Writing skills presentation give to new nursing students.

1. Writing Skills
Assessment and Planning for Nursing Scholarship
Mary Ann Kelly, RN, MSN, PNP

2. Resources Used for Presentation
Keys to Nursing
Success
Chapter 9, pp. 286-298:
Researching and Writing
Writing Papers in
Psychology
Chapter 1: Getting
Started
Chapter 5: Outlining the
Review Paper
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3. What are the four stages of the
writing process?

4. The Four Stages of the Writing
Process
1. Planning
2. Drafting
3. Revising
4. Editing

5. Planning
• Brainstorming for topic ideas
• Pre-writing strategies
Define and narrow topic
Follow paper guidelines from instructor/syllabus
(When is it due? How long should it be? What is the
purpose of the paper?)
More brainstorming (organize thoughts into categories
or logical sequence)
Free writing
Ask questions like a journalist (Who? What? When?
Where? Why?)

6. Planning (Con’t.)
• Conduct Research and Make Notes
First stage: basic overview that can lead to a thesis
statement
Second stage: go into more depth with
information
Source notes: preliminary notes (info about
publication, page number, short evaluation of
source, Fig. 9.4, pg. 289)
Content notes: in-depth information from sources

7. Planning (Con’t.)
• Write a Thesis Statement
Narrows your topic to a single, central idea that
you want readers to gain from your essay/paper
It asserts something specific and significant about
the topic, often conveying your opinion
It may help determine how you arrange your ideas
in the paper

8. Ask these questions...
• Does the sentence make an assertion about
your topic?
• Is the assertion limited to only one idea?
• Is the assertion specific and significant?
• Does the sentence convey your purpose and
your opinion?

9. Examples of thesis statements….
• Years as a nurse has taught me that my
profession has many roles that deserve
respect.
• Professional nursing is a combination of art
and science.
• My philosophy of nursing encompasses an
importance in both a strong education and in
experience to gain skills.

10. Planning (Con’t.)
 Write a working outline
or “think link”
Loose guide to final paper
Create changes
Check flow, consistency,
and adherence to
guidelines

11. Outlining
• An outline lays out main ideas and their
support
• Shows the relative importance of all of the
paper’s elements

12. Principles of Outlining
• Divide material into several groups
• Topics of equal generality appear in parallel
headings (at the same level of the outline)
• All subdivided headings break into at least two
parts because a topic cannot logically be
divided into only one part

13. Example Outline (1)
I. Importance of Education
(Main Idea)
A. Theoretical foundation
(Main division within the idea)
1. Theories of nursing
(Supporting Details and Examples)
2. Research based
B. Practice
1. Nursing process
2. Role development

14. II. Importance of Experience
A. Skill development
1. Basic skills
2. Specialty skills
B. Competencies
1. Job related
a) age specific
b) cultural diversity
2. Area of interest
Example Outline (2)

15. Drafting
• Rough draft: focus on getting ideas on
paper (free writing)
• Then develop form:
Introduction
Central ideas and
supporting evidence
Conclusion

16. Drafting (Con’t.)
• Introduction
Tells reader what the paper contains
Contains a thesis statement
Contains a purpose statement (Fig. 9.6, pg. 290)
 Main Body
 Central Ideas
 Evidence (facts, stats, examples, expert opinions)
 Organize/Structure (Fig. 9.7, pg. 291)

17. Drafting (Con’t.)
• Conclusion
Summarize main points
Relate a story, quote, or question (impact)
Call reader to action
Look to the future

18. Additional points:
• Avoid plagiarism
Credit authors and sources
Difference between a
quotation and paraphrase
Use a citation for paraphrase
Copying material off Internet
is plagiarism
Consequences of plagiarism

19. Resources
• Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab (OWL):
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/
• American Psychological Association. (2009). Publication manual of the
American Psychological Association. (6th ed). Washington, DC.
http://www.apastyle.org/
• Rosnow, R. L., & Rosnow, M. (2011). Writing papers in psychology. (9th ed).
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. (Recommended Text)
• Pollak Library Writing Center:
http://english.fullerton.edu/writing_center/index.asp
• CSUF University Learning Center (ULC): http://www.fullerton.edu/ulc/
• SON Writing Center:
http://nursing.fullerton.edu/son_resources/writingcenter/index.asp

20. Revising
• Critically evaluate word choice, paragraph
structure, style of first draft
• Add, delete, replace, reorganize words,
sentences, paragraphs
• Peer/tutor review
• Let it sit for a while and then revisit it
• Revising checklist Fig. 9.9, pg. 293

21. Revising (Con’t.)
• Analytical thinking
Does the paper fulfill the
requirements of the
assignment?
Will the reader understand my
thesis and how I have supported
it?
Does the intro prepare the
reader and capture attention?
Is the body of the paper
organized?

22. Revising (Con’t.)
• Analytical thinking
Is each idea fully developed,
explained, and supported by
examples?
Are my ideas connected to
one another through logical
transitions?
Do I have a clear, concise
writing style?
Does the conclusion provide a
natural ending to the paper?

23. Editing
• Last step in process
Correct technical mistakes in spelling, grammar,
and punctuation
Check for consistency in format
Use “spell check” and “grammar check” but be
aware you still need to check your work.
Peer editing
Revising and editing checklist- Fig. 9.11, pg. 296

24. Editing (Con’t,)
 Subject-Verb Agreement
 Pronoun Agreement
 Misplaced and Dangling
Modifiers
 Parallelism
 Using Comma’s Correctly
 Fragments and Run-ons
 Commonly Confused
Words
 Punctuation Guide
 100 Commonly
Misspelled Words
■ Grammar Tips from Rosnow’s Text
Please refer to PDF document in TITANium

25. Writing is Hard:
Don’t Let that Stop You!
Tips from Ioakim Boutakidis, Ph.D.
Child and Adolescent Studies
HHD Writing Tutor

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• The first obstacle to becoming a better
writer: Is accepting the fact that few,
if any, undergrads are ready for
college-level writing
• Good writing is as hard a skill to master as
anything you will encounter in your
collegiate education
• NOTHING to do with your intelligence.
• Good writing is a SKILL that must be
learned through practice, practice, practice

27. Why is it So Difficulty?
• Why is writing so difficult?
Infinitely complex in that there are many, many ways to say
the same thing
Need to understand rules of English Grammar. Difficult
because the rules are inconsistent
(English is a new language and therefore a mix of Greek, Latin, Old
English)
Requires experience and exposure (often only way to learn
good writing is to read a lot of good writing)
Requires patience and hard work
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28. Why is it So Important?
• Effective Writing = Effective Communication
• Effective Communication = Effective Actions
• Writing is the most formal and widely
accepted method of showing your
understanding of a topic
• Research in Cognitive Psychology has
demonstrated that those who can effectively
explain what they know via writing actually
know it better than those who cannot
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29. Famous Quote About Writing
How do I know what I
think, until I see what I
say.
--W. H. Auden
Auden was an Anglo-American poet and one
of the leading literary figures of the 20th
century. Died September 29, 1973.

30. What this means for you. . .
• Do not be discouraged or surprised by early
negative feedback. Everyone will get it.
• You MUST stay on top of assignments and
readings
• Review assignment requirements before,
during, and prior to submission
• Do not miss classes. You will fall behind, you
will miss in-class assignments, you will lose
points.
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