miércoles, 20 de febrero de 2013
Abstracts: format and linguistic features
Academic writing requires critical thinking and some rhetorical devices to convince the member s of the academic community. According to Hubbuch (1996), research papers in the hard and soft sciences (. . .) have a fairly distinctive format (p. 9). One of the key elements in a Research Paper (RP) is the abstract which is either a summary of the data or a brief account of what the researcher has done (Swales & Feak, 1994). Generally speaking, structured abstracts following the Introduction Methods Results and Discussion (IMRAD) format are used in the medicine field and “now [are] appearing in many social science articles [and] can be adapted for most normal purposes (as cited in Hartley, 2008 p. 31). It is the purpose of this paper to compare and analyze the format and linguistic devices of four abstracts, two from articles which belong to medicine and two from education.
There are some coincidences and differences, as well, between the two abstracts from the medicine articles. Becket, Peters, Fletcher, Staessen, Dumitrascu, Liu, (. . .) Bulpitt (2008) conducted a research about hypertension; the other study by Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche (2009) dealt with breast cancer. Both abstracts seem to be structured, result driven, and indicative as they provide a summary of the data. However, the former is easier to read, the reader may have an overview of the whole article at a first glimpse. The information is organized under subheadings following the IMRAD format. Despite dealing with the same kind of data, the latter seems to demand the reader more concentration in order to scan it as it presents the same information through seven headings: Objectives, Setting; Design, Participants, Main outcome measures, Results and Conclusion. If we assume that readers know what each section of the abstracts consists of, the abstract by Becket et al. (2008) could be rearranged: Objectives and Setting would provide the Background; Design, Participants and Main outcome measures would suit the Methods and Results.
As regards the linguistic features, Becket et al. (2008) meet the requirements of scientific prose as they utilize impersonal passive to show detachment, also in the use of full sentences. In the background section, the abstract acquires contemporary relevance through the present perfect and present simple (Swales and Feak, 1994, p. 212). Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche (2009) make use of the imperative to introduce each section; another feature to be noticed is the third person we, possibly in order to make this abstract shorter and, thus, give it more pace (p. 212). In spite of these devices, the imperatives and the third person, Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche’s abstract (2009) would require more attention to be analyzed in detail. Therefore, format seems to help writers to make their abstracts “map[s] in prose” (Hubbuch, 1996).
In the case of the abstracts in the articles about education King (2002) and Kokonis (1993) offer their points of view about technology in the classroom: the DVD and the video. Both abstracts are unstructured and informative as their introductions state the present situation of the matters in question (cited in Swales & Feak, 1994). In King (2002), the abstract layout consists of a long unbroken paragraph of ten lines. It explains what has been done by the use of present perfect simple, in order to give this statement “contemporary relevance” (Swales & Feak, 1994, p.212). Kokoni´s (1993) abstract is laid out by the use of a long unbroken paragraph of about twenty-three lines. It starts by stating the suggestions of the paper, and its purpose. This is done through the use of present tenses, with a similar intention as that of King’s (2002), that is, to give this section contemporary relevance (Swales & Feak, p.212).
Kokonis (1993) continues with a description of the main characteristics and possible uses of the video in the classroom. This is achieved through the use of present simple tense and full sentences. There are no abbreviations and specific vocabulary is used. There is also an extended description of narrative analysis, explained through the use of present simple and present passive voice. King (2002) states the purpose of the article with the use of present impersonal passive voice. The other sentences summarize the advantages of using this pedagogical tool, the approaches, and the importance of selection criteria. By comparing these two abstracts and in contrast with the structured ones, it could be argued that in some traditional abstracts the reader has the feeling that something is missing (cited in Hartley, 2008, p.32). This is what may be perceived by reading Kokonis (1993), where no results or conclusion may be identified.
After having analyzed the four abstracts, it could be affirmed that there are differences between the two abstracts from medicine and also between those about education; the four pieces of writing share a formal detached style. The kind of research conducted may influence the choice of the format. Regardless the field they belong to, it is necessary that abstracts from research papers provide “a brief comprehensive summary of the contents of the article; [in order to] allow the reader to survey the contents of an article quickly” (as cited in APA, 2008, p. 12). In the hard sciences it is important to state the introductions, methods, results and conclusions, regardless of the order, as these sciences do empirical studies where the sections mentioned may not be left out. What is more, it is also important for abstracts from the social sciences to introduce the topic, making the objectives explicit, and arriving at a conclusion so that the reader may acquire the whole panorama in a quick view. Although King (2002) and Becket et al. (2008) are from different fields of studies, they offer clear examples of well-developed ideas in a brief and organized fashion.
References
Becket, N.; Peters, R.; Fletcher, A.; Staessen, J.; Liu, L.; Dumitrascu, D. ; Stoyanovsky,
V.; Antikainen, R.; Nikitin, Y.; Anderson C.; Belhani, A.; Forette, F.; Rajkumar, C. ; Thijs, L.; Banya, W. & Bulpitt, C. (2008). Treatment of hypertension in patients 80 years of age or older. The New England Journal of Medicine, 358, 18. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8534
Jorgensen, K.; Zahl, P. & Gotzseche, P. (2009). Breast cancer mortality in organized
mammography screening in Denmark: comparative study. BMJ. Retrieved from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8532
King, J. (2002). Using DVD feature films in the EFL classroom [Abstract]. The weekly
column. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=10417
Kokonis, M. (1993). The video in the classroom: Agatha Christie’s “Evil under the sun”
and the teaching of narratology through film [Abstract]. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=10415
Hartley, J. (2008). Academic Writing and publishing. Routledge.
Hubbuch, S. M. (1996). Writing research papers across the curriculum (4th ed.).
Harcourt Brace: Fort Worth, TX.
Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (1994). Academic writing for graduate students. Essential
tasks and skills. Ann Harbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press.
Discourse Communities: Similarities and Differences in Two RP
Academic research papers may show similarities and differences. Research papers from hard sciences- for example medicine- usually follow quantitative study; whereas studies in social sciences- such as education- are more likely to be conducted through a qualitative research; both types of research follow the IMRAD format (Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion). The present paper will analyze the similitudes and dissimilarities in the results and discussion sections of two research papers, one from the field of education and one from the field of medicine. The former is a study in which experienced teachers were asked to reflect upon their first years as teacher, regarding the dynamics and interpretation of work-related information. The latter is a study which deals with the use of antioxidants for the treatment of ovarian cancer.
Hartley (2008) points out that research papers need to have a coherent organization from the introduction to the discussion section. In both papers topics in the introduction are articulated with the results and discussion section as well. In Drisko, Chapman & Hunter´s (2003), this introduction presents their hypothesis: The addition of antioxidants to the chemotherapy treatment of ovarian cancer is beneficial. In the result section main findings are presented without being discussed (APA, 2010; Hartley, 2008; Hubbach, 1996). In Drisko et al. main findings of the chemotherapy treatment are described; their interpretation is left until the discussion section in which they provide further support for their findings by citing the literature on this topic.
Kim & Roth (2011) claim that novice teachers can benefit by learning about the school culture and environment. The introduction presents the intention of the research, by explaining the reality that novice teachers find in the schools. The same topics are developed in the result section and in the discussion section. According to Hubbuch (1996), the results section consists of a report of the main findings and procedures. In Kim & Roth (2011) the results section is descriptive in nature; in addition, it is enriched with data from the participants’ interviews. Both research articles contain tables in the result sections; tables are used in the methods section.
Even though the purpose of this paper is the analysis of the results and discussion section, it is worth noticing the use of tables in the methods section in both papers. In Drisko et al. (2003) the use of tables (Table 1 & 2), which illustrate the patients’ information, do not follow all the requirements of The American Psychological Association (APA): It is not on a separate page and vertical lines are used (APA, 2007, as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2011). One asterisk is used to indicate a specific treatment; two or three asterisks are used to indicate the results. Probably, the most outstanding difference with APA guidelines is that the readers need to place the sheets horizontally if they want to read them. Therefore, the tables are rather uncomfortable to read.
Kim and Roth (2011) present only one table, which is referred to in the text as Table 1. It illustrates the participants’ basic information. Its title is brief and each column has a head. However, it is not on a separate page, vertical lines are used and there are no general or specific notes as suggested in APA, 2007, as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2011. As well as this, it is especially noticeable that in most of the methods section the writer does not set himself at a distance, as he frequently uses the personal pronoun “I”.
Result sections start by relating the main findings to the hypothesis and methods which have been used (Hartley, 2008). Drisko et al. (2003) present the results and discussion sections separately. The distinction between discussion and results is sharp. The results section comes first and is factual in nature. Results go from the most relevant to the less important findings. The most significant result is that the first patient did not show evidence of developing ovarian cancer again. APA (2010) warns that authors should not hide “uncomfortable results by omission”. Negative findings such as nausea, numbness, fatigue, tingling hands and feet etc. are also reported in Drisko et al. (2003).
There are certain patterns followed by researchers to write discussion sections. Hartley (2008) summarizes the description of the discussion section in Lewin et al. (2001) and Swales and Feak (2004) in five moves; (a) move one restates the findings, (b) move two evaluates how the results fit in with the previous findings, (c) move three offers an interpretation of these results, (d) move four lists potential limitations to the study, and finally (e) move five states the implications and recommend further research.
The five moves mentioned above can be observed in the result section in Kim and Roth (2001). Move one restates that novice teachers could learn after becoming aware of the characteristics of the school culture; move two evaluates how the results fit with Flores (2004) who describes school atmosphere as paradoxical . . . They also refer back to the introduction about how “This study provides school-based context from which experienced teachers reflected on work related information . . .” Move three and four are written together, first they provide suggestions and evaluate the limitations of their work. Finally, in move five, they suggest further research.
The moves described in Hartley (2008) are also developed in Drisko et al., but with a different order. The opening statement in Drisko et al. (2003) supports their original hypotheses: “Antioxidants may improve the efficacy of chemotherapy . . .” they also show the similarities and differences between their results and the work of others. Besides, each point provides further understanding of the results. Unlike Kim and Roth’s paper, limitations to the study and further research are not mentioned. They indicate research being carried out as consequence of the results of their study.
The use of tenses and certain phrases in Drisko et al. (2003) and in Kim and Roth (2011) is representative of their discourse communities since they use the jargons of their respective disciplines. In the former, more factual language is used; abundant statistics can be found as well. In both papers probability is shown through modal verbs – can, may and could- present tenses and terms such as “suggest and seem”, “the prevailing opinion”, “apparently”, and “likely”. In the latter modal verbs are used in the discussion in order to signal possibility not facts.
Researchers need to follow academic conventions in order to reach their academic communities. In Drisko et al. (2003) references to medical terms and cancer-related lexis cannot be fully comprehended by readers out of this community. In Kim & Roth (2011), most of the rules of academic writing have been respected, with some exceptions, such as the table mentioned above, the use of the first person personal pronoun “I”. Since they are organized according to the IMRAD format and they present a specific terminology, genre and style, it can be concluded that the two research articles analyzed fulfill the requirements stated above and belong to a particular academic community.
References
Drisko, Chapman & Hunter (2003). The Use of Antioxidants with First-Line
Chemotherapy in Two Cases of Ovarian Cancer. Journal of the American College Nutrition, Vol. 22, No. 2, 118-123 (2003). Retrieved from http://www.jacn.org/content/22/2/118.abstract
Hartley, J. (2008). Academic writing and publishing. Routledge. New York.
Hubbuch, S. M. (1996). Writing research papers across the curriculum. (4th ed.). Harcourt
Brace: Fort Worth, TX.
Kim, K. & Roth, G. (2011). Novice Teachers and Their Acquisition of Work-Related
Information. Current Issues in Education, 14 (1). Retrieved from http://cie.asu.edu/ojs/index.php/cieatasu/article/viewFile/268/152
Pintos & Crimi(2011). Unit 3: The Research Article: Results, Discussions and Conclusions.
Universidad CAECE. Buenos Aires, Argentina. Retrieved April 2011 from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8526
Abstracts: format and linguistic features
Academic writing requires critical thinking and some rhetorical devices to convince the member s of the academic community. According to Hubbuch (1996), research papers in the hard and soft sciences (. . .) have a fairly distinctive format (p. 9). One of the key elements in a Research Paper (RP) is the abstract which is either a summary of the data or a brief account of what the researcher has done (Swales & Feak, 1994). Generally speaking, structured abstracts following the Introduction Methods Results and Discussion (IMRAD) format are used in the medicine field and “now [are] appearing in many social science articles [and] can be adapted for most normal purposes (as cited in Hartley, 2008 p. 31). It is the purpose of this paper to compare and analyze the format and linguistic devices of four abstracts, two from articles which belong to medicine and two from education.
There are some coincidences and differences, as well, between the two abstracts from the medicine articles. Becket, Peters, Fletcher, Staessen, Dumitrascu, Liu, (. . .) Bulpitt (2008) conducted a research about hypertension; the other study by Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche (2009) dealt with breast cancer. Both abstracts seem to be structured, result driven, and indicative as they provide a summary of the data. However, the former is easier to read, the reader may have an overview of the whole article at a first glimpse. The information is organized under subheadings following the IMRAD format. Despite dealing with the same kind of data, the latter seems to demand the reader more concentration in order to scan it as it presents the same information through seven headings: Objectives, Setting; Design, Participants, Main outcome measures, Results and Conclusion. If we assume that readers know what each section of the abstracts consists of, the abstract by Becket et al. (2008) could be rearranged: Objectives and Setting would provide the Background; Design, Participants and Main outcome measures would suit the Methods and Results.
As regards the linguistic features, Becket et al. (2008) meet the requirements of scientific prose as they utilize impersonal passive to show detachment, also in the use of full sentences. In the background section, the abstract acquires contemporary relevance through the present perfect and present simple (Swales and Feak, 1994, p. 212). Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche (2009) make use of the imperative to introduce each section; another feature to be noticed is the third person we, possibly in order to make this abstract shorter and, thus, give it more pace (p. 212). In spite of these devices, the imperatives and the third person, Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche’s abstract (2009) would require more attention to be analyzed in detail. Therefore, format seems to help writers to make their abstracts “map[s] in prose” (Hubbuch, 1996).
In the case of the abstracts in the articles about education King (2002) and Kokonis (1993) offer their points of view about technology in the classroom: the DVD and the video. Both abstracts are unstructured and informative as their introductions state the present situation of the matters in question (cited in Swales & Feak, 1994). In King (2002), the abstract layout consists of a long unbroken paragraph of ten lines. It explains what has been done by the use of present perfect simple, in order to give this statement “contemporary relevance” (Swales & Feak, 1994, p.212). Kokoni´s (1993) abstract is laid out by the use of a long unbroken paragraph of about twenty-three lines. It starts by stating the suggestions of the paper, and its purpose. This is done through the use of present tenses, with a similar intention as that of King’s (2002), that is, to give this section contemporary relevance (Swales & Feak, p.212).
Kokonis (1993) continues with a description of the main characteristics and possible uses of the video in the classroom. This is achieved through the use of present simple tense and full sentences. There are no abbreviations and specific vocabulary is used. There is also an extended description of narrative analysis, explained through the use of present simple and present passive voice. King (2002) states the purpose of the article with the use of present impersonal passive voice. The other sentences summarize the advantages of using this pedagogical tool, the approaches, and the importance of selection criteria. By comparing these two abstracts and in contrast with the structured ones, it could be argued that in some traditional abstracts the reader has the feeling that something is missing (cited in Hartley, 2008, p.32). This is what may be perceived by reading Kokonis (1993), where no results or conclusion may be identified.
After having analyzed the four abstracts, it could be affirmed that there are differences between the two abstracts from medicine and also between those about education; the four pieces of writing share a formal detached style. The kind of research conducted may influence the choice of the format. Regardless the field they belong to, it is necessary that abstracts from research papers provide “a brief comprehensive summary of the contents of the article; [in order to] allow the reader to survey the contents of an article quickly” (as cited in APA, 2008, p. 12). In the hard sciences it is important to state the introductions, methods, results and conclusions, regardless of the order, as these sciences do empirical studies where the sections mentioned may not be left out. What is more, it is also important for abstracts from the social sciences to introduce the topic, making the objectives explicit, and arriving at a conclusion so that the reader may acquire the whole panorama in a quick view. Although King (2002) and Becket et al. (2008) are from different fields of studies, they offer clear examples of well-developed ideas in a brief and organized fashion.
References
Becket, N.; Peters, R.; Fletcher, A.; Staessen, J.; Liu, L.; Dumitrascu, D. ; Stoyanovsky,
V.; Antikainen, R.; Nikitin, Y.; Anderson C.; Belhani, A.; Forette, F.; Rajkumar, C. ; Thijs, L.; Banya, W. & Bulpitt, C. (2008). Treatment of hypertension in patients 80 years of age or older. The New England Journal of Medicine, 358, 18. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8534
Jorgensen, K.; Zahl, P. & Gotzseche, P. (2009). Breast cancer mortality in organized
mammography screening in Denmark: comparative study. BMJ. Retrieved from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8532
King, J. (2002). Using DVD feature films in the EFL classroom [Abstract]. The weekly
column. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=10417
Kokonis, M. (1993). The video in the classroom: Agatha Christie’s “Evil under the sun”
and the teaching of narratology through film [Abstract]. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=10415
Hartley, J. (2008). Academic Writing and publishing. Routledge.
Hubbuch, S. M. (1996). Writing research papers across the curriculum (4th ed.).
Harcourt Brace: Fort Worth, TX.
Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (1994). Academic writing for graduate students. Essential
tasks and skills. Ann Harbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press.
My Blog: http://caveroslanguagecorner.blogspot.com/
Text organization to be heard
Researchers may have a great deal of knowledge, experience and confidence in their field; however, when they want to inform or persuade the members of their discourse community they need to organize their ideas within a model for text organization in order to be heard. Swales and Feak (1994) suggest organizing informational writing in a general to specific pattern, moving from general ideas to specific details and closing the text with general ideas, again. It is the purpose of this work to compare two studies; one from the medicine field and the other from education.
Oanh and Hienn (2006) and Green, Anderson, Ralston, Catz, Fishman and Cook (2011) have similar organizational frameworks. Both frameworks consist of an abstract, an introduction, methods and results. The former is a research article about education and the latter is a research article about medicine. If we consider the introduction, both pieces of writings state the relevance of the study. Oanh and Hienn (2006) inquire whether memorization is a learning strategy and they also inquire students’ beliefs and attitudes towards memorization in learning EFL. Green et al. (2011) sustain that the internet may help to monitor patients suffering from blood pressure and the results of their work “will provide a context for engaging participation in and designing future Web-based interventions that lead to improved health outcomes for all populations.” These studies are successful at both attracting readers’ attention while setting a general background and providing a rationale for their investigation.
There is a difference between the structure of Oanh and Hienn (2006) and Green et al.’s studies (2011); whereas the former has a special section devoted to a literature review, the latter does not revise previous findings. Despite that, it can be appreciated that Green et al. (2011) use a wide variety of sources which give a solid foundation to their work. These sources are acknowledged through endnotes in a reference section. Unlike Green et al. (2011), Oanh and Hienn’s (2006) literature review includes first a definition of memorization, but no authors’ personal definition is provided. Second, some definitions of EFL learning strategies are explained; besides the authors’ position is pointed out.
In Green et al. (2011), the methods section is made up of three components: study setting, recruitment, measures and statistical analysis. The study setting details when, where and the means used to accomplish the study; the recruitment describes the participant involved in the research. The measures explain the variables in technology infrastructure and human resources. The last component is the statistical analysis which illustrates the models used to analyze and evaluate the data collected. Despite labeling the sections in a different fashion to Green et al. (2011), the information dealt within methods in Oanh and Hienn (2006) is similar. They depict the participants, materials and analysis. As regards the participants the real names were not provided, only pseudonyms. The materials included appendices at the end of the work. The analysis explains how the data was collected and categorized.
There is a coincidence in both works: they present the results supported by sources they acknowledge. In Green et al. (2011) not only the findings and conclusions are supplied, but the weaknesses and strengths as well. What is different in Oanh and Hienn (2006) is that they do not account for the strengths and weaknesses in their work. On the other hand, it is important to notice how the use of tables helps the readers achieve a clear understanding of the results.
Other elements included in both articles are references and copyright. While in Green et al. (2011) the references are part of an endnote as it was already mentioned, in Oanh and Hienn (2006) the references relate to in-text citations where the author and year of publication are stated. In the former the readers may explore the text more easily; nevertheless, the latter gives a faster point of reference. All points considered, we may read both texts straightforwardly.
A last point to be analyzed is the use of tenses. In Oanh and Hienn (2006) and in Green et al. (2011) it can be seen the use of tentative language in the abstract to set a background for the research. In order to describe the methods they use passive voice and simple past. The results are expressed through simple past. If we consider the conclusion, Green et al. (2011) use simple past and passive voice to point out what will be required, while Oanh and Hienn (2006) use should to suggest what is advisable taking into account their findings.
In conclusion, Green et al. (2011) Oanh and Hienn (2006) have coincidences and differences in the structure they follow to organize their research articles. It may also be noticed that despite belonging to different discourse communities they follow similar rules: they respect copyrights acknowledging the sources revised; they also adhere to the same tense usage. What is more, they achieve their goals: not only do they convince the readers but also provide important, reliable and detailed information through a simple and concise style.
References
Green, B. B., Anderson, M. L., Ralston, J. D., Catz, S., PhD; Fishman, P. A. & Cook, A. J.
(2011). Patient ability and willingness to participate in a web-based intervention to improve hypertension control. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 13, 1, 2011. Retrieved April 2011, from http://www.jmir.org/2011/1/e1/
Oanh, D., Hien, N. (2006). Memorization and EFL students' strategies at university level
in Vietnam. Teaching English as a Second and a Foreign Language. 10, 2. September 2006. Retrieved April 2011, from
http://www.cc.kyoto-su.ac.jp/information/tesl-ej/ej38/a4.html
Pintos, V. & Crimi, Y. (2011). Unit 2 The research article: introduction, literature review
and methods sections. Universidad CAECE. Buenos Aires. Retrieved April 2011, from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8517
miércoles, 2 de marzo de 2011
Swales’ (1990) characteristics in the teaching profession
How can members of a discourse community be recognized? Can the teaching profession be identified as a discourse community? This paper tries to find evidence about the characteristics identified in Swales’ (1990) which test whether a group of people belong to an academic discourse community or not.
According to Swales (1990, cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 13), a discourse community has common goals, participatory mechanisms, information exchange, community-specific genres, highly specialized terminology and a high general level of expertise. Are these characteristics present in a community of teachers?
Generally speaking, teachers’ main aim is to help students succeed in their learning. Common goals are exemplified in Howley and Howley, (2005). They explain how teachers working in professional learning communities strive for students’ success. Those teachers believe that this goal can be achieved only by analyzing their practices not only through their point of view, but changing their roles and thus living the experience as students.
Wenzlaff and Wiesemane (2004) depict the opportunities teachers have to learn, for example in-service training, workshops, structured courses, faculty and district meetings and school-based professional conversations. These participatory mechanisms allow teachers to share knowledge and to grow.
A discourse community cannot exist in the absence of a collaborative culture and an environment that supports risk taking and reflection, Wenzlaff and Wiesemane (2004). They highlight the importance of learning through the interaction with peers within a professional community which deals with learning theories and teachers’ resources. They claim that a collaborative culture and a risk taking-environment allow the discourse community to survive. Swales (1990, cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 13) defines this interaction as information exchange.
Kelly-Kleese (2004) lays emphasis on the common discourse shared by universities. Discourse community governs the university’s spoken and written word (Kelly-Kleese, 2004) which is also depicted in Swales (1990, cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010) as a community-specific genre. People who do not belong to this community may not understand the style and the language used in this specific context.
How do teachers generate knowledge and new specific words for their work? It is through action research that they widen their information, improve their skills and understanding. Kelly- Kleese (2004) considers universities knowledge generators which use and produce specialized terminology. To put it in another way, people who belong to the teaching field produce and use words such as: cultural-historical vision, praxis, a dialogical approach etcetera. These words belong to the specialized teaching terminology.
Evidence about the high general level of expertise is stated by Kleese, (2004):
(. . .) the community college professionals have little legitimate power and limited communicative competence- -they are often relegated to the role of readers within this community, while university faculty takes on the role of writer (p. 3 & 4).
She considers that university professionals have a higher level of expertise than the community college professionals.
All the characteristics established in Swales (1990) are seen in a community of teachers. They share common goals, the same participatory mechanisms, they exchange information and use specific genres; they also use and produce highly specialized terminology and have a high general level of expertise, therefore it could be argued that the teaching profession belongs to a discourse community.
References
Howley, A. & Howley, C. B. (2005). High-quality teaching: Providing for rural teachers’ professional development. The rural Educator. Retrieved 2007, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4126/is_200501/ai_n13591361
Kelly- Kleese, C. (2004). UCLA community college review: Community college scholarship and discourse. Community College Review. Retrieved October 2007, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HCZ/is_1_32/ai_n636154143
Wenzlaff, T. L. & Wiesemane, K. C. (2004). Teachers need teachers to grow. Teacher Eduction Quarterly. Retrieved October 2007, from
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3960/is_200404/ai_n9349405
Learning by sharing experiences in a respectful atmosphere
As all professionals, teachers need to reflect upon their work. One way to foster reflection is through the critical incidents technique (CIT) which “should be used as sources of analysis and learning” (Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p.9). According to Fernandez, Elortegui and Medina (2003), situations and their causes are analyzed taking into account the context where they occurred. Some solutions for the problem are suggested, thus teachers have the opportunity to share and learn from their peers.
Fernandez et al. (2003) describe the use of critical incidents in Teacher Training Colleges as a strategy for teacher training and professional growth. Providing that teachers are open minded to different situations, this strategy may help teachers’ development and supply support in their practices. But on the other hand, the CIT should be handled with care. As critical incidents are about personal experiences, participants should be respectful when dealing with the incidents in groups in order not to hurt people’s feelings.
As it was mentioned above, the CIT may become counterproductive, unless participants experience an atmosphere where they can learn from their mistakes, laugh with their partners and not at their partners. Pintos and Crimi (2010) warn “tearing down another person’s work will only result in discouragement and hurt feelings” (p. 24). Teachers should be invited to learn, and participate in these kinds of events. This strategy may be useful as far as teachers are allowed to think, reflect, create and share with their peers in the appropriate environment.
References
González, J., Elórtegui Escartín, N, & Medina Pérez, M. (2003). Los incidentes críticos en la formación y perfeccionamiento del profesorado de secundaria de ciencias de la naturaleza. Revista interuniversitaria de Formación de Profesorado, 17-001.Zaragoza, España: Universidad de Zaragoza. Retrieved December 2007, from http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/src/inicio/ArtPdfRed.jsp?iCve=27417107
Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 2: Personal narratives in teaching. Retrieved September 2010, from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214
Critical incident
Please, I need a real challenge
Around twelve years ago, in the secondary school where I was teaching, a student of mine had to do a makeup test. This boy whose nickname was Champion was great at any sport he tried. Hence, he was used to taking up challenges. What is more, that evaluation was also a challenge for him.
Every time students had to sit for a test, I tried to ask undemanding questions to help them. They were not only a few questions but too easy as well. This boy had been studying hard to pass the test. He had looked for help, a partner had been teaching him for several days. When it was his turn, I asked him two or three uncomplicated questions, for my astonishment he was angry when I said that he could go. He looked at me and with a grave voice he told me that he had thoroughly studied for the test, so he wanted me to ask him more questions.
How long had I been undervaluing my students’ abilities and potentials? How many times do teachers go to the opposite extreme: demanding too much or being excessively flexible with our students? How harmful both extreme might be? This incident made me more demanding, made me believe in students’ capacity. Because of this situation, I became more demanding with myself.
As a result, I started to require more from my students as far as I tried the best of myself as a teacher. I also concluded that any test at school is a challenge and life is full of complex situations we have to face. Moreover, all throughout life we are confronted with problems; nobody is going to relieve us from the pressure and anxiety caused by these difficulties.
Composing to be heard
Why is it important for members of a discourse community to be acquainted with the conventions of academic writing? If they want to participate actively in their discourse community, they should know the rules and clues which make this kind of texts easy to read. Mac Donald (1994) considers that learning to compose is a “vehicle for constructing and negotiating knowledge claims” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 10). In other words, learning to compose implies learning to argue and support not only our own beliefs but also what other writers think. This paper examines the use of some writing devices in Myles (2002).
In her analysis of the difficulties which English as second Language (ESL) writers encounter when confronted with this kind of discourse, Myles (2002) composes her text in order to support her ideas and to argue with other English Language Teaching (ELT) authors. For instance, when she examines the models of L1 and L2 writing she argues that “[these] models do not account for growing language proficiency, which is a vital element of L2 writing development” (Myles, 2002, p. 4). After using citations, Myles (2002) tries to give her own point of view. For example, when she illustrates how the difference between L1 and L2 conventions interferes with the writing process in L2:
(. . .) The nature of academic literacy often confuses and disorients students, “particularly those who bring with them a set of conventions that are at odds with those of the academic world they are entering” (Kutz, Groden & Zamel, 1993, p. 30). In addition, the culture- specific nature of the schemata – abstract mental structure representing the knowledge of things, events, and situations can lead to difficulties when students write texts in L2. (Myles, 2002, p.2)
In some paragraphs, Myles (2002) does not use signaling phrases, as it can be seen in the block quotations above; she names the authors, the year of publication and the page number. Nevertheless, the use of inverted commas tells the reader that the message within these punctuation marks is not Myles’ voice. In other paragraphs she chooses reporting verbs which clarify whether the authors she cites argues, claims, or states what is written. As a result, the text has a varied type of quotations which avoids monotony.
According to Pintos and Crimi (2010), other important clues to help the reader understand the text are omissions. Myles (2002) uses them to summarize ideas and lead the reader straight to what she wants to point out. For instance, when she quotes Grabe and Kaplan (1996) she omits part of the text: “By comparing skilled and less skilled writers, the emphasis here is placed on “students” strategic knowledge and the ability to of students to transform information . . . to meet rhetorically constrained purposes.”(p. 2)
The importance of mastering academic literacy may be observed throughout the text which is structured in title and subtitles. Following each subtitle, she develops the main ideas in a new paragraph. This organization helps the reader to focus on the main ideas more easily. Ferris and Hedgcock (1998) suggest that ESL writers should “compose texts for academic readers” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 12). In other words, writers should take into account who is going to read their writings; if their work is clear enough and may be understood by their audience.
Myles (2002) uses different types of quotations, insertions, and omissions in order to help the person who reads to follow the writing straightforwardly, which makes her work not only entertaining but also enlightening. Besides, she supports her own point of view with quotes from various authors; with whom she may agree, disagree or provide a further comment. Consequently, Myles (2002) may be considered an active member of the discourse community who composes her work for knowledge telling ang knowledge transforming. Therefore, Myles (2002) may be seen as a good example of academic writing.
References
Myles, J., (2002). Second language writing and research: The writing
process and error analysis in students texts. Retrieved September 2010, from
http://www.tesl-ej.org/wordpress/issues/volume6/ej22/ej22a1/
Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 3: Academic writing. Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7392
Midterm test- final version
Defining a discourse community
A discourse community is a knowledge community who shares certain values, aims, expectations and language-using practices and whose members are held together through a social mechanism (Bizzel, 1986, 1992; Candlin, 1997; Gunnarson, 1997; Herzberg, 1986; Ivanič, 1998; Reid, 1993; Swales, 1990, cited in Pintos and Crimi, 2010 ). Bizzel (1992) points out that the members of this community may have “social-class based or ethnically based discursive practices” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010).
Kutz (1997) considers the community college as an example of a discourse community. Kutz (1997) states that the members of the community college (. . .) “have, over a period of time, developed a common discourse that involves shared knowledge, common purposes, common relationships, similar attitudes and values (. . .) [ and have] a flow of discourse that has a particular structure and style” (as cited in Kelly-Kleese , 2001, p. #?).
The members of the discourse community may be compared to group of scientists. These professionals share “language beliefs, practices, education, goals, professional initiations (. . .) and judgments” (Kuhn, 1970; as cited in Pintos and Crimi, 2010, p. 13).
References
Kelly- Kleese, C. (2001) Community College Review. Editor’s choice: An Open Memo to Community College Faculty and Administrators, summer, 2001.
Retrieved August 2010, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HCZ/is_1_29/ai_77481463
Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 1: Building up a community of teachers and prospective researchers.
Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=6856
Critical incident: A definition
Rahilly and Saroyan (1997) define a critical incident as any meaningful experience that teachers can encounter in their class. This experience can be used to analyze “qualitative and quantitative data about classroom teaching thinking” (as cited in Pintos, & Crimi, 2010, p. 9).
This kind of writing is being used in countries such as Spain as a strategy for teachers’ development. The incidents are studied and each participant gives his/ her opinion about the teaching topics (Gonzalez, Escartin, & Perez, 2003).
Pintos and Crimi (2010) assert that the critical incident technique should be used as a source of analysis and learning. In other words, these events promote critical thinking; therefore, they are good opportunities to introspect about the profession and get, at the same time, our colleagues’ standpoint.
References
Fernández González, J., Eloartegui Escartìn, E. & Medina Pérez, M. (2003)
Los incidentes críticos en la formación y perfeccionamiento del profesorado de secundaria de las ciencias de la naturaleza.
Revista Universitaria de Formación de Profesorado, 17- 001. Zaragoza, España: Universidad de Zaragoza. Retrieved December 2007, from
http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/src/inicio/ArtpdfRed.jsp?iCve=27417107
Pintos, V. & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 2: Personal narratives in teaching. Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214
How can members of a discourse community be recognized? Can the teaching profession be identified as a discourse community? This paper tries to find evidence about the characteristics identified in Swales’ (1990) which test whether a group of people belong to an academic discourse community or not.
According to Swales (1990, cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 13), a discourse community has common goals, participatory mechanisms, information exchange, community-specific genres, highly specialized terminology and a high general level of expertise. Are these characteristics present in a community of teachers?
Generally speaking, teachers’ main aim is to help students succeed in their learning. Common goals are exemplified in Howley and Howley, (2005). They explain how teachers working in professional learning communities strive for students’ success. Those teachers believe that this goal can be achieved only by analyzing their practices not only through their point of view, but changing their roles and thus living the experience as students.
Wenzlaff and Wiesemane (2004) depict the opportunities teachers have to learn, for example in-service training, workshops, structured courses, faculty and district meetings and school-based professional conversations. These participatory mechanisms allow teachers to share knowledge and to grow.
A discourse community cannot exist in the absence of a collaborative culture and an environment that supports risk taking and reflection, Wenzlaff and Wiesemane (2004). They highlight the importance of learning through the interaction with peers within a professional community which deals with learning theories and teachers’ resources. They claim that a collaborative culture and a risk taking-environment allow the discourse community to survive. Swales (1990, cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 13) defines this interaction as information exchange.
Kelly-Kleese (2004) lays emphasis on the common discourse shared by universities. Discourse community governs the university’s spoken and written word (Kelly-Kleese, 2004) which is also depicted in Swales (1990, cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010) as a community-specific genre. People who do not belong to this community may not understand the style and the language used in this specific context.
How do teachers generate knowledge and new specific words for their work? It is through action research that they widen their information, improve their skills and understanding. Kelly- Kleese (2004) considers universities knowledge generators which use and produce specialized terminology. To put it in another way, people who belong to the teaching field produce and use words such as: cultural-historical vision, praxis, a dialogical approach etcetera. These words belong to the specialized teaching terminology.
Evidence about the high general level of expertise is stated by Kleese, (2004):
(. . .) the community college professionals have little legitimate power and limited communicative competence- -they are often relegated to the role of readers within this community, while university faculty takes on the role of writer (p. 3 & 4).
She considers that university professionals have a higher level of expertise than the community college professionals.
All the characteristics established in Swales (1990) are seen in a community of teachers. They share common goals, the same participatory mechanisms, they exchange information and use specific genres; they also use and produce highly specialized terminology and have a high general level of expertise, therefore it could be argued that the teaching profession belongs to a discourse community.
References
Howley, A. & Howley, C. B. (2005). High-quality teaching: Providing for rural teachers’ professional development. The rural Educator. Retrieved 2007, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4126/is_200501/ai_n13591361
Kelly- Kleese, C. (2004). UCLA community college review: Community college scholarship and discourse. Community College Review. Retrieved October 2007, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HCZ/is_1_32/ai_n636154143
Wenzlaff, T. L. & Wiesemane, K. C. (2004). Teachers need teachers to grow. Teacher Eduction Quarterly. Retrieved October 2007, from
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3960/is_200404/ai_n9349405
Learning by sharing experiences in a respectful atmosphere
As all professionals, teachers need to reflect upon their work. One way to foster reflection is through the critical incidents technique (CIT) which “should be used as sources of analysis and learning” (Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p.9). According to Fernandez, Elortegui and Medina (2003), situations and their causes are analyzed taking into account the context where they occurred. Some solutions for the problem are suggested, thus teachers have the opportunity to share and learn from their peers.
Fernandez et al. (2003) describe the use of critical incidents in Teacher Training Colleges as a strategy for teacher training and professional growth. Providing that teachers are open minded to different situations, this strategy may help teachers’ development and supply support in their practices. But on the other hand, the CIT should be handled with care. As critical incidents are about personal experiences, participants should be respectful when dealing with the incidents in groups in order not to hurt people’s feelings.
As it was mentioned above, the CIT may become counterproductive, unless participants experience an atmosphere where they can learn from their mistakes, laugh with their partners and not at their partners. Pintos and Crimi (2010) warn “tearing down another person’s work will only result in discouragement and hurt feelings” (p. 24). Teachers should be invited to learn, and participate in these kinds of events. This strategy may be useful as far as teachers are allowed to think, reflect, create and share with their peers in the appropriate environment.
References
González, J., Elórtegui Escartín, N, & Medina Pérez, M. (2003). Los incidentes críticos en la formación y perfeccionamiento del profesorado de secundaria de ciencias de la naturaleza. Revista interuniversitaria de Formación de Profesorado, 17-001.Zaragoza, España: Universidad de Zaragoza. Retrieved December 2007, from http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/src/inicio/ArtPdfRed.jsp?iCve=27417107
Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 2: Personal narratives in teaching. Retrieved September 2010, from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214
Critical incident
Please, I need a real challenge
Around twelve years ago, in the secondary school where I was teaching, a student of mine had to do a makeup test. This boy whose nickname was Champion was great at any sport he tried. Hence, he was used to taking up challenges. What is more, that evaluation was also a challenge for him.
Every time students had to sit for a test, I tried to ask undemanding questions to help them. They were not only a few questions but too easy as well. This boy had been studying hard to pass the test. He had looked for help, a partner had been teaching him for several days. When it was his turn, I asked him two or three uncomplicated questions, for my astonishment he was angry when I said that he could go. He looked at me and with a grave voice he told me that he had thoroughly studied for the test, so he wanted me to ask him more questions.
How long had I been undervaluing my students’ abilities and potentials? How many times do teachers go to the opposite extreme: demanding too much or being excessively flexible with our students? How harmful both extreme might be? This incident made me more demanding, made me believe in students’ capacity. Because of this situation, I became more demanding with myself.
As a result, I started to require more from my students as far as I tried the best of myself as a teacher. I also concluded that any test at school is a challenge and life is full of complex situations we have to face. Moreover, all throughout life we are confronted with problems; nobody is going to relieve us from the pressure and anxiety caused by these difficulties.
Composing to be heard
Why is it important for members of a discourse community to be acquainted with the conventions of academic writing? If they want to participate actively in their discourse community, they should know the rules and clues which make this kind of texts easy to read. Mac Donald (1994) considers that learning to compose is a “vehicle for constructing and negotiating knowledge claims” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 10). In other words, learning to compose implies learning to argue and support not only our own beliefs but also what other writers think. This paper examines the use of some writing devices in Myles (2002).
In her analysis of the difficulties which English as second Language (ESL) writers encounter when confronted with this kind of discourse, Myles (2002) composes her text in order to support her ideas and to argue with other English Language Teaching (ELT) authors. For instance, when she examines the models of L1 and L2 writing she argues that “[these] models do not account for growing language proficiency, which is a vital element of L2 writing development” (Myles, 2002, p. 4). After using citations, Myles (2002) tries to give her own point of view. For example, when she illustrates how the difference between L1 and L2 conventions interferes with the writing process in L2:
(. . .) The nature of academic literacy often confuses and disorients students, “particularly those who bring with them a set of conventions that are at odds with those of the academic world they are entering” (Kutz, Groden & Zamel, 1993, p. 30). In addition, the culture- specific nature of the schemata – abstract mental structure representing the knowledge of things, events, and situations can lead to difficulties when students write texts in L2. (Myles, 2002, p.2)
In some paragraphs, Myles (2002) does not use signaling phrases, as it can be seen in the block quotations above; she names the authors, the year of publication and the page number. Nevertheless, the use of inverted commas tells the reader that the message within these punctuation marks is not Myles’ voice. In other paragraphs she chooses reporting verbs which clarify whether the authors she cites argues, claims, or states what is written. As a result, the text has a varied type of quotations which avoids monotony.
According to Pintos and Crimi (2010), other important clues to help the reader understand the text are omissions. Myles (2002) uses them to summarize ideas and lead the reader straight to what she wants to point out. For instance, when she quotes Grabe and Kaplan (1996) she omits part of the text: “By comparing skilled and less skilled writers, the emphasis here is placed on “students” strategic knowledge and the ability to of students to transform information . . . to meet rhetorically constrained purposes.”(p. 2)
The importance of mastering academic literacy may be observed throughout the text which is structured in title and subtitles. Following each subtitle, she develops the main ideas in a new paragraph. This organization helps the reader to focus on the main ideas more easily. Ferris and Hedgcock (1998) suggest that ESL writers should “compose texts for academic readers” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 12). In other words, writers should take into account who is going to read their writings; if their work is clear enough and may be understood by their audience.
Myles (2002) uses different types of quotations, insertions, and omissions in order to help the person who reads to follow the writing straightforwardly, which makes her work not only entertaining but also enlightening. Besides, she supports her own point of view with quotes from various authors; with whom she may agree, disagree or provide a further comment. Consequently, Myles (2002) may be considered an active member of the discourse community who composes her work for knowledge telling ang knowledge transforming. Therefore, Myles (2002) may be seen as a good example of academic writing.
References
Myles, J., (2002). Second language writing and research: The writing
process and error analysis in students texts. Retrieved September 2010, from
http://www.tesl-ej.org/wordpress/issues/volume6/ej22/ej22a1/
Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 3: Academic writing. Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7392
Midterm test- final version
Defining a discourse community
A discourse community is a knowledge community who shares certain values, aims, expectations and language-using practices and whose members are held together through a social mechanism (Bizzel, 1986, 1992; Candlin, 1997; Gunnarson, 1997; Herzberg, 1986; Ivanič, 1998; Reid, 1993; Swales, 1990, cited in Pintos and Crimi, 2010 ). Bizzel (1992) points out that the members of this community may have “social-class based or ethnically based discursive practices” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010).
Kutz (1997) considers the community college as an example of a discourse community. Kutz (1997) states that the members of the community college (. . .) “have, over a period of time, developed a common discourse that involves shared knowledge, common purposes, common relationships, similar attitudes and values (. . .) [ and have] a flow of discourse that has a particular structure and style” (as cited in Kelly-Kleese , 2001, p. #?).
The members of the discourse community may be compared to group of scientists. These professionals share “language beliefs, practices, education, goals, professional initiations (. . .) and judgments” (Kuhn, 1970; as cited in Pintos and Crimi, 2010, p. 13).
References
Kelly- Kleese, C. (2001) Community College Review. Editor’s choice: An Open Memo to Community College Faculty and Administrators, summer, 2001.
Retrieved August 2010, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HCZ/is_1_29/ai_77481463
Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 1: Building up a community of teachers and prospective researchers.
Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=6856
Critical incident: A definition
Rahilly and Saroyan (1997) define a critical incident as any meaningful experience that teachers can encounter in their class. This experience can be used to analyze “qualitative and quantitative data about classroom teaching thinking” (as cited in Pintos, & Crimi, 2010, p. 9).
This kind of writing is being used in countries such as Spain as a strategy for teachers’ development. The incidents are studied and each participant gives his/ her opinion about the teaching topics (Gonzalez, Escartin, & Perez, 2003).
Pintos and Crimi (2010) assert that the critical incident technique should be used as a source of analysis and learning. In other words, these events promote critical thinking; therefore, they are good opportunities to introspect about the profession and get, at the same time, our colleagues’ standpoint.
References
Fernández González, J., Eloartegui Escartìn, E. & Medina Pérez, M. (2003)
Los incidentes críticos en la formación y perfeccionamiento del profesorado de secundaria de las ciencias de la naturaleza.
Revista Universitaria de Formación de Profesorado, 17- 001. Zaragoza, España: Universidad de Zaragoza. Retrieved December 2007, from
http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/src/inicio/ArtpdfRed.jsp?iCve=27417107
Pintos, V. & Crimi, Y. (2010). Unit 2: Personal narratives in teaching. Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214
domingo, 11 de octubre de 2009
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