Reflection on Academic Writing

Outline five difficulties the students faced with writing. Which of these might be relevant to you?
1. Grammar

2. Interpretation

3. Spelling

4. Language

5. Writing Skills

All of the above are equally relevant to me also such as;

Grammar

· Establishing what is meant by - A Subject – something or someone that

does an action.

· Establishing what is meant by - A verb – the action done.

· Now, subject and verb must agree for tense (past/present/future) and number (singular/plural).

· Establishing what is meant by - A Preposition – the relationship between words, like "in", "to" and "with".

Interpretation

Answer the Question.

This is the first and most important suggestion. Answering the wrong question is a common mistake made by students. Unfortunately, it can be a real disaster for the grade I get in an exam. I should make sure I understand what the examiner wants; it is highly advisable to refer back to the question throughout the answer. This point may sound like stating the obvious; but, in my experience, answering the wrong question is the biggest cause of a disappointing exam result.

Spelling

Writing (and therefore spelling) is a representation of the spoken word. The spoken word is not a representation of writing. Because accents and pronunciation can change easily and quite quickly, whereas what is written in books and dictionaries remains "fixed" for years, as well as for various historical reasons, there is often little correspondence between spoken English (pronunciation) and written English (spelling). English spelling therefore often appears to be totally illogical. The following rules can help me to decode the mysteries of English spelling. whilst remembering, even the best rules have their exceptions.

o Adding -er/-est quick, quicker, quickest, happy, happier, happiest, hot, hotter, hottest... o Adding -ing/-ed work, working, worked, stop, stopping, stopped... o Adding -ly loud, loudly, happy, happily, terrible, terribly... o Adding -s dog, dogs, church, churches, wife, wives... o -ible or -able accessible, visible, dependable, networkable... o -ie- or -ei- friend, fiend, feint, freight...

English and American English colour, color, practise, practice, tyre, tire...
Language

Understanding how I learn best may also help me.

The visual learner

Do I need to see my teacher during lessons in order to fully understand the content of a lesson?

Do I prefer to sit at the front of the classroom to avoid visual obstructions (e.g. people's heads)?

Do I think in pictures and learn best from visual displays including: diagrams, illustrated text books, overhead transparencies, videos, flipcharts and hand-outs?

During a lecture or classroom discussion, do I prefer to take detailed notes to absorb the information?

Learning Tip - I may benefit from taking part in traditional English lessons, but maybe private lessons would be better.

The auditory learner

Do I learn best through verbal lectures, discussions, talking things through and listening to what others have to say?

Do I interpret the underlying meanings of speech through listening to tone of voice, pitch, speed and other nuances?

Does written information have little meaning until I hear it?

Learning Tip - I may benefit from listening to the radio or listening to text as I read it. I could try reading text aloud and using a tape recorder to play it back to myself.

The Tactile/Kinaesthetic learner

Do I learn best through a hands-on approach, actively exploring the physical world around me?

Do I find it hard to sit still for long periods?

Do I become distracted easily?

Writing Skills

Steps to Achieve Good Writing

When I start writing, make sure I know what I am writing for. What is my goal? If I stick to this throughout the writing process, I should not veer off course. Once I’ve got this in mind, organize an outline of my written piece. This outline will structure my writing.

Once I’ve worked out my outline, start writing. The first phase of writing involves writing everything down. Don’t worry about spelling or punctuation at this stage. As long as I can read it back, this is fine. The final stage is editing. This is one of the most important phases as it really polishes the piece and gives that final credibility.

Learning how to write well is not rocket science. It is a skill, like any other, that can come with practice and effort.

Watch both videos by clicking on the links below (Video 1 and Video 2) and answer the following questions:

Video 2: Outline five solutions to the students’ difficulties. What might you do?

1. Planning my writing
2. Learning how to write an English essay
3. Research on Essay examples
4. Understanding the readers requirements
5. Proof reading the essay
1) Planning my writing

Why plan?

o Planning my essay makes it much more likely that I will end up with a coherent argument. o It enables me to work out a logical structure and an end point for my argument before I start writing. o It means I don't have to do this type of complex thinking at the same time as trying to find the right words to express my ideas. o It helps me to commit myself to sticking to the point! o It helps me to also outline what I am going to include in each section:
I need to work out what to include, and what can be left out. It is impossible to cover everything in an essay, and my markers will be looking for evidence of my ability to choose material and put it in order. Brainstorm all my ideas, and then arrange them in three or four groups. Not everything will fit so I should be prepared to discard some points (I can mention them briefly in my introduction).

2) Learning how to write an English essay

When learning how to write an English essay, it helps to learn from someone who has actually written a few themselves.

In other words, it helps to learn how to do something from someone who has actually done it. Because there are many variations

o argumentative essays o cause and effect essays o descriptive essays o definition essays o description essays o description of a process o compare and contrast essays o persuasive essays

3) Research on Essay examples

As usual, a clearly-written, well organized essay. Top marks would go to an original thesis, which showed thorough research and good writing. If I have a tired old thesis, no matter how well I write the essay, my grades will be limited.

Usually I am given the topic for my research essay by my teacher, but if not I need to choose the essay topic that I am familiar with. It is important that the topic I choose to write my essay on is interesting both to me and my readers.

4) Understanding the readers requirements

THE ESSAY

Important Elements in The Essay

There are three main areas I need to consider when writing an essay. I need to evaluate (1) focus, (2) content and (3) organization. While each of the three has its own vitality, the trinity is inseparable.

First, my essay must have a purpose, which has clearly defined and effectively communicated. This is the focus of my essay. My essay must fulfil the requirements for the purpose it is trying to accomplish. In addition, my work must be well balanced; I should neither do too much in the essay, nor mark my goals too limited and inconsequential. Also, the needs, interests and expectations of my readers should be considered and met.

Besides focus, content is an essential part if my essay. Considering my controlling purpose, I ought to discover whether there is adequate support and whether my essay development fulfils the commitment started or implied by the controlling purpose. What supporting details or evidence I have provided and how adequate they are is equally important. All my details, evidence, or counter arguments should not only relate clearly to my controlling purpose, but should have the purpose of strengthening the essay.

Both the focus and content are strengthened and enhanced by the organization of the essay, which must follow an overall organization strategy. I may want to test the effectiveness of such strategy by outlining or summarizing my essay. The organization of my essay must follow logically the commitment established by my controlling purpose. I must insure that my readers will be able to follow the organization and easily make sense of it. Furthermore, I should ask myself whether or not my introduction and my conclusion could more effectively open and close my essay.

5) Proof reading the essay

After all of the above has been observed; now I ought to consider such things as grammar, spelling, word choice, sentence structure and mechanics. Despite its importance, grammar is often ignored in the writing classes. It is the student's responsibility to acquire the grammatical skills necessary to succeed in a writing class.