ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND

PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES

 This aims to teach the students to communicate effectively

in diverse academic and professional situations.
 The course content covers five major headings: (1) Reading
Academic Texts, (2) Writing the Reaction Paper/ Review/
Critique, (3) Writing the Concept Paper, (4) Writing the
Position Paper and, (5) Writing the Survey/ Field/
Laboratory/ Scientific/ Technical Report.
 This contains selections that will help develop the learner’s
competencies in these five areas, each of which
corresponds to one chapter in this anthology.
 An understanding of how language works will help the
students appreciate the role of language in communication
 WHAT IS ACADEMIC WRITING?
 is defined as critical, objective, specialized
texts written by experts or professionals
in a given field using formal language.
 This means that academic texts are based
on facts with solid basis.
 Itis formal by avoiding casual or
conversational language, such as
contractions or informal vocabulary.
 Itis impersonal and objective by avoiding
direct reference to people or feelings
 ACADEMIC TEXT
 Critical,objective, specialized texts written
by experts or professionals in a given field
using formal language. (based on facts
with solid basis)
 Ithas a formal tone and style, but it is not
complex and does not require the use of
long sentences and not complicated
vocabulary.
 Itrefers to a style of expression that
writers use to define the intellectual
boundaries of their disciplines and specific
Formal - avoid casual or conversational
language such as contractions or
informal vocabulary
Impersonal and objective – avoid direct
reference to people or feelings and or
emphasizing objects, facts and ideas.
Technical – use vocabulary specific to the
discipline

Note: to be a good academic writer you

need to learn the specific styles and
structures for your discipline
 ACADEMIC WRITING
 Clear
 Concise
 Focused
 Structured
 Backed up by evidence

 Has a formal tone and style, but it is not

complex and does not require the use of
long sentences and complicated vocabulary
 Its purpose is to aid understanding
 NATURE OF ACADEMIC WRITING
 Kindof text that is commonly
characterized with being formal, studied,
researched, objective, exact, direct, and
has the ability to influence its readers.
 Moreover, it is written with precise
organization in order to help its readers to
have a basic understanding of what the
author’s arguments are that include the
writer’s insights.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF ACADEMIC WRITING

A.Planned and focused – answers the

question and demonstrates an
understanding of the subjects
B. Evidenced – knowledge of the
subject area supports opinions and
arguments with evidence, and is
referenced accurately
CHARACTERISTICS OF ACADEMIC
WRITING
C. Structured – it is coherent, written in a
logical order and brings together related
points and material.

D. Formal in Tone and Style – uses

appropriate language and tenses, and is
clear, concise and balanced.
Features in Academic Writing
Language
1.

2. Vocabulary
3. Sentence length and structure
4. Organization
5. Content
6. Mechanics
FEATURES OF ACADEMIC WRITING

Linear – 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
It is in the standard written form of
language
Below are jumbled parts of a common research paper. Put them
into the correct order by using numbers to represent the sequence.

A. Presentation of the Research Problem F.Interpretation and Discussion of Results

B. Title of the Research Paper G. The Abstract

C. Presentation of the Results H. The Reference List

Review of Past Research Relevant to

D. Recommendations I.
the Paper

E. Overview or Scope of Research J. Description of Method used to Carry

out the Research
Complexity – written language is
relatively complex than spoken
language and 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
Formality – avoid colloquial words and
expressions
Example:
Whenever I’d visited there before, I’d
ended up feeling that it would be futile
if I tried to do anything more.

Every precious visit had left me with a

sense of the futility of further action on
every part.
 Precision – facts and figures are
given precisely
Objectivity – language is in general
objective rather than personal
 Hasfewer words that refer to the
author/writer or the reader
 Themain emphasis is on the information
that is given and the arguments made.
Thus, it tends to use nouns ( and
adjectives) rather than verbs (adverbs)
 Accuracy – uses vocabulary
accurately– makes clear to the reader how the
Explicitness
various parts of the text are related, which can be
made by using different signal words.
Hedging – used to give strength to your stance on a
particular subject or the strength of the claim
- Using cautious language to express the degree of
certainty or uncertainty about a claim, softening
statements to avoid being overly assertive or
potentially inaccurate
Responsibility - you must be responsible and
must be able to provide evidence and justification for
any claims made, as well as demonstrating an
understanding of any source used.
Organization – ideas flow easily from
one section to the next in a logical
fashion.
May start with the genre.

Planning – must be well- planned.

Usually takes place after research and
evaluation according to a specific
purpose
 TYPES OF ACADEMIC TEXT
1. Literary analysis essay examines, evaluates,
and makes an argument about a literary work.
2. Research Paper - uses outside information to
support a thesis or make an argument.
- written in all disciplines and may be
evaluative, analytical,
or critical in nature.

3. Dissertation (or thesis) - is a document

submitted at the conclusion of a Ph.D. program.
- a book-length summarization of the doctoral
candidate’s research.
4. Book Review
5. Literature Review
6. Reaction Paper
7. Project Proposals
8. Position Paper

Structure - important feature of

Academic Writing
 SPECIFIC PURPOSE
1. to inform
2. to argue a specific point and
3. to persuade.

Specific Audience:
4. Teacher
5. Academic Community
6. Peers
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ACADEMIC
AND NON-ACADEMIC TEXT

ACADEMIC NON - ACADEMIC

generally  personal, emotional,
quite
impressionistic or
formal, subjective in nature. It
objective can be informal in tone,
(impersonal) and may even rely more
heavily on emotional
and technical. appeal or the opinions of
author.
DIFFERENCES OF ACADEMIC
AND CREATIVE WRITING
ACADEMIC WRITING - are meant for
audience that belongs to a specific field
Writing style is concise and direct to the
point
texts are objective in nature
authors or sources are always recognized
texts follow a specific set of vocabulary
items
language used in these texts is formal
CREATIVE WRITING/NON-ACADEMIC

 language used in these texts may be

informal or casual and may contain
slang terms
 texts are meant for mass consumption
 may be written using literary language
 texts are subjective in nature
EXAMPLES OF CREATIVE AND
ACADEMIC
CREATIVE WRITING:
 Poem
 Short stories
 Songs
 Journals

ACADEMIC WRITING:
 Position paper
 Research paper
 Reaction paper
 Movie review
 The Three- Part Essay Structure

1. Introduction – clearly tell the reader the topic,

purpose and structure of the paper ( can be
10-20% of the length of the whole paper
3 Main parts
a. most general information( background or

definitions
b. core of the introduction – show the
overall
topic, purpose, your point of view,
hypotheses
and/or research questions
 The Three- Part Essay Structure

2. Body – develops the question

- may elaborate directly the topic by giving
definitions, classifications, explanations,
contrasts, examples and evidence
- considered as the heart of the essay because it
expounds the specific ideas for the readers to
have a better understanding of the topic
3. Conclusion – closely related to the
introduction and is often described as its
“mirror image”.
- if the introduction begins with general
information and ends with specific
information, the conclusion moves in the
opposite direction.
- usually begins by briefly summarizing the
main scope or structure of the paper,
confirms the topic that was given in the
introduction, ends with a more general
statement
 Difference between a summary and a
conclusion

Summary - is a brief restatement of the key

points.

Conclusion - draws inferences, implications, or

applications based on those points.
> inference - draw conclusions based on
evidence from the text or knowledge that you
have
Extract the essential statements of
the Introduction, Body and
Conclusion
STRUCTURE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON POLITICS

Introduction

Body

Conclusion
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_poJgdZYjLY
 Lexical knowledge (e.g., vocabulary, word formation rules)
 • Academic language requires knowledge of: Forms and meanings of words
that are
 used across academic disciplines
 • Explain, analyze: Academic words are formed with prefixes, roots, and
suffixes
 • investigate, hypothesize : Parts of speech of academic words, Grammatical
 constraints governing academic words
 Academic language can also be conceptualized as being composed of different
types of language (Academic Vocabulary): Language of Instruction