How to improve youracademic writing

In a recent survey, academic staff

at the University identified the

interrelated skills of writingand reasoning as the two most

important skills for successin higher education; when asked

which skills students most often

lacked, writing was again at the

top of their list.

What is thepurpose of thisbooklet?

Although the nature of university-level study has changed in recentyears, not least because oftechnology, one element hasremained constant, guaranteeingsuccess to students with amastery of it: writing.

In a recent survey, academic staff at theUniversity identified essay-writing andreasoning as the two most important skills forsuccess in higher education. When askedwhich skills students most often lacked, essay-writing was again at the top of their list.Needless to say, writing ability is also highlyprized by employers.

This booklet is a guide to some of the mostcommon mistakes in academic writing. A solidtechnical command of language will help youto think more clearly and to express yourthoughts more effectively in written work.

The examples that feature in this booklet areadapted from an analysis of first-yearacademic work. The analysis found that moststudents are making the same mistakes. Thegood news is that these mistakes can beeasily corrected by learning some simple rules.

This booklet has been structured into two mainsections: (i) Punctuation and Grammar, and (ii)Reasoning. These are preceded by sections onStructuring an Essay and Parts of Speech(essential reading if you have forgotten how totell your noun from your verb). In addition thereare also sections on Useful Tips, CommonlyConfused Words, Writing Support at Essex,and Further Reading. It can be read from coverto cover, or can be dipped into with a specificproblem in mind.

If you want to be true to yourself – to befaithful to what you really think by expressingyourself clearly and precisely – then youshould care about language… irrespective ofthe fact that it will improve your grades.

Writing is at the very heart ofacademic life. Good writing makesa good student. This bookletprovides useful guidance andhelpful tips certain to set you oncourse to a clear expression of theplain sense of things, not only atuniversity but in the outside worldas well. An assimilation of itscontent will bring immediatebenefits. I recommend that youread it carefully before you writeyour next essay!

Dr Leon Burnett, Dean of Faculty ofHumanities and Comparative Studies

1. Structuring an Essay 2

2. Parts of Speech 4

3. Punctuation and Grammar (the most common mistakes) 6

3.1 Syntax 73.2 Tense 73.3 Prepositions 83.4 Colons and semi-colons 83.5 Apostrophes 93.6 Speech marks 93.7 Singular and plural 103.8 Unnecessary words 103.9 Informal phrases 103.10 New sentences 113.11 Commas 113.12 Pronouns 123.13 The definite article 123.14 Capital letters 123.15 Using ‘and’ instead of ‘to’ 133.16 Proof-reading 13

4. Reasoning (the most common mistakes) 14

4.1 Structure 144.2 Referencing techniques 144.3 Unclear reasoning 154.4 Generalisations 154.5 Speculations and assertions 154.6 Vocabulary 164.7 Misquoting a well-known phrase 164.8 Making indirect assumptions 164.9 Use of metaphor 16

5. Useful Tips 17

6. Commonly Confused Words 18

7. Writing Support at Essex 19

8. Further Reading 20

1. Structuring an Essay

It takes time to improve your grammar andpunctuation. However, improving the way youstructure essays is quick and easy: you mightbe surprised by how much difference this canmake to your marks.

IntroductionThe introduction is where you provide a route-map for the reader and make clear how yourargument will develop (see opposite). Oneeffective approach is to outline the main issuesthat you seek to address in your essay. It mayalso be appropriate to explain how you interpretthe question. In size, the introduction shouldgenerally be no more than 10% of the essay.

Main bodyIt is up to you to decide on the best way toorganise your essay, but make sure yourapproach is logical and transparent to readers.Keep them informed of the steps in yourexposition (the presentation of your viewpoint).You are not writing a mystery or thriller, so donot leave the reader in suspense until the end;make your argument explicit and make sureevery paragraph in the main body of youressay links to the ones before and after it. If itis appropriate, you could divide your essayinto sections and subsections, giving eachsection a subheading or summary in a fewwords; you can always remove subheadingsafterwards.

ConclusionThe conclusion is where you remind the readerof what you have done – the main issues youhave addressed and what you have argued.

The conclusion should contain no new material.Your conclusions should be clear, leaving thereader in no doubt as to what you think; youshould also explain why your conclusions areimportant and significant. As Stella Cottrell(2003: 154) suggests, it may also be a goodidea to link your final sentence to the questioncontained in the title. In size, the conclusionshould be no more than 10% of the essay.

Reference list and/orbibliographyAppended to your essay should be a list of allthe sources you have referred to (a referencelist) and/or a list of all of the sources you haveconsulted but not referred to within the essay(a bibliography). Find out which is required byyour department and which referencingsystem is preferred; it may be that they requireboth, either separately or combined.

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TipYou should be able to sum up thebasic opinion or argument of youressay in a couple of lines. This issometimes called a 'thesisstatement'. It may help to write thisbefore you start your essay.

Tip‘However they are worded, allassignment titles contain a centralquestion which has to be answered.Your main task is to apply what youknow – however brilliant your pieceof writing, if it does not ‘answer thequestion’ you may get no marks atall.’ (Cottrell 2003: 154)

Essay Checklist

1. Essay Title

¸ Does the essay have the full and correctessay title?

2. Introduction

¸ Does the introduction identify the subject,purpose and structure of the essay?

¸ Are key words or concepts identified inthe introduction?

3. Main Body

¸ Is there plenty of evidence that you havedone the required reading?

¸ Have you addressed each main point in aseparate paragraph?

¸ Are the paragraphs logically linked?

¸ Is each point supported by argumentationand evidence?

¸ Are the ideas of others clearly referenced?

4. Conclusion

¸ Does the conclusion relate directly to thequestion?

¸ Is it based on evidence and facts?

¸ Does it summarise the main points?

5. References

¸ Have you referenced all of your sources?

¸ Are the references accurate?

¸ Are all of the references in the essayshown in the bibliography and vice versa?

6. Layout

¸ Is the essay neatly presented?

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What is an argument?You may have come across the term‘argument’ in an academic context and feltconfused, not fully understanding itsmeaning. Outside of academia, ‘argument’usually refers to a disagreement. It tends tobe an event; a physical occurrence. This maybe the sense of the word that is most familiarto you, but an ‘academic argument’describes something quite different: it isessentially a point of view.

A good argument (a ‘sound’ argument) is apoint of view that is presented in a clear andlogical way, so that each stage of reasoningis transparent and convincing; it will includeevidence and possible counter-arguments. Itmay even help to make the assumption thatthe reader is in disagreement with you.

You will not only find arguments of this kind inacademic contexts. Whenever you read apaper, or watch TV, or listen to a friend, youare presented with an argument – a point ofview that has been articulated with theexpress purpose of convincing you of itsvalidity or truth. Almost anywhere wherethere is thought and communication, there isargument; although the same intellectualstandards and formal structure that areimposed in an academic context may beabsent. The editorial sections of qualitynewspapers are a particularly good place tolook for arguments.

When constructing your argument, the firstthing to do is to read the essay question,then read it again. What does it ask you todo? Assess? Evaluate? Discuss? Compare?Each of these ‘question-words’ is different.Make sure that your argument matches thequestion-word. Once you are certain of yourpoint of view, start thinking about the kind ofevidence that would stand up in court.

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2. Parts of Speech

Each word in a sentence can be

defined by the role it plays.The different roles are known as

‘parts of speech’. In order to fully

understand the examples in this

booklet, it will help to

familiarise yourself with thebasic parts of speech.

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VerbA verb is the part of speech that some peopleidentify most easily. In schools it is known as a‘doing word’ – an action word – whichdescribes what the nouns in the sentence aredoing, i.e. swimming, walking, eating, thinking,growing, learning, drinking, misbehaving. In thesentence, ‘Sam studies in the library’, ‘studies’is the verb.

NounA noun is an object – a thing – such as ‘team’,‘girl’ or ‘car’. A ‘proper noun’ is the propername of the thing (if it has its own name) suchas ‘Colchester United’, ‘Nicole’, or ‘Porsche’.Proper nouns start with a capital letter. Thisshows that what is being referred to is theproper name (‘Porsche’) rather than thecommon or collective name (‘car’).

PronounA pronoun is a word that is used in place of anoun, such as ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘it’, ‘him’, ‘her’, etc. Itspurpose is to avoid endless repetition of thenoun while ensuring that none of the meaningof the sentence is lost. For example, thesentence, ‘Abdul is punctual: he is always ontime for his tutorials’ is much better than‘Abdul is punctual: Abdul is always on time forAbdul’s tutorials.’

AdjectiveAn adjective is a describing word that givesthe noun a quality that makes it more specific.For example, any number of adjectives couldbe used to ‘qualify’ (describe) the noun‘lecture’. It could be an ‘excellent lecture’, a‘long lecture’, or a ‘boring lecture’ – ‘excellent’,‘long’ and ‘boring’ are all adjectives.

AdverbAn adverb is a describing word, but for verbs,not nouns (though it can also describeadjectives and other adverbs). 'Quickly',‘stupidly’ and ‘hurriedly’ are all adverbs (theyoften end in ‘–ly’). They are used with verbs tomake the action more specific, e.g. ‘drinkquickly’, ‘behave stupidly’, ‘work hurriedly’. Inthe sentence, ‘the lecturer shouted loudly’, theadverb is 'loudly'.

PrepositionPrepositions are words that describe theposition and movement of the nouns in asentence, such as ‘to’, ‘from’, ‘into’, ‘out’, ‘of’,‘in’. They precede the noun, e.g. ‘to theclassroom’, ‘in the lecture’. In the sentence,‘After being pushed into the lake, I was stuckin the water’, ‘in’ and ‘into’ are bothprepositions; ‘in’ describes a position,whereas ‘into’ describes movement.

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3. Punctuation andGrammar

‘Punctuation shouldn’t cause as

much fear as it does. Only about a

dozen marks need to bemastered and the guidelines are

fairly simple. What’s more, youcan see the marks being well

applied every day in the serious

newspapers.’ Martin Cutts, The Plain English Guide, OUP, 1995, p.80

Misuse of punctuation andgrammar is at the heart of manyof the most common mistakes inwriting. Good punctuation makesthe relationship between wordsin a sentence clear. It also acts asa substitute for features ofspeech such as pausing andalteration of pitch and tone.Misusing punctuation can be liketalking with a mouth full of food,obscuring and obstructing theintended meaning.

3.1. Syntax‘Syntax’ is the technical word that is used todescribe sentence structure. It is extremelyimportant, as a well-ordered sentence makesmeaning clear and concise, whereas a badly-ordered sentence makes the reader (andmarker) work very hard to understand themeaning.

Example: ‘Although the current law forestablishing whether something is a fixture orfitting can be argued to be rather messy andincoherent…’

In this sentence, the word order is, to use theauthor’s own phrase, ‘rather messy andincoherent’. A slight reordering, using thesame vocabulary, makes the sentence muchclearer and more logical: ‘Although it could beargued that the current law for establishingwhether something is a fixture or fitting israther messy and incoherent…’

Playing around with syntax can transformyour sentence. Think about the best way toorder the key words and phrases. If you are

struggling to make your meaning clear in asentence, try changing the word order.

3.2. TenseMake sure you use the correct tense – and beconsistent with it. When you are introducingand discussing other people’s opinions, usethe present tense, e.g. ‘Mills believes’ or ‘Millsclaims’ rather than ‘Mills believed’ or ‘Millsclaimed’. By putting them in the past tense,their opinions seem dated; it also suggeststhat their views may have changed, which mayundermine your argument. It may beappropriate to use the past tense if the personin question has been dead a long time, or waswriting in a different era.

Example: ‘A few years ago, Robert P. Creaseasked physicians what they think is the mostbeautiful experiment of all time.’

In this sentence, the author shifts tense. Itstarts in the past tense (‘A few years ago,Robert P. Crease asked physicians…’) thenmoves into the present tense (‘… what theythink is the most beautiful experiment of alltime). As well as being confusing, thestatement could also be inaccurate, as thephysicians may have changed their mindssince they were asked. All that can be saidfor certain is that the experiment theyidentified was what they thought was themost beautiful at the time.

It is a common practice to use the futuretense in introductory sections of essays, forexample ‘The purpose of this essay will beto explore….’ or ‘This essay will explore…’.The future tense can sound uncertain andunconfident, however: you can be moreassertive by writing in the present tense,e.g. ‘The purpose of this essay is toexplore…’ or ‘This essay explores…’.

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3.3. PrepositionsWhat are prepositions? Prepositions arewords that describe the position andmovement of the nouns in a sentence (seeParts of Speech to clarify your understanding).It can be easy to use them 'inaccurately'because they often seem to sound right in asentence. The secret is to step back and thinkabout each one and whether it is describingthe right position or movement.

Example: ‘We have disconnected ourselveswith our fellow members of society and nolonger know the neighbours around us. Thereare so many of us now that we seem to of losta sense of community and become strangerson our society.’

In this example, the author has used thewrong preposition in a number of places. Inthe first part of the sentence, he or she hasmisunderstood the relationship betweensubject (‘ourselves’) and object (‘fellowmembers of society’) in the sentence: youcannot ‘disconnect with’, as ‘with’ means‘together’, you can only disconnect ‘from’.

In the second part of the sentence, the authorhas made a mistake that is common inconversation: using ‘of’ instead of ‘have’ (i.e.‘we seem to of lost’ – of sounds a bit like‘ave). If the author stripped the sentence downand took out the clause (‘seem to’) which hasprobably caused the confusion, the sentencewould read ‘There are so many of us now thatwe of lost a sense of community’, which ismore obviously incorrect. In the final part ofthe sentence, ‘on’ is used instead of ‘in’.

Correct use of prepositions shows clarity ofthought and a good understanding of therelationships between everything that isdescribed in the sentence. Think carefully

about the position and movement of nounsin your sentences. Is so-and-so in or onthis-or-that? Is this-or-that being taken toor from so-and-so?

3.4. Colons and semi-colons.Colons and semi-colons may look and soundalike but are actually very different. They cangenerally be avoided, so only use them if youare confident of your understanding.

Example: ‘This problem can also be seen in thefollowing example; in a marriage both the manand the woman…’

In this sentence, the author has used a semi-colon where a colon should have been used.The aim of the punctuation mark is to join thetwo halves of the sentence together, whichare: (i) a claim or statement (‘This problem canalso be seen in the following example’) and (ii)the explanation, example or proof (‘in amarriage both the man and the woman…’).Sometimes this use of a colon is referred to asa ‘why-because’ marker (Cutts, 1995: 83).

Semi-colons, on the other hand, are verydifferent from colons. Any two statements (or clauses) that are separated by a semi-colon should (i) be able to stand aloneas separate sentences, and (ii) be closelyconnected in subject matter. For example,‘There are a number of different uses for semi-colons; used in the right way, they can beextremely versatile’.

Crude as it may seem, the colon in thehuman body provides a very helpful analogywith the punctuation colon, particularly inthe way it functions as a ‘why-becausemarker’ (note that colons can also be usedto introduce the following: a list of items; acontrast; and direct speech). Physiologically,

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the colon is the point at which one thing(food) becomes another (waste). In thesame way, a grammatical colon separates(A) the introduction of something, e.g. anidea or a claim, from (B) the explanation forthat idea or claim.

3.5. ApostrophesApostrophes are perhaps the most misusedpunctuation mark of all. Once described as‘errant tadpoles’ (Cutts, 1995: 89), they can, ifused incorrectly, completely obscure theintended meaning of a sentence.

Example: ‘The law does not specify othereventualities, such as a situation where a lostitem falls onto a landowners land…’

In this sentence, ‘landowners’ should be‘landowner’s’, because the land belongs to thelandowner. Apostrophes indicate ownership:‘the landowner’s land’ is another way of saying‘the land of the landowner’.

Correct use of the apostrophe shows clarity ofthought and a good understanding of therelationship between the nouns in a sentence.Learn about apostrophes: they will help you tothink more clearly and help your reader tounderstand and follow your argument better(see Further Reading). Remember the rule thatthe apostrophe generally goes before the ‘s’ ifthe noun is singular (e.g. the dog’s dinnermeaning the dinner of the dog) and after the‘s’ if the noun is plural (dogs’ dinner meaningthe dinner of the dogs).

As well as indicating ownership, the othercommon use of apostrophes is to showthat a letter is missing – that words havebeen ‘contracted’ – i.e. ‘It’s nothing to dowith me’ instead of ‘It is nothing to do withme’; ‘She’s been a long time’ instead of

‘She has been a long time.’ As a generalrule, contractions should be avoided inacademic work.

3.6. Speech marksSpeech marks ‘do exactly what they say on thetin’: they mark speech. Nonetheless, they arestill one of the most misused punctuationmarks.

Example: ‘In ‘The End of Education’, Nils(2004) states that “the only thing that can savethe UK education system is a completeoverhaul…”.’

In this sentence, the author has used speechmarks (“_”) instead of inverted commas (‘_’).In most disciplines speech marks should onlybe used when something is being said, notwhen something has been expressed inwriting. The majority of quotations inacademic work will therefore require invertedcommas, not speech marks, though youshould check the conventions of yourdiscipline to confirm this.

The difference between speech marks(sometimes called ‘double invertedcommas’) and inverted commas (‘singleinverted commas’) is very simple. One wayto distinguish them is to remember thatspeech requires the physical presence oftwo people, a speaker and a listener, henceit needs double inverted commas: “speechmarks”. When something is beingreferenced from a book, however, only oneperson is present (the reader) hence ‘singleinverted commas’.

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3.7. Singular and pluralNouns always specify number, i.e. whether theyare singular (‘dog’) or plural (‘dogs’). As well asbeing consistent with the number, you mustmake sure that your verbs match your nouns(e.g. ‘the dog swims’ or ‘the dogs swim’).

Example: ‘The law of averages are toounreliable…’

In this sentence, the word ‘law’ is singular(i.e. one in number); if it is intended to beplural (more than one), it should be ‘laws’.However, the author has used ‘are’, the pluralform of the verb, instead of ‘is’, the singular(remember ‘the laws are’ and ‘the law is’).Nouns and verbs must correspond. Theconfusion has probably arisen from ‘averages’being plural, but it is ‘law’ to which the verbrefers. It should be, ‘The law of averages istoo unrealiable...’.

3.8. Unnecessary wordsOne of the most significant differences youwill notice as your writing improves is areduction in superfluous (i.e. unnecessary)words. The best and most precise writing isoften the simplest, as the author is in fullcontrol of every word. Always ask yourselfwhether each word is necessary and whetherit is the best word you could use.

Example: ‘Being poor in society today it doesnot cause as many problems for the individualas it did many years ago.’

In the first line of this sentence, the pronoun ‘it’is used in the place of ‘being poor’ (a pronounsubstitutes a noun; see Parts of Speech).However, its inclusion is superfluous becausethe reader does not need to be reminded ofthe subject of the sentence. ‘It’ would benecessary to start a new sentence in which‘being poor’ is still the subject, but in a singlesentence it is unnecessary and confusing.

3.9. Informal phrasesIn recent years there has been an increase inthe number of informal modes of writtencommunication, such as emailing, texting, andinstant messaging. These have contributed toa rise in the number of informal phrases thatappear in more formal writing, such as theessay.

Example: ‘In ‘The Repressed Imagination’ byC. Cartwright, one of the topics he talks aboutis…’

In this sentence, the verb ‘talks’ isinappropriate and incorrect, because ‘talking’is a very different action to ‘writing’.

Example: ‘Basically, the policy aims to improvethe quality of the service…’

The word ‘basically’ is becoming increasinglycommon in essays, but is inappropriate in thecontext of academic writing, the purpose ofwhich is not to reduce things to their mostbasic form but to explore issues and ideas intheir full complexity and detail. Makingsomething ‘basic’ is different to summarising.Terms like ‘in essence’, ‘to summarise’, or ‘inshort’ are more academic in tone.

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‘Most experienced writers rewritetheir work over and over, refiningtheir thoughts, finding a better wayof saying something, making along-winded section a bit briefer, oradding more detail to develop anidea.’ (Cottrell 2003: 146)

Think about your everyday speech.However well you may speak, much ofwhat you say, and the phrases you use, willbe inappropriate in formal written work.Using the word ‘talk’ as an umbrella term torefer to any kind of communication is justone example of this common mistake.Think carefully about the words you use:what might they be implying by accident?

3.10. New sentencesIf you are unsure whether or not to start a newsentence, you probably should. This isespecially the case if you lack confidence withcolons and semi-colons, which can be used tomake more complex sentences. If in doubt,keep your sentences as simple as possible.There is a famous saying, attributed toEpictetus, the Greek philosopher:

Do not write so that you can be understood,write so that you cannot be misunderstood.

Example: ‘The graph shows the results, afterfatigue the score is generally lower. There aresome anomalies, there could be many differentreasons for this.’

Both sentences would be less confusing ifthey were separated into two statements,either by full stops or semi-colons i.e. ‘Thegraph shows the results. After fatigue thescore is generally lower. There are someanomalies. There could be many differentreasons for this.’ Alternatively, the sentencescould be rephrased so that each statementflows into the next, i.e. ‘The graph shows thatafter fatigue the score is generally lower.There are some anomalies, however, forwhich there could be many different reasons.’

Remember that a sentence should usuallycontain a single idea or argument; likewise,a paragraph should contain a single themeor focus. Pay close attention to where andhow professional writers start newsentences. Learn how to use semi-colons,colons, and commas so that you can formmore complex sentences.

3.11. CommasIn a nutshell, ‘commas act as separatorsbetween parts of a sentence’ (Cutts, 1995: 81).To this effect, they often need to be used inpairs. The following is just one example of howcommas are misused (see Swan, 1996: 468-470 for a comprehensive list).

Example: ‘Private problems, Mills believes canoften be resolved outside of court…’

There should be a pair of commas in thissentence, not a single comma. It should read‘Private problems, Mills believes, can often beresolved…’. ‘Mills believes’ is a separate‘clause’ and needs to be separated so thatthe sentence makes sense with or without it.Cutts (1995: 82) explains this nicely: ‘A pairof commas cordons off information that is anaside, explanation or addition. Readers can, ifthey wish, leapfrog the cordoned-off area andstill make sense of what is said.’

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3.12. PronounsA ‘pronoun’ may sound like somethingtechnical and complex, but it is actually verysimple (see Parts of Speech to clarify yourunderstanding). Always make sure that yourpronoun matches your noun. Is it the rightnumber? Is it the right gender? Is it first,second, or third person?

Example: ‘Because society is changing sorapidly it is easy to understand why one mayfeel he cannot cope…’

In this sentence, the author mixes thepronouns, moving from ‘one’ to ‘he’, which isvery confusing for the reader. A bettersentence would be, ‘Because society ischanging so rapidly it is easy to understandwhy people feel that they cannot cope…’

3.13. The definite articleOne of the most confusing things about theEnglish language for some internationalstudents is the ‘definite article’ – otherwiseknown as ‘the’ – because some languages donot have articles.

Example: ‘To find a sense of reason instead ofdrowning in the depths of confusion thesociety bestows upon us…’

In this sentence, the second occurrence ofthe definite article (‘the’ in ‘the society’) issuperfluous.

Although correct use of the definite article isa common problem among internationalstudents, it is also increasingly commonamong home students. Learn the differencebetween the definite article (‘the’, e.g. ‘thehouse’) and the indefinite article (‘a’, ‘some’,e.g. ‘a house’ or ‘some houses’) – you can

see why they are classed as indefinite ordefinite. Think carefully about whether youneed to use one, the other, or neither.

3.14. Capital lettersApart from in people’s names, in titles, and atthe beginning of sentences, capitals (bigletters) should only be used if the word is a‘proper noun’ rather than a common noun, i.e.if it is the official name or title for something(see Parts of Speech to clarify yourunderstanding).

Example: ‘One day a teacher notices that thechildren start missing School and often arrivelate…’

The author has used capital lettersinappropriately. In the case of school, the onlytime it should be given a capital letter is if itsproper name is being referred to, i.e.Woodlands School, or if the reference is to aspecific school. In the example, the authorwas not referring to a specific school. It is thesame with the word ‘department’. If, forexample, you are referring specifically to yourdepartment, it should be ‘Department ofPsychology’. If you are referring todepartments in general, it should be‘departments’.

Correct use of capital letters is quite easyto understand if you make the time tolearn. Students often have trouble withcapital letters in titles; of essays,publications, etc. However, there are setrules that are easy to learn and apply. Takethe time. See Further Reading.

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3.15. Using ‘and’ instead of ‘to’It is an increasingly common mistake to use‘and’ instead of ‘to’, e.g. ‘I want to try and learna new skill’ instead of ‘I want to try to learn anew skill’. Objections to this particular mistakemay seem irrelevant and old-fashioned, but itactually alters the meaning of the sentence.

Example: ‘One response of commissionerswas to try and manage demand…’

What the author actually means is ‘to try tomanage demand’. ‘To try’ is an infinitive verb(i.e. a ‘to’ verb) which needs an additionalverb – in this case ‘manage’ – to qualify it. Byusing ‘and’ instead of ‘to’, the sentence isactually saying that there are two actions (twoverbs) at work: the first action is ‘trying’; thesecond action is ‘managing’. Therefore, thesentence is effectively saying, ‘One responseof commissioners was to try and then tomanage demand…’

3.16. Proof-readingAlways proof-read your work and always getsomeone else, such as a trusted friend, toproof-read it for you. Make sure you allowyourself enough time to do this effectively, i.e.leave a few days between readings so thatyou can read it with fresh eyes. Yes, thismeans doing your essays well before thedeadlines…

Example: ‘Many problems relate directly to thelack of or lack of functioning institutions withinsociety’.

Although this sentence makes sense, it couldbe misread as a mistake or typo (a‘typographical error’). The choice of phrasing(‘lack of or lack of’), and the absence ofcommas to punctuate the phrase, make thesentence very confusing for the reader. A pairof commas clarifies meaning: ‘Many problemsrelate directly to the lack of, or lack offunctioning, institutions within society’.

Try to develop your ability to read yourwork with fresh and critical eyes.Empathise with your reader. It may help toread aloud to yourself; that way you can behyper-sensitive to your punctuation, andtest whether it helps or hinders the flow ofyour sentences.

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mySkillsmySkills, the University’s academicskills website, features advice,guidance, and interactive resourceson all aspects of study. Everythingthat is housed within the site hasbeen authored by expert academicand support staff from across theUniversity. It has a large section onwriting, featuring a short film inwhich students give their opinionsand advice on essay writing.

Visit mySkills:

www.essex.ac.uk/myskills

4. Reasoning

Many of the most commonmistakes made by studentsrelate to reasoning, structure,argumentation, and presentation.These have been groupedtogether here under the umbrellaof Reasoning, but you may alsowish to read the dedicatedsection on Structuring an Essayon page 2.

4.1. StructureThe most common mistakes that studentsmake in their academic writing relate tostructure. If asked, many lecturers would saythat the structure is the most importantelement of an essay. Without a strong, well-considered and well-planned framework it canbe extremely difficult to stay focused anddevelop your argument. In most cases, youshould have a plan or an essay outline beforeyou begin writing. However, it often helps tojust get your head down and write. This is fine– and a healthy practice! – but always have anorganising principle, whether this comes a bitlater or before you even put pen to paper (orfingers to keys).

Read Structuring an Essay on (p. 2).

4.2. Referencing techniquesIt is crucial that you develop your ability tointroduce and discuss the opinions of expertsin your field.

Example: ‘In Wright Mills, ‘The Promise ofSociology’, he identifies several differentpersonal troubles…’

In this sentence, the use of ‘in’ is incorrect andthe use of ‘he’ is superfluous. It should be‘Wright Mills, in ‘The Promise of Sociology’,identifies…’ or ‘In ‘The Promise of Sociology’,Wright Mills identifies…’ The subject (theauthor) and the object (the book) have beenconfused: they are conceptualised as one andthe same.

NB. Check what the conventions are for yourdiscipline. It may or may not be necessary toinclude date and title, for example.

Put aside a few moments to learn andmaster some easy techniques forintroducing a reference or citation that youcan rely on and develop as you gain inconfidence. Pay attention to howprofessional writers and academicsintroduce references in the published workthat you read.

Many techniques are simple to understandand apply. For example, one common wayto introduce a reference is: ‘AUTHOR, inTITLE, argues [or claims or asserts orstates, etc.] that ‘QUOTE’...’ e.g.

Yates, in ‘How to Improve Your Academic Writing’, argues that ‘misuse of punctuation is at the heart of many ofthe most common mistakes in writing’(2009: 7).

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4.3. Unclear reasoningOne of the most important elements in a goodessay is sound reasoning. Each sentence andparagraph show flow logically into the next,building towards a well-reasoned and well-structured argument.

Example: ‘Different groups have differentidentities, ways of separating themselves fromothers. This leads to stereotypes. Peoplemisunderstand one another based on theirappearance. This division between people isgetting bigger and more problematic every day.’

The author of this sentence makes a numberof assumptions and the connection betweeneach sentence is often unclear. Thesentences do not progress logically from oneto the next.

Always check each sentence in relation tothe sentence that precedes it to be certainthat there is a direct relationship, and thatthe central idea continues to be developed.

4.4. GeneralisationsBeware the generalisation! It is often temptingto get carried away and apply our idea oropinion to everything, but always be mindful ofexceptions and counter-arguments.

Example: ‘Nowadays we are more able toexamine ourselves from both a public andpersonal viewpoint. We were once dictated to,in our way of thinking, but now we are free.’

The author makes assumptions about timeand place, both past and present, implyingintellectual superiority over the past, andmaking a universalisation or generalisationabout freedom of thought.

4.5. Speculations andassertionsIf you are making a claim that could bedisputed by the reader, make sure you useevidence to back it up.

Example: ‘Without the police force therewould be anarchy on the streets and a hugeincrease in crime, which would result in moreindividuals being victims of crime.’

While this claim may be true, without evidenceit is only speculative; in some parts of the worldthe ethics, power and legitimacy of policeforces are questioned, for example. It needs tobe backed up with an example or research, e.g.when or where this was the case.

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‘Be emotionally neutral: mostacademic writing requires you tostand back and analysedispassionately, as an objectiveonlooker.’ (Cottrell 2003: 157)

If you are not sure of the differencebetween ‘objective’ and ‘subjective’, lookthem up. Objectivity is one of thecornerstones of academic practice.

4.6. VocabularyAlways check that your vocabulary is preciseand appropriate. Use a dictionary. If you areusing a word which has a number of differentmeanings and spellings, always look it up tocheck that you have used the correct form(see Commonly Confused Words, p. 18).

Example: ‘With some institutions becomingsecular, such as religion and family…’

'Secular' is a bad choice of word in thissentence because 'religion' and 'secular' areopposites. Although religions can bedisbanded or become defunct, they cannotbecome 'secular' as it means 'non-religious'.The sentence could be rephrased in anumber of ways, e.g. 'With some institutionsbecoming defunct, such as religion andfamily...'.

4.7. Misquoting a well-knownphraseOnly use phrases that you fully understandand know are appropriate in a piece of formalacademic work.

Example: ‘The breakdown of the atomicfamily…’

The correct phrase is ‘nuclear family’, but it iseasy to see how the mistake was made.

When possible, always get a trusted friendto read your work. I recently saw an advertfor a car in which the seller claimed that,rather than being ‘reliable’, the car he wasselling was in ‘good condition and veryliable’.

4.8. Making indirectassumptionsAvoid making indirect assumptions. This can bedifficult because it is not always obvious to uswhen we are being presumptuous, especiallywhen we are trying to be open-minded…

Example: ‘Just because most tribes areuncivilised, it does not mean that there are nocivilised tribes.’

Although the author intends to establishhimself or herself as liberal and notpresumptuous, the statement is premised onanother assumption about ‘most tribes’ whichis not backed up with data or literature. Inaddition, ‘civilised’ is also a problematic termto use because it is value-laden andsubjective.

4.9. Use of metaphorIn writing, we sometimes use metaphorswithout realising it. A ‘metaphor’ is a literarytechnique in which something is described asbeing something else, for example, ‘The moonwas a ghostly galleon’. Metaphors are mostlydeliberate and obvious; in this case themetaphor reveals something more about themoon – it describes it, making it more vivid.However, sometimes poor choice of vocabularycan lead to an accidental metaphor…

Example: ‘We live in a time in which we areencouraged to question the world and itscontents…’

In describing the world as having 'contents',the author is inadvertently using a metaphor. Avessel or repository has contents, but theworld is not a vessel.

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5. Useful Tips

¸ In a nutshell, a good academic essay iswell-researched, well-structured, andwell-argued. However, you will only get agood mark if you answer the essayquestion (read the tip on p. 2). Similarly, ifyou have been allowed to chose the titleyourself, make sure it is appropriate.

¸ Imagine your target audience is anintelligent reader who has limited familiaritywith the subject but understands the maintheories that are considered to becommon knowledge in your discipline.

¸ If you are expected to submit your workanonymously, make sure you do! Inaddition make sure that you have identifiedyourself in the way that is preferred byyour department, such as by studentnumber, course code, etc. Make sure youare clear about this. Ask someone ifnecessary.

¸ The best academics usually have 'thickskins' and have learnt not to take badreviews to heart (Times Higher EducationalSupplement, 3-9 July 2008, p. 22). As anovice academic, it is the same for you.Feedback is intended to help you improve,so make the most of it; try not to rest onyour laurels or get downhearted.Remember that the best writers work veryclosely with criticism and the editorialprocess (read the tip on p. 10).

¸ Make sure your work is presented in thehouse style specified by your department.

¸ Don’t use contractions. Do not usecontractions. Write in full.

¸ Avoid using ‘you’ and ‘your’. It sounds tooinformal.

¸ Avoid abbreviations. Again, write in full.Use ‘for example’ instead of ‘e.g.’, unlessyou are using e.g. or i.e. in parenthesis.

¸ If you are using acronyms (i.e. NASA)make sure you write it out in full the firsttime you use it (National Aeronautics andSpace Administration).

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Some tips from George Orwellfrom ‘Politics and the English Language’

Be clear about what you are saying‘A scrupulous writer, in every sentence thathe writes, will ask himself at least fourquestions, thus: What am I trying to say?What words will express it? What image oridiom will make it clearer? Is this imagefresh enough to have an effect?’

Avoid using clichéd phrases‘Modern writing at its worst does notconsist in picking out words for the sakeof their meaning and inventing images inorder to make the meaning clearer. Itconsists in gumming together long stripsof words which have already been set inorder by someone else.’

Avoid mixing metaphors: think‘The sole aim of a metaphor is to call up avisual image. When these images clash…it can be taken as certain that the writer isnot seeing a mental image of the objectshe is naming; in other words, he is notreally thinking.’

6. CommonlyConfused Words

A and an – whereas ‘a’ is used before aconsonant sound (e.g. ‘a boy’, ‘a party’, ‘asituation’), ‘an’ is used before a vowel sound,i.e. before a word that begins with the letter a,e, i, o, or u (e.g. ‘an army’, ‘an old man’). Somepeople also use ‘an’ before h, as it isconsidered to be a ‘weak consonant’. It iseasy to see the practical reason for putting an‘an’ before a vowel: try saying ‘a army’ aloud –it’s difficult!

Accept and except – ‘to accept’ means ‘toreceive’ (e.g. ‘he accepted the award’);‘except’ means ‘all but’ (e.g. ‘everyone exceptPeter went to the Summer Ball’).

Affect and effect – ‘affect’ either refers toinfluence (e.g. ‘his presence affected thewhole class’) or emotional response (e.g. ‘heshowed little affect’); ‘effect’ refers to result(e.g. ‘he had some serious side effects’).

Cite, sight and site – in the context of essays,‘cite’ is the commonest of these threehomophones (words which are pronouncedthe same but are spelt differently and havedifferent meanings): ‘to cite’ means to quoteor mention (e.g. ‘citing references’); ‘sight’refers to the ability to see (e.g. ‘she had badeye sight’); ‘site’ refers to a location (e.g. ‘thebuilding site’).

Complement and compliment – ‘complement’is used when something completes or finishessomething else, or provides a balance (e.g.‘the wine complemented the meal’); a‘compliment’ is an expression of praise (e.g.‘the lecturer complimented his work’).

Than and then – ‘than’ is used in acomparison (e.g. ‘Tim is faster than Tom’);‘then’ refers to a point in time (e.g. ‘ithappened then’).

There and their – ‘there’ refers to place (e.g.‘over there’); ‘their’ indicates possession (e.g.‘their pyjamas’ – i.e. the pyjamas thatbelonged to them).

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Beware the Spellchecker!Although spellchecker facilities in programmessuch as Microsoft Word can undoubtedly bevery useful, they can also create problems,especially with words that are commonlyconfused, such as homophones (words thatsound the same but are spelt differently). Asentence with the wrong ‘there’ or ‘their’, orwith ‘its’ instead of ‘it’s’, will go unnoticedbecause the word – although wrong – doesexist within the language.

Make sure that your spellchecker is set to UKspelling, not American spelling, as there are anumber of important differences. WhereasAmerican English spells ‘color’, English spells‘colour’; American English tends to use ‘z’ inverbs (e.g. ‘analyze’), while English uses ‘s’(e.g. ‘analyse’). The following webpage maybe helpful:

www2.gsu.edu/~wwwesl/egw/jones/differences.htm

Don’t ignore the grammar check. When a wordis underlined to indicate that there issomething wrong with the grammar, click on itand take a moment to read the explanation.This is a good way to learn about grammar.Sometimes you can ignore the rule: you willknow whether or not to take the advice onceyou’ve read the description.

7. WritingSupport at Essex

mySkillsmySkills is the University’s academic skillswebsite. It features advice, guidance, andinteractive resources on all aspects of study.Developed as a joint initiative, everything thatis housed within the site has been authored byexpert academic and support staff at theUniversity. It has a large section on writing,featuring a short film in which students givetheir opinions and advice on writing essays.

Student SupportQualified tutors run ‘Strategies for Study’workshops throughout the year, so look out forrelated publicity or visit the website below. Theworkshops were originally designed forstudents with dyslexia or similar learningdifficulties but everyone is welcome to attend.Themes include:

¸ Using University guidance and resourcesto support independent learning

¸ Planning and managing your timeeffectively

¸ Selective and wider reading ¸ Note-taking formats ¸ Referencing and plagiarism¸ When, how and who to ask for help¸ Peer study groups¸ Keeping track of what works for you:

reviewing, revising and enjoying your study

If the workshops do not meet your needs youcan book a session with a tutor using anappointment form available from StudentSupport.

There are many, many services andopportunities on campus, so make sure youtake advantage of them. Ask Student Supportwhat’s available. www2.essex.ac.uk/stdsup/welfare/workshops.shtm

Writing FellowsThe University is fortunate enough to have twoWriting Fellows from the Royal Literary Fundwho are available to give one-to-one advice onthe practical aspects of writing, whether foracademic purposes or for pleasure. TheFellows are based in the Department ofLiterature, Film, and Theatre Studies (LiFTS) inroom 5A.223, but are available to studentsand staff from all departments, across all yearsof study. Go to room 5A.201 in the LiFTSDepartment to book an appointment.

Writing GroupIf you are experiencing difficulties in writing orgenerally find the process difficult, even if youhave no immediate assignment deadlines, theWriting Group offers a safe and non-judgemental environment in which to discusswriting. E-mail: writinggroup@essex.ac.uk

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OWLs (Online Writing Labs)There are a number of writing resourceson the web that are very good, known asOWLs. These are three of the best. TheOWL at Purdue was the original.

Bowling Green State Universitywww.bgsu.edu/offices/acen/writingctr/page29232.html

Purdue Universityhttp://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/

Grammar Byteswww.chompchomp.com/

8. FurtherReading

You may find the following books helpful.Those with an asterisk (*) were used incompiling this booklet. Those with a hash (#)are strongly recommended.

Burchfield, R. W., The New Fower's ModernEnglish Usage, Oxford University Press,Oxford, 1996.

Butcher, J., Copy-editing: The Cambridgehandbook, Cambridge University Press,Cambridge, 1981.

Cook, C. K., Line by Line: How to edit yourown writing, Houghton Mifflin Company,Boston, 1985.

Cottrell, S., The Study Skills Handbook,Palgrave, 2nd edition, 2003. *

Cutts, M., The Plain English Guide, OxfordUniversity Press, 1995. * #

Evans, H. (ed. Crawford, G.), EssentialEnglish: For journalists, editors and writers,Pimlico, 2nd revised edition, 2000.

Fowler, H. W. & Fowler, F. G., The King'sEnglish, Oxford University Press, Oxford,1973.

Hilton, C. & Hyder, M., Getting to Grips withPunctuation and Grammar, BPP (LettsEducational) Ltd, London, 1992.

Hilton, C. & Hyder, M., Getting to Grips withSpelling, BPP (Letts Educational) Ltd,London, 1992.

Northedge, A., The Good Study Guide (NewEdition), The Open University, 2005. *

Orwell, G., ‘Politics in the English Language’in Why I Write, Penguin Books, 2004. * #

Partridge, E., Usage and Abusage: A guide togood English, Hamish Hamilton, London, 6thedition, 1965.

Partridge, E., You Have a Point There: A guideto punctuation and its allies, Routledge &Kegan Paul, London, 1983.

Ritter, R. M., New Hart's Rules: The handbookof style for writers and editors, OxfordUniversity Press, Oxford, 2005.

Strunk, W., The Elements of Style, FiliquarianPublishing, LLC, 2006. * #

Swan, M., Practical English Usage, OxfordUniversity Press, 2nd edition, 1995. *

Truss, L., Eats, Shoots & Leaves, ProfileBooks, 2007. * #

The Economist, Pocket Style Book, EconomistPublications, London, 1986. #

The University of Chicago Press, A Manual ofStyle, The University of Chicago Press,Chicago, 12th edition, 1969.

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