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School of Literature, Languages and Linguistics · ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences
‘The Five Essential Elements of a Thesis’ workshop is designed to facilitate the initial phase of designing and planning an HDR-level research project in the Humanities, by giving students a clear overview of the basic elements common to a thesis in Humanities disciplines. The course will introduce the Five Essential Elements of a Thesis (issue, contexts, texts, methodology and voice). After introducing these concepts, the workshop will give students the opportunity to articulate these concepts in their own projects, and to receive feedback from staff and students in the course. The course will also include a session on ‘Developing an Argument’, which develops the skills of identifying the basic elements of description, analysis and argument, and incorporating these elements in their own writing practice. The ‘Five Essential Elements of a Thesis’ aims to help students prepare for their Thesis Proposal Review, while ‘Developing an Argument’ aids students in the writing process.
Presentation in which student explains each of the Five Essential Elements in relation to his/her thesis project (15 min)
Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4
Analysis of student's own writing and writing of other students, using techniques taught in the workshop (five elements; description, analysis, argument) (4000 words)
Learning outcomes 4, 5
Attendance and seminar participation, including response to other students' presentations
Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
130 hours of total student learning time made up from: a) 36 hours of contact over 12 weeks: 24 hours of seminars and 12 hours of workshop and workshop-like activities, and b) 94 hours of independent student research, reading and writing.
This is a practical writing workshop. The set readings will draw from texts including The Chicago Manual of Style and Introduction to Scholarship in Modern Languages and Literatures. The Course Convenor will also provide selections from a range of contemporary essays and monographs in relevant fields for students to analyse using the writing and rhetorical techniques taught in the course. The selection will depend upon the fields in which the students are doing research.