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Overview of presentation
Introduction
Style in the writing of modules Guidelines for clear writing
Using familiar words
Short vs. long words Short vs. long sentences
Specific vs. General
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Overview of presentation/...
Writing in logical order
Negatives vs. positives Maximising cohesion
Using first and second person
Signposting Active vs. passive voice
Other considerations
ConclusionKondwani Mkandawire
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Introduction
Modules fall within the group of self-
instructional/study materials. They are specifically designed to enable
students study partly or wholly by
themselves.
This is why Rowntree (1998) described themas Tutorial-in-Print.
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Introduction/...
Unlike most books, modules:
Have clear objectives Offer advice on how to study the materials
Involve the learner actively
They include activities and self-assessmentquestions throughout
They guide the learner
Specially designed for a specific groupKondwani Mkandawire
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Introduction/...
Are written in a friendly and encouraging
tone (you and I style).Assist the learner to apply new knowledge.
Have a clear structure.
Divide content into small sections, and
contain more headings and sign-posts.
Have access devices to help the learner
Provide space for learners to make notes
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Style in the writing of modules
The above and many other characteristics
demonstrate how important modules/self-instructional materials are.
More importantly, however, these
distinguishing characteristics point to the
need for modules, like most self-instructionalmaterials, to be written in a unique style.
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Style/...
However well planned and constructed your
course is, it may fail to work well if the styleused is not appropriate to your student
population.
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Guidelines for clear writing
Use of familiar words
Use of short words Use of short sentences
Avoiding unnecessary words
Preferring the specific instead of the general Writing in logical order
Use of positives instead of negatives
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Guidelines/....
Maximising cohesion
Use of first and second person Use of lots of signposting
Use of active rather than passive voice
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Using familiar words
Text is always easier for students to
understand if they are familiar with the wordsbeing used.
Occasionally, of course, you will need to use
the less familiar word because it is the only
one that can convey your meaning withprecision. This is particularly true when using
technical terms.
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Using familiar words/...
Less familiar
facilitate
attenuate
detriment
influx
More familiar
Help
Reduce
Harm
arrival
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Using short instead of long words
Generally, short words are easier to
understand than longer ones. Sometimes, though, the longer word is the
more familiar, so it should be used in
preference to the shorter one.
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Using short/...
Long
Fundamental
Intoxicated
Indistinct
Inundation
Short
Basic
Drunk
Unclear
Flood
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The specific vs. The general
We tend to understand specific, concrete
instances better than vague or generalisedones.
For this reason, it is best to use specific
examples or precise data whenever the
context permits it.
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The specific vs. the general/...
The general/vague
Write a short answer
Many people
Very fast
Poor quality hinge
The specific/precise
Write about 300 words
Around 65% of the adults
Over 150 km/hr
A hinge that breaks after
500 flexings
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Writing in a logical order
Probably the best way to ensure a logical
order is to plan your course or unit in asystematic waya process which, in itself,
helps to force a logical order on your writing.
However, what constitutes a logical order will
depend on the subject matter.
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Writing in a logical order/...
Kondwani Mkandawire
Topic 1
Sub-topic 1.1Sub-topic 1.2
Sub-sub-topic 1.2.1
Sub-topic 1.3
etc.
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Negatives vs. positives
On the whole, it is easier to understand a
statement in a positive form than in anegative one.
There are some occasions, though, when the
negative is clearer or essential. For example:
Danger. Do not touch. Double negatives should also be avoided as
they are confusing to understand.
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Maximising cohesion
Cohesion is clear relationships being
established between the words in a piece oftext. For example, pronouns that refer back
to a noun help create cohesion, as does the
use of linking words such as thus, however
and in the next example.
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Maximising cohesion/...
Cohesion is promoted by:
repetition of key words, and the use of transition words and phrases.
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Repetition of key words
The cohesion of a piece of text is increased
by the repetition of key words or phrases,
which help the reader see how points in a
series are logically related.
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It is worth noting that the tutorial style was
developed for use in print self-study materials.
It can be extended to the web,but care needsto be taken in the navigation of web tutorial
sites. The tutorialmethod assumes a carefully
controlled order in the presentation of input,
activity and feedback. If learners are allowed to
freely navigate a web site, this order will be
lost and the tutorials structure undermined.
This problem can be avoided by constructingcourse web sites with . and by careful
control of hypertext links within the site.
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Use of transitional words
Transitional words and phrases are ones that
show:
sequence and order
Relationships
the flow of an argument
cause and effect
exceptions and parentheses.
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Use of transitional words/...
Examples of transitional words and phrases
include:
in addition
Firstly
for example
at the same time
to return to the point I made earlier
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Use of first and second person
There is widespread agreement among
experts that self-instructional materials
should address the learner as you and the
author should be I or we.
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Use of first and second person/...Traditional Academic style More friendly self-instructional
style
The student should note that You should note that
Students should prepare an essay on
You should now write an essay on
It can be seen that You can see that
It is understood by most instructional
designers that they should expect to
cut
As instructional designers, we can
expect to have to cut
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Signposting in self-instructional
materials
Signposting refers to all of those devices
that we use to help learners find their way
around a text or the web site.
These are considered to be important for two
reasons:
First, many learners have little experience oflearning from text or web sites, and so need
as much help as possible.
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Signposting in self-instructional
materials/...
Second, self-study materials tend to have a
fairly complicated structure, with lots of
separate components (e.g., activities,
examples, tests), so learners need help in
working their way through the materials.
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Signposting in self-instructional
materials/...
Examples of signposting include the use of:
headings and subheadings contents lists
Summaries
Indexes
icons
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Signposting in self-instructional
materials/...
different fonts and type sizes to indicate
different aspects of the text, for example:
- 11-point Times Roman for explanatory
text
- 11-point Arial for activities
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Signposting in self-instructional
materials/...
phrases such as:
- on the next page - in the last section
- the next example will show you
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The active vs. passive voice
Although much formal and academic writing
uses the passive voice, the active voice is
generally more direct and easier to understand.
For this reason, most self-study writing
should avoid the passive voice.
However, there are times when the passive isappropriate and therefore should be used.
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Other considerations
Be consistent in your style
Use humour where possible Use relevant and/or practical examples
Use gender sensitive language
Leave white margins and white space for
learners to make notes and to answer SMAs
and other types of self-assessment.
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Other considerations/...
Include keywords (to explain technical terms,
new concepts, difficult words - decide where
to include your keywords)
Use graphics and illustrations (to break
monotony, makes materials interesting and
appealing)
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Conclusion
Writing objectives and content using
language that is clear, specific and relevant
to the context of the learner is important for
enhancing the appeal and readability of your
materials.
Creating the zeal or desire for learners tocontinue to interact with the self-study
materials depends on how easy it is to
understand and apply the information.Kondwani Mkandawire
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Conclusion/...
At the same time keeping your text straight to
the point while using a conversational and
friendly tone helps to keep your learner on
task and makes the lesson more
personalized and sociable.
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Sources
http://wikieducator.org/Training_Educators_t
o_Design_and_Develop_ODL_Materials/Con
tent_Development_Methodology_for_ODL
Commonwealth of Learning. (2005). Creating
Learning materials for open and distance
learning: A Handbook for authors andinstructional designers. Vancouver:
Commonwealth of Learning
Kondwani Mkandawire COS 110
http://wikieducator.org/Training_Educators_to_Design_and_Develop_ODL_Materials/Content_Development_Methodology_for_ODLhttp://wikieducator.org/Training_Educators_to_Design_and_Develop_ODL_Materials/Content_Development_Methodology_for_ODLhttp://wikieducator.org/Training_Educators_to_Design_and_Develop_ODL_Materials/Content_Development_Methodology_for_ODLhttp://wikieducator.org/Training_Educators_to_Design_and_Develop_ODL_Materials/Content_Development_Methodology_for_ODLhttp://wikieducator.org/Training_Educators_to_Design_and_Develop_ODL_Materials/Content_Development_Methodology_for_ODLhttp://wikieducator.org/Training_Educators_to_Design_and_Develop_ODL_Materials/Content_Development_Methodology_for_ODL8/11/2019 Style in Module Writing
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Thanks for your attention