Analytical writing

1. Successfully Writing your Assignments
Using the Analytical Frame of Mind to be an Analytical Thinker then an Analytical Writer
Stella Galimpin
Effective Learning Manager
Heriot-Watt University Malaysia
s.galimpin@hw.ac.uk #stellagain whatapp: 01126151742

2. ✓Counterproductive habits of mind: judgment
reflex, generalizing, slot-filler mentality
✓The Five Analytical Moves
▪ Suspend Judgement
▪ Define significant parts and its relationship
▪ Make the implicit explicit
▪ Look for patterns of repetitions and
contrasts; and anomalies
▪ Keep reformulating questions and
explanations
✓Reading analytically
▪ Using quotations: paraphrase

3. ✓Responding to traditional writing assignments
analytically
▪ Reduce scope
▪ Study wordings of topics for unstated questions
▪ Begin with questions, not answers
Recap:
Modelling the Academic Writing Framework
Reference: Rosenwasser, D. and Stephen, J., 2019. Writing analytically.
8th edition Cengage Learning.

4. What does
my lecturer
want to see
in my
assignment

5. Lecturers’ answers
• Analysis instead of a mere passive summary
oAnalyse first; before throwing in an argument
• Alternative to I like/I dislike, I agree/I disagree
• Displaying the ability to apply theories
▪ In-depth use of secondary sources (references)
instead of slotting them in as answers

6. Workshop
Outcome
At the end of the workshop, you
will have an understanding of the
analytical writing frame of mind
which facilitates the writing of
original and thought-provoking
assignments

7. Counterproductive
habits of mind
▪ Judgment reflex and
overpersonalising
▪ Generalising
✓Slot-filler mentality (5-
paragraph essay)

8. 8

9. What is analysis?
Simplistic:
Dividing a subject into parts and putting
them together

10. What is
analysis?
Rather:
➢ Analysis seeks to discover
what something means
o What does freedom mean
to you and compared to
Nelson Mandela?
➢ Analysis deliberately
delays evaluation and
judgment
▪ Move 1
➢ Analysis begins in
uncertainty (not being
sure) and values
uncertainty
• Moves 2, 3, 4, 5

11. The Five Analytical Moves
1 Suspend Judgement
2 Define significant parts and its
relationship
3 Make the implicit explicit
4 Look for patterns of repetitions
and contrasts; and anomalies
5 Keep reformulating questions and
explanations

12. Suspend judgment
Photo by Adi Goldstein on Unsplash

13. Photo by Bud Helisson on Unsplash
What do you notice?
Prompts:
What do you find the most Interesting?
Revealing? Important?
Strange? Odd?
Move 2 Define significant parts and how they are related

14. Notice
and Focus
+ Ranking
• Repeatedly answer the question, “What do I notice?”
• Be sure to cite actual details instead of making very
general observations
1
• Rank (create an order of importance) for features
noticed
• Answer, ”What 3 details (specific features of the
subject) are most interesting or important or
strange?
2
• Write why the 3 details you selected struck you the
most
• Remember to observe thoroughly
• Look closely at the data, record what you see
• Don’t move to generalisation or judgment right
away; this procedure will demonstrate how useful
description is to arrive at ideas
3

15. Make
the
implicit
explicit

16. Look for patterns of repetition and contrast; and for anomalies (THE METHOD)

17. THE
METHOD
List exact repetitions and the number (of
each words, details)
List repetitions of the same or similar kind
of detail or word - STRAND
List details of words that form or suggest
binary oppositions
Choose ONE repetition, strand, or binary
as a starting point for a healthy paragraph
Locate anomalies: exceptions to the
pattern, things that seem not to fit

18. Move 5: Keep
reformulating
questions
and
explanations
Analysis is all about
reasoning with evidence
• Which detail seem to be significant? Why?
• What does each detail mean? (The method)
• What else might it mean? (from implicit to
explicit)
• How do details fit together? What do they have
in common? (patterns)
• What does this pattern of details mean?
• What else might this pattern mean? How else
could it be explained? (pattern)
• What does this “new” pattern mean? How
might it make me read the meanings of
individual patterns differently? (anomalies)

19. This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-ND

20. Analytical reading
Photo by Rod Long on Unsplash

21. Paraphrase
this!
A conviction of certainty is
one of the most certain signs
of ignorance and may be the
best operational definition of
stupidity.

22. Implications
As people come to know more and more, they feel
less confident about what they know
Ignorance and stupidity are probably not the same
thing, but they are often used as synonyms
There's a difference between feeling certain about
something and being aware of this certainty as a
conviction
Stupidity is hard to define – perhaps it can only be
defined in practice, “operationally”, and not as an
abstract concept.
We are meant to take the statement with a grain
of salt – that is, read it as poking fun at itself
(ironically), demonstrating the very attitude it
advises to avoid

23. Use the link to obtain the book:
Wallwork, A. (2016). English for writing research papers 2nd edition. Switzerland: Springer International Publishing. Retrieved
30.09.2019 from https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-319-26094-5.pdf (read pp.185 to 196)
06/02/2020 Paraphrasing 23

24. Paraphrasing 2/6/2020 24
Wallwork, A. (2013) English for academic research: writing
exercises. 2nd edition. New York: Springer Science+Business
Media. Retrieved 30.09.2019 from
https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-1-4614-4298-
1.pdf (read pp.117 to 138)
Exercises to walk
you through basic
paraphrasing
(use the link below
to obtain the
book)

25. ✓Responding to traditional writing
assignments analytically
▪ Reduce scope
▪ Study wordings of topics for unstated
questions
▪ Begin with questions, not answers

26. Reduce
scope -
FOCUS
Strategy:
Begin with an
overview, and then
analyse 1 to 3 points
in greater depth

28. Study the
wording of
topics for
unstated
questions
Strategy:
Reveal and then address
unstated assumptions implied
by the wording of a topic
Example:
Is Feminism good for religion
(Judaism, Catholicism, etc.)?

29. Begin with
questions,
not
answers
STRATEGY: BEGIN WITH
SOMETHING
YOU DON’T
UNDERSTAND
VERY WELL
AND WANT TO
UNDERSTAND
BETTER –
WHAT KINDS
OF QUESTIONS
DOES THE
MATERIAL
POSE?
EXAMPLE: IN
NARUTO,
WHY WAS HIS
POWERS VERY
WEAK AND
UNCONTROLLABLE
AT THE START OF
THE STORY?

30. Academic
writing
Photo by Green Chameleon on Unsplash

31. Descriptive:
• States what happens
• Reports ‘facts’/results
• Summarizes
• Outlines theories
• Explains ideas
• Lists details
• Gives information
Mechanical & wooden;
flat & simplistic
Analytical:
✓ Identifies key issues
✓ Evaluates strengths (or weaknesses)
✓ Considers alternatives
✓ Evaluates alternatives
✓ Gives reasons for choices
✓ Looks for links/causes
✓ Challenges (logic, data)
Probes & tests;
informed & reasoned
Thinking Critically in Assignments
Student Learning Advisory Service, University of Kent

35. Drop in sessions:
Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2 to 4 pm, Effective Learning Room, 3rd Floor Library