Critical Reading and Writing for Postgraduates - Doctorado en ...

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Evaluating the usefulness of what you read getting started on critical reading Working on the assumption that not all texts will prove equally useful, how can you establish the merits of what you read for achieving your purpose? Obviously, you want to take most notice of the works that contribute something directly relevant to your task, and that you feel are reliable and plausible. Not all opinions are worth taking seriously and extreme views might need to be treated with caution. To determine how reliable the material in a text is, you need to identify and evaluate its arguments. An argument consists of a conclusion (comprising one or more claims that something is, or should be, the case) and its warranting (the justification for why the claim or claims in the conclusion should be accepted). The warranting is likely to be based on evidence from the author’s research or professional experience, or else it will draw on others’ evidence, as reported in the literature. A robust conclusion, then, is one that is sufficiently warranted by appropriate evidence. Only with such evidence should you be convinced of a conclusion’s validity. OPINION = UNWARRANTED CONCLUSION ARGUMENT = CONCLUSION + WARRANTING The conclusion is only half of an argument. You can legitimately ask of any set of claims: ‘Why should I believe this?’ The other half of the argument is the warranting. The warranting is the reason for accepting the conclusion, including evidence for it. Demand a convincing warranting for every conclusion that you read about. Also, demand of yourself that every conclusion you draw is adequately warranted. This conception of ‘argument’ is very simple, but is effective for our current purpose. In philosophy and rhetoric, ‘argument’ is more precisely defined, with more components to what makes for a good argument. You can see how a more sophisticated approach to argument structure relates to critical reading by looking at the relevant chapters in Booth, W.C., Colomb, G.C. and Williams, J.M. (2008) The Craft of Research (3rd edn). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. The ‘argument’ definition can be applied to single sentences, paragraphs, chapters, even entire dissertations or books. It can be used to identify and evaluate what is said in the texts you read, and also to ensure your own scholarly writing is well constructed. 31
critical reading and writing for postgraduates It is the authors’ job to provide you with the best available warranting for their conclusion. Your job is to judge whether the warranting is enough to make the conclusion convincing, and so whether to accept or reject that conclusion. EXAMPLE OF ARGUMENT CONSTRUCTION The following passage comes from a report of research into the quality and extent of training experienced by researchers employed on academic projects. For example, one practitioner researcher commented that ‘I think that my TLRP [Teaching and Learning Research Programme] experience was very, very positive. It caused me to reflect back on where I was and to accept that I am really happy in FE [further education], that I don’t want to be a lecturer in HE [higher education].’ Building research capacity is not just about building the next cohort of professors and senior academics, it can also relate to the building of one’s own personal capacity to engage with research and practice. Source: Fowler, Z., Proctor, R. and Stevens, M. (2008) ‘Mapping the ripples: an evaluation of TLRP’s research capacity building strategy’, Teaching and Learning Research Briefing no. 62. London: Teaching and Learning Research Programme. www.tlrp.org/pub/documents/fowlerRB62final.pdf This passage constitutes one of many arguments in the report. The claim is in the final sentence: there is more to building research capacity than just making everyone a top expert; it is also about helping individuals to gauge their own potential and ambitions. The warranting is the quote in the first sentence, where a researcher reveals that the research experience resulted in a recognition of what sort of future work would be most comfortable for them. Quoting from a respondent is one kind of evidence that can be used in warranting. Since this study entailed on-line surveys with researchers and their project managers, quoting in this way is an appropriate form of evidence. What makes an argument convincing In the example from Fowler and colleagues in the box, note how the claim is based on one quote from one respondent. Part of the job of the critical reader is to evaluate whether the warranting provided for a claim is sufficient to warrant that claim. The reader might feel that a single voice does not carry much weight and so look for other, supporting evidence, such as a statistic: 32
Page 1 and 2: Second Edition Second Edition Secon
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12 Focusing and Building up your Cr
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13 Integrating Critical Literature
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integrating critical literature rev
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15 Using the Literature in Research
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Appendix 1 ‘One word or two? Psyc
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appendix 1 Certificates were issued
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appendix 1 why a speaker/writer cho
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appendix 1 do so, they would be Afr
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appendix 1 account for why the expe
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appendix 1 but it could still be ar
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appendix 2 may inhere in their ende
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appendix 2 and organized to meet it
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appendix 2 ways that generate poor
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appendix 2 control. Changing belief
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appendix 2 sharing to consulting te
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appendix 2 Other SMT members Norms
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appendix 2 3 Other teachers have th
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Appendix 3 CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF A T
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appendix 3 (d) How does the sort of
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appendix 3 (d) With what degree of
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appendix 3 (d) Are sources of backi
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appendix 3 8 To what extent are cla
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Appendix 4 Logic checksheet: Develo
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appendix 4 Focusing the presentatio
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Index abstraction level of 84, 86 a
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