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study techniques: how to spell, plan, and write more effectively

study techniques: how to spell, plan, and write more effectively

How to plan research projects

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approaches to undertaking a major piece of work

Research projects

The length and purpose of research projects will depend on the level of your studies. At third year undergraduate level it might be between 3000 and 8,000 words. This might involve gathering information or making a brief investigation. An MA dissertation on the other hand is usually a longer piece of detailed academic analysis. This might be 15,000 words long or even more. A PhD thesis must be a piece of original research. Typical theses might be between 50,000 and 80,000 words long – or more.

Production
The principal difficulty is generating and handling so much material. Most people do not have the experience of assembling and writing such a long piece of work. You need to develop patience, persistence, and intellectual stamina. The material must also be given structure and coherence. You also need to present the material using the conventions of your subject-discipline.

Planning
Your essay-writing skills are your main source of support for such a task. You will need to shape and re-shape your work according to some plan or outline. This plan might change as you progress, but it will provide reassurance. Think of the work as a very big essay which will take a long time to complete. It is also likely to change both its shape and substance as you progress.

Research ProjectsConfidence
Despite your fears about tackling such a large piece of work, there are several reasons why you can feel confident of success. When you reach this stage you should know quite a lot about your own subject. You should now be accustomed to the language and conventions of your discipline, and aware of its principal concepts. By this stage you should also have all the basic study skills you will need. Remember that unless your project is a PhD thesis, it is unlikely that you are being asked to demonstrate dazzling originality. A research project is designed to give you the chance to show that you can make an in-depth investigation of a topic, and present your findings in an academic manner.

Form
The form of the project will depend on your subject and its conventions. It could be a review of ‘the literature’ of one aspect of your subject. It might be the writing up of a particular case study or investigation. Some reports offer the results of surveys or interviews. Others may be the records of scientific laboratory experiments. You should make yourself aware of the form of research projects in your own subject area.

Selection
Select a topic in which you are genuinely interested. This interest will help to sustain your commitment throughout the research. Completing a long piece of work is very difficult if you become bored with the topic. Be prepared to change the topic [in the early stages] if you are not happy with your first choice. Do this in consultation with your tutor or supervisor.

Topic
The best topics usually emerge from some subject you already know well. Select an item of interest which has arisen during your coursework. Do some preparatory work in narrowing down the subject to a precise focus. Don’t take on something that is too large or poorly defined. Both of these approaches will create additional difficulties. A limited project which is successful will gain more credit than an over-ambitious failure.

Examples
Study examples of other people’s successful projects. Copies of such work are usually kept in departmental libraries. Check what other topics have been covered in your subject or discipline. Discuss the possibilities with your tutor or supervisor, and with other students.

Conventions
The project is an exercise in undertaking a larger piece of work. You must also present your results in the conventional form for your subject. You are not usually expected to be dazzlingly original. You are showing that you have understood your subject, you can research a topic in some depth, and and can use the protocols of your discipline in presenting your results. Many people become very frustrated with the systems of academic quotation and referencing for instance. It’s a good idea to have full control of these at the earliest possible stage. This will save you lots of time later.

The hypothesis
Some projects begin with a clear idea, and evidence is sought to prove its validity. Alternatively, a body of work is investigated until an idea begins to emerge. You might even start from an intermediate position in which a vague hunch is pursued and revised in the light of your investigations. Each one of these approaches can be equally valid. The important thing is to be aware of which one you have chosen. The worst position to be in is floundering and uncertain, between all three.

The method
Keep relating your hypothesis to the evidence, and vice versa. Be prepared to change your hypothesis in the light of evidence if necessary. Do not be tempted to distort the evidence to prove your point. You should make the method clear to yourself first, and this will help you to explain it as part of your report or your dissertation.

Pedagogy
The extended project is used increasingly in further and higher education. It is a convenient teaching method, especially when numbers of teaching staff are getting smaller. Students learn through engagement with their materials and chosen topic. In fact it is a very efficient way of learning, because you are engaging with your subject matter in both a theoretical and practical manner. In one sense, you are teaching yourself.

© Roy Johnson 2009

How to solve research problems

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overcoming common difficulties

Research problems – Making a start

Sometimes you spend a lot of time researching your subject, but cannot devise a ‘thesis’ or a proposal. You are doing a lot of preparatory work, reading or gathering information, but you are unable to focus your ideas or come up with a topic you think will be original or fruitful. That is the first of your research problems – deciding on a topic.

Solution
In cases like this, you can try making a digest of your notes, or try to extract from your information those aspects of your subject which interest you most. Have a look at some other examples of research in the same subject area. Remember that you can change your chosen topic later if necessary. It’s often better to make a start with something half-formed, rather than not make a start at all.

Problem – False start

Sometimes a project begins well, but then gradually appears to be unsound. When inspected closely, the central idea might seem incorrect or fruitless. You might find that there’s not as much information on your topic as you had first hoped. Take care! You will need to make a careful distinction between a lack of material, and just a lack of interest in it. An additional problem in such cases is that by this time, you might have produced a substantial amount of work.

Solution 1
In this case you have some tough decisions to make, and they will be dependent upon how much time you have before you. You can either start afresh or make different use of the same material. Of course, you should discuss this decision with your supervisor. If you have only recently started, you could abandon your idea completely. Scrap the materials you have produced, and start work on something new. This is drastic, but better than continuing with a flawed idea. The work you have abandoned might not be entirely wasted. It will have given you the experience of tackling a longer project.

You will have learned something about handling more material than usual. It will also form background information for your next choice of topic. The experience of abandoning work already completed might be quite painful. Try to think of it in this positive light.

Solution 2
If your first idea was not so bad, choose a different aspect of it. Try to look at the same topic or materials from a different perspective. Do all this in consultation with your tutor, so that you don’t make the same mistake again.
Reworking your material may involve a fresh approach, or a new analysis of the information.

Alternatively, you could chop out parts and replace them with new material. Don’t feel guilty about any of this drastic re-working: it’s quite common. The final result might even be improved for this process of renewal.

Problem – Getting bogged down

One common experience is starting off well, then becoming bored with the subject. What at first seemed interesting now becomes laboured and tedious. You might think that you have embarked upon the wrong project, and the work which lies ahead might seem doubly onerous.

Solution
If you have time, take a short break and start again, using a different writing strategy. Alternatively, if you must press on, approach the work from a different angle.
For instance, start working on a different part of the task. Remember – you do not need to write your materials in the same order as the contents page.

Problem – Changing your title or subject

It’s quite common to re-define a research project whilst it is in progress. However, this carries with it the danger that the topic is never properly defined or pinned down. In some cases the re-definition takes you in a different direction, then the subject is re-defined yet again – and you end up with a completely different topic. You are also likely to be using up a lot of the time available for completion.

Solution
Re-definition should always be done within the context of a sound plan. You should always have a clear picture of what you intend to do, even if you have not yet done it. If the discovery of new evidence causes you to change your hypothesis, then think through the implications for the whole piece of work. Resist the temptation to make more changes than are necessary.

Problem – Meeting deadlines

Meeting the completion date is a very common problem. This is partly because it is quite difficult to estimate the time required for research and writing. An interesting discovery part way through the project might unexpectedly capture your attention for longer than you had planned. And of course any number of personal issues might crop up unexpectedly to delay the production of your work. Feeling guilty or procrastinating just makes matters worse.

Solution
The best way to avoid this problem is to be aware of it in advance, and work to a plan. Create a realistic timetable or a schedule of work – and stick to it. If that isn’t enough, you might need to sacrifice other activity to release time for completing the project. In the most extreme cases, you might have to re-negotiate a new cut-off date with your tutor.

© Roy Johnson 2009

How to structure an essay

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What is structure?

Structure is the underlying framework which holds something together. You might not be able to see it, but it’s underneath the outer shape – like the skeleton of a body or the steel girders under the surface of a skyscraper.

The most suitable structure for an essay will depend upon the subject, the title of the essay, or the question to which it is an answer. So the structure for any given piece of work will grow naturally out of these factors. But you can learn about the process fo creating structure by following these guidance notes. Your essays need to be well structured, and this is one simple way of understanding what that means and what is required.

The simplest structure or plan for any essay is as follows:

  1. introduction
  2. main contents
  3. conclusion

This is the basic minimum. Keep in mind that it must start with an introduction and end with a conclusion. Of course, that is rather simplistic, but it’s important that you grasp this basic shape or arrangement of parts.

You could think of it like a sandwich. The introduction and conclusion are like the outer layers of bread, and the main contents are the filling – the meaty or more serious part. You will still need to arrange the main contents in some way – but we’ll come to that next.

Arranging the parts – 1

The first thing to recognise is that the body of the essay – the main arguments – need to be arranged in some way. The arrangement of these parts will depend upon the subject, but it may be any of the following:

  • logical progression
  • increasing significance
  • equal significance
  • chronological order
  • narrative sequence
  • category groupings

Imagine you were writing an essay about French wine. You have decided to discuss four red wines and four white wines. The structure for this essay could be as shown here.

Essay structure

1. Introduction

2. Red wines

  • wine 1
  • wine 2
  • wine 3
  • wine 4

3. White wines

  • wine 1
  • wine 2
  • wine 3
  • wine 4

4. Conclusion

This is clear, simple, and uncomplicated. The red wines have been kept separate from the white wines, so the essay structure is in four distinct parts. There are also four separate examples under red wine and white wine – so the essay is nicely balanced, with equal weight given to each category.

If you are in any doubt, it’s always a good idea to create a clear and simple structure of this kind. But if you felt more ambitious, you could arrange the same elements with a different structure. Let’s see how that can be done.

Arranging the parts – 2

The last example created structure by dividing the wines into reds and whites. But you could just as easily create structure by arranging the wines by region. This could be done using arrangement shown here.

Essay structure

1. Introduction

2. Loire

  • red wine
  • white wine

3. Bordeaux

  • red wine
  • white wine

4. Cotes du Rhone

  • red wine
  • white wine

5. Bugundy

  • red wine
  • white wine

6. Conclusion

It’s the same number of examples, but the arrangement is slightly more complex. Notice that there are now six parts to the essay structure, and an example of red wine and white wine is discussed for each region

This arrangement might also make the essay more interesting to read. Notice how each item is kept separate in the essay plan – so they don’t get mixed up. And each example might be discussed in a paragraph of its own. Next we’ll see how this process can be taken one step further.

Creating essay structure

You might often be asked to write an essay considering the arguments for and against some topic or proposition. For instance – “Consider the arguments for and against congestion charges in city centres.” This is a very common form of writing exercise, because it is forcing you to look at an issue from different points of view.

There are two ways you can arrange the structure for an essay of this type. Here’s the first, which we’ll call Strategy A.

Essay plan – Strategy A

1. Introduction

2. Arguments in favour of congestion charges

  • [traffic] reduces volume
  • [ecology] less air pollution
  • [economy] generates local income
  • [politics] positive social control

3. Arguments against congestion charges

  • [traffic] public transport alternatives
  • [ecology] transfers problem elsewhere
  • [economy] reduces profitable activity
  • [politics] punishes tax-payers

4. Conclusion

The structure is simple, clear, and uncomplicated. The essay is in four parts, and the arguments in favour of congestion charges are kept separate from the arguments against.

Notice that the same topics (traffic, ecology, economy, and politics) are covered in both the case ‘for’ and ‘against’. This gives the essay some structual balance, and it shows that an effort is being made to match the substance of the arguments ‘for’ and ‘against’.

Essay structure – Strategy B

Strategy A kept all the arguments for separate from those against. But here’s Strategy B – which is the most sophisticated essay structure of all.

You can see that in this example the structure is arranged in the form of TOPICS – and each one contains an argument for and against the proposal.

Essay plan

Introduction to congestion charges

TOPIC 1 – Traffic

  • [for] reduces volume
  • [against] public transport alternatives

TOPIC 2 – Ecology

  • [for] less air pollution
  • [against] transfers problem elsewhere

TOPIC 3 – Economy

  • [for] generates local income
  • [against] reduces profitable activity

TOPIC 4 – Politics

  • [for] positive social control
  • [against] punishes tax-payers

Conclusion

The topics are kept separate, and each one is used as the basis for an argument for and against the proposition (of introducing congestion charges).

It’s important if you are using this essay structure to keep the arguments ‘for’ and ‘against’ clearly distinguished and firmly related to the question. And the topics must be clearly identified and matched. That is, you must not put an argument for economy alongside one against traffic.

This strategy should only be used if you are experienced, but the result is a more sophisticated essay. This approach demonstrates that you are able to think clearly, organise your arguments, and produce a piece of writing which delivers what the question is designed to call forth.

© Roy Johnson 2009

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How to study a novel

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reading novels and effective study skills

Why study a novel?
There’s nothing wrong with reading a novel just to pass the time, or as an alternative to watching TV. But if you want to get more out of your reading experience, if you want to start appreciating the finer points of literature, or if you want to make a serious study of the books you read – then you need to go in at a deeper level. For this you may need new reading techniques.

The tips and skills listed here are not in any order of priority, and some may be more appropriate for the book you are reading than others. Use them in any combination possible, and I guarantee you’ll start seeing things in novels you never saw before.

Method
There isn’t one single formula or a secret recipe for the successful study of a novel. But to do it seriously you should be a careful and attentive reader. This means reading, then re-reading. It means making an active engagement with the book, and it probably means reading more slowly than usual. And it means making notes.

Approach
You can read the novel quickly first, just to get an idea of the story-line. Then you will need to read it again more slowly, making notes. If you don’t have time, then one careful slower reading should combine understanding and note-taking. For instance you could read a novella such as Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness quite quickly, then re-read it more carefully, making detailed notes. But in the case of a long novel such as Charles Dickens’s Bleak House it’s unlikely that you would have enough time to read it more than once. You would need to make the notes at the same time as a single reading.

Make notes
There are two possible types of notes – some written in the pages of the book itself, and others on separate sheets of paper. Those in the book are for highlighting small details as you go along. Those on separate pages are for summaries of evidence, collections of your own observations, and page references for study topics or quotations.

Notes written in the book are absolutely vital if you are going to write about the book – say for a term paper or a coursework essay. They will save you hours of searching through the pages to locate a passage you wish to quote.

Notes in the book
Use a soft pencil – not a pen. Ink is too distracting on the page. Don’t underline whole paragraphs. If something strikes you as interesting, write a brief note saying why or how it is so. If you read on the bus or in the bath, use the inside covers and any blank pages for making notes. Do not of course write in library books – only your own copy. To do so is both insulting to other readers, and very stupid – because you lose the notes when the book is returned.

Vladimir Nabokov’s notes on Kafka’s Metamorphosis

Kafka - Nabokov

What to note?
You can nmake a note of anything that strikes you as interesting, but here are some suggestions:

  • the appearance of characters
  • recurring themes or motifs
  • features of the author’s style
  • plot twists or crucial scenes
  • important details of the story

Some do’s and don’ts
Underline up to a couple of lines of the text if necessary – but also put a word or two in the margin that gives it a title. In other words, give a name to what you think is important. Don’t underline whole paragraphs: that creates an ugly page, and it’s a waste of time. Instead, write a note in the top or bottom margin, saying what you think is important. Or put a circle round a name or a special couple of words.

Separate notes
You will definitely remember the characters, events, and features of a novel more easily if you make notes whilst reading. Use separate pages for different topics. You might make a record of

  • characters
  • chronology of events
  • major themes
  • stylistic features
  • narrative strategies

Characters
Make a note of the name, age, appearance, and their relationship to other characters in the novel. Writers usually give most background information about characters when they are first introduced into the story. Make a note of the page(s) on which this occurs. Note any special features of main characters, what other characters (or the author) thinks of them.

Studying FictionStudying Fiction is an introduction to the basic concepts and technical terms you need when making a study of stories and novels. It shows you how to understand literary analysis by explaining its elements one at a time, then showing them at work in short stories which are reproduced as part of the book. Topics covered include – setting, characters, story, point of view, symbolism, narrators, theme, construction, metaphors, irony, prose style, tone, close reading, and interpretation. The book also contains self-assessment exercises, so you can check your understanding of each topic.

Studying Fiction Buy the book at Amazon UK
Studying Fiction Buy the book at Amazon US

Chronology of events
A summary of each chapter will help you reconstruct the whole story long after you have read it. The summary prompts the traces of reading experience which lie dormant in your memory. If the book is divided into chapters, make a short summary of each one as you finish reading it.

A chronology of events might also help you to unravel a complex story. It might help separate plots from sub-plots, and even help you to see any underlying structure in the story – what might be called the ‘architecture of events’.

Major themes
These are the important underlying issues with which the novel is concerned. They are usually summarised as abstract concepts such as – marriage, education, justice, freedom, and redemption. These might only emerge slowly as the novel progresses on first reading – though they might seem much more obvious on subsequent readings.

Seeing the main underlying themes will help you to appreciate the relative importance of events. It will also help you to spot cross-references and appreciate some of the subtle effects orchestrated by the author.

Stylistic features
These are the decorative and literary hallmarks of the writer’s style – which usually make an important contribution to the way the story is told. The style might be created by any number of features:

  • choice of vocabulary
  • imagery and metaphors
  • shifts in tone and register
  • use of irony and humour

Quotations
If you are writing an essay about the novel, you will need quotations from it to support your arguments. You must make a careful note of the pages on which they occur. Do this immediately whilst reading – otherwise tracking them down later will waste lots of time.

Record page number and a brief description of the subject. Write out the quotation itself if it is short enough. Don’t bother writing out long quotations.

Bibliography
If you are reading literary criticism or background materials related to the novel – make a full bibliographic record of every source. In the case of books, you should record – Author, Book Title, Publisher, Place of publication, Date, Page number.

If you borrow the book from a library, make a full note of its number in the library’s classification system. This will save you time if you need to take it out again at a later date.

In the case of Internet and other digital sources (CDs, websites, videos) you need to look at our guidance notes on referencing digital sources.

Maps and diagrams
Some people have good visual memories. A diagram or map may help you to remember or conceptualise the ‘geography’ of events. Here’s Vladimir Nabokov’s diagram of the geography of Southerton in Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park.

Mansfield Park diagram

Chapter summaries
Many novels are structured in chapters. After reading each chapter, make a one sentence summary of what it’s about. This can help you remember the events at a later date. The summary might be what ‘happens’ in an obvious sense [Mr X travels to London] but it might be something internal or psychological [Susan realises she is ‘alone’].

Deciding what is most important will help you to digest and remember the content of the novel. The process of deciding will also help you to separate the more important from the less important content.

Making links
Events or characters or details of plot may have significant links between them, even though these are revealed to the reader many pages apart. Always make a note as soon as you see them – because they will be very hard to find later.

Use a dictionary
Some novelists like to use unusual, obscure, or even foreign words. Take the trouble to look these up in a good dictionary. It will help you to understand the story and the author, and it will help to extend the range of your own vocabulary. If you need help choosing a good dictionary for studying, have a look at our guidance notes on the subject.

What is close reading?
When you have become accustomed to looking at a novel in greater depth, you might be interested to know that there are four possible stages in the process of understanding what it has to offer and what can be said about it. These are the four, in increasing degree of complexity.

1. Linguistic
You pay especially close attention to the surface linguistic elements of the text – that is, to aspects of vocabulary, grammar, and syntax. You might also note such things as figures of speech or any other features which contribute to the writer’s individual style. This level of reading is largely descriptive.

2. Semantic
You take account at a deeper level of what the words mean – that is, what information they yield up, what meanings they denote and connote. This level of reading is cognitive. That is, we need to understand what the words are telling us – both at a surface and maybe at an implicit level.

3. Structural
You note the possible relationships between words within the text – and this might include items from either the linguistic or semantic types of reading. This level of reading is analytic. You assess, examine, sift, and judge a large number of items from within the text in their relationships to each other.

4. Cultural
You note the relationship of any elements of the text to things outside it. These might be other pieces of writing by the same author, or other writings of the same type by different writers. They might be items of social or cultural history, or even other academic disciplines which might seem relevant, such as philosophy or psychology. This level of reading is interpretive. We offer judgements on the work in its general relationship to a large body of cultural material outside it.

Next steps
If you want a sample of these four levels of reading illustrated with brief extracts from a short story and a long novel, here are –

© Roy Johnson 2004

Literary studies links

Study a novel Literary studies guides

Red button Tutorials on 19th century authors

Red button Tutorials on 20th century authors

How to study a set text

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reading and understanding skills

What is a set text?

A set text is usually a book that forms the central part of the content or the background to a course of study. It might be a novel for a course of literary studies, or a collection of essays on social theory for a course on sociology. In GCSE ‘O’ and ‘A’ level literature for instance, the course will consist of a specified collection of poems, the play text of a drama, a novel, and a non-fictional text such as someone’s memoirs or diaries. The same is true in undergraduate university studies.

1. Main objective
Your main task is to grasp the point of what the author is saying. You need to understand the relationship of the book’s subject to the theme(s) of the course you are studying. At some point, you may need to demonstrate what you know in course work assignments or an examination.

2. Development
You should try to follow the stages of the argument or the sequence of events. It will help you to remember this progression if you take careful notes whilst you are reading. You should try to identify and name the main topics.

3. Taking notes
You can write in the margins of the book (if it is your own). Alternatively, keep notes on separate A4 pages. Always make notes whilst you are reading. This will help you to reinforce your learning. Always begin by making a full record of the source:

Author – Title – Publisher – Date

4. Reading strategies
You should develop a variety of reading strategies to suit your reading purpose. Don’t use the same type of reading all the time. Your reading style should be chosen to match the task – getting an overview, detailed study, or maybe searching for information.

5. Skim reading
This is a first quick reading for an overview. You are making a rapid survey of the subject. Glance through the material quickly and pick up the main points. Keep your eye on the general picture. This is a very useful skill which becomes easier with regular practice.

6. Detailed study reading
This is an in-depth reading to absorb information and understand arguments. You will be reading in a concentrated manner. You might need to read a particular section more than once to grasp the point it is making. Take notes – and don’t copy long sections of text. Read with conscious purpose. You’ll get more done!

7. Agreement?
You do not necessarily have to agree with everything that is written in the text. It is a good idea to read critically and vigilantly. Make a note of any points you wish to challenge or query. However, be prepared to challenge your own views too.

8. Speed reading – a warning
Speed reading courses teach ultra-rapid skim-reading techniques. This can be useful for absorbing information at a superficial level. They are rarely suitable for understanding and retaining information. They are unlikely to help if you are engaged in serious academic study. Keep in mind the Woody Allen joke:

“I went on a speed reading course last week – and it really worked! Yesterday I read War and Peace in an hour … It’s about Russia.”

© Roy Johnson 2004

How to summarize

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say the same thing in fewer words

1. A summary is a shorter version of a longer piece of writing. Summarizing means capturing all the most important parts of the original, and expressing them in a shorter space. The shorter space could be a lot shorter.
How to Summarize
2. A summary is sometimes known as a précis, a synopsis, or a paraphrase.

3. In academic writing, summarizing exercises are often set to test your understanding of the original, and your ability to re-state its main purpose.

4. In business writing, you might need to summarize to provide easily-digestible information for customers or clients.

5. Summarizing is also a useful skill when gathering information or doing research.

6. The summary should be expressed – as far as possible – in your own words. It’s not enough to merely copy out parts of the original.

7. The question will usually set a maximum number of words. If not, aim for something like one tenth of the original. [A summary which was half the length of the original would not be a summary.]

8. Read the original, and try to understand its main subject or purpose. Then you might need to read it again to understand it in more detail.

9. Underline or make a marginal note of the main issues. Use a highlighter if this helps.

10. Look up any words or concepts you don’t know, so that you understand the author’s sentences and how they relate to each other.

11. Work through the text to identify its main sections or arguments. These might be expressed as paragraphs or web pages.

12. Remember that the purpose [and definition] of a paragraph is that it deals with one issue or topic.

13. Draw up a list of the topics – or make a diagram. [A simple picture of boxes or a spider diagram can often be helpful.]

14. Write a one or two-sentence account of each section you identify. Focus your attention on the main point. Leave out any illustrative examples.

15. Write a sentence which states the central idea of the original text.

16. Use this as the starting point for writing a paragraph which combines all the points you have made.

17. The final summary should concisely and accurately capture the central meaning of the original.

18. Remember that it must be in your own words. By writing in this way, you help to re-create the meaning of the original in a way which makes sense for you.

Summarizing – Example

Original text
‘At a typical football match we are likely to see players committing deliberate fouls, often behind the referee’s back. They might try to take a throw-in or a free kick from an incorrect but more advantageous positions in defiance of the clearly stated rules of the game. They sometimes challenge the rulings of the referee or linesmen in an offensive way which often deserves exemplary punishment or even sending off. No wonder spectators fight amongst themselves, damage stadiums, or take the law into their own hands by invading the pitch in the hope of affecting the outcome of the match.’ [100 words]

Summary
Unsportsmanklike behaviour by footballers may cause hooliganism among spectators. [9 words]

Some extra tips

Even though notes are only for your own use, they will be more effective if they are recorded clearly and neatly. Good layout will help you to recall and assess material more readily. If in doubt use the following general guidelines.

1. Before you even start, make a note of your source(s). If this is a book, an article, or a journal, write the following information at the head of your notes: Author, title, publisher, publication date, and edition of book.

2. Use loose-leaf A4 paper. This is now the international standard for almost all educational printed matter. Don’t use small notepads. You will find it easier to keep track of your notes if they fit easily alongside your other study materials.

3. Write clearly and leave a space between each note. Don’t try to cram as much as possible onto one page. Keeping the items separate will make them easier to recall. The act of laying out information in this way will cause you to assess the importance of each detail.

4. Use a new page for each set of notes. This will help you to store and identify them later. Keep topics separate, and have them clearly titled and labelled to facilitate easy recall.

5. Write on one side of the page only. Number these pages. Leave the blank sides free for possible future additions, and for any details which may be needed later.

© Roy Johnson 2004

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How to take notes

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important skills for successful study

1. In preparation for writing a piece of work, you should take notes from a number of different sources: course materials, set texts, secondary reading, interviews, or tutorials and lectures. You might gather information from radio or television broadcasts, or from experiments and research projects. The notes could also include your own ideas, generated as part of the planning process.

2. The notes you gather in preparation for writing will normally provide detailed evidence to back up any arguments you wish to make. They might also be used as illustrative material. They might include such things as the quotations and page references you plan to use in an essay. Your ultimate objective in planning will be to produce a one or two page outline of the topics you intend to cover.

3. Be prepared for the fact that you might take many more notes than you will ever use. This is perfectly normal. At the note-taking stage you might not be sure exactly what evidence you will need. In addition, the information-gathering stage should also be one of digesting and refining your ideas.

4. Don’t feel disappointed if you only use a quarter or even a tenth of your materials. The proportion you finally use might vary from one subject to another, as well as depending on your own particular writing strategy. Just because some material is not used, don’t imagine that your efforts have been wasted.

5. When taking notes from any source, keep in mind that you are attempting to make a compressed and accurate record of information, other people’s opinions, and possibly your own observations on the subject in question.

6. Your objective whilst taking the notes is to distinguish the more important from the less important points being made. Record the main issues, not the details. You might write down a few words of the original if you think they may be used in a quotation. Keep these extracts as short as possible unless you will be discussing a longer passage in some detail.

7. Don’t try to write down every word of a lecture – or copy out long extracts from books. One of the important features of note-taking is that you are making a digest of the originals, and translating the information into your own words.

8. Some people take so many notes that they don’t know which to use when it’s time to do the writing. They feel that they are drowning in a sea of information.

9. This problem is usually caused by two common weaknesses in note-taking technique:

  • transcribing too much of the original
  • being unselective in the choice of topics

10. There are two possible solution to this problem:

  • Select only those few words of the source material which will be of use. Avoid being descriptive. Think more, and write less. Be rigorously selective.
  • Keep the project topic or the essay question more clearly in mind. Take notes only on those issues which are directly relevant to the subject in question.

11. Even though the notes you take are only for your own use, they will be more effective if they are recorded clearly and neatly.

12. Good layout of the notes will help you to recall and assess the material more readily.

General guidelines
  • Before you even start, make a note of your source(s). If this is a book, an article, or a journal, write the following information at the head of your notes: Author, title, publisher, publication date, and edition of book.
     
  • Use loose-leaf A4 paper. This is now the international standard for almost all printed matter. Don’t use small notepads. You will find it easier to keep track of your notes if they fit easily alongside your other study materials.
     
  • Write clearly and leave a space between each note. Don’t try to cram as much as possible onto one page. Keeping the items separate will make them easier to recall. The act of laying out information in this way will cause you to assess the importance of each detail.
     
  • Use some system of tabulation. This will help to keep the items separate from each other. Even if the progression of numbers doesn’t mean a great deal, it will help you to keep the items distinct.
     
  • Don’t attempt to write continuous prose. Notes should be abbreviated and compressed. Full grammatical sentences are not necessary. Use abbreviations, initials, and shortened forms of commonly used terms.
     
  • Don’t string the points together continuously, one after the other on the page. You will find it very difficult to untangle these items from each other after some time has passed.
     
  • Devise a logical and a memorable layout. Use lettering, numbering, and indentation for sections and for sub-sections. Use headings and sub-headings. Good layout will help you to absorb and recall information. Some people use coloured inks and highlighters to assist this process of identification.
     
  • Use a new page for each set of notes. This will help you to store and identify them later. Keep topics separate, and have them clearly titled and labelled to facilitate easy recall.
     
  • Write on one side of the page only. Number these pages. Leave the blank sides free for possible future additions, and for any details which may be needed later.
Tony Buzan explains mind mapping

Mind-mapping guru Tony Buzan gives a brief demonstration of how the system works. Mind maps can be used for both note taking and note making.

This approach works for some but not all people.

Sample notes

What follows is an example of notes taken whilst listening to an Open University radio broadcast – a half hour lecture by the philosopher and cultural historian, Isaiah Berlin. It was entitled ‘Tolstoy’s Views on Art and Morality‘, which was part of the third level course in literary studies A 312 – The Nineteenth Century Novel and its Legacy.

Isaiah Berlin – ‘Tolstoy on Art and Morality’ – 3 Sep 89

1. T’s views on A extreme – but he asks important questns which disturb society

2. 1840s Univ of Kazan debate on purpose of A

T believes there should be simple answers to probs of life

3. Met simple & spontaneous people & soldiers in Caucasus

Crimean Sketches admired by Turgenev & Muscovites but T didn’t fit in milieu

4. Westernizers Vs Slavophiles – T agreed with Ws

but rejects science (Ss romantic conservatives)

5. 2 views of A in mid 19C – A for art’s sake/ A for society’s sake

6. Pierre (W&P) and Levin (AK) as egs of ‘searchers for truth’

7. Natural life (even drunken violence) better than intellectual

8. T’s contradiction – to be artist or moralist

9. T’s 4 criteria for work of art

  • know what you want to say – lucidly and clearly
  • subject matter must be of essential interest
  • artist must live or imagine concretely his material
  • A must know the moral centre of situation

10. T crit of other writers

  • Shkspre and Goethe – too complex
  • St Julien (Flaubert) inauthentic
  • Turgenev and Chekhov guilty of triviality

11. What is Art? Emotion recollected and transmitted to others

[Wordsworth] Not self-expression – Only good should be transmitted

12. But his own tastes were for high art

Chopin, Beethoven, & Mozart

T Argues he himself corrupted

13. Tried to distinguish between his own art and moral tracts

14. ‘Artist cannot help burning like a flame’

15. Couldn’t reconcile contradictions in his own beliefs

Died still raging against self and society

© Roy Johnson 2004

How to use abbreviations

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commonly used abbreviations in academic writing

1. The following is a list of abbreviations you will often see in the text, the index, or the bibliography of books designed for serious readers.

2. They are nearly all brief or shortened forms of expressions in Latin.

3. Many people also make use of abbreviations when taking notes, and they are also used in the footnotes and endnotes of academic writing. Examples are shown below.

4. Don’t use abbreviations in the main text of any formal writing. If you wish to use these terms, they should be written out in full.

5. That is, don’t put e.g., but write out for example.

6. Notice that a full stop is placed after an abbreviation, but not when the full word is used.

7. This is correct usage, but sometimes the full stop may be omitted in order to avoid double punctuation.

8. Note that these terms are often shown in italics.

9. You should never begin a sentence with an abbreviation.

10. If you are in any doubt, always write out the expression in full.

Abbrev. Full term
app. appendix
b. born. For example, b.1939
c. (circa) about: usually with a date.
For example: c.1830.
cf. (confer) compare.
ch. chapter (plural chaps.)
col. column (plural cols.)
d. died. For example, d.1956
do. (ditto) the same.
e.g. (exempli gratia) for example.
ed. edition; edited by; editor (plural eds.)
esp. especially.
et al. (et alii, aliae, or alia) and others.
For example, Harkinson et. al.
et seq. (et sequens) and the following.
For example, p.36 et seq.
etc. (et cetera) and so forth. [An over-used term. Worth avoiding.]
fig. figure (plural figs.)
f./ff. following.
For example, 8ff. = page 8 and the following pages.
ibid. (ibidem) in the same place: from the source previously mentioned.
i.e. (id est) that is.
inf. (infra) below: refers to a section still to come.
l. line (plural ll.) [NB! easily mistaken for numbers ‘One’ and ‘Eleven’.]
loc. cit. (loco citato) at the place quoted: from the same place.
n. note, footnote (plural nn.)
n.d. no date given
op. cit. (opere citato) from the work already quoted.
p. page (plural pp.) For example, p.15 [Always precedes the number.]
para. paragraph (plural paras.)
passim in many places: too many references to list.
q.v. (quod vide) look up this point elsewhere.
For example, q.v. p.32.
sic thus. As printed or written in the original. usually in square brackets [sic].
supra above: in that part already dealt with.
trans. translator, translated by.
viz. (videlicet) namely, that is to say.
For example: Under certain conditions, viz…
vol. volume (plural, vols.)

Examples

Here’s the use of abbreviation in an academic footnote. The first reference used edn for edition and p for page. The second reference uses ibid for ‘in the same place’.

2. Judith Butcher, Copy Editing: the Cambridge Handbook for Editors, Authors, and Publishers, 3rd edn., Cambridge University Press, 1992, p.234.

3. Butcher, ibid., p.256

Here’s an example which uses the abbreviated names of two well-known organisations:

The BBC reported yesterday that the leaders of NATO had agreed to discuss the crisis as a matter of urgency.

Abbreviations are commonly used in displaying web site addresses:

http://www.bath.ac.uk/BUBL/home.html

Every term in this address, apart from the names ‘Bath’ and ‘home’, are abbreviations

http = hypertext transfer protocol

www = world wide web

ac = academic

uk = United Kingdom

html = hypertext markup language

© Roy Johnson 2000

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How to use Harvard referencing

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standard system of academic citation and quotation

1. Some subjects adopt the Author-Date method of referencing – which is also known as the Harvard referencing system. Full details of the texts you have quoted are placed in a bibliography at the end of an essay or a report. These details are recorded in the following order:

Author – Date – Title – Place – Publisher

Smith, John. (1988) The Weavers’ Revolt, Chicago, Blackbarrow Press.

2. References in your text give the surname of the author, plus the publication date of the work to which reference is being made. This information is placed in brackets – thus:

Some research findings (James and Smith 1984; Brown 1987) have argued that these theories are not always reliable.

3. When you wish to draw attention to a particular page, this is done by simply adding the page number directly after the date of publication:

The development of these tendencies during the 1960s have been discussed by Brown (1977,234) and others (Smith 1992,180 and Jones 1993,88-90).

4. Note that when the author’s name is given in your text, it should not be repeated in the reference. You should simply give the date, then the page number(s). When you give the author’s name, the reference should either follow it directly, or it may come at some other point in the same sentence:

Smith (1987,166) argues that this was …

Smith, who is more positive on this issue, argues (1987,166) that …

5. If two or more works by the same author have the same publication date, they should be distinguished by adding letters after the date. This can be quite common with articles in journals.

Some commentators (Mansfield 1991b and Cooper 1988c) have argued just the opposite case, that …

6. The list of texts which appears at the end of your essay should be arranged in alphabetical order of the author’s surname. The list differs from a normal bibliography in that the date of publication follows the author’s name:

Mansfield, M.R.1991a. ‘Model Systems of Agriculture in Early Britain’, Local History Journal Vol XX, No 6 ,112-117.

Mansfield, M.R.1991b. ‘Agriculture in Early Britain’, History Today Vol 12, No 3, 29-38.

7. Don’t list works you have not consulted or from which you have not quoted. Doing this creates the impression that you are trying to claim credit for work you have not actually done.

8. You might find that your bibliography repeats much of the information given in your endnotes or footnotes. Don’t worry about this: these two separate lists have different functions. In addition, your bibliography may contain works from which you have not directly quoted.

Bibliography

Beeton, I. 1991 Beeton’s Book of Household Management,
Chancellor Press.

Best, G. 1979 Mid-Victorian Britain 1851-75, Fontana.

Burman, S. 1979 (ed), Fit Work for Women, Croom Helm.

Darwin, E. 1890 ‘Domestic Service’, The Nineteenth Century, Vol.28,
August.

Davidoff, L. 1973 The Best Circles, Croom Helm.

Davidoff, L. 1974 ‘Mastered for Life: Servant and Wife in Victorian
and Edwardian England’, Journal of Social History,
Vol.7.

Davidoff, L. 1987 and Hall, C., Family Fortunes, Hutchinson.

[…and so on]

© Roy Johnson 2004

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How to use quotation marks

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Quotation marks

quotation marks Quotation marks or quote marks are the single or double raised commas used at the beginning and the end of a written quotation.

quotation marks Single quote marks are shown ‘thus’.

quotation marks Double quote marks are shown “thus”.

quotation marks There are a number of instances where they are used.

quotation marks The simplest case to remember is that double quote marks should be reserved to show speech

“Good gracious!” exclaimed the duchess.

quotation marks The next most common use is when discussing somebody else’s writing:

In his recent account of the phone hacking scandal, Guardian journalist David Pallister mentions the ‘deep-seated culture of corruption’ shared by the police and the tabloid press.

quotation marks The words quoted are put into single quote marks for two reasons:

  • to show them distinct from the author’s own discussion
  • to respect the original and avoid any charge of plagiarism

quotation marks Remember that when a statement is ‘opened’ with a quote mark, it must be ‘closed’ at some point. It must not be left open.

quotation marks There are very few universally agreed conventions on the use of quote marks. Practice varies from one house style manual to another. The following are some general suggestions, based on current usage.

Emphasis

quotation marks In a detailled discussion, quote marks can be used as a form of emphasis, drawing attention to particular terms or expressions:

Internet users have developed their own specialist language or jargon. People ‘download’ software, use ‘file transfer protocols’, and run checks to detect ‘viruses’.

quotation marks An acceptable alternative would be to display these terms in italics.

quotation marks This distinction becomes important in academic writing where it is necessary to show a difference between the titles of articles and the journals or books in which they are published:

Higham, J.R., ‘Attitudes to Urban Delinquency’ in Solomons, David, Sociological Perspectives Today, London: Macmillan, 1998.

Quotes within quotes

quotation marks It is sometimes necessary to include one quotation within another. In such cases, a distinction must be shown between the two items being quoted.

The Express reported that ‘Mrs Smith claimed she was “deeply shocked” by the incident’.

quotation marks In this example, what Mrs Smith said is put in double quote marks (sometimes called ‘speech marks’) and the extract from the Express is shown in single quote marks.

quotation marks It’s very important that the order and the logic of such sequences is maintained – because this can affect the integrity of what is being claimed.

quotation marks Care should be taken with punctuation both within and around quotation marks.

The Express also pointed out that ‘At the meeting, Mrs Smith asked the minister “How could we as a family defend ourself against these smears?”‘

Titles

quotation marks Quote marks are commonly used to indicate the titles of books, films, operas, paintings, and other well-known works of art. An alternative is to show these in italics.

Charles Dickens’s novel ‘Bleak House’

Francis Ford Coppola’s film ‘Apocalypse Now!’

Benjamin Britten’s opera The Turn of the Screw

Pablo Picasso’s painting Guernica

quotation marks Quote marks can also be used to indicate the title of anything else which has a known existence, separate from the discussion:

photographs, exhibitions, television programmes, magazines, newspapers

quotation marks Quote marks are not necessary when indicating the titles of organisations.

Senator Jackson yesterday reported to the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives.

History

quotation marks The quotation mark started its life as a raised comma. It was used at a time when typogrphical marks available to a printer were rather limited.

quotation marks With the advent of the typewriter, a single and a double raised stroke were added to the marks available – and are still present on most keyboards.

quotation marks But typographical purists have now invented what are called ‘smart quotes’. These are single and double raised commas which are automatically arranged and inverted at the start and the end of a quotation:

"Good gracious!" cried the duchess.

© Roy Johnson 2011

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