Writing in the Discipline - Supplementary Lecture

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ACADEMIC WRITING STYLE

Research papers are written using academic writing style. Compare the difference between academic writing style and non-academic writing:

Non-academic writing: Consumers liked online shopping because it's quite convenient.

Academic writing: Convenience was cited by the consumers as the most important reason why      they prefer online shopping.

Academic writing style is embodied by the acronym FISH: Formality, Impersonality, Structure, and Hedging.

FORMALITY - the conscious use of words and expressions.

A. Use  longer, more complex words and sentences.

Informal writing: If users know how search engines work they can deal better with them.

Formal writing: An understanding of the fundamental operations of the search engine will provide improved user interface.

B. Use the formal one-word form of two-word phrasal verbs.

The week-long power outages used up/consumed the store's entire stock of batteries.

The committee was formed to look into/investigate the reports of cheating.

C. Avoid contractions and abbreviations.

* You aren't allowed to use your cell phone inside the theater.

You are not allowed to use your cell phone inside the theater.

* She had to go to work altho she wasn't OK yet.

She had to go to work although she was not well yet.

(* means 'unacceptable')

IMPERSONALITY - the distancing of oneself from one's own writing.

A. Use third-person pronouns when referring to yourself/yourselves. Instead of using words such as “I” or “we”, use “the group” or “the researchers” and call yourselves “we”.

B. Avoid using first-person pronouns (I, we) and second-person pronouns (you).

* If you don't know how to navigate through an e-commerce site, you will waste all lot of time.

If one does not know how to navigate through an e-commerce site, a lot of time will be wasted.

STRUCTURE - The use nominalization and the passive voice in writing.

A. Nominalization - The use of the noun form of the verb. (When the verb of a sentence is nominalized, it is placed in the subject and replaced by auxiliary verbs [is, are].) This can usually be achieved by using suffixes such as -tion, -ment, and -ance.

The economy did not perform well.

The performance of the economy was dismal.

B. Passive voice -  The voice of the verb where the subject is the receiver of the action.

Active: The company can use the cost savings to add value to their products.

Passive: The cost savings can be used to add value to a company's products.

HEDGING - The use of cautious language. Academic writing usually avoids absolute terms except in the conclusion.

A repeat of the terrorist attacks as massive as September 11 is just a matter of time.

It is possible that a repeat of terrorist attack such as the one on September 11 may be just a matter of time.

Examples of Hedging Devices:

Modals: Would, may, might, could.

Modal nouns: The possibility of..., the likelihood of...

Modal adverbs: Possibly, probably

Verbs: Appear, assume, indicate, seem, suggest, tend

Phrases: This indicates that..., These studies suggest that..., There might be a possibility....

 RESEARCHING IN A TRADITIONAL LIBRARY

 

1. Begin by looking for information in the card catalog. Search using the information available: the author's name (search the author cards), the title of the book (title cards), or the topic (subject cards). More modern libraries use a computer database to search for books. Take note of the call number in order to look for books. (In the Dewey Decimal Classification System, this is usually a three-digit number; in the Library of Congress Classification System, this is a two-letter code.) (Some libraries use computerized catalog systems, such as OPAC, or Online Public Access Catalog. To use these, simply type the keywords you are researching on.)

2. Look into the available materials in the library.

3. Do a general reading on the topic. Use the books in the References section or books in the Circulation section.

4. Look into more specific references, such as articles in scientific journals (when available).

5. Skim and scan the reference materials. Skimming is a quick reading of the whole material for the general idea. Scanning is looking for specific information (e.g., an entry in the dictionary or in the encyclopedia).

6. Be judicious in photocopying. Books are protected by copyright laws. Use photocopies for personal use only.

CONSIDERATIONS IN EVALUATING WEBSITES

1. Determine the credibility of the website. Research articles from university websites (e.g., University of Minnesota Raptor Center), professional organizations (e.g., Linguistics Society of the Philippines, the National Geographic Society), scientific agencies (e.g., NASA, CERN, PAGASA-DOST) and known experts in the field are usually credible. Websites that cite their sources (such as "myth-busting" websites such as Snopes) are usually credible. Personal websites (such as blogs) and freely-editable sites (e.g., Wikipedia) are usually NOT credible. Internet forums, bulletin boards, and answer sites (such as Yahoo! Answers and Google Answers) are usually NOT credible.

2. Assess the quality of writing of the website. The website should also use academic writing style.

3. Judge the objectivity of the website. Make sure that the website is free of bias. Information on products from company websites are usually biased.

4. Determine the reliability of the data. A website is said to be reliable when the information in it can also be found in other websites. A website that is alone in making a claim is usually NOT reliable.

QUOTING, PARAPHRASING, AND SUMMARIZING

QUOTATION - A reproduction of the author's exact words, including spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Quotations are used when the idea of the author(s) is so perfectly stated that paraphrasing or summarizing it would detract its power.

1. Use quotations sparingly. Do not overuse quotations. Do not quote very long passages--it is better to summarize them instead.

2. Introduce the quotation (According to Cochrane...) or place in the proper context (Cochrane states that warp-speed travel is possible:...)

3. Irrelevant parts of a quotation may be deleted by using an ellipsis (...) or marked grammatical incorrect by the word "sic" (the Latin word for 'thus'). Clarificatory material should be placed in square brackets [ ].

4. Quotations up to four lines long should be placed with quotation marks ("..."). Quotations that are longer than four lines long are placed as "displayed quotations", placed two single spaces after the introductory material  and indented 0.5 inches from the left margin.

PARAPHRASE - The restatement of an author's ideas in one's own words. It usually involves replacing unfamiliar and technical terms with simpler and more familiar terms. A paraphrase is approximately the same length as the original. Paraphrases of an author's ideas should also be cited.

SUMMARY - The condensed version of a longer text. It contains the main idea of the text and supporting details using one's own words. A summary is usually one-third the length of the original.

REFERENCE

Miranda-Plata, S., Genuino, C., Ranosa-Madrunio, M. B. Beltran-Montenegro, M. C. S., Calero, E. R.     (2007). Keys to success in academic writing. Philippines: Trailblazer Publications.