Thesis and Dissertation Writing in a Second Language: a handbook for Supervisors

participant over an extended period of time I 
bring to this research my personal experiences of 
sports and a belief that sports participation can be 
a positive activity.
Source:Taylor 2000: 150–151
Application
The comments in the box below are drawn from a talk given in 1996 by
Professor Mike King, Dean of Graduate Studies at Charles Sturt
University, in which he listed criticisms typically made by examiners of
Methodology chapters. Ask your students to:
●
consider these points when reviewing other theses;
●
review their own thesis in the light of these points when the final
draft of the Methodology section has been written.

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Writing the Methodology chapter
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Conclusion
Writing the Methods or Methodology section is often perceived as ‘compara-
tively easy and straightforward’ (Swales 2004: 224); as we have shown,
underestimating the true role and function of the Methodology section and in
fact the distinction between methodology and methods can lead to difficul-
ties. In particular, the longer thesis as opposed to the shorter research article
may require a more elaborated methodology component which may require
multiple drafts as the student comes to understand the need to provide justi-
fication and argumentation and not simply a list of procedures followed and
materials utilized.
What examiners typically say about the Methodology (King
1996)
●
inappropriateness of the methodology to the theoretical framework
and perspective of the study;
●
insufficient justification for the choice of methodology with respect
to research questions;
●
placing the methodological approaches within logic of overall
design and so demonstrating appropriateness;
●
failure to link methodology adequately to methodological literature;
●
inappropriateness of methodology to generate the data needed to
answer the research questions posed;
●
failure to recognize limits and parameters of methodology used
(generalizability and repeatability, etc.);
●
appropriateness of methodology to sample;
●
inadequate description of the methodological approach and frame-
work;
●
inadequate description of the instruments being used;
●
inadequate description of the development and testing of new
instruments or techniques;
●
inappropriate, poor and inadequate statistical treatments.

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Introduction
This chapter describes the typical components of the Results chapter or
Results sections of a thesis. It also identifies distinctions in the location of the
results/findings within the thesis that may be attributable to the research par-
adigm used. The chapter also highlights issues that may present a challenge
to the second-language writer and provides annotated extracts from two PhD
theses that illustrate the organizational and linguistic features discussed.