A Comparative Analysis of Abstracts in the Fields of Medicine and Education

Abstracts are short and descriptive texts that contain a summary of the information the readers may find in a research article (RA). They are also expository, as they are written clearly, concisely and neatly in order to transmit information in an objective way.  Hubbuch (1996) defines abstracts “as brief summaries of the major points made by an author in a book or article” (p. 126). Abstracts are the first section that appears in an RA, however, they are written as the final stage of the research. The length and type of abstracts may vary, but the most important objective of a good abstract is to summarize the relevant findings of a RP in no less than 150 or more than 200 words.

A well-written abstract will attract the readers’ attention and motivate them to go on reading the whole RA. The American Psychological Association (APA) explains that “[r]eaders frequently decide on the basis of the abstract weather to read the entire article” (APA, 2008, p. 21). APA manuals offer useful guidelines as regards conventions for abstracts to enhance researchers’ pursuit not only accuracy but also audience comprehension. However, researchers may find writing good abstracts a difficult task to accomplish, since not all of them follow the same basic conventions and requirements.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze and to compare two RA´s abstracts in the field of medicine and two in the field of education. This analysis will be based in terms of their structure, their classification, their linguistic characteristics and their approach to writing.

Method

Two articles have been chosen as representatives of their fields. In the medicine arena, Martinez’s et al. (2010) article presents a structured abstract, which summarizes the main sections of the RA. In the same way, Becket et al. (2008) also presents a well-structured abstract, which introduces the reader into the topic of discussion. In the educational field, specifically English Language Teaching (ELT), two research articles (RA) have been chosen to represent the field. King’s (2002) RA presents an abstract to introduce the main topic. Similarly, Rammal (2006) introduces his project by means of an abstract.

Results

The analysis of the abstract in the four RAs demonstrates that the abstracts in the medicine field have been carefully written, following standard rules, and taking into account the audience. Martinez (2010) divided the abstract into sections, making it a structured type. This may explain the fact that the author decided to use many paragraphs, instead of only one. The aim was to identify each main section in the RA. Bold type was used for each heading. The word “abstract” was not centered, bold type was used and it was capitalized. Passive voice was used throughout, even though the authors have decided to personalize it by using the second person plural pronoun twice. The word limit was not respected (244 words) and there were no key words.

The second RA in the medicine field did not respect the word  limit either (318 words). However, Becket et al. (2008) used a new page for their abstract. Full sentences, the past tense and passive constructions (also the second  person plural pronoun) were used.. The authors also avoided the use of negative constructions. However, they omitted adding keywords, and there were many abbreviations, symbols and specialized jargon. As regards layout, a four-paragraph organization was used to achieve the Introduction, Method, Results and Discussions (IMRAD) formula. The word ‘abstract’ was centered, and it was not underlined, indented or bold-typed; however, it was capitalized.

King’s (2002) article on using Digital Versatile Disks (DVD) in the classroom included an abstract of not more than 114 words, well below the required average. This abstract was written in a single paragraph in an unstructured style. Full sentences were used and the content might be considered attractive to the audience. There were many drawbacks as regards the following standards: King (2002) did not use a new page, key words were not included, the past tense was not used, but present tenses instead, the passive was used only once and the antecedent was ambiguous due to its distance from the verb. Some sentences did not seem to be objective, as when King (2002, Abstract) described DVDs: “DVD films provide more pedagogical options and are a rich resource of intrinsically motivating materials for learners”. The author did not follow the IMRAD formula. Abbreviations were used with no clarification of meaning: “DVD has vastly replaced traditional VHS as a movie medium”. (King, 2002, Abstract).

The second article chosen for this analysis was Rammal’s (2006) “Video in the EFL Classrooms”. The word limit was not respected (50 words) and the analysis showed that the abstract was not written as a description of the RA. Rammal did not use past tenses, but future tenses, instead. IMRAD formula did not seem to be attempted. As regards layout, the heading was not centered, it was bold-typed, and it was followed by a semi-colon. The whole RA, and also the abstract used roman numerals to indicate sections. Rammal did not use a new page for his abstract and no keywords were listed. He also used an abbreviation, which he clarified: “This research project provides teachers of English as Foreign Language (EFL) with insights on developing materials (…)”. (Rammal, 2006, Abstract).

Discussion and Conclusion

Martinez et al. (2010) have shown a careful planning for  the writing of the abstract for the RA. By dividing the abstracts into logical sections, and thus respecting the IMRAD formula, he has achieved a smooth cohesion, which allows readers to preview the content of the RA. Even though certain conventions have not been followed, such as the layout of the heading, which might be due to publishers’ requirements, the abstract surely invites readers to go on reading the RA.

Becket et al. (2008) have respected some of the content and layout requirements suggested by Paiz et al. (2012): “Begin a new page (…) center the word ‘abstract’ (no bold, formatting, italics, underlining or quotation marks (…) write a concise summary of the key points of your research”. (General Format, Abstract). Once again, publishers’ requirements might have allowed the authors to follow different guidelines as regards different formatting, e.g. for the word limit, use of symbols or abbreviations.

In comparison, the two EFL articles can be assessed as of poor quality as regards the above mentioned requirements. The most important flaw of not complying with a minimum of words  might have caused all the others. The authors did not seem aware of APA’s (2008) guidelines as regards writing abstracts. King’s (2002) use of present tenses and Rammal’s (2006) use of future tenses indicate that they were not acquainted with the necessary conventions. In fact, Rammal’s use of the future suggests that he had written the abstract before he wrote the RA.  King’s lack of objectivity might mislead potential readers, and his use of abbreviations with no clarification might make the reader feel that the text was not written by a well-informed author (and thus consider the whole text is not worth reading). Rammal’s (2006) misuse, abuse and lack of conventions in his abstract may surely alert the reader that the researcher has not undertaken this task professionally, let alone seriously.

Even though the two medicine RAs may have some drawbacks, mainly as layout and formatting is concerned, these may be attributable to publishers’ requirements, or at least this might be the reader’s feeling. Since the medicine field is highly respected as far as their researches are concerned, a few minor flaws might be contemplated.

Conversely, the educational field is still striving to find its place within the scientific community, this implies that more effort should be made on the part of the writers to comply with standard conventions and requirements when publishing papers. However, after this analysis, it seems that the effort that most members of the community are willing to make is reduced to ashes, when publishing houses publish RAs which do not follow standard conventions. If published RAs do not follow standards the community as a whole can be seen as non-academic. So it is not just a matter of personal choice, but a matter of respecting your colleagues.

 The effort to follow these conventions is worthwhile. Many members of this professional community have devoted their lives to researching and publishing RAs. More and more members are being recruited each day, and  there is evidence of the willingness to help others get inside the discourse circle, while also inviting publishing houses to join and help make this profession be seen as what it is: a highly respected professional community.

References

American Phychologcal Association (2008). Concise rules of APA style. Washington, DC: British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data.

Barrs, K. (2012). Action reseach. Fostering computer-mediated L2 interaction beyond the classroom. Retrieved April 2012 from http://llt.msu.edu/issues/february2012/actionresearch.pdf

Becket, N., Petters, R., Fletcher, A., Staessen, J., Liu, L., Durmitrasco, D., Stroyanowsky, V., Antikainen, R., Nikitin, Y., Anderson, C. ., Belhani A,.Forette, F., Rajhurnar, C., Thijs, L., Banya, W. & Bulpitt, C. (2008). Treatment of hypertension in patients 80 years of age or older. The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 358, No. 18. Retrieved May 2012 from  www.nejm.org

Hubbuch, S. M. (1996). Writing research paper across the curriculum. (4^th ed.). Harcourt Brace: Fort Worth, TX

King, J. (2002) Using DVD feature films in the EFL classroom. The Weekly Column. Art.88. Retrived May 2012

Martinez, C., Assimes, T., Mines, D, Dell´Aneillo & S., Suissa, S. (2010). Use of venlafazine compared with other antidepressants and the risk of sudden cardiac death or near death: a nested case-control study. Retrive May 2012 from  BMJ 2010;340:c249 doi:10.1136/bmj.c249

Paiz, J., Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderlund, L., Brizee, A., Keck, R. (2012). Purdue Online Writing Lab. Webpage. Retrieved May 2012, from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Rammal, S. M. (2006). Video in EFL Classrooms. Retrieve May 2012, from http://www.usingenglish.com/articles/video-in-efl-classrooms.html

Research Papers in education can result a good medium for educators to express, share debate, and discuss experiences with colleagues

Teachers can nowadays share not only their experience but also their problems regarding students´ behaviour, classroom management, a great number of students in the classroom among others. These issues may influence positively or negatively in their development as regards professionals affecting their teaching practices as well as their relationship with their students. For that purpose, teachers can exchange their experiences in a variety of ways. Writing Research Papers (RPs) is probably an effective medium to do so. “Teachers need opportunities to participate in professional communities that discuss learning theories and various teacher materials and pedagogy” (McLaughlin & Talbert, 1993, p. 15).  By means of writing RPs, teachers can share their experiences with colleagues providing or receiving suggestions, ideas or different possibilities to deal with particular problems they may face in their everyday lessons. Working together in a community of teachers may allow them to have a variety of opportunities to discuss experiences with colleagues. Teachers “should consistently be situated in active learning roles with ample opportunity to discuss new and difficult educational ideas and to apply their learning in their respective classrooms to improve what they do” (Wenzlaff & Wwiesseman, 2004, The Mesh between Progam Design and Teachers´ Learning Processes section, para. 2). Particularly important it is for teachers as members of a community to share the same writing skills as well as follow certain guidelines provided by specific sources in order to write RPs in an academic style. Kutz (1997) defines communities in terms of  ”the words that are used, the ways they are pronounced, the subjects talked about” (Kutz, 1997, p. 24).  One of the most important sources is the American Psychological Association (APA) manuals. These manuals offer writers, in this case teachers, the latest guidelines and conventions so as to create a good piece of writing. Teachers may publish their RPs in specific places designed for that purpose as well as reflect upon particular issues that may worry or interest them.  
It is very important for teachers to share their positive or negative experiences with other colleagues, as well as it is also important to share their experiences following the same conventions and guidelines offered by well-known manuals. Teachers need other teachers not only to improve their professional skills but also to learn from their colleagues. RPs may be a good way to do so.

References

Kutz, E. (1997). Language and literacy: Studying discourse in communities and classrooms. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook Publishers

McLaughlin,M., & Talbert, J. E. (1993). Contexts that matter for teaching and learning: Strategic opportunities for meeting the nation´s educational goals. Stanford, CA: Center for Research on the Context of Secondary School Teaching, Stanford University.

Wewnzlaff, T. L., & Wieseman, K. C. (2004). Teachers need teachers to grow. Teacher Education Quarterly. Retrived March 2011 from http://findarticles.com/p/aticles/mi_qa3960/is_200404/ai_n9349405

Analyzing the Results, Discussions and Conclusions Sections in Research Articles in Medicine and in English Language Teaching

Introduction

Educational Research Articles (RAs) have been published in specialized journals for many decades now. English Language Teaching (ELT) is a field which has seen a dramatic increase in its literature – due to its changes in methodology – and it has become a respected academic community, which has fostered academic writing standards among its members. This evolution has permitted ELT RAs to be compared with those of the medicine field – a highly recognized academic field over many years.

RAs are usually divided into several sections. The Results, Discussions and Conclusions sections might be used to establish the academic capabilities of the writers. Researchers should not only respect standardized conventions, such as those established by the American Psychological Association (APA, 2010), but also attract the readers’ attention by presenting the most important findings in a clear and coherent fashion. The use of tables and figures and the cautious and critical linguistic tools follow this purpose. The Results and Discussions sections are descriptive. The former allows researchers to present their main findings, and the latter reveals the interpretation of the outcomes. Swales (1980) states that the Results section summarizes the data, the text, tables and / or figures and describes the findings that are related to the questions or hypothesis presented in the paper.

When analyzing results, there are important features the researchers should consider. They should select representative data, and use tables and charts according to the need in order to both highlight the main points of their findings and keep in mind the communication principle of simplicity. As regards discussions and conclusions, APA (2010) allows their separate or unified writing. It is the researcher’s task to assess whether the problem has been solved, and they will also need to set strengths and limitations regarding their current analysis. At this point they might also provide suggestions for further analysis on the issue at hand.

The following paper will attempt to establish a comparison in the way two RAs (in the fields of ELT and medicine) address the results, discussions and conclusions sections. It will also explore how researchers present their main findings by applying standardized rules and conventions.

Method

This paper bases its conclusions on the basis of the structure of the Results, Discussions and Conclusions sections found in two RAs, one in the medicine field by Di Angeleantonio et al. (2010), and the ELT article by Barrs (2012). These two articles have been chosen as representative examples of the sections previously mentioned.

Results

A deep analysis of the results section revealed that Di Angeleantionio et al. (2010) did not only summarizes the data by using tables and figures, but also seemed to describe the outcome that may be related to the main hypothesis of the researchers: “to quantify associations of chronic kidney disease stages with major cardiovascular disease and non-vascular mortality in the general adult population” (Di angelantonio, Chowdhury, Sarwar, Apelund, Danesh & Dudnason, 2010, p. 1). In the case of the education RA, the results section summarized the data only with tables. There were, however, short reflections on that data. Those reflections – together with the original dialogues that had originated them – might have made the information clearer to the readers. The results sections in both articles seemed to describe the researchers’ main findings in an objective, comprehensible way.

Regarding the use of tables and figures, their use illustrated the points claimed by the authors and a comparison of data could be established in both papers. Furthermore, their use allowed for a large amount of information to be included in a small space. Specifically, as regards tables, in both articles the authors used them to highlight the main points. There was consistency with format, titles and terminology among them. However, the tables in the medicine RA seemed more complicated as they described technical and specific data, symbols and abbreviations that might be difficult for the layman. Tables in the ELT RA were simpler as they showed only one topic at a time and the information might be comprehensible at a quick glance – at least for the professional educator. Figures were also present in both RAs. In the medicine RA, there were scatter plot graphs, which illustrated the main findings and complemented the text. The explanations were created by the authors. The legends helped the intended audience’s reading comprehension. Figures in the ELT RA seemed simpler. It was only one chart synthesizing the “conceptualization of the action research process” (Barrs, 2012, p.13).

The Discussion section was also descriptive and researchers seemed to show their objective interpretations of the outcomes obtained in their research. In the medicine RA, this section was immediately after the results sections and the authors interpreted the results by comparing the outcomes with those found in past literature. They also included their strengths and limitations:

      We used qualitative urinary dipstick methods routinely used in clinical practice, but we

     did not have serial measurements on creatinine concentration or urinary protein (. . .).

     Although we used robust methods to ascertain disease outcomes (. . .) some random

     misclassification inherent in using disease registers would have underestimated

     associations (Di Angeleantonio et al., 2010, p. 6)

In addition to that, a very comprehensible chart was included to show existing known data on the topic and what their present study brought to the discussion. Barrs (2012) did not include a Discussions section, but a Conclusions section, where reflections and further studies could be found. There was, however, another section devoted to the description of their limitations.

The Conclusion section was the final important part of the RAs. In both RAs, the authors reflected upon what they had found, as well as they suggested further studies as a consequence of their limitations, as Barrs (2012) explicitly suggested: “this could be an area of further investigation in that a teacher may like to research whether or not there is a development in English ability through the use of such a programme” (p.22) and once again by stating that “the nature of the interactions themselves could become an area of value for extended investigation” (Barrs, 2012, p. 22). As regards linguistic tools, both researchers followed the general principles provided by APA (2007), such as avoiding phrases like “in conclusion” or “to sum up”. Punctuation rules have also been respected.

Discussion and Conclusion

The present study has focused on three key sections of RAs: the Results, Discussions and Conclusions sections. By establishing the academic standards that each of them should accomplish, it might be possible to establish a comparison between ELT RAs and those found in the medicine field. Even though there is specialized jargon for each of these discourse communities (Swales, 1988), there are certain academic features which can prove useful for establishing the proposed standards. Some studies could still be carried out in order to determine whether ELT is already using most of the jargon it should in RAs, since more often than not, there seems to be ambiguity when terms need to be defined, for instance in methodology.

After careful consideration of APA’s (2007) requirements for academic papers, both Di Angeleantionio et al. (2010) and Barrs (2012) have managed to write cohesive, objective academic RAs. Therefore, ELT seems to be a developing academic field, able to produce its own literature, which can be shared among its members, thus allowing each of them to learn and grow.

References

American Psychological Association (2007).Concise rules of APA style. Washington, DC: Britich LibraryCataloguing-in-Publication Data.

Barrs, K. (2012). Action reseach. Fostering computer-mediated L2 interaction beyond the classroom. Retrieved April 2012 from http://llt.msu.edu/issues/february2012/actionresearch.pdf

Di Angelantionio, E., Chowdhury, R., Sarwar, N., Aspelund, T., Danesh, J. & Gudnason, N. (2007). Chronic kidney disease and risk of major cardiovascular disease and non-vascular mortality: prospective population based cohort study. Retrieved April 2012 from doi:10.1136/bmj.c4986

Swales, J.M. (1988). Discourse Communities, Genres and English as an International Language. Retrieved September 2011, from http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71887/1/j.1467-971X.1988.tb00232.x.pdf

A Comparative Analysis of the Academic Structure of Research Articles in Medicine and in English Language Teaching

INTRODUCTION

Academic Research Papers (RP) and Research Articles (RA) should follow detailed rules and procedures in order to share relevant information with their corresponding discourse community. Undoubtedly, RP and RA in a scientific community such as medicine, usually follow a given pattern in order to reveal new information. The researchers in charge of these RP / RA present new information in a way that is understood and shared by their community. Thus, by following certain parameters for conveying their findings, they are making sure that their audience will understand the information they have tried to convey.

When analyzing three main components in RP and RA, such as the introduction, the literature review and the methods, there is clear evidence that the researchers have made cautious and conscious decisions as regards structure and the choice of words. Their decisions are used by other members of their community to quickly understand the content and clearly depict new relevant information. These organization conventions allow their audience to better understand, implement and / or adhere to any new trend. This academic way of introducing information is not only relevant, but also highly effective.

Medicine can be seen as the biggest example of academic writing. However, English Language Teaching (ELT) has had its own literature and published papers and articles for many decades now. Since the year 1800 until today, ELT has evolved into a science that has allowed its practitioners to grow in their profession by deeply analyzing the causes and effects of good – and wrong - practices in the classrooms. In order to improve the practice, the ELT professional knows that his / her ideas and experiences should be shared.

Therefore, books, journals, articles, among other forms of written communication, have been written for over two centuries. Even though ELT has not been considered part of the scientific community until lately, the way in which its members behave, allows them to have such status. Swales (1988) described a discourse community as being “the center of a set of ideas” (p.2) and not merely a speech fellowship. As researchers, they have the possibility – and the obligation – to share their findings and ideas to improve the profession, using reliable and shared channels of communication, such as RA and RP.

The purpose of this paper is to establish a comparison between two academic RA, one in the medicine field and the other one in the education field, specifically in ELT. The structure of both papers is analyzed, taking into account three main sections in academic writing: introductions, literature reviews and methods.

METHOD

This paper bases its conclusions on the analysis of the structure of the introductions, literature reviews and methods section in two RA, one in the medicine field: “Effect of Revaccination with BCG in Early Childhood on Mortality: Randomised Trial in Guinea-Bissau” by Edvin Roth et. al (2010), and the ELT article “Blogging to Learn: Becoming EFL Academic Writers Through Collaborative Dialogues” by Sun and Chang (2012). These two articles have been chosen as representative examples of the kind of RA / RP that these two different fields are producing these days.

Introductions are important because writers not only attract the audience attention but also establish a need for the research to be carried out. Introductions follow organizational patterns, which follow the Create a Research Space Model (CARS) (Swales & Feak, 1994, p. 174). Swales (1990) and Swales and Feak (1994) have asserted that writing an introduction is not an easy task but a hard process. These patterns contain moves with a number of semantic and syntactic characteristics that go from the general topic to the particular situation being analyzed. The literature review is included in the introduction section and it is present in move one, where previous research on the topic of discussion is reviewed. As regards the method section, it includes the tools used to collect the necessary data. The participants, materials and the procedure are described in detail.
Following academic standards, there are three moves in the introduction section. In move one, writers establish a research territory reviewing previous research and showing that the research is important. Sun and Chang (2012) have stated that “The effective use of blogs enables knowledge sharing through connecting learners to contexts beyond the classroom. In turn this facilitates the development of individual and critical voices and prompts individual accountability in learning” (Du & Wagner, 2007 as cited in Sun & Chang, 2012, p. 43). This clearly highlights the importance of the research conducted.

In the same article, move two establishes the niche for the research by claiming that “though past literature has shed light on the ways blogs can be used to encourage language learning and learners’ participation in writing practices, little, if any, empirical research has been done to examine how interactions in blogs help EFL graduate students develop academic writing knowledge and writer identities.” (Sun and Chang, 2012. p. 44).

In addition to this, the literature review is present in another paragraph which refers to what other researchers have investigated: “In Sun´s (2009) study examining speaking practice on blogs, EFL students went through a series of stages including conceptualizing, brainstorming, articulation, monitoring and evaluating.” (Sun & Chang, 2012, p.44) and “Noytim´s (2010) study also showed that meaning served as the prominent focus rather than form in the blogging environment.” And once again when it is asserted that “Lee´s (2010) study further indicated that peer feedback on the blogs can prompt additional interaction” (Sun & Chang, 2010, p. 44). The Simple Past tense is tense used to describe each of the previous studies since the writers not only refer to important sources, but also to what has been found.

In the medicine RA, Edvin Roth, et. al have started the introduction with strong emphasis showing the importance of their study: “Routine infants vaccines currently used in low income countries were not tested in randomized trials for their impact on overall child survival” (Edvin Roth, et. al, 2010, p. 1). As regards literature review, although the authors refer to previous research, it is possible to observe that these studies have been included in terms of issues and quantities without detailed reference: “Numerous studies of measles vaccine (. . .)”, “a few of the well-designed studies (. . .)”, several observational studies (. . .)” (Roth et al., 2010, p. 1).

Move two is short and establishes the niche and it generally starts with negative openings. In the medicine RA, Edvin Roth et. al has established that “The past 15 years of research on vaccines in low income countries, however, shown that this assumption is not tenable basis for vaccination policy” (Roth et al., 2010, p. 1). In both RA, the writers have succeeded in demonstrating that there is an important issue that has not been taken into consideration.

As regards move three, the purposes for the study, descriptive or purposive statements may be found. In the education RA, the move three is descriptive since it “examines the way collaborative dialogues in the blogosphere help academically advanced EFL students develop and process academic writing knowledge and negotiate their writer identities” (Sun & Chang, 2012, p. 45). On the contrary, in the medicine RA move three is purposive because the main aim is to “examine whether BCG revaccination would reduce child mortality by 30%” (Edvin Roth et al., 2010, p. 2).

As far as the method section is concerned, in the education RA it is shorter than in the medicine one. It includes only the participants, the procedures and the data analysis. In the medicine RA, more sections are described. Moreover, some graphics and charts are included so as to illustrate the analysis.

CONCLUSION

All in all, both articles provide useful and clear information as regards the way introductions, literature reviews and methods sections are developed and written in an academic setting. Both RA respect academic rules and procedures and fulfill their purpose of either informing, sharing and / or gaining support. Becoming aware of the possibility of comparing a highly academic RA, such as those found in the medicine field, with a RA in the ELT field, demonstrates that ELT has gained force as an academic discipline. Especially noteworthy are the consequences that this conclusion might bring about in the ELT field. Academic writing might be included in TEFL courses, and professionals in the field should continue to do their best to achieve communication with colleagues using academic standards.

References

Roth, A., Benn, C., Ravn, H., Rodrigues, A., Lisse, I., Yazdanbakhsh, M., & Whittle, H., Aaby, P. (2010). Effect of revaccination with BCG in early childhood on mortality: Randomized trial in Guinea-Bissau. Retrieved April 2012 from BMJ 2010;340:c671

doi:10.1136/bmj.c671

Sun, Y. & Chang, Y. (2012). Blogging to learn: becoming EFL academic writers though collaborative dialogues. Retrieved April 2012 from http://llt.msu.edu/issues/february2012/sunchang.pdf

Swales, J.M. (1988). Discourse Communities, Genres and English as an International Language. Retrieved September 2011, from http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71887/1/j.1467-971X.1988.tb00232.x.pdf

Swales, J.M. (1990). Genre analysis: English in academic and research settings. (Cambridge Applied Linguistics Series). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Swales, J.M. & Feak, C.B. (1994). Academic writing for graduate students: Essential tasks and skills. Ann Harbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press.

A book critique of Schindler´s List: from the horror to a best seller

“He who saves the life of one man, saves the entire world.” (Keneally 2003, p. 92). The Australian Keneally (2003) uses this remarkable sentence from the Talmud, the most important book of holy writings for Jews, to start his best seller, an impressive novel that shows eye-witness personal experiences during the Holocaust of the Second World War. Schindler´s list, part of the Penguin Readers series, tells the story of a rich German Catholic man whose unlimited relations with the Nazi leaders made him earn enough money to establish his own factory of enamelware products and to bribe the special military and security unit of the Nazi Party (SS), for Jews as essential workers.

Especially interesting is the author´s description of Oskar Schindler´s contact to the horrors of Auschwitz and how he took advantage of his fortune to save “his Jews”, as he called them, to their predictable end that the reader is really engaged in the story from the beginning to the end. “I decided at that moment to do everything in my power to defeat the system”. (Schindler, 1942, as cited in Keneally, 2003 p. 31).

The book is designed to provide a detailed account of what really happened during the concentration camps during the Second World War. In the introduction, Keneally (2003) presents a brief description of Schindler and his family. In addition to that, he emphasizes the way Schindler faces the Nazi system putting his life at risk every day. In chapter one, Keneally describes Schindler´s family and his adolescence in detail, and the way he relates with his Jews classmates. In chapters two, three and four, the author details Schindler´s beginnings as a businessman and the way he tries to be part of a system in order to establish his own factory.

 “Oskar had worked hard to make friends with men who had influence in government offices and in the army, entertaining them at the best restaurants and clubs and remembering birthdays and other special celebrations” ( p. 13).

In chapters five, six and seven, Keneally (2003) describes in detail the horrors of the concentration camps and how shocking was for Schindler who witnesses everything. Not only does Keneally use direct language, he also presents clear examples, most of which are very cruel, to make the audience be really involved in each episode.

“Such killing was just sport to Goeth and his SS men… His quick method was to enter one of the cap workshops, order the prisoners to form two lines, and march one of them away. The prisoners in this line would either be taken to a hill behind the camp and shot immediately… or sent to the gas chambers in one of the death camps”. (p. 43).

Chapters eight, nine, ten and eleven are the most shocking chapters in this book. There is a detailed account of different strategies taken by Schindler in order to carry out his plan to save his Jews and the problems he has to face in having his list accepted by the Nazi authorities. The last three chapters are concerned with the end of the War and the future of Schindler´s Jews as well as his and his wife Emili´s own future.

Schindler´s list is more than a written story, it is a horror story that happened to real people. The use of metaphors as well as repetitive phrases are a well-developed strategy the author adopts so as to make the novel as real as what actually happened between 1939 and 1945.

“Oskar understood what this meant”… He “ noticed a slow-moving little child dressed in a small read coat and a cap at the end of the line. The bright colour caught Oskar´s eye”. (Keneally, 2003, p. 30).

The strength of this real and impressive novel is that the author uses all his skills as narrator to transform this well-known story in a memorable novel based on true facts. This book is strongly recommended  since Keneally highlights every single detail in order to make the reader not only feel but also reflect upon the horrors of the Holocaust without resorting to any picture in between.

References

Keneally, T. (2003). Schindler´s list. Essex, UK: Pearson Education Limited

Critical Incidents. A strategy that helps teachers improve and reflect

Even though the words “critical” and “incident are connected to unusual, uncomfortable or unpleasant situations according to Cambridge Dictionaries Online, one may wonder how a critical incident can help teachers reflect upon their practices and their professional development. However in the field of education, a critical incident is used as a positive tool for analysis and learning as well.

Critical Incidents (CI) allow teachers to share their own every day experiences in the classroom as well as to analyse and evaluate different ways of facing the problem or the undesirable situation.  It is important that not only teacher but also “students at the teaching training college deal with them” (Fernández González, Elórtegui Escartín and Medina Pérez, 2003, p. 104) since this technique will help them face difficult and spontaneous circumstances as well as to be prepared to make any convenient decision.

According to Rahilly and Saroyan (1997), the psychologist Flanagan was the first to design the Critical Incident Technique in 1954 and to distinguish five steps:

• Determining general aim of study
• Planning and identifying how facts will be collected
• Collecting data
• Analysing data
• Interpreting and reporting requirements of activity being studied.

Working with Critical Incidents in a teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) collage permits “to place the students in the difficult situation and to make them propose different alternatives as solution” (Fernández González et al., 2003, p. 106). This will allow a positive group work in which each of them will have the opportunity to share their ideas and suggestions as well as to expose orally their reflection. According to Fernández González, Elórtegui Escartín and Medina Pérez (2003), the final evaluation will also enrich students since they will be able to propose alternatives to similar situations.

By and large, Critical Incidents are a tool teachers should take into account in order to share and reflect upon their difficult experiences or uninspected situations. They will  also allow student teachers deep analysis and the exchange of different proposals as solutions.

                                                                                                  

References

Cambridge Diccionaries  On-line. Available at http://www.dictionary.cambridge.org/

Fernández González, J., Elórtegui Escartín, N. & Medina Pérez, M. (2003). Los incidentes críticos en la formación y perfeccionamiento del profesorado de secundaria de ciencias de la naturaleza. Revista Interuniversitaria de Formación de Profesorado, año/vol. 17, número 001

Flanagan, J. (1954). The critical incident technique. Psychological bulletin, 51-4. Retrieved October 2011, from http://www.apa.org/psycinfo/special/cit-article.pdf

Rahilly, T. J, & Saroyan, A. (1997). Characterizing poor and exemplary teaching in higher education: Implications for faculty development. Montreal, Quebec: McGill University

A difficult afternoon, a difficult experience

I was teaching in a run-state school of El Jagüel three months ago before winter holidays. I had lessons on Wednesdays from 3 to 5.20 in the afternoon. It was 3^rd year secondary school and students were a bit excited because they had had an exam during the previous period. In general terms, they did not have serious discipline problems.

We had finished the unit on comparatives and superlatives. My teaching goal was to make students aware that there are two ways of comparing people, objects, animals and places. And the descriptions could be done not only written but also orally. My learning goal was to teach comparative and superlative form of short and long adjectives not only to describe but also to carry out a survey in the classroom.

As it was almost the end of the term, I decided to test them orally before winter holidays. While I was evaluating them, the rest of the students were working with a consolidation task except for two of them, a boy and a girl, who were arguing and insulting at each other. I had to interrupt the oral test many times, but they continued misbehaving. Suddenly, another student told me that the girl had a cutter in the pocket of her jeans. Immediately after that, I checked this information and it was really true. I asked the girl to come to my desk and to give the cutter to me. Fortunately, and after arguing for some minutes, the girl did not hesitate and put her cutter on the desk.

Meanwhile, I asked another student to go to the staff room and to call one of the prefects to come to my classroom. When she arrived, I told her the situation and both boy and girl were sent to the Headmistress office. They were suspended for two days.

All in all, as Rahilly and Saroyan (1997) state “meaningful experiences allow to collect qualitative and quantitative data about classroom teaching and teaching thinking” (p.4). This will be very important not only for analysis but also for learning.

That was the most difficult experience in my career because I did not know how these students would react towards me. I decided not to be involved in the argument but to talk to them in a very cold way as well as to resort on the prefect to help me. Fortunately, everything was solved in a peaceful way.

References

Rahilly, T. J, & Saroyan, A. (1997). Characterizing poor and exemplary teaching in

higher education: Implications for faculty development. Montreal, Quebec: McGill

University