WHAT MAKES A SUCCESSFUL

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT ESSAY?

PRESENTED BY:

PROF. ILDIKO HORVATH

As a reference see Chapters:

1: Essay Writing Basics

5: Writing the Research Paper

10: Conventions of Academic Writing

SCIENCE PAPERSSCIENCE PAPERS

FIRST: WHAT SHOULD A STUDENT ESSAY LOOK LIKE?

Generally, follow APA style for formatting and references

Needs to have a cover page and running head (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/)

Essay Title: The Status of Healthcare in Canada

Your Name

Affiliation (class)

FIRST: WHAT SHOULD A STUDENT ESSAY LOOK LIKE?

PAGES 2 AND UPPAGES 2 AND UP

Start the text on the second page Paragraphs and sections (if using) clearly

defined, visually Respect formatting requirements (spacing, font

size, margins) No double-spacing between paragraphs Watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdAfIqRt60c&list=PL8F43A67F38DE3D5D

FIRST: WHAT SHOULD A STUDENT ESSAY LOOK LIKE?

FINAL PAGEFINAL PAGE

References

Calfee, R. C., & Valencia, R. R. (1991). APA guide to preparing manuscripts for journal publication. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Harlow, H. F. (1983). Fundamentals for preparing psychology journal articles. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 55, 893-896.

Notice: oAlphabetic order by last nameoInitials of first and middle namesoStandardized formatoFor full set of rules, refer to link below and/or your textbook, pp. 91-100

Examples for APA format

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/08/

WHY IS GOOD ORGANIZATION & PRESENTATION ESSENTIAL?

It shows diligence Reflects care for your work Inspires confidence in your abilities to handle the

given task Creates interest and positive mindset in the reader Ultimately, …

it helps you get a better grade! In scientific writing sloppy style & presentation =

sloppy content & poor science Sloppy style breaks two essential rules of scientific

writing: clarityclarity and logical progressionlogical progression

THE WRITING PHASE An essay has three parts: an introduction,

middle/body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

As a basic guide, 20 per cent is usually sufficient for the introduction and conclusion together.

Generally, when writing short research papers, no section headings are needed.

Longer papers require headings. These segment the paper visually and separate distinct sections.

Adapted from Bailey, 2013; Henderson, 2013

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

The introduction presents an essay’s purpose, topic, approach, and organization

In scientific papers the introduction establishes credibility and reliability of the author

Logical opening (inverted triangle method)Begins broad and ends specific

Henderson, 2013

ISSUES OF CREDIBILITY Knowledge

Appearing well-informedProviding strong support

ReliabilityFollowing conventionsWriting grammatically and clearly

ObjectivityAvoiding biasMentioning other sides and viewpoints

Henderson, 2013

WRITING AN INTRODUCTION

A good introduction includes the following:1. Definition of key terms, if needed (for clarity)

2. Relevant background information (places your research in context)

3. Review of work by other writers on the topic (in shorter papers)

4. Purpose or aim of the paper (the reader needs to know what you are trying to do)

5. May include your methods used (e.g. experiment, literature review, group essay, lab report)

6. Any limitations you imposed (be realistic and state your limitations clearly)

7. The organization of your work (to ensure that the reader can follow your argument)

Bailey, 2013

WRITING THE BODY OF YOUR ESSAY To write a successful essay, use strong

paragraphs Strong paragraphs are:

Unified Focused on one idea

Coherent Easy to follow

Well-developed Organized with relevant support

Henderson, 2013

WRITING MIDDLE PARAGRAPHS The topic sentence states the main idea of each

paragraph

The topic sentence is usually the first sentence but could be placed elsewhere in the paragraph

The rest of the paragraph should support the topic sentence

Add suitable evidence to substantiate your claim(s)

Hard evidence (facts, statistics, research findings) preferred in scientific writing, as these add authority

Adapted from Henderson, 2013

SCIENCE/RESEARCH PAPERS Voice and styleVoice and style

Objective and analytical Detachment shows absence of bias and faulty reasoning Use of passive construction to deemphasize subject and/or stress that

which is studied

Direct Constructions that stress the study, not the researchers Avoid using personal pronouns ‘I’ and ‘we’

LanguageLanguageStraightforward prose with few modifiers Avoid figurative language

Example:Example:

“Data were analyzed using the framework methodology of qualitative analysis”.Henderson, 2013

WRITING A CONCLUSION As a rule, conclusions tend to be shorter and more

diverse than introductions. Student papersStudent papers should have a final section that

summarizes the arguments and makes it clear to the reader that the original question has been answered.

An effective summary should achieve full closure to the discussion and include a statement on the implications of the findings.

Avoid making these common mistakescommon mistakes: Include some new information on the topic not mentioned

before Include a quotation that appears to sum up your work

Adapted from Bailey, 2013

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE: INTRODUCTION

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE: CONCLUSION