ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC

AND PROFESSIONAL
PURPOSES
Academic writing is a process that starts with posing a
question, problematizing a concept, evaluating an opinion, and
ends in answering the question, clarifying the problem, and/or
arguing for a stand.
Academic writing has a specific purpose, which is to inform, to
argue a specific point, and to persuade. It also addresses a
specific audience; your teacher, your peers/classmates who will
read and evaluate your work, and the academic community that
may also read your work.
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. As well as this it is in the standard written
form of the language.
Academic writing is thinking; you cannot just write
anything that comes to your mind. You have to abide by
the set rules and practices in writing. You have to write
in a language that is appropriate and formal but not too
pretentious. You also have to consider the knowledge
and background of your audience. You have to make
sure that you can back up your statement with strong
and valid evidence.
Academic writing is clear, concise,
focused, structured, and backed up by
evidence. Its purpose is to aid the reader's
understanding. It has a formal tone and style,
but it is not complex and does not require the
use of long sentences and complicated
vocabulary
 FEATURES OF ACADEMIC WRITING
There are ten main features of academic writing that are often discussed. Academic writing is to
some extent: complex, formal, objective, explicit, hedged, and responsible. It uses language
precisely and accurately.

1. Complexity-Written language is relatively more complex than

spoken language. Written language has longer words, it is lexically
more dense and it has a more varied vocabulary. It uses more noun-
based phrases than verb-based phrases. Written texts are shorter
and the language has more grammatical complexity, including more
subordinate clauses and more passives.
2. Formality
Academic writing is relatively formal. In general this
means that in an essay you should avoid colloquial
words and expressions.

3. Precision
In academic writing, facts and figures are given precisely.
4. Objectivity
Written language is in general objective rather than personal. It
therefore has fewer words that refer to the writer or the reader.

This means that the main emphasis should be on the information

that you want to give and the arguments you want to make, rather
than you. For that reason, academic writing tends to use nouns
(and adjectives), rather than verbs (and adverbs).
5. Explicitness
Academic writing is explicit about the relationships in
the text. Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the
writer in English to make it clear to the reader how the
various parts of the text are related. These connections
can be made explicit by the use of different signalling
words.
6. Accuracy
Academic writing uses vocabulary accurately.
Most subjects have words with narrow specific
meanings. Linguistics distinguishes clearly
between "phonetics" and "phonemics"; general
English does not.
7. Hedging-
In academic writing, it is prudent to be cautious in
one's statements so as to distinguish between facts
and claims. This is commonly known as ―”hedging.”
Hedging is the use of linguistic devices to express
hesitation or uncertainty as well as to demonstrate
politeness and indirectness.
8. Responsibility
In academic writing you must be responsible for, and must
be able to provide evidence and justification for, any claims
you make. You are also responsible for demonstrating an
understanding of any source texts you use.
9. Organization
Academic writing is well organized. It flows easily
from one section to the next in a logical fashion. A
good place to start is the genre of your text. Once
you have decided on the genre, the structure is
easily determined.
10. Planning
Academic writing is well planned. It
usually takes place after research and
evaluation, according to a specific
purpose and plan.
Requirements of Academic To improve
your academic writing: a) The content of
your essay b) Correct grammar c)
Advanced level vocabulary d) Critical
thinking skills
a) The Content of Your Essay
Writing focuses on a variety of issues such as reacting to a
piece of literature or writing about science or politics. The
students need to understand the topic and research it before
attempting their first draft. This can be done through reading
encyclopedia articles to build a foundation. The body
paragraphs may include examples, statistics, examples,
questions, definitions, quotations, and anecdotes. By giving
supporting ideas, you make your main idea more detailed,
easier to read, and much more impressive.
b) Correct Grammar
Students need to review the basic grammatical
structures such as subjects and verbs. Students
much check their essay for verb-tense consistency
and correct punctuation. It is recommended that
your sentences become more complex by including
transitions, gerunds, and embedded clauses.
Transition Words are used to spice up your work and to make the sections flow
more smoothly from one to another. Within these types of words, your writing will
become choppy.
Transition words should really fall very naturally throughout a composition.
Transition words include words such as Therefore However, Moreover, Lastly, Next,
Also, Furthermore, In addition to, Similarly, Likewise, Accordingly, Hence,
Consequently, As a result, Thereby, Otherwise, Subsequently, Thus, So then,
Wherefore, Generally, Usually, For the most part, As a rule, Ordinarily, Regularly, In
particular, For instance, Particularly, Especially, Such as, Including, Namely, For
example, As an example, In this case, Above all, Singularly, Likewise, Coupled with,
Compared to, In comparison to, Together with, Besides, In brief, In short, In
conclusion, In the meantime, Soon, Later, In the meanwhile, Afterward, Earlier, In
summary, To summarize, Finally, Before, After, By the way, Incidentally, As a result of,
Accidentally, Here, There, Over there, Opposite, Under, Beyond, In the distance,
Examples 1. Carla spent a long day working at the school and then
cooking dinner for her family. She got a large cup of coffee. Carla
spent a long day working at the school and then cooking dinner for
her family. Therefore, she got a large cup of coffee.

Examples 2. Jeffrey will be ready to leave for the trip in twenty

minutes. Fill up the car with gas please. Jeffrey will be ready to
leave for the trip in twenty minutes. In the meanwhile, fill up the car
with gas please.
Embedded Clauses "One clause may be embedded within another, that is, it
may be used as a constituent part of another clause. Such a clause is called an
embedded clause (or a subordinate clause) and the clause within which it is
embedded is called the matrix clause.
The embedded clause is a constituent of the matrix clause. A clause that could
occur on its own as a sentence is called a main clause.
Examples: The boy who came is his cousin. I told him that I would go. He left
when the bell rang.
The three kinds of embedded clauses illustrated here are a relative clause (who
came), a noun clause (that I would go), and an adverb clause (when the bell
rang). Note that embedded clauses are usually marked in some way, e.g., by the
initial who, that, and when in the above sentences."
c) Advanced Level Vocabulary
Slang and abbreviated terms are not acceptable in formal
writing. Academic writing requires sophisticated
vocabulary. Students need to have a new dictionary and
thesaurus to help expand their word knowledge. Students
have to be aware of how often words and phrases are
repeated throughout your essay. Students have to search
for synonyms to replace simple words.
d) Critical Thinking Skills
Critical thinking requires you to approach a subject from
multiple angles. The word "critical" suggests that you should
come to the topic with heightened awareness of fallacies,
missing information and contradictions.
Critical thinking involves effective communication and
problem-solving, and requires constant analyzing, reasoning
and evaluating.
Critical thinking skills are imperative for young students and
even adults to perform well academically and professionally.
Critical thinking skills are usually separated into three categories:
affective, cognitive strategies encompassing macro-abilities and cognitive
strategies for micro-skills. These skills will help you to understand yourself
and the people you interact with, and you will also be able to utilize
information better. Other areas to be considered as you write:
1. Content: clarity of the purpose and the thesis statement, relevance of
the supporting points to the thesis statement, knowledge on the
subject matter
2. Structure: coherence and logical sequence of the ideas
3. Language and style: word choice, sentence construction
4. Mechanics: grammar, punctuations, capitalization, formatting,
documentation
Formal language is characterized by the use of
standard English, more complex sentence
structures, infrequent use of personal pronouns,
and lack of colloquial or slang terms. Informal
language allows the use of nonstandard English
forms, colloquial vocabulary and typically shorter
sentence structures.
Formal language does not use colloquialisms,
contractions or first person pronouns such as 'I' or 'We' .
For example: We regret to inform you that the delivery
will be delayed due to adverse weather conditions
[formal] Sorry, but the delivery will be late because of the
weather [informal]. Formal language is more casual and
spontaneous.
The tone of informal language is more personal than formal
language. Informal writing consists of short sentences and is used
in more personal settings, such as writing a letter to a friend or
writing a diary entry.
Informal language is more casual and spontaneous. It is used when
communicating with friends or family either in writing or in
conversation.
It is used when writing personal emails, text messages and in some
business correspondence. The tone of informal language is more
personal than formal language.
Casual language is the language you would use when
you're talking to a friend. It is very informal in tone and full
of a range of words and grammar that identify it as being
casual.
Nature and Characteristics
of an Academic Text
An academic text is a reading material that provides information
which include concepts and theories that are related to the specific
discipline.
The following are considered as academic texts:
Research Paper
Conference Paper
Feasibility Study
Thesis/Dissertation
Reviews, Essay
Academic Journals
, Reports.
Structure
Unlike fiction or journalistic writing, the overall
structure of an academic text is formal and logical
(Introduction, Body, Conclusion). It must be cohesive
and possess a logically organized flow of ideas; this
means that various parts are connected to form a
unified whole.
Tone
The overall tone refers to the attitude conveyed in a
piece of writing. The arguments of others are fairly
presented and with an appropriate narrative tone.
When presenting a position or argument that
disagrees with one’s perspectives, describe the
argument accurately without loaded or biased
language.
Language
It is important to use unambiguous language. Clear
topic sentences enable a reader to follow your line of
thinking without difficulty. Formal language and the
third person point-of view should be used. Technical
language appropriate to the area of study may also be
used, however it does not mean using “big words” just
for the sake of doing so.
Citation
Citing sources in the body of the paper and providing a
list of references as either footnotes or endnotes is a
very important aspect of an academic text. It is essential
to always acknowledge the source of any ideas,
research findings, data, or quoted text that have been
used in a paper as a defense against allegations of
plagiarism.
Complexity
An academic text addresses complex issues that require
higher-order thinking skills to comprehend.

Evidence-based Arguments

What is valued in an academic text is that opinions are based

on a sound understanding of the pertinent body of knowledge
and academic debates that exist within, and often external to
a specific discipline.
Thesis driven
The starting point of an academic text is a
particular perspective, idea or position applied to
the chosen research problem, such as
establishing, proving, or disproving solutions to
the questions posed for the topic.
Academic Language
Academic Language refers to the oral, written, auditory,
and visual language proficiency required to learn
effectively in schools and academic programs. It is also
the language used in classroom lessons, books, tests,
and assignments. It is the language that students are
expected to learn and achieve fluency in.
Why is academic language so important?
Students who master academic language are more likely to be
successful in academic and professional settings
What is difference between academic language and social
language?
Social language is the simple, informal language we use when
talking face to face with family members and friends. It allows us
to use contemporary or slang terms like “cool,” “awesome,” or
“dude.” We can also communicate feelings, needs, and wants
using symbolic hand gestures for drink, eat, hot, cold, hurt, or
tired. Social language also includes writing emails, friendly letters,
and texts or retelling stories.
Academic language
is different from everyday social language. It is the vocabulary
students or adults must learn to succeed in the classroom or in
the workplace. We use academic language to describe and
comprehend complex ideas, process higher-order thinking, and
understand abstract concepts. Academic language is what
students read in textbooks and on tests and what they hear
during instruction in the classroom. Students with limited or low
academic language skills are more than likely to have low
academic performance in classroom settings. (Source:
www.handyhandouts.com)
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING