1、How to Write a DissertationIn English How to Write a DissertationIntroduction14.1Working with your tutor14.2Submission14.3Evaluation criteria14.4Chapter 14Submission and EvaluationThe dissertation defence14.5Summary14.6Exercises14.7Introduction14.1Working with y14.1 IntroductionHow to write a disser

2、tation in English The purpose of this chapter is to address a few issues that are indirectly related to the writing of the dissertation, which are also important in the whole process of completing your dissertation. We will start with the issue of working and negotiating with your tutor who not only

3、 helps you in the writing of the dissertation but is also the first person to evaluate your writing. We will then ask you to have a final look at the dissertation before it is submitted because once it is handed in, you will not have a chance to make any revision or modification. We will also talk a

4、bout three criteria for evaluating your work, and finally we will describe the dissertation defence and give you a few pieces of advice.14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.1 IntroductionHow to write 14.2 Working with your tutorHow to write a dissertation in English Whether you are writing a term paper, y

5、our dissertation, or thesis, you normally have a teacher who serves as your tutor or supervisor. If you are writing a term paper for a course you take, usually it is the course teacher who is supposed to be your tutor. If you are writing a dissertation, you have a teacher who will help you during th

6、e process of your writing. The relationship between you and your tutor is very important. First of all, you must understand the different roles you and your tutor play in this activity. You are expected to do the work, and your tutors responsibility is only to guide you and help you in one way or an

7、other. You are responsible for everything, from choosing a topic to doing the research and to completing the whole dissertation, although your tutor may help you in one way or another.14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.2 Working with your tutorHo14.2 Working with your tutorHow to write a dissertation in

8、 English Before you meet your tutor, you must be well-prepared. The following information may help: Planning your time well: Never over-estimate your own ability. So give yourself at least two extra days. Having a topic in mind. You may have more than one topic for your research before you go to see

9、 your tutor. Knowing your research purpose(s). You must know the aim of your research, which is associated with the underlying research question(s). Knowing how to do the research. You must have a rough idea of the process of doing academic research. Having read writings related to your research top

10、ic. You must have some ideas of the14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.2 Working with your tutorHo14.2 Working with your tutorHow to write a dissertation in Englishresearch topic and the research background. Learning the general overall structure of the dissertation. You must have a rough idea of the dis

11、sertation that you will write. For example, what are the essential elements that should be included in the dissertation? How much are you expected to write in eachcomponent? Giving your tutor multiple choices rather than blanks to be filled in by him. You should give your ideas, proposals and plans

12、to your tutor to judge, evaluate, and comment on, instead of expecting your tutor to tell you what to do. You are expected to report to your tutor on the progress of your research. Keep him informed of your progress and the possible problems. Keep in touch with him during the process of doing resear

13、ch and writing. When you have completed the first draft, check14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.2 Working with your tutorHo14.2 Working with your tutorHow to write a dissertation in Englishthe details (see Chapter 12) and try to avoid any errors including, spelling, spacing, sizes of fonts, numbering,

14、etc. Make a good impression on the tutor. Remember, your tutor is the very first person who evaluates your dissertation. If he is not satisfied with your work, your dissertation is not likely to be accepted or given a high score. Your tutor therefore has a very important role to play. Besides, you s

15、hould learn to make good use of your tutor. Nowadays everybody is busy including your tutor. Thus, do not expect him to spend too much time on your work, and never expect him to re-write the dissertation for you. Some tutors may correct most or all of the language errors for the students, some will

16、give detailed comments, but most of them will only give general comments, and a few will just tell the students their general impressions. After all, the dissertation is the students, not the tutors, because it is the student who will get the credit. Therefore knowing your tutor and14.114.214.314.41

17、4.514.614.714.2 Working with your tutorHo14.2 Working with your tutorHow to write a dissertation in Englishhis approach to helping students is also very important. Do not give your work to the tutor for comment or revision at the last minute, before the deadline. You must give the tutor a few days a

18、t least because your dissertation is not the only thing that he is required to do he may have other important things to do and consider during the same period of time. If you are not sure how much time your tutor needs for reading your work, simply ask him. Some tutors will expect their students to

19、revise their dissertations several times before the final copies are completed. In that case, you need to work out a plan with your tutor. Before you give your work to the tutor, ask him whether he prefers a hardcopy or a soft copy, i.e. an electronic version.14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.2 Working

20、 with your tutorHo14.3 SubmissionHow to write a dissertation in EnglishWhen your tutor is pleased with the copy you have produced, you can think of submission. However, before you submit the dissertation to the department office, you must check the details, which are concerned with the requirements

21、set out by the university regulations. Most tutors will not check those details for you, although they are expected to know all the details. It is your own responsibility to check the details carefully. Once the work is submitted, it is too late to make any modifications because it is going through

22、another stage the evaluation of your work. Once you have the copies of the dissertation printed, have a final look at the whole dissertation by checking whether there are any pages missing, whether any section or chapter heading is the last line of the page (in which case it should be moved to the b

23、eginning of the following page) and whether the page numbers are correct. You still have the chance to make changes at this stage.14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.3 SubmissionHow to write a 14.4 Evaluation criteriaHow to write a dissertation in EnglishAs we pointed out earlier, your tutor is the very

24、first person who is involved in evaluating your dissertation. If the dissertation is not good or good enough, many tutors would not agree that you submit the work to the university because the tutor has the responsibility of quality control. The comments on your dissertation given by your tutor have

25、 a very important role to play. In most cases, the tutors opinions will influence the examiners in the committee. If your tutor is therefore not happy with your dissertation, you are not likely to achieve a high score. In some cases, your dissertation may not be accepted as a piece of work required

26、by the degree that you are working for, which can lead to serious and complicated problems. There are three basic ways of (criteria for) evaluating a dissertation. The first criterion is mechanical in nature. It is concerned with questions such as whether it meets the requirements set out in the uni

27、versity regulations, including the right length, the number14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.4 Evaluation criteriaHow to14.4 Evaluation criteriaHow to write a dissertation in Englishof words, etc., whether it is the students own work, and very importantly whether there are any instances of plagiarism (

28、see Chapter 11). If there is plagiarism, it will be very serious, and many people, including members of the examination committee and heads of your department and other departments concerned at the university, will be involved in making a decision on your work. The second and third ways of evaluatio

29、n are mainly concerned with the members of the examination committee of your dissertation. One way is to look at the content, the meaning, the idea, the arguments, etc. to see whether the dissertation has reached the level of a BA dissertation in terms of the content. From looking at the content, th

30、e examiners will see whether the student has the required knowledge and ability to do the research. The other way is to look at the form, the expression and presentation of ideas or arguments, the use of language, etc. to see whether the student has written in an14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.4 Eval

31、uation criteriaHow to14.4 Evaluation criteriaHow to write a dissertation in Englishacademic manner so that it meets the requirement of a dissertation. If you are clear about these three ways of evaluation, then you must work hard to meet the requirements so that your final dissertation will be accep

32、ted by the examination committee.When the dissertation is going through the evaluation process, the procedure is serious and not under the control of any one person. It is therefore necessary for you to understand the importance of the process of evaluation.14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.4 Evaluatio

33、n criteriaHow to14.5 The dissertation defenceHow to write a dissertation in English In most universities in China, most (if not all) candidates go through the procedure of dissertation defence (論文答辯). In some universities, only those whose dissertations reach a certain standard are examined orally.

34、Basically, the duration of a BA dissertation defence is about 30 minutes. The procedure involves the following steps: First, the candidate (the writer of the dissertation) gives a presentation of about 10 minutes to the examination committee, after which the committee members ask questions related t

35、o the dissertation or any aspect of the research topic, and the candidate is required to answer these questions. Finally, the examination committee discusses and evaluates both the dissertation itself (as a product), and the oral examination, the candidates performance during the presentation and th

36、e question-answer interaction. In order to perform well in the defence process, the candidate must be familiar with what he has written in the dissertation. Besides, he must be able to answer, 14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.5 The dissertation defenceH14.5 The dissertation defenceHow to write a disse

37、rtation in Englishappropriately, all or most of the questions raised by the examiners. During the oral examination, the candidate must be able to understand (a) whether the examiner is making comments, suggestions or giving advice, (b) whether the examiner is asking questions, or (c) whether the exa

38、miner is challenging and making negative comments on the points made in the dissertation. If he is making comments, he does not expect you to give any answers, and the only thing to do is to listen to him carefully and attentively and acknowledge your understanding of his comments, e.g. by nodding a

39、nd saying yes. If he is asking a question, you should try your best to answer the question. Look at the examiners and see if they are happy with your answers. Do not try to say any more if the examiners are already satisfied with your answer. Never try to impress the examiners by talking a lot to sh

40、ow that you are knowledgeable. If the examiner is challenging your ideas or making very negative comments on the dissertation, you must14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.5 The dissertation defenceH14.5 The dissertation defenceHow to write a dissertation in Englishbe very careful. First, try to understan

41、d the point(s) made by the examiner and try to justify your points. Do not agree with everything he says at this stage, nor argue with him because you are not equal in terms of the power relationship. Some examiners may just make negative comments and let you go (pass), and others may want to see yo

42、ur reactions. Luckily, this kind of unhappy event does not often occur. Therefore if you should encounter this undesirable situation, keep calm and have a positive attitude. If you are asked to answer the questions or give your reactions, do so wisely and appropriately, and never try to “beat” the e

43、xaminers in the dissertation defence.14.114.214.314.414.514.614.714.5 The dissertation defenceH14.6 SummaryHow to write a dissertation in English This chapter is not directly concerned with the writing of the dissertation, but it has raised a number of issues that are very important to the success o

44、f completing a dissertation. We advise the student to work with the tutor cooperatively because the tutor is not only the person who will guide you in your research and writing but also the very first person who evaluates your work. Working with your tutor is also a precious process in your university life, and working together happily in a cooperative manner will not only facilitate the tough job of writing a dissertation but also add positive memories of your time at the university. In this chapter we have also discussed three basic ways of (criteria for) the evaluation of the stude