Kayfa Taktub Bahthan aw Risala: Dirasa Manhajiyya li Kitabat al-Buhuth wa I'dad Rasa'il al-Majستير wa al-Dukturah
- Author died
- 1421 AH
- Editions
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Kayfa Taktub Bahthan aw Risala: Dirasa Manhajiyya li Kitabat al-Buhuth wa I'dad Rasa'il al-Majistir wa al-Duktura ("How to Write a Research Paper or Thesis: A Methodological Study on Writing Research and Preparing Master's and Doctoral Dissertations") is an academic research methodology manual by Ahmad Shalabi (d. 1421 AH / 2000 CE), first published in 1952 CE.
Background and Purpose
Shalabi conceived and wrote the work after returning from England in the summer of 1951 CE, where he had completed his doctorate at the University of Cambridge and assumed a teaching position at Cairo University. Upon engaging with undergraduate and postgraduate students preparing master's and doctoral theses, he observed that many lacked guidance on systematic academic methodology. Finding no single Arabic-language work at the time summarizing established modern research rules and conventions, and noting that academic methodology was either neglected or insufficiently taught across university faculties, he authored the manual to outline the full trajectory of thesis preparation from inception to completion.
Structure and Contents
The book is structured into an introduction, six main parts (abwab), three appendices, and a bibliography of foreign reference sources:
- Part One: The Thesis and Elements of Its Success (al-Risala wa 'Anasir Najahiha): Explores the nature and definition of an academic thesis, the core pillars of successful research, distinctions between master's and doctoral theses, and the researcher's talent and scholarly character.
- Part Two: Pre-Writing Problems (Mushkilat ma Qabl al-Kitaba): Discusses academic supervision, selecting and altering research topics, preliminary outlines, compiling and categorizing primary and secondary sources, preparing index cards, methods of taking notes and citations, reading strategies (rapid, normal, and deep reading), scientific experiments, scholarly correspondence, organizing collected materials, and modifying the research plan.
- Part Three: Writing the Thesis (Kitabat al-Risala): Examines grammatical and stylistic standards, vocabulary, sentence structure, voice and pronouns, paragraphing, direct quotation, structural subdivision, academic titles, abbreviations, punctuation and vocalization, footnoting, numbers in the body of the text, tables, graphs, illustrations, font sizes, and overall thesis length.
- Part Four: Structure and Presentation of the Thesis (Hay'at al-Risala): Addresses the title page, acknowledgments, tables of contents, introduction, findings and recommendations, documentary appendices, bibliography and classification of references, and post-writing revisions, such as cutting digressions and applying final polish.
- Part Five: Typewriting and Binding (Kitabat al-Risala bi-l-Ala al-Katiba wa Tajliduha): Details practical aspects of production, including dealing with typists, number of copies, paper and carbon paper, duplication, margins, pagination, and binding.
- Part Six: The Defense and the Examination Result (al-Munaqasha wa al-Natija): Covers preparing a thesis summary, scheduling the viva, topics and procedures of the defense, the examination panel, and grading outcomes.
The book concludes with three supplementary appendices addressing punctuation marks, manuscript editing (tahqiq al-makhtutat), and fundamental Arabic grammar and spelling rules, followed by a list of English-language reference works drawn upon by the author.
Publication and Reception
First published in 1952 CE, the book became widely circulated and went through numerous editions, reaching its twenty-fourth edition by 1997 CE. Shalabi noted that he introduced substantial revisions and enhancements to the text in its eighteenth edition. Later scholars of writing and research methodology, such as Muhammad Salih al-Shanti, listed the work as one of the significant titles in Arabic research methodology literature, while noting that several of its later reprints appeared without major additions beyond its original formulation.
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