ACADEMIC WRITING STYLE

Based on S. Bailey (2006) and Swales, Feak (2004)

What is academic writing?

Part of ‘academic skills’ (‘study skills’, ‘key skills’, ‘core skills’, ‘transferable skills’, )

follow-up to basic skills in a higher education context

needed later in professional careers and for LLL

General features of academic writing

precise formal impersonal (but “I” and “We”

possible) objective clear simple, but not simplistic

Not really academic ...

A lot of people think that weather is getting worse. They say that this has been going on for quite a long time. I think that they are quite right. Research has shown that we now get storms etc all the time.

Example taken from Bailey (2006)

Not really academic ...

A lot of people think that weather is getting worse. They say that this has been going on for quite a long time. I think that they are quite right. Research has shown that we now get storms etc all the time.

Example taken from Bailey (2006)

Academic style

It is widely believed that the climate is deteriorating. It is claimed that this process has been continuing for nearly 100 years. This belief appears to be supported by McKinley (1997) who shows a 55% increase in the frequency of severe winter gales since 1905.

Specific features of academic style

Appropriate vocabulary Avoiding direct questions Avoiding “etc.”, “and so on”, “but”

(beginning of sentence), “you”, contracted verbal forms, …

Careful with sentence length Use tentative language (cautious style)

(see the handout)

Any examples of inappropriate style?

1. Lots of people think that the railways are getting worse.

2. You can’t always trust the numbers in that report.3. What were the main causes of the American

Revolution? (in an essay)4. The second thing is that most kids in that district

will become criminals.5. A few years ago they allowed women to vote.6. The inflation in Russia led to increased poverty,

illness and so on. 7. Serious crime like murder is going up.

Inappropriate style in academic writing

1. Lots of people think that the railways are getting worse.

2. You can’t always trust the numbers in that report.3. What were the main causes of the American

Revolution?4. The second thing is that most kids in that district

will become criminals.5. A few years ago they allowed women to vote.6. The inflation in Russia led to increased poverty,

illness and so on. 7. Serious crime like murder is going up.

Cautious style (tentative language)

May/might/can Tend to Often/usually (unless always) Fairly/quite/rather Tent.verbs: think, consider, suggest,

believe, claim, …

Rewrite the following in a more cautious style:

Private companies are more efficient than state-owned businesses.

His second book had a hostile reception. Global warming will cause the sea level

to rise. Science students work harder than those

studying humanities. Her contribution at the conference was

insignificant.