Take a look at this short video to find out more about personal pronouns and active and voice that is passive.
Academic writing is explicit in many ways. First and foremost, this means there is a clear presentation of ideas within the paper. The written text need to have a well-organized structure and be simple for the reader to follow. One method to accomplish structure and clarity in your text is by the utilization of signposts. Signposts are phrases and words that can be used in your text to be able to guide your reader along. Signposting can be divided in to two different categories: major signposting and linking words and phrases.
More on explicit language Show more/less
Major signposting is employed to signal key facets of the task, such as the intent behind an paper that is academic its structure. Some situations of major signposting:
The goal of this study is always to do my homework …
This chapter reviews/deals with …
In conclusion …
Linking phrases and words create coherence and give your reader directions by marking transitions between sentences and paragraphs. Some examples of linking words and phrases:
Being explicit in your writing also means that you are not vague but rather very specific in the presentation of ideas, numbers and years. Being specific helps add precision to your writing.
Common pitfalls for non-native writers – and how in order to avoid them
If English is not your first language you might encounter certain difficulties when writing academically. This section relates to several of the most common pitfalls. It becomes easier to avoid them and thereby become a better writer if you learn what your problems are.
Words which are easily confused Show more/less
Some words may look virtually identical but have quite meanings that are different. For instance you might write “manger” instead of “manager”. Remember that this form of mistake is not discovered because of the spellchecking function of your word processor. To prevent these kinds of mistakes it is strongly recommended that you consult a dictionary.
Punctuation Show more/less
It is critical to be aware that writing English that is correct is more or less with the right words but also includes sentence structure and punctuation. The use of punctuation differs between languages; a good example could be the question that is upside-down at the start of interrogative sentences in Spanish. But additionally, there are smaller differences like the use of commas and also the way quotation marks look.
Take a good look at this short video for more information about punctuation:
You might use punctuation and with that, sentence length, to produce variation in your writing. If all your valuable sentences are very short or very long the reading becomes somewhat tedious.
The research has resulted in many results. One result is described here.
Those two short sentences could be combined into:
The investigation has resulted in results that are many one of which will be described here.
However, be careful so that you usually do not create sentences that are run-on. These occur when two independent clauses are joined without the right punctuation or word that is connecting.
The study has resulted in many results one result is described here.
Sentence fragments Show more/less
A sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence and therefore it cannot get up on its own. A complete sentence has a subject and a verb and is composed of one thought.
These are samples of sentence fragments:
So he went to look at doctor. (Why did he head to see the doctor?)
Such as for example fruit and veggies. (exactly what are vegetables and fruits examples of?)
In 1918. (What happened in 1918?)
Shattered glass throughout the floor. (this can be a fragment because there is no verb that is main
Sentence fragments can be fixed by incorporating them to the sentence that holds the main clause, changing the punctuation or by extending the fragment into a full sentence.
Peter had a sore throat so he went along to look at doctor.
Children should eat healthy food, such as for instance fruit and vegetables.
World War I ended in 1918.
Glass was shattered all around the floor.
Dangling modifiers Show more/less
A dangling modifier is a word or phrase that does not connect properly towards the sentence that is main.
Having finished the experiments, the results were analyzed.
In this sentence, it really is unclear what the modifier “having finished the experiments” describes. Who may have finished the experiments? The way in which the sentence is constructed, the modifier connects to“the total results”, but clearly “the results” have not finished the experiments. This sentence should be rephrased. A good way to do this will be to state that is clearly conducted the experiments and analyzed the outcomes:
Having finished the experiments, we analyzed the outcomes.
Or, if you fail to want to range from the pronoun “we” that is personal
Once the experiments were finished, the total results were analyzed.