RCH 7302, Doctoral Writing and Inquiry Into Research 1
Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VII Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:
1. Examine the attributes of academic writing. 1.1 Revise a proposed research topic.
4. Analyze arguments made in academic literature.
4.1 Summarize data in a table per APA Style formatting requirements.
Course/Unit Learning Outcomes
Learning Activity
1.1 Unit VII Assignment 1 Article: “Why Editing Matters”
4.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 10 Unit VII Assignment 2
Required Unit Resources Chapter 10: From Image to Text In order to access the article below, utilize the CSU Online Library to begin your research. Boles, J. B. (1996). Why editing matters. Social Science Quarterly, 77(1), 198–203.
Unit Lesson Greene and Lidinsky (2018) describe the writing process from creating a draft to editing and from reading to writing. Before writing, as evidenced earlier, extensive reading is necessary to acquaint one with the topical area that can take several approaches that include a broad view of a topic or a more systematic narrower approach (Gray, 2018; Peterson et al., 2017). Eventually, a topical area surfaces, and the writing process begins with first drafting an introduction to the research topic that will appeal to readers. Then, revisions are undertaken to refine the topic in response to additional research, discussion with other academics, peer discussions, dissertation committee chairs, and other sources. Before approval or the next step in the writing process, editing the draft is the final step in ensuring that sourcing, composition, grammar, and style are correct (Ganly, 2020; Greene & Lidinsky, 2018).
UNIT VII STUDY GUIDE
Editing
Figure 1 Editing Process
RCH 7302, Doctoral Writing and Inquiry Into Research 2
UNIT x STUDY GUIDE
Title
As doctoral students, practicing good scholarship is essential, and developing good writing skills starts with reading. Failure to write properly and correctly diminishes the credibility of the author. The editing process starts with good scholarship, correctly writing both in language and construction, paying attention to grammar, and employing other basic writing requirements. Secondly, the writer must use the correct formatting as required by the journal or university. Here at Columbia Southern University, the standard is the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2020) or APA Manual. Third, the meaning of words and phrases must be accurate for a complete understanding of the proposed research topic and the writing of the entire paper. Fourth, the editing of any piece of academic work must meet the requirements of the publication journal or the class and university. Fifth, the proposed research in this case (or any other writing) must meet the intended purpose and be written in such a way to appeal to the anticipated audience(s). Sometimes editing one’s work can be difficult because an individual knows what the intended meaning was and may miss what is written on the paper. Several resources are available and might include using software or the university writing center, hiring a private editor, reading a passage out loud, or asking another person to read and comment on the writing. Even walking away from the writing that has been done and returning to read it at another time can be effective in starting the editing process. Whatever tools or system an author chooses, editing needs to be a deliberate and purposeful step in the writing process. The discussion question in the previous unit is another option, perhaps, in meeting this need for editing of work before submitting for whatever purpose. Although there are manuals on writing clearly and properly, the APA Manual has a succinct and clear section on writing (APA, 2020, pp. 111–125). Since doctoral students in programs that require using APA Style already have the manual, this is a good place to start to review writing at the graduate level. An additional way to improve writing skills at this level is to continue to read articles published in peer-reviewed journals. Many publications, as noted in previous lessons, are not as reliable as others, so the source, writing, reputation, and credibility of the journal needs to be considered not only in referencing the arguments presented but also as an example of proper scholarship and writing at an academic level (McGregor, 2018). As discussed in previous units, part of sound argument development is knowing the purpose of your writing, the audience to which it is directed, and he development of sound arguments for your position (Zarefsky, 2007). This purposeful approach is true in research and writing and is at the center of developing a research proposal (Ravitch & Mittenfelner Carl, 2021). Outside of the writing, others will ask for a writer’s explanation of the purpose, approach, audience, appeal, argumentation, theoretical foundations, support, and other determinations central to developing a good research proposal, starting with a well-developed analysis for a proposed research topic. Then, is that analysis correctly and properly expressed in the written statement?
References American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association
(7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000 Ganly, T. (2020). Approaching assignment: A recipe for reflection. AISHE-J: The All Ireland Journal of
Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 12(2), 1–10. Gray, D. E. (2018). Doing research in the real world (4th ed.). SAGE. Greene, S., & Lidinsky, A. (2018). From inquiry to academic writing: A practical guide (4th ed.). Bedford/St.
Martin’s. https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781319071677 McGregor, S. L. T. (2018). Understanding and evaluating research: A critical guide. SAGE. Peterson, J., Pearce, P. F., Ferguson, L. A., & Langford, C. A. (2017). Understanding scoping reviews:
Definition, purpose, and process. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 29(1), 12–16. https://doi.org/10.1002/2327-6924.12380
Ravitch, S. M., & Mittenfelner Carl, N. (2021). Qualitative research: Bridging the conceptual, theoretical, and
methodological (2nd ed.). SAGE.
RCH 7302, Doctoral Writing and Inquiry Into Research 3
UNIT x STUDY GUIDE
Title
Zarefsky, D. (2007). Strategic public speaking: A handbook. Pearson.
Suggested Unit Resources The section on pages 111–125 of the APA Manual will be helpful in completion of your citations. American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association
(7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000
- Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VII
- Required Unit Resources
- Unit Lesson
- References
- Suggested Unit Resources
