What is Academic Writing
We have all, hands down, almost always heard of the term Academic Writing. Whether high school graduates or university students, we all have been synonymous with this writing. While we know what it is, some of us still fail to truly understand what it entails and how it differs from other types of writing.
Simply put, Academic writing is a formal and unbiased style of writing used in universities and scholarly publications. It can easily be found in journal articles and books on academic topics. As students, you are likely to encounter instances where you are to produce essays, dissertations, or research papers in literary style.
Even though academic writing follows the same writing process as other types of texts, it is usually found to include specific conventions regarding content, structure, and style. Academic writing isn’t like other types of paper; it’s formal and objective, and for many students who have just stepped into high school or their university, it can be somewhat daunting.
But once you have understood the fundamentals of academic writing and assessed them piece by piece, you will notice that it is certainly not complicated. In this particular writing, there are some rules you need to follow. Writing in academia is a skill that can quickly be learned. All you need to do is practice and comprehend the basic knowledge, especially the do and don’t. This article will be your guide to teaching you all you need to learn about Academic Writing.
We now know that academic writing is a formal and logical report that includes empirical facts and states scientific arguments. To thoroughly understand the elements, let us first learn about the types of academic writing.
Types Of Academic Writing
There are four main types of academic writing. They are descriptive, analytical, persuasive, and critical. Each of these writings follows a specific language and has a particular feature and purpose.
Descriptive Writing
Descriptive is the simplest and somewhat the most accessible type of academic writing. The purpose is to provide facts or information. Descriptive academic writing is usually a summary of an article or a report of the results of an experiment.
The kinds of instructions for a purely descriptive assignment include: ‘identify’, ‘report’, ‘record’, ‘summarize’ and ‘define’.
Analytical Writing
As a university student, you will likely know that analytical writing is the other type. Although somewhat similar to descriptive and may include illustrative elements, analytical writing requires you to re-organize and assemble the facts and information you describe into categories, groups, parts, types or relationships. In analytical writing, it is essential to note that if you compare two theories, your text can be broken down into several parts.
‘Analyze’, ‘compare’, ‘contrast’, ‘relate’, and ‘examine’. These are kinds of instructions for an analytical assignment. Since analytical writing is different from descriptive writing, it is necessary that you seamlessly plan it. Planning may involve brainstorming the facts and ideas. Once you have gathered the facts and opinions, the next thing to do is group them. You can do that according to patterns, parts, similarities, and differences.
Persuasive Writing
The most common academic writing is persuasive, similar to the analytical essay, but challenging. In this writing, you are to include your point of view. This allows you to persuade the reader to understand and discuss the facts. Since we know that persuasive writing provides you the opportunity to include your point of view, you might end up asking, what sort of point of view? To support any evidence, you can consist of an argument, a recommendation, an interpretation of findings, or, better yet, an evaluation of the work of others. As persuasive writing focuses on points of view and perspective, ‘argue,’ ‘evaluate,’ ‘discuss,’ and ‘take a position are some of the necessary instructions to keep in mind while you are given a persuasive writing assignment. Developing your argument in this scenario can be arduous, and you might need some directions on how to structure your opinion in the best possible manner.
Check and follow the guidelines below to understand how:
- You should clearly state the reasons for your point of view.
- Enlist the sources of evidence that support your point of view
- Break your point of view into parts.
Critical Writing
Critical writing remains the most common type of academic writing for research, postgraduate and advanced undergraduate essays. The scathing report includes all the features of persuasive writing. Like compelling writing, critical writing requires your point of view on an issue or topic. A critical essay requires you to consider at least two points of view, including your own. In this case, you may describe a researcher’s interpretation or argument and then evaluate the merits of the discussion or give your alternative interpretation. Critical writing assignments usually include a journal article or a literature review that follows the ‘critique,’ ‘debate,’ ‘disagree,’ and ‘evaluate’ instructions. To write compelling critical writing, you need to summarize the assignment thoroughly. You need to identify the main interpretations, assumptions, or methodology. Form your own opinion of the work and be able to explain it.
Of all the four types of academic writing, critical writing requires strong writing skills. To engage your writer, you should thoroughly understand the topic and the issues and then structure it in an essay format and paragraph structure that allows you to analyze different interpretations and develop your argument, which is supported by evidence.
Before submitting your assignment, carefully assess your writing structure and make sure all elements are meticulously covered. It should also follow a specific style and formatting standards. Whether you follow the Modern Language Association (MLA) or the American Psychological Association (APA), each style guide maintains particular rules for formatting, punctuating your writing, and citing your sources.
