The document provides an overview of various topics related to academic writing, with each topic covered on its own slide. The topics covered include understanding essay topics, dealing with writer's block, organizing an essay, integrating note-taking and planning techniques, using topic sentences and thesis statements, writing introductions and conclusions, using paragraphs effectively, conducting critical reading and research, summarizing and citing sources, grammar and style guidelines, and formatting bibliographies.

2.  Some general advice on academic writing…SLIDE 3
 Understanding essay topics…SLIDE 4
 Writer’s block… SLIDE 5
 Organizing an essay… SLIDE 6
 Some techniques for integrating note-taking and planning… SLIDE 7
 Topic sentences & Thesis statements… SLIDE 8
 General advice on Introductions and Conclusions… SLIDE 9
 Paragraphs… SLIDE 10
 Paragraphs classification… SLIDE 11
 Critical reading towards Critical writing… SLIDE 12
 Research using the internet & Skimming and Scanning… SLIDE 13
 Summarizing & Using sources… SLIDE 14
 Standard documentation formats… SLIDE 15
 Using quotations… SLIDE 16
 Specific types of writing… SLIDE 17
 Revising and editing & Wordiness… SLIDE 18
 Common Errors In Grammar, Punctuation, and Style… SLIDE 19
 Unbiased language… SLIDE 20
 Some tools and rules to improve your spelling… SLIDE 21
 To keep in mind… SLIDES 22&23
 Verbs for Referring to Sources… SLIDE 24
 Bibliography... SLIDE 25

3. Have an argument
Answer a question
Try to prove something
Be clearly and persuasively
designed

4. Note which concepts or methods the topic asks you to use
Note the key terms in the assignment sheet
Ask yourself questions about the specific topic in terms of
the concepts and look for controversies
Formulate a tentative thesis statement at an early stage

5. COMMON CAUSES POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS
Are you having trouble understanding
the assignment?
Gain a better understanding thriugh a
combination of outside help and self-
help.
Have you done enough research? Do more research or review the
research you have already done.
Have you done too much research? Discard materials that are beyond the
scope of your paper.
Do you have a topic? Be sure that you have a specific topic,
not a too general one.
Have you written a paper in this genre
before?
Look for examples, explanations and
guidance.
Are you worried about sounding smart
enough?
Do not use unfamiliar words. Revise and
edit your writing.
Do you find introductions difficult to
write?
Write ir last, or quickly
Is outside stress distracting you from
your academic work?
Set aside separate time, work
somewhere quiet, and take a break
when it is necessary.

6. The best time to
organize your paper
is during the pre-
writing stage
When you begin
planning, ask the
following questions:
What type of essay am I
going to write? Does it
belong to a specific
genre?
Be aware that
genres are not
fixed
Remember that the
structure of an essay
should not be
determined by the
structure of its source
material
Use a reverse outline:
summarize each
paragraph in the
margin in order to
check coherence and
avoid repeated points.

7. Method 1:
Index cards
• Write down every
idea, fact,
quotation,
paraphrase, on a
separate index
cards. When you
finish, try to put
them in the best
possible order.
Method 2: The
computer
• Using a computer
to take down
notes just as you
would on a paper.
Method 3: The
circle method
• To get your ideas
onto a single page
where you can see
them all at once.
Conncet your
ideas by putting
them into different
circles.

8. It makes a definite and limited assertion that needs to be
explained and supported by further discussion.
It shows the emphasis of your argument and indicates its
methodology
It shows awareness of difficulties and disagreements.
Topic sentences state the main point of a paragraph: they serve
as a mini-thesis for the paragraph. They usually appear at the very
beginning of paragraphs. Use a topic sentence to show how your
paragraph contributes to the development of your argument by
moving it that one extra step forward.

9. Some general advice
about introductions
Do not spend too much time into the
introduction.
At a later stage you need to compress
your introduction.
It can be fine to leave the writing of the
introduction for a later stage.
Avoid sweeping generalizations.
If your essay has a thesis, your thesis
statement will typically appear at the
end of your introduction, but it is not
compulsory.
Some general advice
about conclusions
Summarize in fresh language.
Reflect upon the significance of what
you’ve written.
In order to make it interesting: Use an
apt quotation or expert opinion. Or
give a startling statistic, fact, or visual
image to drive home the ultimate point
of your paper.

10. A paragraph is a series of related sentences developing a central
idea, which is expressed in a topic sentence .
The topic sentence has a unifying function. A paragraph is unified
if all the sentences relate to the topic sentence.
Not all paragraphs need topic sentences. In particular, opening
and closing paragraphs.
Deliberate
repetition
of key
words.
Strategic
use of
pronouns
such as
it, they,
and this.
Show
connections.
Use
specialized
linking
words.

11. • It defines a term, often by drawing
distinctions between the term and other
related one.
The definition paragraph
• It develops a topic by distinguishing its
component parts and discussing each of these
parts separately.
The analysis or
classification paragraph
• It zeroes in on a key similarity or difference
between, for instance, two sources, positions, or
ideas.
A comparison or a contrast
paragraph
• It acknowledges that what you previously
asserted is not absolutely true or always
applicable.
A qualification paragraph
• It involves a straightforward step-by-step
description. Process description often follows a
chronological sequence.
The process paragraph
• It supports a general statement by means of
examples, details, or relevant quotations.
The Illustration paragraph
CLASSIFICATION

12. Know what
kind of
ideas you
need to
record.
Don’t write
down too
much.
Label your
notes
intelligently.
Taking Notes from Research Reading

13. Skimming and Scanning
To get a general overview of the text before beginning
to read it in detail. .
By first skimming a text, you
can get a sense of its overall
logical progression.
Scanning is basically skimming with a more
tightly focused purpose: skimming to locate a
particular fact or figure, or to see whether this text
mentions a subject you’re researching.

14. Summarizing
 A summary has two aims: 1) To reproduce the overarching ideas in a text,
identifying the general concepts that run through the entire piece. 2) To
express these overarching ideas using precise, specific language.
 Include the title and identify the author, contain the author’s thesis, or
central concept, stated in your own words
 Omit ideas that are not really central to the text, omit minor details and
specific examples.
 Avoid writing opinions or personal responses in your summaries.
 Be careful not to plagiarize the author’s words. If you do use even a few of
the author’s words, they must appear in quotation marks.
Quotations, paraphrases,
or summaries :
• If you use the author’s
exact words, enclose
them in quotation
marks, or indent
passages of more than
four lines.
Specific facts used as
evidence for your argument
or interpretation :
• First consider whether
the facts you’re
mentioning are
“common knowledge”. If
so, you may not need to
give a reference.
Distinctive or authoritative
ideas, whether you agree
with them or not :
• The way you introduce
a reference can
indicate your attitude
and lead into your own
argument.
Using Sources How Not to
Plagiarize

15. Different disciplines use their own systems to set out
information about sources. Here are samples of
common systems:
Traditional Endnotes or Footnotes with Superscript Numbers
MLA System: Parenthetical Author-Page References
APA System: Parenthetical Author-Date References
Numbered Note Systems
Electronic Sources

17. The Book
Review or
Article
Critique
Writing an
Annotated
Bibliography
The
Literature
Review
The Abstract
The
Comparative
Essay
Writing about
History
Writing about
Literature
Writing a
Philosophy
Essay
Writing in the
Sciences
Effective
Admission
Letters
Application
Letters and
Résumés
The
Academic
Proposal
The Lab
Report
Oral
Presentation
s
Writing for
the Public

18. One of the most efficient ways to improve your writing is to edit it for
conciseness. You will find it easy to recognize unnecessary words and edit them
out. Common patterns of wordiness: Sensible things to do about them:
Doubling of Words choose one
Intensifiers, Qualifiers omit or give specific details
Formulaic Phrases use a one-word form or omit
Catch-all Terms can sometimes omit
Padded Verbs use a one-word form
Unnecessary “to be” and “being” omit
Passive Verbs change to active voice
Overuse of Relative Structures omit when possible

19. Common
Errors In
Grammar,
Punctuation,
and Style
Faulty
Agreement
Sentence
Fragments
Run-on
[fused]
Sentences
Overuse
of
Passive
Voice
Faulty
Parallelism
Vague
Pronoun
s
Dangling
Modifiers
Squinting
or
Misplaced
Modifiers
Mixed or
Dead
Metaphors
Faulty
Word
Choice
[Faulty
Diction]
Wordiness
Comma
Splices
Misuse of
Comma,
Semicolon
and Colon
Incorrect
Comparison
Double
Constructions

20. Recent changes in social awareness have made people think about
the ways language tends to downgrade certain groups
The “Man”
Trap
• Many standard wordings seem to assume that every
individual is male. Repeating he and she, him and her, his
and hers at every reference is clumsy. Finding alternatives
can be as simple as using plural rather than singular.
Confusing the
Group and
the Individual
• Many academic disciplines focus on group behaviour
and can describe it precisely. Don’t get stuck in the
habit, though, of referring to people only as
representatives of categories.
Gendered
Labels
• Terms that label people simply on the basis of their sex
have often gathered negative overtones.

21. Use a (good) dictionary.
Be consistent about using British Or American spellings in
your writing.
Always check certain “troublesome” suffixes in your
dictionary.
Create your own “difficult-to-spell” lists.
Learn the standard pronunciations for frequently
misspelled words.
Watch out for homophones, near-homophones, and other
easily confusable words.
Become familiar with English spelling rules.

22. Plurals can be
Regulars Irregulars
But there are
«Special
Cases»
Possession is
expressed by
adding ·’s· to
the end of
the word to:
Singular
nouns
Plural nouns
Possesive
pronouns

23. Article THE
Article A/AN
Gerunds and infinitives are verb forms that can take the place of a
noun in a sentence.
Following a verb (gerund or infinitive)
Following a preposition (gerund only)
Following an indirect object (infinitive only)

24. You can indicate your attitude to the sources you cite by
choosing specific verbs to refer to them.
Pattern 1 reporting verb + that + subject + verb
Pattern 2
reporting verb + somebody/something + for +
noun/gerund
Pattern 3
reporting verb + somebody/something + as +
noun/gerund/adjective