Academic Writing

Understanding Rules for Academic Writing

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Are you a dual enrolled student? 

Have you been out of school for awhile? 

Did you struggle with writing in highschool? 

If you answered YES to any of the questions above, then you will want to be sure to use the CONTENT and STRUCTURE websites to make sure that you are creating academic essays that are meeting the basic requirements.

In this class, while you will learn about writing arguments, you will need to know the basics of academic writing to build upon.  These argument essays will be contained in traditional academic essay structure and style.  Therefore, you must be sure to know how to write well-structured academic essays using the basics of

·       3^rd-person voice,

·       eliminating questions from your writing,

·       establishing the argument clearly before introducing source materials, and

·       structuring the argument correctly according to standard structure for academic essays.

Each section of an academic essay has a specific purpose, and therefore, a specific structure required for the content.   If you have written an essay and the instructor states that the academic writing standards not being met, then this means that you are struggling with the basics for academic writing, and you will want to speand extra time learning about the purpose, structure, and content of areas of an academic essay,

TOPIC SENTENCES: Purpose àStructureà Content

[PURPOSE leads to a specific STRUCTURE, and based on that STRUCTURE, you will have certain CONTENT]

[Purpose]

The purpose of a topic sentence is to assert part of the argument from the thesis statement (which is contained in the last sentence of the introduction paragraph). 

[Structure]

A body paragraph must begin with a topic sentence. 

The topic sentence must be structured in the paragraph as the first sentence of the body paragraph (to alert the reader to the focus for that given paragraph).

Therefore, the structure of a body paragraph begins with a topic sentence that asserts the focus of the body paragraph [content] that stems from the thesis statement. 

[Content]

The content of the topic sentence of the body paragraph must be in your own words (and not sources) since it is part of your argument, and your argument must be in your own words as you begin the point to be proven in that given body paragraph.

There are basic standards that most students come into a college class knowing: the purpose of all areas of an academic writing, how to structure a body paragraph, what content to put into a topic sentence, etc.  If students do not know these standards, they can learn about them through the online helper sites. 

After reviewing the content above about purpose, structure, and content, you should be able to tell if you have a handle on these areas of academic writing or if you are in need of a refresher.  If you answered YES at the beginning of this handout or are in need of a refresher, you will want to spend time in preparation for each essay by reviewing the helper booklet on the Freshman Composition helper site: https://fgc-enc1101.blogspot.com/.  You will also want to pay close attention to the STRUCTURE and the CONTENT help sites so that you know 'what' goes 'where' in an academic essay.

Freshman Composition fgc-enc1101.blogspot.com

If you have questions about these items, please let your instructor know so that more clarity and direction can be provided.