Research in the field of Education has flourished since the last decade with the launch of university courses for teachers. There was no research history in the field of education in our country due to absence of scientific treatment of the profession and the prevailing local academic culture which used to be mainly oral (Kandel, cited in Banfi, 2009 , discussion section). In the past few years, when universities launched complementary courses for teachers, access to systematic, controlled , empiric and critical (Sampieri, Collado and Lucio, 1998, cited in Pintos and Crimi, 2010) ways of presenting written information was gained , providing alignment with the Social Sciences, thus giving English Language Teaching (ELT) a professional status, “(…) not just in terms of the definition of profession, but as regards the academic discipline” (Banfi, 2009).
This paper aims at analysing the introduction and methods´ section of two Research Articles (RA) in the fields of medicine and education, in order to illustrate the similarities in the written presentation of research that both disciplines share and to highlight some differences inherent to each of them. For the following analysis the two articles were selected : one in the field of medicine (Gardiner, Owen, Sugiyama & Vandelanotte, 2009) and the other in the field of education( Loucky, 2007). Both papers will be analysed following the guidelines offered by the tutors of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) in The Research Article: Introduction, Literature Review and Method sections ( Pintos & Crimi, 2010).
Analysis of the Introduction Sections (IS)
Regarding the IS, it can be stated that the two articles evidence different layouts. The medicine article follows neatly and orderly the three moves proposed by Pintos & Crimi (2010). The first two paragraphs take up Move 1 (M1). The negative opening “However” marks the beginning of Move 2 (M2) which runs along three paragraphs. Move 3 (M3), starting in paragraph 6, states the aim of the study which starts with the purposive statement “The aim of this study is (…)”
The Literature Review (LR) is not structured separately from the (IS), but it is included in the first and third paragraphs of M2.
“However, most of the evidence on associations between sedentary behavior and health outcomes, such as weight status and levels of physical activity, is specific to time spent on watching television [5,6,8,10,12], which is the most commonly (…)” (para 1, Introd. Section). “(…) A study by Sugiyama et al. [22] demonstrated that, in women, time spent watching TV (…)” (para 3 , Introd. Section)
In the first paragraph, the past studies are referenced parenthetically, the numbers corresponding to the order of mention of sources in the References List (RL). In the second case the mention of the past study is done by means of an in-text citation. As the article is not written in APA style, the number after the author´s name is not the year of publication ,but , the order of mention in the RL.
Regarding the main grammatical features, it can be mentioned that the tenses used in the different moves run along the lines of those proposed by Crimi and Pintos (2010) in the grammar and Mechanics Section (p. 29).
The Present Perfect Tense is used in paragraph 1, followed by the use of the Present Passive in paragraph 2. M2 (para. 3, 4 & 5) alternate the use of The Present Simple Tense, in active and passive voices and The Present Perfect Tense in active voice. The purposive statement in M3 is written in the Present.
In the education article, the three moves are not clearly distinguished and the article is not structured following the characteristics proposed by Crimi & Pintos (2010) (pp. 28-31). The IS takes up only one paragraph and the LR stands in isolation as a separate section. The IS is all a descriptive statement , giving , first, the participants standpoint , moving afterwards to the explanation of what the study consisted of , and finishing by describing the aim using the strange pattern “ We show the students how to use WordChamp.com for improving their vocabulary learning and comprehension of any online reading (…)” (lines 6-8 , Introd. Section). The reading of the Abstract was necessary to fully comprehend the meaning of the study. There is no negative opening indicating the beginning of M2 and the purposive statement is included in the Abstract, not in the ‘Introduction’.
As for the grammatical features in the introduction section of this article, it is noticed that there is alternation in the use of Present and Past Tenses. The tenses used in the LR include The Present Perfect and The Simple Past. There is a shift to the Present tense at the end of the paragraph when the students´ and teachers´ needs –gaps- are expressed.
Examples of the issue previously explained are: “Grabe (1991) developed some useful guidelines for reading programs” (line 1, LR section). “ As Rosszell (2006) has written, ER+ is proposed as a more effective alternative to ER, and one which enabled learners” (line 5, LR section). “But both teachers and students need clear guidance in how to analyze any scanned or online text into programs (…)” (line 9, LR section)
Analysis of the Methods Sections (MS)
In both articles, the MS is brief and they also share the fact that they include the heading “Participants and Procedures”. In the case of the article on medicine, the information of the participants and the procedures is all together in one paragraph under the subheading “Participants and Procedures”. However, in the article on education there exists some information about the procedures, as a form of introduction , and then , the subheading “Participants and Procedures” is followed by information on the participants and an enlargement of the procedures previously introduced .
As regards the grammatical features of the two articles, a difference in the use of tenses along the MS can be pointed out. The medicine article starts the section in the Present Tense but shifts to the Past Tense, in active and passive voices, to explain the procedures. On the contrary, the article on education, the IORVD article, follows a strange pattern. The introduction starts in the Present Passive and shifts to Past Passive in the last sentences. But, the section under the sub-heading “Participants and Procedures” is not structured in sentences, but in phrases instead for the participants´ information. The rest of the paragraph is a piece of advice to help in the achievement of the aim.
Conclusion
All things considered, it can be assumed that the article on education attempts to meet the requirements of a RA , but when compared and contrasted to an article in the medicine field , it deviates from the scientific protocol , so usual in medicine RAs. However, the introduction of “Metodología de la Investigación” in university courses will help teachers and researchers in education achieve excellence in research writing.
References
Banfi ,C. (2009). Cristina Banfi´s page. Retrieved from http://www.cristinabanfi .com.ar/formacion.html
Gardiner, P., Owen, N., Sugiyama, T. & Vandelanotte, C., (2009) Associations of Leisure-Time Internet and Computer Use With Overweight and Obesity, Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviors: Cross-Sectional Study. J Med Internet Res, 2009. 11(3): e 28. http://www.jmir.org/2009/3e28/. DOI: 10.2196/jmir.1084
Kandel, A. Cristina banfi´s page (2009) Retrieved from http://guilders.ning.com /forum/topics/publish-or-perish-in-the-elt?id=3318232%3A Topic%3A101&page=2#comments
Loucky, J., (2007). Improving Online Reading and Vocabulary Development . KASELE Bulletin, (35) (pp 181-188) Retrieved from www.caececampusuniversidad. com.ar
Pintos, V., & Crimi, Y. (2010). LENGUA ESPECIALIZADA II. Unit 2 . The Research Article: Introductions, Literature Review and Method Sections. UNIVERSIDAD CAECE .
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