How does Becker’s book match
up to your expectations for a book claiming to teach you how to: “start and
finish your thesis, book, or article?” Keep in mind that in spite of this
negative-seeming prompt that I find the book to be worthwhile enough to assign
it!
Allison on Becker: Becker's (2007) book is refreshing and meets expectations in a general way. Becker gives an honest account of the academic writing process-the hidden curriculum of academic writing. Becker's suggestions are helpful: avoid wordiness and passive voice; write revise repeat. In addition, Dr. Stemhagen's class is the first class I have had in the program where writing is discussed on an on-going basis. I think a 3 credit class should be devoted to academic writing.
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ReplyDeleteSimilar to Allison's comment, Becker is refreshing. Becker puts writing in a way it does not seem threatening (that it always has to be perfect) instead he makes light of the process and the idea that it is a work in progress and constantly evolving. I think this is evident as well in chapter 10 where Becker initially gave his final thoughts in 1986 but then when the book was republished concluded with more final thoughts. After reading his book I see writing more as something that should be enjoyed and seen as a process and if done "correctly" will come together into a piece that reflects the actors passion and personality.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading this book. Like Lauren said, Becker presents writing in a non-threatening way. Instead of giving specific steps that must be followed, he provides examples of what has worked in his writing and gives suggestions for ways to improve writing in general. I like the fact that his main advice is to just write. It does not have to be pretty or clean – the first drafts are just to get your ideas on paper. I would have expected a book with this title to give a list of rules and provide examples of people who have gotten their work published by following the rules. Instead, this book was surprisingly real and let me see that quality academic writing is within my grasp.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both Lauren and Samantha. Becker made me feel more comfortable with the writing process in graduate school. I think the book helped push me along in my evolution as an academic writer. Now, because of this book, am I ready to write my dissertation? NO, but I think it relieved some of the anxieties I have about writing at this level. Writing is about the process and what you can learn from it. Like Sam, I was hoping for some more explicit advice, but overall, I thought it was helpful.
ReplyDeleteBecker has approached writing in a way that has encouraged me to really think about and consider my own writing process. While the book does not provide the technical and structured direction I had thought it would before reading it, there is certainly a lot of useful information to be gained from reading it. Becker takes some of the mystery and fear out of academic writing. He writes with a personal approach that encourages the reader to engage in writing, rewriting, and the willingness to seek out and use critical reviews of written work. The book was helpful, just not what I expected.
ReplyDeleteVeronica - I enjoyed reading Becker's book about writing for the social sciences. It provides me with comfort in knowing that it is not necessary to use an expansive vocabulary to make one's writing sound academic. I particularly enjoyed Chapter 4: Editing by Ear. This chapter reminds me of discussions with Dr. Philipsen in EDUS 702 about reading your papers aloud for clarity, grammar, and punctuation. Becker's work has inspired me to write and rewrite professional and academic projects with simplicity and clarity. I am also guilty of not wanting to rewrite papers and documents, not because I am lazy, but because my time seems to be limited. I have been working on a study with folks from four other universities for the past year. It has taken us at least five months to write, edit, and rewrite the manuscript that will be sent to the American Journal of Pharmacy Education (AJPE) next week.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Allison's comment that a graduate level course in academic writing should be a requirement for all students in the School of Education along with Becker’s book or a book very similar. This would provide all students with a solid foundation to prepare them for writing the dissertation.
Becker's book is very comforting. It's always good to know that you're not alone in feeling nervous or self-conscious about your writing. As someone who has done a lot of writing and will have to continue to write throughout my career, I find it necessary to explore ways to become a better writer. In a class I took within the Center for Sport Leadership, we had to read "How to Write A Lot" by Paul Silvia. It was a similar premise as Becker's book, but I felt it was kind of Preachy and Judgey. I agree with others who posted about the "non-threatening" manner in which Becker writes and gives examples. For example, he acknowledges that academics tend to use too many words in their writing, but he doesn't do it in a way that makes you feel bad or dumb for doing it, rather you want change it because what he says makes sense. I really appreciate what he has to say and the advice he gives. I'm sure that most people getting their PhD are perfectionist to some degree so what he has to say about creating drafts and editing is helpful. Reading this book makes me more comfortable with receiving critical feedback in my own writing and I think that will make me a much better writer. -Tiesha
ReplyDeleteBecker's voice throughout the book was fine. He touched on a lot of topics, and offered up reassurance that people's idiosyncrasies weren't the end of the world. While he did preach that one should not use too many words, sometimes what he had to say went on a little long, so he could make the point about how he fixed a situation for someone. But otherwise it was a solid book to jump start doctoral work.
ReplyDeleteFatemah - I enjoyed reading the book. The author cover a lot of issues that we are going to face as Ph.D. students. He gave some tips and Ideas to follow. A lot of explanation of how this journey going to be. How we should handle it. I like the book. This book will be my friend ( to cheer me up )on my doctoral writing journey for sure.
ReplyDeleteA book that claims to inform how to "start and finish your thesis, book, or article" ought not to get in the way of the starting. Becker's book is full of insight and advice, and the prose flows gently enough to not need a life preserver. If it was technical and dense, then an anxious reader might never get past it.
ReplyDeleteA lot of what was said reminds me of things I have learned from experience as well, such as "getting it out the door." Classical musicians have this problem. Becker doesn't say this explicitly, but he probably would agree that the process of getting something done, out the door, helps you actually get better quicker, because the whole process of exposure forces you to learn a lot of lessons really fast, whereas keeping your work until it's perfect can get stagnant. In my opinion, the next project will be better by necessity, because you'll be more experienced, older, smarter, etc. No point waiting to publish this old idea. Meanwhile you can have a half dozen projects out the door and never look back at the stagnant you. That being said, I appreciate Charles Ives as much as the next guy, but I am not so sure Ives is the best example in this case. Ives had a friend named Carl Ruggles who might be a better example. Ruggles wrote about two dozen masterpieces in his lifetime and that's it, because he was obcessed with revising and perfecting the works he had already published... sometimes making them worse, taking out the imperfections that actually made them more interesting. Ives was a successful insurance salesman and was not dependent on publication of his music for income.
Overall, I appreciate the writing advice. I'm lucky that I have a job as an editorial assistant, because it has allowed me to spend time with other people's writing, both good and bad. And Becker confirms a lot of what I was beginning to notice about academic writing.