Writing a PhD Thesis

The purpose of this talk is to explain to PhD candidates on

what to be aware when writing their thesis. The materials
of this talk are sourced from my PhD supervision at
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia since 2007.

Ismail Said (PhD)

Associate Professor
Academic Manager of Generic Program
The School of Graduate Studies
UTM 16 Oct 2014

PhD research is my baby

REMINDER: In your lifetime, you only write ONE thesis.

What is a Thesis?
A scientific document that has to be clear,
well explained, well presented and easy to
read. The thesis is the culmination of your
project and the quantifiable evidence of your
learning and what you have accomplished
for your higher degree (Monash University).
It is a testament of your analytical and
critical thinking on your research subject.
It defines your transition from student to
scholar. It is a document with substantial and
original contribution to knowledge of a
particular field.

What is a Thesis?
A document that is cogently written into a story;
new knowledge discovered from your
investigation.
This means that each chapter is linked to the
preceding ones. Each section of a chapter is
integrated to explain the purpose of the chapter.
Each chapter ends with a conclusion or a
summary.
A story worth a thousand pictures.

Content of Thesis
Abstract

A brief representation of your thesis

An overall picture of your thesis that
should trigger the examiners to go to
your Chapter 1: Research Problem and
Background
Its content include RESEARCH PROBLEM
and GAP, AIM AND OBJECTIVES,
METHODS, RESULTS AND FINDINGS,
CONCLUSION and IMPLICATIONS,
FURTHER RESEARCH

Examiner Comment
on Abstract
By Tracey Skelton on Nor Fadzilas thesis,
AFFORDANCE OF SCHOOL GROUNDS FOR
CHILDRENS OUTDOOR PLAY AND
ENVIORNMENTAL LEARNING (2014)
The abstract accurately reflects the thesis and captures the
content to very good effect. The abstract provides a good insight
in to what the thesis focuses on and outlines the methods used to
gather the data. The innovative question about the role that
school grounds play in childrens learning and play activities is
clearly laid out. The abstract is followed by an excellent contents
page, which is very detailed and well structured.

Content of Thesis
Chapter 1: Research Problem and
Background
It is the main door of your thesis to
enthuse the examiner that it is a
worthwhile research to be read. In other
words, it is the first impression for the
examiners.
Its structure comprises of defining the
research problem and specifying the gap
of study, background and scope of study,
research aim and objectives or hypothesis,
significance of study, anticipated findings.

Content of Thesis
Chapter 1: Research Problem and
Background
Your problem could be derived from
literature as well as your direct experience
with the research problem.
The background is the situatedness of
your study. It means that the context of
your research as a small part of a large
research discipline.
It should be written in simple present
tense.

Affordances of School
Grounds
for Childrens Outdoor Play
and Environmental Learning
Nor Fadzila Aziz (PB103013)
PhD Candidate
Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr Ismail Said
Faculty of Built Environment
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
1 October 2014

School Grounds
Schools grounds as potential sites for childrens
outdoor play and environmental learning

School grounds provides the opportunities for children to

interact with the school environment through movement,
investigation, concentration and social interaction.
Promotes childrens physical, social and cognitive
development and childrens health (Ozdemir and Yilmaz, 2008;
Willenberg et al., 2010)
Potential sites for place-based or environmental learning and
instruction (Malone and Tranter, 2003a, 2003b; Dyment, 2005;
Dyment et al., 2009; Powell, 2007; Stanley 2010)

Childrens outdoor play in the school grounds is a

fundamental component of informal learning, which has
been referred to as environmental learning by Tranter and Malone
(2004).

Research Gap
There has been a variety of research about school grounds,
but most studies have focused either on the impacts of the
physical environment on childrens behaviour and levels of
physical activity or on childrens perception of their school
grounds environment.

The studies overlooked the connection between the physical

environment and the social context of school grounds regarding the
actualisation of affordances and the formation of childrens preferences.
Research focusing on childrens values of outdoor play for
environmental learning in relation to the physical and social contexts of
school grounds is less studied.

Therefore, more comprehensive research is required to

explore the connection between childrens experiences within
the designed school grounds environment with their
perceptions of the ideal school grounds for environmental
learning.

Content of Thesis
Chapter 2: Literature Review

This chapter presents the critical appraisal or

synthesize of past studies related to your research
subject. It shall demonstrate a discursive prose.
It is synthesizing a subject from a set of previous
studies in your own stance. Therefore, it explains
how you evaluate the works of other, show the
relationships between different works, and show
how it relates to your work. Hence, it is your debate
on what has been studied, what is the status quo of
the research subject, and lastly, what you want to
extend.
Organize the literature review into sections that
present themes or identify trends, including relevant
theory.

Content of Thesis
Chapter 2: Literature Review

Here is where you discuss the meaning of

research concept or underpinning(s). The
discussion ends with a clear research framework
of your study referring to past studies and your
research objectives.
It shall be written in simple present tense even
though you are referring to past studies.

Rebuilding identity of
historical area through the
use of urban morphology

PhD Thesis Defense, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

Widya Fransiska Febriati Anwar (PB093004)
December 2009 January 2013

Supervisor(s):
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ismail Said
Dr. Dilshan Remaz Ossen
Dr. Moh. Hisyam bin Rasidi

Situating a research with current status quo of a

subject
Urban
Morphology
Conzen, 1960; Lynch, 1960; Kostof,
1991; Wikantyoso,1997; Hillier,
2001; Ikaputra, et. Al, 2000; Fattahi
and Kobayashi, 2009a, 2009b
Boblic, 1990; Hall, 1997;
Purwanto, 2005; Hanh,
2006; Hara, et.al (2008)
Tuan, 1974; Steele, 1981; Altman
and Low, 1992; Hummon, 1992;
Jackson, 1994; Cross, 2001;
Guillani, 2003; Willian and Vaske,
2003; Smaldone, 2006; Handal.
2006; Beidler, 2007; Hernandez,
2007; Brown and raymond, 2007;
Watson and Bentley, 2007; White
et.al, 2008; Liu, 2009; Raymod
et.al, 2010; Najafi and Kamal,
Identity
2011

Environmenta
l Psychology

Place
Familiarity
Sense of
Place

Urban
Element

Urban
Structure
Change

Urban
Setting

Schuller, 1898; Geisler, 1918; Whitby, 1951;

Conzen, 1960; Muratori, 1960; Hillier aand
Hanson, 1984; Forties; 1989; Kropt, 1996; Hall,
1997; Levy, 1999; Canigia, 2001; Jiang and
Claramunt, 2002; Chapman, 2006; james and
Bound, 2009; Tian et.al, 2010; Topcu and Kubat,
2012
Inn, 2004;Gospodini, 2004, 2011; Doralti,
2004;Watson, 2006; Plaza, 2006, 2008;
Butina, 2006; Niebrzydowski, 2007;
Novickas, 2007; Lewicka, 2008; Handal,
2009;Chen, 2011; Sainz, 2012

Urban
Reminder

Rebuildin Place Character

g City Authenticity City
Marketing
Identity

Culture
City's
Identity
Place Identity
Place
Image of
Identity of Place
Attachment
the city
Rodwel, 2007; Kolzlowski
and Bowen, 1997; Sevinc,
2009; Wei and Kiang, 2009;
Whitehand and Gu, 2010;
Albert and Hanzen, 2010;
Hillier, 2001

Whitehand and
Morton, 2004;
Rapoport, 2004;
Samant, 2004; Tweed
and Sutherland, 2007;
Smith, 2008; Rabady,
2010; Ragab, 2011,
Kim, 2011

Conservati
on
Preservati
on

Rebuilding city identity through the use of urban

morphology (Widya,2013)
Stage 1

Stage 2

RO#1.
The physical and
spatial pattern

RO#2
Place character that can establish
the identity

Urban
Morphology

The persistent and new

urban element
The physical-spatial
pattern changes,
streetline and riverline

Superimposed the maps

Stage
4
The new/
remaining/
disappeared
urban elements or
setting

Identity with the Place

People's appreciation
in the past (1890-1930)

People appreciation in
the present (19902000s)

Old
paintings
/ photos

Interview

Archival
studies

Questionnaire

Stage
RO#3
3
The
interdependency
between the urban
morphology and
identity
Place Identity
The current bonding
between people and
riverside area
Interview

Questionnaire

The forgotten and memorized

elements
Social
Character
Physical
Character

IDENTITY OF RIVER
CITY

High vs. low

appreciation
towards place

Examiner Comment
on Literature Review
By Tracey Skelton on Nor Fadzilas thesis,
AFFORDANCE OF SCHOOL GROUNDS FOR
CHILDRENS OUTDOOR PLAY AND
ENVIORNMENTAL LEARNING (2014)
The literature review, which is largely located in Chapter 2, is
extremely comprehensive and clearly written. An extremely good
range of literature is examined and the candidate displays clear
knowledge of, and the competence toengage with, the scholarly
debates that are relevant to her field of study. She draws upon wellestablished and influential literature and also recent work to very good
effect. The literature review is structured clearly and logically.
I was also hoping to read more critical discussion about the conceptual
and material problems around the ideas of affordances is all the
existing literature accurate and useful? What are the candidates own
critical perspectives on the literature?

Content of Thesis
Chapter 3: Research Methodology

It explains the research approach or design on how to elicit

data as well as what tools are used to analyze the data
leading to results.
It also explain what type is your research either
exploratory, explanatory, experimental, descriptive or
narrative.
In addition, it describes the general approach of your
investigation either positivism, pragmatism or
constructivism.
It elaborates the meaning of parameters as well as
interrelationship of parameters.
It describes the background of your study site or setting or
context.
Lastly, the justify the validity and reliability of your
methods.
It should be written in simple past tense.

Affordances of School
Grounds
for Childrens Outdoor Play
and Environmental Learning
Nor Fadzila Aziz (PB103013)
PhD Candidate
Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr Ismail Said
Faculty of Built Environment
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
1 October 2014

Research Methodology
Research Design
Exploratory
research

Measurement Strategies

Transactional approach
in a phenomenology
study

STRATEGY
a)

Mixed methods design

(Concurrent nested strategy)
Qualitative
(Predominant method)

Quantitative
(Embedded method)

Children
(Stratified purposeful
sampling)

Teachers
(Simple random
sampling)

Data analysis and

triangulation

Findings

RESPONDE
NT

Walkabout
interview
and
mapping

b)

OBJECTIV
E
RO#1

RO#2
Photography
and
discussion

Children
(n=80)

c)

Drawing

RO#4

d)

Preference
survey

RO#3

e)

Survey
questionnair

Teachers
(n=71)

RO#3
RO#4

Interrelationship between
Variables
PLANNING AND DESIGN OF SCHOOL
GROUNDS

UP

potential site for

Conception of ideal
school grounds

School Grounds
Environment
perceived
affordances

offered
affordances

D
2

Childrens
Outdoor Play

Environmental
Learning
Perception and
attitude towards

offered
affordances

D
1

Actualisation
of Affordances
D
3

Preferences

Childrens
interactions

Childrens
emotions

Childrens
needs

BOTTOM
CHILDRENS BEHAVIOURAL AND PERCEPTUAL

Research Objectives
RO #1
Affordances of
school grounds

Outdoor play
activities
The use of school
grounds
environment
Play behaviour
patterns &
childrens
performances

RO #3

RO #4

Environmental
learning in school
grounds

Ideal school grounds

for environmental
learning

RO #2
Factors that
influence level of
affordances

Perceptions &
attitudes

Place
preferences

The potentials &

barriers of school
grounds for
environmental
learning

Childrens
affection &
evaluation towards
the environment
Properties &
attributes of
school grounds

Beliefs,
preferences &
needs
Childrens
preference
survey
(n=80)

Childrens
Childrens
walkabout
photography &
interview &
discussion
mapping
(n=80)
(n=80)
Descriptive statistics (Univariate)
Spatial analysis (Hotspots)
Content analysis (Interpretative)

Descriptive
statistics

Needs &
preferences

Meaning and
understanding on
the potential
affordances of
school grounds

Features, design
patterns & aspects
considered
Teachers
Childrens
survey
drawing
questionnair
e
(n=80)
(n=71)
Descriptive
Descriptive
statistics
statistics
RASCH Model
Content
analysis

TRIANGULATION

Person-environment
relationship
(ACTUAL environment)

Physical
& social
factors

Perceptual & conception

(IDEAL environment)

Theoretical & design implication in enhancing school grounds potentials

Examiner Comment
on Research Methodology
By Tracey Skelton on Nor Fadzilas thesis, AFFORDANCE OF SCHOOL
GROUNDS FOR CHILDRENS OUTDOOR PLAY AND ENVIORNMENTAL
LEARNING (2014)
This is a really strong chapter in the thesis and the range of methods
utilised for the research is explained very well and in good depth. There is
also valuable use of methodological scholarships and discussion and
strong argument put forward for the mixed-method approach. There are a
few things that I think will strengthen the chapter and form part of the
minor amendments.
The methodology chapter provides a very clear descriptive introduction
but how does this chapter link with the aims of the thesis and the research
questions of the thesis? There needs to be more critical discussion of the
purpose of thischapter to answer the complexities of the research project.
This material is there a little later on but the early part of the chapter
needs to be restructured. I would move paragraph 2 on page 86 up into
the introduction as it provides a good description of the methods and so
would better better in the introduction as part of showing why and how the
research was done in the way it was.

Content of Thesis
Chapter 4: Results and Discussion

Here lies the novelty of your research. Your data has

been churned into tables and figures, your results.
Figures could be maps, illustrations, charts and
graphs.
Being critical means your interpret the results
rigorously relative to your research objectives,
research hypothesis or research questions. Answering
all of them means your thesis is complete.
If you found that one of your objectives was not
clearly answered, you can revise it in Chapter 1 or you
can even drop the objective when you clearly
understood that you have reached your research aim.

Content of Thesis
Chapter 4: Results and Discussion

Situate your findings with those from your

literature review either affirm, modify or reject.
Hence, there should be many citations chapter.
Avoid playing safe in your discussion that is
discussing your findings all in consistent with
those in the review. You can argue why your
finding is in contrast with the findings of previous
studies. It means that you either modify the
current status of research subject or you create a
new theory. This is the novelty of your research,
new knowledge.
It should be written in simple past tense.

Examiner Comment
on Results and Discussion

By Tracey Skelton on Nor Fadzilas thesis, AFFORDANCE OF

SCHOOL GROUNDS FOR CHILDRENS OUTDOOR PLAY AND
ENVIORNMENTAL LEARNING (2014)
The chapter is extremely thorough and takes the reader through
all the methods and findings step by step. In some places I think
sections could be combined and more connected discussion be
provided that provides a more analytical rather than a largely
descriptive narrative.
I found the most interesting part of this chapter related to the
ideal school grounds that the children invented. Their diagrams
were intriguing and the presence of water bodies in all of them
particularly notable. I enjoyed the discussion on this too.

Content of Thesis
Chapter 5: Conclusions and
Implications
Here lies the contribution
of your research, the
milestones that you have generated and has
clearly extend the boundary of the current status
quo of your research subject. This demonstrates
that you are a scholar in the field of study.
Conclusion is constructed from the triangulation of
findings answering your research objectives. It is a
generalization of findings that benefits humanity.
Implication is your idea consists of constructive
steps that your findings benefiting stakeholders,
organization, government or peoples community.
It should be written in simple present tense.

Conclusion & Theoretical

Implications
1. P-E fit
3. Environmental
preferences
2. Affordances

The Model of Child-Environment Transactional Process

PLACE MAKING AND

MEANING OF PADANG AS A
PUBLIC PLACE IN HISTORIC
CITIES OF MALAYSIA
Nor Zalina Harun (PB073042)
PhD Candidate, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

Theoretical Implication
Denotative meaning

Connotative meaning

Abstract meaning

Distinctiveness

Valuation

Symbolical /
analogical

Place
belongingness
Place identity

Place rootedness
Place identity

Diversity

Place familiarity
Place
dependence

Cognitive attachment

Affective attachment

Symbolic attachment

Examiner Comment
on Conclusion and Implication

By Tracey Skelton on Nor Fadzilas thesis, AFFORDANCE OF

SCHOOL GROUNDS FOR CHILDRENS OUTDOOR PLAY AND
ENVIORNMENTAL LEARNING (2014)
A key strength of this thesis is the amount of data and the systematic
analysis of that data. There is a wealth of materialprovided and
discussed. This is particularly impressive given that the research could
only be carried out in a two-day period in both schools. This is a
testament to the mixed-methods approach that garnered a lot of
information in a short space of time. The thesis is one of the best written
and error-free pieces of work I have examined in quite a while given the
candidate is writing in her second language this makes it all the more
impressive. The structure and logic of the thesis is very strong and makes
for an engaging read. I could almost feel the energy of the children as
they talked about and engaged in their different types of play. There is a
good engagement with the academic literature throughout the thesis and
the candidate demonstrates a good knowledge of the debates although
I think a more critical take on the work would have really strengthened
the thesis. The thesis provides insights which will be valuable for policy
making and planning.

Read Novels
The Uncharted Path: The Autobiography of Lee Myung-Bak

What is a life well lived?

Question and Answer Session