(1) The aim of this paper was to evaluate and compare the benefits and risks of open and restricted visiting policies. (2) Although the advantages and benefits of visitors for patients have been reported in various studies, the risks and disadvantages have also been discussed.
(3) It is difficult to adapt the same visiting policy across intensive care units and every situation should be assessed on an individual basis. To avoid any adverse effects of visits on staff and patients, staff should be educated on visitor needs and behaviour, and also brochures should be developed and provided which outline the visiting policies.
Notice how the student repeats the aim of the paper in sentence (1). He also says what type of evidence has been discussed in the essay in sentence (2). The overall conclusion and recommendations come at the end (3).
Have a look at the tenses used in the underlined words in the conclusion above. The aim has now been fulfilled, so is referred to in the past simple. The essay itself is not completely finished yet, so the present perfect is used: this tense provides a link between the past and the present. In conclusions that refer to concrete facts, the present tense is used. Recommendations are often made by using ‘should’.
Exercise 4
Answer the following questions.
1 Fill in the correct verb forms in the following sentences, taken from conclusions.
1 This essay (to discuss)________________the economic factors that contributed to …
2 In this essay, I (argue)________________that globalization is not a recent phenomenon.
3 This essay (explore)________________the causes of the conflict …
1 What tense did you use in sentences a–c?
2 The following sentences summarize the evidence and give an indication of their importance. You need to use a different tense here. Which one and why?
1 These findings (to suggest)________________that …
2 The evidence (to seem)________________to indicate that …
3 A consequence of this (to be)________________that …
Remember
At the start of your essay, don’t give any details but say something meaningful.
The language you use (tenses, singular or plural, modal verbs, etc.) will depend on the situation you are describing, its time frame and the strength of your claims.
Define your concepts, indicate the importance of the topic, and state the aims and organization of the essay in the introduction.
Decide on the best organizational pattern for your essay and remember that most essays will use a combination of patterns.
Integrate visuals into your essay by introducing them before inserting them, labelling them correctly, and explaining the most significant information in them.
Use the correct tenses in conclusions to sum up what the essay discussed and comment on its importance.
4 
Aims
understand formality in register and style
understand efficiency in register and style
understand modesty in register and style
understand clarity in register and style
Quiz
Self-evaluation
For each statement below, circle the word which is true for you.
| 1 I often use words like ‘big’, ‘good’, ‘a lot’ in my essays. | agree | disagree | not sure |
| 2 It is generally acceptable to use idioms and contractions in academic writing. | agree | disagree | not sure |
| 3 I always proofread my essays to make sure I haven’t repeated myself. | agree | disagree | not sure |
| 4 I know how to use cautious and impersonal language to make my writing modest. | agree | disagree | not sure |
| 5 It is acceptable to use words like ‘thing’, ‘kind of’, ‘stuff’ in academic writing. | agree | disagree | not sure |
| 6 I feel I need to write long and complex sentences to write in an academic style. | agree | disagree | not sure |
Four principles of academic writing
In Chapter 2 we looked at what the person marking your work wants. One aspect of this is that you need to demonstrate that you understand the conventions of the academic genre.
In this chapter we will be looking at what all academic readers want, i.e. the type of register and style that is expected from all scholars.
We will look at four principles of academic writing: Formality, Efficiency, Modesty, and Clarity, and consider what they mean for the academic writer. For each principle, you will find examples of mistakes students have made, followed by explanations and corrections. Try to work out what the mistakes are and how you could correct them before you read on.
Glossary
genre (genres) N-COUNT A genre is a particular type of literature, painting, music, film, or other art form which people consider as a class because it has special characteristics.
Formality
Before starting university, students are already aware of the need for formal language in essays. The problem is that it can be difficult to know what is formal and what is not. You can try to think about it in this way: words that are used a lot when speaking (e.g. ‘big’, ‘good’, ‘well’, ‘a lot’), or a technique that is used a lot in speeches (e.g. asking the audience questions) are unlikely to be used in formal writing.
Glossary
formality N-UNCOUNT If you talk about the formality of a person’s language or writing style, you mean that they are using extremely formal academic language.
What else can