Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin.

Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)

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Graduate Seminar
OG Okeola
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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Graduate Seminar
Instructor: OG Okeola
INTRODUCTION
Graduate Seminar requires each postgraduate student to give at least one seminar presentation on an
approved topic in his /her optional field. The oral presentation must be graded by the academic staff in
the department. However, we are going to take cognizance of the CVE 676 Project. Throughout these
lecture sessions the words research seminar, graduate seminar, project seminar, and paper would be used
interchangeably but will explicitly focused on academic writing and presentation.
GRADUATE SEMINAR
This is a course in oral communication for graduate students in Civil Engineering for all options. It is
intended to avail the postgraduate students with experience in presentation of scholarly work and to
develop the capability to present academic arguments that may include the usage of data and its
interpretation. Seminar is not a lecture presentation rather it is designed to generate questions and
discussions. It will present an opportunity for students to present information to an academic audience
with equal opportunity for useful feedback. Therefore the effective approach for this course is for
students to attend departmental and faculty based seminar presentations. In addition other academic fora
such as public lectures, inaugural lectures, and symposia are imperative to attend.
COURSE GOALS
Develop an overall understanding of the principles of oral communication in engineering disciplines
including acceptable presentation techniques, listening skills, critical analysis, participation in academic
discourse among others. The course delivery is seminar-based and would include interactive sessions and
seminar component assignments designed to contribute to students writing skill and presentation. The
following are expected to be learning outcomes:
Develop the ability to:
1. make presentation before an audience
2. evaluate presentation
3. listen to salient content and context of presentation
4. participate in the academic discourse
5. ask pertinent questions on the presentation
6. design presentation aids such as PowerPoint, poster, handout
COURSE OUTLINE
1. Seminar Introduction
2. Writing Paper (Structure & Style)
3. Critical Reading
4. Academic Discourse
5. Guide on Information Searching:
Literature Search & Literature Review
6. Presentation
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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1. SEMINAR INTRODUCTION
What is seminar?
Seminar Defined:
a small group of students at a University meeting to discuss or study a particular
topic with a teacher (Oxford Dictionary)
Seminars are not lecture presentations they are designed to generate
questions and discussion (Emerson & Hampton, 2005)
a class at higher college in which a topic on a subject is discussed by a teacher
and a small group of students.
a conference or other meeting (by professionals) for discussion or training.
a small group of teacher and students.
Seminar Paper Defined
. . . is an original study/research on a specific topic to be presented to a
dedicated audience, usually an academic or professional settings.
Graduate Seminar Defined
Graduate seminar is not a lecture course, but a seminar, where small group of advanced students in a
college or graduate school engaged in original research or intensive study under the guidance of a
lecturer/professor who meets regularly with them to discuss their reports and findings.
Research Seminar Defined
Research Seminar introduces students to the process of academic research through problem-solving
strategies based upon formal inquiry. It requires the synthesis of the techniques of critical thinking,
research, writing, and documentation. As part of the development of the key deliverables, a research
proposal detailing conceptual frameworks and methodologies are the ultimate goal. This is a basic
requirement in all PhDs.
2. WRITING PAPER
Writing precedes seminar and in Western and Middle Eastern world including USA Universities, there are
full time writing centers to support students in this endeavor. Writing is the hallmark of post graduate
studies anywhere in the world. Right from undergraduate, students are gradually and deliberately trained
in the art of scientific writing. No wonder, written and oral communication skills are sterling qualities
expected of a graduate. It is imperative that students realize the importance of developing these skills to a
greater level because this is the peculiarity of the community they belong: i.e. academia. The usage of
literature material is cornerstone in scholarly report. Writing and presenting seminar is a compulsory
academic endeavor for all graduate students leading to thesis and viva. The scope and style vary
among disciplines. However, what does it take to write a quality and presentable seminar? Or any
academic paper of such?
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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Writing Seminar
The act of writing seminar or research seminar or term paper cut across all academic disciplines and it is
only different in content and context. However, it leads to the same goal on sequences of writing
academic argument endeavor. All academic writing requires certain ingredients which Putre & Rugg
(2011) itemized thus:
1. Context/situation
2. Justification of the content
3. Substantiation of claims (evidence of rigour)
4. A coherent and explicit chain of reasoning : appropriate structure, clear argument,
a coherent overall vision
5. Discussion of implications
Each type of writing has, in addition, a particular purpose and a particular social context, which is an
intended audience. The purpose and content of a paper will determine what type of paper it is. The
publication forum and intended audience will influence how long it is, what voice it should have and what
elements should be prioritized.
Types of Paper
There are several ways of categorizing papers and not particularly described as such in writing. They are
usually treated as craft skills and as a matter of personal choice. They are (Putre & Rugg, 2011):
1. Data-driven papers
2. Methods papers BOX 1
3. Theoretical papers
4. Consciousness-raising papers
5. Agenda-setting papers
6. Review papers
7. Position Papers
INTERACTIVE SESSION
Individual paper types discuss with illustrations
EXERCISE#1
Paper 1:
Okeola, O. G. and A.W. Salami (2012). A pragmatic Approach to the Nigerias Engineering Infrastructure
Dilemma. Epistemics in Science, Engineering and Technology (2):1 pp 55-61
Paper 2:
Okeola, O.G. (2009) Occupational Health and Safety Assessment in the Construction Field. Proceedings of
1st Annual Civil Engineering Conference, (Aug. 26th 28th 2009). Pp 32 - 40. Published by Department
of Civil Engineering, University of Ilorin, Nigeria.
Types of Papers can further be grouped into two:
1. Those that explore interpret and investigate.
2. Those that examine data and experiment
conducted in a particularly field
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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Question
1. Which category would you put paper 1? Justify your categorization in not more than 100 words.
2. Which category would you put paper 2? Justify your categorization in not more than 100 words.
NB: i. Download papers 1 and 2 from www.scribd.com
ii. Submission to follow template attached
EXERCISE#2
Search for any two peer-reviewed journals that are based on (1) Method (2) Review and (3) Data-
driven. This exercise is to be addressed upon students option.
NB: i. You are to state full citation of the paper and attached the hard copy.
ii. Submission to follow template attached
WRITING
The key realization is that any writing is better than no writing - Putre and Rugg, (2010)
Important Preamble of note #1
Writing is very difficult. There is no doubt. However it can be learnt and mastered. Writing is never a single
activity. Its many activities are (Putre & Rugg, 2011): elaborating, remembering, synthesizing, mapping,
ordering, articulating, clarifying, editing, criticizing, sense-making and transcribing. However separating
the activities is one of the disciplines that help in writing.
Important Preamble of note #2
Writing should be approached in cascade stages in term of ideas generation, dumping ideas, prioritizing
ideas, putting ideas in order, elaborating and initial structure, sentences generation from notes, editing for
structure, editing for language, editing for voice and checking for redundancy. There are three
important requirements for any adjudged good writing: (1) substance, (2) coherence, and (3)
completeness.
Substance : saying something meaningful or significant
Coherence : rational thought and consistent
Completeness : without break in the link
Important Preamble of note #3
KISS (-Keep It Simple, Stupid) is a principle that is applicable to most design activities. It is advisable to
keep simplest, the sentence structure, rhetoric structure and vocabulary. However keeping it simple is
different from schematic writing (Putre and Rugg, 2011): A schematic writing reduces expression to the
barest essential by leaving much of the detail and often realism while good simple writing provides all the
necessary information and detail in the most direct possible way.
Important Preamble of note #4
Good writing is essentially and typically a process of drafting and redrafting. Therefore it is not expected
to get to polished prose from ideas just in one step. Putre and Rugg, (2011) advice to go from ideas to
notes is usually reasonable easy. They give the difference between notes and prose as in the structure,
order and complete sentences. Structuring ideas can be aided with (1) mind map and (2) outlining.
Two distinct writers are serialist and holistic (Putre and Rugg, 2011): Serialists see writing as a sequential
process in which the words are corrected as they are written and who plan their writing in detail before
beginning to write while Holists can only think as they write and compose a succession of complete
drafts. First is to generate the main points (in any order if youre a holist, and sequentially if youre a
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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serialist), noting everything that comes into your mind, thus making a rough plan (which you need not
stick to). Organize this into an acceptable structure. Construct the points into grammatical paragraphs
made up of well balanced sentences.
Important Preamble of note #5
Writing in an academic style and tone:
Avoid the first person
Avoid personal anecdotes or stories
Use past tense except when referring to established facts
Present background information only as needed in order to support a position
As always, pay attention to spelling, clarity and appropriateness of sentences and phrases
Writing Process
A paper actually begins with studying potentially specific topics in-depth. Presentations may be based on
published peer review publications or original research conducted by the student on the field or in the
laboratory. Thereafter, the process of this writing is not ordinary but conscientious steps taken in
cognizance of the preambles # 1- 5:
1. Topic Selection: Brainstorms
Topic should not be broad rather specific in scope. It should be manageable and interesting to you the
student writer. Brainstorming is crucial at this stage. To brainstorm is to stir up ideas that you can narrow
to specific and BOX 1 is useful in the process. Student can choose a topic from a supervisor list or find
own interested topic by brainstorming.
2. Information gathering
This is an enduring process but very essential. Information gathering sources includes library, E-libraries,
journals, textbooks, etc.
3. Paper Outlining
Outlining is used to organize a paper by figuring out the direction of the academic discourse. It serves the
following main purposes
i. help define the basic purpose and structure of the paper
ii. help organize thought and lay the groundwork for the first draft.
4. Writing
Most academic papers have one of two general purposes: (1) to make or defend a point or (2) to provide
information. This must be decided before beginning the first draft. The information earlier gathered
together should be used to think about how you would like to organize your paper. That what specific
information you want to include to support your paper (the point you are writing about or the purpose of
your paper)
Prepare an outline of your paper that includes the following:
Title page
o Must consist of smallest words possible number
o Authors name
o Table of Contents
o Abstract
Main body
o Introduction
o Sections
o Conclusion
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References
o Consistency of format (i.e. APA )
Main body (Introduction, Sections, and Conclusion)
An Introduction must provide the reader with all the information he/she will need to understand the rest
of the paper. The author must summarize the problem to be addressed, give background on the subject,
discuss previous research done on the topic, and explain in no uncertain terms exactly what this paper will
address, why, and how. The goal of the introduction and literature review is to demonstrate "the logical
continuity between previous and present works" (APA, 1994). This does not mean you need to provide an
exhaustive historical review. The design of the study, whether it is a case study, a survey, a controlled
experiment, a meta-analysis, or some other type of research, is conveyed through the procedures
subsection (APA 1994). The main essay usually divided into sections of separate headings and sub-
headings (depending on topic and audience).
Just as paper introduction captures the reader's attention so also your conclusion should leave the reader
thinking about the issues presented while bringing your paper to a logical end. Some writers prefer to
restate the main points in the conclusion. Do not make the mistake of introducing new points that were
not developed in the body paragraphs. Moreover, never leave the reader hanging, wondering if you forgot
to end the paper or left something out. Be sure your ending sounds like an ending, without using
conversational language such as, "this is all I have to say," or "this concludes my paper on the topic of . . .
. . . ," or even worse, "The End." (S.O.A.R. Program, 2004)
The time to document sources is during draft of the paper so as not to loose track of any information
source. Giving this information is most important to avoid the risk of committing plagiarism knowingly or
unknowingly. All information gathered from sources must have an in-text citation even if it is paraphrase.
The various ways of citing and listing references are discussed in Okeola (2013).
Typographical Design (or settings)
These are the tools or arts available to enhance the layout and are categorized thus:
1. Page formatting
This include margins, line spacing, font type/size, headings and sub-headings, page numbering, including
footnotes or header note among other which are exploit to make a particular page texts neat, clear and
presentable appearance.
2. Organizing/Structure
This is careful sectionalization of the main body of the essay using paragraphing and punctuations (Full
stop, comma, semicolon, colon, dash, apostrophes, etc).
5. Draft Revision
The draft revision is essentially for editing purposes not only in term of typographic setting, but also in
structure, organization, style and voice. Stark (2003) provide the following check lists to address in the
process:
1. LOGIC
i. Does your paper have a recognizable beginning, middle, and end?
ii. Have you presented a solid thesis?
iii. Have you provided ample evidence to support your thesis?
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2. STRUCTURE AND WRITING STYLE
i. Do your ideas and writing ow?
ii. Are there smooth transitions from sentence to sentence, paragraph to
paragraph, and from page to page?
iii. Is your analysis easy to follow and understand?
3. VOCABULARY AND TONE
i. Is your tone professional?
ii. Is the writing persuasive and compelling?
iii. Are there any unnecessary words, sentences, paragraphs, or pages that need
to be omitted or rewritten?
4. SEQUENCING
i. Are the paragraphs and sections of your paper in the right order?
ii. Are there places where information should be changed and shifted?
5. MEANING AND CONTENT
i. What is the overall effect or lasting impression of your work?
ii. What do you want the reader to take away after reading your paper?
To refreshing English grammar, lexis and structure get a copy of:
English Grammar For The Utterly Confused By Laurie Rosakis, PhD
2003 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
INTERACTIVE SESSION
Listed below are past MEng Project titles. Based on your option, come up with an outline for
initial draft purported for seminar paper:
Transportation & Traffic Engineering Option
Strategies to maintain optimum asset value of paved federal roads originating from Ilorin Township,
Nigeria
Water Resources & Environmental Engineering Option
Characteristics of aquifer within Ilorin West local Government area, Kwara State, Nigeria
Structures & Material Engineering Option
Design and economic analysis of roof-top communication tower on the university of Ilorin senate
building
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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3. READING
Prof Niyi Osundare in 2004 observed that even in the first decade of the 21st century; Nigeria, a country of
a Nobel laureate for literature, yet a land of resurgent illiteracy. It has become too obvious that the
successive governments of Obasanjo, Yardua and the present Jonathan administration launched separate
progranmme to re-stimulate and -establish reading culture in the country without result albeit the very
poor governance. It is ironical to talk about critical reading for students with basically poor reading culture
habit. From term paper to seminar writing, to master thesis and PhD thesis writing, the depth and scope
of reading only increases. There are three different levels of reading (Jewel and Freeman, 1995):
Browsing to select interesting, useful or stimulating material from readily available sources, e.g.
the weekly and monthly trade journals that circulate
Reading for information to gain answers to specific questions
Reading for research the reader is seeking to obtain a comprehensive view of existing state of
knowledge, ignorance and uncertainty in a defined area
Browsing is generally uncritical reading without enduring retention. However, (Jewel and Freeman, 1995;
Lee, 2010) asserts that browsing and reading for information demand a degree of intellectual rigour, but
this need is considerably amplified when reading for research (similarly true for seminar, study and any
academic argument).
Students need to be aware of the differences between sources of various kinds and able to use the tools
of their trade efficiently. Reading is the road to mastery: its how you acquire and understand existing
knowledge and existing techniques; its how you come to know the research community; its how you
come to understand the tools of your trade. Therefore you are doing a number of things while youre
reading (Rugg and Petre, 2011). If you are reading critically, these are the questions you are addressing
according to Lee, (2010):
1. Why am I reading this?
2. What are the authors trying to do in this writing?
3. What are the authors saying that is relevant to what I want to find out?
4. How convincing is what the authors are saying?
5. In conclusion, what can I make of this?
INTERACTIVE SESSION
Mapping the community:
Who are the eminent academic or researchers in the area of your specialization?
There are many eminent experts and academic in each of the fields all over the world. It requires
consistent familiarity and interest in the particular field to discover them.
EXERCISE#3
Find out two eminent researchers and contact addresses under your specialized area. Submission to
follow template attached.
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4. ACADEMIC DISCOURSE
What is a discourse?
Written or spoken communication or debate
A formal written or spoken discussion of a topic
-Concise Oxford Dictionary (11th Editions)
In the nutshell;
Seminar is a discourse
Research is a discourse
. . . a dialogue involving examination of and reasoning about a particular topic or field
- Rugg and Petre (2011)
Academic discourse essentially involves critical thinking. Critical thinking is about stimulating curiosity,
about continual questioning and is the basis for rigour. Critical thinking is about digging deeper and is
manifest as critical depth in a paper or dissertation. It involves:
Being curious
Wondering why
Taking nothing for granted
Comparing claims and evidence
Following the audit trail
By Publishing, discussing and defending, we are (Rugg and Petre, 2010) :
Engaging in the discourse negotiating new knowledge
Presenting a thesis which is founded in evidence (new or existing) and argued soundly
Not just generating results, but defending them robustly so that they have an impact on the
discourse and change the state of knowledge
Not just having ideas, but communicating and defending them
Most importantly, exposing our research to the scrutiny of our peers and so exposing it to
challenge and falsification.
Rhetoric:
is the art of communication and persuasion. It involves:
Using language effectively to convey ideas, to influence, to persuade
Honest reportage: clear descriptions of what has been done
Clear communication of processes, results and ideas
Systematic argument-with a clear and explicit chain of reference
Anticipating and addressing alternative perspectives and alternative accounts
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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Rigour (At MPhil and Ph.D level):
Rigour is vigilance against bias, manifest as disciplined practice and reasoning. It involves:
Systematic investigation, purposeful, focused activity and gathering evidence in order to produce
helpful/useful output to answer a question, or to solve a problem
Conforming to standards of practice in the discipline
Founding research in and relating it to existing knowledge
Providing insight/understanding into a particular subject by offering new analysis (identifying and
addressing gaps, identifying key factors, patterns and relationaships) or synthesis (gathering
knowledge and reasoning over it to produce new knowledge)
Offering only well-founded conclusions based in evidence
Appropriate, self-critical analysis
Generating reliable knowledge
Epistemology: a theory of knowledge or what we think counts as knowledge about a topic Theoretical
perspective: the philosophy position that guides our research
Methodology: an overall research design or approach that shapes choice of methods
Methods: techniques, tools or procedures (eg., questionnaire, observation, interview, etc)
EXERCISE#4
1. Brainstorm and articulate two topics of interest in your area of specialization suitable for seminar
paper at post graduate level.
2. List major outlines for #1 above for first draft guide.
Submit using same template
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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5. GUIDE ON INFORMATION SEARCHING:
LITERATURE SEARCH & LITERATURE REVIEW
Academics deal with knowledge and information and should know how to find, interpret and present
knowledge and information. An important part of this is finding the best possible sources so that your
assessment of the problem in question is based on the best information and knowledge available. The
academic literature has a pecking order, ranging from publications which are accepted on sufferance
through to publications which are treated with considerable respect; mostly based on the quality control
the publication uses. The difference between a literature survey and literature review is the difference
between report and critique. A report just lists things which the report writer considered worth listing. A
review says what happened, and why, and how, and also says why the review has focused on the issues it
did and why it treated other issues as less important (Rugg and Petre, 2011).
Aims of Searching:
1. Learning from other peoples work (one of the best ways to learn)
2. To broaden your horizon on the chosen subjects
3. Effective time management in finding ways of solving problems
4. To discover other problems domain
5. To acquire problem-solving skills
6. To develop navigational skill on World Wide Web (internet)
Civil Engineering Literature:
1. Journal Articles
2. Conference Papers
3. Technical Reports
4. Theses/Dissertations
5. Books
6. www. pages
7. Other material (acceptability specific)
Google and Yahoo:
1. More than Navigation
2. Both are used to find information on any subject.
3. Both are good and simple to find undisputable facts.(eg, in Wikipedia)
4. Most scholars dont accept them as citation source in scholarly essay
High Quality Scientific Literature for Civil Engineering:
1. Journal article (Peer-reviewed ones)
2. Conference paper (Edited ones)
3. Technical report (From world institutions, professional bodies, Universities etc)
4. Books (especially from reputable publishers eg Oxford)
Quality
Adjudged so by virtue of contents, coverage and currency status
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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INFORMATION RETRIEVE (IR) THEORY AND PRACTICE
There are three kinds of search (Adapted from Hancox, 2001):
1. finding simple facts - use Google (with care)
2. current awareness - keeping yourself up-to-date
3. retrospective searching - finding some (or all) the literature on a topic
We are focusing on retrospective searching.
Given a search on a set of documents;
=
relevant documentsretrieved
total no.of documentsretrieved
=
no.of relevant documentsretrieved
total no.of existingrelevant documents
The paradox of searching? It seems impossible to get 100% precision and 100% recall.
Bradfords law of scattering:
This law states that we can concentrate searching on a fairly small subset of the literature and get most
results. Specialized information retrieval databases are designed to retrieve large amounts of literature
from the optimum number of journals. Google are designed to do this.
Colloquially:
To find all relevant scientific literature on a topic, you have to look in all the literature; and
To find approximate 90% of the literature, you only have to look in 10% of the literature.
More formally:
The return of extending a search for references in science journals diminishes exponentially.
Literature Search is Discipline focused
Civil Engineering:
1. Water Resources and Environmental
2. Transportation and Traffic
3. Soil and Geotechnical
4. Fluid Mechanic and Hydraulic
5. Structure and Material
6. Existing and emerging frontiers that are multidisciplinary
(Eg: Climate studies, nanotechnology and Biotechnology etc)
Database Choice I (- Journals/Conferences)
Publishers of diverse journal titles with or without full text access:
1. Elsevier (eg: Water Resources & Economy)
2. Springer (eg: Intl J. of Steel Structure)
3. SAGE (eg: Proc. of Inst. Of Mech. Engrs: Auto div.)
4. Taylor and Francis (eg: Civil & Environmental Engineering)
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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Database Choice II (- Books)
Use a copyright deposit library:
Examples:
1. British Library
2. Library of Congress
3. Cambridge UL
4. USIS
5. British Council
6. MIT
Database Choice III (- Google Scholar)
Googles academic search engine:
Produced by a mixture of web-crawling and obtaining data from publishers.
Indexes full-text that make possible to read papers direct on screen.
Publishers such as Elsevier dont allow their data to be used by Google.
Database Choice IV (- Professional Association)
Diverse specialize subject specific journals title published by (e.gs.):
American Society of Civil Engineers.
International Water Association.
Nigerian Society of Civil Engineers.
Nigerian Association of Hydrological Sciences (NAHS)
Other Database Choices V
Universities-based worldwide
Open Access
World Bank
African Dev. Bank
Food and Agriculture Organization
Intergovernmental Org./Agencies
United Nations Agencies
INTERACTIVE SESSION
Searches for Journal, Conference paper, Textbooks using
Project titles from representative of:
Transportation & traffic
Water resources & Environmental
Soil Mechanic & Geotechnical
Structures & material
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6. PRESENTATION
Gregory Berns put it succinctly: A person can have the greatest idea in the world completely different
and novel, but if that person cant convince enough other people, it doesnt matter . That is what seminar
or any presentation is all about. But the common tool to aid presentation can be poster or PowerPoint.
Therefore, it is imperative to make a gradual and deliberate effort in studying the effective and creative
ways of utilizing it.
It is normal to be anxious or nervous at presentation before an audience, however this can be easily
addressed. Presentation is individually-based style. However there are acceptable norms; for instance
compliance with timing and language of communication including presentation aids. Presentation is
essentially divided into three components namely: (1) Planning, (2) Preparation, and (3) Academic
discourse.
Planning
Presentation requires planning forehands because there is always a time frame. It is what author intends
to say before an audience. Planning entails division of the paper for manageable and coherent delivery.
The paper is divided into three sections: (1) Introduction (2) Main body (3) Conclusion (and
recommendation?).
The introduction clearly states the objectives, scope, importance and background information of the
subject of the seminar. In some few cases outline of the presentation is also given at this stage. In the
main body of the seminar, the focus on topic; its importance, findings, arguments and result are presented
logically. It is in the conclusion that the authors position and ideas is discussed after summarizes the
cogent findings and its implications.
Preparation
This is defining the sequence of content of presentation with the use of virtual aids (eg. PowerPoint).
There is ingenuity and creativity in the design of PowerPoint presentation. The important hints include;
practice, eyes contacts, relaxed or seemly so with effort, listen attentively among others.
Academic discourse
Academic discourse in form of questioning, contribution, recommendations, meaningful suggestion
immediately follows the end of presentation. The level of backgrounds studying will manifest in the
authors responses to series of questions and inputs from the audience.
INTERACTIVE SESSION
Design of PowerPoint tutorials
Sample of simple to very creative PowerPoint design
Demonstration:
1. Draft outlining
2. PowerPoint Preparation
3. Presentation
Graduate Seminar Department of Civil Engineering. University of Ilorin. Nigeria OG Okeola (Feb 2014)
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ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT
As postgrads it is important to be mindful of academic misconduct and strictly guard against it.
Misconduct can range from inappropriate treatment of test subjects to outright fraud as follows (JYI,
2005):
TYPES OF MISCONDUCT
Gift Authorship: This is when a researcher who had nothing to do with the research is listed as a co-
author. Every author on a paper must have been involved with the research.
Redundant publication: Authors cannot publish the same material in different places. A new paper may
discuss the ideas and results of a previous paper, but every paper must contain new information,
interpretations, or results. (This is not true for abstracts a scientist may submit an abstract for a
conference, then publish that information in a scientific journal. Redundant publication refers only to
peer-reviewed publications).
TYPES OF FRAUD
Plagiarism: Copying data, ideas, or work by other authors, without giving them credit. Discussing
another researchers idea is not plagiarism, unless the author tries to pass it off as his/her own idea.
Again, it is difficult for referees to catch plagiarism, unless they know what they are looking for.
Fabrication: Inventing or faking results. It is almost impossible for peer review to catch this kind of
fraud. It is usually discovered when other researchers try to reproduce the authors results. Fabrication of
results is never done innocently, and it leaves a permanent mark on the scientists career if it doesnt
destroy it completely.
Falsification: Tweaking or manipulating results. It is difficult for reviewers to catch this kind of fraud,
and it is usually tough for other researchers too.
Conflict of interest: If an author stands to make a significant financial profit from the results of a study
and does not state that explicitly this constitutes a type of fraud. For example, if an author who owns
stock in a pharmaceuticals company publishes a study indicating that a new drug by that company is
simply fantastic, he must indicate that he owns stock in the company. Though this is seldom an issue for
undergrads, but not for postgrads.
AUTHORSHIP
The Uniform Requirements (UR) for Manuscripts submitted to Biomedical Journals which have
been adopted by more than 500 scientific and biomedical journals, address criteria for
authorship, acknowledgements, redundant publication, competing manuscripts, and conflict of
interest. A concise summary was given by Syrett & Rudner: A key concept in the Uniform
Requirements is that individuals identified as authors should have made significant contributions
to the conception and design, or analysis and interpretation of data, or both; to drafting of the
manuscript or revising it critically for intellectual content; and on final approval of the version of
the manuscript to be considered for publication. Being an advisor or head of a research group,
does not, in itself, warrant authorship credit.
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REFERENCES
1. American Psychological Association (1994). Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association (4th ed.). Washington, DC
2. Emerson, L. and Hampton, J. (2005) Writing Guidelines for Science and Applied Science Students. 2nd
Edition. Cengage Learning Australia Pty Limited. Australia.
3. Hancox, P. (2001) Information Searching for Computer Science Projects. University of Birmingham.UK.
4. Jewell, D. and Freeman, G. (1995) Approaching the literature, in R. Jones and A-L. Kinmonth (eds),
Critical Reading for Primary Care. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
5. JYI, (2005) Journal of Young Investigator. www.jyi.org
6. Lee, N. (2009) Achieving your Professional Doctorate: A Handbook. Open University Press. McGraw-Hill
Education. The McGraw-Hill Companies. UK.
7. Okeola, O. (2012) Writing Scholarly Thesis Proposal and Report. A quick guide for postgraduates.
Published by Scribd.com. Available online at : http://www.scribd.com/
8. Petre, M. and Rugg, G. (2011) The Unwritten Rules of PhD Research. Open University Press. McGraw-
Hill Education. The McGraw-Hill Companies. UK.
9. Rudner,L. M. and Schafer, W.D. ( 1999) How to write a scholarly research report. Practical Assessment,
Research and Evaluation, 6(13). Retrieved 11/9/ 2012 from
http://pareonline.net/getvn.asp?v=6&n=13.
10.Stark, R. (2003) Research and Writing Skills Success in 20 Minutes a Day. Learning Express, LLC,
New York
11.S.O.A.R. Program, (2004) How to Write College Research Papers. Mayland Community College.
www.mayland.edu
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
The following choice questions are designed to measure your knowledge of the basics of writings. It is
advisable students attempt it and checks with answers on papge16. The questions are adopted from
Stark (2003).
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1. A research paper is different from an
essay because
a. an essay contains fewer facts than a
research paper.
b. an essay is more opinion dominated.
c. a research paper is an extended
analysis based on data and evidence.
d. a research paper is always shorter than
an essay.
2. Establishing a strong, authoritative tone
in your research paper means
a. using a lot of factual information.
b. choosing a writing style that
establishes the writer as an authority.
c. using harsh vocabulary words.
d. writing a persuasive paper.
3. An introductory paragraph should
always contain
a. the thesis statement.
b. as many facts as possible.
c. a summary of the subject matter.
d. a table of contents.
4. The purpose of writing an outline for
your research paper is to
a. assemble every single idea in
alphabetical order.
b. follow a xed sequence of page
numbers that do not change.
c. provide a step-by-step guide and
overview that links your main points
visually on one page.
d. allow you to order events in a
chronological arrangement.
5. A thesis statement is
a. an opinion.
b. a conclusion.
c. the primary argument of your paper.
d. the analysis or evidence provided in
your paper by a professional
journalist
6. It is important for a writer to have
opinions. However, when you are writing
a paper, it is always better to
a. state more opinions than facts.
b. word your opinions strongly.
c. tell the reader your opinion with
informal and friendly writing.
d. support your argument or thesis
statement with facts.
7. The tone of a writers work usually refers to
a. the effectiveness of his or her writing.
b. the mood that is conveyed within the
work.
c. the instrumental sound of the
language.
d. the feelings that the writer has for the
reader.
8. When a paper has an authoritative tone,
this means
a. the writer presents his or her material
knowledgeably.
b. the writer uses large vocabulary words
to impress the reader.
c. the writer includes colorful
illustrations.
d. the writer adds a long bibliography at
the end of the work.
9. Unlike an opinion, a fact
a. is known to be true.
b. is believed to be true.
c. is something the writer wishes were
true.
d. is part of an anonymous legend.
10. In order to nd a topic for your paper, it
is often helpful to
a. copy an idea straight from a book.
b. ask yourself some basic questions like,
who, what, where, when, or
why about a particular subject that
interests you.
c. seek the advice of a guidance
counselor or other working
professional.
d. go to the librarian and ask him or her
for a list of popular topics.
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11. A denitive statement
a. makes a clear, strong point to the
reader.
b. uses a lot of vivid and imaginative
detail.
c. contains many facts.
d. should be footnoted.
12. An abstract typically accompanies
a. a scientic or mathematical paper.
b. an essay only.
c. a paper on any liberal arts topic.
d. a paper with a great deal of footnotes
or documentation.

16. To plagiarize someone elses work means to

a. use too many quotations.
b. take someone elses point of view.
c. list too many facts or statistics.
d. copy and neglect to credit work that is
not your own.
17. When using parenthetical citations, the
author of the book and the page number
a. are not listed alphabetically.
b. are written in parentheses next to the
statement that requires documentation.
c. appear in the table of contents.
d. have an accompanying illustration.
13. An annotated bibliography provides
important information to the reader
because
a. it states more sources than a regular
bibliography.
b. it describes precisely how each book
was useful and what material it
contained.
c. it is more professional than a regular
bibliography.
d. all professors prefer an annotated
bibliography.
14. When trying to nd a research topic, its
a good idea to
a. write down several issues, ideas, or
topics that interest you.
b. do preliminary research in a library.
c. consult with a university professor
beforehand.
d. immediately check the Internet for
reliable sources.
15. Two of the most commonly used style
manuals for research papers are
a. the New York Times and the Oxford
English Dictionary.
b. the Chicago Manual of Style and the
Oxford English Dictionary.
c. the Oxford English Dictionary and the
Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
d. the Modern Language Association
(MLA) manual of style and the
American Psychological Association
(APA) manual of style.
18. Internet or electronic sources of
information can be tricky to document
and include in footnotes or citations if
they
a. do not come from an established
website with an official electronic
address.
b. come from an international website.
c. are not available in hard copy.
d. do not provide accompanying web
links.
19. Logic and logical appeals specically cater
to a readers
a. hunger for knowledge.
b. desire for poetry.
c. commitment to intelligence.
d. sense of reason.
20. The word bias refers to a writers
a. thesis statement.
b. use of complex vocabulary words.
c. personal opinion on a topic or subject
matter.
d. use of sophisticated vocabulary.
21. The term Ibid is
a. the name of an author in a
parenthetical citation.
b. an additional part of the footnote
section.
c. used to refer to the book, chapter,
article, or page cited before.
d. a fairly important part of a research
project.
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22. When you revise your rough draft, the
best thing to check rst is
a. that every single word is spelled
perfectly.
b. that there is a sense of logic and order
in your research paper.
c. that the evidence presented is perfect
and beyond any dispute whatsoever.
d. that your tone is important and
ofcial.
23. Checking your paper for sequencing
means that you
a. are reading it from back to front.
b. need to number each page twice.
c. are placing ideas, sentences,
paragraphs, and pages in the right
order.
d. need to rework your thesis statement.
24. An annotated bibliography is often
requested by professors so that they
a. can determine whether the books you
are consulting are relevant to your
topic.
b. can correct spelling at an early stage of
your writing.
c. can review for factual, grammatical,
and content errors.
d. can determine whether a
historiography is necessary to
conclude your paper.
26. When you begin to write your outline, it
is a good idea to arrange your note cards
a. according to how many of them you
wrote.
b. by their liveliness and textual
information.
c. according to topic only.
d. in some basic type of chronological
order, e.g., beginning, middle, and
end.
27. A researcher/writer, like a lawyer in the
courtroom, must always
a. be aware of the juryhis or her
readersand be sure to address them
professionally.
b. use very familiar words and language
so that the jury or readers will
immediately be receptive to what he
or she has to say.
c. assume a tone of superiority and
mastery to assure credibility.
d. become an adversary with the jury or
readers in order to earn respect.
28. When revising for a sense of logic, you
are usually checking to see that your
paper
a. sounds somewhat convincing and
believable to a reader.
b. has a recognizable beginning, middle,
and end that builds a solid argument.
c. would be respected by professors in
the humanities.
d. would be used as a source for others
to reference.
25. The difference between an emotional and
a logical appeal is that a logical appeal
a. is written more carefully.
b. provides more reasonable arguments.
c. is based upon fact.
d. values the opinion of the reader.
29. An obscure fact is
a. unpopular or disliked.
b. little known or hidden.
c. too long to document properly.
d. embarrassing or awkward.
30. Brainstorming is a useful process because
it allows you to
a. type your nal draft more quickly.
b. jot down many ideas that you can
refer to later.
c. interview another professional.
d. write several rough drafts of your
entire paper.
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ANSWERS
1. C
2. B
3. A
4. C
5. C
6. D
7. B
8. A
9. A
10.B
11.A
12.A
13.B
14.A
15. D
16. D
17.B
18.A
19.D
20. C
21.C
22. B
23. C
24. A
25. C
26. D
27. A
28. B
29. B
30. B
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Olayinka Okeola
Department of Civil Engineering Calibri Font size 14
Water Resources and Environmental Engineering
GRADUATE SEMINAR (CVE 697) Arial Black Font 14
EXERCICISE #1
EXERCICISE #2