Academic Writing General

GENERAL &
ACADEMIC WRITING
Overview, Tips and Strategies

ACADEMIC WRITING
1.Background - General Writing
2.Definition of Academic Writing (AW)
3.Key Aspects of AW
4.Essay Writing – structure/organisation
5.Types of Writing – descriptive/critical
6.Conclusion
GENERAL WRITING
1. General writing - consists of:
• letters
• words
• sentences
• parts of speech
• paragraphs, etc.
GENERAL WRITING
So, what are the main

parts of speech?
GENERAL WRITING
PARTS OF
(1) VERB SPEECH (6) PREPOSITION
(2) NOUN (5) ADVERB
(3) PRONOUN (4) ADJECTIVE

GENERAL WRITING
(1) Verb
A verb is the part of speech that people tend to identify most easily. In schools
it is known as a ‘doing word’ – an action word – which describes what the
nouns in the sentence are doing, i.e. swimming, walking, eating, thinking,
growing, learning, drinking, misbehaving. In the sentence, ‘Sam studies in the
library’, ‘studies’ is the verb.
(2) Noun
A noun is an object – a thing – such as ‘team’, ‘girl’ or ‘car’. A ‘proper noun’ is
the proper name of the thing (if it has its own name) such as ‘Manchester
United’, ‘Nicole’, or ‘Porsche’. Proper nouns have a capital letter. This shows that
what is being referred to is the proper name (‘Porsche’) rather than the
common or collective name (‘car’).
GENERAL WRITING
(3) Pronoun
A pronoun is a word that is used in place of a noun, such as ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘it’, ‘him’,
‘her’, etc. Its purpose is to avoid endless repetition of the noun while ensuring
that none of the meaning of the sentence is lost. For example, the sentence,
‘Abdul is punctual: he is always on time for his tutorials’ is much better than
‘Abdul is punctual: Abdul is always on time for Abdul’s tutorials.’
(4) Adjective
An adjective is a describing word that gives the noun a quality that makes it
more specific. For example, any number of adjectives could be used to ‘qualify’
the noun ‘lecture’. It could be an ‘excellent lecture’, a ‘long lecture’, or a ‘boring
lecture’ – ‘excellent’, ‘long’ and ‘boring’ are all adjectives.
GENERAL WRITING
(5) Adverb
An adverb is a describing word, but for verbs, not nouns. For example, ‘quickly’,
‘stupidly’ and ‘hurriedly’ are all adverbs (they often end in ‘–ly’). They are used
with verbs to make the action more specific, e.g. ‘drink quickly’, ‘behave
stupidly’, ‘work hurriedly’. In the sentence, ‘the lecturer shouted loudly’, ‘loudly’
is the adverb.
(6) Preposition
Prepositions are words that describe the position and movement of the nouns
in a sentence, such as ‘to’, ‘from’, ‘into’, ‘out’, ‘of’, ‘in’. They precede the noun,
e.g. ‘to the classroom’, ‘in the lecture’. For example, in the sentence, ‘After
being pushed into the lake, I was stuck in the water’, ‘in’ and ‘into’ are both
prepositions; ‘in’ describes a position, whereas ‘into’ describes movement.
ACADEMIC WRITING
2. Academic Writing - Definitions:
Academic writing in English is linear, which means it has one central
point or theme with every part contributing to the main line of
argument, without digressions or repetitions. Its objective is to inform
rather than entertain.
There's no great mystique about an "academic writing style". The
most important thing is to keep your writing clear and concise and
make sure that you get your ideas over in a comprehensible form. It's
clear expression of these ideas that will impress your tutor, not a
string of long, inappropriate words found in your dictionary.
ACADEMIC WRITING
2. Academic Writing – Definitions (cont’d):

Rules for formal writing are quite strict, though often unstated.
Formal writing is used in academic and scientific settings
whenever you want to convey your ideas to a wide audience,
with many possible backgrounds and assumptions. Unlike casual
conversation or emails to friends, formal writing needs to be
clear, unambiguous, literal, and well structured.
ACADEMIC WRITING
2. Academic Writing – A simple definition:
Academic writing could include any writing

assignment given in an academic setting.
ACADEMIC WRITING
3. Key Features of Academic Writing
• Formal tone/impersonal
• Impartial/balance (i.e. neutral)
• Written in Passive voice (it has been demonstrated that…)
• Claims substantiated with
references (Smith (2020) states that….)
• Use of hedging language (appears/suggests/may/might)
• Avoids controversy (Smith’s comments are rubbish)
• Avoids pronouns (I, me, you, your, we)
• Avoids contractions, slang (don’t…..this kind of thing….)
ACADEMIC WRITING
4. Essay Writing Structure - Checklist
1. Essay Title – Is it full and correct?
2. Introduction – Significant – does it identify topic, purpose and
essay structure?
Key words/concepts identified in the introduction?
3. Main Body - Evidence of required/additional reading?
Main points in separate paragraphs? Paragraphs logically linked?
Main points/arguments supported by evidence, argument or
examples? Are the ideas of others clearly referenced?

ACADEMIC WRITING
4. Essay Writing Structure - Checklist (cont’d)
4. Conclusion - Directly linked/related to the question?
Based on evidence and facts? Does it summarise the main
points? Is it substantial (a paragraph or more)?
5. References – All sources referenced? Accurate?

as per university/faculty/dept. guidance?
6. Layout - Is it neat and legibly presented?
ACADEMIC WRITING
Summary
In a nutshell, a good academic essay
is well-researched, well-structured,
and well-argued.
ACADEMIC WRITING
Parts of Academic Writing:
Descriptive and Critical

ACADEMIC WRITING
5. Descriptive Writing:
Describes something but doesn’t go beyond that account (i.e. what is apparent).
Descriptive writing is needed to establish for example:

• setting of the research;
• general description of a piece of literature, or art;
• list of measurements taken; timing of the research;
• biographical details for key figures in the field/discipline;
• brief summary of the history leading up to an event or decision.
ACADEMIC WRITING
5. Critical Writing:
• A clear and confident refusal to accept the conclusions of other
writers without evaluating the arguments and evidence that they
provide;
• A balanced presentation of reasons why the conclusions of other
writers may be accepted or may need to be treated with caution;
• A clear presentation of your own evidence and argument, leading
to your conclusion; and
• Recognise the limitations in your own evidence, argument, and
conclusion.
ACADEMIC WRITING
5. Differences between Descriptive Writing and Critical Writing
With Descriptive Writing:
• you do not develop an argument;
• you merely set the background (highlight the situation) within which an argument
can be developed, without analysis or discussion. Ideas are reported without being
taken forward. Students often waste valuable words from the word limit in this area.
With Critical Writing:
• you participate in the academic debate - more challenging and risky.
• You need to weigh up the evidence and arguments of others (quality/relevance),
while contributing your own.
• Identify how best to weave the views/opinions of others into your own argument.
Requires a far higher skill level, which is reflected in the higher marks for critical
writing.
ACADEMIC WRITING
6. Conclusion
When in doubt, use the formula: introduce, expand/justify, conclude
The standard format for an effective essay or article is to:

(1) present a coherent thesis in the introduction,
(2) try your hardest to convince the reader of your thesis in the body
of the paper, and
(3) restate the thesis in the conclusion so that the reader
remembers what it is, and can decide whether he or she was
convinced.
ACADEMIC WRITING
Thank you for your time.

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GENERAL &

Overview, Tips and Strategies

So, what are the main

(2) NOUN (5) ADVERB

(3) PRONOUN (4) ADJECTIVE

2. Academic Writing – Definitions (cont’d):

Academic writing could include any writing

examples? Are the ideas of others clearly referenced?

5. References – All sources referenced? Accurate?

Parts of Academic Writing:

Descriptive and Critical

Descriptive writing is needed to establish for example:

The standard format for an effective essay or article is to:

Thank you for your time.

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