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English Academic Style and Language
The style of English academic writing is formal. Its main characteristics are the absence of conversational features and the use of an appropriate academic vocabulary. Developing a command of formal style is extremely important for non-native speakers wishing to master the conventions of English academic discourse.
Formal academic English will normally avoid:
1. Contractions:
| The research won't be continued until appropriate funding is secured | The research will not be continued until the appropriate funding is secured. |
2. Interjections and hesitation fillers (i.e. um, well, you know, etc.):
| Well, we will now consider the influence of sex hormones on stress response | We will now consider the influence of sex hormones on stress response |
3. Addressing the reader directly:
| You can see the data in Table 3 | The data can be seen in Table 3 |
4. Phrasal verbs (although not always):
| Researchers have found out that many mental illnesses are based on molecular defects | Researchers have discovered that many mental illnesses are based on molecular defects |
5. Direct questions (although not always):
| What can be done to improve the state of our economy? | We now need to consider what can be done to improve the state of our economy. |
6. Adverbs in initial or final positions (the middle position is preferable):
| Then it will be shown how teachers can utilize this method | It will then be shown how teachers can utilize this method |
| This work relies on previous research heavily | This work heavily relies on previous research |
7. Inappropriate negative forms (formal expressions of quantity):
not any 
no
not much little
not many few
not enough insufficient
too much excessive
a lot considerably
a lot of many
| The investigation didn't yield any new results | The investigation yielded no new results |
| The book doesn't raise many important issues | The book raises few important issues |
| The government won't do much to support universities in the near future | The government will do little to support universities in the near future |
| There are a lot of reasons for adopting this policy, but not many governments have chosen to do so because they do not have enough resources to implement it | There are many reasons for adopting this policy, but few governments have chosen to do so because there are insufficient resources to implement it |
8. Short (contracted) forms of the words or slang:
| This booklet describes the requirements and content of the university graduation exams | This booklet describes the requirements and content of the university graduation examinations |
9. Figures at the beginning of the sentence:
| 97 people visited the museum last week | Ninety-seven people visited the museum last week Last week 97 people visited the museum |
Traditionally, academic writing tends to avoid personal pronouns and shows preference toward impersonal style. At the same time, there is a tendency now to use an I-perspective in English academic writing, mostly in humanities.
Using I, however, may seem somewhat unusual or awkward to Ukrainian writers. It may thus be recommended, at least for beginners, to maintain impersonal style and to avoid the first person pronoun I. This does not mean, however, that I should never be used.
An important feature of English academic written discourse is a cautious manner of writing, that is the avoidance of too definite statements or conclusions. The purpose of such strategy is to be accurate and to protect the author from being criticized for possible errors or invalid claims. Cautious writing also allows for other opinions or points of view. The main linguistic ways of doing this are as follows:
1. By using adjectives that express probability (in all examples below the statements gradually weaken in strength):
| Dinosaurs died out due to sudden climatic changes | It is certain It is likely It is probable It is possible It is unlikely | that dinosaurs died out due to sudden climatic changes |
2. By using there is construction with the word possibility:
| There is | a strong possibility a definite possibility a slight possibility | that dinosaurs died out due to sudden climatic changes |
3. By using adverbs that express certainty and probability:
| Definitely, Undoubtedly, Probably, Possibly, Presumably, | dinosaurs died out due to sudden climatic changes |
4. By using statements of shared knowledge, assumptions, and beliefs:
| It is generally agreed It is widely accepted It is now generally recognized | that dinosaurs died out due to sudden climatic changes |
5. By using modal verbs:
| Continuum thermodynamics of solids, fluids, and mixtures forms a powerful tool for many unsolved problems | Continuum thermodynamics of solids, fluids, and mixtures may form a powerful tool for many unsolved problems Continuum thermodynamics of solids, fluids, and mixtures could form a powerful tool for many unsolved problems |
There are different conventions for different genres of academic writing (books, articles, conference papers) and different academic disciplines (such as humanities, social sciences or engineering). However, some principles are the same for any piece of academic writing, whether it is a journal article on molecular biology or a conference paper on English literature. The main features of academic writing are:
Objectivity.
Although you may sometimes give your own opinions, excessive subjectivity is counter-productive. Opinions should not be confused with facts, but should follow logically front them. This means that the way you express opinions is important, e.g. “It can be concluded that …” is generally better than “In my opinion”, since the latter implies that it is only your opinion.
Formality.
This goes hand in hand with objectivity. Although academic writing is not quite as formal as it used to be, you need to avoid slang and language which is too conversational.
Date: 2015-01-02; view: 1008
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