English for Academic & Professional Purposes

LESSON 1
Writing Academic Texts and
Reading Texts Critically
PRAYER FOR GENEROSITY
St. Ignatius of Loyola

Lord Jesus,
Teach me to be generous.
Teach me to serve you as you
deserve,
to give and not to count the
cost,
to fight and not to heed the
wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to seek reward,
except that of knowing that I do
your will.
Amen.
Learning Objectives
❖ Define academic writing and distinguish
it from other kinds of writing;
❖ Identify the purpose, audience, language,
and style of academic writing; and
❖ Distinguish between paraphrasing and
quoting and use them appropriately in
the paper.
 Writing Academic Texts
and Reading Texts Critically

❖ Critical Reading
❖ Writing Academic Text
❖ Plagiarism
 CRITICAL READING
❖ According to Gary
Goshgarian,
critical reading is
an active
discovery process.
 CRITICAL READING
❖ It involves scrutinizing
any information that you
read or hear.
❖ It also means not easily
believing the information
a text offers.
CRITICAL READING Would you
believe and
agree with the
statement after
you read it or
would you
question its
veracity?

❖ Girls are most likely to do

well in academics during
high school years but boys
get ahead of them in
college.
CRITICAL READING Would you
believe and
agree with the
statement after
you read its or
would you
question its
veracity?

❖ Female teenagers are more

concerned with their
physical appearance than
male teenagers.
CRITICAL READING
❖ If you question the validity
of the statements by
asking the person to give
the basis for his/her
statements, then you are
one step closer to
becoming a critical reader.
Different ways to help
you become a critical
reader
 Different ways to help you become a critical reader

❖ Annotate what you need

❖ One of the ways to interact with the
writer is to write on the text.
❖ You can underline, circle, or highlight
words, phrases, or sentences that
contain important details or you can
write marginal notes asking questions or
commenting on the ideas of the writer.
Different ways to help you become a critical reader
 Different ways to help you become a critical reader

❖ Outline the text

❖ To fully engage in a dialogue with the
text or with the writer of the text, you
need to identify the main points of the
writer and list them down so you can
also identify the ideas that the writer has
raised to support his/her stand.
Different ways to help you become a critical reader
Different ways to help you become a critical reader
 Different ways to help you become a critical reader

❖ Summarize the text

❖ You can also get the main points of the
text you are reading and write its gist in
your own words.
❖ This will test how much you have
understood the text and will help you
evaluate it critically.
❖ A summary is usually one (1) paragraph
long.
Different ways to help you become a critical reader
 Different ways to help you become a critical reader

❖ Evaluate the text

❖ Evaluating what you are reading is the most
challenging part of the critical reading
process.
❖ When you evaluate a text, you question the
author’s purpose and intention and his/her
assumption in the claims.
❖ Check if arguments are supported by pieces
of evidence and are valid and credible.
 Different ways to help
you become a critical
reader
❖ Annotate what you need
❖ Outline the text
❖ Summarize the text
❖ Evaluate the text
 CRITICAL READING
❖ These four suggested ways of
reading critically are not an isolated
process that is independent of each
other; they are an overlapping
process that you can use
simultaneously as you engage in
dialogue with the writer of the text.
Moreover, there is another important
skill that a critical reader must learn,
that is, how to spot flaws in
reasoning.
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ BEFORE READING
❖ Determine which type of academic text (article, review,
thesis, etc.) you are reading.
❖ Determine and establish your purpose for reading.
❖ Identify the author’s purpose for writing.
❖ Predict or infer the main idea or argument of the text
based on its title.
❖ Identify your attitude towards the author of the text.
❖ State what you already know and what you want to learn
about the topic.
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ BEFORE READING
❖ Determine the target audience.
❖ Check the publication date for relevance. It should have
been published at most five years earlier than the current
year.
❖ Check the reference list while making sure to consider the
correctness of the formatting style.
❖ Use a concept map or a graphic organizer to note your
existing ideas and knowledge on the topic.
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ BEFORE READING
❖ Read the title of the following study by Murthy et al. Based
on the title, make an inference on the content or main
idea of the study.

Do We Tweet Differently From Our Mobile Devices?

A Study of Language Differences on Mobile
and Web-Based Twitter Platforms
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ DURING READING
❖ Annotate important parts of the text.
❖ Annotating a text can help you determine essential
ideas or information, main ideas or arguments, and
new information or ideas.
❖ Write keywords or phrases on the margins in bullet
form.
❖ Write something on the page margin where
important information is found.
❖ Write brief notes on the margin.
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ DURING READING
❖ Write questions on information that you find
confusing.
❖ Write what you already know about the ideas.
❖ Write the limitations of the author’s arguments.
❖ Write notes on the readability of the text.
❖ Comment on the author’s biases.
❖ Use a concept map or any graphic organizer to
note down the ideas being explained.
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ DURING READING
❖ React to the arguments presented in the text.
❖ Underline important words, phrases, or sentences.
❖ Underline or circle meanings or definitions.
❖ Mark or highlight relevant/essential parts of the
text.
❖ Use the headings and transition words to identify
relationships in the text.
❖ Create a bank of unfamiliar to technical words to
be defined later.
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ DURING READING
❖ Use context clues to define unfamiliar or technical
words.
❖ Synthesize the author’s arguments at the end of
the chapter or section.
❖ Determine the main idea of the text.
❖ Identify the evidence or supporting arguments
presented by the author and check their validity
and relevance.
❖ Identify the findings and note the appropriateness
of the research method used.
 CRITICAL READING STRATEGIES
Interact with the text by questioning its assumptions, responding to its arguments,
and connecting it to real-life experiences and applications.

❖ AFTER READING
❖ Reflect on what you learned.
❖ React on some parts of the text through writing.
❖ Discuss some parts with your teacher or classmates.
❖ Link the main idea of the text to what you already know.
 OTHER READING STRATEGIES
❖ SQ3R Method
STAGE GUIDELINES
• Skim the target text.
• Check the headings and tables, diagrams, or figures presented in the text.
SURVEY • Read the first few and last sentences of the text to determine key information.
• Get a feel of the text.
• Annotate the headings with your questions.
QUESTION • Develop questions on the type of information you expect from the text.
• Look for answers to your questions as you read the text.
READ • Stop and slow down if the passage is not clear.
• Make sure to proceed reading only when you already understand the previous text.
• Recount the main point of the text.
RECITE • Recall by writing a summary or synthesis based on what you understand of the text.
• Highlight or underline the important points you read.
• After finishing the text, go back and re-read the questions you wrote and see if you
can answer them; if not, refresh your memory.
REVIEW • Evaluate what you learned to ensure that you are convinced and satisfied with the
information presented in the text.
 OTHER READING STRATEGIES
❖ KWL METHOD

K W L
What I Know What I Want to Learn What I Have Learned

Write what you

List down what Write down what
know about the
you want to learn. you have learned.
topic.
Why do you think we
tackled Critical
Reading first?
 DO NOTE…
❖ Critical reading is a
requirement to become a
critical writer.
❖ Reading gives you more
knowledge about the world
and make you aware of the
different issues happending
around you, and helps you
explore and discover new
things.
 What is
Academic Text?
WHAT IS ACADEMIC TEXT?
❖ It is anything that can be used
in a school or classroom.
❖ It can include school books,
newspapers, articles, textbooks,
and anything written by
someone with experience in
the field.
❖ (The Wikianswers Community, 2017)
 ACADEMIC TEXT
❖ Academic texts are typically
formal.
❖ Have a clear structured
introduction, body, and
conclusion.
❖ Include information from credible
sources which are properly cited.
❖ Include a list of references used in
developing the academic paper.
 ACADEMIC TEXT
❖ Include concepts and theories
that are related to the specific
discipline they explore.
❖ Exhibit all properties of a well-
written text (organization, unity,
coherence, and cohesion).
❖ Strictly adheres to rules of
language use and mechanics.
 ACADEMIC TEXT in general…
❖ State critical questions and issues.
❖ Provide facts and evidence from credible
sources.
❖ Use precise and accurate words while
avoiding jargon and colloquial expressions.
❖ Take an objective point of view and avoid
being personal and subjective.
❖ List references.
❖ Use hedging or cautious language to tone
down their claims.
 Steps in Writing Academic Text

Pre-
Drafting Revising Editing Publishing
Writing
 Steps in Writing Academic Text
PRE-WRITING PROCESS
❖ Brainstorming
❖ Freewriting
❖ Clustering
❖ Focus on one (1) idea
❖ Knowing your purpose and
identifying your reader/audience
 Steps in Writing Academic Text
DRAFTING
❖ Create an initial composition
❖ Write down ideas in an organized
way
❖ Convey idea or present an argument
❖ Audience and purpose need to be
finalized.
 Steps in Writing Academic Text
REVISING
❖ Review, modify, and reorganize work
by rearranging, adding, or deleting
content.
❖ Make the tone, style, and content
appropriate for the intended
audience.
❖ Goal: To improve the draft.
 Steps in Writing Academic Text
EDITING
❖ Proofread and correct errors in
grammar and mechanics.
❖ Edit to improve style and clarity.
❖ Having another’s feedback is helpful.
 Two Processes Involved in Post-Writing (Murray, 2005:273-275)
REVISING AND EDITING CHECKLIST
INDICATOR CRITERIA
• Do I have something to say?
SUBJECT
• Are there readers who need to hear what I have to say?
• Does the draft make a clear dominant point?
FOCUS • Are there clear, appropriate limits to the draft that include what
needs to be included and excluded what is unnecessary?
• Are the writer’s credentials to write this draft established and
AUTHORITY
clear?

CONTEXT • Is the context of the draft clear?

• Does the draft have an individual voice?

VOICE • Is the voice appropriate to the subject?
• Does the voice support and extend the meaning of the draft?

Voice refers to the form of a verb that indicates when a grammatical subject performs the
action or is the receiver of the action. When a sentence is written in the active voice, the
subject performs the action; in the passive voice, the subject receives the action.
(www.hunter.cuny.edu)
 Two Processes Involved in Post-Writing (Murray, 2005:273-275)
REVISING AND EDITING CHECKLIST
Voice refers to the form of a verb that indicates when a
grammatical subject performs the action or is the receiver of the
action. When a sentence is written in the active voice, the
subject performs the action; in the passive voice, the subject
receives the action. (www.hunter.cuny.edu)

❖ Active Voice – A does B.

❖ Carmen sings the song.
❖ Passive Voice – B is done by A.
❖ The song is sung by Carmen.
 Two Processes Involved in Post-Writing (Murray, 2005:273-275)
REVISING AND EDITING CHECKLIST
INDICATOR CRITERIA
• Can you identify a reader who will need to read the draft?
READER • Are the reader’s questions answered where they will be asked?
• Does the draft fulfil the reader’s expectations of that form?
• Will the lead attract and hold the reader?
• Does each point lead to the next point?
STRUCTURE
• Does each section support and advance the meaning?
• Is the reader’s hunger for specific information satisfied?
• Does each reader have enough evidence to believe each point
DOCUMENTATION
the draft?
• Where does the draft need to be developed?
QUANTITY
• Where does it need to be cut?

A lead is an opening paragraph that gives the audience the most important
information of the news story in a concise and clear manner, while still
maintaining the readers' interest (https://nmu.edu/writingcenter/writing-leads)
 Steps in Writing Academic Text
PUBLISHING
❖ Last step of the writing process.
❖ It must be shared with a group.
❖ Variety of ways of sharing: printed or
published online.
 Steps in Writing Academic Text

Pre-
Drafting Revising Editing Publishing
Writing
How can we avoid
plagiarism?
 PLAGIARISM
❖ This using somebody
else’s work or ideas
without proper
acknowledgment or
citation and copying the
text without paraphrasing
it.
 Ways to Avoid Plagiarism
PARAPHRASE QUOTATION
• Renders ideas using your • Must be identical to the
own words. original text.
• Usually shorter than the • Direct quotation is preferred
original text. to a paraphrase when the
• More detailed than a author’s ideas are so
summary. important that paraphrasing
them will change the
essence of those ideas.
Thank you for listening.

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