THE ACADEMIC

WRITING STYLE Unit 1. Lesson 1

English for Academic and Professional Purposes 12-Turquoise and 12-Canary

 A written language that provides
information, which contains information and
ideas related to a particular discipline.
ACADEMIC TEXT
Critical, objective, specialized texts that are
written by professionals or experts in a
particular field.
 a form of communication that is shaped
by the following factors:
WRITING 1. Topic
2. Role
3. Purpose
4. Audience
 a form of communication that is shaped by
the following factors:
1. Topic What is the text about? What details am I
imparting to the readers.
WRITING 2. Role Who am I as a writer?
3. Purpose What am I writing?
4. Audience Who is reading this piece? What
knowledge does he/she need to understand?
 THINK AND SHARE

Think of an SMS personal message in your social networking

account or email that was missent to you. Reflect on the
details that made you realize that you were not the
intended recipient of the message.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

 THINK AND SHARE (TASK 2)

Examine the three texts and fill out the table that follows.
Together with two classmates, discuss your findings and
when called upon, present your observations to the class.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

 THINK AND SHARE (TASK 2)
Excerpt 2 (Comic
Excerpt 1 (Abstract) Excerpt 3 (Poster)
Strip)

Purpose

Conversational or
Technical Language

Audience

Role of the Writer/Artist

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

 Write a reflection on the importance of
LEARNING LOG 1 considering the purpose, audience, and your
own role in writing a text. You may include
experiences to support your point.
The elements influence the use of
language.

Academic writing requires

sophisticated use of language.
 ASPECTS OF PROFESSIONAL
& ACADEMIC LANGUAGE Unit 1. Lesson 2

English for Academic and Professional Purposes 12-Turquoise and 12-Canary

 1. Formality
FEATURES OF 2. Objectivity
LANGUAGE 3. Explicitness
4. Caution
 FORMALITY
Features of Language

EAPP 12 Turquoise and 12-Canary

FORMALITY

TONE

PROBLEM The right observance of rules

and conventions or etiquette
THEOROTICAL
FRAMEWORK

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

TONE
Formality reflects your dignified stance
in your writing as a member of the
academic community.
PROBLEM

It makes a ‘legitimate’ piece of

THEOROTICAL
FRAMEWORK
academic writing.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

TONE 1. Choosing expanded modal forms,

over contracted forms.
PROBLEM
2. Choosing one verb form over two-
word verbs.
THEOROTICAL
FRAMEWORK

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY
3. Choosing expanded terms over the
abbreviated equivalents.

EXPLICITNESS
4. Avoiding colloquial/trite/idiomatic
expression.
CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY
STUFF
alternative more formal synonyms:
effects, equipment, gear, goods,
EXPLICITNESS
individual, kit, luggage, objects,
paraphernalia, possessions, substances.
CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY
A LOT OF
alternative more formal synonyms:
abundant, adequate, considerable,
EXPLICITNESS
plenteous, sizeable, substantial,
sufficient, significant.
CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY
THINGS
alternative more formal synonyms:
aspects, areas, elements, facts, figures,
EXPLICITNESS
materials, points, situations, subjects,
information
CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

SEATWORK 4
1. With women especially, there is a lot of
social pressure to conform to a certain
physical shape.

LET’S TRY
2. Significantly, even at this late date, Kate was
considered a bit conservative by her peers.

LET’S TRY
3. These exercises can easily be incorporated
into an exercise routine, with each exercise
done again a number of times.

LET’S TRY
4. This isn't easy to do since most historians
persist in speaking of The National
Government as if the same sort of government
ruled from 1931 to 1940.

LET’S TRY
5. This isn't easy to do since most historians
persist in speaking of The National
Government as if the same sort of government
ruled from 1931 to 1940.

LET’S TRY
6. Still, the pressure to do well as an individual
made most women believe that the problems
they encountered were probably of their own
making.

LET’S TRY
BONUS

help
climb
begin
use

LET’S TRY
 OBJECTIVITY
Features of Language

EAPP 12 Turquoise and 12-Canary

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

lack of favoritism toward one

EXPLICITNESS
side or another, freedom from
CAUTION baias

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

Academic writing requires special

OBJECTIVITY
knowledge and the use of more
complex language and objectivity.
EXPLICITNESS
This means that the writing must
CAUTION be impersonal and maintains a
certain level of social distance.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

1.Avoiding the use of personal pronouns

OBJECTIVITY
such as you, I, and we.

EXPLICITNESS 2. Avoiding rhetorical questions.

CAUTION
3. Avoiding emotive language that shows
biases and lessens objectivity.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY EXAMPLE
You can demonstrate that climate
EXPLICITNESS
change is a real phenomenon by
studying alterations in Antarctic ice
CAUTION
layers.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

EXPLICITNESS
Using the topic as the subject

CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

Using the topic as the subject

OBJECTIVITY

EXPLICITNESS
Alterations in Antarctic ice layers
demonstrate that climate change
CAUTION is a real phenomenon.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

EXPLICITNESS
Using a passive verb

CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY
Using a passive verb
The reality of climate change
EXPLICITNESS
can be demonstrated by
studying alterations in Antarctic
CAUTION
ice layers.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

EXPLICITNESS
Using ‘it’ as an empty subject

CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY
Using ‘it’ as an empty subject
OBJECTIVITY

It can be demonstrated that climate

EXPLICITNESS change is a real phenomenon by
studying alterations in Antarctic ice
CAUTION
layers.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY
Focus on the evidence
Another way to use active voice while remaining
OBJECTIVITY
objective is to focus on the evidence, and make
this the subject of the sentence. For example:
EXPLICITNESS The findings show...
The data illustrate...
CAUTION The graph displays...
The literature indicates...

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

Use evidence from sources

OBJECTIVITY
Evidence from sources is a common feature of
objective academic writing. This generally uses
EXPLICITNESS
the third person active. For example:
Newbold (2021) shows that... He further
CAUTION
demonstrates the relationship between...
Greene and Atwood (2013) suggest that...

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

EXPLICITNESS “In my opinion, this a very

CAUTION
interesting study."

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

SEATWORK 5
Task 2. Page 9.
 EXPLICITNESS
Features of Language

EAPP 12 Turquoise and 12-Canary

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

The quality of being

EXPLICITNESS
clear and exact.
CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY
Academic writing
demands the use of
EXPLICITNESS signposts that allow
readers to trace
CAUTION relationships in the parts
of a study.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY
1. If you intend to show a
change in your line of
OBJECTIVITY argument, make it clear by
using appropriate transition
words.
2. When two ideas seem the
EXPLICITNESS
same, express each one
clearly.
CAUTION 3. If you intend to give extra
information in your sentence,
make it clear by using
appropriate transition words.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

SEATWORK 6
Task 3. Page 11.
 CAUTION
Features of Language

EAPP 12 Turquoise and 12-Canary

FORMALITY

Academic Writing requires care since

OBJECTIVITY knowledge is built from proven theories
and concepts.
EXPLICITNESS

CAUTION
Caution is needed to avoid Sweeping
Generalities

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

Cautious language is used to convey

EXPLICITNESS how certain you are of the opinions
or arguments you are using in
CAUTION
writing.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

If there is strong evidence for your

EXPLICITNESS claim or argument in an essay you
can match it with a strong modal
CAUTION
verb or adjective.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

OBJECTIVITY

It is important to be cautious or
EXPLICITNESS tentative in your claims unless they
are proven without any doubt.
CAUTION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

FORMALITY

1. Verbs indicating caution: tends,

OBJECTIVITY
suggests, appears to be, think, believe,
doubt, indicate
EXPLICITNESS
2. Modal verbs: will, must, would, may, can,
might, could
CAUTION
3. Adverbs of frequency: often, sometimes,
usually

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

SEATWORK 7
Task 4. page 13
 Sentences need to be
restructured in such a way
STRUCTURE that they show a level of
complexity that reflects the
sophistication of an academic
writer.
STRUCTURE 1.Nominalization
2.Passivization
 The verbs are made
central as they denote
action.
NOMINALIZATION

Transforming verbs into

PASSIVIZATION nouns help readers
focus on the action and
not the doer.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

The company created software to manage the
transactions successfully.

THE CREATION OF SOFTWARE TO MANAGE

TRANSACTIONS WAS A SUCCESS

EXAMPLE
The president announced a three-day holiday
this September.

THE PRESIDENT’S ANNOUNCEMENT OF A

THREE-DAY HOLIDAY FOR SEPTEMBER WAS
RELEASED.

EXAMPLE
The mall distributed several free items to
consumers in the hope to boost sales.

DISTRIBUTION OF FREE ITEMS FOR

CONSUMERS WAS DONE IN THE HOPE TO
BOOST SALES.

EXAMPLE
NOMINALIZATION The results of actions are
highlighted.
PASSIVIZATION

English for Academic and Professional Purposes

The researchers conducted experiments to
validate the hypothesis.

EXPERIMENTS WERE CONDUCTED TO VALIDATE

THE HYPOTHESIS.

EXAMPLE
An engineer built a saltwater lamp to help
communities with no electricity.

A SALTWATER LAMP WAS BUILT TO HELP

COMMUNITIES WITH NO ELECTRICITY.

EXAMPLE
Several scientists conducted experiment to
examine the effects of algae on biodiversity.

AN EXPERIMENT WAS CONDUCTED TO EXAMINE

THE EFFECTS OF ALGAE ON BIODIVERSITY.

EXAMPLE