MODULE 1.

AN APPROACH TO EFFECTIVE WRITING 1

ENGLISH

MODULE 1. AN APPROACH TO EFFECTIVE WRITING

Students face a variety of writing tasks as they work toward their chosen degrees.
Naturally, these tasks will vary from one degree program to another. They are, however, similar
in two respects. First, the tasks become progressively more complex and demanding the farther
you go in the program. Second, they need to be written “academically.”

Considerations in Academic Writing

Audience

Even before you write, you need to consider your audience.

 Understand your audience’s expectations and prior knowledge because this will affect
the content of your writing.

Purpose and Strategy

 Audience, purpose and strategy are typically interconnected.

 If the audience knows less than the writer – the writer’s purpose is instructional.
 If the audience knows more than the writer – the writer’s purpose is usually to display
familiarity, expertise and intelligence.

Organization

 Information is presented to readers in a structured format.

 Use appropriate patterns of organization.
 One common strategy is to organize information in terms of problem-solution. It has
four parts:
1. Description of a situation
2. Identification of a problem
3. Description of a solution
4. Evaluation of the solution
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Description of a
situation

Identification of
a problem

Description of a
solution

Evaluation of a
solution

Some Other Ways of Organizing Information

 Comparison-contrast
 Cause-effect
 Focusing on one cause and multiple effects as in an earthquake or describing
multiple causes and one effect as in global warming
 Classification
 Categorizing as suggested by the following example:

“Earthquake effects on underground structures can be grouped into two

categories: (1) ground shaking and (2) ground failure such as liquefaction, fault
displacement, and slope instability.

Style

 make sure communications are written in the appropriate style.

 observe consistency
 determine whether voice should be active or passive
 use acceptable style in terms of area of study

PRINCIPLES OF CLEAR AND EFFECTIVE WRITING

Principle 1: Be careful in your use of words.

In the course of our reading and writing, we encounter a lot of words that we think we
know the meanings of and know how to use in the proper context. However, many of these
words are words that we only recognize but don’t actually use in our everyday writing. All the
more, we have to be extra cautious in scientific and technical writing.
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Words are the building blocks of language. They are not simply written or printed
characters on the page or spoken characters over the radio or television.
Be careful with your word choice or diction. Be conscious of denotations and
connotations.

Look at the following signs at the front desk of different hotels just to further emphasize
that the wrong choice of word or words could make a huge difference in meanings.

Please leave your values at front

desk.
  You are invited to take advantage
  of the chambermaid.
Because of the impropriety of entertaining
guests of the opposite sex in the
bedrooms, it is suggested that the lobby
be used for this purpose.

Verbs

English often has two (or more) choices to express an action or occurrence. The choice is
often between a phrasal verb (verb + particle) or prepositional verb (verb + preposition) and a
single verb.
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Example:

According to some biologists, coming up with clear proof of the decreasing numbers of
frogs has been difficult. (less formal style)

According to some biologists, offering clear proof of proof of the decreasing numbers of
frogs has been difficult. (academic style)

e.g. Poor
Scientists are looking into innovative ways to combat AIDS.
Better
Scientists are determining innovative ways to combat AIDS.

Adjectives

Adjectives spice up writing. Descriptions help form better images in the audience’s
minds and make activities more alive.
However, too many adjectives can also ruin your writing. Just imagine looking at and
sampling an array of yummy-looking meat dishes – lechon, embotido, kaldereta, stuffed
chicken – and sumptuous desserts – refrigerator cake, chocolate mousse, fruit salad. You’ll not
only be nursing a tummy ache but also a gargantuan headache afterwards because all these
together will be hard to digest.
It’s the same when you stuff your sentences with adjectives like the sentence below:

? The murky, silted, and lahar-ravaged river serves as water impoundment for
irrigation during the long, hot, dry season.

√ The lahar-ravaged river serves as water impoundment for irrigation during the
dry season.

Do away with euphemisms and genteelisms.

There will be no upward adjustments in taxes

this year. All we have to do is technically
downside government offices to avoid
overlapping of functions.

Former President Fidel V. Ramos’ statement about taxes appeared in one issue of the
Philippine Daily Inquirer. Upward adjustments in taxes simply meant increase in taxes but the
reporter probably wanted to play it safe so he substituted an agreeable or inoffensive expression
for the original statement which suggested something unpleasant.

Farmers do not need to purchase

insecticides at the commencement of
the planting season.

The statement in the second box, on the other hand, contains examples of genteelism.
Buy could have been used instead of purchase and start instead of commencement.
However, purchase and commencement seem to be more polite, more elegant, or
graceful. These words are more likely to be part of the language of the gentry, hence “less
soiled” by the lips of the common people.

Do not make nouns out of good strong verbs.

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The phenomenon called nominalization has been fashionable lately. Writers suddenly
seem to be enamored with changing the verbs into nouns and making these nouns the subject of
the sentence.

Original Version:
Inoculation of the strain should be done very carefully.

Improved Version:
The strain should be inoculated carefully.

Changing the verb inoculate into the noun inoculation and making the latter the subject
of the sentence took much energy out of the sentence.
The verb is the power plant of the sentence: it supplies energy, vitality, and motion to
the sentence. Take the noun out of a group of word and you still have sentence. For example,
the verb “Go!” is a complete sentence although there is no apparent subject. The implied subject
“(You) Go!” make the though complete. But take out the verb “Go!” and the subject becomes
meaningless.

Principle 2: Get straight to the point.

Wordiness is one malady most writers are afflicted with. The most common ways by
which writers become guilty of wordiness are through roundabout phrasing, verbal deadwood,
and redundancy.

Roundabout Phrasing

The PHIVOLCS seismological network is in the possession of 14 seismic stations

? all over the country.

The PHIVOLCS seismological network has 14 seismic stations all over the
√ country.

Verbal Deadwood

The experiment was extended for a period of two months in order to verify the
? results.

The experiment was extended for two months to verify the results.
√
Redundancy

? Funding agencies should cooperate together to promote hydrophonics in the arid

desert.

√ Funding agencies should cooperate to promote hydrophonics in the desert.

Principle 3: Always take note of the nuances of the use of voice in the sentence.

Voice of the verb refers to the distinction of form or a system of inflections of a verb to
indicate the relation of the subject of the verb to the action which the verb expresses.

Voice could be active or passive.

Active Voice - I weighed the sample. (4 words)

Passive Voice - The sample was weighed by me. (6 words)
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In the active voice, the real subject I is the doer of the action and the direct object sample
is the receiver of the action. In the passive voice, the object of the action now takes the subject
position. The agent of the action “I” is now noted as the object of the preposition or it may be
omitted altogether.
It is true that passive voice conveys less action and it is more wordy, that is why many
experts recommend the use of the active voice whenever possible.

Principle 4: Observe the rules of grammar.

This is a very timely reminder for writers who are not native English speakers, meaning,
English is only our second language. We cannot be expected to be flawless in our grammar and
syntax but always helps to be mindful of these when we write. There is no excuse for bad
writing because our product here is down on paper, or any other form, which is permanent in
nature.

Intervening words and expressions - A word or group of words introduced by such

connectives as with, besides, along with, together with, as well as, in company with,
accompanied by, including, in addition to, no less than, and separating the subject from the
verb, does not affect the number of subject.

Compound subject joined by or or nor – The verb agrees with the nearer of the two
subjects.

With percentage figures or fractions, the verb agrees in number with the noun in the
modifying prepositional phrase.

Nouns such as economics, gallows, mathematics, measles, civics, mumps, physics, news,
though plural in form, are singular in meaning, and require a singular verb.

Either a singular or a plural verb is correct in mathematical expressions. However, an

equation is always singular.

Most indefinite nouns, pronouns and adjectives, such as each, every, another, any, one,
either, neither, anyone, each one, everyone, no one, anybody, everybody, somebody, a person,
something are singular.

All, none, and some may take either a singular or a plural verb according to their
meaning.

Use singular verb when they denote the same person or represent a single unit or idea.

When collective nouns such as audience, army, class, committee, company, family, flock,
group, herd, jury, nation, school, team, denotes a collection regarded as a unit, it requires a
singular verb. When it refers to the persons or things included in the collection, it requires a
plural verb.

Note:

Nouns generally used in the singular - food, fish, fruit, grass, hair, lace, land, pottery, sand,
smoke

Nouns always used in the singular – baggage, blood, bread, chalk, dirt, dust, furniture, gravel,
information, jewelry, machinery, music, poetry, prose scenery, equipment

Nouns used in plural only – clothes, proceeds, scissors, tactics, thanks, tongs, trousers,
refreshments

Nouns sometimes singular and sometimes plural – advice, alms, athletics, means, goods,
instruction, pains, paper, politics, physics, property, wood, work
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Flow

 moving from one statement in a text to the next

 establishing a clear connection of ideas

Lasers have found widespread application in medicine. Lasers play an important role in the
treatment of eye disease and the prevention of blindness. The eye is ideally suited for laser surgery. Most
of the eye tissue is transparent. The frequency and focus of the laser beam can be adjusted according to the
absorption of the tissue. The beam “cuts” inside the eye with minimal damage to the surrounding tissue
—even the tissue between the laser and the incision. Lasers are effective in treating some causes of
blindness. Other treatments are not. The interaction between laser light and eye tissue is not fully
understood.

Here’s the rewritten text:

Lasers have found widespread application in medicine. For example, they play an
important role in the treatment of eye disease and the prevention of blindness. The eye is ideally
suited to laser surgery because most of the eye tissue is transparent. Because of this
transparency, the frequency and focus of the laser beam can be adjusted according to the
absorption of the tissue so that the beam “cuts” inside the eye with minimal damage to the
surrounding tissue—even the tissue between the laser and the incision. Lasers are also more
effective than other methods in treating some causes of blindness. However, the interaction
between laser light and eye tissue is not fully understood.

LANGUAGE FOCUS: Linking Words and Phrases

 Linking words and phrases can help a writer maintain flow and establish clear
relationships between ideas.

Examples:

o Subordinators – although, even though, because, since, while, whereas

o Sentence connectors – furthermore, in addition, moreover, therefore, as a result,

consequently, hence, thus, in other words, that is, in contrast, however, on the other
hand, conversely, for example, for instance, on the contrary, as a matter of fact, in fact

o Phrase linkers – in addition to, despite, in spite of, because of, due to, as a result of,
unlike

 Semicolons join two completely independent sentences and work much like a full stop.

Air traffic delays due to high traffic volume have increased considerably over the last decade;
these delays have become a major public policy issue.

 Semicolons can be used with sentence connectors. Note the use of comma after the
connector.

Increasing the size of airports is one solution to traffic congestion; however, this is a long-term
solution whose benefits may not be seen for many years into the future.

 Because semicolons are a “stronger” type of punctuation (they mark a stronger break in the
flow of ideas) than commas, they can be used to chunk longer sentences into parts.

In recent years, GNP growth rates have varied considerably for the countries in this study
(China, 6%; U.S., 3%; Japan, 1%).

 In addition, semicolons can be used to separate rather long items in a list.

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Some of the solutions to the air traffic delay problem include increasing the size of airports that
routinely experience major flight delays; overhauling the air traffic control so that more flights can be
safely handled; and increasing landing fees during peak periods.

 Sometimes a dash is used to introduce a list as well. Often, dashes are used to intrude into a
sentence with some additional information.

The beam “cuts” inside the eye with minimal damage to the surrounding tissue—even the tissue
between the laser and the incision.

Presentation

1. Consider the overall format of your written work.

Does you paper look as if it has been carefully prepared?
Are there clear paragraphs?
Is the line spacing appropriate?
Have you used standard fonts and sizes?

2. Proofread for careless grammar mistakes.

Do subjects and verbs agree?
Have the appropriate verb tenses been used?
Have the articles a, an, and the been used when necessary?
Is the used too much?

3. Check for misspelled words, even if you have spell-checked your work.
Has correct homophone been used?
Did the spell-checker miss anything?

References:

Celce-Murcia, M., & & Larsen-Freeman, D. (1999). The grammar book. US: Heinle & Heinle
Publishers.
Dadufalza, C. (1992). Reading into writing I and II. Manila: Bookmark.
Harmer, J. (2004). Just grammar. London: Marshal Cavendish Ltd.
Silva, M. N. (1998). Basic grammar in many voices. Illinois: NTC Publishing Group.
Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (2009). Academic writing for graduate students. Essential tasks and skills
(2nd ed.) USA: The University of Michigan Press.
Velasco, M. T. H., Sison, J. C., & Moran, A. G. (2000). Communication of scientific and technical
information. College, Laguna: University of the Philippines Open University.
Villenas, B. N. (2011). Sourcebook in freshmen English. Lucena City: University Press.
MODULE 1. AN APPROACH TO EFFECTIVE WRITING 9

EXERCISES FOR MODULE 1

Name: _____________________________________________ Score/Rating:____________________

EXERCISE 1. GRAMMAR FOCUS. Complete the following by inserting an appropriate

preposition.

1. A thermometer is an instrument _____ which temperature can be measured.

2. Photosynthesis is a process ______ which sunlight is used to manufacture carbohydrates

from water and carbon dioxide.

3. A credit bureau is an organization ______ which businesses can apply for financial
information on potential customers.

4. An anhydride is a compound _______ which the elements of water have been removed.

5. An eclipse is a celestial event ______ which one body, such as a star, is covered by
another, such as a planet.

6. An axis is an imaginary line ______ which a body is said to rotate.

7. Large-diameter tunnels are linear underground structures ______ which the length is
much larger than the cross-sectional dimension.

8. Demographers are concerned with changes in population size and the degree _______
which fertility, mortality, and migration contribute to these changes.

9. The ease ______ which a fraudulent business operation can set up shop on the internet is
unfortunately high.

10. “Hotelling” is a new type of office design _______ which employees who mostly work at
home or in the field are not given permanent offices, but, rather, shared temporary space
as needed.
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Exercise 2. Supply the linking words and phrases that enhance the flow of one of the
following passages.

It has long been documented that individuals in an organization may voluntarily carry
out tasks that are not part of their regular job duties. ______________, individuals may go above
and beyond the call of duty to help coworkers, prevent problems or volunteer to stay late when
not expected to do so. This behavior is intended to help others in the organization itself and is
often referred to as organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). _______________ it is recognized
that OCB is important for an organization to effectively function, there is debate among
researchers as to how OCB can be encouraged and rewarded. This debate is further complicated
when considering the role of OCB in multinational corporations pursuing global diversity. Most
OCB research has focused on Western cultures; ____________________ it is not clear whether
these research findings can be extended to other cultures, ________________ suggesting a need
to investigate OCB as it exists in other cultures, particularly those described as “collectivist.”
MODULE 1. AN APPROACH TO EFFECTIVE WRITING 11

Exercise 3. Word Choice and Diction. Read the following sentences and try to determine the
appropriate word or phrases. Circle the correct answer.

1. Journal editors trace bad writing to author’s shortsightedness (e.g., i. e.), lack of
knowledge about their intended readers.

2. Students who are (conversant in, conversant with) numbers are inclined to pursue
science-related careers.

3. An automobile cannot (collide, crash) with/into an electric post.

4. The laboratory instructor was (expecting, anticipating) a brownout so he brought five

rechargeable lamps.

5. The best person to judge a scientific squabble is a/an (disinterested, uninterested)

scientist himself.

6. Birthday (celebrants, celebrators) this month will be given a special treat.

7. This (biannual, biennial) journal on microbiology should come out in 2008, 2010, 2012,
and 2014.

8. The flash floods (wrecked havoc, wreaked havoc) in the experimental station.

9. The (blast off, blastoff) ceremonies will take place at Cape Canaveral late this year.

10. Even twins (differ with, differ from) (one another, each other) in their genetic make up.
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EXERCISE 4. CONTEXT CLUES. Choose the correct word or expression in the parenthesis
that would best complete the meaning of the sentence. Write your answer in
your test booklet.

1. If a fire consumes a building, the building is (a. slightly damaged, b. unsafe for
occupancy, c. destroyed).

2. A docile animal is (a. easily managed, b. disobedient, c. sickly).

3. If you have an alternative plan (a. there is only one thing you can do, b. your position is
hopeless, c. you have a choice of how to proceed).

4. If someone comments on your naivete the person means (a. you are at home in any
situation, b. you are unsophisticated, c. you are stupid).

5. The best place to look for a stalactite would be in a (a. zoo, b. an observatory, c. a cave).

6. A refuge is (a. a place where one is safe, b. a person escaping from danger or war, c. a
container for waste material).

7. A nocturnal animal is (a. eats only plants, b. sleeps all winter, c. is active at night).

8. If before the flood the books were salvaged, they were (a. damaged by water, b. moved
to a safe place, c. read carefully.

9. If your guide shouts back that you are approaching an abyss, you should be alert for (a.
a very deep canyon or pit, b. an opening in the forest, c. a quicksand).

10. When blood from a cut coagulates, (a. it bleeds harder, b. the bleeding stops, c. there is
an infection).
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Name: _____________________________________________ Score/Rating:____________________

Exercise 5. Choose a verb from the list that reduces the informality of the sentence. Note that
you may need to add tense to the verb from the list. Write down any other single
verbs that you think could also work in the sentences.
review maintain develop cause eliminate
reach determine investigate decrease constitute

1. The six leading causes of death in the U.S.—coronary heart disease, stroke, lung cancer,
colon cancer, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease—are mainly brought
on by overeating, a lack of exercise, and cigarette smoking.
________________

2. Scientists are looking into innovative ways to combat AIDS.

________________

3. The purpose of this paper is to try to figure out what is lacking in our current
understanding of corrosion and corrosion protection in concrete.
________________

4. Researchers have recently come up with hybrid vehicles that use a fuel-cell engine and a
battery-assisted power train.
________________

5. Rice and aquatic products make up a major part of the diet of the people in Mekong
Delta, Vietnam.
________________

6. The use of touch screen voting systems could get rid of many problems associated with
traditional paper-based ballots.
________________

7. Worldwide consumption of pesticides has gone up to 2.6 million metric tons.

________________

8. Although labor unions in the U.S. have been able to keep up their membership numbers
over the last two decades, they have been losing their political strength.
________________

9. The number of mature female green turtles that return to their primary nesting beach
has gone down from 1,280 ten years ago to 145 today.
________________

10. The U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency looks over nearly 25,000 export license
applications to make sure that no equipment or materials are sent to places where they
could be used to make advanced weapons.
________________
Exercise 6. Brevity and Conciseness. Read the following sentences and replace the
underlined words or phrases to make the sentence more effective.

Example: Scientists are looking into innovative ways to combat AIDS.

Better
Scientists are determining innovative ways to combat AIDS.

1. The areas for the experiments were prepared in accordance to common standard
preparation practices.

2. Results would seem to indicate that the problem may be somewhat complicated.
MODULE 1. AN APPROACH TO EFFECTIVE WRITING 14

3. The economy is at the present moment stable.

4. You will need a tube which has a length of 3 m for the experiment.

5. The technician was told that the procedural mistake should happen neither now nor in
the future.

6. The symposium will be held in the edifice in the immediate vicinity of the gate.

7. Disease spreads fast because people expectorate freely in the streets.

8. The soil also needs to rest subsequent to each plating season.

9. The cement plant should cease its operations prior to the onset of the rainy season.

10. People look up to scientists because the latter are erudite men.

EXERCISE 7. EXPANSION OF IDEAS. Expand the following topic sentences into

paragraphs.

a. There are several factors that the national government must consider to solve crime
problems.

b. Being an engineer/business manager is both challenging and exciting.

EXERCISE 8. PRODUCTION. Write your own paragraph.

Recall what is going on in your community. Of the several problems in your locality, choose the
most serious one that needs the immediate attention of authorities in the local or national
government. Write a two-page essay describing the situation and identifying the problem and
its immediate and remote causes. Then propose a viable solution to the existing problem. You
may go as far as evaluating the proposed solution.

Good Luck!