Nurses are very good at documenting facts. The key with graduate nursing program writing is to Analyze those facts. One of the most common errors in scholarly writing is what I call "information dump". Nurses write all sorts of information and then forget to analyze that information in their papers.
Analysis of information consists of describing why the information is significant to the paper's purpose, or significant to the main point of the paragraph. Analysis of information includes comparing similarities and contrasting differences of the information in the current paragraph with information presented earlier in the paper. Analysis of information includes whether the information is reliable, and valid (incorporating if the information is based on a well designed study method, or based on credibility of the source). Analysis of information describes the type of information--, is the information from a scholarly source or an editorial which is an opinion. (by the way Wikipedia is NOT a scholarly source so never cite). Opinions are OK as sources- as long as from an expert in the field. Analysis of information describes the advantages and disadvantages of that information in relationship to the overall paper’s topic , if appropriate.
The analysis sentences of a scholarly paper, add breadth and depth to the paper’s content (and length). Faculty want to read not only about the information, but what that information means to the learning of the student writing or why the information is of significance. Do not ever assume the faculty member knows that you know something, write out the rationale for using the information where ever you can.
Remember, if you can’t think of an Analysis sentence use a place holder in your paper and come back during editing to that place to add the Analysis.
Dr.
Maggie
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