ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL
WRITING STYLE AND THE
RHETORICAL SITUATION
PURPOSE AND TYPES OF ACADEMIC AND
PROFESSIONAL WRITING
Most common reasons for writing:
 To report findings from research
endeavors
 To discuss a concept to a greater
populace
 To formulate a solution to a
problem
 To evaluate programs and
personnel
Types of Written Report:
1. Essay – a shorter piece of
research with the topic chosen by
students
2. Paper – a piece of academic
writing that aims to explain a
concept in a specific discipline
3. Thesis/Dissertation – a lengthy
piece of writing normally done by
a student often for a higher
degree, on a topic chosen by the
students and approved by the
instructor
4. Memorandum – an inter-office
document distributed to inform
employees, request data, give
responses, confirm decisions,
and provide directions
5. Report – an official workplace
document that presents and
analyzes data to provide
information and recommendations
FEATURES OF ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL
WRITING
1. Formality
Register refers to the degree of
formality of language use, while tone
FEATURES OF ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL
pertains to the writer’s attitude or
WRITING
treatment of the subject matter. The
2. Objectivity
register and tone used in academic
In academic writing, the writer
writing are expected to be formal and
professional. This means that the avoids expressing personal opinions
about the subject matter and resorts
written output adheres to the set
standards acceptable in the academic to facts in presenting evidences.
and professional community.
3. Structure
 Avoid contractions – a
Any type of academic and
contraction is a common feature
professional writing generally follows
of spoken language but avoided in
an organized structure and format,
formal writing. (example: can’t)
which guides the readers in
 Avoid figurative language – understanding the text. Most essays,
formal writing adheres to direct
for example, are divided into
and clear expression and avoids introduction, body, and conclusion in
creating multiple meanings that presenting the information.
can confuse readers.
 Observe rules in writing numbers 4. Hedging
and acronyms – spell out numbers Practicing caution in the use of
less than one hundred and provide language is important in academic and
what the acronym stands for in professional writing to distinguish
the first mentioning of it. between facts and claims. Hedging, a
 Avoid slang and colloquial technique used by writers by sorting
expressions – these are typically to tentative language, is often
used in casual spoken employed in argumentative essays to
conversation but may appear weak show a high level of credibility on the
and inappropriate in formal part of the writer.
writing.
 Consider the type, purpose, and
reader of the written output in
choosing the appropriate point of
view
 THE RHETORICAL SITUATIONS IN WRITING
Understanding the circumstances
in which you write is an important step
toward a purposeful writing process.
This means that as you prepare to
write, you examine several factors
that will affect what, why, and how you
write. Adapting your writing to
various elements such as the purpose,
audience, and topic will give you a
better direction as you go through the
writing process.
1. Purpose
 To inform
 To educate
 To persuade
2. Audience – the audience is a primary
consideration because they are the
ones you are directly communicating
with. Understanding and adapting to
your audience can fulfill your purpose
for writing.
3. Topic – an important element in the
rhetorical situation since the entire
output revolves around it.
READING AND RESEARCHING ACROSS
DISCIPLINES
1. READING ACROSS DISCIPLINES: LEARNING
FROM THE CONTENT AREAS
The reading skills acquired in your
early years have become essential tools
in gaining relevant information from
other specialized fields. You may have
already realized that reading is central
to learning the content areas.
2. STRATEGIC READING: READING FOR MEANING
Strategic reading is an effective
way of understanding a text by employing
strategies to understand content and
structure better, which will result in
reading proficiency.
3. STRATEGIC READERS: SUCCESSFUL READERS
Studies show that strategic readers
have a higher rate not only in reading
but also in learning because they have an
awareness of the cognitive process
involved in reading. Brown and Briggs
list four characteristics of strategic
readers:
 They set a purpose for reading
 They employ reading strategies
appropriate to a specific text
 They check their understanding of
the text
 They show positive attitude toward
reading
METHODS OF PARAGRAPH DEVELOPMENT
1. Definition – demonstration and
connotation
2. Illustration – presenting examples
3. Description – using of vivid details
4. Process Analysis – analyzing and
presenting the steps in an orderly
sequence
5. Comparison and Contrast – referred to as the topic sentence. The
similarities and differences
6. Cause and Effect – analyzes why
something happened
7. Classification – clustering
objects, people, or events based on
their similarities and
characteristics.
GETTING THE MAIN IDEA OF A PASSAGE
Aside from knowing the structure of
a text, another valuable reading
strategy you can use to maximize
learning is getting the main idea of a
passage. The main idea of a text refers
to the most important concept the
writer wishes to impart to the readers,
which is also called the thesis
statement.
 It is expressed as a complete
sentence, not a phrase, topic,
title, or question.
 It expresses an opinion,
attitude, or view regarding a
topic.
 It is not a statement of fact or
an announcement.
 It is not too broad nor too
specific
The thesis statement is usually
expressed as the first or last sentence
of the first paragraph which provides
an overview of what the passage is all
about.
Another kind of main idea is
topic sentence is usually expressed as
the first sentence of every paragraph—
the unifying thought that is expounded
on in the paragraph by using supporting
details.

PLAGIARISM
I. NATURE OF PALGIARISM
Plagiarism is an intellectual fraud
and an act of academic dishonesty and
student should avoid it all cost because
of the following reasons:
 Stealing other people’s ideas can
result in expulsive or loss of
academic degree.
 Academic dishonesty undermines the
hard work one has to put in previous
works.
 Plagiarism is easily detected now
with the aid of software or
applications
 Intellectual fraud can be
punishable by the law due to
Intellectual Property Rights.
II. TYPES OF PLAGIARISM
(Where the source are not cited):
 The Ghost Writer
The one who plagiarize makes
the writer nonexistent by failing
to give due credit to his/her work.
Writer submits another person’s
entire work, very batim (word for
word), without acknowledging the
source.
 The Potluck Paper
The paper contains a collage
of ideas taken from various source
with very minimal or insignificant
changes in the wording and sentence
structure.
 The poor Disguise
Plagiarism occurs when the
writer has retained the major
content of a single source and only
slightly changed some key words and
phrases
 3. APPEAL TO IGNORANCE – something is
The Self-Stealer
Copying from his/her own
previous work without acknowledging
himself.
(The source is improperly cited):
 The forgotten Footnote
Not disclosing the proper
copyright details of URL of a web
source mislead other researchers
who could be reading your paper.
 The Too-Perfect Paraphrase
Fails to put quotation mark to
mark ideas or phrases lifted word
for word from the source.
 The Resourceful Citer
The writer cites all sources,
paraphrases, and summarizes all
ideas but the output contains
almost no original idea.
III. WAYS TO AVOID PLAGIARISM
1. Acknowledge Sources
2. Know Various Citation Styles:
o APA (American Psychological
Association)
o MLA (Modern Language
Association)
o Chicago Manual of Style
3. Develop effective Study Habits
4. Use notetaking Strategies
o Direct Quoting
o Paraphrasing
o Summarizing
o Outlining
LOGICAL FALLACIES
1. FALSE DILEMMA – occurs when an arguer
presents his/her argument as one of only
two options despite the presence of
multiple possibilities
2. HASTY GENERALIZATION
concluded to be true just because it is
not proven false or vice versa
4. SLIPPERY SLOPE – a series of
superficial and unaccepted consequences
is drawn
5. COMPLEX QUESTION – two or more points
are rolled into one and the reader is
expected to accept or reject both
6. APPEAL TO FORCE
7. APPEAL TO PITY
8. APPEAL TO CONSEQUENCES – unpleasant
consequences of believing something are
pointed to show that the belief is false
9. BANDWAGON – an argument is considered
to be valid because it is what the
majority thinks
10. ATTACKING THE PERSON
11. APPEAL TO AUTHORITY – quotes an
expert who is not qualified for subject
12. ANONYMOUS AUTHORITY
13. FALSE ANALOGY – assuming that two
concepts that are similar in some ways
are also similar in other ways
14. ACCIDENT – general rule is applied
even though it should be an exemption
15. POST HOC - since A happened before B,
A causes B
16. WRONG DIRECTION – cause and effect is
reversed
17. COMPLEX CAUSE – explanation for an
event is reduced to one despite many
18. IRRELEVANT CONCLUSION – concluding
something else instead of proving a thing
19. STRAW MAN – position of the
opposition is twisted so that easier to
refute
20. AFFIRMING THE CONSEQUENT – A is true
if B is true, the if B is true, A is true
21. DENYING THE ANTECEDENT – A is true if
B is true; then if A is false, B is false
22. INCONSISTENCY – contradicting ideas