Other text features. Abbreviations are often used to save space: All types of writing consist of a number of key elements. Label the items in the text.
6. Underline the key terms in the following titles and decide what you are being asked to do.
Example: Relate the development of railways to the rise of nineteenth-century European nationalism. Relate means to link one thing to another. The title is asking for links to be made between the growth of railways in Europe in the nineteenth century and the political philosophy of nationalism. The writer must decide if there was a connection or not. a Identify the main causes of rural poverty in China. b Calculate the likely change in coffee consumption that would result from a 10 fall in the price of coffee beans. c Classify the desert regions of Asia and suggest possible approaches to halting their spread.3. Evaluating a Text
Having understood the title and made an outline plan, your next step is probably to read around the subject. Although you may be given a reading list, it is still vital to be able to assess the usefulness of journal articles and books. Time spent learning these skills will be repaid by saving you from using unreliable or irrelevant materials. 1. When reading a text, it is important to ask yourself questions about the value of the text. Is this text fact or opinion? If fact, is it true? If opinion, do I agree? Can this writer be trusted? These questions can be shown in a diagram: Start here 2. Read the following sentences and decide first if they are fact or opinion. Then decide if the factual sentences are true, and if you agree with the opinions in the other sentences. Opinion Agree or True or or fact? disagree? false? a The USA has the biggest economy in the world b Shakespeare wrote textbooks c Shakespeare was a great writer d Smoking can be dangerous e Too many people 32 smoke in Britain f 95 of criminals cannot read g Poor education causes 75 of crime FACT TRUSTWORTHY AND USEFUL TRUE OR FALSE? FALSE TRUE DISAGREE AGREE OR DISAGREE? ? OPINION FACT OR OPINION? AGREE 3. It can be seen that even short sentences can contain a mixture of fact and opinion. Most longer texts, of course, consist of both. Read the following and underline facts ____ and opinions . a Britain has one of the highest crime rates in the world. b A robbery takes place every five seconds. A car is stolen every minute. Clearly, criminals are not afraid of the police. c Even if they are caught, few criminals ever appear in court. d Most of those who are found guilty are let off with a tiny fine. e To restore law and order, we need many more police and much tougher punishments.4. The previous sentences can be evaluated as follows:
a Fact, but only partly true. Britain does not have one of the highest overall crime rates in the world. For some crimes, e.g. car crime, the rate is high, but other countries, e.g. South Africa and the USA, have much higher rates of violent crime. b These facts may or may not be true, but it is not clear from them that criminals are unafraid of the police. c Fact, but not true. A significant number of those arrested are charged and later prosecuted. d This statement is vague. A fine is not letting off. What is meant by tiny? e This is a half-truth. More police would probably help reduce crime, but it is not clear if stronger punishments would have that result. From this it can be seen that even if the facts are correct, the opinions that are expressed may not be reliable. The evaluation above would suggest that the writer of the original text could not be trusted, and it would be better to look for another source. 5. Evaluate the following passages in a similar way. First underline facts and opinion, then decide if the text as a whole is trustworthy. a Every year large numbers of students travel abroad to study at university. Most of them spend thousands of pounds on their degree courses. The cost of travel and accommodation adds significantly to their expenses. But they could save a lot of money by studying their courses online, using the internet and email. Increasing numbers of universities are offering tuition by the internet, and this has many advantages for students. In the future most students are likely to stay at home and study in front of a computer. b London is an ideal city for young students. Britain’s lively capital, with a population of two million, is the perfect place to live and study. Cheap, comfortable accommodation is always available, and transport is provided by the clean and reliable underground system. Another advantage is the friendly citizens, who are well-known for their custom of stopping to chat with strangers. Overall, London is probably the best place in the world to study English.Parts
» BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» The Writing Process BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Almost all essays, reports and articles have the same basic pattern of organisation:
» Underline the key terms in the following titles and decide what you are being asked to do.
» The previous sentences can be evaluated as follows:
» Compare the two extracts below:
» Register. Compare the tone, or register, of the following:
» In the following text, three key points are in italic. Decide on their order of importance.
» Underline four key points in the following text.
» What are the main reasons for note-making? Add to the ideas below.
» Effective note-making is part of a sequence. What comes before and after?
» Techniques. Find synonyms for the words in italic.
» Change the word class of the words in italic, and then re-write the sentences.
» Change the word order of the following sentences.
» Combine all these techniques to paraphrase the paragraph as fully as possible.
» Use the same techniques to paraphrase the following text.
» Complete the following notes of the key points.
» Read the example, from a study of women’s experience of prison.
» The essay writer uses a mixture of direct quotes and summaries of arguments.
» Decide which of the three frameworks in 2 would be most suitable for the following titles.
» topic 2. restatement BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Using the second set of notes, write the next paragraph of the essay.
» topic 2. detail BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» detail 4. detail BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Using the next set of notes, write the third paragraph.
» topic 2. 4. BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» The structure of the main body depends on the length of the essay and the subject of study.
» Shorter essays in exams, for example tend to have simpler structures:
» Write the introduction about 100 words, using your answers from 9 and the notes provided below.
» Not every academic essay has a conclusion.
» The following may be found in conclusions. Decide on the most suitable order for them A–E.
» Study the notes for the essay below and write a conclusion in about 100 words.
» Elements of Writing BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Complete the following sentences with a suitable verb or conjunction.
» Use conjunctions to complete the following paragraph.
» Study the flowchart and complete the paragraph that describes it.
» The form as Note the variety of forms possible:
» Moreless, the mostthe least followed by adjective, the mostthe fewest related to number
» Complete the following description of the table in 3 above one word per gap:
» Study the table and complete the text below one word per gap.
» Study the table below and complete the paragraph comparing life
» Complete the following paragraph comparing cigarette smoking in Europe.
» Write another paragraph comparing alcohol intake in Europe.
» Select several terms from your own subject area and write extensive definitions for them.
» There are two basic outlines for a discussion essay:
» Find a suitable example for each sentence.
» Provide examples in the following paragraph where they appear necessary.
» Decide if you agree with the following:
» There are two ways of making a generalisation:
» Read the following text and underline the generalisations.
» Study the table. BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Study the table below and complete the generalisations.
» Read this text about dreams and write five generalisations using the data.
» Discussing statistical data is a necessary part of much academic writing:
» Percentages are commonly used for expressing rates of change:
» Study the following expressions, which are also used to simplify statistics.
» Re-write the following sentences to present the data in a simpler way.
» a Summary of a writer’s ideas.
» Organising the bibliographyreferences BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Russell, T. 1995 ‘A future for coffee?’ Journal of Applied Marketing 6 pp. 14–1
» Re-write the following paragraphs in better style.
» Student admissions by subject2002
» Find synonyms for the words and phrases in italic. The language of change
» Complete the following description of the chart below.
» Accuracy in Writing BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» All academic subjects employ abbreviations to save time.
» Adverbs are used in academic texts in a variety of ways.
» Adverbs linked to verbs and adjectives usually fall into three groups.
» Adverbs used individually need to be employed with care.
» Insert a suitable adverb from the table into the gaps in the sentences.
» The following adverbs are used to describe changes in the rate of something:
» Unless they are uncountable, all nouns need an article when used in the singular.
» In general, the is used with:
» A cautious style is necessary in some areas of academic writing:
» Caution is needed to avoid making statements that are too simplistic:
» Rewrite the following sentences in a more cautious way.
» Finish the sentences in a suitable way.
» Study the list below and find the meaning in each case.
» Use a suitable modal of obligation to complete the following.
» Most nationalities have a regular pattern of nouns and adjectives.
» Some nationalities are less regular.
» Write similar sentences to those above about two of the following:
» The definite article is used with a few countries:
» Another group of uncountable nouns is used for materials:
» Complete the gaps in the following paragraph with muchmanylittlefew.
» An adverb is often inserted in a passive form:
» Prefixes. Common prefixes. Find the meanings of each prefix.
» Suggest possible meanings for the words in italic.
» Meaning suffixes. Give the word class and suggest possible meanings for:
» Study each sentence and find the meaning of the words in italic.
» The following verbs are generally used with these prepositions:
» Complete the following with suitable verbs and prepositions.
» Choose suitable verbs and prepositions from 1 and 3 to complete the following text.
» Semi-colons ;. Colons :. BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Punctuate the text. BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Referring verbs are used to summarise another writer’s ideas.
» Most of these verbs are followed by a noun clause beginning with that.
» Write a sentence referring to what the following writers said more than one verb may be suitable.
» In defining clauses both that and which can be used with things.
» Insert a suitable relative pronoun in the text below. Write X if the pronoun is optional.
» Complete the following sentences by selecting the most suitable tenses.
» Simple or continuous? Select either simple or continuous in each case:
» Study the use of the following:
» Compare the use of the following phrases.
» Choose the best alternative in each case.
» Writing Models BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Write a reply to Mr Bramble making the following points:
» CV stands for curriculum vitae also known as a resumé.
» Background to Writing BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Developing Plans from Titles
» Evaluating a Text BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Understanding Purpose and Register
» Selecting Key Points Note-Making
» Paraphrasing Summary Writing BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Combining Sources Planning a Text
» Organising Paragraphs BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Introductions BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Conclusions BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Re-reading and Re-writing Proof-Reading
» Comparisons Definitions BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Discussion BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Numbers References and Quotations Academic Style
» Synonyms Visual Information BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Articles Caution Conjunctions BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Formality in Verbs Modal Verbs
» Passives Prefixes and Suffixes
» Prepositions BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
» Prepositions after Verbs Punctuation
» Referring Verbs Relative Pronouns
» SingularPlural BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)
Show more