Entry 13: Abstract

 

What is an abstract?

   An abstract is an independent text that comprises the most important concepts of the paper, the purpose of the research, the state of the art, what is missing, and the result of the investigation.

    Each sentence in an abstract fulfils a specific purpose. These are called "moves".

- the overall purpose of the study and the research problem (s) investigated,

- the basic design of the study,

- major fondings found as a result of the nalysis,

- a brief summary of the conclusions.

 

The following Padlet timeline contains more information about "abstracts". I hope you find it useful.

    Personally, writing an abstract is more complex than one can imagine. It is about summarizing in a single paragraph - approximately 300 words - a complete text with pretentious rules with the intention of catching the readers' attention about what the text is about. After the research is done, I have to think carefully about the relevant concept related to the content of the text. In addition to avoiding paraphrasing, giving arguments, examples or any type of information that is reiterative, it is important to use clear and easy-to-understand words in order to capture the interest of readers. In my opinion, this information is very useful because it prevents readers from reading the full text in case of not being what they are looking for.

Entry 12: Articles

What is an article?

An article

• is a piece of writing usually intended for publication in a newspaper, magazine or journal

• is written for a wide audience, so it is essential to attract and retain the readers’ attention

• may include amusing stories, reported speech and descriptions

• can be formal or informal, depending on the target audience

• should be written in an interesting or entertaining manner

• should give opinions and thoughts, as well as facts

• is in a less formal style than a report

An article can

• describe an experience, event, person or place

• present an opinion or balanced argument

• compare and contrast

• provide information

• offer suggestions

• offer advice

A realistic article should consist of:

1. an eye-catching title which attracts the readers’ attention and suggests the theme of the article. (Think about why you read a magazine or newspaper article recently - what made you read it?) Articles can also have subheadings before each paragraph.

2. an introduction which clearly defines the topic to be covered and keeps the reader’s attention.

3. the main body of two to five paragraphs in which the topic is further developed in detail.

4. the conclusion - summarising the topic or a final opinion, recommendation or comment.

REMEMBER

Before you begin writing it is important to consider:

• where is the article going to appear - in a newspaper or magazine?

• who are the intended readers - a specific group such as students or teenagers, or adults in general?

• what is the aim of the article - to advise, suggest, inform, compare and contrast, describe, etc.?

These three points are the deciding factors in the layout of your article, its style, language and level of formality.

Determine the information you are going to use and organize your ideas carefully into paragraphs. Each paragraph should have a clear topic sentence.

The article could be formal, semi-formal or informal, depending on your intended audience.

Use vocabulary and descriptive language appropriate for the article. Linking words and expressions, and a variety of vocabulary will only improve your work and make it more interesting.

DO NOT use over-personal or over-emotional language or simplistic vocabulary.

DO NOT talk about yourself. You are writing for the general public, not a close circle of friends. Your opinions are only interesting to other people if you can make them amusing, justify them or explain them.

WRITING TITLES

A title is absolutely necessary when writing an article, and should be a concise summary of the information which is going to follow in the article. In other words, the main topic of the article should be stated in the title.

Stimulating the reader’s interest is also essential - if the title looks uninteresting, why would anyone read it? There are various ways to achieve this. For example, if you are writing a description of a place, using adjectives can enhance the attractiveness of the place, before the reader begins reading the article, e.g. “The Tranquillity and Peace of an Island that Time Forgot”. If the task involves proposing a solution to a problem or your opinion, and so on, you can address your audience directly, e.g. “What You Need to Do to Be Successful”, or use a question such as “Is Learning English Really Necessary Today?” for the title. In more formal articles, it is more common to just summarise the topic in a short statement, e.g. “Laughter Can Improve Our Health”. The title should not be too long and should mirror the style of the article - formal or informal.

Click HERE to have access to the complete text related to Articles.

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Entry 11: HEDGING AND BOOSTING

    In this opportunity, I pesent you two strategies that are used in an academic writing. These strategies are called HEDGING and BOOSTING. What do they mean? Are they important in academic writing?

  I invite you to watch the following videos where you can understand better these two concepts.

Video 1: The importance of hedging

Examples of hedging:

 

1) CATEGORICAL CLAIM:

    "The issues highlighted in this study are applicable to all participants institutions."

    HEDGED CLAIM:

    "The issues highlighted in this study may be applicable to many participants institutions."

2) CATEGORICAL CLAIM:

    " Government support will assure the spread of new knowledge and the skills necessary to use the internet to thousands of people in rural areas."

    

    HEDGED CLAIM:

    "Government support may help the spread of new knowledge and the skilld necessary to use the internet to thousands of people in rural areas."

3)     CATEGORICAL CLAIM:

     "The study proves the link between smoking and lung disease."

     

    HEDGED CLAIM:

    "The study indicates/ suggest a (possible) link between smoking and lung disease."

4)    CATEGORICAL CLAIM:

   "The number of unemployed people will continue to raise as the poor economic situation persists."

 

  HEDGED CLAIM:

    "The number of unemployed people will probably continue to raise as the poor economic situation persists."

   

5)   CATEGORICAL CLAIM:

   " This (and subsequent) studies led to the conclusion that the GTP itself must be the elusive base, and therefore to the proposal of the GTP-as-base mechanism (Schweins et al 1994, 1995)"

  HEDGED CLAIM:

  "This (and subsequent) studies led to the conclusion that the GTP itself may be the elusive base, and therefore to the proposal of the GTP-as-base mechanism (Schweins et al 1994, 1995)"

Strategies to hedge in academic writing:

• The use of lexical verbs:  tend to, suggest, indicate, appear, seem.
• The use of adverbs of frequency: usually, normally, generaly, often, sometimes.
• The use of adverbs & adjectives of certainty: possible, possibly, probable, probably, likely, maybe, perhaps, generally speaking.
• The use of modal verbs: may might, could,

Video 2: Hedging and Boosting

Example of boosting:

1)  "Employees will always respond positively in such circumstances."

2) "Certainly, this has had an impact on learning outcomes."

3) "These figures prove that there has been strong growth as a result of policy change."

Strategies to boost in academic writing:

• The use of adverbs of frequency: always, never.
• The use of adverbs & adjective of certainty: certain, certainly, obvious, obviously, definite, definitely, conclusive, conclusively, evident, evidently.
• The use of modal verbs: will, should.
• The use of lexical verbs: show, prove, evidence.

DEFINITION OF HEDGING CLICK HERE

DEFINITION OF BOOSTING CLICK HERE

Metacognitive analysis:

    Hedging and Boosting show writers judge and interpretation of their expresions. They are strategies employed by authors to express their stance, modifying not only the force of speech acts but also the interpretative character of meaning.

    When we write, we often indicate how confident we are about the claims we make. If we are doubtful that something is true or we simply have a different point of view, we may use words such as "perhaps" or "possibly" among other. But if we are confident and sure about something or we are agree with other authors point of view, we may use words such as "clearly" or "obviously" among other. So Hedging and Boosting affect the tone of our writing  and good writers use them effectively. That is why it is important to take into account these two procedures in academic writing.

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