INTRODUCCION AL INGLES CON FINES ACADEMICOS Module | Academic English wr Discussion a) What types of texts do you read? 'b) What do you listen to in everyday life? ©). What kinds of material do you need to read listen to for college? P d) Are they different from the text/ audios your read for school? e) Can you make a list of the material you have received from your professors? f) Are there any similarities or differences between those and the ones you consume in your free time? Task |. Watch these videos and complete these charts with the features of different kinds of texts according to the videos httos://www youtube.com/watch?v=7cbMYAgBdPo httos://www youtube.com/watch?v=MyTLos76aHA, ‘Academic texts Non-academic texts "TEXT TYPES, ‘AUTHOR CONTENT pagel Prof Lic. Gabriela A. LlanezaSTVIE PURPOSE Task Z. Using the information in the chart decide which word can be used to complete the graphic. UNCLEAR FORMAL ~ REDUNDANT- INFORMAL- OBJECTIVE- VAGUE -CLEAR - EMOTIONAL - COMPLEX -SIMPLE CONCISE- -SPECIFIC Task 3. Skim the texts A and B below and decide which one was taken from an academic research paper. TEXTA TEXTS Creativity broadly refers to an ability or activity that produces something new and useful. Its assessment appears to become increasingly important because creativity has enduring effects throughout the individual's lifespan (Mouchiroud & Lobart, 2001). However, attempts to devise a unitary measure of overall creativity have not been successful (Fishkin & Johnson, 1998). Itis therefore preferable to adopt a Creativity isa hot topie in Hong Kong nowadays. What does being creative mean actually? If you come up with a new and Useful idea, we can say that you are creativel! But how can we measure it? We should think of a way to measure creativity because it’s having a bigger and bigger effect on our lives all the time. But we have still not succeeded in finding a good way. So instead of just using one method to measure * Source: is.//as. lest du hh/oes/Resoure/|anaiiaen%0Fentures 200" 208cademic20Texts/ avid hit Page2 Prof Lic. Gabriela A. Llaneza‘systems approach to the assessment by Using multiple measures to tap various dimensions of creativity (Fishkin & Johnson, 1998). Two prominent dimensions of creativity are verbal and figural (Cropley, 2000; Dacey & Lennon, 1988). Both can tap characteristics of creativity such as fluency and originality. For assessing figural creativity, the drawing task is particularly Useful because of its basis on gestalt theory and application across cultures (Cropley, 2000). Gestalt theory maintains that creativity reflects the individual's ability of reformulation, analogical thinking, and removing mental blocks that result in premature closure (Dacey & Lennon, 1998). ‘As such, creativity involves skills enabling an individual to reconstruct a fuller picture, creativity we should probably come up with several methods to measure different aspects of creativity. For example, let's look at two aspects of creativity - drawing pictures and the verbal aspect. If we set up tests around these two aspects, we can measure all sorts of different creative abilities. The drawing test isa very useful test since it's based on gestalt theory and it can be used all over the world. Gestalt theory gives us a better idea of what being creative means. For example, it means that you can improve things or ‘think out of the box’ or be very open-minded and curious about things, etc. Ina nutshell, creative people are able to use skils to fil in the gaps. Task 4. Learning what language features to include in your academic writing at university is a major step towards improving your academic writing style, but to achieve this you need to know what features to generally avoid. Extract B would not be accepted as an academic text because it contains too many non-academic language features. These features are listed below, find the examples and place them in the correct gap. Now-academic Linguistic | Examples features ‘lichés/ expression that are use too often Question to the reader Exclamation marks Tformal (chatty ) wocabulary Unsophisticated (simple) vocabulary ‘Unsophisticated adverbs ‘Unsophisticated connecting words Use of personal pronouns Repetition of vocabulary Contracted forms Wordiness la A. Llaneza pared Prof Lic. Gabri‘Simple syntax Lack of clarity and precision ‘Odd word order sentences Lack of references and sources Task 5. Now you know the language features you should try to avoid in your academic writing this activity focuses on what you should try to include in your writing at college. Read extract A in more detail, identify the different language features that are typical of an academic writing style and type these into the box below. Linguistic features of academic | Examples writing Concepts are defined Tentativeness, or hedging ‘Sophisticated adverbs Complex noun phrases ‘Sophisticated connects word ‘Complex sentence structure Tense and time ‘Avoidance of personal pronouns Full form of words Conciceness (short and clear) Listing / exemplifying Reporting structures Formal academic vocabulary page Prof Lic. Gabriela A. LlanezaReading task & Pair-work re-reading : Why does academic waiting need tobe formal, objective, complex, concise and specific? Reading: Read the text below to find the answers and fll inthe gaps with these phrases inthe correct gap. There is one phrase t00 many. and therefore appearing superior and arrogant hence the need for_ reporting verbs ‘noun phrases are generally concise and clearer definitions of important words the credibility of the writer is weakened, they establish the facts by writing about what they have learned from others sinable co procrastinate for lo it often refers co abstract ideas in their fall form: Academic scholars are responsible for expanding the boundaries of knowledge. This is serious business and a/an formal writing style reflects the importance and sincerity of this work. Ifan academic text contains informal casual language, (A).. .. Therefore, in an academic text you see sophisticated academic vocabulary and words written (B).... Academic writing appears complex because (C). ., whereas everyday language is more concrete and familiar. Academic subjects have their own specialised vocabulary too which students of other subjects may not be familiar wieh. Oddly, if English is not your fest language, the importance of being concise in academic writing adds to this complexity. Sentences that are structured around (D).... sthan sentences constructed around verbs, but they may be more difficult for students to write. The same is true when rerivers use sentences that contain subordinate clauses or lists. Sophisticated adverbs and connecting words, and (E) .... also add to the clarity and precision of academic writing. An academic paper should be written in an objective style. Academics focus on information and argumentation, In other words, (F) and from their own research, and how this has led t0 new conclusions. This style of writing therefore avoids personal pronouns and che passive voice is a common linguistic ature. Emotional language is also avoided. Being assertive, (G).. és regarded negatively. Weiters are expected to be cautious, or tentative, about the conclusions they come to and so hedging 1s another typical characteristic of academic writing. A major pare of an academic's job 1s t0 build on the work of others and so itis expected that an author refers to that previous work (H1).. Ie sets the scene for the current research, shows that the author knows his/her subyjece well, pays respect to previous research and situates the current paper in time and place. This is why the names of other pare Prof Lic. Gabriela A. Llanezaacademics occur so frequently in published research papers. Any idea that is not referenced is assumed to be the author's idea and so it is unnecessary to write, T chink’ or Ta my view’: Follow-up: Design a poster on the topic and share with the class Bz Writing task: Write a paragraph explaining. What is Academic English? ‘Submit through the virtual classroom, pare Prof Lic. Gabriela A. Llaneza