Writing for Grad School

1. APA Is Not a Disease Writing for Grad School By Mary Bowman-Kruhm, Ed.D. v. 7.13.08

2. Many universities mandate use of APA format. APA is the abbreviation of the The APA publishes the manual used for submission of work in JHU courses.

3. The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association is: • A major guide for authors, editors, publishers, and students from h.s. through doctoral programs. • A reference for rules related to English language usage. • A source how to concisely express ideas and reduce bias in writing.

4. Are writing errors sprinkled throughout papers you turn in? • “Typos are very important to all written form. It gives the reader something to look for so they aren't distracted by the total lack of content in your writing.” --Randy K. Milholland But if that’s not what you’re aiming for…

5. …then let’s talk about: • A process for writing assignments clearly and concisely. • Use of the APA manual to help you write and reference. • Ways to avoid common problems found in written assignments.

6. The 6 Cs for StudentsYou Teach • Collect: Gather needed material. • Create: Write the paper. • Cool It: Do something else! • Catch the Bugs in Content: Revise and re-write. • Catch the Bugs in Conventions: Check spelling, punctuation, & mechanics. • Completethe Package: Print and prepare the paper, ready to turn in.

7. The 6 Cs for Grad Students:Three for Writing • Collect content material. • Create the paper and begin the reference list. • Cool It.

8. AndThree for Editing • Catch the Bugs in Conventions. • Catch the Bugs in Content. • Completethe Package.

9. 1. Collect Content Material: As you gather books, articles, and other material, make sure you have all the information needed for your reference list. You’ll save time and effort later on. Trust me, a librarian is not happy at hearing you need the publication date of a dissertation manuscript, available only from its home…high in the rafters…in 95° heat. (I know.)

10. 2. Create the paper and begin the reference list: If you are given a template, use it. As you organize andwrite, construct your list of references. Jot down more information than you will probably need to cite, reference, and remember the materials you use.

11. Which one did I use for that tidbit of information? Spear, T. & Waller, R. (Eds.). Being Maasai: Ethnicity and identity in East Africa. Saibull, S. O., & Carr, R. Herd and spear: The Maasai of East Africa.

12. If Applicable, save … • Personal correspondence (e-mails, speeches, chats, misc. notes) • Months, days, & years of publication • URLs • Retrieval dates

13. Best practices as you create your paper: • Use active voice. • Remember that brevity aids clarity. • Don’t be creative and clever in grad school. Use standard paragraph construction and organization. • Make your paper flow from ¶ to ¶ with transitional expressions. • Follow APA style for both ms and reference list.

14. The long and short of it:Write with precision & clarity. • “There's nothing inherently wrong with long words, but too many people think a long word is always better than a short one. It doubtless comes from a desire to impress, to sound more authoritative, but it usually ends in imprecision and gracelessness — and, what may be worse, if you use long words improperly you sound like an ass.” • http://www.andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Writing/l.html#like

15. Cool it means just what it says. 3. Cool It: • Whew! Time for a break to rest my brain. Then #4!

16. 4. Capture the Conventions. The conventions of Englishdo not refer to running around witha glass in one hand and a noisemaker in the other.

17. The term conventions of English refers tothe mechanics of writing—punctuation, capitalization, and spelling.

18. No time for a course in grammar and mechanics, but let’s look at some common problems. Like the use of ’ (takes place of missing letter) and the oft misused ;

19. “Carved in stone (in stone, mind you) in a Florida shopping mall one may see the splendidly apt quotation from Euripides, ‘Judge a tree from it’s fruit: not the leaves’…. (Truss, p. xxv).” Why not it’s?

20. its vs. it’s It’s is a shortened form of it is. You wouldn’t write “Judge a tree from it is fruit….” so you shouldn’t write it’s.

21. If in doubt, contact: The Apostrophe Protection Society
 23 Vauxhall Road, Boston, Lincs. PE21 0JB
 United Kingdom

22. Semi-colons have been referred to as a symbol of literary snobbery. Using a semi-colon may seem snobby; it may also impress the reader. Note from MBK: Once, years ago, someone told me inserting a semi-colon in a college paper would impress the instructor. I did and got a good grade. Since then I’ve put one in everything I’ve ever written. But only one. Too much of anything can be deadly . . . And use it correctly! “…; however, ….”

23. To catch the bugs in conventions:Edit what you write

24. Setting MS Word can help find errors in those nasty conventions of English. But— You have to set the Preferences correctly. Writing style can be set for: • Casual • Standard • Formal • Technical • Custom

25. This is how you’ll see Preferences, Spelling and Grammar.

27. Why should this green squiggle be tended to? And this green squiggle in the reference list be ignored?

28. Check that citations and references are in APA 5th edition style. Check each citation and be sure your reference list includes allmaterial used.

29. Are the conventions under control? Then let’s move ahead.

30. 5. Catch the Bugs in Content

32. Passive voice can cause dangling modifiers.

34. Plagiarism! Excellent examples of acceptable and unacceptable (plagiarized) paragraphs can be found at: http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml#original

35. A 1-sentence example • Unacceptable rephrasing: The increase of industry, the growth of cities, and the explosion of the population were three large factors in the development of nineteenth century America. • Original: The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population were the three great developments of late nineteenth century American history.

36. Williams is cited. So why isn’t this revision acceptable? • Unacceptable: Three important factors leading to development in the United States during the late 1800s were the increase of industry, the growth of cities, and the explosion of the population (Williams, 2006). • Original: The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population were the three great developments of late nineteenth century American history.

37. Why is this version acceptable? Acceptable rephrasing: Three important factors leading to development in the United States during the late 1800s were, according to Williams (2006), “the rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population.” Original: The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population were the three great developments of late nineteenth century American history. Adapted from http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml#original

38. To Avoid Plagiarism • When you take notes, use quotation marks if you copy directquotations. • In note taking: • Don’t simply change a few words or slightly alter sentence construction (e.g., active to passive voice). • Suggested process: Read the text and paraphrase it in your own words. Then check the original text to assure you did notaccidentally copy original material or change meaning in paraphrasing.

39. More content checks…

41. To check content— Read aloud what you wrote. The ear often catches what the eye doesn’t.

42. Reading aloud would havekept this sentence out of a paper: • Brigitte Senut and Martin Pickford are authors of the "rival first hominid" Orrorin tugenensis, which they claim has more modern legs than Australopithecus. How many more legs?

43. 6. Complete the Package: Looks matter! Double-check the instructor’s directions. Did you follow them exactly?

44. Does comfort with APA style still seem like a distant dream?

45. Handy References (Note use of APA style.) American Psychological Association.(2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. Perrin, R. (2007). Pocket guide to APA style. New York: Houghton Mifflin. Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL). (2008, April 9). APA formatting and style guide. Retrieved June 11, 2008, from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

46. If you need help with the conventions of English or are unacquainted with any style, you may want the complete APA manual. • If you feel secure about punctuation, spelling, & the mechanics of English, a pocket guide or online version may be all you need. Visit: http://apastyle.apa.org/ - or - http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/ • resource/560/01/

47. You may find you need only a sample list of references in the correct format. No matter what resource you use, check every period, every capital, every entry to assure you followed the required style. It may not matter to you but it may to that English teacher-turned-professor/school administrator who’s grading your paper/hiring you.

48. http://apastyle.apa.org/ Whatever resource you choose, check the APA web site for current information about citations and references for electronically-retrieved materials.

49. http://essayinfo.com/citations/apa.php … is a helpful site if color will help you understand the format of an APA entry.

50. The page of examples looks like this.