

of cognition, perspective and self-awareness, all of which are used to
obtain knowledge of reality and to design, conduct, analyse and interpret
research and its outcomes. The figure below shows three main branches of
philosophy that are important in the sciences and serves to illustrate the
differences between them.

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Social science research guide consisting of ontology, epistemology, and
philosophical perspectives. When read from left to right, elements take on a
more multidimensional nature (eg., epistemology: objectivism to
subjectivism). The elements within each branch are positioned according to
their congruence with elements from other branches so when read from top
to bottom (or bottom to top), elements from one branch align with elements
from another (eg., critical realist ontology, constructionist epistemology, and
interpretivist philosophical perspectives). Subcategories of elements (ie.,
3.5a–c and 3.6a–c) are to be interpreted as positioned under the parent
category (ie., 3.5 interpretivism and 3.6 critical theory).

(Source: Moon and Blackman 2014)

Ontology

The first branch is ontology, or the ‘study of being’, which is concerned with
what actually exists in the world about which humans can acquire
knowledge. Ontology helps researchers recognize how certain they can be
about the nature and existence of objects they are researching. For
instance, what ‘truth claims’ can a researcher make about reality? Who
decides the legitimacy of what is ‘real’? How do researchers deal with
different and conflicting ideas of reality?

To illustrate, realist ontology relates to the existence of one single reality

which can be studied, understood and experienced as a ‘truth’; a real world
exists independent of human experience. Meanwhile, relativist ontology is
based on the philosophy that reality is constructed within the human mind,
such that no one ‘true’ reality exists. Instead, reality is ‘relative’ according to
how individuals experience it at any given time and place.

Epistemology

The second branch is epistemology, the ‘study of knowledge’.

Epistemology is concerned with all aspects of the validity, scope and
methods of acquiring knowledge, such as a) what constitutes a knowledge
claim; b) how can knowledge be acquired or produced; and c) how the
extent of its transferability can be assessed. Epistemology is important
because it influences how researchers frame their research in their
attempts to discover knowledge.

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By looking at the relationship between a subject and an object we can
explore the idea of epistemology and how it influences research design.
Objectivist epistemology assumes that reality exists outside, or
independently, of the individual mind. Objectivist research is useful in
providing reliability (consistency of results obtained) and external validity
(applicability of the results to other contexts).

Constructionist epistemology rejects the idea that objective ‘truth’ exists

and is waiting to be discovered. Instead, ‘truth’, or meaning, arises in and
out of our engagement with the realities in our world. That is, a ‘real world’
does not preexist independently of human activity or symbolic language.
The value of constructionist research is in generating contextual
understandings of a defined topic or problem.

Subjectivist epistemology relates to the idea that reality can be expressed

in a range of symbol and language systems, and is stretched and shaped
to fit the purposes of individuals such that people impose meaning on the
world and interpret it in a way that makes sense to them. For example, a
scuba diver might interpret a shadow in the water according to whether
they were alerted to a shark in the area (the shark), waiting for a boat (the
boat), or expecting a change in the weather (clouds). The value of
subjectivist research is in revealing how an individual’s experience shapes
their perception of the world.

Philosophical perspectives

Stemming from ontology (what exists for people to know about) and
epistemology (how knowledge is created and what is possible to know) are
philosophical perspectives, a system of generalized views of the world,
which form beliefs that guide action.

Philosophical perspectives are important because, when made explicit,

they reveal the assumptions that researchers are making about their
research, leading to choices that are applied to the purpose, design,
methodology and methods of the research, as well as to data analysis and
interpretation. At the most basic level, the mere choice of what to study in
the sciences imposes values on one’s subject.

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Conclusion

Understanding the philosophical basis of science is critical in ensuring that

research outcomes are appropriately and meaningfully interpreted. With an
increase in interdisciplinary research, an examination of the points of
difference and intersection between the philosophical approaches can
generate critical reflection and debate about what we can know, what we
can learn and how this knowledge can affect the conduct of science and
the consequent decisions and actions.

How does your philosophical standpoint affect your research? What are
your experiences of clashing philosophical perspectives in interdisciplinary
research? How did you become aware of them and resolve them? Do you
think that researchers need to recognize different philosophies in
interdisciplinary research teams?

HOW TO STRUCTURE YOUR WRITTEN PRESENTATION

For many people the thought of delivering a presentation is a daunting task

and brings about a great deal of nerves. However, if you take some time to
understand how effective presentations are structured and then apply this
structure to your own presentation, you’ll appear much more confident and
relaxed.

Here is our complete guide for structuring your presentation, with examples
at the end of the article to demonstrate these points.

Why is structuring a presentation so important?

If you’ve ever sat through a great presentation, you'll have left feeling either
inspired or informed on a given topic. This isn’t because the speaker was
the most knowledgeable or motivating person in the world. Instead, it’s
because they know how to structure presentations - they have crafted their
message in a logical and simple way that has allowed the audience can
keep up with them and take away key messages.

Research has supported this, with studies showing that audiences retain
structured information 40% more accurately than unstructured information.

In fact, not only is structuring a presentation important for the benefit of the
audience’s understanding, it’s also important for you as the speaker. A
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good structure helps you remain calm, stay on topic, and avoid any
awkward silences.

What will affect your presentation structure?

Generally speaking, there is a natural flow that any decent presentation will
follow which we will go into shortly. However, you should be aware that all
presentation structures will be different in their own unique way and this will
be due to a number of factors, including:

• Whether you need to deliver any demonstrations

• How knowledgeable the audience already is on the given subject
• How much interaction you want from the audience
• Any time constraints there are for your talk
• What setting you are in
• Your ability to use any kinds of visual assistance

Before choosing the presentation's structure answer these questions first:

1. What is your presentation's aim?

2. Who are the audience?
3. What are the main points your audience should remember
afterwards?

When reading the points below, think critically about what things may
cause your presentation structure to be slightly different. You can add in
certain elements and add more focus to certain moments if that works
better for your speech.

What is the typical presentation structure?

This is the usual flow of a presentation, which covers all the vital sections
and is a good starting point for yours. It allows your audience to easily
follow along and sets out a solid structure you can add your content to.

1. Greet the audience and introduce yourself

Before you start delivering your talk, introduce yourself to the audience and
clarify who you are and your relevant expertise. This does not need to be
long or incredibly detailed, but will help build an immediate relationship
between you and the audience. It gives you the chance to briefly clarify

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your expertise and why you are worth listening to. This will help establish
your ethos so the audience will trust you more and think you're credible.

2. Introduction

In the introduction you need to explain the subject and purpose of your
presentation whilst gaining the audience's interest and confidence. It's
sometimes helpful to think of your introduction as funnel-shaped to help
filter down your topic:

1. Introduce your general topic

2. Explain your topic area
3. State the issues/challenges in this area you will be exploring
4. State your presentation's purpose - this is the basis of your
presentation so ensure that you provide a statement explaining how
the topic will be treated, for example, "I will argue that…" or maybe
you will "compare", "analyse", "evaluate", "describe" etc.
5. Provide a statement of what you're hoping the outcome of the
presentation will be, for example, "I'm hoping this will be provide you
with..."
6. Show a preview of the organisation of your presentation

In this section also explain:

• The length of the talk.

• Signal whether you want audience interaction - some presenters
prefer the audience to ask questions throughout whereas others
allocate a specific section for this.
• If it applies, inform the audience whether to take notes or whether you
will be providing handouts.

The way you structure your introduction can depend on the amount of time
you have been given to present: a sales pitch may consist of a quick
presentation so you may begin with your conclusion and then provide the
evidence. Conversely, a speaker presenting their idea for change in the
world would be better suited to start with the evidence and then conclude
what this means for the audience.

Keep in mind that the main aim of the introduction is to grab the audience's
attention and connect with them.

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3. The main body of your talk

The main body of your talk needs to meet the promises you made in the
introduction. Depending on the nature of your presentation, clearly segment
the different topics you will be discussing, and then work your way through
them one at a time - it's important for everything to be organised logically
for the audience to fully understand. There are many different ways to
organise your main points, such as, by priority, theme, chronologically etc.

• Main points should be addressed one by one with supporting

evidence and examples.
• Before moving on to the next point you should provide a mini-
summary.
• Links should be clearly stated between ideas and you must make it
clear when you're moving onto the next point.
• Allow time for people to take relevant notes and stick to the topics
you have prepared beforehand rather than straying too far off topic.

When planning your presentation write a list of main points you want to
make and ask yourself "What I am telling the audience? What should they
understand from this?" refining your answers this way will help you produce
clear messages.

4. Conclusion

In presentations the conclusion is frequently underdeveloped and lacks

purpose which is a shame as it's the best place to reinforce your
messages. Typically, your presentation has a specific goal - that could be
to convert a number of the audience members into customers, lead to a
certain number of enquiries to make people knowledgeable on specific key
points, or to motivate them towards a shared goal.

Regardless of what that goal is, be sure to summarise your main points and
their implications. This clarifies the overall purpose of your talk and
reinforces your reason for being there.

Follow these steps:

• Signal that it's nearly the end of your presentation, for example, "As
we wrap up/as we wind down the talk…"

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 • Restate the topic and purpose of your presentation - "In this speech I
wanted to compare…"
• Summarise the main points, including their implications and
conclusions
• Indicate what is next/a call to action/a thought-provoking takeaway
• Move on to the last section

5. Thank the audience and invite questions

Conclude your talk by thanking the audience for their time and invite them
to ask any questions they may have. As mentioned earlier, personal
circumstances will affect the structure of your presentation.

Many presenters prefer to make the Q&A session the key part of their talk
and try to speed through the main body of the presentation. This is totally
fine, but it is still best to focus on delivering some sort of initial presentation
to set the tone and topics for discussion in the Q&A.

Other common presentation structures

The above was a description of a basic presentation, here are some more
specific presentation layouts:

Demonstration

Use the demonstration structure when you have something useful to show.
This is usually used when you want to show how a product works. Steve
Jobs frequently used this technique in his presentations.

• Explain why the product is valuable.

• Describe why the product is necessary.
• Explain what problems it can solve for the audience.
• Demonstrate the product to support what you've been saying.
• Make suggestions of other things it can do to make the audience
curious.

Problem-solution

This structure is particularly useful in persuading the audience.

• Briefly frame the issue.

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 • Go into the issue in detail showing why it 's such a problem. Use
logos and pathos for this - the logical and emotional appeals.
• Provide the solution and explain why this would also help the
audience.
• Call to action - something you want the audience to do which is
straightforward and pertinent to the solution.

Storytelling

As well as incorporating stories in your presentation, you can organise your

whole presentation as a story. There are lots of different type of story
structures you can use - a popular choice is the monomyth - the hero's
journey. In a monomyth, a hero goes on a difficult journey or takes on a
challenge - they move from the familiar into the unknown. After facing
obstacles and ultimately succeeding the hero returns home, transformed
and with newfound wisdom.

Storytelling for Business Success webinar, where well-know storyteller

Javier Bernad shares strategies for crafting compelling narratives.

Another popular choice for using a story to structure your presentation is in

media ras (in the middle of thing). In this type of story you launch right into
the action by providing a snippet/teaser of what's happening and then you
start explaining the events that led to that event. This is engaging because
you're starting your story at the most exciting part which will make the
audience curious - they'll want to know how you got there.

• Great storytelling: Examples from Alibaba Founder, Jack Ma

Remaining method

The remaining method structure is good for situations where you're

presenting your perspective on a controversial topic which has split
people's opinions.

• Briefly frame the issue.

• Go into the issue in detail showing why it's such a problem - use
logos and pathos.
• Rebut your opponents' solutions - explain why their solutions could
be useful because the audience will see this as fair and will therefore

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 think you're trustworthy, and then explain why you think these
solutions are not valid.
• After you've presented all the alternatives provide your solution, the
remaining solution. This is very persuasive because it looks like the
winning idea, especially with the audience believing that you're fair
and trustworthy.

Transitions

When delivering presentations it's important for your words and ideas to
flow so your audience can understand how everything links together and
why it's all relevant. This can be done using speech transitions which are
words and phrases that allow you to smoothly move from one point to
another so that your speech flows and your presentation is unified.

Transitions can be one word, a phrase or a full sentence - there are many
different forms, here are some examples:

Moving from the introduction to the first point

Signify to the audience that you will now begin discussing the first main
point:

• Now that you're aware of the overview, let's begin with...

• First, let's begin with...
• I will first cover...
• My first point covers...
• To get started, let's look at...

Shifting between similar points

Move from one point to a similar one:

• In the same way...

• Likewise...
• Equally...
• This is similar to...
• Similarly...

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Internal summaries

Internal summarising consists of summarising before moving on to the next

point. You must inform the audience:

• What part of the presentation you covered - "In the first part of this
speech we've covered..."
• What the key points were - "Precisely how..."
• How this links in with the overall presentation - "So that's the
context..."
• What you're moving on to - "Now I'd like to move on to the second
part of presentation which looks at..."

Physical movement

You can move your body and your standing location when you transition to
another point. The audience find it easier to follow your presentation and
movement will increase their interest.

A common technique for incorporating movement into your presentation is

to:

• Start your introduction by standing in the centre of the stage.

• For your first point you stand on the left side of the stage.
• You discuss your second point from the centre again.
• You stand on the right side of the stage for your third point.
• The conclusion occurs in the centre.

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Key slides for your presentation

Slides are a useful tool for most presentations: they can greatly assist in
the delivery of your message and help the audience follow along with what
you are saying. Key slides include:

• An intro slide outlining your ideas

• A summary slide with core points to remember
• High quality image slides to supplement what you are saying

There are some presenters who choose not to use slides at all, though this
is more of a rarity. Slides can be a powerful tool if used properly, but the
problem is that many fail to do just that. Here are some golden rules to
follow when using slides in a presentation:

1. Don't over fill them - your slides are there to assist your speech,
rather than be the focal point. They should have as little information
as possible, to avoid distracting people from your talk.
2. A picture says a thousand words - instead of filling a slide with text,
instead, focus on one or two images or diagrams to help support and
explain the point you are discussing at that time.
3. Make them readable - depending on the size of your audience,
some may not be able to see small text or images, so make
everything large enough to fill the space.
4. Don't rush through slides - give the audience enough time to digest
each slide.

Guy Kawasaki, an entrepreneur and author, suggests that slideshows

should follow a 10-20-30 rule:

• There should be a maximum of 10 slides - people rarely remember

more than one concept afterwards so there's no point overwhelming
them with unnecessary information.
• The presentation should last no longer than 20 minutes as this will
leave time for questions and discussion.

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 • The font size should be a minimum of 30pt because the audience
reads faster than you talk so less information on the slides means
that there is less chance of the audience being distracted.

Here are some additional resources for slide design:

• 7 design tips for effective, beautiful PowerPoint presentations

• 11 design tips for beautiful presentations
• 10 tips on how to make slides that communicate your idea

Group Presentations

Group presentations are structured in the same way as presentations with

one speaker but usually require more rehearsal and practices. Clean
transitioning between speakers is very important in producing a
presentation that flows well. One way of doing this consists of:

• Briefly recap on what you covered in your section: "So that was a
brief introduction on what health anxiety is and how it can affect
somebody"
• Introduce the next speaker in the team and explain what they will
discuss: "Now Elnaz will talk about the prevalence of health anxiety."
• Then end by looking at the next speaker, gesturing towards them and
saying their name: "Elnaz".
• The next speaker should acknowledge this with a quick: "Thank you
Joe."

From this example you can see how the different sections of the
presentations link which makes it easier for the audience to follow and
remain engaged.

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Example of great presentation structure and delivery

Having examples of great presentations will help inspire your own

structures, here are a few such examples, each unique and inspiring in
their own way.

How Google Works - by Eric Schmidt

This presentation by ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt demonstrates some of

the most important lessons he and his team have learnt with regards to
working with some of the most talented individuals they hired. The
simplistic yet cohesive style of all of the slides is something to be
appreciated. They are relatively straightforward, yet add power and clarity
to the narrative of the presentation.

Start with why - by Simon Sinek

Since being released in 2009, this presentation has been viewed almost
four million times all around the world. The message itself is very powerful,
however, it’s not an idea that hasn't been heard before. What makes this
presentation so powerful is the simple message he is getting across, and
the straightforward and understandable manner in which he delivers it. Also
note that he doesn't use any slides, just a whiteboard where he creates a
simple diagram of his opinion.

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