Academic Writing:
Lecture and
Workshop
Anna Borgström
[email protected]
The Language Workshop
Table of Contents
• Audience, Genre, and Style
• Structure and Coherence
• Paragraphing and topic sentences
• Concise Language
• Dealing with Sources
• Language Advice Interspersed
• Resources
Consider Your Audience:
Different Genres
Who are you writing for?
What are the needs and expectations
of your audience?
Different venues of publications call for
different things
Consider Your Audience:
Different Genres
Read the two different texts about the
Mediterranean diet
Where do you think they were
published?
How are they different?
Charateristics of Academic
Writing: Clear Structure
Introduction
Main Body
Conclusion
Charateristics of Academic
Writing: Clear Structure
Introductions should:
• Catch the reader’s interest (audience)
• Provide sufficient background (audience)
• Clearly state the aim of the text
• Most importantly, the introduction needs to
be clearly linked to the main body of the text
– revise whenever needed
Charateristics of Academic
Writing: Clear Structure
Structure is crucial in:
• the entire text
• each section
• each paragraph
Writing for an Audience:
Signal your structure
Levels in a Text
Title
Subheading
Text = paragraphs
Subheadings = roadmap
The title/subheading should
reflect the content of the
text/section.
The Paragraph
Each paragraph should deal with one
topic
Each paragraph should have a specific
purpose
The paragraph =
a topic sentence + supporting
sentences
The topic sentence
• Is often the first sentence of the paragraph
• Captures the essence of the paragraph –
helps your reader navigate the paragraph
• All the other sentences of the paragraph
should relate to the topic sentence
The topic sentence, example
(without topic sentence)
In Yu et al.’s study, 76 % of the participants
stated that daily exercise relieved their pain.
In Smith et al., 84 % of the participants
reported this effect. In Hoes et al., no
connection was found.
The topic sentence, example
(with descriptive topic sentence)
Several studies have focused on the correlation
between exercise and pain relief. In Yu et
al.’s study, 76 % of the participants stated
that daily exercise relieved their pain. In
Smith et al., 84 % of the participants reported
this effect. In Hoes et al., no connection was
found.
The topic sentence, example
(with analytical topic sentence)
The correlation between exercise and pain
relief remains unclear. In Yu et al.’s study, 76
% of the participants stated that daily exercise
relieved their pain. In Smith et al., 84 % of the
participants reported this effect. In Hoes et
al., no connection was found.
The Paragraph:
Unity
The correlation between exercise and pain
relief remains unclear. In Yu et al.’s study, 76
% of the participants stated that daily exercise
relieved their pain. In Smith et al., 84 % of the
participants reported this effect. Smith et al.
have also investigated the link between
exercise and food habits extensively. No
connection between exercise and pain relief
was found in Hoes et al.
The Paragraph:
Unity
The correlation between exercise and pain
relief remains unclear. In Yu et al.’s study, 76
% of the participants stated that daily exercise
relieved their pain. In Smith et al., 84 % of the
participants reported this effect. Smith et al.
have also investigated the link between
exercise and food habits extensively. No
connection between exercise and pain relief
was found in Hoes et al.
Writing for an Audience
Exercise: topic sentences
How could the short paragraphs be made clearer using
topic sentences?
Signposting:
Tying Your Text Together
Tell Your Reader How to Read Your Text
Make Your Structure Visible:
The following section will discuss
three aspects of….
There are two reasons why … First of
all … Secondly, …
Writing for an Audience
Tell your reader how to read your text:
Tie your text together:
Use transition words:
In addition, …
Similarly, …
However, …
By contrast, …
Giving your reader a “map”:
tie your text together:
Note! Transition words help you highlight
connections that you have established.
Transition words alone cannot create a
convincing relationship…
… but they may confuse your reader.
My leg hurts
so
I went to the doctor
My leg hurts
but
I went to the doctor
My leg hurts
ever since
I went to the doctor
The topic sentence, example
(without transition words)
The correlation between exercise and pain
relief remains unclear. In Yu et al.’s study, 76
% of the participants stated that daily exercise
relieved their pain. In Smith et al., 84 % of the
participants reported this effect. In Hoes et
al., no connection was found.
The topic sentence, example
(with transition words)
The correlation between exercise and pain
relief remains unclear. In Yu et al.’s study, 76
% of the participants stated that daily exercise
relieved their pain. In Smith et al., 84 % of the
participants reported a similar effect.
However, no connection was found in Hoes
et al.
Writing for an Audience
The ambition is that the child should be reunited with her
parents as soon as possible, having taken the child’s wellbeing into consideration. The child should not be in
authority care longer than necessary. It is important that the
child and her parents have close contact during the time in
care. The social services may not circumscribe the parentchild relationship without strong reasons for doing so.
Writing for an Audience
The ambition is that the child should be reunited with her
parents as soon as possible, having taken the child’s wellbeing into consideration. For that reason, the child should
not be in authority care longer than necessary. It is also
important that the child and her parents have close contact
during the time in care. In other words, the social services
may not circumscribe the parent-child relationship without
strong reasons for doing so.
Adapted from Klarspråkstestet, Språkrådet, www.sprakradet.se/testet/
Long list of transition words:
http://www.smart-words.org/transition-words.html
Writing for an Audience
Exercise: coherence
Topic sentences and transition words:
How could the short paragraphs be made clearer? Could
topic sentences help clarify and structure the information?
Could transition words help?
Writing for an Audience:
Creating Coherence
Remember to begin with what is already known to your
reader – then introduce new information.
Compare:
I have a dog. My dog’s name is Sue.
I have a dog. Sue is my dog’s name.
Writing for an Audience:
Creating Coherence
* Formulate topic sentences
* Use transition words
* Repeat key words
* Use pronouns
* Begin with what is already known to your reader – then
introduce new information
Writing for an Audience:
Avoid Vague References
Charlie e-mailed Emma yesterday to explain why he had
not shown up for work the day before. This made Emma
angry.
Why is Emma angry?
Writing for an Audience:
Avoid Vague References
Charlie’s unexplained absence from work made Emma
angry.
Charlie’s late e-mail made Emma angry.
Because Charlie e-mailed Emma yesterday to explain why
he had now shown up for a meeting the day before, Emma
became angry.
Writing for an Audience:
Avoid Incomplete Sentences
Avoid sentence fragments.
Which was why the experiment failed.
The low number of participants was the reason the
experiment failed.
Writing for an Audience:
Avoid Incomplete Sentences
The room was very messy. Toys of all kinds thrown
everywhere.
The room was very messy. Toys of all kinds were thrown
everywhere.
Language Focus: Parallelism
• The principle of parallel construction requires
that expressions of similar content and function
should be outwardly similar
• The likeness of form enables the reader to
recognize more readily the likeness of content
and function
Source: http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/CommonErrors.html
Language Focus: Parallelism
• The candidate's goals include winning the
election, a national health program, and the
educational system.
• The candidate's goals include winning the
election, enacting a national health program,
and improving the educational system.
Source: http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/CommonErrors.html
Language Focus: Parallelism
My hypothesis was that rat number 9 would
dominate, be inclined to a high level of activity, and
always get into fights
My hypothesis was that rat number 9 would be
dominant, highly active, and combative
Source: Walvoord, Barbara E. Fassler. Helping Students Write Well: A Guide for
Teachers in All Disciplines.
Concise Language
My dog is named Sue. She is four years old.
Sue has four puppies.
My four-year-old dog Sue has four puppies.
Concise Language
We were surrounded on all sides by
enemies.
We were surrounded by enemies.
Concise Language
Experiments revealed the presence of toxins in the
drinking water.
Experiments revealed toxins in the drinking
water.
Using Secondary Sources
“think of your project not as solitary work
but as a conversation with sources whose
work you read and with those who will in
turn read your work”
The Craft of Research, Wayne
Booth et al (7)
Using Secondary Sources: Give
Your Reader a Map to Your Text
Sources need to be integrated into your text
“quotations are orphans: words that have been
taken from their original context and that need to
be integrated into their new textual surroundings”
--Birkenstein/Graff, They Say/I
Say (40)
Using Secondary Sources: Give
Your Reader a Map to Your Text
“Hit- and Run” Quotes
Susan Bordo writes about women and dieting. “Fiji is just
one example. Until television was introduced in 1995, the
islands had no reported cases of eating disorders. In 1998,
three years after the programs from the United States and
Britain began broadcasting there, 62 percent of the girls
surveyed reported dieting.”
Bordo is right. Another point Bordo makes is that …
Using Secondary Sources: Give
Your Reader a Map to Your Text
 Introduce the quote.
 Show how the quote is relevant in your text. That is, integrate
it into your text.
 Explain the quote.
 Never assume that the quote will speak for itself
and that readers will figure out on their own why
you use a particular quote.
Using Secondary Sources: Give
Your Reader a Map to Your Text
The feminist philosopher Susan Bordo deplores the Western
obsession with dieting. Her basic argument is that increasing
numbers of women are being led to see themselves as fat and
in need of a diet. Citing the island of Fiji as an example, Bordo
notes that “[u]ntil television was introduced in 1995, the islands
had no reported cases of eating disorders. In 1998, three years
after the programs from the United States and Britain began
broadcasting there, 62 percent of the girls surveyed reported
dieting” (149-50). Bordo’s point is that the West’s obsession
with dieting is spreading even to remote places across the
globe. Ultimately, Bordo complains, the culture of dieting will
find you, regardless of where you live.
The present study confirms Bordo’s results as it shows
a similar development in China.
Integrating Another Scholar’s
Work: Summary markers
What is the difference between….
• In ”Apples and Health,” Smith shows that
apples are healthy
• In ”Apples and Health,” Smith claims that
apples are healthy
Integrating Another Scholar’s
Work: Summary markers
More examples:
• The author claims
• The author maintains
• The author argues
• The author says
• The author suggests
• The author shows
Sharpen your vocabulary
Using available resources
Dictionaries and Thesauruses
What can they be used for?
Use with caution! Do not use a word or
an expression that you feel uncertain
about. Double check them as much as
you can.
• http://dictionary.reference.com/
(dictionary + thesaurus)
• http://www.merriam-webster.com/
(dictionary + thesaurus)
Phrasebanks
• What are phrasebanks?
• How can they help you?
http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk
Other resources:
The Writing Center at University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill:
writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts
(advice on style and how to edit your writing)
Purdue Online Writing Lab:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/1/
(grammar + advice on writing in general)
Language Focus:
Subject-Verb Agreement
I am
You are
He/she/it is
We are
They are
In English, the verb changes in the third person
singular (for verbs in the present and the present
perfect)
Language Focus:
Subject-Verb Agreement
He/ she/ it/ Claudia/ the study
is
They/ Sam and Lucy/ the researchers
are
Language Focus:
Subject-Verb Agreement
Always consider very carefully which is the main
subject of a clause
• *The sound of all these cars annoy me
• The sound of all these cars annoys me
Language Focus:
The Progressive Form
English has two aspects for verbs: the simple
and progressive form.
I run.
I am running.
Language Focus:
The Progressive Form
The simple form is the ”default” form.
Learners of English as a second language
often overuse the progressive form.
Language Focus:
The Progressive Form
The progressive form is used to stress
something.
It generally emphasizes that something is or
was ongoing at a specific time
”she was writing a letter last night”
Language Focus:
The Progressive Form
The progressive form can also be used to
make a statement and to indicate an attitude
(usually negative):
”he is always whining”
Language Focus:
The Progressive Form
Compare:
She writes crime novels
She is writing a grocery list
Language Focus:
The Progressive Form
The progressive form states that an action
takes place before and after a certain time
Compare:
When I arrived, they were leaving
When I arrived, they left
Language Focus:
Word Order (Adverbials)
• In English, avoid putting heavy adverbials
(more than one word) in the middle of a
clause.
• Put them in the beginning or the end
instead.
• Putting the adverbial in the middle of a
clause makes the sentence seem boxy,
wordy, and unnecessarily complex.
Language Focus:
Word Order (Adverbials)
In her study ”The Location of Apples,” Rachel Smith
shows that apples grow on trees.
Rachel Smith shows that apples grow on trees in
her article ”The Location of Apples.”
Rachel Smith, in her article ”The Location of Apples,”
shows that apples grow on trees.
Language Focus:
Punctuation, Adverbials
If a sentence begins with a (long) adverbial, use a
comma before the subject to make the sentence
clearer
• Last year I went to Budapest
• Last year, I went to Budapest (either is fine)
• Each morning before I have my tea I boil an egg
• Each morning before I have my tea, I boil an egg
(the second is clearer)
Language Focus:
Avoid ”dangling modifiers”
• Walking down the street, the sun was shining
Walking down the street, I noticed that the sun was
shining
As I walked down the street, the sun was shining
Language Focus:
Use Spellcheck – But Beware
Spellcheck cannot distinguish between:
• their, there, and they’re
• where and were
And not between:
• who’s and whose?
• it’s and its
In formal texts: avoid contractions such as I’m, they’re and it’s
(write I am, they are, and it is instead)
Language Focus:
Sharpening your vocabulary
Use stronger verbs! English often has two (or
more) ways to express what happens
Phrasal verbs (verb + particle) or prepositional
verbs (verb + preposition)
and
Latinate verbs
Language Focus:
Sharpening your vocabulary
According to some biologists, coming up with
clear proof of the decreasing number of frogs
has been difficult.
According to some biologists, offering clear
proof of the decreasing number of frogs has
been difficult.
Language Focus:
Sharpening your vocabulary
We came up with a method which allows
us to…
We invented/constructed a method which
allows us to…
Language Focus:
Hedging
Hedging:
* Is “cautious language”
* Is a mechanism for managing the tone,
attitude, and information in your text
Language Focus:
Hedging
”X is the best option”
”X may be an effective option”
”The present study proves that …”
”The present study indicates that …”
Language Focus:
Hedging
”Children who do not have parental support
will always do poorly in school ”
”Children without parental support
may not do as well as those whose
parents are actively involved in their
eduction”
Source: http://www.uhv.edu/ac/graduatewriting/pdf/artofhedging.pdf
Language Focus:
Hedging
Hedging can be a way to:
•Acknowledge the limitations of your work (which
makes it less sensitive to criticism)
•Avoid appearing biased or too opinionated
•Soften a potentially controversial claim
Language Focus:
Hedging
But remember:
• be careful – if you use too much
hedging, you may sound insecure
or ambiguous
• Hedging is used in different ways in
different fields and different
contexts – be observant
Finally:
Always consider the structure of your text
– and make it visible
Keep your writing as clear, precise and
concise as you can
The KISS rule:
Keep It Simple (Stupid)
Keep It Simple and Straightforward
Keep It Simple and Short