Introduction to Academic English

Contents
◆Some Related Concepts Academic English ◆Linguistic components of academic English
◆Features of Academic English
◆Academic skills
◆General English English for General Purposes,a term in language teaching for a broadly based,usually long-term EFL or ESL course,in contrast to English for Specific Purpose
◆ESP:
English for Specific Purpose (Business English,English for Medical Purposes,English for academic purposes ,etc.).
Some Related Concepts
General English → Social English or Conversational English
Academic English
EAP
•English for academic purposes(EAP)entails training students,usually in a higher education setting,to use language appropriately for study. It is one of the most common forms of English for specific purposes (ESP)
Academic English
•Academic English is the genre of English used in the world of research, study,teaching and universities.If you read an article in an academic journal or listen to someone giving a presentation or a talk about an academic subject in an academic environment,Academic English is probably being used.
Academic English is the type of English you need for
•reading and understanding your study materials
•writing about your subject.
It may be used to
•describe an object or situation
•describe a process or how something works
•explain something
•Much of it is about expressing the relationship between ideas
The ability to write in an academic style is something you develop as part of your university study.It is difficult to give overall'rules'on the way to write for a university course,as academic subjects vary in
•their vocabulary and expressions
•the types of text used (for instance essays, reports, research articles or summaries)
•how these texts are structured and organised.
Linguistic components of academic English:
•The Phonological component–includes spelling (i.e. advice, advise) intonation, stress, and sound patterns (e.g., 'photograph, pho'tographer, pho'tography, photo'graphic)
•The Lexical component–understanding the forms and meanings of words that are used across many different kinds of disciplines ; prefixes, roots, and suffixes, the parts of speech of words
•The Grammatical component–understand and use the grammatical features;the complex punctuation rules that govern them(e.g.let's eat grandma vs.let's eat,grandma)
•The Sociolinguistic component–includes knowledge beyond ordinary General English,such as apologizing,complaining,and making requests.In Academic,students deal more with expository and argumentative texts and contexts,especially when wanting to communicate successfully with likeminded people,whether it be with their classmates in the class,or outside with native speakers.
•The Discourse component–understanding helpful language tools such as transitions(linking words)and other organisational signals that, in reading,help academic students gain perspective on–what is being read,in seeing relationships between the writer and the reader and the listener and speaker,as well as following logical methods of thought.Particularly in writing,these discourse features help academic students develop their thesis and provide a smooth writing flow between ideas(using such words as,nevertheless,in spite of, according to)
Features of Academic English
•it uses formal academic language and avoids colloqualisms (usually formal in tone and impersonal in style)•it avoids personal pronouns such as I, me, you, your, and is written in the third person
•it is objective and impartial (free from undue bias or preconceived opinions)
•it often uses impersonal structures (the passive voice)
•it may use specialised vocabulary
•it is tentative and cautious (tends to employ a cautious way of explaining findings, using expressions such as 'may', 'it is possible that...', 'could')
•it avoids contractions or shortened forms of verbs, such as won't, doesn't or it's
•it avoids using a linking word such as 'and' or 'but' at the beginning of a sentence
•it avoids verbs that are composed of multiple words, such as 'give up', 'put up with'
•the texts are well structured
•there are well developed paragraphs which often start with a strong topic sentence
•there are linking words which give the text cohesion
•there are lots of references to other writers
Chinese Voices: Chinese learners and their experiences of studying in the UK.
An EAP program focuses instruction on required to perform in an English-speaking academic context across core subject areas generally encountered in a university setting.
Academic skills •Time management
•Reading proficiency
•Listening ability
•Oral communication
•Written communication
•Note-taking
•Exam technique
•Presentation skills •Independent learning •Critical thinking •Research abilities •Analytical thinking •Problem solving •Conversational skills •Self-motivation •Time management •Organizational skills
Thesis Structure •Abstract
•Key words
•Introduction •Literature review •Methods
•Results •Discussion •Conclusions •References。