ELC 550 MODULE

ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC WRITING

Prepared by:
Nalini Arumugam
Laura Christ Dass
Masturah Alias
Naginder Kaur
Noorkhaida Abdul Murad
Surina Nayan

CONTENTS
Page
Unit 1

Getting Around Plagiarism

Unit 2

Paraphrasing

19

Unit 3

Summarising

48

Unit 4

Documenting Sources in APA Format

63

Unit 5

Writing Annotated Bibliography

Using APA Format

85

Unit 6

Analysing

108

Unit 7

Synthesising

135

Preface
English for Academic Writing is especially designed to help students to write academic papers. It is an
advanced course for the teaching of academic writing skills for undergraduates.
English for Academic Writing highlights several distinctive features:

Each unit provides examples of the particular aspect of teaching and sample practices are also
given with suggested answers to enable students to have better understanding of the skills taught.
The subject matter of the examples and practices comes from varied areas people, the
environment, education, economics and health. Thus, students are exposed to a wide range of
topics.
Teaching tips are included in each unit. They are easy to understand and can facilitate the
teaching and learning process.
Two practice tests are given at the end of the book to reinforce the skills learnt.

The book is divided into seven units that are connected to one another, each providing information that
leads to the next unit.
Unit 1 sets off on plagiarism to emphasise honesty and ethics in academic writing. The unit gives
examples of the various types of plagiarism, and steps to avoid plagiarism.
Unit 2 comprises paraphrasing techniques which is a valuable skill in academic writing. Paraphrasing
helps students to grasp the full meaning of the text and use the information appropriately with the
accompaniment of proper documentation.
Unit 3 suggests ways and examples of writing a summary so that students can find clear and essential
information of the main points made by the original author/authors. A good summary shows students
have a clear grasp of the subject that they have read.
Unit 4 introduces students to writing annotated bibliography of academic sources which is a review of the
major points of a research paper. Writing annotated bibliography is an excellent training platform for
students before writing their own research papers.
Unit 5 covers the APA (American Psychological Association) format of the rules and conventions for
documenting sources, in-text citations, acknowledging and writing reference entries. It is vital that
students be familiar with the APA format when writing to avoid plagiarism.
Unit 6 includes analysis of reading and writing; important skills to succeed at university. It allows
students to assess various ideas and information and make logical decisions, whether to disagree or agree
and to be able to explain why.

Unit 7 is on synthesizing which relates to making insightful connections based on the relationship(s)
between the sources to achieve the writing purpose. A student who is able to see these relationships will
be to use the sources effectively in writing academic papers.

Foreword
English for Academic Writing is designed to help undergraduates in academic writing. It emphasises the
seriousness of plagiarism and the importance of paraphrasing, summarising, analysing and synthesising
skills. This book also covers academic aspects of writing such as developing annotated bibliography and
documenting sources in the APA format.
The Academy of Language Studies believes that this book is necessary in its effort to increase UiTM
students capacity in writing academic papers at the undergraduate level. English for Academic Writing
emphasises formal classroom teaching and hands-on activities.
The Academy of Language Studies is fully committed in the advancement of academic writing among
students. English for Academic Writing is a useful learning resource for all students enrolled at various
institutions of higher learning in Malaysia. It is hoped that it will help prepare students for various
academic writing purposes at the university and later as professionals at the workplace.
I would like to congratulate the team of writers for their relentless effort in coming up with this book to
ensure that students are abreast with the curriculum development of the Academy of Language Studies
and Universiti Teknologi MARA.

There is no great writing, only great rewriting Justice Brandeis