Abstract
Results and Discussion chapters are considered difficult to write in a thesis, especially for non-native English writers. However, few studies have been conducted on how writers compose these two genres. This study, therefore, explores the move-step structures of these two chapters in 24 Master’s theses written by Vietnamese postgraduates. Based on the framework by Chen and Kuo (2012 ) and the discourse-based interviews with actual thesis writers and supervisors, the study found that this group of writers constructed the genres according to their perceived communicative purposes of these chapters. Moreover, the presence of section/chapter introduction-next section/chapter introduction-section/chapter summary cycles tends to reflect the distinctive composition of these texts at the TESOL discourse community in Vietnam. These findings suggest that explicit instructions on rhetorical structures of these two genres should be provided to non-native English writers and attention should also be paid to specific practice of a genre composition in a particular discourse community. Keywords: results; discussion; Master’s thesis; Vietnamese writers; TESOL
Highlights
Besides a few studies on texts written by non-English writers and possible challenges for Vietnamese postgraduates, previous research indicates the variations regarding the move structures of the Results and Discussion sections or chapters across disciplines and cultures
The current study plans to investigate how Vietnamese TESOL M.A. students construct the generic structures of the Results and Discussion chapters in their theses
The results of this study are likely to contribute to the literature on how non-native writers compose these specific genres in English and provide insights into effective instructional strategies to help ESL/EFL learners compose their thesis Results and Discussion chapters
Summary
Move-based approaches have been intensively used in investigating different conventional English research article (RA) sections (Brett 1994, Holmes 1997, Kanoksilapatham 2005, 2007, Lim 2006, Nwogu 1997, Peacock 2002, 2011, Posteguillo 1999, Swales 1990, Thompson 1993, Williams 1999, Yang & Allison 2003) and have been extended to compare the rhetorical moves used in English RAs and those of RAs written in other languages (Loi & Evans 2010). Some move-based research has explored the organisation of certain chapters of MA theses, such as Acknowledgements (Zhang 2012), Introductions (Nguyen & Pramoolsook 2014b, Samraj 2008), Literature Review chapters (Nguyen & Pramoolsook 2014a), Method chapters (Nguyen & Pramoolsook 2015), Introduction and Discussion sections (Dudley-Evans 1986), Conclusions (Hewings 1993) and the overall thesis organisation (Paltridge 2002) These studies have provided us with a general view of the generic structure of MA theses, the majority focus on texts produced in British, American and Australian institutions. This investigation, continues to explore the generic move-step structures of the Result and Discussion chapters of TESOL M.A. theses written by Vietnamese students
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: 3L: The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
