Scientific writing and end-of-cycle work

Teacher(s)

Simon Anne-Catherine;

Language

French

Main themes

The final assignment focuses on a topic related to one or more of the main subjects and languages in the student's programme.
The assignment is written in one of these languages, depending on the topic (exceptions are possible with the supervisor's approval).
The assignment should contain approximately 30,000 characters, including spaces, but not including lengthy quotations and the bibliography.
The preparation of the research will be the subject of individual meetings with the supervisor or group work sessions.
The academic writing will be supervised by a course that will present the standards to be followed at the different stages, from bibliographic research to final writing.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	Synthesize essential elements of knowledge to problematize a research question (LO 4.2)
2	Produce a scientific text that respects the standards of the discipline and academic discourse (L.O. 4.5)
3	Professional writing (LO 5.2)
Anticipate and plan all learning activities (LO 6.1)

Content

The content of individual or group work sessions will depend on the choice of subject and the promoter. 
Data collection, organisation, analysis and interpretation will be based on the methodologies learned during the previous two years of training.
Scientific writing will be addressed in a course that will cover the following questions:

• What is a final assignment and how can it be successfully completed (research question, planning)?
• How can bibliographic research be carried out in relation to the topic being addressed and how can existing sources be used to answer the research question?
• What kind of writer are you?
• How can you use digital tools and generative AI in a critical, responsible and transparent manner?
• How can you write a clear, organised and well-argued text?
• How can you revise, improve and finalise a scientific text to ensure its consistency and linguistic accuracy?

Teaching methods

For research conducted under the direction of a supervisor: individual or group sessions.
For the academic writing course (compulsory participation):

• Lectures;
• Training sessions on bibliographic research organised by the librarians;
• Supervised self-learning via the REDAC system on Moodle.

Evaluation methods

The course is assessed by final assesment supervisor. 
The mark takes the following elements into account:

• Ability to produce a well-argued and documented summary.
• Ability to use a methodology appropriate to the chosen topic and to justify the choice.
• Coherence of the reasoning and relevance of the arguments used.
• Quality and correctness of written language; use of rigorous and appropriate terminology.
• Participation in individual or group supervision sessions organised by the supervisor and quality of these interactions.
• Participation in all course sessions and quality of preparation and interactions. 

The jury may refuse to allow a student to register for the LELAL1399 course assessment if the student has not participated in the various stages of the teaching programme as detailed above and, a fortiori, if the student has never contacted their supervisor (except to validate the topic) and has not attended the lectures or completed the tasks requested in this context.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI), if used, must be used responsibly and in accordance with academic and scientific integrity practices. As scientific integrity requires that sources be cited, the use of AI must always be reported accurately and in detail.
Whether reported or not, the alleged use of AI tools will be considered non-compliant with academic standards when it leads to:

• citing bibliographic sources to support claims without having consulted the sources in question and/or without there being a close link between these claims and the ideas developed in these sources,
• including references in the bibliography whose validity has not been verified or which are completely non-existent.

Other information

The Moodle REDAC course ‘Planifier, mettre en texte et réviser un écrit universitaire’ is an online self-learning tool designed to support students in scientific writing. It offers a structured programme based on the three main processes of academic writing (planning, writing and revising), combining diagnostics, theoretical input, guided exercises and reflective tools.

Teaching materials

• Présentations PPT et Guides disponibles sur le Moodle du cours
• Dispositif REDAC disponible sur Moodle (voir Ressources en ligne)

Faculty or entity

> ELAL