Scholarship writing in the Sciences (and Social Sciences)

• Scholarship writing is characterised by is conciseness

• Scholarship writing is characterised by its clarity.

• Scholarship writing is characterised as being persuasive.

• Scholarship writing must contain detail

Conciseness

• Figures and graphs• Complex, controlled sentence structures• Headings

Clarity• Situation is presented in the opening paragraph• Significance comes in at the end• Paragraphs are deductive• Most topic sentences are short. • Evidence is provided in the sentences following

the topic sentence• Use figures and graphs to convey key

information• Sentences are largely written in the active voice

Persuasive

• Use of evidence to support key observations (results)

• Use of evidence to support key inferences (discussion)

• Logical sequencing /linking of key ideas/concepts so the reader’s interest is maintained

So what do you need to do…..

• Identify the problem, puzzle, question, dilemma.

• Conduct the investigation/discussion• Provide the evidence to persuade the reader

of your conclusions• Write in a clear and concise manner

Your challenges

• Practice constructing a plan from which you write your essay.

• Practice writing answers that tell a story• Practice writing paragraphs that make a point

(topic sentence) and then provide evidence• Practice writing in a style that is both clear

and concise