General academic writing

Site:	learnonline
Course:	English Language & Intercultural Learning & Teaching Framework
Book:	General academic writing

Printed by:	Guest user
Date:	Saturday, 3 May 2025, 8:46 PM

Description

Introduction
Academic writing
Preparation and purpose
Reading for writing
The process writing approach
Referencing
Tips for teachers
Email as professional communication

GEneral writing resources

Academic writing is challenging for many commencing students, especially since each discipline subscribes to a specific way of writing.

The resources in this section will help you scaffold the development of your students' academic writing skills.

Use the table of contents to the right to find the category and type of resource which you want for your class.
You can also browse an online folder of all the general resources on reading, in alphabetical order.
If you wish to find a resource addressing a specific teaching point, you can also use a term or word to search the search the database of all Language and Literacies resources.

Note that these resources address particular aspects about writing for tertiary courses. They are general resources for developing academic writing and do not address specific writing formats.

However, you can also find resources on writing for assignment formats and on English Language Proficiency.

Academic writing

1. Academic writing Class video presentation (9:10 mins)

Video presentation intended for students, narrated by Dr Shashi Nallaya. Introduces the concept of academic writing to students. It looks at different genres of writing, and the appropriate style for academic writing.

Watch the video in the Panopto viewer (It will open in a new browser window, and you may need to log in with your UniSA login details).

Give this link to a class to watch individually (more information) - https://unisa.au.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=0a2c0576-7298-4330-9c4d-aa690188851f (27 MB). You can also download the presentation (27 MB) as a video file from this link (more information)

Download the slides (you can adjust to suit your class) (223 KB)

Download the script (you can adjust to suit your class) (27 KB)

2. Academic writing Class presentation handout

Slides from a workshop, covering:

- writing for an audience
- writing with a purpose
- organising the text
- using an appropriate style
- writing cohesively and coherently
- evaluating the writing
- acknowledging sources of information

Download the word document (547 KB)

3. Academic writing Class activity

Class activity in which students complete exercises:

rewriting a text to make it more academic
identifying focus in writing
improving flow in writing

Download the word document (51 KB)

Browse all the general writing resources

Preparation and purpose

1. Preparation for writing Teacher's Guide

List of ideas and tips for teachers to help them to prepare students for a writing course.

Download the slides (26 KB)

Download the word document (27 KB)

2. Teaching students the purpose of writing Teacher's Guide

Short list of tips on teaching students the purpose of writing.

Download the pdf version ((31 KB)

Download the word version (28 KB)

Browse all the general writing resources

Reading for writing

1. Reading for writing Class video presentation (10:21 mins)

Video presentation is intended for a student audience, by Dr Shashi Nallaya. It covers types of academic texts, what to read for assignments, how to read efficiently, critical reading.

Watch this video in the Panopto viewer (It will open in a new browser window, and you may need to log in with your UniSA login details).

Link to show this presentation to a class (more information) - https://unisa.au.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=33e573d5-b310-4936-aad4-aa6a003e95c6. You can also download the presentation (58 MB) as a video file from this link (more information).

2. Using sources from your reading to write Class video presentation (6:41 mins)

Video presentation intended for a student audience, by Dr Shashi Nallaya. Covers citing and acknowledging sources, referencing purpose and styles, when to reference, quoting and paraphrasing.

Watch this video in the Panopto viewer (It will open in a new browser window, and you may need to log in with your UniSA login details).

Link to show this presentation to a class (more information) - https://unisa.au.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=b090063f-c585-4efa-8c24-aa6a003f0e10. You can also download the presentation (36 MB) as a video file from this link (more information).

Browse all the general writing resources

The process writing approach

1. The process writing approach Teacher's Guide

Teacher's resource on the Process Writing approach, including dominant traits, steps in the process, peer-review checklist, and rubric.

Download the pdf version ( (190 KB)

Download the word version (180 KB)

Browse all the general writing resources

Referencing

1. Referencing 1 Class video presentation (12:28 mins)

Video of a presentation for students given by Dr Shashi Nallaya. PowerPoint slides and audio. Covers the purposes of referencing, disciplinary writing, referencing texts, referencing in writing, examples of referencing, reading and note taking, in text citations.

Watch the video in the Panopto viewer (It will open in a new browser window, and you may need to log in with your UniSA login details).

Give this link to a class to watch individually ( more information): https://unisa.au.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=6ee8a0bd-52f7-4770-9c66-aa6f004e35f0 . You can also download the presentation (76 MB) as a video file from this link (more information).

Download the slides (you can adjust them to suit your needs) ( 3.6 MB)

Download the script (you can adjust this to suit your class) ( 99 KB)

Give students an interactive online presentation (10 MB) (See more information)

2. Using resources from your reading Class video presentation (6:41 mins)

Video of a presentation given by Dr Shashi Nallaya. Covers the purpose of referencing, referencing styles, when to reference, in text references, quoting, citing sources, paraphrasing, summarising.

Watch the video in the Panopto viewer (It will open in a new browser window, and you may need to log in with your UniSA login details).

Give this link to a class to watch individually (more information): https://unisa.au.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=29134bd1-87c5-4f0f-b70d-aa6f00242bce . You can also download the presentation (36 MB) as a video file from this link (more information).

Download the slides (you can adjust this to suit your class) ( 262 KB)

3. Bibliography management Presentation slides

PowerPoint slides for a class presentation which covers support resources for referencing, managing references, biblio management software, details on Endnote and Refworks.

Download the PowerPoint slides (2.8 MB)

4. Referencing 2 Presentation slides

PowerPoint slides for a class presentation which covers:

Academic style
What is referencing?
When to reference
When to include page numbers
Referencing website
Scholarly versus popular sources
UniSA Harvard Referencing convention
Use of ‘voices’ in writing

Download the PowerPoint slides (1.6 MB)

5. Referencing 3 Presentation slides

PowerPoint slides for a class presentation which covers referencing in essays, including:

academic text
resources for referencing
using voices in referencing
in text referencing
refencing conventions
Harvard UniSA style

Download the PowerPoint slides (3 MB)

6. Referencing 4 Presentation slides

PowerPoint slides for a class presentation which covers:

purpose of citing
academic text
using voices in writing
Scholarly versus popular sources
resources for referencing

Download the PowerPoint slides (511 KB)

7. Referencing student handout

Word document for students outlining the aim of referencing, and providing examples.

Download the word doc (52 KB)

8. Quoting: Referencing using the direct voice Student guide

Word document for students outlining the different techniques that can be used to cite the sources used in writing, with an example.

Download the word doc (1.6 MB)

9. Paraphrasing: Referencing using the indirect voice Student guide

Word document for students outlining different techniques that can be used to cite sources being used in writing, including an example.

Download the word doc (46 KB)

10. Summarising: Referencing using the external voice Student handout

Word document for students outlining different techniques that can be used to cite the sources used in writing, including an example.

Download the word doc (41 KB)

Browse an online folder of all the general writing resources

Tips for teachers

1. Assigning in-class writing activities Teacher's Guide

This teacher's guide which gives tips on how to develop students' writing skills by giving them in-class writing exercises. Includes a series of example activities.

Download the word version (30 KB)