Lecture 1 academic writing in english final

Academic Writing

-Lecturer: dr P.H. Dol

Practicalities I

- We start at 11.15

- Break from 12.00 – 12.15

Structure of this lecture

• Introduction to the course Academic Writing

• Introduction of the coursebook• Discussion of Introduction and Chapter

1• Introduction of the Blackboard-site

Course OutlineAssessment of your essayToolbox

Aims of this Lecture

• Structure of the course

• What is expected of you

• Overview of content

About the course

• 3 ECTS

• 4 plenary lectures, in weeks 5-8 (on 8,15, 29 October and 5 November)

• 8 tutorials in small groups, in weeks 5-12

Course aims• Write academic texts.• Use correct reference, grammar and style.• Use dictionaries and thesauruses (with the

help of an electronic toolbox in Blackboard).• Use correct collocations, punctuation and

register. • Write well-structured paragraphs.• Write well-structured introductions,

discussions and conclusions.• Express yourself in a cohesive, coherent

and logical manner (signposting).• Be aware of the dangers of plagiarism and

will do some thorough training to avoid this issue.

Lectures

- Ratio: To go over basic principles of Academic Writing, which all students have to be familiar with at the end of the course

Tutorials- Homework: to be completed BEFORE

the tutorial!

- Where do I find the homework?

Blackboard

Assignment

1 paper, 2 courses

Link between Introduction to the Areas and Academic English

Deadlines

• Introduction to Area Studies: 23 November, at 15.59, upload via Safe Assign.

• Academic Writing: three paragraphs in week of 5 November (not mandatory, but highly recommendable).

• 17 December at 15.59, one hard copy in a box provided (we will tell you where).

Language criteria examples- Vocabulary range- Accuracy- Coherence- Argument- Orthographic control

Marking• Either pass of fail

• Pass: a CEFR level of B2.2 (B2+) or higher

• If insufficient: resit in June

Style sheetStyle Sheet posted on Blackboard:• Font• Line spacing• Style of referencing (MLA)• Name, student number, number of

words, name of tutor

Introduction

Academic writing in English. A process-based approach

Academic Language Centre

Course Book

- Academic writing in English. A process-based approach, Janene van Loon, Arnoud Thüss, Nicole Schmidt and Kevin Haines, Coutinho. ISBN 978 90 469 0256 I

Audience: who do you write for?- Normally: scholars in your field- In this course: your peers and your

tutor- The tutorials provide you with an

audience for your writing so it is absolutely essential that you do the writing tasks before you come to class

- You need to give feedback to other students’ writing, and be open to feedback from others


Advantages of peer review:- Learners often find it easier to notice

flaws in other people’s writing than in their own

- Reading and analysing somebody else’s text will increase your own critical thinking skills

- Peer review increases your awareness of different aspects of your own writing


5 steps to effective peer feedback:1. First draft (homework task)2. Give feedback on each other’s

writing, and discuss3. Revise your draft4. Rate the helpfulness of the

feedback you were given5. Give feedback on revised draft


Chapter 1Introduction to Academic Writing


Academic Writing is a complex task:As a student you need to learn two processes simultaneously:1.Writing is a process of drafting, writing, and revising2.Academic writing requires the use of a formal register.


Two Models for Writing:1. Writing as a linear process of pre-

writing, drafting, revising, fine-tuning, editing and post-writing

2. Writing as a recursive process of exploring, structuring, polishing and publishing, incubating and unloading

Do task 4b, p. 25


Organisation of an academic paper:- Introduction, with a thesis

statement, problem statement, research question or hypothesis

- Main body, with arguments arranged in a logical order

- Conclusion, which addresses the statement presented in the introduction

- Do task 7, p. 29


Purpose and audience in Academic Writing (1):- Expository essay: aims to explain a

(new) body of knowledge to the reader, using facts and statistics in a logical order, with examples

Do task 10, p. 31

- Argumentative essay: has a debatable topic, presents arguments for and against, takes a clear position

Do task 14, p. 37


Purpose and audience in Academic Writing (2):- Scientific article: describes the

results of the writer’s own research, critically reviews someone else’s research, or develops new theories on the basis of other people’s research.

- Its organisation is based on the IMRD model: Introduction, Methodology, Research and Discussion


Avoiding plagiarismDefinition:

Plagiarism is a form of intellectual dishonesty or theft. When a person plagiarises he or she “steals” someone else’s words or ideas by passing them off as their own.


That was plagiarism!The sentence on the previous slide

was found in someone else’s text and not acknowledged as such. It was taken from:www.services.unimelb.edu.au/llsu


Purpose and audience in Academic Writing (3):- Investigative Business Reports

present information and recommendation in report format (using headings).


Characteristics of informal writing- Short, simple sentences- Phrasal verbs (to carry out),

colloquial and slang expressions- Simple linking words (and, or, so,

but)- Informal punctuation: !, ?, - Contractions used (it’s, doesn’t)- Active voice (people say)- Personal tone, use of 1st person (I

think)


Characteristics of informal writing- May not be clearly or logically

organised (Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention)

- Use of abbreviations (asap, fyi, etc.)


Characteristics of formal writing- Long, complex sentences (use relative

clauses, embedded sentences, inversion)

- One-word verbs of Greek or Latin origin (to conduct)

- More sophisticated use of linking words and phrases (in addition to, alternatively, as a result, however, etc.)

- Formal punctuation (e.g. including semi-colons)


Characteristics of formal writing- Full forms (does not, it is, etc.)- Passive voice (it is said)- Impersonal tone (in my opinion)- Clear organisation sign-posted by

linking words; rephrasing of vocabulary items (use of synonyms / antonyms); clear referencing (this phenomenon, one of the reasons)

- Words written out in full (as soon as possible, for your information)


British or American English?The need to be consistentBritish English:- Differences in

vocabulary (autumn, curriculum vitae)

- Differences is spelling (programme, centre, colour, realise, etc.)

American English:- fall, resumé

- Program, center, color, realize


Resources supporting academic vocabulary- www.academicvocabularyexercises.c

om- Academic Word List (AWL)- Lextutor- Phrasebankcf. p. 228Apps:Advanced Learners’ Dictionary (Audio) Chambers’ Thesaurus


The Blackboard siteThe Blackboard site:

[1213]Academic English for International Studies (Writing) 5181VACEN2-1213FGW

Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR)

- http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/linguistic/cadre_en.asp

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