Academic Writing and Speaking in English Linguistics

On completion of the course, the students shall be able to:

• demonstrate familiarity with two selected main types of academic writing in linguistics, the Master thesis and the research article
• demonstrate knowledge of genre analysis with respect to the communicative functions and the organisation of key elements of research writing in English linguistics, including the abstract, the introduction, the literature review, the description of methodology, the results, and the conclusion
• analyze the structure and rhetorical features of a spoken conference presentation, followed by planning and giving their own spoken presentation
• apply the conventions of the discipline with respect to referring to and integrating other sources into their own text
• critically evaluate the scholarly work of others by pointing out strengths as well as weaknesses in the form of constructive response
• communicate ideas, develop arguments and discuss academic work, showing a high level of communicative competence in both written and spoken academic English.

The overall aim of the course is to further develop the student’s discipline-specific knowledge about and skills in academic writing and speaking in English linguistics. The student receives an overview of academic research writing, focusing on the typical structure and communicative functions of the Master thesis and the research article. The course also covers spoken academic English, focusing on the conference presentation. The written and spoken genres covered are approached primarily from the perspective of genre analysis. The student studies and applies conventions for referring to primary and secondary sources in the form of linguistic examples, quotations and paraphrases. Throughout the course, the student further develops their skills in using tools for academic writing and speaking in English.

The course is examined through continuous assessment of written and spoken assignments and prepared and active seminar participation.

The course is taught in the form of lectures and obligatory seminars. All teaching is conducted in English.

The Swedish grades U–VG.