DEFINITION AND STRUCTURE OF

ACADEMIC TEXTS
Prepared by:
MICHAEL U. HENSON, LPT, MAEd
 ACADEMIC TEXT
• An academic text is a kind of text that is
commonly characterized with being formal,
studied, researched, objective, exact, direct,
and has the ability to influence its readers.

-Academic text definition - Brainly.ph

https://brainly.ph/question/685729
 FEATURES OF ACADEMIC LANGUAGE
• Academic language has a unique set of rules:
it should be explicit, formal and factual as well
as objective and analytical in nature. Students
often think that academic language should
sound complex and be difficult to write and
understand but that is not necessarily the
case. Instead, academic writing should be
clear and concise in order to communicate its
contents in the best way.
 FIRST FEATURE: FORMAL
• Formal writing requires considerable effort to
construct meaningful sentences, paragraphs, and
arguments that make the text easy to
comprehend. In general this means that
conversational English should be avoided and
facts and figures should be presented in a clear
manner. Academic texts should be factual,
concise and accurate. Choose words precisely and
carefully so that the reader can accurately
understand the concepts within the text.
 FIRST FEATURE: FORMAL
• It is important to remember that academic
texts are written with an academic audience
in mind and your writing style needs to
conform to the conventions of the field you
are studying.
 SECOND FEATURE: ANALYTICAL
• In academic writing, the complexity of the
subject matter is acknowledged through
critical analysis. This can be done through
asking questions and examining and
evaluating evidence. Through critical analysis
we are able to add a new perspective to a
subject instead of just rewriting what has
already been written.
 SECOND FEATURE: ANALYTICAL
• Treating your topic and your material in an
analytical manner should seep through in your
language. Part of being analytical in your
writing is to compare and contrast, evaluate
and consider both sides of an issue. It also
means that you explain, give reasons, draw
conclusions, make suggestions and
recommendations and support this with
evidence.
 THIRD FEATURE: OBJECTIVE
• Academic writing is based on research and not
on the writer’s own opinion about a given
topic. When you write objectively you are
concerned about facts and not influenced by
personal feelings or biases. When presenting
an argument to the reader, try to show both
sides if you can and avoid making value
judgments.
 THIRD FEATURE: OBJECTIVE
• At the same time you will probably have to do
an analysis or a discussion and in that manner
express an attitude. In order to convey
attitude without using for example “I think”,
you may use words such as apparently,
arguably, ideally, strangely and unexpectedly.
Note that the attitude you are expressing
should not be based on personal preferences
but rather on the evidence that you are
presenting.
 FOURTH FEATURE: EXPLICIT
• Academic writing is explicit in several ways. First,
it means that there is a clear presentation of
ideas in the paper. The text should have a well-
organized structure and be easy for the reader to
follow. One way to accomplish clarity and
structure in your text is through the use of
signposts. Signposts are words and phrases that
you can use in your text in order to guide the
reader along. Signposting can be divided into two
different categories: major signposting and
linking words and phrases.
 STRUCTURE OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
• Structure is an important feature of academic
writing. A well-structured text enables the
reader to follow the argument and navigate
the text. In academic writing a clear structure
and a logical flow are imperative to a cohesive
text. Furthermore, in many university
assignments the correct use of structure is
part of the final assessment.
 STRUCTURE OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
• Most academic texts follow established
structures. There are two common structures
in academic writing:
– the three-part essay structure (IBC)
– the IMRaD structure
• Structure should be considered on all levels of
text so you will also find information on
structuring paragraphs.
 STRUCTURE OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
• The structure depends on the type of assignment,
but two common structures used in academic
writing are the three-part essay structure and the
IMRaD structure.
• Even shorter essays that are not divided into
titled sections follow such a structure.
• Longer texts may be further divided into
subsections. Different disciplines or departments
may prefer that students use a certain structure,
so make sure to check with your teacher if you
are not sure what is expected of you.
 THREE-PART ESSAY STRUCTURE
• The three-part essay structure is a basic
structure that consists of introduction, body
and conclusion. The introduction and the
conclusion should be shorter than the body of
the text. For shorter essays, one or two
paragraphs for each of these sections can be
appropriate. For longer texts or theses, they
may be several pages long.
 IMRAD STRUCTURE
• The sections of the IMRaD structure are
Introduction, Methods, Results, and
Discussion
 THE PARAGRAPH
• A paragraph is a collection of sentences that
deal with one topic or idea. When a new
paragraph begins, it signals to the reader that
the focus shifts to a new idea or thought. At
the same time, all paragraphs should connect
to the main topic.
 TOPIC SENTENCES AND SUPPORTING
SENTENCES
• Paragraphs consist of sentences. Each
paragraph should have a topic sentence that
presents the main point or theme of the
paragraph. This sentence is most often near
the beginning of the paragraph.
 TOPIC SENTENCES AND SUPPORTING
SENTENCES
• All other sentences in the paragraph are
supporting sentences that connect back to the
topic sentence. These sentences develop the
idea that is expressed in the topic sentence.
This development may for example be a
deeper analysis, a contrast or an illustrative
example.
 TOPIC SENTENCES AND SUPPORTING
SENTENCES
• The last sentence of the paragraph is the
concluding sentence or transitional sentence.
It sums up the contents of the paragraph and
leads the reader to the following paragraph. It
is important to transition smoothly from one
paragraph to the next. Otherwise the
impression will be that the paragraphs are
piled onto each other rather than constitute
one coherent text.
 TOPIC SENTENCES AND SUPPORTING
SENTENCES
• The length of each paragraph depends on its
contents. This means that the length of
paragraphs may vary. That is, you should not
begin a new paragraph simply because you
feel that now it is long enough. However, if a
paragraph is very short it could be an
indication that something needs to be
developed. If it is very long it could be an
indication that it contains more than one
central idea.
 PARAGRAPH DEVELOPMENT
• Paragraphs can be structured in different
ways. The internal structure of each paragraph
often depends on the idea that is treated in
that specific paragraph and its relationship to
the surrounding paragraphs as well as to the
text as a whole.
 PARAGRAPH DEVELOPMENT
• Your topic and the purpose of the paragraph
should determine its organization. For
example, if your purpose is to illustrate the
differences between two theories, your topic
sentence should tell the reader that you are
about to contrast two theories. You may then
describe first one theory, then the other, and
finally contrast the two.
 GUIDE QUESTIONS
• 1. How was the paragraph developed in terms
of the following features:
– Language used (is it formal?)
– Analysis
– Objective
– Explicit
JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS.
• 2. Describe the following:
– Sentence construction (thoughts, punctuation,
structure, signal words)
– Paragraph construction (main ideas, supporting
details, the use of signal words)
• 3. What does the essay say to you? (Summary)
• 4. What does the essay mean to you?
(Interpretation)
• 5. How does the essay matter?
(Value/Importance)
 INDIVIDUAL ACTIVITY
• 1. Describe the Text’s Information:
– Author, year, title, link/source
• 2. Show the following characteristics of the
text. Then include the evidence based from
the text
Characteristic explanation evidence
FORMAL
EXPLICIT
ANALYTICAL
OBJECTIVE