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Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

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How to link sentences, paragraphs, and chapters is presented. Method of logical relationships and signal words/phrases are included.

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Page 1: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Doctoral  Students  

DoctoralNet  

Universi3es  Doctoral  Students  

Thank  You  for  Coming  

Page 2: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Writing  Thesis/Dissertation  Chapters,  Paragraphs,  and  

Sentences  

Page 3: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Academic writing should be clear, cohesive, coherent, and suitable for the type of paper intended.

Page 4: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Cohesive: it should function as a

united whole because its elements

are linked together structurally. It is

a formal element of a text and is

achieved by means of lexical,

grammatical, and signal words and

phrases.

Coherent: it should be logical and consistent and

therefore it makes sense. It is an interpretive

element that is achieved by means of linking the

ideas expressed by the text and also connecting

them to the context in which they are expected to

communicate the message.

 

Both concepts are related in the sense that a text needs to be structurally well written but also it needs to make sense.  

Page 5: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Writing, especially academic writing, is concerned with communicating meaning, both in content and through relationships. Therefore , it is basically semantic and cognitive.

Page 6: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

•  Writing is a process that students can learn how to do, using their cognitive skills already developed

•  Ideas come first: what you want to say needs to be clear in

your mind before attempting to manipulate it •  Two things to keep in mind: what you want to say and how you

organize what you want to say •  Two types of vocabulary are used to express ideas: Content

(dealing with subject areas) and structure (dealing with relationships)

Implications  of  Academic  Writing  as  a  Semantic  and  Cognitive    Process  

Page 7: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Levels  of  Connection    to  Take  into  Account  When  Writing  Your  

Thesis/Dissertation  

•  Sentences •  Paragraphs •  Chapters

Page 8: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Sentences  

•  Sentences are the basic unit to communicate your ideas. They express both content and relationships.

•  In thesis/dissertations, sentences must be direct and unambiguous. •  They can be topic or supporting. •  Topic sentences: They express the main idea of each paragraph. The

topic sentence is usually written at the beginning of the paragraph, but it can also be found in other locations.

•  Supporting sentences: They provide arguments to support, explain, or

exemplify the idea developed by the topic sentence.

Page 9: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Paragraphs  

•  Isolated sentences could not express the complex messages that are expected to be present in pieces of writing like a thesis/dissertation. They need to be connected to form paragraphs that discuss main ideas.

•  A paragraph is the union of two or more sentences that relate to one main theme. In other

words, a paragraph must have just one focus, made evident by sentences that are linked explicitly or implicitly.

•  The connection at the paragraph level can be approached from two points:

–  How to link sentences to form paragraphs –  How to link paragraphs

Page 10: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

How  to  Link  Sentences  to  Form  Paragraphs  (I)  

 

•  Linking sentences explicitly is an easy and more direct way of connecting them.

•  Doing it implicitly means the existence of a

subtle but strong relationship between the ideas of the sentences; therefore, meaning is the connecting tool and that usually opens the door to different interpretations (something that should be avoided in thesis/dissertations)

•  To explicitly link sentences, the main tool is

signal words and phrases. They are used according to the logical relationships you want to express.

The main logical relationships are:

•  Chronological order

•  Spatial order

•  Classification

•  Comparison and contrast

•  Generalizations and

specifics

•  Cause and effect

•  Prediction  

Page 11: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Methods of Logical Relationships (I)

How  to  Link  Sentences  to  Form  Paragraphs  (II)  

 

•  Chronological order: Information is linked according to time sequence. If there is

more than one possible order, you should select the most logical one.

•  Spatial order: Information is connected according to place or relationship in space.

Very frequently spatial order and chronological order are used together.

•  Classification: Items or data are linked based on similarities and differences in

relation to an established criterion.

•  Comparison and contrast: They are in fact two different methods of logical

organization. However, they are usually used together due to their intimate

relationship. Comparison is an estimate of likenesses and similarities. Contrast refers to differences and dissimilarities.

Page 12: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Methods of Logical Relationships (II)

How  to  Link  Sentences  to  Form  Paragraphs  (III)  

•  Generalizations and specifics: Generalizations are ideas that can be considered true

and common to more than one situation. They are inferences derived from individual occurrences of a phenomenon. They should be supported or proved by providing

specifics (facts, examples, statistics, experiences, etc.).

•  Cause and effect: A piece of information depends on the existence of another one.

Such relationship can be confused with one of chronological order because the cause

always precedes the effect (despite the fact they can be written in the reverse

order), but the main point is the dependence of one item on another one.

•  Prediction: Inferences are made focused in the future but based on present events or

phenomena. It is possible to make logical inferences based on valid information

though you should remember that future cannot be foreseen accurately .

Page 13: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Signal Words and Phrases (I)

How  to  Link  Sentences  to  Form  Paragraphs  (IV)  

 

•  Chronological order: now, nowadays, when, before, after, next, while, during, since, later, earlier, formerly, between ___and ___, former, latter, previous(ly) first, second, etc., in the first place, etc., to begin with, to start, at last, in conclusion, finally,…

•  Spatial order: where, in/to/from which, under, over, inside, beside, on top of, along, through, as far as, to the left, to the right, to the north/south/east/west, etc.

•  Classification: main/major/basic kinds of, significant, important, primary, secondary, etc., the principal elements, categories, etc.

•  Comparison and contrast: too, also, both, similar to, in the same way, similarly, likewise, the same, as well as. However, but, on the other hand, unlike, different from, yet, while, whereas, in contrast

Page 14: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Signal Words and Phrases (II)

How  to  Link  Sentences  to  Form  Paragraphs  (V)  

 

•  Generalizations and specifics: generally (speaking), on the whole, all,

every, never, always. For example/instance/one thing, to illustrate, in

other words, as follows, as proof, to illustrate, as an illustration, in

substantiation, as an example, according to, etc.

•  Cause and effect: so, thus, consequently, therefore, accordingly, for this

reason, as a result, hence, because (of), since, due to, the reason for, if__,

then__, __follows from __, as a consequence, etc.

•  Prediction: probable result, it is likely, probable outcome, future

implications of, the end result, etc.

Page 15: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

How  to  Link  Paragraphs      

•  Paragraphs can be linked explicitly or implicitly too. •  To explicitly link paragraphs, signal words and phrases are also the best possible tool. •  Like it happens at the sentence level, signal words and phrases are used in accordance to the methods of logical

relationships that paragraphs express. •  Therefore, use the list of words and phrases presented before to connect one paragraph with the next one. •  Try to write the topic sentence at the beginning of each paragraph so its main idea or focus can be easily

established. •  Use supporting sentences to provide the information necessary to prove the validity of your main ideas. •  Talk about only one main theme (focus) in each paragraph. •  Paragraphs are connected in order to develop sections of each chapter. The main criterion to apply is that the

linked paragraphs refer to the focus of the section.

Page 16: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Chapters  

•  Sections created by linking paragraphs which have the same focus are connected to form each one of the thesis/dissertation chapters.

•  Each chapter has a main goal and therefore its sections should contribute to achieve

it. –  Introduction: Provide a clear picture of the study –  Literature review: Contextualize the study in relation to prior research and identify gaps of

information the study addresses –  Methodology: Provide information about how the study is conducted so evaluation and

replication can be done –  Findings: Present the results of the study –  Discussion, conclusions, and recommendations: answer research questions, summarize

implications, and suggest new applications and studies

Page 17: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

How  to  Link  Sections  and  Chapters  

 

•  There are two main criteria to link sections: –  Follow the order that best assures the achievement of the chapter goal –  Connect the last paragraph of a section to the first of the next section

•  To link chapters, the main criterion is to restate two pivotal elements of the study: purpose and research question(s)

If you want to learn more about linking chapters, come to our conference “How to Approach Each Chapter of Your Thesis/ Dissertation” on November 30th

Page 18: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Now  You  Know  

Any Question?

1.  What text cohesion and coherence mean

2.  Implications of writing as a semantic and cognitive process

3.  Levels of connection to take into account when writing

4.  How to link sentences 5.  How to link paragraphs 6.  How to link sections and

chapters

We  are  preparing  interac3ve  conferences  to  prac3ce  how  to  apply  what  you  have  learned  today  

Page 19: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

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Page 20: Writing Thesis/Dissertation Chapters, Paragraphs, and Sentences

Thanks  for  Coming  Hope you find this conference useful and want to meet us soon