STYLE IN ACADEMIC WRITING.pptx for academic writing

A guide for students in the academic writing course

1. STYLE IN ACADEMIC WRITING

2. WHAT IS ACADEMIC WRITING Academic writing has a number of definitions; It can refer to writing done for several reasons and it is used in many different forms According to Smagorinsky and Smith (1992), a broad definition of academic writing is any writing done to fulfil a requirement of a collage or university. These publications are read by teachers, lectures , researchers or they can be presented at conferences, seminars , meetings etc E xamples documents where academic writing is used are books, essays , research papers / articles, conference papers, academic journals, Dissertations and Thesis reports etc As a result academic writing styles vary.

3. THE CONTRADICTION: WRITING WITH STYLE VS. WRITING FOR THE ACADEMY Ronald, ( 1999, p.170) explains that different eras have emphasized different parts of a composition Plato and Aristotle were disappointed by what they saw as allure, enchantment , fascination, attraction or charm with style ; they worried that writers could dazzle audiences without caring much about telling them the truth . But then in the 1980s and 1990s composition educators (instructors), informed by the writing process movement , similarly focused on content rather than form, arrangement or style Ronald (1999), defines style in academic writing in terms of the presence of the author which she terms as “writing where somebody is home.”

4. She speculates that students sometimes write as if “ nobody is home” because they are playing it safe by trying by all means to avoid mistake They distance themselves from their prose in order to protect themselves from criticism. As a result, they sometimes write dry, lifeless prose. She adds on to state that, there are certain questions which require students to write one certain kind of style which is formal, impersonal, explicit, objective and organized around assertions, claims, and reasons that illustrate or defend those claims ; Example of such questions are as follows; a) discuss the cause of Civil war ; b) do you think that nature or nurture plays the most important role in a child's development;

5. THE PLAIN STYLE Strunk and White (1918), state that the principle requirements of the plain style are as follows; that in this kind of writing, a sentence should contain no unnecessary words and a paragraph no unnecessary sentences This writing style is transparent without misrepresentation or distortion w ithout distraction a llows a clear view of the describe or analyzed phenomenon (incident) without excess words, phrases or sentences but this requires not that the writer make all his sentences short or avoid detail Crowley (1998), adds on to state that the approach to this style of writing is that it has to show plainness , simplicity orderliness sincerity

6. Some suggestions and cautionary hints of the plain style Write an essay that comes naturally Write in a way that comes easily and naturally to you by using words and phrases that come readily to hand but do not assume that because you have acted naturally, then your product is without flaw (error) Do not overwrite Guard against wordiness Do not add unnecessary words O mit needless words by pruning out redundancy Do not overstate or exaggerate O ne of the common faults because if it occurs readers will be instantly on guard and in their mind they will suspect everything that has preceded that overstatement as well as everything that follows Readers will also lose your confidence in your judgment or your poise

7. A single overstatement, wherever or however it occurs, diminishes the whole document, and A single carefree superlative has the power to destroy for readers, the object of the writer’s enthusiasm, interest or zeal 4 . Do not add your opinions Unless there is a good reason for it being there, do not inject opinion on a piece of writing Opinions scattered indiscriminately about, leave the mark of egotism on a work 5 . Avoid fancy words avoid being too coarse (harsh or rough) for the context 6 . Avoid foreign languages I t is sometimes convenient or necessary to borrow from other languages B ut from sheer excitement or desire to show off student at times , sprinkle their work liberally with foreign expressions with no regard for the readers comfort 8. U se figures of speech cautiously When you use metaphor, do not mix it up

8. 9. Show clarity and conciseness When you become stuck in a sentence it is best to start afresh; do not try to fight your way through against the terrible odds of syntax But be careful not to take shortcuts at the cost of clarity Do not use initials for the names of organizations or movements For example not every one knows that ACB means (American Council for the Blind) or that ICJ means International Court Justice. These short cuts waste the readers time The one truly reliable shortcut in writing is to choose words that are firm and surefooted to carry readers on their way It is often said that the longest way round is usually the shortest way home 10. Use definite, explicit and concrete language Use the language you are sure of and confident in as a writer Use a n actual language that is plain , pure, simple and clear

9. Similarly , Williams (2005) stresses a stylistic virtue that is clear from beginning to end by inviting students to transform wordy, awkward or secondary sentences into lean, clear prose The knowledge-making mission of academic writing is well served by the effort to describe, explain, analyze and evaluate the world with as much clarity as we can muster

10. B. VARIATION OF WRITING STYLES The obvious observation is that academic writing is not at all the same ( Strunk and White,1959 ) Academic discourse practices or styles vary -the styles preferred by social workers maybe quite different from those preferred by historians, mathematicians or scientists . These writings vary in structure and style The contextual style of an academic discourse may be influenced by personal, social, political and cultural issues For example, the shape taken by sentences, by a particular paragraph(s) or by a text depends upon factors associated with the writer such as ; Personality Mood Gender

11. Proficiency with the language in use Knowledge Experience Professional status ethnicity (traditions, customs) etc

12. DIRECTIONS FOR STYLE PEDAGOGY What do we need to know about style and w hat do we expect to gain from style training in a composition course focused in academic writing? Guided analysis Guided style of academic texts can help students recognize the stylistic preferences of successful writers; appreciate variation across writers, across disciplines and occasions Helps students understand the factors that account for variation for example one can use a wide range of sentence lengths, sentence types (declarative, imperative questions 2. Guided practice Deploying of specific syntactic options to achieve desired linguistic effects

13. REFERENCES Crowley, S. (1998). Composition in the University : Historical and Polemical Essays . Pittsburge . PA: University Pittsburge Press. M agorinsky , P & Smith, M. W. (1992). The nature of Knowledge in Composition and Literary Understanding : The Question of Specificity. Review of Educational Research 62, 279-305. Strunk . W. JR and White E.B (1918). T he Elements of Style (4 th ed.). New York: Macmillan. Strunk . W. JR and White E.B ( 1959). The Elements of Style. New York: Macmillan . Williams, J . (2005). Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace (8 th ed ). New York: Pearson.