EFFECTIVE ACADEMIC WRITING

1. EFFECTIVE ACADEMIC WRITING BRUCE CANTERBURY

2. LEARNING OUTCOMES • To look at what effective academic writing is • To briefly examine a few characteristics of effective academic writing • To deconstruct the characteristics of academic writing • To examine a few examples of academic writing

3. FOCUS QUESTIONS • Two questions • What is effective academic writing? • What are the characteristics of effective academic writing?

4. Academic Writing • It is FORMAL • The reader is an ACADEMIC • The CONTENTS: serious thought • The writing is properly CONSTRUCTED– no errors • The VOCABULARY is varied and at an appropriate level

5. TYPES OF ACADEMIC WRITING • Notes • Report on child abuse • Thesis • Paper on the environment • Project • Essay

6. ACADEMIC WRITING:CHARACTERISTICS

7. ORGANISATION • The writing must have: An Introduction A Body A Conclusion • The writing must have clear paragraphs • The writing must show progression • The writing must include examples

8. TASK ACHIEVEMENT • The writing must be RELEVANT to the title • The writing must be direct and efficient • The writing and arguments must be accurate and appropriate • Types: analyze, define, illustrate, criticize, discuss, describe, explain, justify

9. ACCURACY • The writing must contain the correct GRAMMAR • WORD CHOICE must be accurate • VOCABULARY must be varied and appropriate • Incorrect SPELLING often causes confusion • Incorrect PUNCTUATION changes the meaning

10. RANGE AND STYLE • Avoid REPETITION • Use a RANGE of vocabulary • Approach the topic DIRECTLY • Avoid long, complicated sentences • Don’t ASSUME the reader knows the topic

11. COHERENCE AND COHESION • Use good LINKING WORDS (moreover, however, therefore) • Use SIGNPOSTING words that guides the reader. E.g.: As we have previously stated… • The essay must make sense and “hang together”

12. REFERENCING • Do not use CONTRACTIONS • Avoid filers like “Er” and “Yanni” • Include quotations, paraphrasing, footnotes, references, bibliography, etc.

13. GENERAL • Plagiarism and academic integrity • MOTTO/ SLOGAN “FOR SUCCESS, ATTITUDE IS AS IMPORTANT AS ABILITY”