ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES

Instructional Material

MELC 1: Differentiates language used in academic texts from various disciplines

Input 1: Academic Text

 Academic text is a reading material which contains idea or concept written in a formal language intended for
specific discipline. It is also organized in a specific way and is presented in a clear and logical manner.
 Academic texts include notes, report, essay, dissertation / thesis and research articles.

Input 2: Language Used in Academic Text

 Essential Features of Academic Text

a. Formal Vocabulary
 Do not use idiomatic or colloquial vocabulary: kids, boss. Instead use standard English: children,
manager.
 Use vocabulary accurately. There is a difference between rule and law, or weather and climate,
which you are expected to know if you study these subjects.
 Be as precise as possible when dealing with facts or figures. Avoid phrases such as about a
hundred or hundreds of years ago. If it is necessary to estimate numbers use approximately
rather than about.
 Conclusions should use tentative language. Avoid absolute statements such as unemployment
causes crime. Instead use cautious phrases: unemployment may cause crime or tends to cause
crime.
 Avoid adverbs that show your personal attitude: luckily, remarkably, surprisingly.
 Do not contract verb forms: don’t, can’t. Use the full form: Do not, cannot.
 Although academic English tends to use the passive more than standard English, it should not be
over-used. Both are needed. Compare:
Galileo discovered the moons of Jupiter.
The moons of Jupiter were discovered by Galileo.
In the first case, the focus is on Galileo, in the second (passive) on the moons.
 Avoid the following:
• like for introducing examples. Use such as or for instance.
• thing and combinations nothing or something. Use factor, issue or topic.
• lots of. Use a significant / considerable number.
• little / big. Use small / large.
• ‘get’ phrases such as get better / worse. Use improve and deteriorate.
• good / bad are simplistic. Use positive / negative, e.g. the changes had several positive
aspects
 Do not use question forms such as Why did war break out in 1914?
Instead use statements: There were three reasons for the outbreak of war . . .
 Avoid numbering sections of your text, except in reports and long essays. Use conjunctions and
signposting expressions to introduce new sections (Turning to the question of detecting
cancer . . .).
 When writing lists, avoid using etc or and so on. Insert and before the last item: For example,
The main products were pharmaceuticals, electronic goods and confectionery.
 Avoid using two-word verbs such as go on or bring up if there is a suitable synonym. Use
continue or raise.
 Avoid repetition. Repetition means repeating a word instead of using a synonym to provide
variety, which makes the text more interesting
 Avoid redundancy. Redundancy, i.e. repeating an idea or including an irrelevant point, suggests
that the writer is not fully in control of the material. It gives the impression that either he does not
properly understand the language or is trying to ‘pad’ the essay by repeating the same point.

b. Use of References
 Referencing allows you to acknowledge the contribution of other writers and researchers in your
work. Any university assignments that draw on the ideas, words or research of other writers must
contain citations. Referencing is also a way to give credit to the writers from whom you have
borrowed words and ideas.

c. Impersonal Style
 Impersonal writing focuses more on a 'thing' to be the subject rather than a person. For example
instead of 'I undertook the training…' it could be written 'The training was undertaken…'

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 By avoiding the personal pronouns 'I' and 'you', and phrases such as 'in my opinion', these
expressions allow writers to achieve an impersonal style and present their arguments and ideas
objectively rather than subjectively.

d. Long complex sentence

 Effective writing normally uses a mixture of long and short sentences, often using a short
sentence to introduce the topic:

Car scrappage schemes have been introduced in many countries. They offer a subsidy to
buyers of new cars, who must scrap an old vehicle. The schemes are designed to
stimulate the economy and also increase fuel efficiency.

 Academic Disciplines
a. Business
 Accounting, economics, finance, management, marketing
b. Humanities
 Art, history, languages, literature, music, philosophy, religion, theater
c. Natural and Applied Sciences
 Biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering, geology, mathematics, physics, medicine
d. Social Sciences
 Anthropology, education, geography, law, political science, psychology, sociology

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 ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES
Instructional Material

MELC 2: Uses knowledge of text structure to glean the information he/she needs

Input 1: Structure and Content of an Academic Text

A “structure” is a building or framework. Text structure” refers to how a piece of text is built. Writers use different
structures to build their ideas. Each text structure communicates ideas in a different way. Hence, the different types of
informational passages have different text structures.

Text structures are organizational patterns. Authors use certain text structures to help their audience better understand
the information presented. The most common text patterns are cause and effect, comparison and contrast, problem
and solution, chronological order and description.

a. Cause and Effect

Why Women Live Longer

Some British scientists now believe that women live longer than men because of T cells, a vital part of
the immune system that protects the body from diseases. Previously, various theories have attempted to explain
longer female life expectancy. Biologists claimed that women lived longer since they need to bring up children.
Others argued that men take more risks, as they die earlier. But a team from Imperial College think that the
difference may be due to women having better immune systems. Having studied a group of men and women
they found that the body produces fewer T cells as it gets older, because of the ageing process. However, they
admit that this may not be the only factor, and as a result another research project may be conducted.

FOCUS is one either

 CAUSE – why something happened
 EFFECT – what happened

Either a VERB or a CONJUNCTION can be used to show the link.

(a) Focus on causes

With verbs
The heavy rain caused the flood.
created
led to
resulted to
produced
With conjunctions
Because of the heavy rain there was a flood.
Due to
Owing to
As a result (of)

(b) Focus on effects

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 With verbs
The flood was caused by the heavy rain.
resulted from
was produced by
(use of passives)
With conjunctions
There was a because of the heavy rain
flood due to
as a result

b. Problem and Solution

How can Road Congestion be Reduced?

Currently, roads are often congested, which is expensive in terms of delays to the movement of people
and freight. It is commonly suggested that building more roads, or widening existing ones, would ease the traffic
jams. But not only is the cost of such work high, but the construction process adds to the congestion, while the
resulting extra road space may encourage extra traffic. Therefore, constructing more roads is unlikely to solve
the problem, and other remedies, such as road pricing or greater use of public transport, should be examined.

Problem and solution tell about a problem (and sometimes says why there is a problem) then gives one or more possible
solutions. The common signals include:

 question is…  to solve this…

 dilemma is…  one answer is…
 the puzzle is…  one reason for the problem is…

Here is the how this text is organized.

Section Example
(a) Problem Currently, roads are often congested, which is . . .
(b) Solution A It is commonly suggested that building more roads, or widening . . .
(c) Arguments against solution A But not only is the cost of such work high, but . . .
(d) Solutions B and C . . . other remedies, such as road pricing or greater use . . .

The following words can be used as synonyms for problem and solution:
 the three main difficulties have arisen . . .
 the main challenge faced by . . .
 one of the concerns during the recession . . .
 the new process created two questions . . .
 the team faced six issues . . .
 our principal worry/ dilemma was . . .
 the best remedy for this may be . . .
 two answers have been put forward . . .
 another suggestion is . . .
 Matheson’s proposal was finally accepted, this was
finally rectified by . . .

c. Comparison and Contrast

Comparison – pointing out similarities Contrast – pointing out differences

Growing up in Philippines during the 1990s was much different from growing up today. Children as
young as 10 years old held full time jobs in order to help their families. Many of these children worked 14 hours
a day for as little as 100 pesos. Today, however, children are not allowed to hold part-time jobs until they are at
least 14 years old. Philippine laws also restrict the number of hours teenagers work. While some teenagers
today work out of necessity to help their families, most do so to earn spending money or to save for college.

One should have a set of criteria or items as basis for comparison and contrast. Not only your comparison will make
unfamiliar familiar but it will also make a critical appraisal of what you compare. These are the common signals:

 same as  not only-but also  on the other hand

 similar  both  different from
 alike  instead of  as opposed to
 as well as  either-or

Two ways to present similarities and differences:

1. Block pattern – presents the object or item being compared and/or contrasted one at a time.

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 2. Alternating pattern – moves from the first object to the second as it presents comparison or contrast point by
point.

d. Chronological Order

What about preparing an appetite-whetting chicken ham for dinner? Have a kilo of chicken ham, one and
a half cup of brown sugar, one-half cup of corn syrup, a half-cup of orange juice and a cup of marmalade ready.
Preheat the oven to 375◦F. Next, you combine the orange juice, sugar, corn syrup and marmalade. Mix these
well until the sugar particles are dissolved. Are the lumps all gone? Then, you are ready to pour this syrup on
the ham and bake it for fifteen to twenty minutes. After baking, baste the ham with marinade three to four times.
And to give the ham an appetizing glaze, boil the remaining syrup until it is thick. Pour this thick syrup on top of
the chicken ham and garnish with orange slices, cherries and parsley. That’s Chicken L’ Orange for you.

Authors use chronological order to explain how things happen in order. Chronological order is also called sequence or
time order. You will know that you are reading a text in chronological order because you will see words like first, next,
later, then, and finally.

a. Description

Finally, we rounded a deep curve and suddenly came upon a shanty, all but ready, it seemed, to crumble
in a heap, its plastered walls rotting away, the floor hardly a floor from the ground. I thought of the cottages of
the poor colored folk in the South, the hovels of the poor everywhere in the land. This one stood all by itself, as
though by common consent, all the folks that used to live here had decided to stay away, despising it, ashamed
of it. Even the lovely season could not color it with beauty.

Description may either be:

1. Informative (objective description) – focuses on the object and its physical properties and characteristics
2. Evocative (impressionistic description) – focuses on emotions or moods of the reader. The writer of an evocative
description does not only aim at presenting facts about this subject but also wishes to “communicate a mood or
feeling or establish an attitude toward his subject.”

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 ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES (EAPP)
First Semester, SY 2022-2023

MELC 3: Uses various techniques in summarizing a variety of academic texts

Input 1: Techniques and Tips in Summarizing

Summary is a brief statement covering the main points (David D. Guralnik, et al. 1967). It is the
condensation of the most important points of reading or lecture (Forlini, et al. 2010). It is shorter than the
original text and contains only the most essentials which are worth remembering.

Why Summarize?

• It helps to determine essential ideas and consolidate important details that support them.
• It enables to focus on key words and phrases of an assigned text that are worth noting and
remembering.
• It teaches how to take a large selection of text and reduce it to the main points for more concise
understanding.
• It helps to avoid committing plagiarism.

Plagiarism is an act of copying and owning a piece of work without the approval or concern of the real owner
or creator. It is the practice of directly copying and then presenting an existing production without accurate
citing or referencing, and/or passing off the product as one’s own, without permission from the original
producer.

Summarizing is identifying the main idea and the important details upon reading the text and transforming
them into your own words. It is like getting the juices from fresh fruits. Summarizing is done after reading the
text and could be an individual or group activity. In order to form a good summary, the following techniques
and tips could help.

Techniques and Tips in Summarizing

A. Read and analyze the text you are about to summarize and repeat over and over again until you comprehend it
wholly and correctly.

B. Identify the main idea of the text.

C. Grasp the words, phrases, and sentences that are essentials and condense the text.

Ways of Condensation
• Use the synonym or synonymous phrases
e.g. He had a good command of English.
(He knew English well.)

• Change the structure of simple sentences

e.g. My brother has an appreciation for modern art.
(My brother appreciates modern art)

• Turn complex sentences into simple sentences

e.g. Hurry up, if you don’t you will miss the train.
(Hurry up or you will miss the train.)

D. Ensure smooth flow of ideas. Use transition words and connectors.

Transitional Devices
• To add: and, again, and then, equally important, finally, further, furthermore, too, next, lastly,
moreover, in addition

• To compare: whereas, on the other hand, however, nevertheless, on the contrary, although,
conversely, meanwhile, in contrast

• To prove: because, for, since, for the same reason, obviously, furthermore, moreover, besides,
indeed, in fact, in addition, in any case, that is

E. Avoid personal ideas and inferences.

F. Make sure not to go far from the idea of the author or the original text when summarizing. Always retain the
original idea of the text.

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G. Document the text’s author, title, date of publication, and any important citation information to avoid plagiarism.
H. Proofread your work. Check the grammar, punctuation, spelling, and capitalization

EXAMPLE:

Original Source:

In the meantime, the family of the queen were very much separated from each other, the children having been left in
various places, exposed each to different privations and dangers. Two or three of them were in London in the hands of
their father's enemies. Mary, the young bride of the Prince of Orange, was in Holland. Prince Charles, the oldest son,
who was now about fourteen years of age, was at the head of one of his father's armies in the west of England. Of
course, such a boy could not be expected to accomplish anything as a general, or even to exercise any real military
command. He, however, had his place at the head of a considerable force, and though there were generals with him to
conduct all the operations, and to direct the soldiery, they were nominally the lieutenants of the prince, and acted, in all
cases, in their young commander's name. Their great duty was, however, after all, to take care of their charge; and the
army which accompanied Charles was thus rather an escort and a guard, to secure his safety, than a force from which
any aid was to be expected in the recovery of the kingdom.

Reference:
Abbott, Jacob. History of King Charles the Second of England. Project Gutenberg, 2004. Web. 28 March 2010.

Summary:
The queen’s children were scattered around Europe, with the young Prince Charles serving as the nominal head of the
army in England. The chief role of the army at this was, in fact, to protect the prince (Abbott, 2004). (Avoiding
Plagiarism and Citing Sources n.d.)
Written Work:

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 ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES (EAPP)
First Semester, SY 2022-2023

MELC 4: States the thesis statement of an academic text

Input 1: What is a Thesis Statement?

A thesis statement:
• It is the roadmap for the paper, in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper
• It is usually a single sentence near the beginning of an academic paper (most often, at the end of the first
paragraph) that presents the argument of the writer. (The Writing Center n.d.)
• It is a tentative answer to a research question.

A thesis statement is comprised of two parts:

1. The topic/ subject
2. The writer’s opinion on the topic
Thesis Statement
Libraries are essential resources for
communities and should be funded more
heavily by local municipalities.
Corporations should provide more work from
home opportunities and six-hour workdays
so that office workers have a better work-life
balance and are more likely to be productive
when they are in the office.
Topic Writer’s opinion
Libraries are essential resources for
communities and should be funded
more heavily by local municipalities
Corporations should provide more work from home
opportunities and six-hour workdays
so that office workers have a better
work-life balance and are more likely
to be productive when they are in the
office.1

Input 2: Locating Explicit and Implicit Thesis Statements

A. Explicit thesis statement
• It is included as a sentence as part of the text. It might be near the beginning of the work, but not always-
some types of academic writing leave the thesis until conclusion.
• Most academic texts have explicit thesis statements. This includes who, what, where, when, why, and
how.

B. Implicit thesis statement

• The primary point of the reading is conveyed indirectly, in multiple locations throughout the work.

Example:
Explicit: Nuclear energy is too dangerous to be used as a source of electrical energy because of its detrimental effect
on the environment.

Implicit: Nuclear energy is too dangerous to be used as a source of electrical energy

Input 3: How to make Successful Thesis Statement

 Provide readers with the main claim of your paper. It tells readers what your paper will be about
 Makes a claim that others may either agree or disagree with
 Create a statement, rather than a question.
 It must be written in your own words. It is not a quote from a source.

 A strong thesis statement must be arguable, focused, and important.

o Arguable- a thesis statement specifies a point of view and could be supported with evidence
o Focused- a thesis statement must concentrate to a specific topic from a general or broader subject.
o Important- a thesis statement must make a relevant and argumentative claim which could be supported
with evidences.

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 ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES (EAPP)
First Semester, SY 2022-2023

MELC 5: Outlines reading texts in various disciplines

Input 1: What is an Outline?

 a general plan of what you are going to write.

 outline makes your essay more organized.
 a plan for a writing project or speech.

In writing your outline, you can begin with a scratch outline –it is a working outline that usually begins with few
phrases and some descriptive details. Doing a scratch outline keeps the writers add, subtract, and shift key
points until it makes sense to him (Cardenas, 2018).

Input 2: Terms to Ponder

THESIS STATEMENT is a claim or stand that will be developed in a paper or text. It is the controlling idea of an essay.
It gives the readers an idea of what the paper is all about. It usually found at the introduction part of an essay.

TOPIC SENTENCE essentially tells the readers what the rest of the paragraph is about. It is the most important sentence
in a paragraph. The topic sentence helps organize the paragraph by summarizing the information in the entire paragraph.
All sentences after the topic sentence should provide enough information to prove it by offering facts and by describing it
in details –they are called supporting details.

SUPPORTING DETAILS contain facts, statements, examples, and ideas that guide in understanding the topic sentence.
Supporting details clarify and explain topic sentence (Cardenas, 2020).

For example:
Thesis Statement: Everyone should own a dog because dogs provide companionship, protection, and
great entertainment.

Topic Sentence: Dogs make wonderful pets because they help you to live longer.

TOPIC CONTROLLING IDEA

Every topic sentence will have a topic and a controlling idea. The controlling idea shows the direction the paragraph will
take –called the supporting details.

Input 3: Basic Structure of an Outline

I. Introduction – thesis statement

II. Body Paragraph no. 1 – topic sentence no. 1
A. Supporting details –examples and ideas that support the topic sentence no.1

III. Body Paragraph no. 2 – topic sentence no. 2

A. Supporting details –examples and ideas that support the topic sentence no.2

IV. Body Paragraph no. 3 – must contain topic sentence no. 3

A. Supporting details –examples and ideas that support the topic sentence no. 3

V. Conclusion – restates your argument and show why your argument matters

Components of an Effective Outline

1. Parallelism –each heading and subheading should preserve parallel structure. If the first heading is a verb, the
second heading should be a verb too.

2. Division –each heading should be divided into two or more parts.

3. Coordination –all the information contained in heading 1 should have the same significance as the information
contained in heading 2. The same goes with subheading which should be less significant than the headings.

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 4. Subordination –the information in the headings should be more general, while the information in the
subheadings should be more specific.

Input 4: The Process of Outlining

ROMAN NUMERALS - can be used to represent paragraphs.
CAPITAL LETTERS – can be to represent the supporting details for the paragraphs

Example of an Outline

I. Introduction –Thesis Statement: A job interview can often make or break your chances of getting
your dream job. There are several things to consider increasing the possibility of your success such as
dressing properly, answering interview questions thoroughly, and asking good questions at the
end of the interview.

II. Body Paragraph no. 1

Topic Sentence: The way you dress can have a big impact to interview panel’s first impressions of
you.
A. Men and women should consider wearing dark suits.
B. Conservative dress will show the interview panel you are serious of what you do.
C. Do not carry to many things in the interview. A notebook, pens, or laptop should be carried
in a briefcase.
D. Hair and nails should be clean and neat.

III. Body Paragraph no. 2

Topic Sentence: An interview is an opportunity for potential employers to get to know you better, so it
is important that you answer each question as completely as possible.
A. Ask interviewers to repeat questions you do not understand.
B. Take some time to think about the question before you answer.
C. A notebook to write down key words in interview questions is sometimes helpful.

IV. Body Paragraph no. 3

Topic Sentence: By preparing some thoughtful questions for the end of the interview, you can
show the panel that you have prepared the interview and want the job.
A. Research the job and/or company before you go to the interview.
B. The interview is your opportunity to get to know your potential employer. Ask question
about the company goals, mission, expectations of employees, etc.
C. Do not ask questions about benefits or salary during the interview. You should try to get
this information before you apply for the job.

V. Conclusion: Do not underestimate the importance of good interview.

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 ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES (EAPP)
First Semester, SY 2022-2023

MELC 6: Uses appropriate critical approaches in writing a critique

Input 1: Critical Approaches

Critical Approaches are different perspectives considered when looking at the piece of literature. They seek to give us
answers to these questions, in addition to aiding us in interpreting literature.
1. What do we read?
2. Why do we read?
3. How do we read?

Input 2: Types Critical Approaches used in Literature

1. Formalist Criticism emphasizes the form of a literary work to determine its meaning, focusing on literary elements
and how they work to create meaning.
 Examine a text as independent from its time period, social setting and author’s background. A text is an
independent entity.
 Focuses on close reading texts and analysis of the effects of literary elements and techniques on the text.

Two Major Principles of Formalism

1. A literary text exists independent of any particular reader and, in sense, has a fixed meaning.
2. The greatest literary text are “timeless” and “universal”

Common aspects looked into in formalism:

 The name of the author is not important
 The time in which the author lived is not important
 The political belief of the author is not important
 The actual reader is not important
 The key understanding of a text is through a text itself
 Author’s techniques in resolving contradictions within the work.
 Relationship of the form and the content
 Unity in the work

2. Feminist Criticism is concerned with the role, position, and influence of a women in literary text.
 Asserts the most “literature” throughout time has been written by men,for men.
 Examines the way that the female consciousness is depicted by both male and female writers.

Common aspects looked into in feminism:

 How culture determines gender.
 How gender equality is presented in the text
 How gender issues are presented in literary works.
 How women are socially, politically, psychologically and economically oppressed by patriarchy.

3. Reader-Response Criticism asserts that a great deal of meaning in a text lies with how the reader responds to it.
 Focuses on the act of reading and how it affects our perception of meaning in the text. (how we feel at the
beginning vs. the end)
 Deals more with the process of creating meaning and experiencing a text as we read. A text is an experience,
not an object
 The text is a living thing that lives in the reader’s imagination.

Two important ideas in Reader-Response

1. An individual reader’s interpretation usually changes over time.
2. Readers from different generations and different time periods interpret texts differently.

4. Deconstruction is a school of literary criticism that suggests that language is not a stable entity, and that we can
never exactly say what we mean.
 Explains that literature cannot give a reader any one single meaning, because the language itself is simply too
ambiguous.
 Deconstructionists value the idea that literature cannot provide any outside meaning; texts cannot represent
reality.
 Deconstructionist critic will deliberately emphasize the ambiguities of the language that produce a variety of
meanings and possible readings of a text.

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5. Psychological Criticism views a text as revelation of its author’s mind and personality. It is based on the work of
Sigmund Freud.
 Focuses on the hidden motivation of literary characters.
 Looks at literary characters as a reflection of the writer.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:
Reading Academic Text Techniques
1. Summary must be shorter than the original text and include the main points or key words only.

2. Paraphrase came from the Greek work phrazein which means “tell”. Paraphrasing involves putting
information from a source into your own words, without changing the meaning of the source you used.
In paraphrasing, you must have full understanding on the text so that when you restructure the words
and phrases, you could preserve the original message or idea and match it to the context. It helps you
control the temptation to quote too much. And the mental process required for successfully doing so
helps you to grasp the full meaning of the original text.

Example:
Original: Giraffes like Acacia leaves and hay and they can consume 75 pounds of food a day. 
Paraphrase: A giraffe can eat up to 75 pounds of Acacia leaves and hay every day.

3. Outline is a general plan of what you are going to write which makes your essay more organized. It can be
used as a plan for a writing project or speech.

Important Notes in Getting Information from Sources

 APA in-text citation uses the author’s last name and the date of its publication
Example:
…(Ventocilla, 2022)

 References – the list of works you have referred to in in the report using in-text citations
including books, journals, websites, and other materials.
Example:
Ouellette, J. (2019, November 15). Physicists capture first footage of quantum knots unraveling
in superfluid. Ars Technica. https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/11/study-you-can-tie-a-
quantum-knot-in-a-superfluid-but-it-will-soon-untie-itself/

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