University is about ideas and knowledge. Academic writing is such a critical skill because it is the language for wrestling with evidence, ideas, concepts, theories and arguments — and ultimately, for making claims to have advanced knowledge. The form this takes varies with the discipline, but there are some fundamental ‘moves’ that we find in almost all academic writing.
This is where AcaWriter comes in: it aims to teach you what those moves are, not by giving you abstract examples of someone else's writing, but by showing you whether you have learnt to makes these moves in your own writing.
Don’t worry if you’re not sure how to do this yet! All the evidence is that many people find it challenging to learn, and basically, it takes practice. Luckily, AcaWriter will give you feedback 24/7 without getting tired!
When we talk about academic writing, it is common to talk about ‘rhetorical moves’ — such as introducing an argument, providing evidence to support the argument, and developing a conclusion. You know them when you see them, but the question is, do you understand enough to use them?
Let’s see what they look like in different kinds of writing...
