The University Of Mustansiriah

College Of Arts

Department of English Language and Literature

“The Use of Transitions Among Iraqi EFL Learners ”

Submitted By: Walaa Falih Hussein Hamza
Supervised By : Instructor Yasir Bdaiwi Jasaim

2020

Acknowledgments
Overall, I am deeply indebted to my First Supporter, Almighty God for
his everlasting support and protection.

I am very grateful to my exceptional supervisor, Instructor Yasir

Bdaiwi Jasaim , who deserves heartily thanks for his assistance and
support in the writing of my research paper.

Finally, I do thank my beloved family and everyone who stand by my

side to reach this stage.
 Table of contents

1.1 Transitions words

1.2 Transitions
1.3 Difficulties in Academic Writing
1.4 Definition of Academic writing
1.5 Basics of Academic Writing
1.6 Challenges of Teaching Academic Writing to Postgraduate
Students
1.7 characterization of Academic writing
1.8 Perception of students towards academic writing
1.9 Strategies of academic writing
1.10 Learner’s writing problems
1.1 Transitional Words

Transitional words and phrases connect and relate ideas, sentences, and
paragraphs. They assist in the logical flow of ideas as they signal the relationship
between sentences and paragraphs. In prose, the material is supported and
conditioned not only by the ordering of the material (its position) but by
connectives which signal order, relationship and movement. Some of the more
commonly used connectives are listed below. Note especially how these
connections function to develop, relate, connect and move ideas

The word transition means change or passage. Transitions establish

relationships between parts of your essay that a reader will need in order to fully
understand the points you are making.

Effective transitions are achieved in two ways: by using transitional words and
expressions, and by carefully repeating words, pronouns, phrases and parallel
constructions. Some of the relationships that transitions can express are equality,
comparison, contrast, order of time, reinforcement, development and consequence.

Some transitions that express equality

in addition furthermore moreover next

another likewise also much as

Some transitions that express comparison

of equal
like similarly in the same way
importance

next in
also both in comparison
importance
as likewise still

Some transitions that express contrast or change

on the other
but in contrast conversely
hand

whereas however on the contrary yet

although despite still otherwise

nevertheless even though

Some transitions that express a logical order or time sequence

first next thereafter then

while presently after/afterwards before

during meanwhile after all formerly

subsequently at the end when at last

ultimately finally
 Transitions show the logical relationship between ideas and sentences
in a paragraph. Effective transitions are achieved in two ways: by using
transitional words and expressions and by using parallel constructions
and corresponding words, pronouns, and phrases.

Intention or
Transitional Words and Expressions
Relationship

for example, for instance, such as, including, in other words, Amplification
that is

since, because, in order to, so that, in this way, as a result, for Cause and effect
this reason, hence, thus, therefore, accordingly, consequently,
if... then

despite, although, in spite of, even though, accepting the data,

granted that, of course Concession

but, still, yet, though, while, whereas, conversely, however,

Contrast or
nevertheless, on the contrary, on the other hand, despite,
although change

similarly, likewise, in addition, also, too, just as..., so too...,

much as..., at the same time... Equal value

indeed, moreover, besides, in fact, unless, above all, more

Emphasis
important, add to this, not only...but also

Increasing
also, besides, moreover, furthermore, in addition
quantity

for (all) these reasons, in

first, second, next, then, last, finally brief, in sum, in short, in
a word, in conclusion
 then, since then, thereafter, henceforth, at last, at length, Order
afterwards, before, formerly, later, meanwhile, now,
presently, previously, subsequently, ultimately, in the end,
from the start, after, before, until
Summary

Time

Pauk,Walter How to
Study in College, 2nd
ed.

Categories of
transitions

Transitions accomplish many different objectives. We can

divide all transitions into four basic categories:
Additive  Additive transitions signal that you are adding or
Transitions referencing information
  Adversative transitions indicate conflict or disagreement
 Causal transitions point to consequences and show cause-and-
effect relationships
 Sequential transitions clarify the sequence of
information and overall structure of the paper.

These terms signal that new information is being added (between

both sentences and paragraphs); introduce or highlight
information; refer to something that was just mentioned; add
similar situation; or identify certain information as important.

Purpose Common Common Phrases Examples in Research Writing

Terms
Adding Also; In addition to; As “Furthermore, the data shows that X is a
Information well as; In fact; Not significant factor.”
Additionally; only…but also; As a “In addition to the above-mentioned
Furthermore; study, Rogers
matter of fact
also presents…”
Moreover
Introducing/ Particularly; For “Notably, only two species of this fish
Highlighting example/instance; To survive.” “One example of this
Notably; illustrate; In phenomenon is X.”
Especially particular; One “To illustrate this phenomenon, let’s
do XYZ.”
example (of this is)
Referencing Considering As for (this); The “Considering the amount of research in
fact that; With this area, little evidence has been
(this);
regards to (this); On found.”
Concerning “With regards to the Blue Whale, its
the subject of (this);
teeth are also
Looking
(this); Regarding the largest of any mammal.”
at (this information)
(this)
Showing Similarly; By the same token; “Likewise, the algorithm was applied
Similarity In the same way; In a to Y.”
Likewise; Equally similar way “By the same token, this principle
can be applied to Z.”
Clarif Specifically; That is (to say); In “There are two factors: namely, X
ying/ Namely other words; (To) and Y.”
Identif put (it) another way; “In other words, the fall of the
ying What this means is; Roman Empire was caused by over-
Import This means (that) expansion.”
ant
Information
Adversative Authors These terms and phrases distinguish facts, arguments, and other information,
Transitions whether by contrasting and showing differences; by conceding points or making
counterarguments; by dismissing the importance of a fact or argument; or replacing
and suggesting alternatives.

Purpose Common Terms Common Phrases Examples in Research Writing

Contrasting/ But; Still; In contrast; On “However, there is still more research
Showing However; While; the contrary; On needed.” “On the other hand, the
conflict Whereas; the other hand; … 1997 study does not recognize
Conversely; (and) when in fact; By these outcomes.”
yet way of contrast
Distinguishi Indeed; Even more; Above “Indeed, a placebo is
ng/ Besides; all; More/Most essential to any
Emphasizin Significantly; importantly pharmaceutical study.”
g Primarily “Most importantly, the X enzyme
increased.”
Conceding a Nevertheless; Even so; Even “Nevertheless, X is still an
point Nonetheless; though; In spite of important factor.” “In spite of this
Although; Despite (this); fact, New York still has a high
(this); However; Notwithstanding standard of living.”
Regardless (of this); (this); Be that as it “Although this may be true, there are
Admittedly still other
may
factors to consider.”
Dismissing Regardless (of) Either way; In any “Regardless of the result, this
an case; In any event; fact is true.” “Either way, the
argument or Whatever happens; effect is the same.”
assertion All the same; At “In any event, this will not change the
any rate public’s
view.”
Replacing/ Instead (of); (or) (or) at least “Instead of using X, the scientists
Indicating rather; used Z.” “Or rather, why not
an implement a brand new
Alternative policy?”

Causal
Transitions These terms and phrases signal the reasons, conditions, purposes, circumstances,
and cause-and-effect relationships. They can also explore hypothetical
 relationships or circumstances.

Purpose Common Common Phrases Examples in Research Writing

Terms
Showing Cause Since; For; Due to (the fact that); “Since the original sample group
or Reason As; Because For the reason that; was too small, researchers called for
(of the fact Owing to (the fact); more participants.”
that) Inasmuch as “Due to budgetary demands,
funding will be cut
in half.”
Explaining If…then; In the event that; As/So “Unless these conditions change, more
the Unless; long as; Only if will need to be done.”
Conditions Granting “As long as there is oxygen, oxidization
will occur
(that);
in all living things.”
Granted
(that);
Provided (that)
Showing Consequently; As a result (of this); “Therefore, we can conclude that
For this
the Therefore; reason; As a this was an asymmetric catalysis.”
Effects/Results Thus; consequence; So “As a consequence, many
Accordingly; much (so) that consumers began to
Because
(of this) demand safer products.”
Showin For the purpose(s) “For the purpose of following
g the of; With (this fact) standards, the X rule was observed.”
Purpose in mind; In the hope “With the current state of pandas in
mind, this
that; In order that/to;
study focused on preservation.”
So as to
Highlighting Otherwise Under those “Otherwise, this effect will continue
circumstances; into the
the That being the case; In future.”
Importance of that “All else being equal, the economic
Circumstances case; If so; All else impact of this
being
equal law seems positive.”

Sequential These transition terms and phrases organize your paper by numerical sequence; by
Transitions showing continuation in thought or action; by referring to previously-mentioned
information; by indicating digressions; and, finally, by concluding and summing up
your paper.

Purpose Common Terms Common Phrases Examples in Research Writing

Organizin Initially; Secondly; First of all; To start “Initially, subjects were asked to write
g by Thirdly; with; In the their names.” “First of all, no previous
Number (First/Second/Third (first/second/third) study contradicts these findings.”
); Last place
Showing Subsequently; “Subsequently, subjects were shown
Previously; to their
Continuat Afterwards; Eventually; rooms.”
ion Next; “Afterwards, they were asked about
After (this) their
experiences.”
Summariz (Once) again; To repeat; As (was) “Summarizing this data, it becomes
ing/ Summarizing stated evident that
Repeating (this) before; As (was) there is a pattern.”
Informati mentioned “As mentioned earlier, pollution has
on earlier/above become an
increasing problem.”
Digression Incidentally; By the way; to “Coincidentally, the methods used in
/ Coincidentally; resume; the two
Resumpti Anyway Returning to the studies were similar.”
on subject; At “Returning to the subject, this section
any rate will analyze
the results.”
Concludin Thus; Hence; To conclude; As a “Ultimately, these results will be
g/ Ultimately; final valuable to the
Summari Finally; Therefore; point; In conclusion; study of X.”
zing Altogether; Overall; Given “In conclusion, there are three things
these points; In to keep in
summary;
Consequently To sum up mind—A, B, and C.”
How to Choose Transitions are common writing elements, but they are also powerful
Your Transitions tools that can be abused or misapplied if you aren’t careful. Here are
some ways to make sure you use transitions effectively.

 Check for overused, awkward, or absent transitions when you

are reading through and/or editing your paper—not while
writing your paper.
 When you a find where a transition might connect ideas, establish
relationships, and make it easier for the reader to understand
your point, use this list to find a suitable transition term or
phrase.
 If some transitions are repeated again and again, find a substitute
transition from the list and use that instead. This will help vary
your writing and enhance communication of ideas.
 Read the beginning of each paragraph. Did you include a
transition? If not, look at the information in that paragraph and
of the preceding paragraph and ask yourself: “How does this
information connect?” Then locate the best transition from the
list.
 Check the structure of your paper—are the order of your
ideas clearly laid out? You should be able to locate sequence
terms such as “first,” “second,” “following this,” “another,” “in
addition,” “finally,” “in conclusion,” etc. These terms will help
outline your paper for the reader.( Wordvice’s Resources)

Some of the more commonly used connectives are listed below. Note
especially how these connections function to develop, relate, connect and
move ideas:

1. To signal addition of and, also, besides, further, furthermore, too,

ideas moreover, in addition, then, of equal importance,
equally important, another
2. To signal time next, afterward, finally, later, last, lastly, at last,
now, subsequently, then, when, soon, thereafter,
after a short time, the next week (month, day, etc.), a
minute later, in the meantime, meanwhile, on the
following day, at length, ultimately, presently
3. To signal order or first, second, (etc.), finally, hence, next, then, from
sequence here on, to begin with, last of all, after, before, as
soon as, in the end, gradually
4. To signify space and above, behind, below, beyond, here, there, to the
place right (left), nearby, opposite, on the other side, in
 the background, directly ahead, along the wall, as
you turn right, at the tip, across the hall, at this
point,
adjacent to
5. To signal an example for example, to illustrate, for instance, to be
specific, such as, moreover, furthermore, just as
important, similarly, in the same way
6. To show results as a result, hence, so, accordingly, as a
consequence, consequently, thus, since, therefore,
for this reason, because of this
7. To signal purpose to this end, for this purpose, with this in mind, for this
reason, for these reasons
8. To signal comparisons like, in the same (like) manner or way, similarly
9. To indicate contrast but, in contrast, conversely, however, still,
nevertheless, nonetheless, yet, and yet, on the other
hand, of course, on the contrary, or, in spite of this,
actually, a year ago, now, notwithstanding, for all
that,
strangely enough, ironically
10. To signal although, though, while, despite, to be sure, it is
alternatives, true, true, I grant, granted, I admit, admittedly,
exceptions, and doubtless, I concede, regardless
objections
11. To dispute it isn’t true that, people are wrong who say that, deny
that, be that as it may, by the same token, no doubt,
we often hear it said, many people
claim, many people suppose, it used to be thought, in
any case
12. To intensify above all, first and foremost, importantly, again, to
be sure, indeed, in fact, as a matter of fact, as I have
said, as has been noted
13. To summarize or in summary, to sum up, to repeat, briefly, in
repeat short, finally, on the whole, therefore, as I have
said, in conclusion, as you can see
Additionally, pronouns act as connectives when they are used to refer to a noun in
the preceding sentences. Repetition of key words and phrases and the use of
synonyms which echo important words both serve to establish connections with
previous sentences.(Transitional words and phrases)

1.2 TRANSITIONS

Problem
Transitions are tools to create coherence and consistency (i.e., “flow”) in your paper.
Without them, the relationship between ideas may be unclear to the reader.
Academic English relies heavily on these transitional words to clarify relationships
among ideas and sentences.

Solutions

USE WORDS FROM THIS CHART to make logical relationships explicit.

LOGICAL RELATIONSHIP

1. Addition :
TRANSITION WORDS

Moreover • furthermore • finally • in addition (to) • besides.

EXAMPLE: I love to write research papers for school. Moreover, I really enjoy
receiving large amounts of homework from my instructors. EXAMPLE: Not only am
I taking a full course load, but I also have a job that keeps me busy.
COORDINATE & CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS
And • nor • not only…but also • both…and.

2. Cause & Effect

TRANSITION WORDS

Therefore • consequently • thus • as a result (of) • for this reason • accordingly.

EXAMPLE: Romeo told Juliet that her spaghetti sauce was terrible; as a result,
Romeo now cooks for himself. EXAMPLE: In order to make my writing very clear, I
will learn how to use logical connectors properly.
COORDINATE & CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS
So • for
SUBORDINATE CONJUNCTIONS
Since • because • if…then • in order to.

TRANSITION WORDS

3. Comparison
TRANSITION WORDS
Likewise • similarly • in the same way • in the same manner.

EXAMPLE: Installments of Charles Dickens’s serial novels were eagerly awaited in

England and the U.S.; similarly, each of the novels in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter
series has been anticipated (and even pre-ordered) on both sides of the Atlantic.

EXAMPLE: Just as athletes go through training drills in order to be agile on the

field, so do musicians practice scales so that they can perform with ease.

COORDINATE & CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS

Just as…so • the more…the more • whether…or • either… or • neither…nor.

4. Contrast
TRANSITION WORDS

However • nevertheless • in contrast • on the other hand • on the contrary.

EXAMPLE: I love my dog, but I hate it when he eats the roll of toilet paper.
EXAMPLE: The more my dog misbehaves, the less likely I am to leave him home
alone. EXAMPLE: While I do enjoy cooking as a hobby, I will not prepare all the
food for your wedding.
COORDINATE & CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS
But • yet • the more…the less.

SUBORDINATE CONJUNCTIONS
Although • though • even though • unlike • while • whereas • despite • in spite of.

5. Concession
TRANSITION WORDS

Of course • to be sure • granted • naturally • no doubt

EXAMPLE: I’ve found qualitative methods to be the most fruitful approach to

writing center research. Of course, not every scholar shares this belief.
EXAMPLE: Given that graduate students work on their dissertations all year long,
it is understandable that many writers wish the Center for Writing were open during
weekends and holidays.
 SUBORDINATE CONJUNCTIONS

Given that • Granted that.

6. Conclusion
TRANSITION WORDS

Therefore • in short • in conclusion • to summarize • on the whole • overall • as the

data show • as I have demonstrated • ultimately.

EXAMPLE: As the data show, drivers are more likely to cause accidents when they
are talking on their cell phones. EXAMPLE: Therefore, Minnesota should enact a
law banning drivers from using cell phones.

COORDINATE & CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS

So.

7. Emphasis
TRANSITION WORDS

In fact • indeed
EXAMPLE: The New York Yankees are often derided as being “the best team
money can buy”; indeed, the team’s payroll is the most expensive in all of major
league baseball. EXAMPLE: The frequency of perfect games in baseball has been
increasing. In fact, of the 22 perfect games in Major League history, four occurred in
just the last two years.

8. Example
TRANSITION WORDS

For example • for instance • in particular • specifically • namely • to illustrate

EXAMPLE: Interracial couples have long faced racism in American culture. For
example, as recently as 1967, interracial marriage was illegal in seventeen states.
EXAMPLE: I am working on becoming healthier; specifically, I now go to the gym
daily.

9. Clarification or Repetition
TRANSITION WORDS

To repeat • that is • in other words • again • as explained/mentioned earlier

EXAMPLE: Karl Marx argued that class struggle has always existed. In other words,
the rich and poor have always been in conflict regardless of historical moment.
EXAMPLE: During midterms and finals, Student Writing Support gets especially
busy, and it is not uncommon for students to wait for over an hour to see a consultant.
COORDINATE & CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS
And

10.Time or Sequence
TRANSITION WORDS

COORDINATE & CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS

No sooner…than

SUBORDINATE CONJUNCTIONS
When • whenever • while • until • before • after • as soon as • as long as.

PAY ATTENTION TO PUNCTUATION PATTERNS.

• Transition words between two complete sentences are typically preceded by a

period (.) or a semi-colon (;) and followed by a comma (,). I respected his intelligence
and qualifications. However, I did not hire him. I respected his intelligence and
qualifications; however, I did not hire him

. • Coordinate Conjunctions (and, but, yet, so, for, nor, or) show continuation of an
idea between two clauses. Coordinate conjunctions are preceded by a comma when
used to join two complete sentences in formal writing. I respected his intelligence and
qualifications, but I did not hire him. (comma) I respected his intelligence and
qualifications but did not hire him. (no comma)

• Correlative Conjunctions (both…and; not only…but also; just as…so) operate in

pairs to connect two parallel phrases or clauses. Correlative conjunctions are
separated by a comma when used to join two complete sentences; however, they do
not need any punctuation when they join two phrases (incomplete sentences). Not
only did I respect his intelligence, but I also admired his qualifications. (comma) I
respected both his intelligence and his qualifications. (no comma)

• Subordinate Conjunctions make one clause dependent on, or subordinate to, the
other. Subordinate conjunctions may or may not require a comma, depending where
the clause is. Although I respected his intelligence and qualifications, I did not hire
him. (comma) I did not hire him although I respected his intelligence and
qualifications. (no comma) (Quicktips)
 1.3 Difficulties in Academic Writing
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to determine what difficulties that encounter when
revise English and to differentiate between students’ learning needs and objectives.
The sample consisted of 50 postgraduate students enrolled at University of Bagdad
during long time ago. Analysis of the data showed that English as a foreign language
(EFL) students face many difficulties and stresses in their academic writing, such as
difficulty distinguishing between spoken because there are the British accent and the
American accent, and written English, making a summary , before writing a draft,
identifying the skills needed for successful writing, and avoiding confusing words
and phrases.

1. Introduction
Academic writing in English at advanced levels is a challenge even for
most native English speakers. However, it is particularly difficult for (EFL)
graduate students, who come from non-Anglicized linguistic and cultural
backgrounds, particularly students.
Academic writing has been a crucial area of research in TESOL (Teaching English
to Speakers of Other Languages) field. The underlying rationale could be the manifest
increase of academic writing significance as students move to a higher level of
education. Academic writing can be defined as "…a mental and cognitive activity
since it is a product of the mind" (Al Fadda, 2012, p. 124). Abu-Ghararah and
Hamzah (1998, p. 87) describes academic writing as " … the logical organization and
arrangement of the written sentences within a paragraph and paragraphs within the
units of discourse …and the expression of the ideas”. Another aspect of academic
writing is that it "…can be understood only from the perspective of a society rather
than a single individual" (Burke, 2010, pp. 41).
From these three definitions, it can be concluded that academic writing could be a
complex process. It involves a variety of aspects that are believed to be the base of
successful academic writing.
Al Fadda (2012) indicates that one of the basics of academic writing is the ability
of the learners to access the relevant references and evaluate them in order to put the
different ideas and opinions together so that they can develop their own voice. That is
a writer student should have the ability to exploit others' ideas and write them in
his/her own words and then index from where those ideas have been taken (Dehkordi
& Allami, 2012).As noted by Al-Khasawneh and Maher (2010), other fundamental
writing conventions include making an outline, summarizing and paraphrasing
without which students might struggle when writing their tasks. Other basic elements
are forming, developing, and organizing ideas (Amin & Alamin, 2012). Furthermore,
 in order to have a free-error piece of writing, learners should carefully consider how
to form a thesis statement, to write convincing supporting sentences, and finally edit
them (Alsamdani, 2010). Finally, Al Fadda (2012) points out that learners have to be
familiar with punctuation marks such as the period, comma, semicolon, colon, dash,
hyphen, and capitalization.

2. Statement of the Problem

The study examines academic writing procedures to reveal the problems that EFL
speaking students face. Also, the study deals with the Problems that EFL speaking
students make in writing short paragraphs regarding their fields of work. EFL students
face many problems when paraphrasing. For example, students are incapable of using
their own words or reformat sentences based on their own critical thinking, and
reorganize sentences to be more effective academically. Other problems encountered by
EFL students are interfering of their native language (Arabic language). The difference
occurs between EFL students and native speakers of English language, who have diverse
writing styles, abilities, and backgrounds.
EFL students are incapable of organizing the functions of writing, the process of
reading to writing, and then the interfering of Arabic language (L1) with the second
language (L2) that prevents the use of critical thinking and the process of paraphrasing in
making new word structure based on their own perspectives without changing the
meaning of the words. Most students commit many problems related to sentence
structure. For Instance, grammatical mistakes are in syntactical as well as in organizing
new word expressions as most of the instructions given in Arabic and because the teacher
is a non-native speaker. Rabab’ah (2001) stated that the lack of communication among
EFL students in dealing with all four language skills is due to inappropriate resources
and the weaknesses in context that are given to these students.

3. Research Objective
The goal of this study is to determine the that students encounter when learning to
write academic English and differentiate between what students need in order to learn
and what their objectives are in learning.
1. To investigate the type of errors that EFL students commit in academic writing.
2. To investigate the errors that EFL students face in academic writing academic writing
.
4. Significance of the Study
Academic writing can be considered as an integral part of learning English
process. By recognizing the learners' academic writing difficulties and needs, there will
be a clear picture of the most effective and efficient course books to be adapted in their
program. Needless to say, teachers do their best and exert a lot of time and effort to
enhance their learners’ writing. Unfortunately, in most cases the final writing production
is not as good as expected to be. That is why the majority of instructors find writing the
 most difficult skill to teach (Al Murshidi, 2014). The results of the present study yield
fundamental insights that could contribute to more beneficial guidance for the teachers
and course books designers. The findings can be also essential in terms of suggesting
some possible solutions for the challenges that second language learners encounter in
academic writing. They could also give some insights for English as foreign language
teachers to equip their students with the required knowledge and skills before they start
studying at a new academic discourse community especially in an English-speaking
country.

5. Research Questions
The current study aimed at answering the following questions:
1. What are the basic academic writing difficulties encountered by international
students studying in an English-speaking country?
2. What are the main factors that may cause those difficulties?
6. Literature Review

Recent studies have researched the difficulties of academic writing. This study sheds
light on previous studies and reviews relevant literature according to the following
categories:
6.1 Definition of academic writing .
6.2 Basics of academic writing .
6.3 Characteristics of good academic writing.
6.4 Challenges of teaching academic writing to postgraduate students.

1.4 Definition of Academic Writing

Academic writing is a mental and cognitive activity, since it is a product of the
mind. The image of an individual working alone in a quiet environment has furthered
the view of writing as a mental and cognitive activity. However, as has been pointed
out, “writing can be understood only from the perspective of a society rather than a
single individual” (Burke, 2010, p. 40-41). Academic writing is the process of
breaking down ideas and using deductive reasoning, formal voice and third person
point-of-view. It is about what you think and what evidence has contributed to that
thinking.

How do you write academically?

 Start by introducing your topic. Try using a series of questions about the topic, using
startling or unusual facts or figures, defining an important, subject-related term or
quoting a well-known expert on your topic or a literary work.
 State your main idea clearly. This is your thesis statement. It contains the focus of
your essay and tells your reader what the essay is going to be about. The thesis
statement is usually located at the end of your introduction.
 State the main idea of each paragraph. These are the topic sentences. They contain
the focus of your paragraphs and tell your reader what each paragraph is going to
be about. Topic sentences are usually located at the beginning of each paragraph.
Each paragraph should flow smoothly from one to the next (e.g. the first sentence
in each new paragraph should serve as a link to the paragraph before it).
 Use supporting examples and details to make complicated ideas easier to
understand. Do not assume that your reader will understand what you are trying to
say.
 Use third person point-of-view (e.g. he, she, it and they). No first and second person
points-of-view (e.g. I, you, we) are used in academic writing.
 Use formal voice. This means no slang, colloquialism (common expressions of
ordinary speech), contractions, etc.
 End by restating your main idea, or summarizing important points, and then drawing
a final conclusion for your reader.
 Proofread your work, making any necessary corrections to sentence structure,
punctuation, spelling and grammar. Use a dictionary and a writer's guide if you are
unsure about the rules.(Study.com)

1.5 Basics of Academic Writing

Academic writing is expected to address an intellectual community in which
the students engage in active learning. Some basics or rules must be established.
Using information to one’s advantage is a key part of learning. Success at the
postgraduate level depends on the students’ ability to access, evaluate, and
synthesize the words, ideas, and opinions of others in order to develop their own
academic voice. When presenting what they have learned, it is therefore vitally
important that students are able to show clearly what they have drawn from others
and what is their own (Bristol Business School, 2006, p. 3). A student must be
honest about how much ownership he/she can claim over the ideas formed, the
answers found, and the opinions expressed (Bristol Business School, 2006, p. 3).
The student must follow certain rules to ensure good academic writing, including
punctuation guidelines.

Punctuation
The essential punctuation marks (excluding usage in reference systems) are the
period, comma, semicolon, and colon. These include the following:

 The period primarily marks the end of a sentence. A period is also used after an
abbreviation where the final letter of the word is not the final word of the
abbreviation, e.g., in enc. for enclosure, although Mr. for Mister is an exception
(Murphy, 2010, p. 9).

 The comma is primarily used to separate parts of a sentence so that the meaning
remains clearer for the reader. (I) A comma separates words in a list, e.g., He
brought coal, kindling, matches, and turf. (II) A comma separates subordinate
clauses within a complex sentence where two separate sentences are not required
(Murphy, 2010, p. 9).

 The semicolon has two common uses. First, it may be used to separate items in a
list after a colon. Second, it may be used to indicate a certain relationship between
two parts of a sentence (Murphy, 2010, p. 9).

 The colon may be used to indicate the start of a list, as is similar to the above
example for the semicolon. It may also be used before a quotation begins
(Murphy, 2010, p. 9).

 The dash it is used to enclose a group of words in a sentence where a list of

items is separated by commas. (Murphy, 2010, p. 9).

 An omission (where words are deliberately left out) is noted by the use of three
periods (an ellipsis) followed by a space. If the omission occurs at the end of a
sentence, the ellipsis follows the period.

 Parentheses/brackets are used to enclose information of minor importance in a

sentence. Brackets are useful if a writer is restricted to the use of footnotes
(Murphy, 2010, p. 10).

 The hyphen is used within compound words such as co-opt, half-day, two-
thirds, three-week holidays, inner-city streets, student-centered, problem-based
(Murphy, 2010, p. 10).

 Italics are used for titles of books, plays, films, etc., and some names, such as
those of planes or ships, etc. (Murphy, 2010, p. 10).

 Capital letters are used for names and titles, the first word in a sentence, and
acronyms, e.g., NQAI (Murphy, 2010, p. 10).

 Numbers fewer than one hundred are generally spelled out. When a number is
the first word in a sentence, it is spelled out regardless of its size. Hyphens are
used when numbers are spelled out, e.g., twenty-nine. Street numbers are given in
figures, e.g., 12 Upper Mount Street. A number used in a date is not spelled out,
e.g., January 14, nor is time, e.g., 12:30 pm. Decades, such as the 1990s, have an
“s” added to them with no preceding apostrophe (Murphy, 2010, p. 10).

 An apostrophe has no primary purpose. These are largely used to show

ownership and indicate that a letter or letters have been left out. (Murphy, 2010, p.
10).

 Quotations present information and ideas that the student has gathered from
other sources. Academic honesty requires that the student provide documentation
 to indicate the sources of the information and ideas (Troyka and Hesse, 2006, p.
51).

 Foreign words and phrases with popular abbreviations (particularly Latin and
French words) are frequently used when writing in other languages. The
convention in academic writing is to use italics or abbreviations for foreign words
or phrases and abbreviations (Murphy, 2010, p. 11).

 Footnotes and endnotes are important, along with references and bibliographies,
because they inform readers of who said what, where, and when. When the student
provides this information, readers consider their ideas to be buttressed by the ideas
of experts and are more likely to engage in those ideas (Fulwiler, 2002, p. 59). 6.3
Characteristics of Good Academic Writing Yugianingrum identified four
characteristics of good academic writing:

 Writing should play a significant role in the related community.

 The topic should be interesting for the writer, who believes that there is more to
discover about it.

 The writer must care about the aesthetic quality of the text he/she writes.

 The community should help writers in accessing relevant resources and finding
support and guidance. (Yugianingrum, 2010, pp. 40–41)

1.6 Challenges of Teaching Academic Writing to Postgraduate

Students
First, writing usually suffers from a lack of interaction, which stimulates oral
production in conversation (Shafie, Maesin, Osman, Nayan, and Mansor, 2010, p.
61). Often, in higher education, writing tasks require students to draw on outside
sources and adopt the styles and genres of academic discourse (Tardy, 2010, p.
12). Confidence in writing ability is a must. Cafarella and Barnett found that
students’ lack of confidence in their writing ability made it harder to make revision
decisions and explain these decisions to the feedback providers. This was
especially the case when there was conflicting feedback from different faculty
(Can, 2009, 25) One of the difficulties of writing in a second or additional
language is that it is generally believed to require some mastery of writing in the
first language. There seems to be a perception that once learners can write
sentences and paragraphs in their first language, they will automatically transfer
such skills to other languages. However, it has to be noted that this may be
possible only if a certain degree of proficiency in the first language is attained
(Kereni, 2004, 12).

Second, instructors continuously complain about the lack of knowledge and

certain skills necessary for academic writing among non-native speakers of
 English. Some of these skills involve outlining, paraphrasing, and summarizing
(Al-Shabanah and Maher, 2005, p. 2). Third, academic writing often requires
students to write from an expert position, even when they do not consider
themselves experts on their topics (Tardy, 2010, p. 13). Essays and related written
work provide opportunities for students to demonstrate some of the most
demanding learning outcomes; however, students are often more confused about
what constitutes a good essay than they are about the criteria for other types of
assignments (Elander et al., 2006, 72). The lecturers struggled in their role of
assisting international students with academic writing. While they all
acknowledged that it was important to offer students assistance in the form of
criteria sheets, they also indicted that they found it challenging to give advice to
students on academic writing, and regarded themselves as being unclear about
what that advice should be (Arkoudis & Tran, 2010, 175).

Additionally, poor language proficiency remains an issue. Novice writers have

particularly poor language proficiency, and, due to this factor, cannot conduct
effective discussions in the target language. Warschauer argues that oral language
proficiency is very important for any learner of language, because it is the most
widely used skill (Shafie et al., 2010, p. 63). Teachers, then, have an important
role in helping students develop their awareness of the effects of self-mentioning,
and enabling them to recognize both the choices available to them and the impact
of those choices. With this understanding, our learners will be better able to gain
control over their writing and meet the considerable challenges of academic
writing in a second language (Hyland, 2002, 357).

1.7 Characterization of Academic Writing

Academic writing can be characterized as the construction and development of

techniques taught in universities such as organizing and generating students’ ideas
and critical thinking, and developing vocabulary and grammatical syntax.
Additionally, students in English writing classes should receive more exposure to
those features which offer strong vocabulary, good sentence structures, and the
organization of paragraphs based on punctuation marks and conjunctions.
(Montgomery & Baker, 2007) pointed out that teachers should identify and
emphasize the process of academic writing for students. Thus, teachers need to
establish and encourage students’ attitudes towards the basic elements of academic
writing such as definition, strategies, and difficulties. In addition, in order to increase
students’ perceptions about academic writing, they have to modify their assumptions
about their needs, improvement, and proficiency level to become better writers.

Other perspectives like (Li, 2007) stated that writers’ constructions have to address
some beliefs about the identifications and development of English as a second
language (ESL) contexts regarding the use of effective lesson plans in teaching
academic writing. Thus, students can interact with beliefs, culture, and identity of
academic writing to modify and set their needs
 1.8 Perceptions of Students towards Academic Writing

In a second language acquisition (SLA), students need to understand the procedure

of academic writing such as developing new strategies, using adequate approaches,
and finding out the best solutions for their problems. Most researchers have
concentrated on teaching academic writing effectively among Arab students to
develop the self-esteem and critical thinking in teaching writing skills, features of
academic writing, and composition tasks.

Daoud & Al-Hazmi (2002) claimed that non-native speakers of the English
language can explore a new world of academic writing by measuring self-integration
of learning and by getting the opportunity to think critically in order to express
themselves, thereby making an intellectual commitment to get and generate
something meaningful through writing. Non-native speakers can develop their
accuracy towards academic writing by engaging in various programs within teaching
and learning environments. Students can achieve their academic purposes by
developing certain aspects of cultural features such as communicative interaction,
appreciation of cultural background, and engaging in meaningful and interactive
tasks. This will be achieved by making students deal with the objectives of the
English language curriculum and language skills being used in classroom activities

1.9 Strategies of Academic Writing

The importance of using strategies in academic writing can support the specialists
of second language acquisition (SLA) for the development and enhancement of
learners’ proficiency level. Ellis, R (1985) stated that language learning strategy
(LLS) is one of the three processes to develop second language knowledge.

In many studies, there is an emphasis on effective strategies that are used to

improve students’ performance such as critical thinking, paraphrasing, and mind
mapping. Moreover, these strategies can be considered as the measurement of
students’ writing abilities that can be analyzed and modified during the process of
teaching academic writing.

A. Using Corrective Feedback

Most English writers deal with certain steps and stages to enhance the process of
English academic writing and to improve and develop its strategies and features. For
example, from the grammatical aspect, there are certain steps and procedures students
should take into consideration such as the use of correct tenses.
 Kepner (1991) suggested that student mistakes can be corrected and analyzed to
increase their writing accuracy by defining two important things. The first involves
the process of acquiring forms and structures of second language acquisition (SLA).
The other involves the ability and willingness of teachers to deal with practical
problems in terms of corrective feedback. Lundstrom & Baker (2009) mentioned
teachers can conduct constructive feedback to contribute to improve students’
performance in academic writing. Besides, students will be introduced and classified
as givers and receivers to reveal their considerations and perceptions towards the
progress of their writing courses to achieve their goals in learning if the trainee
writers share the same cultural and educational background.

Many studies like Ferris & Hedgcock (2005) claimed that many English language
writing teachers used one-on-one strategy in corrective feedback to provide and
generate the opportunity for clarification and notification to reveal students’ mistakes.
Moreover, a number of studies are concerned with implementing these kinds of
techniques among ESL students in order to reduce their mistakes and examine their
future needs

B. Using Mind Mapping and Critical Thinking

There are many facts that students become capable of doing through the acquisition
of academic writing. For instance, students need to be critical, need to be sort of
kinesthetic, and be capable of synthesis. In addition, they need to have a good
introduction to instruct their paragraphs and ideas should be well organized. Thus,
they have to be more accurate in analyzing and developing their critical thinking in
order to summarize and conclude their writing professionally.

Scane, Guy, & Wenstrom (1991) mentioned that brainstorming can motivate a
students’ writing by increasing their creativity in certain tasks related to English as a
foreign language (EFL) environment. Furthermore, students can express their
thoughts and good writing under the process of brainstorming stages, assisting
students to generate new ideas and develop their skills for the tasks of academic
writing. Harmer (2001) mentioned that brainstorming techniques can make students
create their own ideas and thinking to improve their knowledge before writing, and it
can then be used at any level and under any situation.

Buzan, (1993) described the concepts of brainstorming that students need to acquire
in order to use its powerful tools to overcome their problems in organizing their
thoughts and skills.
1.10 Learners’ Writing Problems
Byrne (1988:4) thinks that because of the absence of the prosodic features in
writing, the writer has to compensate these features by keeping the channel of
communication open through his/her own efforts by selecting appropriate structures
and by using appropriate connecting devices so that the text can be interpreted on its
own. Similarly, Hedge (1988: 5) thinks that so as the writer to compensate the
absence of the prosodic features in writing, he/ she has to write with high degree of
organization, careful choice of vocabulary and using complex grammatical devices.
Grammatical problems , mechanical problems , sentence structure problems and
problems of diction are linguistic problems that hamper students’ effective writing in
English.
Grammatical Problems
Learners have a number of problems in their attempts to write in the second
language . “As verbs take different forms depending on tense and subjects they are
used with, they create problems for second language writing students” (Tyner, 1987).
Similarly, Kharma (1987) in Melese (2007: 12) states that students have problems
with subject verb agreements, pronoun references, and connectors.
Problems of Sentence Structure
Sentences reflect various syntactic structures (Reid, 1983). However, incapable
learners use run-on, incorrect, and fragmented sentences (west 1966, in Tsegaye
2006:16). Kharma (1986) states that those students who have the problem of writing
good sentences structures are unable to produce longer sentences requiring
subordination and coordination. According to Zamel (1983:22), cohesive devices are
crucial in writing. However, the linking devices have been found to be problematic
for English language students.
Problem of Word Choice
A good writing or composition should consist of appropriate and varied range of
vocabularies used along with proper grammar and varied range of sentence structures
(Norish, 1983;Alamirew, 2005). According to Reid (1983) in Melese (2007: 13),
when the writer practices the choice of vocabulary that would reflect a concern for the
reader and the purpose of writing, the composition written by the student would
become sensible to his/her reader. However, writing in a second language using the
appropriate words in the appropriate place is a problem for students. For example,
White (1980) states that usually students use ‘big words’ in their essays to impress
the reader, their teacher. The effort to impress the reader leads to a problem of
diction.
Cognitive Problems
The cognitive problems that students face include problems of punctuation,
capitalization, spelling, content and organization.
a. Punctuation Problems
According to Byrne (1988: 16), the fact that punctuation has never been standard to
the extent as spelling, makes it is problematic. Similarly, Carrol and Wilson (1995:
191) state "students' writing encounter punctuation problems as there are no universal
rules of punctuation."
b. Capitalization Problems
Capital letters are useful for sentence initials, the beginning of important words, in
topics, headings ,etc (Kroll, 1991). However, learners have problems in using
capitalization properly. There are reasons for students’ problems in using proper
capitalization. “The rules of capitalization are not universal and classifying nouns as
proper and common nouns is difficult for students” (Gowere et al,. 1995)
c. Spelling Problem
Due to the influence of other languages, variant pronunciations and other historical
reasons, the English spelling system which has become inconsistent is complex for
students (Gowere et al, 1995) .
d. Content Problem
Learners of English as a second or foreign language also face problems of exploring
ideas and thought to communicate with others (Clifford, 1987). According to Leki
(1991) this could be because of the traditional methods teachers use to teach writing
for spelling, punctuation, and mastering grammar. Clifford (1987) suggests that
teachers should encourage students to focus on the message, ideas or thoughts they
wish to convey rather than grammar, spelling, punctuation and others.
e. Problem Organization
According to Kharma (1986), learners have the problem of structuring the paragraph,
topic development of a paragraph, structuring the whole discourse and a theme in a
discourse. “The most common students’ problem in paragraphing is either the
paragraph is not limited to a single topic or the single topic is not developed or
exemplified adequately” (West, 1966: in Tsegay 2006: 17). Raimes (1983) states that
the other problem of organization in student’ writing is the difficulty of
differentiating a topic and supporting ideas or generalizations and specific details.
Pincas (1982) has also showed that learners have the problems of writing united
paragraphs because of their failure to use cohesive devices appropriately.

Conclusion
The study concludes that the students have difficulties in all areas in writing
academic essays. The prevalent difficulty of the students in terms of content and ideas
is the absence of variety of ideas, while for organization is the absence of
connectives. For vocabulary and word choice, the students’ most prevalent difficulty
is the use of incorrect word and word usage, while for language use is the poor
sentence structure. Meanwhile, the prevalent difficulty of the students along formality
and objectivity is the evident use of first and second person pronouns, while for
referencing is the lack of citations. Moreover, the study concludes that the overall
quality of the academic essays written by the students falls within the poor to fair
level. Interestingly, the study concludes that more exposure to academic writing
among students produce better quality academic essays. Lastly, this study conforms
to the Cognitive Writing Theory that writing academic essay is a process oriented
skill, which considers different writing categories such as content and ideas,
organization, vocabulary and word choice, language use, formality and objectivity
and referencing, which all contribute to its overall quality. . Students should be
provided with more academic writing activities to reduce their identified difficulties.
They are encouraged to read sample academic essays, which they can use as
guides in writing their own. It is recommended that students should have constant
exposure to academic writing through various ways. Teachers are encouraged to use
variety of activities and offer constant academic writing practices and drills to the
students to minimize the identified writing difficulties. Moreover, teachers should
develop materials that will address the identified difficulties of the Senior High
School students. School administrators should send teachers for trainings and
seminars related to academic writing. Curriculum developers should devise teaching
strategies that will address the identified writing difficulties of the students. These
strategies should integrate more academic writing activities and exposure to English
to enrich the learning experiences of the students. Also, more studies should be
conducted to explore the difficulties of students not only in writing academic essays
but also to the other academic writing categories such as writing a review paper,
concept paper, position paper and technical writing.

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