1. Academic writing Final review

2. Academic English The English used in academic, professional and technical contexts that is characterized by its high level and often discipline-specific vocabulary and rhetorical styles. -Mary Schleppegrell -The Language of Schooling

3. Differences Between Academic and Personal Writing Personal WritingAcademic Writing Tells personal experienceComments, evaluates, analyses Non-technical vocabularySubject-specific vocabulary ‘I’ at the centre‘I’ as observer and commentator Information comes from the writer’s experience Information comes from sources and references Personal views and feelingsEvidence and arguments Free form of writingFollow conventions for citations

4. Types of Academic Writing  Essays  Laboratory reports  Research proposals  Personal statements  Presentations  Reflective journals

5. Characteristics of academic writing  Clarity  Objective Impersonal, usually formal  Unity Focus on one topic only  Coherence Achieved by consistent use of terms

6. Approaching Academic Writing Who are you writing for? What are you trying to say? How are you going to say it effectively?

7. What do writing skills involve? Use correct spelling Punctuate for meaning Consider the content Use the Appropriate tone Plan and arrange ideas in a logical order Consider your Audience Consider the Purpose of your writing Ensure your Handwriting Is legible Proof-read and Edit your writing Writing Skills

8. Purposes of Academic Writing  Advance knowledge in a particular field  Replication  Rational inquiry  Ways to verify scholars’ claims  Scientific method (techniques for investigating phenomena)  Develop, test theories on how the world works

9. “Journal editors, overloaded with quality manuscripts, may make decisions on manuscripts based on formal criteria, like grammar or spelling. Don't get rejected for avoidable mistakes; make sure your manuscript looks perfect” Thus, both the science and the language need to be sound Arnout Jacobs, Elsevier Publishing

10. Concise Academic Writing for Science Subjects 3 C Principles ClearCorrect

12. Structure

13. Typical paragraph Topic sentence Supporting sentences Concluding sentence

14. Sample paragraph The business venture ultimately failed for three main reasons: The managers were inexperienced, the marketing strategy was flawed and the financial planning was weak. Management inexperience was the most significant reason for this failure. None of the managers had run business previously or even studied business. The managers had a corresponding lack of marketing experience and produced an incoherent and Inadequate marketing mix. Pricing and promotions were particularly problematic. Finally, lack of strategic financial planning and control led to enormous waste and over- expenditure. With these three central problems, there was clearly no possibility for business success.

15. Sample paragraph The business venture ultimately failed for three main reasons: 1. The managers were inexperienced, 2. the marketing strategy was flawed and 3. the financial planning was weak. Management inexperience was the most significant reason for this failure. None of the managers had run business previously or even studied business. The managers had a corresponding lack of marketing experience and produced an incoherent and Inadequate marketing mix. Pricing and promotions were particularly problematic. Finally, lack of strategic financial planning and control led to enormous waste and over- expenditure. With these three central problems, there was clearly no possibility for business success.

16. Sample paragraph The business venture ultimately failed for three main reasons: The managers were inexperienced, the marketing strategy was flawed and the financial planning was weak. 1. Management inexperience was the most significant reason for this failure. None of the managers had run business previously or even studied business. 2. The managers had a corresponding lack of marketing experience and produced an incoherent and Inadequate marketing mix. Pricing and promotions were particularly problematic. 3. Finally, lack of strategic financial planning and control led to enormous waste and over- expenditure. With these three central problems, there was clearly no possibility for business success.

17. Sample paragraph The business venture ultimately failed for three main reasons: The managers were inexperienced, the marketing strategy was flawed and the financial planning was weak. Management inexperience was the most significant reason for this failure. None of the managers had run business previously or even studied business. The managers had a corresponding lack of marketing experience and produced an incoherent and Inadequate marketing mix. Pricing and promotions were particularly problematic. Finally, lack of strategic financial planning and control led to enormous waste and over- expenditure. With these three central problems, there was clearly no possibility for business success.

18. A good introduction should:  Give an overview of the text.  Present the central idea.  Give reasons for writing the text.  Explain how the title will be interpreted.  Justify why the question is answered in a particular way.  Give the background to the main topic of the essay; explain the context.  Present a thematic statement that the rest of the essay will attempt to justify  Include some relevant quotes to interest the reader and set a ‘feel’ for the text.  Present a concrete example that the text will explain and elaborate on it.  Relate the text to other works in the same field.

19. A conclusion should:  Summarise the ‘answers’ to the questions the assignment set out to address.  Refer back to the question posed in the title and show that it has been answered.  Give a sense of an ‘ending’.  Point out what the assignment has and has not answered.  Put forward the writer’s view in the light of the evidence that has been presented.  Point the reader in the direction of a new idea.  But do not introduce new information.

20. Thesis Statement Guess what I am thinking. In order not to play this game, include a direct statement of purpose: –The purpose of this paper is…. –This paper seeks to…. –To that end, this paper will…. Write the purpose sentence first. Garbage in, garbage out. The thesis or purpose statement generally comes somewhere on the first page.

21. Topic Sentences The Topic Sentence may contain language which helps link it to other paragraphs, eg. Firstly, The most important reason, The next step, In addition to… The result of…

22. Topic Sentences The topic sentence may contain language which clearly indicates the structure of the paragraph. eg. …for three main reasons. …in the following respects… There are two methods of… …has two advantage and one disadvantage

23. AP Hamburger Method Body of Your Essay Thesis Conclusion 3 Paragraphs 1) Topic Sentence 2) Facts 3) Facts 4) Facts 5) Analysis/ Transition 1)A Broad Statement on the Topic Question 2)Thesis: The Position you want to PROVE 3)The Organization Statement – 3 Points you want to prove that make up the (ESSAY) BODY 1)Restate your thesis 2)Recap your points 3)Analysis/Conclusion

24. Paraphrasing Original (Gratz, 1982): Bilateral vagotomy resulted in an increase in tidal volume but a depression in respiratory frequency such that total ventilation did not change. Restatement 1: Gratz (1982) showed that bilateral vagotomy resulted in an increase in tidal volume but a depression in respiratory frequency such that total ventilation did not change. Ronald K. Gratz. Using Other’s Words and Ideas. Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University

25. Paraphrasing Original (Buchanan, 1996): What makes intentionally killing a human being a moral wrong for which the killer is to be condemned is that the killer did this morally bad thing not inadvertently or even negligently, but with a conscious purpose – with eyes open and a will directed toward that very object. Restatement 2: Buchanan (1996) states that we condemn a person who intentionally kills a human being because he did a "morally bad thing" not through negligence or accident but with open eyes and a direct will to take that life. Ronald K. Gratz. Using Other’s Words and Ideas. Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University

26. What is academic language? Academic language is: –the language used in the classroom and workplace –the language of text –the language of assessments –the language of academic success –the language of power

27. 3 C Principles ConciseClearCorrect  Phrases >> single words ( 能用單字表示，就不要用片語， )  Clauses >> phrases ( 能用片語表示，就不要用子句， )  Vary sentence structures, but remember: simplicity brings clarity ( 能用簡單句表示，就不要用複合句。 )  If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out. ( 盡量用最少的 單字表示一個句子。 ) >>

28. Characteristics include A formal tone, use of the third-person rather than first-person perspective, clear focus on the issue or topic rather than the author’s opinion, and precise word choice.

29. Language In English academic writing there is great use of linking devices. These can be signposts, connectors, repetition and synonyms… Sentences can have a number of clauses. Passives are widely used, along with a range of verb forms. Vocabulary is formal and often subject specific.

30. Repetition and redundancy Vary the sentences used when writing the abstract or describing findings at the end of the introduction Don’t copy from other sections verbatim! Avoid words with the same meaning In addition, sections were also stained with … After centrifugation, pellets were then…

31. Precise language Avoid make sweeping statements or over- generalisations…. “Everybody has benefited from Information & Communication Technologies.” ….by using narrowly defined language The development of Information and Communication Technologies has been particularly beneficial to people in developed countries and the wealthy in developing countries.”

32. Verb tenses within a paragraph Generally, verb tenses within a paragraph are consistent. Because the writer did not keep verb tenses consistent, the reader was confused. Switching verb tenses often signals communication of a new idea. Such communication will often be facilitated by beginning a new paragraph.

33. Written academic English will not normally contain the followings Contractions –‘it did not’ instead of ‘it didn’t’ or ‘they have’ not ‘they’ve’ Hesitation Fillers –er, um well, you know …

34. parallelism Unbalanced sentences – make sure the clauses either side of “compared with” match up Expression levels of p53 in smokers were compared with non-smokers… Expression levels of p53 in smokers were compared with those in non-smokers…

35. parallelism Incorrect use of respectively – two corresponding lists are required The proportions of various monocyte surface markers were 45%, 63% and 70%, respectively The proportions of monocytes positive for CD163, CD7 and CD11a were 45%, 63% and 70%, respectively

36. uses the third person, except in direct quotations. Use of the first person “I” is traditionally seen as a violation of the quest for objectivity. There are, however, exceptions, e.g., qualitative research reports. In any event, the first person should not be overused. Use of the second person (“you”) is invariably awkward in academic writing.

37. Avoiding too much reference to yourself as agent in your writing Agent or performer I undertook the study … I propose to … In this essay I will examine … No agent / performer The study was undertaken … It is proposed to … This essay examines …

38. Focus on the issue, not the writer Keeping your writing objective and impersonal can make it more convincing. –It will be argued that the benefits of sales promotion outweigh the disadvantages. –I will argue in this essay that...

39. Expressing opinions Personal In my opinion I believe that … In my view … 'Objective ‘ It has been argued that Some writers claim … Clearly, … It is clear that … There is little doubt that …

40. the same subjectHave the same subject in two clauses: e.g. 1. To calculate the temperature, the energy balance equation should be used. --> To calculate the temperature, we should use the energy balance equation. 2. Based on the energy balance, we can calculate the temperature.  Based on the energy balance, the temperature can be calculated.  On the basis of the energy balance, we can calculate the temperature.

41. Fixed expressions Fixed expressions (also called collocations) are another important area of academic language, such as: –peanut butter and jelly (not jelly and peanut butter) –salt and pepper (not pepper and salt) –Mr. and Mrs. (not Mrs. and Mr.)

42. ‘The vocabulary shift’ Need to move from informal to formal writing (academic and business contexts) Choice between verb + preposition or a single verb (single verb is more formal). Example: –The manager looked at the way tension builds up during performance review meetings. (less formal style) –The manager investigated the way tension develops during performance review meetings. (more formal style)

43. Use “Formal + Precise” verbs –Phrasal verbs often have one-word synonyms, which are usually of Latin origin and are more formal than their phrasal verb equivalent. e.g. figure out --> determine go up to --> reach keep up --> maintain

44. Avoid “Verb + Noun” Collocation >> use direct verbs >> Workshop Ex: Task 3 e.g. Make an analysis --> analyze Make a consideration --> consider Perform a simulation -->Simulate Have a discussion about --> discuss Present a claim on --> claim

45. Sample instruction words (helps to analyse the essay question: account for explain (reason) analyse examine closely, examine in parts, show how the parts contribute to the whole argue present a case for and/or against assess decide the value of, judge, measure the importance of compare discuss two or more things in terms of their similarities and differences critically evaluate weigh arguments for and against something, assessing all evidence. Decide which opinions, theories, models or items are preferable. define explain, give full meaning(s), make clear what is meant by, use definition/s to explore the concept of describe give a detailed account of the features of something without interpreting the information discuss present and give a judgement on the value of arguments for and against, consider all angles

46. Analysing the essay question: understand the instructional words distinguish bring out the differences between two possibly confusable items enumerate an item-by-item account, such as all the steps in a process evaluate judge, criticise in terms of impact/significance, and investigate the implications examine make clear the details/meaning of, look in particular at reasons causes and effects, account for, give reasons, justify explore describe in detail, and note impact illustrate use examples to show a concept indicate focus on specific areas (similar to illustrate) interpret make clear the meaning of, consider implications narrate concentrate on saying what happened, telling a story outline describe main features, a broad but thorough account, identify briefly the main features of

47. Correct Verb Tense  Generally accepted theories >> present tense  Specific research papers >> e.g. “describe, present” or “deal with, investigate” >> past tense  Author+ Reference number or date+ verb of report ( past tense)+ that +Findings (Present tense) Curie [1] showed that aluminum in seawater is regulated by a thermodynamic balance.

48. “Tentative” language Written academic English often uses words that sound cautious or tentative. Some of these words are: –Modal verbs (may, might, can, could) –Other verbs like seem, appear, suggest, indicate, assume, believe –Adverbs like perhaps, possibly, apparently –Adjectives like probable, possible, uncertain –Nouns like assumption, claim, evidence, estimate, possibility

49. Choosing between active & passive voice The passive voice: The actor is not really important but the process or principle being described is of ultimate importance. The active voice: The actor is more important than the process or principle being described.

50. The cases using Active Voice  A process description employs verbs that indicate a change of state, such as expand, rise, cool, and form. e.g. Most metals expand and contract with variations in temperature.  Intransitive verbs: stem from, originate (in), become  Research terms, such as “The study”, “The project”, “The report”, “The paper” >> use the active voice. e.g. The paper aims to investigate the effect of X on Y.

51. “Tentative” language Examples: It is also likely to appear in the development of institutions … Perhaps greater clarity can be brought to the meaning of economic development … The ideal of economic development tends to be associated with...

52. Conjunction Words DO use conjunctions in the middle of a sentence to “connect” phrases together. Example: First, Bobby took his little brother to the park, and then Bobby went to the store.

53. In academic English writing, you shouldn’t begin a sentence with a conjunction. I felt sick. But, I had to go to work anyway. (incorrect) I felt sick, but I had to go to work anyway. (correct)

54. Linking words Be careful about the exact meaning and usage of linking words:  Although she tried, but she couldn’t succeed. Although she tried, she couldn’t succeed.  She tried. While she couldn’t succeed. She tried, However, she couldn’t succeed.  The managers lacked financial planning skills. Meanwhile, they lacked experience in this area. The managers lacked financial planning skills. Furthermore, they lacked experience in this area.

55. it, this, that, these, they.Avoid using unclear pronouns: it, this, that, these, they. This/ these + noun >>use “ This/ these + noun” to join ideas together. e.g. According to a recent survey, 26% of all American adults, down from 38% thirty years ago, now smoke. This drop can be partly attributed to the mounting evidence linking smoking and fatal disease such as cancer.

56. Countable or Uncountable Don’t add ‘s’ to uncountable nouns (  informations, knowledges, equipments, etc) Be careful with quantity words and articles:  Many freedom Much freedom  Less people Fewer people  An information Information

57. That and which The book that I want is on the table. The book, which I want, is on the table. The use of “ which” typically requires a comma. The use of “that” does not typically require a comma.

58. Ambiguity Ensure correct use of “which”, commas and hyphens In “Data were normalised to the internal reference housekeeping gene actin, which showed…” The “which” is used incorrectly, referring to actin rather than to the normalisation of data “Data were normalised to the internal reference housekeeping gene actin, revealing that…” is correct

59. how often something happens go before the main verb or after the form of be I always do my homework. I am usually in class on time.

60. end with –ing or –ed come from verbs often describe feelings -ing  describes the cause -ed  describes the person The class is boring. He is bored.

61. Writing Numbers Spell out single-digit whole numbers. Use numerals for numbers greater than nine. Examples: I have five older brothers and two younger sisters. There are a total of 35 students in my class.

62. Graphics The figure and table show the same information, but the table is more direct and clear

63. What gets you accepted? A Attention to details C Check and double check your work C Consider the reviews E English must be as good as possible P Presentation is important T Take your time with revision A Acknowledge those who have helped you N New, original and previously unpublished C Critically evaluate your own manuscript E Ethical rules must be obeyed – Nigel John Cook, Editor-in-Chief, Ore Geology Reviews

64. What is Academic Vocabulary? Academic Vocabulary is a specialized vocabulary of 570 word families that commonly appear in all academic textbooks, regardless of content area

65. Academic Vocabulary Learning In general vocabulary learning, to go from 80% understanding to 86% understanding would require students to learn 2,000 more word families In academic vocabulary learning, to go from 80% understanding to 86% understanding would require students to learn 570 more word families

66. GSL BNC AWL Classic list of the most frequent 2000 words. Very widely used and respected. 100 million word collection of written and spoken English. A new ‘standard’. 570 words which occur frequently in academic texts across disciplines Frequency-based lists/corpora

67. Academic Word List: Subset 1 analyze approach area assess assume authority available benefit concept consist context constitute contract data define derive distribute economy environment establish estimate evident factor finance formula function income indicate individual interpret involve issue labor legal legislate major method percent period principle proceed process policy require research respond role section sector significant similar source specific structure theory vary Academic Word List: Subset 2 achieve acquire administrate affect appropriate aspect assist category chapter commission community complex compute conclude conduct consequent construct consume credit culture design distinct equate element evaluate feature final focus impact injure institute invest item journal maintain normal obtain participate perceive positive potential previous primary purchase range region regulate regulate relevant reside resource restrict secure seek select site strategy survey tradition transfer

68. If students know the most frequent 1,000 words of English, they should be able to understand 72% of the words on the page of a book, newspaper, or magazine

69. If students know the most frequent 2,000 words of English, they should be able to understand 80% of the words on the page of a book, newspaper, or magazine

70. If students know the most frequent 3,000 words of English, they should be able to understand 84% of the words on the page of a book, newspaper, or magazine

71. If students know the most frequent 4,000 words of English, they should be able to understand 86% of the words on the page of a book, newspaper, or magazine

72. In order to understand 95% of the words on a page of a book, newspaper, or magazine, students need to know approximately 12,500 words In order to understand 99% of the words on a page of a book, newspaper, or magazine, students need to know approximately 44,000 words

73. Educated adult native speakers of English know approximately 20,000 word families

74. Caprock Academic Vocabulary Concordance: Grade 10 1. 7. 6. 4. 5. 2. 3. concept Conception of life on other planets is intriguing. begins with the union of two cells. concept to learn, at first. Idealists Conceptually a world of justice and opportunity.conceptualize concept The of the Pythagorean theorem is still used today.. speaking, Einstein’s Theory of Relativity could some day help us time travel. He was unable to grasp theconcept of derivatives in math. Quantum physics can be a difficult The Subset 1

75. Academic Word List: Subset 3 alternative circumstance comment compensate component consent considerable constant constrain contribute convene coordinate core corporate correspond criteria deduce demonstrate document dominate emphasis ensure exclude fund framework illustrate immigrate imply initial instance interact justify layer link locate maximize minor negate outcome philosophy physical proportion publish react register rely remove scheme sequence shift specify sufficient technical technique technology valid volume access adequacy annual apparent approximate attitude attribute civil code commit communicate concentrate confer contrast cycle debate despite dimension domestic emerge error ethnic grant hence hypothesis implement implicate impose integrate internal investigate mechanism occupy output overall parallel parameter phase predict prior principal professional project promote regime resolve retain series statistic status stress subsequent sum summary undertake Academic Word List: Subset 4

76. It’s easier to understand parts of speech than you think. Simply use the cues above. Not all words follow the same morphology. It’s interesting to see how words morph into different forms. Morphology Chart NOUNS: The_____. VERBS: To____ ADJECTIVES: The ______truck ADVERBS Do it___________.

77. PEOPLEACTIONSOBJECT S PLACE From receptive to productive Providing opportunities to combine words

78. If you practice a feature of language incorrectly, you can learn it incorrectly! Practice Makes Permanent! Source: David Howe 2006