How to Write an Effective Academic Paper

WRITING by RYAN

“If one wishes to write a good paper, he should write a better one. If he hopes to write a better paper, he should write a great paper. If he desires to write a great paper, he should write an outstanding one. If he does not intend to capture the minds of others, he should not write at all and those who strive to do this should write exceptionally”.

Ryan Abraham

ESL Teacher

Ciaci Vip English

HOW TO WRITE AN EFFECTIVE ACADEMIC PAPER

12 Things to Remember – Aimed at ESL students

1.    Determine what it is that you wish to write about. How can you write if you do not have a      focus or specific topic in mind?
2.     Brainstorm or mind map ideas that pertain to your topic.
3.     Look for connections in your ideas.
4.     Research the topic to gather credible information that supports your ideas.
5.     Develop a thesis or clear topic statement. Your topic statement or thesis statement should have exactly your topic and the areas that you wish to discuss in order to support your idea.
6.   Make an outline of your paper.
7.   Make an introduction from general to specific. Start off by attracting the readers and end with a good topic statement or thesis statement.
8.   Develop supporting paragraphs that relate to specific topics from your thesis or topic statement.
9.   Use examples and details to support any ideas and opinions. Don’t forget to cite sources.
10.  Never use someone else’s idea as your own. Again remember to cite sources.
11. Use transitions to add flow and cohesion to your ideas.
12.  Your conclusion should be the opposite of your introduction in that you should go from specific to general. Try to finish with a thought provoking statement.

Model of Academic Writing

 The Topic Statement

Determining your topic or main idea is extremely important for it is the foundation or base of your academic paper. If your paper is in response to a question or specific task, make sure that your topic/thesis statement encompasses all that you wish to discuss in your paper. Your topic statement should include your main idea and the things that you wish to use to prove or discuss your main idea.

Task:   Write an essay explaining why having the ability to effectively communicate in   English is important.

Topic: The ability to communicate effectively in English is important.

Control 1:  have friends from all over the world

Control 2: get a good job

Control 3: be informed about global events and issues

Topic statement: The ability to communicate effectively in English is extremely important because it allows us to have friends from all over the world, get a good job, and be informed about global events and issues.

The Introduction

The introduction should have at least 3 sentences and you should start off with a general statement that is connected to your topic or main idea that will attract readers. The second sentence should be less general/more specific and serve as a transition between your first general sentence and the last sentence which of course is the topic statement.

Sample Introduction: English is spoken by over 60 percent of the world’s population. Due to globalization, English has truly become the international language.  The ability to communicate effectively in English is extremely important because it allows us to have friends from all over the world, get a good job, and be informed about global events and issues.

Super race of English speakers

I remember when I first started teaching English at EF, or shall I say first started learning English, hehehehehe. Boy was I devastated when I realized that as intelligent as I thought I was, I knew absolutely nothing about my own language. What the heck was the present perfect tense? If I had been on who wants to be a millionaire, I would have had to phone a friend. But then again, who would I have called? The average native speaker does not know much about English grammar, but I like to think that we get along just fine although severely lacking in English knowledge.

I remember sweating bullets in front of my "students", tons of bullets. I'm surprised that I am still alive today and didn't die due to dehydration. Everyday, I arrived at work super early so that I could crack open those grammar books and study away and after about six months of that my confidence soared and things started making sense. At that point, I started to become proud of being an English teacher. I was actually able to answer my students' questions with the correct answer instead of saying that is just the way it is. Before I knew it, other teachers started coming to me for advice on how to plan their lessons and teaching grammar the correct way.

I remember hanging out on several occasions with other teachers and could not believe what our drunken conversations were about. We would talk for hours about different grammar points, vocabulary, tenses, and so on. Right then and there I realized that my life would never be the same, that I would become this person that could only have a meaningful conversation with other ESL teachers. The first time I went back to America for a visit and went back to my "hood", my homies looked at me like I was literally an alien from another planet. They could not believe the words that came out of my mouth or maybe how the words came out of my mouth. I felt like a freak. I enjoyed talking about English more than just about anything else.

I remember when I first started teaching TOEFL and thanked God that I was born in an English speaking country. At that time I realized that we as ESL teachers are in essence creating a super race of English speakers that can not only effectively communicate but can actually correct a native speaker and tell him/her why he/she is wrong. We are teaching people how to speak better English than we do. Is this crazy or what? In this age of globalization, the native speaker of English reigns supreme because of his/her "mastery" of the international language. But if you really think about it, studies have shown that the average business email written by a native English speaker is completely and utterly structurally unsound. We (native speakers) know this to be true and I am worried that the secret may get out to the rest of the world. Just imagine a day when English is truly spoken by just about everyone, will native speakers be able to have an ESL post or will we be undercut by the products we have created? A super race of English speakers that will take over the world. Just some food for thought i suppose. Please forgive me if this blog has many mistakes. I am just a native speaker after all. :)