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

Background to thesis and dissertation writing 
in a second language
A large number of second-language students attending British, US,
Canadian, Australian and New Zealand universities are enrolled in a degree
that requires the writing of a thesis or dissertation in English. There are also
many students enrolled in degrees in places such as South Africa and Hong
Kong who are required to write a thesis or dissertation in English for whom
English is not their first or dominant language. Such students often have dif-
ficulty in meeting the demands of the kind of writing required of them in
this particular genre. This is especially the case for students who come from a
context where the conventions and expectations of academic writing may be
quite different to the situation they now find themselves in.
This chapter discusses:
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the context in which theses and dissertations are produced and the impli-
cations of this for second-language writers from diverse linguistic and
cultural backgrounds;
●
the very particular social and cultural context of theses and dissertations
and how this impacts on what students write and how they can write it;
●
approaches to knowledge and approaches to learning at different levels of
study;
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Introduction

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cross-cultural issues in thesis and dissertation writing;
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the issue of being a second-language writer in research settings;
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critical issues in thesis and dissertation writing;
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disciplinary differences in thesis and dissertation writing;
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what universities and examiners expect of theses and dissertations.