Organization of a paper:Signposting and punctuation

Reference: Swales, J. & Feak, C. 1994. Academic Writing for Graduate Students. The University of

Michigan Press: Ann Arbor.

We’ve been talking about flow…

• Language of academic papers vocabulary shift

• Organizing information in a paper paragraphs and sentences

• Now, to establish a clear connection of ideas…

• Use linking words and phrases as well as punctuation

Part 1: Linking words and phrases :

• Can help maintain flow and establish clear relationships between ideas

• Can be arranged according to their function and grammatical use

This (these)+ summary word

• ESL lecturers know that students need to understand the differences between formal and informal language. However, this understanding cannot usually be aquired quickly.

• Refers to the previous phrase (givennew)

Part 2: Punctuation

• Sentence connectors raise the important issue of punctuation

• You have to learn the proper use of punctuation in English and in your field

• We only deal with some punctuation, namely comma (,), semicolon (;), colon (:) and dash(-)

Semicolon• Join two completely independent sentences• Work much like a full stop (period)

– Air traffic delays due to high traffic volume have increased considerably over the last decade; these delays have become a major public policy issue.

• Can be used with sentence connectors– Increasing the size of airports is one solution to traffic congestion; however,

this is a long-term solution whose benefits may not be seen for many years into the future.

Semicolon

• Can be used to separate rather long items in list:– Some of the solutions to the air traffic delay

problem include increasing the size of airports that routinely experiece flight delays; overhauling the air traffic control system so that more flights can be safely handled; and increasing landing fees.

•Note that usually you separate items in a list with a comma

Colon and Comma• Weaker stops• Comma (,) separates items in a list• Colon (:) introduces a list• Commas used with conjunctions (and, but, or) and subordinators

(although, if, whereas)

– There are four main causes of airport congestion: bad weather, excessive volume, runway closures, and equipment outages.

Dash

• Sometimes a dash is used to introduce a list• Mostly, though, dash is used to intrude

additional information to a sentence, much like brackets ().– There are four main causes of airport congestion:

bad weather – such as a snowstorm – may ground planes…

Print out this slide and add the punctuation as

instructed.

Print out this slide. Use linking words and phrases to fill in the gaps below.

…and finally

• For more information on how to use punctuation with quotations, please go to the following website:

• http://www.grammarbook.com/punctuation/quotes.asp