Academic Writing 1 - General Introduction PDF

ACADEMIC WRITING 1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION LANGUAGE CENTRE, UNIVERSITY OF GHANA 1  INTRODUCTION Academic writing is part of a larger concept known as academic discourse. To understand what academic writing is, first we need to understand...

ACADEMIC WRITING 1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION LANGUAGE CENTRE, UNIVERSITY OF GHANA 1  INTRODUCTION Academic writing is part of a larger concept known as academic discourse. To understand what academic writing is, first we need to understand academic discourse.  Academic discourse Academic Discourse Something that relates to Discourse is a sort of education or scholarship "identity kit" which comes Something that is complete with the theoretical appropriate costume and A person who teaches instructions on how to act, and/or undertakes talk, and often write, so as research at a higher to take on a particular role education institution that others will recognize” (Gee, 2011, p. 7). Academic discourse  Writing that allows you to “Constructs the roles and take on a particular role relationships which create that others in an academic academics and students context recognise. and which sustain the For instance, writing that universities, the disciplines allows a lecturer to and the creation of recognise you as a student knowledge” (Hyland, 2009, Academic in Anthropology, Political Science Physics, etc. p. 1). writing Academic writing  Academic Writing – Importance (1) Constructing roles, and relationships –The role of researcher –The role of a student taking an exam –The role of a lecturer as an examiner  Academic writing – Importance (2) Sustaining universities –Creating knowledge through writing about research findings; and –Transmitting knowledge through the publication of written material such as books, journal articles, thesis, long essays, etc.  Academic Writing – Features Formality: the use of chatty, slang or Defined structure; that is, it ‘text messaging’ language is avoided. has an introduction, The use of contractions, e.g. “can’t”, It develops a clear and sound middle/main section and a “won’t”, etc., must be kept to an absolute minimum. The writer’s argument. conclusion, and each of these language must be measured, and parts has its own structure. emotionalism should be avoided. Evidence/research-based: It Multi-voiced and referenced: provides supporting evidence It illustrates an understanding for the arguments made. Can you think of other of the subject by commenting Arguments are supported features of academic writing on other people’s ideas and with examples, citation, apart from these? views, and ‘pulling them statistics, explanation, together’. references to authority, etc.  Academic writing – Forms What form does academic writing take? – Argumentative This is writing that presents someone’s perspective on a given topic. The person’s perspective has to be informed by evidence. – Expository This is writing that explains a given concept or topic. Its purpose is to help an audience understand the concept, topic or subject of the piece of writing.  Academic Writing – Forms – Narrative This recounts an activity that has already happened or is ongoing. For instance, giving a report of a field trip that you took as part of a project. – Descriptive This writing presents a description of something or an activity you have been involved in. For instance, you may be required to describe the processes involved in a certain experiment that you performed in a laboratory. NOTE: A good academic essay is characterised by a healthy blend of these forms.  Engaging in academic writing One very important thing that you have to know about writing in general and academic writing in particular is that it is a process. Process – Step-by-step – Series of activities – Following a plan of action Engaging in academic writing Pre-writing Choosing a topic Brainstorming Researching Planning Outlining The process approach Drafting Post-writing Composing (in multiple drafts) Proofreading based on Editing information gathered  Academic Writing – Sample Traditional and Modern Leadership in Africa J.R.A Aryee The need to study traditional and modern leadership is never as critical as in the case of Africa. In the words of Chazan et al. (1992) “… Leadership is … one of the many guides to the intricacies of political processes on the continent”. In addition, leadership is important in defining the success (or otherwise) of good governance – a rare commodity on the African continent. The richness of the continent’s ancient heritage, the wealth of its abundant natural resources, and the vibrancy of its more than 800 million people, conjures the vision of a secure and prosperous future. However, Africa has been reduced to a perilous and parlous state, badly lagging behind other regions of the world in human development. Much of this is explained by the exploitation of the land and its peoples by a century or more of colonialism whose dark legacy lingers still in the form of skewed cross-ethnic national boundaries and the clandestine pursuit of post colonial foreign interests represented by multinational corporations. Equally much is explained through failures, or at least the shortcomings, on the part of Africa’s leaders to promote long term rational policies and programmes that transcend not only national boundaries but also regional ones. Mixed in socio-economic deprivation, and vulnerable to the vagaries of global epidemics and predations of globalization, African peoples are crying out for transformational leadership for their common redemption. Source: Manuh, T. & Sutherland- Addy, E. (Eds.) (2013). Africa in contemporary perspective: A textbook for undergraduate students. Accra: Sub-Saharan publishers. Though the extract above is short, it has evident features of academic writing. It presents an argument; that Africa lags behind in spite of its potential of being prosperous. It provides evidence backed by reference information: the writer quotes the work of another author to support part of his claim and acknowledges his source. Note that the author makes grammatical (i.e., the absence of contracted forms) and lexical (formal diction) choices that render the writing academic.  Discourse communities The kind of writing that has been described happens in particular communities that are known as discourse communities. These communities, according to Swales (1990), have four (4) defining features: Mechanisms of intercommunication among members; The use of participatory mechanisms for providing information and feedback [assessment, reviews, tutorials; The possession of a number of genres[ essays, reports, research articles] for the communicative furtherance of aims; and The acquisition of specific lexis (words/ terms).  Discourse communities: Examples School of Languages Sociology A Facebook page Political Science department Etc.  Characteristics of Academic Discourse Communities Goals Intercommunication Participation Genres Lexis Expertise  Discourse communities, reading, writing and you Success for you as a student is dependent largely on your being able to function within the discourse communities that you belong. To belong you must: Write in ways acceptable to other members of the community; Read what has been produced by other members of the community. In fact, it is by reading what has been written by members of a community that you come to know how to write for that community.  Four ways to read Scanning Quick reading that allows you to locate information that you need. Skimming Quick reading that allows you to make up your mind about a piece of text. This reading gives you what is called ‘the gist’ of the text. Close reading This is careful reading that ensures you do not miss any details in a piece of text. This is the reading technique most useful to you as an enterprising member of an academic discourse community. Extensive reading Extensive reading is employed where there is the need to broaden your understanding of the world. In extensive reading, you do not limit the material you read to subjects, courses, programmes you are studying.  Reading – SQ3R An important reading method that you need to master is the SQ3R. S – Survey Review the text to have an initial general idea about it. Q – Question Ask questions about what you are reading Turn headings and subheadings to questions 3R – Read Closely read the text, making notes Pay attention to every detail including punctuation, word meaning, etc. – Recite/recall Try to remember what you have read – Review Review what you have recited to test your comprehension; go over your notes  Conclusion This lecture has – Discussed academic discourse and academic writing; – Highlighted the features of academic writing; – Discussed the forms that academic writing takes; – Presented the process approach as essential to writing in academia; – Discussed the concept of discourse community; and – Highlighted the link between writing and reading.  References Gee, J. P. (2011). An introduction to discourse analysis: Theory and method. New York: Routledge. Hyland, K. (2009). Academic discourse: English in a global context. London: Continuum. Swales, J. M. (1990). Genre Analysis. English in academic and research settings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.