Importance & Characteristics of Academic Writing: Understanding Writing as Communication, Appunti di Linguistica Inglese

Scarica Importance & Characteristics of Academic Writing: Understanding Writing as Communication e più Appunti in PDF di Linguistica Inglese solo su Docsity! ENGLISH LINGUISTICS 3 Normally, people when they are learning a language, they start from the main objective, which is speaking. What about the role of written communication? Normally, linguists divide the four main skills into two branches: 1. Productive skills: speaking and writing. 2. Passive skills: reading and listening → we aren’t directly involved in any kind of production. However, the written communication has to be considered as productive, but we tend to neglect it: we tend to consider writing something supported when we study, for instance, taking notes or simply when replying to emails. So, we don’t write so much as we speak. There is an unbalanced situation between speaking and writing. Definitions about writing: Let’s see how writing is normally considered by people: 1. Writing is a system of graphic symbols that can be used to convey meaning → the last part makes one feel the importance of writing as a means of communication (through graphic symbols). 2. Writing is the act of composing a text - a text could be: ● an ad: a very brief advert ● a poem ● a long narrative ● a memo ● a letter ● an email… The word “text” includes a very numerous range of different tools that we normally use. 3. Writing is the process of using symbols to communicate ideas (emphasis on communication) in a readable form. We immediately understand that there are differences between the language we use when speaking and the language we use when writing. Common ground of these definitions The common ground is made of: - Meaning - Communication (of ideas) - Whatever the type of text is, it must be readable! 1 Now, we have a clear idea of what writing should be like. Why do we write in real life? In real life = we mean when we aren’t forced to write (not at school, uni ecc). The functions in this case are: - To inform: to communicate and share ideas with other people. - To entertain: sometimes people write texts for pleasure. - To explain: expository text types → their aim is to simplify complex processes to let everybody understand. - To persuade - To argue - To evaluate - To express our feelings In real life therefore, we write for many different reasons and of course when we write, in advance we know the perspective of the reader (Is she/he a colleague or a friend of mine?). And accordingly, we will make proper choices in terms of structures and vocabulary. Why do we write? We write for a long series of reasons, but then whenever we start writing, we have a clear picture of the future reader of our text. Written vs spoken discourse What are the characteristics of speaking? - The message - The addresser - The addressee To keep this system working, the body language (paralinguistic features) is important and includes many different aspects. - Body language: it means eye contact, tone of voice… (the voice can underline many important things or simply speaking fast when it is necessary). Speaking is transient (what is said is said) and if you make a mistake, you can immediately correct (“Oh no! I didn’t mean to say so…” or “I didn’t mean to use that word” → and then we can rephrase, paraphrase, and use synonyms → ameliorate our conversation). What are the characteristics of writing? 1. Permanence: the text is always there, so we can’t use those fillers that we normally use when speaking. In writing, everything must be explicit (readable). 2. Density of information: we have great density of information and if in real life, when we’re speaking, we say, “I didn’t mean that” and then go back and rephrase → you 2 The title was really plain language (ABC) in government writing. (the aim was simplicity and readability). The aim was given at the beginning of the document: to make the government more responsive, accessible, and understandable in its communication with the public. → TRANSPARENT! Everybody can have access to documents issued by the government and should be able to read and understand it. Apart from the choice of vocabulary, this memorandum also proposed and suggested a type of structure for the documents (common frame/structure!). Plain language documents: have logical organizations → argumentative texts, expository texts with a clear argumentation. - Trying to get close to the reader - Active voice and preferable short sentences - Key words: accessible, clear message, logical organization and easy to read design features. These are the most important features by every document issued by the government. Writing in business It is important. What are the types of actions or texts we may be asked to write? - Company reports - Sending a short email to colleagues We can’t neglect the importance of using good structures and effective vocabulary. This is the starting point. So, what are the texts when we are in a business context/situation we should use to write in order to communicate effectively? Despite the advent of new technologies, that has of course completely changed the type of writing texts that we used to produce them 30 or 40 years ago. The scenario has completely changed → evolution. Clearly and concisely: what about these two adverbs? Writing clearly and concisely in a style that is acceptable to the reader (we have to create a sort of mental image of our addressee. So, we should choose appropriate language structures and appropriate vocabulary items.), is a key skill – and one that no organization can afford to neglect. It must be accessible and acceptable to the reader. Mistakes made by non-native writers: - The use of polite forms and expressions → the English language tends to convey this type of polite register by using for instance modal verbs. - For instance, we can’t use an imperative form if we’re writing a short and concisely email to our boss. We must always consider the type of hierarchical status as well (if we can imagine the type of reader). 5 40 years ago, letters, reports, notes, memos and minutes of meeting. Were neither dictated or written in longhand and then typed up New technologies has changed the way we communicate What can we observe? - Communication: it has become less formal. - Business: it is quite often conducted orally or by email. But being less formal doesn’t mean being less accurate. So, this doesn’t mean that written communication can be just something that we consider of less importance, but it should be effective even in this new and quite quake form that we tend to adapt and use. So, when working in an office of course, we have to keep in mind all of these little things: - Using the appropriate register - What is the hierarchical scale - Choosing the right modality, the tentative mode and the proper lexicon → in order not to sound aggressive or too informal/colloquial → it means that it’s less formal but not inaccurate. When business is conducted orally (meetings, briefings), there must always be a written record that has to be ABC: - Accurate - Brief - Clear This is a rule that we may also remember when writing our reports and even when starting to devote our attention for instance to the abstract of our thesis. We must be clear, accurate and brief. In working situations, in business, we still make use of written texts. Of course, new technology has in a way lowered the level of formality → it isn’t so formal as it used to be in the past, but not being so formal doesn’t imply not being accurate. And so, ABC as an acronym is a sort of summary of what we’ve said. Different types of written communication In the past, a letter was the standard way in which organizations communicated. Today, there are still some textbooks useful for the adaptation from the model of something to an email. Those textbooks are focused on business correspondence. It is important, it is influenced by the new metal communication. Today, the common text types are: memos (very brief), notes and minutes. - Colleagues in the same organization → memos (very brief), notes, minutes. - All these elements are still used today. The event of the email 6 The event of the email has changed everything. Why? - It has revolutionized the way we communicate: speed and convenience → standard method of changing information. - Those modals that you found in your previous business correspondence textbooks are still there. But within the frame of a shorter text (which is an email) → this is the standard method and it’s extremely effective. - We must remember the addressee of our communication. - We must remember that emails can be forwarded → we send an email to the person we think will read it. But then if there is something wrong in the email it can be forwarded → this is why ABC is important = to avoid mistakes in terms of register, grammar, structure… Concise writing It doesn’t mean taking less trouble over it. Writing quickly doesn’t automatically mean writing in a sort of fury, which at the end will produce a sort of text which isn’t effective at all. Why? Because we must summarize, to lead on the very essential ideas of the argumentation. It must be clear and well defined. We have to put all of the information in a very limited space, so it requires more thought and takes more time. Sometimes, writing an email takes longer than writing something longer in terms of text analysis. In order to be effective, we need to When writing this type of emails, memos or notes → we need to identify the essential and specific details, without wasting time and space. The prewriting moment is still there, because we have to identify the essential elements. And therefore, the final effect should be reader friendly. There are a lot of studies saying that: addresses of emails just focus on the first 2/3 paragraphs. → measure of attention. Of course, the first paragraphs must include the essential details. How to improve your writing If we want to improve our skills in writing, we should develop our reading skills. For example, we may read some (business) articles from: - The Economist - The Financial Times… → the communication is clear and well-structured in this case. Which words to use? (in the Memorandum’s appendix) - The English language has two main derivations: 1. Anglo Saxon 2. Latin - The words of Anglo-Saxon origin tend to be shorter compared to Latin words. Short words instead of longer ones 7 TOO LONG SENTENCES: Within an international framework characterized by a shortage of capital and a tightening regulation of finance – after two decades of deregulation, human capital, innovation and local economies probably represent the best way out of this negative conjunction, also for a more sustainable perspective for the future. The current international framework is characterised by a shortage of capital and a tightening regulation of finance. To solve this situation human capital, innovation and local economies probably represent the best way out of this negative conjunction. This is essential to be considered in view of a more sustainable perspective for the future. This is considered essential/crucial/achievable/attainable in view of (possible: first level) COMPLICATED OR OBSCURE SENTENCES: 1. Nowadays, the dependence on these means has brought us to… 2. Sometimes machines wok better than people/humans/workers/a person. 3. The manufacture in products represent almost an exception. 4. Technology has made everything quicker and easier. 5. The analysis of the book shows numerous attempts to make the various actions consistent. _________________________________________________________________________ 1. Smoking in public areas forces everybody to become passive smokers. /by smoking in public areas, smokers force/induce everyone to smoke. 2. Anyone should be who they would like to have a chance. 3. After this bad experience, he is better able to cope with difficulties. 4. It may involve difficulty in finding the right balance despite being good on the one hand. 5. This is the most relevant/crucial/vital among them and it is related to matters of national importance. FINDING THE RIGHT TRANSLATION: - Dopo la decisione dell’ONU di → after the decision of the UN to… (b) - In caso di guerra → in case of war (a/b) - Ogni tentativo di evitare sanzioni dell’ONU fallirebbe se → any attemption to avoid UN sanctions would fail if… (b) - In tale situazione è improbabile aumentare le restrizioni finanziarie → in such situation, it is improbable to expand the financial restrictions (b) - La Germania vieterà l'esportazione di macchine da corsa → Germany will ban the export of racing cars. (a) - Gli Stati Uniti dovrebbero temere un nuovo attacco? → should the USA be scared of a new attack? (a) - Concepiscono l’astensione come un mezzo di protesta contro… → they conceive abstention as a means to protest against… (a) 10 FIND OUT THE REDUNDANT CONNECTORS AND CORRECT THE SENTENCES: 1. However, although they are different, they nonetheless share a number of similarities, such as… - Although they are different, they share a number of similarities, such as... 2. Furthermore, it can be consequently stated that there is also another interesting pattern. - Furthermore, it can be consequently stated that there’s another interesting pattern. 3. As these conditions were unacceptable for the scholars, as a result, they decided to stop the research project. - As these conditions were unacceptable to the scholars, they decided to stop the research project. - Since the conditions were unacceptable for the scholars, they decided to stop the research project. - These conditions were unacceptable for the scholars, as result they decided to stop the research project. Features of academic writing There is no standard in academic writing. In other terms, there are no fixed rules as far as the conventions of this type of writing. However, each department/discipline, has series of general agreement upon the following features: 1. Formal/semi formal vocabulary → word choices, lexicon. - Semi-formal : depending on the addressee of the message (if it's a report that can be shared by a community – colleagues, students belonging to the same course –). - If we are in charge or if we are writing a formal dissertation at the end of the course, it should be formal. - No colloquial expressions. 2. Use of citations/references/quotations (in a formal standard form) - Evidence must be provided! 3. Use of both passive/active voices 4. Precision → it must be clear, balanced, and concise (ABC) 5. Caution (hedging – trying to be cautious when referring to theories or when we want to add our personal opinion). Evidence based writing This type of writing, known as "academic writing" should be evidence based. This is the most important and distinguishing element of this type of writing. This feature is probably the one that we should look for. - Writers support their arguments with evidence from the body of knowledge relevant to their discipline. ● Previous studies have shown that… ● These sources suggest that… ● According to… 11 ● However, as has been shown elsewhere (ex: … X … 1992) … [X stands for a name – Smith 1992 suggested that…] We are trying to avoid our personal involvement in that type of argument and being detached, by referring to the sources that we may have consulted before writing. These are some tips to avoid cultural/linguistic mistakes. Impersonal writing - We should try to be outside the text. - Impersonal language in academic writing is very common. - Focus on the result, not on the agent, so the passive is often used when the agent is less important or unknown. - Personal pronouns (“I” and “we”) tend not to be used. - Only in research undertaken by teams → personal pronoun (ex “we”). - Passive for a more impersonal style. “The findings were evaluated” VS “I evaluated the findings!” - The passive voice in academic writing can be more effective. Active and passive voice COMPARE I think that Active voice, quite informal One might think that… [One: is impersonal, non identified word] Active voice, more formal - It is assumed that - It is argued that - It is claimed that Passive voice, more formal and detached Use of the passive: common situations The passive tends to be commonly employed in certain situations: 1. Describing a process - “What causes this antibody to be produced is unclear”. 2. Describing a piece of research (whenever I cite, refer or quote to previous literature) - “One study was conducted in America and published in 2011”. → The use of the passive is useful when we want to be detached. → The use of passive puts the emphasis on the action and not on the people involved. If you prefer the active voice… What do we use to be detached? 12 - A college in the UK = post-school institution which doesn’t award degrees, in the US a college is part of a university and gives first degrees. - Someone studying for a master’s degree in the UK is a postgraduate, while in the US they are a graduate student. - Students in Britain sit or take exams, in America the exams are just taken. Before taking an exam, British students may revise the subject, but in the US they review the topic. - UK students generally receive marks for their work, while American students get grades. British and American spelling Major differences - Ou and o: behaviour/behavior, favour/favor, labour/labor - Ll and l: counsellor/conselor, labelling/labeling, travelled/traveled But: enrol/enroll, fulfil/fulfill, skilful/skillful - Ce and se: defence/defense, a practice/practise, offence/offense - Re and er: centre/center, litre/liter, theatre/ Nominalization Nominalization: this is a typical feature of academic English → it is the tendency of transforming verbs (actions) into nouns. COMPARE The Liverpool and Manchester railway opened in 1930. This brought increased prosperity to both cities. AND The opening of the Liverpool and Manchester railway in 1930 brought increased prosperity in both cities. - In certain cases, these nominalized forms can become very long and complex. - It can make reading difficult (see Plain English Memorandum). Academic writing tends to be cautious Academic writers take care not to appear certain where some doubt may exist, and they are careful not to over generalize. COMPARE Drinking alcohol causes breast cancer in women. AND 15 Some studies suggest that drinking alcohol increases the risk of breast cancer in women. Hedging devices: distancing the writer from a proposition - It is thought that… it is believed that… → according to recent reports - It has been reported that → according to many in the field - It is a widely held view that → recent research has suggested that - It has commonly been assumed that → there is some evidence to suggest that - According to X (2002) → there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that… Being cautious when giving explanations It may be It is likely It could be It is possible It is probable It is almost certain THAT… A likely explanation A possible explanation A probable explanation IS THAT… Cautious interpretation of results It is possible that these results… May not apply to Do not represent the Do not accurately reflect Might have been affected by Were influenced by the lack of May underestimate the role of Are not a true representation of Exercises 1. In this article, I will describe in detail the current situation in the lifelong learning sector and some possible future scenarios. 2. To date, unfortunately no solution has been found. 3. So far little research has been conducted in this field. _________________________________________________________________________ - A solution to unemployment → can be found in hiring people. - The findings → are based on the assumption that/are shown in table A. - This question → is one of the most debated in history. - This theory → is applicable in a number of cases. - This effect → is referred to as “the Lyon consequence” in literature. - The research results → are shown in table A/ are based on the assumption that. _________________________________________________________________________ - Mix… and then gradually add… - Then mix the dough until a soft ball is form, which you can knead by hand 16 - Then is necessary to pound and reshape _________________________________________________________________________ 1. The data were/was collected, and the two groups were compared. 2. 120 people in three social classes were interviewed. 3. Several errors were found when they checked the results. 4. An analysis of the findings will be made by us. 5. Four doctors were asked to give their opinion. 6. The report was written and 10 copies were distributed. Changing sentences from active to passive: 1. The vaccines were exposed by the researchers to temperatures below the limit. 2. The Atacama Desert is believed to be too dry for animal life. 3. It is suggested that they can be damaged by foreign competition. 4. The life cycles of three main bee species were researched by them. 5. It was argued that prisons had a negative effect of prison on the inmates. Generally, Additionally, Ridiculously, Graphically, Occasionally. Areas where caution is important Hedging devices: they are those language strategies that we may use in order to avoid our own subjectivity in order to set a distance → from ourselves/ideas/opinions and the text. - Outlying hypothesis which needs to be tested (ex: in an introduction) - Discussing the results of a study, which many not be conclusive (they are still in progress) - Commenting on the work of other writers (for example: literary analysis in dissertations) - Making predictions (normally with MAY/MIGHT) Hypothesis (verbs referred to this noun) – series of collocations - To make a hypothesis - Formulate - Put forward (we can refer to a hypothesis…) - To consider a sort of hypothesis relevant - Discuss hypothesis - To confirm or to reject … hypothesis - This hypothesis concerns the role of … → that type of hypothesis is about… Predictions (which type of adjectives can be collocated with predictions?) - Long/short-term predictions - Accurate predictions (that are normally based on data) - We can confirm/contradict other people predictions Being cautious when giving explanations 17 ● Systematic ● Comparative ● Qualitative ● Quantitative Verbs that can be linked to the word “analysis”: ● To conduct ● To carry out ● To make ● To perform Evaluating literature positively X’s Seminal Influential Thoughtful Innovative Pioneering Wide-ranging Comprehensive STUDY ANALYSIS Provides a valuable insight to… Makes a valuable contribution with regard to… Remain crucial to our understanding of… Is of great significance as it… Collocations with insight: - Adjectives: valuable, significant, remarkable, crucial, important, interesting, original, unique. - Verbs: to benefit of, to get, to obtain, to gain. Collocations with contribution: - Verb: to make. Collocation with understanding: - To my understanding - According to my understanding - To reflect, to show, to have Discussing implications or recommendations - The findings of this study suggest that… - The evidence from this study suggests that… - These results would seem to suggest that the… - Initial observations suggest that there may be a link between… - The findings from these studies suggest that X can have an effect on… 20 Collocation with findings - Initial, preliminary, empirical, significant, important, main, recent - Findings can be based on: research projects, series of… - Findings are related to/are applied to… - Findings reveal/show/are consistent with/are in line with most of the studies belonging with this sector Writing about the future This phenomenon May Could Might Is likely to Will probably Will almost certainly Become more common in the future Using modifiers Another way to express caution is to use quite, rather, fairly before an adjective: - Quite is mainly used positively and it is often used before articles: “a/an” ➔ Quite a significant discovery. - Rather tends to be negatively ➔ A rather inconvenient location. - Fairly is used as an adverb of degree before adjectives to mean quite but less than every. ➔ He is fairly tall → he is quite tall, but not very tall. The language of cause and effect - Academic work frequently involves explaining a link between a cause and an effect or result. - The language of cause and effect: 1. FOCUS ON CAUSES with verbs X The poor harvest Caused Led to Resulted in Produced Y Higher prices 2. FOCUS ON CAUSES with conjunctions Because of Due to the poor harvest prices rose 21 Owing to As a result of 3. FOCUS ON EFFECTS with verbs The higher prices were caused by were produced by resulted from the poor harvest 4. FOCUS ON EFFECTS with conjunctions There were prices rises due to because of as a result of the poor harvest The language of comparison - It is often necessary to make comparisons in academic writing. - The comparison may be the subject of the essay, or it might provide evidence for the argument. - Comparisons can be modified by the use of the adverbs such as: ● slightly/marginally (for small amounts) ● considerably/significantly/substantially (for large amounts). Some examples: ● Italy is substantially larger than Malta. ● The UK is slightly smaller than Italy. ● Winters in Canada are significantly colder than in Italy. ● The population of France is approximately the same as the population of Britain. The language of examples - Examples are used in academic writing for support and illustration. - Examples can strengthen the argument and they can help the reader to understand a point. Phrases to introduce examples ● For instance, for example ● Such as ● Particularly, especially → to give a focus ➔ Certain Master’s courses, especially American ones, take two years. 22 ● Abstract ● List of contents ● Introduction ● Main body ➔ literature review ➔ case study ➔ findings ➔ discussions ● Conclusion ● Acknowledgments ● Notes ● References ● Appendices Zooming on some keywords ● Abstract: a short summary which explains the purpose of the paper and the main findings. ● References: a list of all the sources the writer has mentioned in the text. ● Appendix: a section, after the conclusion, where additional information is included. ● Acknowledgment: a short action where people who have helped the writer are thanked. ● Literature review: part of the main body in which the views of the other writers on the topic are discussed. ● Case study: a section where one particular example is described in detail. What is an abstract? There are two main types of abstract: 1. Informative: it is the most common type and is suitable for papers or reports about original research → it summarizes the information in the main sections of the paper. 2. Descriptive: it is less common and might be appropriate for review articles or research the result of which you don’t want to reveal to the reader until they have read the whole paper → it describes the structure of the document. Abstracts: word length and structure - An abstract should be brief as possible, providing only the important information the reader needs to know rather than presenting a complete summary. - An abstract is generally written as a single paragraph - It’ll normally include the following elements: ➔ Background to the research ➔ Aim of the research ➔ Method: how the research was concluded ➔ Results: what the main findings were ➔ Conclusions: what the findings mean Summing up 25 - Use short, simple sentences and active statements to convey the information as effectively as possible - All information in the abstract must be contained in the paper - Abbreviations must be avoided - Citations aren’t used - Past tense is generally used for informative abstracts, present tense for descriptive abstracts. Example 1 of an abstract - vedi scheda It is descriptive abstract; in fact, the most common tense is the present simple. There are only two different types of tenses → present perfect simple (“have been developed”) and future simple (“will find”). There are some passive voices, always in the present tense (“are examined”, “are discussed”, “are applied”, “is analysed”). The language is formal. Example 2 of an abstract - vedi scheda The second one is informative and prevails of the past tense. There is the use of the first-person plural “we”. We can find data (there are figures, facts, numbers that refer to a case study). - Background: there are concerns… and milk chocolate. - Methods: we assigned … and trying e-cigarettes. - Results: tobacco smokers… and trying e-cigarettes. - Conclusions: exposure to… e-cigarette adverts. Academic writing: the process Planning your writing - When you start writing you should have a clear idea of what you want to say. - Create a list of your main points and think about what the reader needs to know and in what order they’ll know it. - Ask yourself whether each point you have considered really contributes to answering the question. Is the point relevant to your overall argument? - Select appropriate evidence: that you’ll use to support each main point. - Grouping your points may help you create a logical order. - You can then put these groups into a sequence that the reader can follow and use to make sense of the topic or argument. - It may be helpful to arrange ideas initially in the form of a mind-map. Writing in paragraphs - A paragraph is a group of sentences which deal with a single topic. Dividing up the text into paragraphs helps both writer and reader to follow the argument more clearly. - The length of paragraphs varies significantly according to text type, but should normally be no less than four or five sentences. - Usually but not always the first sentence introduces the topic. Other sentences may give: 26 ● definitions ● examples ● extra information ● reasons ● restatements ● summaries - The parts of the paragraph are linked together by the reference words, conjunctions and adverbs shown bold in the table. They guide the reader through the arguments presented. Paragraph, sentence and clause - Paragraph is made up of a number of sentences. - A sentence is made up of one or more clauses which can be joined to one another by conjunctions (and, although, but) or by relative pronouns (who, which, that) - A clause is generally a group of words with one finite verb, but there may also be non-finite clauses which contain a verb which doesn’t show tense. Common text organizers - Adding a point: as well as, in addition to, not only… but also - Developing a point: besides, furthermore, moreover, in fact, as a matter of fact - Contrast: however, nevertheless, nonetheless, (al)though, while, whereas, on the contrary, on the one hand… on the other hand, despite the fact that - Explaining reasons: as a result, thus, hence, consequently, accordingly, owning to - Starting: first of all, in the first place, to start with Introduction - An effective introduction explains the purpose, scope and methodology of the paper to the reader. - Introductions are usually no more than about 10% of the total length of the paper. - There is no standard pattern for an introduction assignment. Introductions to research dissertations and theses Some of common elements: - Establishing the content, background and/or importance of the topic - Giving a brief review of the relevant academic literature - Identifying a problem, controversy, or a knowledge gap in the field of study - Stating the aims of the research and the research questions or hypothesis - Providing a synopsis of the research design and methods - Explaining the significance or value of the study - Defining certain key terms - Providing an overview of the dissertation structure. Referring to previous work - Recent evidence suggests that… 27 ➔ “Academic work depends on the research and ideas of others (Balley, 2018:55) so it is vital to show which sources you have used in your work (Ibid.)”. Quotation marks/inverted commas - In direct quotations it is compulsory to use quotation marks, followed by an appropriate reference (the author’s surname and the page number(s)). - It is generally recommendable to avoid long quotations. - If the quotation is longer than three lines, it should be indented left and right, with one line above and below the main text → it is generally written in a smaller font. Bibliography - Entries must be listed in alphabetical order - First comes the author’s name, then the initial of his/her name, then the year of publication (either in parenthesis or not) ➔ Bailey, S. (2018). Academic Writing. A Handbook for International Students. New York: Routledge. ➔ Bailey, S. 2018. Academic Writing. A Handbook for International Students. New York: Routledge. Writing acknowledgements - Typically included are: supervisors, close colleagues and family members. - In the majority of cases, the structure moves from acknowledging more formal support (funding bodies, institutions supervisors) to the most familiar (close friends and family members) Advice Thanks X Support Firstly, I wish to Extend my thanks to Patience Secondly, I want to Give special thanks to Guidance Finally, I would like to Express my gratitude Encouragement Reassurance A note on punctuation - The purpose of punctuation is to make written English easier to read and to make the meaning and unambiguous - Good, accurate punctuation is important in academic writing - Let’s focus on COLON (:), which are used to: ➔ To introduce an explanation ➔ To introduce a list 30 ➔ To introduce a direct quotation, particularly a long one → Jones (2003) states that: QUOTATIONS MARKS and INVERTED COMMAS (“ “/’ ‘) For quotations within quotations, use double quotation marks inside single (or single inside double). → As Kauffman remarked: ‘His concept of “internal space” requires close analysis’. A note on style in academic presentations Introducing the presentation: - Discuss - Explore - Compare The aim of my presentation is to: - Critically evaluate - Address the question of - Explore the way in which Indicating sequence First of all, To begin with, I’d like to talk about And then I'll go on to… In the first of (my) paper Highlighting statements - It is worth noting that… - It is important to stress that… - Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is… Referring to a visual - Here we can see that… - This can be… Concluding - So to conclude… - I’d like to conclude by saying that… - In conclusion, I’d like to suggest that… Proofreading 31 - Proofreading means checking your work for small errors which may make it more difficult for the reader to understand exactly what you want to say. - Computer spell checks will not always help you, since they may ignore a word which is spelt correctly but which is not the word you meant to use: Tow factors need to be consulted (TOW: to pull a car, boat, ecc: along, fastened behind another vehicle or boat) Exercises from the previous lesson Correct any mistakes you can find (from grammar to informal language to quoting) 1. Adding commas before and after “in fact”. Delete the article “the” before the student's career and write “a” or just “all students career”. Show has to be supported by the direct quotation. Put “to” before reach + ing form. 2. Text 1 “is an example”, “tries to exemplify”, “provides an example”. Delete “the” before Globish and “Lingua Franca” in italics and capitalized letters. Between “Lingua Franca and as highlighted”, we can put a full stop. Globish must be put in italics and necessary is wrong → necessary. 3. “besides” should be changed with “furthermore”. Put a passive voice (teachers are argued). It also misses “it is also argued”. Method and strategy to employ/the method and the strategy to employ. Furthermore, it is argued that teachers are those to establish methods and strategies to employ in the classroom. 4. “their book” is deleted and Lingua Franca is put in italics. à direct quotation: In « Recent contributions to EFL ». Claim or claimed are both possible. 5. It is interesting to compare both the conclusions of the texts/ A conclusion can be found. → Avoid the use of “there is” in academic writing. Of the both In brackets we put the year of publication. In order to make legal texts more accessible/understandable/comprehensible The conclusion of Keens → Keens’ conclusions seems to be Exercises 1. FALSE 2. TRUE 3. TRUE 4. FALSE 5. TRUE 6. TRUE 32