Top Strategies to Improve Academic Writing Skills for Students

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In this article, we will tell you what strategies students should use to improve academic writing skills.

What is Academic Writing?

Academic writing is a style of written communication used in educational and scientific environments. Its primary purpose is to convey information and analysis clearly and accurately. This allows the reader to easily comprehend and evaluate the ideas and arguments presented.

This type of writing is often used in research papers, dissertations, essays, scientific articles, and other academic materials. By the way, if you need help with any of this or that type of academic writing, you can get custom assignment help from a professional writer.

Typical Academic Writing Errors

The academic writing style, according to the rules, is formal. Sometimes, students forget about it. Therefore, slang or atypical abbreviations such as 'gonna' and 'wanna' should not be used here under any circumstances.

If there are doubts about the use of certain words and constructions or if it is difficult to remember formal analogs, they can be checked in any online dictionary. In addition, there are other stylistic errors; let's see!

• Repetition of words

Due to the use of identical lexical units and structures, the essay looks simple and uninteresting. Solution: before writing the paper, use a thematic list of synonyms that you may need in the process; don't forget about the use of pronouns to avoid tautology.

• Passive constructions

Sentences with passive constructions sound too impersonal. In addition, they are long and difficult to read. At the same time, sentences in the active voice are direct and clear.

Solution: remember that the optimal number of passive sentences is no more than 20% of the total essay volume; a combination of active and passive sentences will help you not to overuse the passive voice.

• Length of sentences

Often, students write either too long or too short sentences. Essays where all sentences are long are difficult to read and comprehend. Short sentences can disrupt the logical development of thought. Moreover, the grade for an essay where all sentences are as short and broken as possible cannot be too high.

Solution: Pay attention to the length of sentences, use optimal constructions, and vary between long and short sentences.

• Coordinating conjunctions

Sometimes, an essay contains many sentences that begin with coordinating conjunctions. However, their primary task is to connect words and phrases in a sentence. Therefore, if you use them at the beginning of sentences too often, the text will seem too monotonous to the reader.

Solution: Remember the existence of linking words and why it is important to use them in your texts; it will be enough for you to remember 3-5 of the most popular ones and learn how to use them correctly.

For example:

• However would be appropriate when it is necessary to move on to another thought.
• Moreover would be appropriate when it is necessary to add another argument.
• Nevertheless would be appropriate when a contrast is added.

Such linking adverbs are more suitable for a formal essay style.

Strategies to Improve Academic Writing Skills

Let's move on to tips that will help students improve their knowledge, develop their writing skills, and produce better texts.

Start with the Basics

Before planning to write texts, make sure that you have a solid foundation of the language, namely, the formation of simple and complex sentences and the use of conjunctions, prepositions, and adverbs that may be needed to work on this topic.

Choosing a Topic

In the initial stages, students can choose topics that match their interests and hobbies. If the subject is too broad, you should narrow the focus. You should choose topics that will provoke creative ideas. To do this, for example, conduct a brainstorming session and then justify your ideas.

Essay Structure

Find out the structure of the text and the rules for writing the introduction, main body, and conclusion.

Technology

Feel free to use smart tools to learn. Modern applications and gadgets will help you make the essay-writing process more attractive. Grammar-checking sites, online organizers, and essay-writing services have many useful functions, including, in particular, correcting various types of errors.

Examples

It is important to find examples of successful essays. They will help you understand what a quality paper should be. Use examples to familiarize yourself with each part and important aspects of the text. This will help you learn how to construct sentences correctly, as well as what techniques, grammar, and lexical structures will be successful.

Correcting Errors

Learn to correct errors in the text using these strategies:

• Read the text aloud
• Ask a classmate to read the essay and give their comments
• Read the paper from the bottom up, starting from the last paragraph to the first
• Use online services like Grammarly to check texts.

Thus, we remembered what mistakes students can make in papers and how to improve their academic writing. Now, you are ready for any challenge. Take on board the tips, research, and implement effective resources in your academic writing. We are sure that your essays will improve!