Academicwriting - Grammar & Punctuation

Academic Writing: Grammar & PunctuationHelen Fallon, Deputy Librarian, Maynooth University, [email protected]

Grammar & Punctuation

• What are your Challenges?

• What do you want to take away with you today?

Helen Fallon, Deputy University Librarian

VoiceActive Voice– Subject + verb + object or just subject + verb– The Supervisor approved the project

proposal

Passive Voice– Object + verb + subject or object + verb e.g.

mistakes were made– The project was approved by the supervisor


Passive Verb

Passive verb is a form of the verb “to be” and the past participle of the main verb. The main verb must be a transitive verb (take an object)


Passive to Active

– A recommendation was made by the Students’ Union that a survey be carried out

– The Students’ Union recommended that a survey be carried out

– The student’s jumper was found by the lecturer

– The lecturer found the student’s jumper


Discipline Style and Voice

You must follow the style of your discipline in relation to voice in your thesis. Some disciplines – particularly the sciences - predominantly use the passive voice

Follow the style guidelines given by the journal, when writing a journal article

Helen Fallon, Deputy university Librarian

Tense• Forceful writing results from writing

concisely, actively and positively. The present tense is usually more active and therefore more forceful than the past tense.” (Henson, K. Writing for Publication: Road to Academic Advancement, 2005, Boston: Pearson, p. 48)

• Discipline style and tense• Different tenses


American Psychological Association (APA)

APA suggest using past tense to describe results and action or a condition that occurred at a specific, definite time in the past;the present tense to discuss implications of results, to present conclusions and to express a past action or condition that did not occur at a specific, definite time or to describe an action beginning in the past and continuing to the present


Sentences

Unity of thought subject + verb + object

Keep sentences shortPosition the subject and main verb (predicate)

close together at the start of the sentenceOne main clause (a group of words containing a

subject, verb and object)


Comma

A Comma (,) is the punctuation mark used for indicating a division in a sentence; it is also used to separate items in a list (except the penultimate one)

She ordered three books, a journal, a thesis and an article


Comma

• Where you have inserted a clause to provide extra information– She liked the University, where she had worked for

some time, but left to take up a post in a different town

• Introductory phrases– However, increased hours of opening meant a decline

in borrowing.


Noun and Pronoun

• Noun - The name of a person place or thing• Pronouns - used in place of a noun that has already been

mentioned or that is already known, often to avoid repeating the noun. For example:– Michael needed a book so he went to the library– The lecturer took the class notes with him– Kieran’s car was close to mine– That is a good idea– Anything might happen


Colon

A colon is the punctuation mark ( : ) used in sentences to introduce a quotation, an explanation, a list, an example or a series.

This was first said by Shakespeare: “To thine own self be true.”

The Library policy states: “Journals may not be borrowed by undergraduates.”

These are my favourite datatabases: Academic Search Premier, JSTOR and Lexis


SemicolonA semicolon (;) separates two closely related or similarly

independent clausesIt was the best of times; it was the worst of timesShe knew a lot about the University; she had studied there

for twenty yearsThose drinking more than six cups of coffee a day were at

40 percent lower risk for diabetes than nondrinkers; the figure for those who drank less than a cup per day was just 4 percent. [New York Times]


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/22/health/22risk.html

Semicolon

• The semicolon is also used to separate items in lists that have internal punctuation– The number of books issued has reduced

dramatically: in 2008 25,000 books were borrowed; in 2009, 19,000; by 2010, when the new library was built, only 15,000 items were issued


Verbs• Think about the verbs you use

– addresses, asks, argues, concludes, covers, critiques, demonstrates, describes, discusses, elucidates, examines, evaluates, expands, explains, explores, identifies, maps, outlines, presents, proposes, promotes, reports, reveals, reviews, shows, suggests, summarises.

• Use verbs rather than their noun equivalent– The author makes the suggestion that...– The author suggests that...


Adverb

• Describes or modifies a verb• Expresses manner or quality– Very– Easily– Terribly– Slowly– Quickly


Adjective

• Describes or modifies a noun long/new/old/difficult/late/terrible

• Compound adjective

When you join two or more words to describe an object e.g. An up-to-date collection

(hyphenate because up-to-date is an adjective)The collection is up to date


Apostrophe

• Use for a missing letter in a word– The Library isn’t open today– Where’s the journal kept?

• Use to denote possessive– The student’s books– The Students’ Union (meaning more than one student)

You don’t need to add the possessive “s”when the name ends in “s” – unless it is common usage: Mary Jones’ book/St. James’s hospital


Apostrophe

• Use for time phrases when the time modifies a noun

– The Library will open in one day’s time– Six months’ ban on borrowing

• Don’t use apostrophe for possessive pronouns or for dates

– The book isn’t hers; 1970s


Prepositions

• shows a relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other words in a sentence – to/on/over/up/through/among/between/with/for/in/over/besides

• Omit needless prepositions“that” and “on” are often superfluous


Commonly Confused Words• Affect and effect• Affect = Verb; effect = noun

Will the financial cuts affect service?What was the effect of the financial cuts on

service?• Practice (noun) practise (verb)• Precede (go before), proceed (continue)• Stationary (adjective – still), Stationery (noun)• Dependent (adjective) She is dependent..., dependant

(noun)


Singular versus plural

• Probably the most common grammatical error• A singular subject (she, the student, the car)

takes a singular verb (is, goes, shines), whereas a plural subject takes a plural verb.

• Example: The list of items is/are on the desk.If you know that list is the subject, then you will choose is for the verb. Neither Helen or Alison is available


Singular

• Two singular subject connected by or, either/or, or neither/nor require a singular verb.

• Neither Helen or Alison is available • “of”• Incorrect: A bouquet of yellow roses lend colour

and fragrance to the room.• Correct: A bouquet of yellow roses lends . . .

(bouquet lends, not roses lend)


Plural Verb

• Use when the subject is pluralExample: The students are attending the

workshop• As a general rule, use a plural verb with two or

more subjects when they are connected by and.• Example: A car and a bike are my means of

transportation.


Collective Nouns – Singular or Plural

Group / staff / team / audience / collection / bandAccording to accepted grammar rules, collective

nouns should be treated as singular: Example: The group is attending the workshop

Sometimes the plural seems more natural; In most cases, it’s fine to follow common usage

“Data” is plural – the data are analysed using…


Sentence Check

• To check that a sentence is clear, correct and unambiguous:• Identify each verb (action word)• Identify the subject (the person or thing ‘doing’

the action)•Check the subject and verb agree (singular vs.

plural) and will that each one will make sense to readers


Academicwriting - Grammar & Punctuation

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