This slide show is created for Language and Written Expression IV

1. ADVICE ON
ACADEMIC
WRITING
BY : C A M I L A D I G R A Z I A

2. SOME GENERAL ADVICE
ON ACADEMIC ESSAY
WRITING
*You should formulate the questions you will answer in you essay
*It should have an argument
*You should create a provisional thesis or hypothesis
*It should prove a thesis
*The organization should be based on the order in which you discovered the parts of
your argument
*You should start writing early
*You should write what is readiest to be written
*You should keep the essay’s overall purpose and organization in mind
*You should revise it extensively

3. WRITER’S BLOCK: IT REFERS TO A WRITER WHO IS UNABLE TO WRITE
COMMON CAUSES POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
You are having trouble understanding the
assingnment
*Ask questions about anything that you find
new or confusing
*Look for keywords and phrases
You do not know what to write about *Do more reasearch or review the reasearch
have already done
You have done too much research and writing
overwhelming
*Put the notes aside and ask yourself what the
essential points to make about the topic are
You have a topic but it is too general o vague *Have a specific topic by using course materials
to help you generate or refine your topic
*Talk about your ideas to clarify them
*Try a mind-mapping exercise
You have never written a paper in a specific
genre or discipline
*Check the course and department websites
examples or explanations
*Seek from guidance from your profesor or TA
*Look for handbooks and guides on how to
write in specific disciplines

4. COMMON CAUSES POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
You are worried about sounding smart enough *Don’t try to use unfamiliar words to sound
smart
*Focus on getting your ideas down clearly and
simply
*Just get something down on the page then
can revise it and do some adjustments
*Leave plenty of time for revising and editing
The introduction is difficult to write *Write the introduction last
*Write the introduction quickly then you can
rewrite it
Outside stress is distracting you from your
academic work
Learning new study habits:
*Work somewhere quiet where you cannot be
interrupted
*Turn off your cellphone and stay off email and
the Internet
*Take a break

5. ORGANIZING AN ESSAY:
SOME BASIC
GUIDELINES
WHAT DOES AN ESSAY OUTLINE LOOK LIKE?
An essay could be based on two outlines:
SENTENCE OUTLINE: It is done in full sentences to express complex details
TOPIC OUTLINE: It consists of fragments rather than full sentences. They are more
open-ended than sentence outline
Both should include a thesis statement, introduction, body or argument and
conclusion

6. WHEN SHOULD I BEGIN PUTTING TOGETHER A PLAN?
The earlier you begin planning, the better. Arguments may begin to take shape in your
and then you may start to formalize your thoughts in the form of a tentative plan
TECHNIQUES FOR INTEGRATING NOTE-TAKING AND PLANNING:
• METHOD 1: INDEX CARDS: When you are reasearching, writing down every idea, fact,
quotation or paraphrase on a separete index card. Then, when you have collected all
cards, reshuffle them into the best posible order and you have an outline
• METHOD 2: THE COMPUTER: You can collect your points consecutively, just as you
on paper. Then, you can move them and start planning
• METHOD 3: THE CIRCLE METHOD: When you have an idea, write it down on paper and
draw a circle around it. When you have an idea which supports another idea, do the
but connect the two circles with a line
• METHOD 4:REVERSE OUTLINE: Once you have completed your first draft, read through
essay and every time you make a new point, summarize it in the margin. If the essay is
reasonably well-organized, you should have one point in the margin for each paragraph
and your points read out in order should form a coherent argument. Thus, you can revise
your essay and adjust it.

7. P L A N N I N G
P L A N N I N G W I L L P R O V I D E T H E F O L L O W I N G A D V A N T A G E S :
• H E L P S Y O U T O P R O D U C E A L O G I C A L A N D C L E A R
A R G U M E N T T H A T Y O U R R E A D E R S C A N F O L L O W
• H E L P S Y O U T O P R O D U C E A N E C O N O M I C A L P A P E R B Y
A L L O W I N G Y O U T O S P O T R E P E T I T I O N
• H E L P Y O U T O N O T I C E W H E T H E R Y O U H A V E L E F T A N Y T H I N G O U T
• M A K E S D R A F T I N G T H E P A P E R E A S I E R B Y A L L O W I N G Y O U T O
C O N C É N T R A T E O N W R I T I N G I S S U E S S U C H A S G R A M M A R , W O R D
C H O I C E A N D C L A R I T Y
O V E R P L A N N I N G P O S E S T H E F O L L O W I N G R I S K S :
• D O E S N ’ T H A V E Y O U E N O U G H T I M E T O W R I T E A N D R E V I S E
• L E A D S Y O U T O P R O D U C E P A P E R S T H A T T R Y T O C O V E R T O O M U C H
G R O U N D A T T H E E X P E N S E O S A N A L Y T I C D E P T H
• C A N R E S U L T I N W R I T I N G S T Y L E T H A T L A C K S S P O N T A N E I T Y A N D E A S E
• D O E S N O T P R O V I D E E N O U G H O P P O R T U N I T Y T O D I S C O V E R N E W I D E A S
I N T H E P R O C E S S O F W R I T I N G

8. THESIS STATEMENTS
CHARACTERISTICS OF GOOD THESIS STATEMENTS
It makes a definite and limited asserion that needs to be explained and supported by
further discussion
It shows the emphasis and indicates the methodology of your argument
It shows awareness of difficulties and disagreements
SOME MYTHS ABOUT THESIS STATEMENTS
Every paper requires one
It must come at the end of the first paragraph
It must be one sentence in length, no matter how many clauses it contains
It must give three points of support

9. INTRODUCTIONS AND CONCLUSIONS
SOME GENERAL ADVICE ABOUT
INTRODUCTIONS
 Don’t sink too much time into the instruction because you may at later stage need to compress it
 It can be fine to leave the writing of the introduction for a later stage in the essay-writing process
 The size of your introduction should bear some relationship to the length and complexity of your paper
 Get to the point as soon as posible
 If your essay has a thesis, your thesis statement will typically appear at the end of your introduction
 Find a startling static that illustrates the siriousness of the problema you will address
 Quote an expert
 Give some background information necessary for understanding essay
 Use a brief narrative or anecdote that exemplifies your reason for choosing the topic and illustrate a
real-world scenario
 Don’t provide dictionary definitions
 Don’t give details and in-depth expanations that really bellong in your body paragraphs

10. SOME GENERAL ADVICE ABOUT CONCLUSIONS
The conclusion involves critical thinking
A good sentence leaves your reader with something to think about
The length of the conclusion should reflect the lenght of the essay
If your essay deals with a contemporary problema, warn readers of the posible
consequences of not attending to the problema
Use an apt quotation of expert opinion to lend authority to conclusión you have reached
Return to an anecdote from your introduction and add further insight

11. PARAGRAPHS
THEY ARE A SERIE OF RELATED SENTENCES
DEVELOPING A CENTRAL IDEA OR THE TOPIC
HOW DO I UNIFY MY IDEAS IN A PARAGRAPH?
A paragraph is unified if all the sentences relate to the topic sentence
NOTE: not all paragraphs need a topic sentence
METHODS TO DEVELOP MY IDEAS IN A PARAGRAPH
 ILLUSTRIATION PARAGRAPH: It supports a general statement by means of examples, details or relevant quotation
 DEFINITION PARAGRAPH: It defines a term. Try to avoid dictionary definitions
 ANALYSIS OR CLASSIFICATION PARAGRAPH: It develops a topic by distinguishing similarities or differences between
sources, positions or ideas
 QUOTATION PARAGRAPH: It acknowledges what you previously asserted is not absolutely true or always applicable
 PROCESS PARAGRAPH: It envolves straightforward step by step description. It often follows a chorological sequence
VERY OFTEN A SINGLE PARAGRAPH WILL DEVELOP BY A COMBINATION OF METHODS

12. H O W D O I M A K E M Y I D E A S
F L O W I N A P A R A G R A P H ?
TECHNIQUES
• SHOW CONNECTIONS
• DELIBERATE REPETITION
• STRATEGIC USE OF
PRONOUNS
• SPECIALIZED LINKING
WORDS

13. HOW LONG SHOULD A PARAGRAPH
BE?
Paragraphs vary in length depending on the
needs of the paragraph. Usually, they are
between one- third and two-third of a page
double spaced

14. TOPIC SENTENCES
WHAT IS A TOPIC
SENTENCE?
It is a sectence which states the
main point of a paragraph : It
serves as a mini-thesis for the
paragraph. It helps to protect
your readers from confusion by
guiding them through the
argument. It also helps you to
recognize gaps or weakenesses
in your argument. Moreover, it
avoids irrelevant information
WHERE DO TOPIC
SENTENCE GO?
It usually appears at the very
beginning of paragraphs.
However, a paragraph may
have a transitional sentence or
two which will come before a
topic sentence. Sometimes
writers include a topic sentence
at the end of the paragraph

15. HOW CAN I
CREATE A GOOD
TOPIC SENTENCES?
Ask yourself what’s
going on in your
paragraph. Relating
your topic sentences
to your thesis can
help strengthen the
coherence of your
DOES EVERY
PARAGRAPH
NEED ONE?
No, but most
do.

16. CRITICAL READING TOWARDS
CRITICAL WRITING
How do I read looking for ways of thinking?
1- Determine the central claims or purpose of the text
2- Make some judgements about context (audience, historical context…)
3- Distinguish the kinds of reasoning the text employs
4- Examine the evidence the text employs
5- Critical Reading may involve evaluation
Some practical tips
• Begin by skimming researach materials, especially introduction and conclusion in order to strategically choose where to
focus your critical effort
• When highlighting a text or taking notes from it, teach yourself to highlight argument
• Try to remain aware of how a portion of a text fits into the whole argument from which it is taken
• Introduce quotation by laying out the judgements you are making about it and the reasons why you are using it

17. TAKING NOTES FROM REASEARCH
READING
Some useful tips
•Know what kind of ideas you need to record
•Don’t write down too much but compress
in your own words
•Label your notes intelligently

18. DEALING WITH NEW WORDS
You don’t need to interrupt your Reading to look up every hard word right away in the
dictionary. As a matter of fact, experts say it is actually better to guess the meaning first
Some tips
Sound it out
Examine the structure
Look at the context
Only then, check the dictionary
Reinforce your understanding by writing a brief definition or synonym

19. SUMMARIZING
TECHNIQUES
• Include the title and identify the autor in your first sentence
• The first sentence or two of your summary should contains the author’s thesis or
central concept, stated in your own words
• Divide the article into sections
• Omit ideas that are not really central to the text
• Avoid writing opinions
• Be careful not to plagiarize the author’s words

20. S O M E S T E P S

21. 1. ASSIGNMENT:
• Have you performed the kind of thinking the assignment sheet asked for?
• Have you written the genre of document called for?
• Have you used concepts and methods of reasoning discussed in the course?
• Have you given adequate evidence for your argument or interpretation?
2. ORGANIZATION:
• Does your introduction make clear where the rest of the paper is headed? Do you avoid
vague ideas?
• Is each section in the right place to fulfil your main idea?
• Have you drawn connections between the sections?
• Would a person reading your conclusion know what question you had asked and how you
had arrived at your answer?
3. POLISH AND EDIT YOUR STYLE
• Read passages aloud
• Be sure to use spell check.
• Don’t depend on a thesaurus
• Don’t depend on a grammar checker.

22. BIBLIOGRAPHY: University of Toronto, “Advice on Academic Writing”, (n.d). adapted
from: https://advice.writing.utoronto.ca/
IMAGES: Google images