271.150 WRITING WORKSHOP

Assignment Quiz

Assignment Structure

Introduction & Conclusion Structure

Brief tips on APA Referencing and SLT style

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

1. What’s the word length for the assignment in 271.150?

• 1500

• 2000

• 4000

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

2. The assignment accounts for what proportion of the total grades for this paper ?

• 20 %

• 30 %

• 40 %

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

3. What am I expecting from you next week?

• your chosen topic

• a paragraph plan

• a draft reference list

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

4. All of the research articles in your list should have been published since ____?

• 2000

• 2004

• 2009

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

5. In which section of the assignment would you include data about gender differences (if relevant)?

• epidemiology

• aetiology

• prognosis

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

6. What will Jill be expecting you to take along if you book a consultation with her in week 4?

• a topic and questions about where to find research

• a plan and notes on your research

• a first draft of the report

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

7. What is the main focus of the second writing workshop in Week 5?

• summarising in SLT style

• formatting, spelling and punctuation

• editing referencing and grammar

ASSIGNMENT QUIZ

8. When are you expected to upload your first draft to Stream?

• during the Easter Break

• only after a consultation with Martin, Ness or Jill

• by Monday May 12th at 8 am

TIPS FOR STRUCTURING YOUR ASSIGNMENT

• This is a research-based report on a Communication Disorder, divided into six sections, together with a brief (i.e. 3 – 5 sentences in one paragraph) introduction and conclusion.

• The main sections are:

Epidemiological information (e.g. gender effects, prevalence, incidence etc.)

Aetiology (i.e. cause of the disorder). If the cause is unknown, what are the key theories about the cause?

Communication profile: How do people with the disorder typically function in the communication areas listed below? (The following headings are examples)

Content (semantics)Form (phonology, morphology, syntax)Use (pragmatics)

TIPS FOR STRUCTURING YOUR ASSIGNMENT

How is the disorder likely to impact the person’s functioning (activities and participation)?

Prognosis (expected outcome) for the communication disorder if known.

Speech-language therapy intervention – may be best describe one or two common therapy types.

• Each of the main sections will typically consist of between one and four paragraphs of 4 – 6 sentences each. This will add up to something like 14 – 20 paragraphs in total (giving you your 2000 words).

• Because the report is research-based, there should be in-text citations in each paragraph to support the claims which are made there.

• The reference list at the end will typically consist of between 10 and 20 references – most of which are academic journal articles - matching the in-text citations in the body of the report.

INTRODUCTION

• Every report is different. This is partly because they are about different disorders and partly because there are a wide range of options about what to focus on in each section, how much detail to go into etc. For instance, some excellent reports include a preview as part of the introduction; others have no preview. In the end, it is your decision.

• Use the example extracts below (and others which feature in Workshop 2) as a general guide to writing style, but avoid over-reliance on them: copying and/or ‘filling in the gaps’ with your own data would be a bad idea!

INTRODUCTION

Aim to start as you mean to go on – clear, concise and evidence-based writing.

The two most typical elements are a definition / explanation of the basic features of the condition and a preview of the rest of the report. In other words, aim to answer these two questions:

• What is the condition?• What is the purpose, scope and structure of this

report?

INTRODUCTION: EXAMPLE EXTRACT

Syndrome A describes a group of xx difficulties arising from injury to xx (Smith & Jones, 1994; Singh, 2009). This injury damages xx, affecting the individual’s ability to xx. Physical manifestations range from xx to xx. Some individuals with Syndrome A may only have difficulties in xx, while others may be unable to xx. Syndrome A is classified according to the type of movement disorder: B, C, or D (Adams, 2011). This report focuses on the most common of these: Disorder B. The key features of the condition itself, its impact on individuals and major approaches to speech-language therapy interventions are summarised in the sections of the report which follow.

CONCLUSION: SELECTED ISSUES

• As with the introduction, focus strongly on clarity and conciseness.

• Aim to summarise the key facts about the condition, its impacts and interventions in four or five sentences.

CONCLUSION: EXAMPLE EXTRACT

Syndrome A is the most prevalent xx in young adults. The condition affects the individual’s …. and therefore impairs their participation in …. While there is no cure, a number of treatments and therapies are available which can alleviate the symptoms and allow an individual to xx. Speech-language interventions focus on bb and have been shown to be effective in cc.

ASSIGNMENT 1 – RESEARCH TIPS

• Use your textbook and other library books to get an overview of the condition (but use these minimally or not at all in the assignment itself)

• Attend Ness’s library skills workshop this week and spend at least a couple of hours going through the very useful library resources on your Stream page

• Use keywords from your overview and from the parts of Assignment B to search databases – e.g. MedLine, EBSCO Host Health Database search etc

• Use the titles and abstracts to decide if the article is worth reading

• If you find a good recent article, look in the reference list and search within the same journal for others

• Select articles which are easier to understand and more relevant to parts of this assignment and aim for a balance between review articles

and research reports

Article Title: Rethinking aphasia therapy: A neuroscience perspectiveAuthor: Rosemary VarleyJournal: International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology (Vol. 13, Issue 1)DOI: 10.3109/17549507.2010.497561Page numbers: 11-20Year: 2011

___________ argues for a more holistic and concrete approach to therapy for aphasia, focusing on the use of sensory-perceptual tasks to reconnect functional and non-functional components of processing systems.

__________. (2011). Rethinking aphasia therapy: A neuroscience perspective. International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, ______________.

doi: 10.3109/17549507.2010.497561

Complete the citation and end-of-text reference for this article.

Article Title: Rethinking aphasia therapy: A neuroscience perspectiveAuthor: Rosemary VarleyJournal: International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology (Vol. 13, Issue 1)DOI: 10.3109/17549507.2010.497561Page numbers: 11-20Year: 2011

Varley (2011) argues for a more holistic and concrete approach to therapy for aphasia, focusing on the use of sensory-perceptual tasks to reconnect functional and non-functional components of processing systems.

Varley, R. (2011). Rethinking aphasia therapy: A neuroscience perspective. International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 13(1), 11-20.

doi: 10.3109/17549507.2010.497561

Complete the citation and end-of-text reference for this article.

SLT WRITING STYLE

Sadly, “the impact of xx is not limited to people’s communicative abilities”. It can have a devastating impact on their social lives, and personal relationships can fall apart; according to (Brown, 2002, p. 231).

What’s wrong with example 1?

SLT WRITING STYLE

Sadly, “the impact of xx is not limited to people’s communicative abilities”; according to (Brown, 2002, p. 231, it can have a devastating impact on their social lives, and personal relationships can fall apart.

SLT WRITING STYLE

A number of studies have found that the effects of Syndrome A are not limited to communicative abilities, but impact significantly on every area of people’s social life, and in particular, their ability to maintain personal relationships (Brown, 2002; Davies & Kennedy, 2004; Briggs, 2006).

Improved version

SLT WRITING STYLE

Embolism happens when a bit of plaque gets broken off and blocks an artery, this prohibits blood from flowing and it’s one of the most common causes of strokes. (Twyford, 2006).

What’s wrong with example 2?

SLT WRITING STYLE

Embolism happens when a bit of plaque gets broken off and blocks an artery, this prohibits blood from flowing and it’s one of the most common causes of strokes. (Twyford, 2006).

SLT WRITING STYLE

An embolism occurs when a detached fragment of plaque blocks an artery, preventing blood from flowing through it. Embolisms are one of the most common causes of strokes (Twyford, 2006).

Improved version

Martin McMorrow, Centre for Teaching and Learning

09 441 8143 slt-alb@massey.ac.nz

Coming up in Workshop 2

• Structuring the sections of your report

• Summarising from research articles

• SLT style

• Your writing and referencing queries posted on Stream

© 2014

This PowerPoint Presentation and the accompanying handouts are copyrighted by Centre for Teaching and Learning,

Massey University and may not be used, except for personal study, without written permission from the copyright owner.

Please note that examples are provided for illustration of writing principles only and no reliance should be placed on

any of the ideas referred to in the texts.

Martin McMorrow, Centre for Teaching and Learning

09 441 8143 slt-alb@massey.ac.nz

This presentation can be viewed online at: http://tinyurl.com/2014sltworkshop1

© 2013

This PowerPoint Presentation and the accompanying handouts are copyrighted by Centre for Teaching and Learning,

Massey University and may not be used, except for personal study, without written permission from the copyright owner.

Please note that examples are provided for illustration of writing principles only and no reliance should be placed on

any of the ideas referred to in the texts.

Martin McMorrow, Centre for Teaching and Learning

09 441 8143 slt-alb@massey.ac.nz

This presentation can be viewed online at: http://tinyurl.com/2013sltworkshop1