2016 Global Writing on Computational Life Sciences for Doctoral Students

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Academic unit or major
Education Academy of Computational Life Sciences
Instructor(s)
Yamaguchi Yuki  Takeuchi Craig 
Class Format
Lecture     
Media-enhanced courses
Day/Period(Room No.)
-
Group
-
Course number
ACL.A603
Credits
2
Academic year
2016
Offered quarter
1-2Q
Syllabus updated
2016/7/1
Lecture notes updated
-
Language used
English
Access Index

Course description and aims

The aim of this course is to help students learn writing skills and nurture their ability to apply the skills to actual writing situations.
This course is recommended to doctoral students who write their scientific papers in English. The instructor is a native speaker of English with a lot of experience in research and writing papers and patents at academic institutions or in the pharmaceutical industry. The instructor will help students learn how to write a high quality scientific paper properly. The course will be challenging but relaxed in a small class setting. A semi-private format class allows for a high level of personal attention and support from the instructor.
Students will prepare a research report and discuss it with others.
Students' qualifications will be assessed by whether they achieve practical writing skills essential as a doctoral student.

Student learning outcomes

By the end of this course students will be able to:
1. write consistent arguments with main ideas and details.
2. write comparisons and contrasts of ideas with a logical chain of reasoning.
3. write coherent and logical paragraphs.
4. write fluent sentences that flow in sequence.
5. properly document sources, edit texts for expression, and proofread for correctness.

Keywords

expository writing, academic writing

Competencies that will be developed

Specialist skills Intercultural skills Communication skills Critical thinking skills Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

At the beginning of each class, solutions to problems assigned in the previous class are reviewed. Students are given exercise problems based on the lecture given that day to solve. To prepare for the class, students should read the topics to be covered in the textbook ahead of class. Additional writing assignments may be required to be completed outside the class.

Course schedule/Required learning

  Course schedule Required learning
Class 1 Introduction to Global Writing Writing a bibliography. Impromptu writing.
Class 2 Audience, Purpose and Strategy, Organization Characteristics of academic writing. Positioning as capable, credible and knowledgeable writers.
Class 3 Style Parts of speech. Vocabulary.
Class 4 Flow, Presentation Linking words and phrases.
Class 5 General-Specific Texts Ordering ideas. Writing short and extended definitions.
Class 6 Problem, Process, and Solution Procedures. Processes. Cause and effect.
Class 7 Data Commentary Problem-solution texts help to organize academic argument. Explanations using process descriptions.
Class 8 Class Overview of First-Half of the Course and Mid-Term Exam How first-half of the course is related to second-half of the course.
Class 9 Writing Summaries Plagiarism. Paraphrasing. Summary phrases. Similarities and differences.
Class 10 Writing Critiques Stating opinions. Evaluative language. Beginning critiques. Inversions.
Class 11 Constructing a Research Paper I Publication types. Linking phrases in Methods sections.
Class 12 Constructing a Research Paper I Publication types. Linking phrases in Methods sections.
Class 13 Constructing a Research Paper II Publication types. Linking phrases in Methods sections.
Class 14 Constructing a Research Paper II Discussion section. Levels of generalization. Expressions of limitation.
Class 15 Final Exam Students will be tested on their writing skills and material from the entire course.

Textbook(s)

Academic Writing for Graduate Students, 3rd edition. Essential Tasks and Skills (John M. Swales and Christine B. Feak, The University of Michigan Press)

Reference books, course materials, etc.

The Elements of Technical Writing (Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly, Longman); The Craft of Scientific Writing (Michael Alley, Springer)

Assessment criteria and methods

Students' knowledge of writing skills and their ability to apply the skills to actual writing situations will be assessed.
Midterm and final exams 60%, exercise problems 40%.

Related courses

  • ZBA.A405 : Global Communication on Computational Life Sciences A(ACLS)
  • ZBA.A406 : Global Communication on Computational Life Sciences B(ACLS)
  • ZBA.A403 : Global Presentation on Computational Life Sciences A(ACLS)
  • ZBA.A404 : Global Presentation on Computational Life Sciences B(ACLS)
  • ZBA.A502 : Global Debate on Computational Life Sciences(ACLS)
  • ACL.A604 : Global Debate on Computational Life Sciences for Doctoral Students

Prerequisites (i.e., required knowledge, skills, courses, etc.)

・As a general rule, students are allowed to enroll only one course from Science and Technology Communication Subjects of the Education Academy of Computational Life Sciences (ACLS) at a time.
・Enrollment is limited to students in Education Academy of Computational Life Sciences (ACLS).

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