Introduction to English for Academic and Professional Purposes

Overview

• Differentiating academic and non-academic texts
• Types of academic and non-academic texts
• Factors that shape academic writing

Academic Texts

• Written by professionals in a particular field (e.g. medical, education)
• Well edited, often taking years to publish
• Uses formal language and field-specific jargon
• Contains lists of sources and references
• Goal: advance understanding in a particular discipline
• Challenging for beginner readers due to jargon and formal language
• Informative, argumentative, and objective

Examples

• School books, textbooks
• Journal articles
• Research proposals and papers
• Newspapers (broadsheets) and certain magazine articles
• Theses and dissertations

Types of Academic Texts

1. Descriptive
   • Provides facts and information
   • Keywords: identify, report, record, summarize, define
2. Analytical
   • Organizes information into categories, themes, parts
   • Keywords: analyze, compare, contrast, relate, examine
3. Persuasive
   • Includes arguments, recommendations, and evaluations
   • Adds the author's point of view supported by evidence
   • Keywords: argue, evaluate, discuss, take a position
4. Critical
   • Considers at least two points of view, can be argumentative
   • Keywords: critique, debate, disagree, evaluate

Non-Academic Texts

• Written for the general population
• Published quickly, can be written by anyone
• Informal, conversational language, may use slang
• Author may be unknown
• Delivers simple and basic information
• Personal, emotional, impressionistic, and subjective

Examples

• Blog posts
• Fiction books
• Personal letters
• Personal journals and diaries

Factors Shaping Academic Writing

1. Audience
   • Who will read the text?
   • Influences the amount of background information needed
2. Purpose
   • Why are you writing?
   • Determines the direction of the writing
3. Organization
   • Arrangement of ideas (text structure and patterns)
   • Guided by purpose
4. Style
   • Techniques and level of formality
   • Consider the audience
5. Flow
   • Smooth transition of ideas
   • Aim to inform and ensure good transition
6. Presentation
   • Is the text ready for publishing?
   • Goes through drafts, revisions, and layout finalization

Conclusion

• Academic writing is a structured and meticulous process aimed at advancing knowledge.
• Consider various factors like audience, purpose, organization, style, flow, and presentation for effective academic writing.

Sources

• (List of references used by the lecturer)