witting a literature review

LING 401 – Research Methods (Semester 161)

Assignment 1 – First draft, literature review

In this assignment, you will write a literature review for the topic and study you are proposing in this course.

The literature review should meet the following requirements:

1. It should consist of 3 sections: Definitions of terms, previous studies, and a references section.

a. Definitions of key concepts: In this section, you will define the specific terms and concepts that

must be understood by the reader in order to understand your study. Examples of terms or

concepts that should be defined: Motivation, semantic mapping, collaborative dialogue,

communicative approach, e-learning, blogs, and so on. You should refer to the academic

literature (NOT a dictionary (unless it is a specialized dictionary), NOT non-academic internet

sources) to define your terms or concepts. Depending on the number of terms that you must

define, this section could be half a page, or one and a half pages. (10 points)

b. Previous studies: In this section, you will describe at least THREE studies about your topic that

have been done previously. When you describe the studies, you should include information

about the setting (country, kind of educational institution), the participants (age, gender,

language proficiency), the purpose of the study, brief methodology, and results. At the end of

this section, you should describe how your study will be different from the previous studies you

described, so that it is clear how your study will fit into the literature on the topic (how will it

add to the literature?). (15 points)

c. References: In this section, you will list the sources you referred to in your literature review,

using the APA style for the references. You should have at least FIVE sources listed in your

reference section. (10 points)

2. The format of the paper will be as follows (5 points):

a. Use US letter-size paper (NOT A4).

b. Margins should be 1 inch on both sides and the top and the bottom.

c. Page numbers should appear on the upper right-hand corner.

d. Use Times New Roman Font, size 12.

e. The paper should be double-spaced.

f. Paragraphs should be indented.

g. Headings should be in bold, and should look exactly like the attached sample.

3. The literature review should be written in correct English, and should be proofread carefully to

eliminate grammar errors, misspellings, and punctuation errors. (10 points)

Literature Review

Definitions of Key Concepts

First concept to be defined (name the concept in the heading). Start your text here. Usually, one

paragraph is enough to define/describe each term/concept.

Second concept to be defined (name the concept in the heading). Start your text here. Usually, one

paragraph is enough to define/describe each term/concept.

Third concept to be defined (name the concept in the heading). Start your text here. Usually, one

paragraph is enough to define/describe each term/concept.

Previous Studies in the Literature

Start your first paragraph here, and describe each study in a new paragraph. Usually, one paragraph is

enough to describe the study and its results. You should describe at least three studies.

After you describe the studies, the final paragraph should describe how your study will be different from

the previous studies, and how your study will contribute to the literature on the topic.

(start the references section on a new page)

References

Alyousef, H. (2006). Teaching reading comprehension to ESL/EFL learners. Journal of Language and

Learning, 5(3), 64-67. [journal article]

Buzan, T., & Buzan, B. (1996). The mind map book: How to use radiant thinking to maximize your brain’s

untapped potential. New York: Plume. [book]

Fauzi, A. (2007). The correlation between students’ vocabulary achievement and speaking ability (Unpublished

bachelor’s thesis). Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.

Jacobs, D. (2012). Having students articulate the outcomes of mind mapping while reading will improve text

comprehension. Unpublished manuscript. Retrieved from http://www.daneprairie.com.

[Internet source]

Rumelhart, D.E., & McClelland, J.L. (1981). Interactive processing through speaking activation. In A.M.

Lesgold & C.A. Perfetti (Eds.), Interactive processes in reading (pp. 37-60). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence

Erlbaum Associates. [chapter in an edited book]

Siriphanich, P, & Laohawiriyanon, C. (2010). Using mind mapping technique to improve reading

comprehension ability of Thai EFL university students. International Conference on Humanities and

Social Sciences, Songkhla, Rajabhat University. Thailand. Retrieved from

http://tip.psychology.org/schema.html [conference paper, retrieved online]