How to write a

literature review
What is your favorite playlist?
A B
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2 ?

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 Outline
1. What is literature review?

2. Literature review’s role?

3. How to organize?

4. How to write?
 I. What is a literature review?

A review of literature that relate to your

topic.

1. A snapshots of major works that

relate to your narrow topic.
 What is a literature review?

O“ The application of music in teaching

listening skill and vocabulary of

English, a review of related studies and
the practice in Vietnamese context ”
 I. What is a literature review?
2. A literature review can be just a simple
summary of the sources, but it usually an
organizational pattern and combines both
summaries and synthesis.
 I. What is a literature review?
2. A summary is a recap of the important
information of the source, but the
synthesis is the re-organization, or a re-
shuffling, of that information.
I. What is a literature review?
First definition

OSource  Writer

Second definition

OSource  Writer

OWriter  Source
 I. What is a literature review?
3. By Irene L.Clark, PhD.

“A literature review surveys scholarly

articles, books and other sources relevant
to a topic for a thesis or dissertation.
 I. What is a literature review?
3. (cont.) Its purpose is to demonstrate that
writer has insightfully and critically surveyed
relevant literature on his or her topic in order
to convince an intended audience that this
topic is worth addressing”
I. What is a literature review?
1st Writer  Source

Writer  Source
Define 2nd
a LR Source  Writer

Writer  Source
3rd Source  Writer
Audience Writer
II. Literature review’ role
o Focuses on previous studies

o Show the ‘gaps’ and how your research

fill this ‘gaps’

o Updating your theses

o Enlarging your knowledge

o The importance of your research

o Limitations of your study

 Literature review’ role

o Summary of current studies

o Critical evaluation
I. What is a literature review?
I. What is a literature review?
I. What is a literature review?
I. What is a literature review?
I. What is a literature review?
I. What is a literature review?
 III. How to organize a LR?
Reading

Note-taking
Short
Ideas
Paraphrasing essays

Summarizing
III. How to organize a LR?

Logical
Listing
manner

Short
Ideas
essays
 III. How to organize a LR?

General
order
Short
essays
Structure of a
paragraph
How to organize a LR?
General
order

Titles
Sub-titles
Essay Essay Essay
1 2 3
 How to organize a LR?

General
order
Short
essays
Structure of a
paragraph
How to organize a LR?
Structure of a
paragraph

Summarizing
Synthesis
 Structure of a paragraph
Summarizing

Single study Many studies

Introduction General idea

Who? When? Topic? Idea 1
Study 1 Study 2
Findings
Sample? Statistic? Location? Idea 2
Issues
Achievement? GAP? Idea 3
III. How to organize a LR?
Structure of a
paragraph

Summarizing
Synthesis
 Structure of a paragraph
Synthesis
Not only listing studies

Identification of issues and gaps

Showing differences and similarities

Summarizing and uniting to one point

Your own voice must guide the

discussion
 Structure of a paragraph
A paragraph

Summarizing Synthesis

Introduction Summarizing
Who? When? Topic? Gaps in research(es)

Findings Our voices

Sample? Statistic? Location? Summarizing
Criticizing the gaps
Issues Supporting? Arguing?
Comparing? Contrasting?
Achievement? GAP?
Relates to previous studies
Relates to literature review
 Connecting of a paragraphs

S1 Paragraph 1
Summarizing Sy1
Synthesis

S2 Paragraph 2
Summarizing Sy2
Synthesis

S3 Paragraph 3
Summarizing Sy3
Synthesis
 Connecting of a paragraphs

S1 Chronological
Sy1
Advancement

Geographical
S2
Sy2
Questions

?
S3
Sy3
IV. How to write a LR?

A. Collecting data

B. Analyzing

C. Arranging

D. Summarizing
 IV. How to write a LR?
A. Collecting data – Where?
1) University databases
2) Libraries
3) Internet
 IV. How to write a LR?
A. Collecting data – What materials?
1) Article or international journals
2) Books/ chapters in published books
3) National journals
4) Conference papers or research reports
5) PhD dissertations or MA theses
6) Websites/ articles
 IV. How to write a LR?
B. Analyzing

1) Reading

2) Scanning

3) Skimming

4) Choosing the right piece of information

 Broad

Specific
 IV. How to write a LR?
C. Arranging

1) Organizing ideas in logical manner

2) Top-down process

3) Useful forms: texts, charts, diagrams etc.

 IV. How to write a LR?
D. Summarizing

1) Making summary for each paragraph and

each section

2) Revise, revise and revise

3) Giving for own critical evaluation

Thank
s