Academic Reading and writing

1. Academic Reading and writing And why you need to take referencing and plagiarism seriously Katie Reed

2. Reading and research are vital Well developed arguments are essential A well structured piece of writing, of the appropriate length An academic or scholarly writing style Accurate referencing For a good piece of work;

3. At PGT level we teach research and critical appraisal skills but not writing. However we do provide plenty of resources to guide you In Blackboard MHS Essential Research skills (rsch88020) Online skills and resources (medn 60240) Evidence Based practice (medn 60041) Research Methods (MRes only fmhs60010) Dissertation skills (medn 62130) How to gain these skills

4. Reading and research are vital Well developed arguments are essential EBP / RM / Diss Skills A well structured piece of writing, of the appropriate length An academic or scholarly writing style Accurate referencing MHS Research skills

5. Evidence Based Practice medn 60041 • Aims and learning objectives • To enable participants to access, appraise and apply evidence that is required for a critical approach to practice. On completion of this unit successful students will be able to: • Analyse professional practice to identify the personal theories that inform their decision-making • Produce a focused and answerable question related to practice that can be searched • Choose appropriate major research designs to answer questions • Construct and perform a search strategy to retrieve high quality and relevant evidence • Appraise the validity and relevance of different types of evidence • Interpret basic data, both quantitative and qualitative • Understand the need for and basic principles of systematic reviews and meta analyses • Apply evidence to inform professional practice and decision making

6. Aims and objectives Create well structured sentences and paragraphs. Write in clear and readable English. Select appropriate language. Use suitable punctuation and grammar. Employ conventions of academic style. Achieve a sense of flow in written texts. Critically read academic texts. Summarise, paraphrase and reference correctly. Engage in effective peer review and self monitoring. Replicate appropriate thesis structure. Rsch88020 MHS Essential research skills; ‘Academic writing skills’

7. “In the Harvard System, cited publications are referred to in the text by giving the author’s surname and the year of publication and are listed in an alphabetical reference list at the end of the text. Within the Harvard system you will notice a number of small variations, such as punctuation, and italicising or underlining the title of the publication.” (MHS Essential research skills) The Harvard System

8. “In the Vancouver System, cited publications are referred to in the text by giving the author’s surname and a number, or simply by number. The original number assigned to the reference is used each time the reference is cited in the text, regardless of its position in the text. The reference list is in numerical order, not alphabetical order, at the end of the text.” 1 1. MHS Essential Research Skills The Vancouver System

9. Which is best, Harvard or Vancouver? What do you mean by Consistency? How difficult can using quotations be? Should I learn to use Refman or Endnote? Questions

10. Answers • Harvard or Vancouver? It makes no difference, it’s a personal and or professional choice • Consistency? You do need to stick to one style through an entire assignment or thesis • Use of quotes – this is the most common problem in assignment which end in the being reported for suspected plagiarism • Refman or Endnote? Either It will save weeks of your life in the future and vastly improve your referencing

11. Reed (2009) demonstrated concern that without adequate care taken over referencing students could be suspected of plagiarism. ‘Ten students were reported to Faculty in the last year for suspected plagiarism’ (Reed 2009) What's the difference?

12. Answer • Reed (2009) demonstrated concern that without adequate care taken over referencing students could be suspected of plagiarism. IDEA • ‘Ten students were reported to Faculty in the last year for suspected plagiarism’ (Reed 2009) DIRECT QUOTE

13. What's wrong ? It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife (Austin, J. 1813). The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart ( Achebe, C. 1958).

14. “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” (Austin, J. 1813) Pride and Prejudice “The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart .” ( Achebe, C. 1958) Things fall apart “Direct quotes, needs commas”

15. TB in the UK is increasing after a steady decline over the last 50 years. The cause of this is complex as in the industrialised countries there was renewed recognition in the 1960’s that many advances in health status in the preceding century had occurred as a result of changes in living standards rather than as a consequence of medical advances. (Green 2007) So what's wrong here?

16. TB in the UK is increasing after a steady decline over the last 50 years. The cause of this is complex as “in the industrialised countries there was renewed recognition in the 1960’s that many advances in health status in the preceding century had occurred as a result of changes in living standards rather than” as a consequence of medical advances (Green 2007). Quotes in your own text need care

17. An unacceptable practice of using other people's work or ideas without acknowledgement Copying the work of another writer and then passing the results off as original work The act of taking another's intellectual property and passing them off as one's own. Plagiarism may be unintentional, but you will be held accountable for plagiarism whether or not you meant to plagiarize (J William MHS) So what is plagiarism?

18. A student maybe liable to disciplinary action in respect of conduct which involves the possession of unauthorized material or the use or attempted use of unauthorised or unfair means (including academic malpractice such as plagiarism or collusion with other students or fabrication or falsification of results) in connection with any examination or assessment. http://www.campus.manchester.ac.uk/medialibrary/tlao/plagiarism-guidance-for-students.pdf The University of Manchester regulations state:

19. Plagiarism on the MPH / M Res Ignorance is no defence – hence this session, the resources, and the declaration in your assignment process. Tutors report any suspected plagiarism (of ideas or direct quotes) All assignments are electronically screened for suspected plagiarism ALL CASES of suspected plagiarism are reported to Faculty for investigation and penalty as required. This has implications for ‘professional malpractice’ for doctors, nurses, social workers etc.

20. Three students submit an essay on obesity and heart disease

24. Collusion Is it OK to work together? We encourage students to discuss and share ideas on discussion boards and work together in Wiki’s. We also encourage students living in the same area (i.e. Kampala or Cardiff) to meet up for mutual support and discuss their work. But if you submit part or all of the same piece of work this is collusion. We will find out and you will be reported.

25. Your work and marks will benefit from taking writing and referencing seriously • And believe me you do not want to be reported for plagiarism if you did not intend to ‘cheat’