Academic Writing

in the Discipline
Academic Writing

-is formal writing used to communicate ideas,

information and research to the academic
community. Journal articles, essays,
dissertation, text books and research papers
are examples of academic writing.
 Academic writing

style of expression
disciplines
Hartley (2008)

formal tone research problem

third-person perspective precise word choice

Characteristics of

Academic Writing
1. Formal and unbiased

• Avoid bias.
• Give considerations to all sides of the
issue.
• Use formal style.
• Avoid using slang, clichés,
contractions and conversational
phrases.
Characteristics of Academic Writing
Informal Formal
a bit similar somewhat similar
not enough insufficient evidence
evidence
didn’t recognize the did not recognize the
needs for… needs for…
strong proof strong evidence
wrong reasons less convincing reasons
 2. Clear and precise
Be specific as possible and avoid vague language.

 The school must also consider the mental health of the youth
during online classes.

 Theschool authorities must take into consideration the effects of

online classes on students’ academic performance and behavior
during online classes.

Characteristics of Academic Writing

3. Focused and well-structured
• Have a clear objective.
• Focus on the arguments and information.
• Use nouns and noun phrases more than
verbs and adverbs.
 The phenomenon was observed by scientists for five years.
 The scientists observed the phenomenon for five years.

Characteristics of Academic Writing

Overall structure  You must always include an introduction and a
conclusion.
 Present information in a logical manner.
Paragraph structure  Start a new paragraph when you move onto a new idea.
 Use a topic sentence at the beginning of each paragraph
to indicate what you are going to discuss or talk about.
 Make clear transitions between paragraphs. Do not just
simply move on to the next idea without introducing it.
 Make sure that every paragraph is relevant to your topic.

Sentence structure  Use transition words to show the connections between

different ideas within and between sentences.
 Punctuate your sentences appropriately to avoid
sentence fragments or run-on sentences.
 Use a variety of sentence structures.
4. Well-sourced
• Use sources to support their claims.
• Apply the skills you learned in Information Literacy.
• Use your critical thinking skills.
• Consider which sources are credible and appropriate to
use in academic writing.
• Acknowledge your sources.

Characteristics of Academic Writing

Professional Writing
-commonly refers broadly to texts written for business purposes.

“Professional writing is all about conveying information in the

workplace. It is different from creative writing like novels, which
are meant to entertain. Professional writing seeks to inform,
persuade, or instruct others in a workplace and business
environment.” (Ducarpe, 2018)
Technical writing refers to documents that often
explain technical processes or explain how to do
something, such as technical descriptions and instructions
and process reports.

Professional and Technical Writing texts share many

similarities with traditional academic writing.
 How is academic writing
different from other forms of
writing?
 Academic Writing Business/Professional Writing Personal Writing

Purpose -to show what the person -to communicate information -to share personal
has learned about a product thought or feelings
-to analyze or critique -to discuss new strategies
another academic work related to business

Audience Very limited, meant for a larger than academic writing Receiver of the letter
specific audience (people in business,
(the professor or other consumers, producers, etc.)
members of the academe)

Style quite formal, without Follows a format Informal but may follow
colloquialisms and a format
contractions

Basis Based on extensive research Based on statistics, research Based on personal

and studies experiences
 Components of
Academic and Professional
Writing
 Context

- refers to the situation where

professional writing is performed;
includes the people involved,
relationship of the people involved,
time, place, and interference.

Components of Academic and Professional Writing

4 Types of Context in Writing (MasterClass, 2021)

• Historical context
• Physical context
• Cultural context
• Situational context
 Message/content

- refers to the content of your

document. It is the subject matter in a
text. For instance, if we take an essay,
all three components, the introduction,
the body and the conclusion can be
taken as the content.

Components of Academic and Professional Writing

 Purpose
A. General
to inform to persuade

B. Specific
reason why you want to inform
and persuade

Components of Academic and Professional Writing

General purpose: to persuade Grade 11
students to save money

Specific purpose: to teach Grade 11 students

how to control spending too much money on
online purchases
 Language

- refers to the channel used to convey

the message; visual or textual, formal
or informal, verbal and non-verbal.

Components of Academic and Professional Writing

 Audience

Taking your audience into account will

affect the content of your writing. For instance,
your teacher has definitely some expectations
which you will have to meet. If you know your
audience, you will have an idea on whether or
not to provide much background information
about your topic.

Components of Academic and Professional Writing

 Product
Academic writing Professional Writing
Academic essay Instructional manuals
Thesis/dissertation Brochure
Library research Business correspondence
Reaction paper Business and technical
Book review reports
Literature review Resume
Research report Cover letters
Project proposal Emails
Position paper

Components of Academic and Professional Writing

General Tips in
Writing
General Tips in Writing Academic Texts

1. Follow the basics in the writing process.

• Be clear with the assignment.

• Analyze the context of writing.
• Have a clear purpose and audience in mind.
• Make your thesis evident.
• Stay focused on your topic.
General Tips in Writing Academic Texts

• Read some academic texts that are similar to

the one you are writing.
• Use sufficient cohesive devices, but do not
overuse them.
• Avoid wordiness and redundancies.
• Use brainstorming strategies to overcome
writer’s block.
• Edit your work. Eliminate all grammatical
and typographical errors.
General Tips in Writing Academic Texts

2. Use quotations sparingly. Paraphrase information.

Do not plagiarize.

3. Avoid using an imperative tone.

 Remember the objectives presented in this introduction, as

these are instrumental to the analysis of the results.

 The objectives presented in this introduction are

instrumental to the analysis of the results.
General Tips in Writing Academic Texts

4. Avoid excessive font effects such as boldface, underlines,

and italics.
5. Be consistent with the type of English you use. In the
Philippines, we use the Standard American English.
6. Plan wisely. Allot ample time in preparing your writing
assignment.
General Tips in Writing Professional Texts

1. Follow the basics in the writing process.

• Be clear with your purpose and target
reader.
• Consider the context of writing the
document.
• Use cohesive devices in organizing your
ideas.
General Tips in Writing Professional Texts

• Be direct to the point and avoid unnecessary

details.
• Be objective and factual.
• Use brainstorming strategies to overcome
writer’s block.
• Edit your work. Eliminate all grammatical
and typographical errors.
General Tips in Writing Professional Texts

2. Anticipate the readers’ beliefs, values, motivations, and

possible objections.

3. Adjust your language based on your relationship with the

receiver of the document.

4. Study the format used by your organization.

General Tips in Writing Professional Texts

5. Avoid excessive font effects such as boldface, underlines,

and italics.

6. Be consistent with the type of English you use.

Academic Writing in the
Discipline
 A. Book Review or Article Critique
-a specialized form of academic writing in
which a reviewer evaluates the contribution to
knowledge of scholarly works such as academic
books and journal articles.
-may consist of 250 to 750 words but is not a
summary.
A. Book Review or Article Critique

-different from a movie review that you see in

newspapers
-a critical assessment, analysis or evaluation
of a work.

-involves skills in critical thinking and

recognizing arguments.
A. Book Review or Article Critique

-addresses a more specific audience.

-offers a critical response to a published scholarly
work.
-uses proof and logical reasoning to substantiate
or prove opinions.
-processes ideas and theories, revisits and
extends ideas in a specific field of study, and
presents analytical responses.
Book reviews must not be
mistaken for book reports which
are focused on describing the plot,
characters, or idea of a certain
work
The main purposes of writing an Article Critique
 Describe the main ideas and what the author wants to
express

 Analyze each important and interesting point and develop an

explanation of the article

 Interpret the author’s intention

 Summarize and evaluate the value of an article,
stating whether you agree or disagree with the
author, with supporting evidence.
- provides an overview
B. Literature Review of a specific topic.
- an advanced form of academic writing
- critically analyzes the relationship among different
scholarly works and the current work
- can be written as a stand-alone paper or as part of a
research paper explaining a theoretical framework and
related studies.
- tests your ability to evaluate studies for their validity
and reliability.
- surveysB.scholarly work such as:
Literature Review
• academic books (but not textbooks),
• computerized databases,
• conference proceedings,
• dissertations/theses
• empirical studies
• government reports,
• historical records,
• journal articles,
• monographs,
• statistical handbooks
Functions of a literature review
• Justifies a research question, method, or theoretical
and conceptual framework

• Establishes the relevance of a topic

• Provides necessary information to better understand

a specific topic or study
Functions of a literature review
• Shows reviewers familiarity and mastery of the topic

• Establishes the niche of the study

Your research niche is a specialized corner of your scientific field where you have
potential to conduct research and create important, new knowledge for a significant
period of time, e.g., a decade.

• Resolves conflict among contradictory studies

 Structure of a literature review

I. Introduction
• Purpose for writing the literature
review and the importance of the topic
being reviewed
• Scope of the review
• Criteria used for selecting the literature
• Organizational pattern of the review
II. Body Structure of a literature review
• Historical background
• Relevant theories
• Relationship between and among the
studies, and how each study advanced
a theory
• Strengths and weaknesses of each
paper
• Various viewpoints on the topic
III. Conclusion
Structure of a literature review

• Restatement of the main argument or

thesis
• Main agreements and disagreements in the
literature
• If stand-alone paper: conclusions,
implications, and direction for future
studies
• If part of a thesis or research paper: linking
of the literature review to the research
Guidelines in writing a literature review
Literature Search
• Review the documentation style (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago) that you will
adopt and be familiar with its format in relation to writing a literature
review.
• Choose and focus on a topic that you will explain.
• Determine the kind and number of sources you will be using.
• Survey the available online databases relevant to your topic.
• Use relevant keywords when searching for scholarly documents or
articles.
• Always include landmark studies or papers related to your topic.
• Always evaluate the sources for coverage and currency.
Guidelines in writing a literature review
Evaluation and Analysis of Articles
• Skim the articles and read their abstract
• Group the articles and other documents according to their categories.
• Take down notes. Focus on the research questions, methodology used,
major findings and their explanations, and conclusion.
• Summarize the details using a concept map.
• Write a synthesis of the references you have read before writing the
actual literature review.
• Create an outline. You may look for other literature reviews to serve as
models for writing the outline.
Guidelines in writing a literature review
Writing the Literature Review
• State clearly your thesis or main argument.
• If you say that no studies have been conducted on one aspect of your topic, justify
it.
• Direct the readers to other related literature reviews that cover items which you
do not intend to cover.
• Never treat a literature review as a series of annotated bibliography.
• Use headings and subheadings to classify the parts of your topic.
• Use effective transitions to make your review easier to read and understand.
• The body of the literature review can be organized thematically, methodologically,
or chronologically.
• Use direct quotations sparingly.
• Clarify important definitions.
C. Research Report
-an expanded paper that presents
interpretations and analyses of a phenomenon
based on experiments and previous
information so that readers can better
understand it.
-a laborious work produced through formal
investigation and scientific inquiry.
 D. Project Proposal
A good Project proposal specifies the following:
• Goals and objectives that the project wants to accomplish
• Project plan that details how the set goals and objectives will
be accomplished
• Financial, human (e.g., experts, consultants), and technical
(e.g., equipment and facilities) resources useful in
implementing the project; and
• Budget that specifies how much money is needed and for what
purpose it will be spent.
 E. Position paper
• a type of academic writing that presents one’s
stand or viewpoint on a particular issue
• Its main objective is to take part in a larger
debate by stating your arguments and proposed
course of action.
Sources:
Barrot, J. S. (2016). Academic Reading & Writing for Senior High School. C&E Publishing.

EAP Foundation. (2020). Academic Writing. Retrieved from https://www.eapfoundation.com/.

The do’s and don’ts of academic writing. (2020). Retrieved from https://www.scribbr.com/.

The University of Sydney. (2019). Academic Writing. Retrieved from https://www.sydney.edu.au/.

Thank you and may the Good
Lord reward us always!