ESL 502: Advanced Academic Writing I: Discussions and Conclusions

Objectives:
-differences between Results, Discussion, and Conclusion sections
-what is the progression, or order of information in the discussion section

Note to Students: This lesson refers to Discussion AND Conclusion sections. Depending on how your discipline tends to separate IMRD, these materials may be referring to only the Conclusion or only the Discussion section.

Introduction

Spend 5-10 minutes discussing the questions on the GROUP DISCUSSION HANDOUT.

(Group discussion PPT)

Fill-in-the-blank—Checklist for Writing Discussion Sections

Open the CHECKLIST FOR DISCUSSIONS WKST and spend 10 minutes completing the sentences instinctively. For answers concerning tense, open up a sample journal article from your discipline.

Organizing from Specific to General
Open the GENERAL TO SPECIFIC WKST and copy and paste the paragraphs in the order which they belong within the Discussion and Conclusion sections.

Openings of Discussion Sections

The opening of the Discussion/Conclusion sections is the one place where the author can allow themselves to make a stylistic choice. This activity emphasizes that even within ONE field, in ONE journal, there are many different ways to open the Discussion section.

OPENING A DISCUSSION WKST and about ten minutes to match the columns. Questions #10 and #11 require you to refer to sample journal articles to examine the openings.

RECOMMENDED Homework:

Genre Analysis: Discussion Sections ofAcademic Research Papers

Here are answers for today's activities:

Group Discussion Handout (Answers PPT)

Checklist for Discussion Wkst (Answers)

General to Specific Wkst (Answers)

Opening a Discussion Wkst (Answers)

Sources:

Paltridge, B. & Starfield, S. (2007). Thesis and dissertation writing in a second language. Routledge: New York, NY.

Swales, J.M., & Feak, C.B. (2001). Academic writing for graduate students (2^nd ed.). The University of Michigan Press: Ann Arbor, MI.

Weissberg, R. & Buker, S. (1990). Writing up research. Prentice Hall, Inc.: Englewood Cliffs, NJ.