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The Language of Academic Writing

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THE LANGUAGE OF ACADEMIC WRITING

GHAYTH K. S. AL-SHAIBANI, PhD

Honorary Lecturer
School of Languages, Literacies and
Translation
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang,
Malaysia

Time: 2 – 5 pm
Thursday 24 November 2016
Venue: Conference Hall

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As an invited speaker, I presented this topic at the School of Languages,
Literacies and Translation, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). This
presentation was delivered on Thursday 24 November 2016 to
postgraduates for three hours.

How to cite this presentation

■ Downloaded from ResearchGate:
Al-Shaibani, G. K. S. (2016). The language of academic writing
[PowerPoint slides as PDF]. Retrieved from URL link.
■ Downloaded from Slideshare:
Al-Shaibani, G. K. S. (2016). The language of academic writing
[PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from
https://www.slideshare.net/DrGhayth2015/presentations.

2
 Contents
1. Tenses
2. Connectors
3. Relative Clauses
4. Sentences
5. Verbs
6. Prepositions
7. Spelling and punctuation
8. Some common errors and problems
9. Pieces of advice
10. References and useful sources

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1. Tenses
What tenses do postgraduates need to use in writing a
research proposal or a thesis/dissertation?

A) Past simple and/or present perfect (APA style) can be used

in Chapter One in the Introduction/Background/ Overview, in
the literature review, in reporting the experimental procedures
and findings, and in the abstract as shown in the examples
given below.

1. Simpson (2001) designed the experiment based on a

number of factors.
2. News has become increasingly important to many people
as they want to know what is going on in the world (Barker,
2004).

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3. The researcher found out that power relations are hardly
defined clearly in the text. [in the findings]
4. Fifty % of the students wrote good essays.
5. Forty % of the children showed great interest in learning
English.
6. This study raised the question of how cultural factors
influence news content. [in the thesis/dissertation abstract]

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B) Present simple can be used instead of the past and/or
present perfect mentioned in (A) above if you are writing in
MLA style as shown in the examples below.

1. Simpson (2001) designs the experiment based on a

number of factors.
2. The researcher finds out that power relations are hardly
defined clearly in the text. [in the findings]
3. This study raises the question of how cultural factors
influence news content. [in the
thesis/dissertation/article abstract]

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Present simple can be also used in the description of (a
country, table, and figure) and in reporting facts from the
previous research or from your own research as shown
below.

1. Iraq is located in the Middle East and is surrounded by

Arab and non-Arab countries.
2. The figure shows a hypothetical schematic structure of a
standard news story.
3. Table 5.3 provides a summary of the most frequent
expressions used by the respondents.
4. This pattern/behavior is prominent in this study/in this
part of the study.

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C) Future simple can be used in the earlier chapters and
sections. It can be also used in writing a research proposal
where future tasks/procedures are required.

1. This notion will be explained in great detail in Chapter

Three/in the subsequent section(s) in this chapter.
2. The samples of this study will be selected carefully.
3. This shortcoming will not help the researcher to answer
the first question.
4. This concept will be adopted to conclude common
meanings from the text.

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2. Connectors
They are usually three main types: and, or, and but. There are
also other connectors as pronouns.
And family includes therefore, as a result, accordingly,
consequently, thus, hence, in addition, furthermore, and
moreover. These are used when the relevant sentences have
similar or related meanings or ideas as in:

1. Although there are a number of linguists who are actively

involved in the analysis of news discourse, there is still a
need for more; therefore, Fowler (1991) called for more work
to be conducted on the media in order to find out how
language works in the news media.

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Or family includes in other words, to put it more simply, to
elaborate further, and alternatively/instead. They are used
when comments or statements are expressed in another
way, adding more clarity or offering another option as in:

1. The recourse to references and allusions which exist in

prior texts is called intertextuality. In other words, it is
realised in a text which incorporates parts of other texts.
For example, it is manifested in a news report when the
journalist uses quotations taken from the interviewees.

But family includes however, nevertheless, nonetheless,

yet, in spite of that, although, even though, on the contrary,
and in contrast to. They are used when there are opposite
arguments or contradictory opinions/views/results as in:
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1. To sum up, Fairclough’s (1992; 1995a; 1995b; 2001;
2003) approach is interesting as it deals with socio-cultural
changes occurring in contemporary society, and how
developments at different levels have influenced and shaped
discourse production and interpretation. However, what is
missing in his framework is the analysis of theme.

Other connectors (pronouns) such as he, she, they, and

his/her/their work/study/research are also used as in:
1. Wodak (2001a) examined the discriminatory discourse in
the ‘Austria first’ petition (1992-1993) which was against the
migrated foreigners in Austria. To thoroughly examine the text,
she provided the history of the political party, Austrian
Freedom Party.

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3. Relative Clauses

A relative clause is a part of a sentence which starts with

who, which, that, whose, and whom. Who refers to persons;
while, which or that refers to things.
1. This is also argued by Musolff (1995) who basically
asserted that there is a need for more analysis of the
language of political discourse.
2. The students, who are above 30, were eliminated.
3. Psychology may be defined as the branch of biological
science which/that studies the phenomena of conscious
life and behavior.

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4. Sentences

A sentence starts with a capital letter and ends with a full

stop. It may contain simple or complex information as
shown in the following examples.
1. The number of online newspapers soared after 1980’s
(Garrison, 2005).
2. In most works of translation, accuracy is of paramount
importance; therefore, it makes sense that much of the
scholarly analysis of translation focuses on the issue of
accuracy (Ali, 2004). [consists of two independent
clauses connected with therefore]

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3. Because international news plays a key role in shaping
people’s understanding of the world, it is important to
consider what factors which shape international news
(Barker, 2004). [consists of two clauses - dependent and
independent respectively connected with Because]

4. Scholars such as Hamilton-Hart (2005) argue that such

exhortations, subsequently, resulted in an articulation of a
US foreign policy that was marked by a wide ranging array of
new security concerns that had far-reaching consequences in
domestic and foreign policies throughout the world including
South East Asia (Sivabala Nadu, 2010). [consists of three
clauses]

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5. Verbs
Verbs used in the academic writing vary according to the
kind of statement that the researcher would like to make.
Some useful verbs and linguistic structures are given below.
■ This research is concerned with/deals with/involves …
■ The table/figure shows/illustrates/demonstrates …
■ Some researchers/scholars such as Williams (2004) and
Yang (2004) (have) argued/contended
/claimed/proposed/suggested/stressed/
asserted/confirmed/stated/mentioned/said/pointed
out/studied/examined/investigated/conducted/carried
out and so on.
■ He/she (has) discovered/found out/developed…

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Examples:

1. A: An increase in demand often causes higher prices.

1. B: Higher prices are often due to an increase in demand.

2. The unrealistic nature of the participants’ responses to

frightening scenarios was surprising. This is also confirmed
by (author(s), year). However, this is different from the results
obtained by (author(s), year). This could be due to cultural or
individual differences.

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Some impersonal structures often associated with
conclusions:

■ It seems/appears that …
■ It is believed that …
■ There is a tendency to/for …
■ It is widely accepted/agreed that …

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The researcher’s own attitude/voice can be introduced by
using structures such as:

■ The researcher thinks/believes/doubts … [in a thesis]

■ I/We think/believe/doubt … [in a research paper]
■ This is probably to reveal the opinion of the out-group
members.
■ This misevaluation is probably due to cultural gaps
between the Western and Eastern societies.

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For results and discussion, one can use structures such as:

■ This is in line with the past research (author(s), year).

■ This contradicts the findings reported in the literature as
in (author(s), year).
■ On this basis/from the data, it can/may be
concluded/deduced/inferred that …
■ In conclusion/sum, one may say that …

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6. Prepositions
They are probably the most difficult part of speech for English
learners. They may have a similar use in your native language
or completely different. Learners of English should be aware
of the rules of the English prepositions. Consider the
following examples:

■ At room temperature
■ A rise/fall in oil prices
■ On the radio, TV/on campus
■ Similar to, different from
■ The laboratory/classroom is equipped/provided with.

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6. Prepositions, continued

■ A study on
■ Under certain conditions
■ In contrast to/with
■ Compared with/to
■ Aware of
■ An investigation into

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■ Verb + preposition: divide (into), separate (from), marry
(to/with), investigate (into) and lie (to). Write one simple
sentence for each preposition.

1) …………………………………………………………………..………………
2) ……………………………………………………………………………………
3) ……………………………………………………………………………………
4) ……………………………………………………………………………………
5) ……………………………………………………………………………………
6) ……………………………………………………………………………………

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7. Spelling and punctuation

■ Some postgraduate students type/write words with

wrong spelling and with wrong use of punctuation.
■ This makes supervisors, co-supervisors, examiners, and
editors think that the student is careless or reluctant to
do his/her write-up properly.
■ Consequently, this may lead to downgrade the quality of
your research.
■ The proper use of punctuation marks and correct
spelling make reading faster and smoother.

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Examples of wrong spelling:

■ acheive instead of achieve

■ choise instead of choice
■ suficient instead of sufficient
■ carecterists instead of characteristics
■ wich instead of which
■ technics instead of techniques

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■ Most common punctuation marks are comma (,), full-stop
(.), colon (:), semi-colon (;), hyphen (-), apostrophe
(John’s), and question mark (?).

1. A colon is a rather infrequent punctuation mark.

■ It indicates a fairly close interdependence between the
units that it separates.
■ It indicates an explanation and introduces a quotation or
a list of items.
■ As in the title: a case study/a comparative study (before
the sub-title)

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2. A semi-colon joins two independent but related clauses or
sentences. It is used in lists to show sub-grouping (to list
down long structures) as in: butter, cheese, milk (dairy
products); beef, lamb, pork (meat); rice, barley, wheat (grains)

3. A hyphen is used in compound nouns, verbs and

adjectives as in: self-control, re-arrangement, re-combination,
re-write, re-do, well-known, well-organised, well-planned and
the like.

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8. Some common errors and problems

■ Articles with singular and uncountable nouns as in

research and interest:
a research on … and this is of a great interest?
Research has shown that …
Little/Much research has been carried out on …
This has been of great scientific interest.

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8. Some common errors and problems,
continued

■ since and because

1. Because [not since] there is little research on this

area, the researcher would focus on it.
2. Not much research has been conducted on this
area since 1980. Therefore, the researcher would
like to investigate this issue again after more than
30 years ago.

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8. Some common errors and problems,
continued
■ Pronouns: he/she instead of they for Williams et al.,
(2000)
■ like instead of such as, for instance/example
■ but instead of however,
■ adopt or adapt?
1. The researcher has adopted this approach in this
study.
2. The researcher has adapted this approach in this
study.

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8. Some common errors and problems,
continued

■ Word choice as in these two words, summary and

conclusion, in a thesis/dissertation
■ The difference between summary and conclusion
placed in the end of a chapter is not clear to some
students, and where to put the originality of your work
is not clear either.

For Summary, one needs to summarise and paraphrase

a small or a large piece of text to be re-written or re-
produced which involves repetition.
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8. Some common errors and problems,
continued

For Conclusion, one needs to do the same but with

concluding remarks written in the form of statements to
produce something new, not repeated.

Mistakenly, some students repeat in the Summary

section (in the end of a chapter) what has been written in
the Introduction section (in the beginning of the chapter)
by changing the tense from present to past.

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9. Pieces of advice

■ Do your best when you write each single sentence to

make it well-understood by the target readers.
■ Your sentences should be grammatically structured and
correct, logically formulated and well-connected.
■ Avoid informal expressions such as you, guys, cool (i.e.
great), let us, well, so, hmmm, so much, thanks a lot,
thanks so much and the like, except when they are in a
quotation or as part of the collected data.
■ A proper and reliable English-English dictionary can be
used to solve language problems as in uncountable
nouns and particles.

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9. Pieces of advice, continued

■ The headings (sections) in a chapter and the

chapters should be in a logical order if you have more
than five chapters.
■ Read your drafts PRINTED, not only on the monitor,
before passing them to the supervisor and co-
supervisor. It is your thesis, not theirs.
■ After that, you may need to send your drafts to an
experienced professional academic editor with a PhD
degree. If you do so, then you MUST read the edited
drafts to see if the intended meaning is maintained
and not changed by the editor.

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9. Pieces of advice, continued

■ Read the whole chapter to see if it is consistent and

coherent.
■ Read the whole thesis to see if it is consistent and
coherent.
■ Make sure that the number of the figures and
tables matches with the number in the text. You can
do this through search tool in MS Word Processing.
■ You have to have a love relationship with your
research and take good care of it.

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 References

Examples taken from [1-4 , 6 & 9]

1. Ali, G. (2004). English headlines in the Arabic press: a
comparative study from an ideological perspective.
Unpublished PhD dissertation. USM
2. Al-Shaibani, G. (2011). The Iraq war 2003: a critical
discourse analysis. LAMBERT Academic Publishing.
Saarbrucken, Germany.
3. APA (2010). Publication manual of the American
psychological association (6th edition). Washington, DC:
American Psychological Association

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4. Jordan, R. R. (1990). Academic writing course. London:
Collins ELT.
5. Kamler, B. & Thomson, P. (2006). Helping Doctoral
Students Write: pedagogies for supervision. Routledge:
Taylor & Francis Group.
6. Lester, J. D. & Lester, J. D. (2005). Writing research
papers: A complete guide (11th edition). USA: Pearson
Education, Inc.
7. Phillips, E. M. & Pugh, D. S. (2010). How to get a PhD: A
handbook for students and their supervisors. UK: McGraw
Hill: Open University Press.

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8. Salkind, N. J. (2000). Exploring research (4th edition).
USA: Prentice Hall.
9. Sivabala Nadu (2010). Investigating kinaesthetic image
schemas in the construction of the self and the other in
Bush's discourse of the war on terror : A critical discourse
analysis. Unpublished PhD dissertation. USM
10 Wolfe, J. (1996). How to write a Ph.D. thesis. Available
at http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/~jw/thesis.html,
accessed on 5/7/2012.

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Useful links

http://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/academicwriting

https://www.jyu.fi/hum/laitokset/kielet/oppiaineet_kls/
englanti/studies/thesis-and-academic-writing/language-
for-academic-writing

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Thank you

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 QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION

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