B. Contextualization

Read the following abstract, written for an essay entitled “What are the characteristics of good abstracts?”

Define the abstract on sections and identify the purpose of each section.

Abstracts are a key component of academic writing, a window t potential reader. This said, many students find it difficult t write a god abstract. This paper argues that there are main reasons for this: they do not understand what the key aspects of a good abstract are, and they do not know the strategies which can be used t write one. In response to this situation, this paper analyzed 500 abstracts from a range of different academic sources and surveyed 1.000 students. From the former, a list of important, recurring components was identified; from the latter, quantitative and qualitative data provided insight into students’ levels of understanding. From this research, two main findings emerge: students need greater exposure to abstracts throughout studies and they require more training in writing them.

Keywords: academic writing, abstracts, essay structure, concise language

What is a good abstract?

In simple terms, an abstract is a short passage, which appears at the beginning of your essay, usually after the title. The primary function of an abstract is to be a “shop-window”- to provide the reader (or the potential reader) with an overview of the piece of writing, that follows, and to indicate the key characteristics.

At the student level, abstracts are generally associated with longer pieces of writing, namely dissertations and theses. Additionally, professionally written academic articles will always have an abstract, which you can use to decide whether or not the article is relevant for your own writing. There is no specific length for an abstract. Very often, they will be 100-150 words, and an abstract for a paper given at conference may also be 50-80 words.

Three top tips for writing abstracts:

- Does it sell your essay? If you read the abstract, would you want to read the essay?

- While the abstract at the very end, when you know the exact scope of your essay.

- Be patient-the abstract is not easy to write. It has many different functions and has to be extremely well-written. It will take time to do this.

What are the key “structural” aspects of an abstract? The following numbers refer to the order of abstract sections presented on the previous page.

1. Establish the context of the research.

Abstracts are a key component of academic writing, a window to potential readers. Many students find it difficult to write a good abstract.

2. Establish the topic of the research/research problem.

. This paper argues that there are main reasons for this: the students do not understand what the key aspects of a good abstract are, and they do not know the strategies which can be used to write one.

3. Indicate the methodology

In response to this situation, this paper analyzed 500 abstracts from a range of different academic sources and surveyed 1.000 students

4. Present the main findings

From the former, a list of important, recurring components was identified; from the latter, quantitative and qualitative data provided insight into students’ levels of understanding.

5. Indicate the conclusion

From this research, two main findings emerge: students need greater exposure to abstracts throughout studies and they require more training in writing them.

6. Keywords

Academic writing, abstracts, essay structure, concise language

If your essay can be searched by means of online database, toy will be required to put in keywords, which will help potential readers narrow the search. You must therefore choose those words which most accurately and powerfully encapsulate your essay.

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Contextualization

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