ON THE NATURE OF ACADEMIC TEXTS development that can either impact the

Academic Texts academic community or provide relevance

Nature: to nation building.
 Expository and argumentative prose used by 2. Conference Papers
university students, faculty, and researchers to - These are papers presented in scholastic
convey a body of information about a particular conferences, and may be revised as articles
subject for possible publication in scholarly journals.
 Requires thinking 3. Reviews
Purpose: - These provide evaluation or reviews of works
 To inform published in scholarly journals
 To argue a specific point (provide evidences) 4. Theses, Dissertations
 To persuade - These are personal researches written by a
 Demonstrate a thorough understanding of your candidate for a college or a university
subject degree.
Audience:
 Your peers Contents of Academic Text
 Your teachers  State critical questions and issues
 Academic community  Provide facts and evidence from credible sources
 Composed of people who are knowledgeable on  Use precise and accurate words while avoiding
the subject jargon and colloquial expressions
Language:  Take an objective point-of-view and avoid being
 Appropriate and formal personal and subjective
 Not too pretentious  List references
Misconceptions:  Use hedging or cautious language to tone down
their claims (sugar-coating)
 Hifalutin words have to be used
 Engage the readers by giving clear ideas and
Expanding Your Knowledge About Academic Writing
points to evaluate and question
 Students believed essays were “creative writing”
and research papers were a different beast
Features of Academic Texts
altogether (from general to specific)
1. Complex  quoted by Ballenger in Langan, Nadell,
- Lexically more dense and has a wide array of and Comodromos 2005
vocabulary  Writing in the academic setting requires a certain
- Has more grammatical complexity
kind of SKILL
(subordinate clauses and more passive)
 Academic writing is equated to research
2. Formal
 Because academic papers require
- Academic language
deliberate, thorough and careful thought
- Non-usage of colloquial words
 Provide definition of terms
Academic Research Adheres to Certain Standards
3. Explicit
 Content (topic or subject)
- Clear and ambiguous
 Structure (coherence or logical sequence)
- To make it clear to the reader how the various
 Language and style (discourse or choice of
parts of the text are related
words)
4. Objective
 Mechanics (grammar, formatting,
- Main emphasis on the information that you
documentation and punctuation)
want to give and the arguments presented
 based from facts/information from
Research Paper vs Formal Essay
respondents; setting aside your own
Research Paper Formal Essay (Academic
perspective
3 Elements of an Essay: Writing)
1. Introduction (1 – 2 paragraphs) – It involves data collection, It involves the process that
background of the topic interpretation, and starts with posing a
2. Discussion (2 – 8 paragraphs) – body of analysis question, problematizing
the topic a concept, evaluating an
3. Conclusion (1 paragraph) – summary of opinion and ends in
the essay answering the question/s
5. Precise posed with back up
- Facts are double checked and updated statements with strong
and valid evidence
Samples of Academic Text
1. Articles Content Research/Articles Formal
- Published in scholarly journals, this type of Essay/Articles
academic texts offers results of research and Introduction Yes Yes

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 RRL Yes Yes Skimming Scanning
Discussion Yes Yes Fast reading Used when you want to
Conclusion Yes Yes locate a single fact or
Recommendation Yes Yes specific bit of information
without reading every
Methodology Yes No
word.
Results/Findings Yes No
Get main idea not all Searching of numbers,
details figures, names, etc.
ON READING ACADEMIC TEXTS
Usually done with material Often done with material
Cognitive Process you know nothing about that you know something
about
As speed increases, comprehension decreases
Word Recognition
Stages in Reading
1. Pre-reading
Word Comprehension - Determine:
 Types of academic text
 Purpose of reading
Therefore, reading is a cognitive process that involves - Identify:
word recognition and word comprehension
 Author’s purpose
 Attitude towards author
Readers make use of the following:
- Predict:
 Schema – prior knowledge (optional)
 Main idea or argument
 Vocabulary – enrichment of words
- State:
 Grammatical knowledge – subject-verb-
 What you already know
agreement
 What you want to know
 Experience with other texts – prior knowledge
2. During Reading
 Reading strategies – scanning, skimming and
- Annotate important parts of the text
close reading
 By writing on the margin:
o Key words/phrases
Reading as a Skill
o Brief notes
Word Word Meaning  Write questions on information that
Recognition Comprehension you find confusing
 Recognizing the written words (written symbols)  Write what you already know about
 Essential for getting the gist or message of the text the ideas
(comprehension)  Write limitation of author’s argument
 Involves both perception and thought  Write notes on the reliability of texts
 Has two processes:  Comment on author’s biases
1. Word Recognition 3. After Reading
- Process of perceiving how written symbols - Reflect on what you learned
corresponds to one’s spoken language - React on some parts of the texts
2. Word Comprehension - Discuss some parts of the text
- Process of making sense of words, sentences - Link the main idea to your schema
and connected text
Critical Reading
Reading and Its Types - Involves scrutinizing any information that you read
1. Skimming or hear
- To familiarize; know what the text is about - Not easily believing information offered to you by
2. Scanning a text
- a reading skill needed to acquire and look for - Makes an interaction with the writer
specific information  when you question the writer's claims
3. Close Reading  when you comment on the writer's ideas
- Intensive reading Requirements in Critical Reading
- Searching reading  Ability to pose problematic questions
- Complete understanding and detailed  Ability to analyze a problem in all its dimensions
comprehension  Ability to find, gather, and interpret data, facts
- Making oneself aware to the nuances and and other information relevant to the problem
connotation of knowledge  Ability to imagine alternative solutions to the
problem

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  Ability to analyze competing approaches and
answers
 Ability to write an effective argument justifying
your choice while acknowledging counter-
arguments
Ways to Become a Critical Reader
1. Annotate what you read
2. Outline the text
3. Summarize the text
4. Evaluate the text
LOVE IS A FALLACY by Max Shulman
Characters:
 Dobie Gillis
 Petey Bellows
 Poly Espy
4.
ON LOGICAL FALLACIES
Fallacy
- Common errors in reading that will undermine the
logic of argument
- Can be either illegitimate arguments or irrelevant
points, and are often identified because they lack
evidence that supports their claim
- Illegitimate arguments
- A mistaken belief, especially one based on
unsound argument
- A failure in reasoning that renders an argument
invalid
- Faulty reasoning; misleading or unsound
argument
 Logic – “science of thinking”
1. Dicto Simpliciter
- Argument based on unqualified generalization
- A fallacy in which a general rule or observation is
treated as universally true regardless of the
circumstances or the individuals concerned
 Deductive
- Sweeping generalization
“Exercise is good. Therefore, everybody should exercise.” –
“Exercise is good is an unqualified generalization. For
instance, if you have heart disease, exercise is bad, not
good. Many people are ordered by their doctors not to
exercise. You must qualify the generalization. You must say
exercise is usually good, or exercise is good for most
people.”
“you mustn’t take all these things so literally. I mean this is
just classroom stuff. You know that the things you learn in
school don’t have anything to do with life.”
2. Hasty Generalization
- Drawing a conclusion based on a small sample
size, rather than looking at statistics that are much
more in line with the typical or average situation
(inductive)
 Population (sample size)
“Four out of five dentists recommend Happy Glossy Smiley
toothpaste brand. Therefore, it must be great.”
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“We have now spent five evenings together. We have
gotten along splendidly. It is clear that we are well
matched.”
“You can’t speak French. Petey Bellows can’t speak
French. I must therefore conclude that nobody at the
University of Minnesota can speak French.” – “The
generalization is reached too hastily. There are too few
instances to support such a conclusion.”
3. Post Hoc
- False cause
- Attributing events to other people with no back up
or credible supporting evidence
“Let’s not take Bill on our picnic. Every time we take him
out with us, it rains.” – “Eula Becker doesn’t cause the rain.
She has no connection with the rain.”
Contradictory Premises
- Involve an argument (generally considered a
logical fallacy) that draws a conclusion from
inconsistent or incompatible premises
- Asserts and denies the same thing
“If God can do anything, can He make a stone so heavy
that He won’t be able to lift it?” – “Because when the
premises of an argument contradict each other, there can
be no argument. If there is an irresistible force, there can
be no immovable object. If there is an immovable object,
there can be no irresistible force. Get it?”
5. Ad Misericordiam
- Appealing to one’s sympathy and emotions
“A man applies for a job. When the boss asks him what his
qualifications are, he replies that he has a wife and six
children at home, the wife is a helpless cripple, the children
have nothing to eat, no clothes to wear, no shoes on their
feet, there are no beds in the house, no coal in the cellar,
and winter is coming.” – “The man never answered the
boss’s question about his qualifications. Instead he
appealed to the boss’s sympathy.
“Polly, I love you. You are the whole world to me, the moon
and the stars and the constellations of outer space. Please,
my darling, say that you will go steady with me, for if you
will not, life will be meaningless. I will languish. I will refuse
my meals. I will wander the face of the earth, a shambling,
hollow-eyed hulk.”
6. False Analogy
- Assuming that because two things are alike in one
or more respects, they are necessarily alike in
some other respect
“Students should be allowed to look at their textbooks
during examinations. After all, surgeons have X-rays to
guide them during an operation, lawyers have briefs to
guide them during a trial, carpenters have blueprints to
guide them when they are building a house. Why, then,
shouldn’t students be allowed to look at their textbooks
during an examination?” – “Doctors, lawyers, and
carpenters aren’t taking a test to see how much they have
learned, but students are. The situations are altogether
different, and you can’t make an analogy between
them.”
“My dear,” I said, patting her hand in a tolerant manner,
“five dates is plenty. After all, you don’t have to eat a
whole cake to know that it’s good.”
7. Hypothesis Contrary to Fact
- Offering a poorly supported claim about what
might have happened in the past or future, if (the
hypothetical part) circumstances or conditions
were different
- Entails treating future hypothetical situations as if
they are fact
“That’s right. So you do owe me something, don’t you, my
dear? If I hadn’t come along you never would have
learned about fallacies.”
“If Madame Curie had not happened to leave a
photographic plate in a drawer with a chunk of
pitchblende, the world today would not know about
radium.” – “Maybe Madame Curie would have
discovered radium at some later date. Maybe somebody
else would have discovered it. Maybe any number of
things would have happened. You can’t start with a
hypothesis that is not true and then draw any supportable
conclusions from it.”
8. Poisoning the Well
- To commit a preemptive ad hominem attack
against an opponent. That is, to prime the
audience with adverse information about the
opponent from the start, in an attempt to make
your claim more acceptable or discount the
credibility of your opponent’s claim.
- Negative information is presented ahead of time
“Two men are having a debate. The first one gets up and
says, ‘My opponent is a notorious liar. You can’t believe a
word that he is going to say.” - It’s not fair. The first man has
poisoned the well before anybody could drink from it. He
has hamstrung his opponent before he could even start”
“The rat!” I shrieked, kicking up great chunks of turf. “You
can’t go with him, Polly. He’s a liar. He’s a cheat. He’s a
rat.”
PARAPHRASING & SUMMARIZING
Paraphrasing - a restatement of the author’s original
thought and meaning
Summarizing – condensing of a passage/thought into a
smaller package (1/2 of the original text)
Paraphrasing
- Involves putting a passage from source material
into your own words
- Always attributed to the source
- Usually shorter than the original passage
Six Steps to Effective Paraphrasing
1. Reread the original passage until you understand
its full meaning. You can’t paraphrase what you
don’t understand.
2. Set aside the original text and write your
paraphrase on a note card
3. Jot down words below your paraphrase to remind
you later how you envision using this material. At
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the top of the note card, write a key word or
phrase to indicate the subject of your paraphrase.
4. Check revision to make sure that your version
accurately expressing all information in a new
form
5. Use quotation marks to identify any unique term or
phraseology you have borrowed
6. Record the source (including the page) on your
note card so that you can credit it easily if you
decide to incorporate the material into your
paper
Summarizing
- Involves putting the main idea(s) into your own
words, including only the main points
- Must also be attributed to source
- Significantly shorter than the original text
A summary must be:
1. Be in your own words
2. Be shorter (by half) of the original passage
3. Single words from the original work must be
contained in “quotation marks”
4. Convey original meaning but does evaluate or
comment on author’s original work
WRITING THESIS STATEMENT
Thesis Statement
- A sentence or two that contains the focus of your
essay and tells reader what the essay is going to
be about
- contains the focus of your essay and tells your
reader what the essay is going to be about
- “Umbrella”
 Everything that you carry along in your essay
has to fit under this umbrella, and if you try to
take on packages that don't fit, you will either
have to get a bigger umbrella or something's
going to get wet
 The principle to remember is that when you try
to do too much, you end up doing less or
nothing at all.
- Central idea of multiple paragraphs
- Sentence that summarizes which guides and
unifies ideas
- Ideas present in an essay revolve around the thesis
statement
- Tells the reader how you will interpret the
significance of the subject matter under discussion
- Is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells
the reader what to expect from the rest of the
paper
- Directly answers the question asked to you. A
thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject,
not the subject itself
- Makes a claim that others might dispute
- Usually a single sentence somewhere in your first
paragraph that presents your argument to the
reader
Basic Format
Paragraph 1: introduces the thesis and directs the reader
to the three main supporting subtopics (arguments)
Paragraph 2-4: each paragraph restates the subtopic and
provides a supporting ideas/argument with examples
Paragraph 5: restates the main thesis idea and reminds the
reader of the three main supporting ideas that were
developed
Tips for Writing a Thesis Statement
1. Determine what kind of paper
 Analytical – breaks down an issue or an idea
 Expository – explains something to the
audience
 Argumentative – makes a claim about a topic
then justifies
2. Your thesis statement should be specific
3. Your TS usually appears at the end of the first
paragraph of a paper
4. Your topic may change as you write, so you may
need to reuse your TS to reflect exactly the
content
 Generating a thesis statement can be done by
asking questions
 A thesis statement is an assertion (a claim or
declaration), not a statement of fact or an
observation
 A thesis takes a stand rather than announcing a
subject
 A thesis is the main idea, not the title. It must be a
complete sentence that explains in some detail what
you expect to write about.
 A thesis statement is narrow, rather than broad. If the
thesis statement is sufficiently narrow, it can be fully
supported.
 A thesis statement has one main point rather than
several main points. More than one point may be too
difficult for the reader to understand and the writer to
support.
Outlining
- formal system used to think about and organize
your paper
 you can use it to see whether your ideas
connect to each other, what order of
ideas works best, or whether you have
sufficient evidence to support each of
your points.
- allows a writer to categorize the main points, to
organize the paragraphs into an order that makes
sense, and to make sure that each
paragraph/idea can be fully developed
- provides a map of where to go with the essay
- A well-developed outline will show:
 Thesis
 Main idea
 Evidence/Support
Format:
I. Introduction
1. Sentence to catch attention
2. One-sentence thesis statement
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II. Body
1. Main idea (topic sentence)
a. Supporting evidence
III. Conclusion
1. Restatement of thesis
2. Insightful sentence to end your essay
How to make an Outline?
1. Identify the topic. The topic of your paper is
important. Try to sum up the point of your paper in
one sentence or phrase. This will help your paper
stay focused on the main point.
2. Identify the main categories. What main points will
you cover? The introduction usually introduces all
of your main points, then the rest of paper can be
spent developing those points.
3. Create the first category. What is the first point you
want to cover? If the paper centers around a
complicated term, a definition is often a good
place to start. For a paper about a particular
theory, giving the general background on the
theory can be a good place to begin
4. Create subcategories. After you have the main
point, create points under it that provide support
for the main point. The number of categories that
you use depends on the amount of information
that you are going to cover; there is no right or
wrong number to use.
An introduction should do the following:
- alert a reader’s interest
- indicate the scope and direction of the paper,
and act as a navigation guide to its reading
- show the reader how you are interpreting and
approaching the question
- provide a context for the main issue
- indicate the focus of the paper
Conclusions: Conclusions are often the most difficult part
of an essay to write, and many writers feel that they have
nothing left to say after having written the paper. A
conclusion should stress the importance of the thesis
statement, give the essay a sense of completeness, and
leave a final impression on the reader.
ABSTRACT
Types of Abstract
1. Informational Abstract
- Communicate contents of paper
- Short: from a paragraph to a page or two
(10% or less of the report)
- Has purpose, methods, scope, results,
conclusions and recommendations
- Allows readers to decide whether they want
to read the report
2. Descriptive Abstract
- Tell what the report contains
- Includes all except results
- Always very short: usually under 100 words
- Introduce subject to readers, who must then
read the report to learn the results
Qualities of a Good Abstract
 Well developed paragraph/s which are unified,
coherent, concise and able to stand alone
 Uses an introduction – body – conclusion structure
in which the parts of the report are discussed
 Follows strictly the chronology of the paper
 Provides logical connections
 Simply summarizes
Components of an Abstract
1. Motivation
- Optional
- Why do we care about the issue?
- Includes importance of work
 Difficulty of area
 Impact it might have if successful
2. Problem Statement
- What is the main argument of your paper?
- Scope of your work
- Be careful not to use too much jargon
*In some cases, it is appropriate to put the PS before the
motivation if most readers already understood why the
problem is important
3. Methodology
- How did you go about solving or making
progress on the problem?
 Case study, narrative application,
analytical models, depth-inquiry
- Includes information about participants,
sources of data, processes undertaken and
methods of data analysis
4. Results
- What is the answer to the problem?
- What is the conclusion?
 Observations, insights or theories that
illuminates study
5. Implications
- What are the implications of your answer?
- Describe how your study suggests
applications in other areas
 Additional studies that are needed
CRITIQUE PAPER
- Systematic, objective review of a research
 Gives a short summary
 Looks at work critically
Why write a Critique Paper?
- An exercise in judging the value of a piece of
writing
- Way of improving your own skills
- Valuable exercise in careful reading
Getting Ready to Write a Critique Paper:
1. Read the whole book/article thoroughly. Highlight
important text.
2. Think carefully about what you have read.
Establish:
 Main points
 How author backs up?
3. Re-read the material
4. Try to summarize what you have read
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5. Think about different points of view
 Do you agree/disagree?
Structure of Critique Paper
1. Introduction
- Defines the subject
- Background to research
 Article/ author information (Why is it
credible?)
 Summarize the author’s main points and
purpose
2. Main Body
a. Begins with brief summary describing the
project
- Aim of research
- Method
- To whom was it done (subjects)
- Hypothesis (Why was it done? What were
the expected results)
- Actual results
- Conclusion
b. Discuss the following:
- Strengths and weaknesses
 How appropriate was the title,
abstract and introduction
- Strength of the methodology
- Is the argument logical and is there
sufficient evidence to support it?
- Does the research advance the field or
replicate work already done?
- What new knowledge does it bring?
- Clarity of data presentation (readability
of data)
- Are the appropriate conclusions drawn?
- Does the present and refute opposing
points of view?
3. Conclusions
- Re-emphasize the points
- Final suggestions
- Questions/observations the article suggests
ON WRITING A REACTION PAPER
Reaction Paper
- The significance is societal
- Written for enlightenment of one’s fellow human
beings
- Valuable for the academe
- Formal, descriptive, uses rhetorical devices of
description and narration to prove a point
- To inform and amuse
- Tells we’re not alone in experiencing the world
- Movie review, gadget review, trip advisory posts,
travel reviews, restaurant reviews
- When done right, can help us process our own
experience
- paper that evaluates the given text’s strengths,
flaws, and purpose
- respond to implied ideas, and elaborate,
evaluate, and analyze the text’s purpose and
main points
 - requires close reading of the text
- the pronoun “I” may be used
It involves:
 Critical Reading - identifying the ideas,
organization, and purpose of the text
 Critical Thinking – analyzing and evaluating the
text and ideas
 Reaction in Writing
- summarizing the text’s key ideas
- stating one’s opinion about a particular part
of the text
- supporting one’s opinion with appropriate
details, quotations, and explanations
Parts of a Reaction Paper
 Part 1: A summary of the work
 Part 2: One’s reaction to the work
In writing the paper:
 Make sure each major paragraph presents and
develops a single main point.
 Support any general points made or attitudes with
specific reasons and details.
 Edit the paper carefully for errors in grammar,
mechanics, punctuation, word use, and spelling.
 Cite paraphrased or quoted material from the
book or article you are writing about, or from any
other works, by using the appropriate
documentation style.
 You may use quotations in the summary and
reaction parts of the paper, but do not rely on
them too much. Use them only to emphasize key
ideas.
ON FRESH CONCEPTS AND IDEAS: THE CONCEPT PAPER
Definition
- a mode of paragraph development that answers
questions:
 What does it mean?
 What are its special features?
- clarifies the meaning of the word and limits the
scope of that word
- Limits the scope and breadth of a specific
concept or term
- Avoid vague notions, misinterpretations
Types of Definition
1. Formal Definition
- genus + differentia
 genus – the class where the term belongs
 differentia – characteristic that distinguish
the term from other terms
2. Extended Definition
- Needed to be able to effectively and
thoroughly give meaning to abstract and
broad concepts
- Use of analogy metaphors, comparison and
contrast, descriptions, analysis, functions,
etymology, semantic origin
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3. Definition by etymology
- The term originates from the Greek work
(demokratia) which means “rule of the
people,” which was coined from (demos)
“people” and (kratos) “power” or “rule” in the
5th century BCE to denote the political systems
then existing in Greek-city states, notably
Athens.
4. Definition by contrast
- The term is an antonym to (aristokrasia) which
means “rule of an elite”.
- While theoretically these definitions are in
opposition, in practice, the distinction has
been blurred historically.
5. Definition by example
- The political system of Classical Athens, for
example, granted democratic citizenship to
an elite class of free men and excluded slaves
and women from political participation.
6. Definition by synonym
- Using a similar word or phrase to define a word
7. Definition by function
- Stating what the term is for (usage)
8. Definition by analogy
- Comparison to another concept/object/idea
that shares the characteristic as the term
being defined
9. Definition by negation
- Giving the term meaning by stating the
otherwise
Concept Paper
- Defines an idea or concept and explains
thoroughly its essence to be able to clarify the
“gaps” or “whatness” of that idea or concept.
- Usually starts with a definition, either formal or
informal, of the term or the concept and
proceeds with an expanded definition and an
analytic description of the aspects of the
concept.
Guidelines in Evaluating the Concept Paper
1. Content
- Is the thesis of the essay clear?
- Is there a reason for the essay? What is the
significance of the topic? Is the topic
thoroughly researched?
- Are the details relevant to the thesis?
- Does the writer exhibit a thorough knowledge
of the topic as shown in the presentation of
the ideas?
2. Organization
- Is the lead interesting?
- Are the major points clear?
- Is there a coherent and logical sequencing of
ideas?
- Is the conclusion appropriate and satisfying?
- Is the focus of the study clearly defined? (The
focus of the report paper and the concept
paper may vary)
 3. Language and Style
- Is the language consistent with the content of
the essay?
- Is the language consistent throughout?
- Who is the author: Can you “feel” the voice of
the writer in the paper?
- Are the sentences well-constructed?
- Are words appropriately used?
- Is grammar - agreement, tenses, articles,
pronouns, prepositions - correct?

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