Week 1
Jan. 19
Kara Johnson
Student Info HO
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Develop writing skills needed for academic
theses, dissertations, and publications
Support non-native speakers of English who
are currently writing
Introduce both sentence and word level
issues, as well as larger organizational and
conventional issues
Give writers techniques for revising their
writing
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Learning your audience & organizing your
writing
Using academic vocabulary I: connecting
ideas & learning conventions of your
discipline
Using academic vocabulary II: defining ideas
& integrating source material
Using academic vocabulary III: academic
styles & writing introductions
Using academic vocabulary IV: evaluative
language & reviewing the literature
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Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (2012). Academic
Writing for Graduate Students: Essential Tasks and
Skills. 3rd ed. University of Michigan Press.
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P2 HO
TASK ONE
What is your main writing strategy?
What strategies would you like to develop?
Right now, what do you feel your strengths of
writing are?
Right now, what do you feel your weaknesses
of writing are?
Who are the audiences you
write for?
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Personal
Students
Advisors
Thesis committees
Reviews
Editors
Conference or journal
readers (academics)
What about your writing changes
when you change audience?
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Purpose
Strategy
Vocabulary
Details
Organization
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Audience interconnected with purpose and
strategy…how does that affect us?
◦ All are frequently changing
◦ For graduate writers, a purpose is often to display
familiarity, expertise, and intelligence
◦ There is a need to consider how to position yourself
to leave the impression you want
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Pg 5 missing lines:
◦ A potentially cheaper technology called membrane desalination may expand the role desaliantion worldwide, which
P4-5 HO
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Let’s consider your current work:
◦ Who is your audience?
◦ What is your purpose?
◦ What impression do you want to leave with your
audience?
◦ What is a strategy you are or can use?
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Organizing your ideas, when we return
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Academic writing has some typical
organizations
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Emails
Bad news letters
Good news letters
Book reviews
Dissertation
Journal article
You can deviate, but too far, and the reader
can be confused
Strive for appropriate style
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How do you find the organizational
conventions of your field?
For your specific type of writing?
Typical organizations for sections or
paragraphs:
◦ General/specific
◦ Situation/problem
◦ Comparison/contrast
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Very common structure for orientating the
reader
Pattern is the following:
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A general statement
An elaboration
More elaboration
Often returns to a broader statement
The general statement could be:
◦ A short definition
◦ A generalization or purpose statement
(From Swales & Feak, 2012, p 56)
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Very common structure for orientating the
reader
Pattern often used for:
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An answer to an examination question
A course paper
An opening paragraph of an assignment
Background to an analysis or discussion
(From Swales & Feak, 2012, p 55)
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EXAMPLE: Reality TV Formats (PDF)
◦ Glance through Abstract and Introduction to position the
article
◦ “From documentaries to docu-soaps…” 1st paragraph
How does the author take readers from the
general opening emphasis on reality TV to the
final focus on “docu-soaps and game docs to
makeovers and quiz shows”?
Can you find the connections between each
sentence?
What specific issue does the next paragraph
reach?
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General-specific—tends to be descriptive and
expository
Problem-solution—tends to be argumentative
and evaluative, perhaps convincing
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In your writing, look for a general statement,
a generalization, a definition, something that
could become more specific…
Then see if you brought it more specific
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EXAMPLE: Scientific Writing of Novice
Researchers (PDF)
◦ Glance through Abstract to position the article
◦ Introduction to p. 512 first paragraph
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P103 HO
What problem-solution is set up in
“Conclusions”
How is this expanded in the “Introduction”
(up to p512, first paragraph)?
What is the problem?
What is the solution?
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General-specific—tends to be descriptive and
expository
Problem-solution—tends to argumentative
and evaluative, perhaps convincing
Compare-Contrast—seeks to highlight
overlapping views and differences in a way
that have not been seen before
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Suggestions for organization:
◦ Use chart, table or diagram to help yourself see
connections or common threads
◦ Write by key points, not by sources
◦ A single paragraph usually is not from a single
source
◦ Use language to show similarity
 E.g., Similarly,…; Similar to…; Likewise,…; As in __, in
__...
◦ Use language to show contrast
 E.g., In contrast, …; Unlike ___, ___...; Whereas __, __...
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Bring an article from a journal in your
discipline (hard copy or on your computer)
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Partners—same or different discipline.
Instructions for pairs
Two have signed up to meet me today.
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Partners:
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◦ Consider what you struggle with (or have been told)
in order to ask your partner to look for specific
things.
(From Liu & Hansen, 2002, p 138)