An Intermediate Guide to Writing in English for University Study Course - University of Reading FutureLearn

Improve your academic English skills further, learning about critical analysis, using sources, avoiding plagiarism and more.

Develop the English skills required for extended writing projects and essays.

In this course, you will expand your academic English skills and learn the necessary extended writing and research skills for producing a thorough and high standard extended essay.

You’ll get an introduction to research tools, writing critically and referencing, as well as learning more about the fundamentals like essay structure, proofreading and avoiding plagiarism.

Whether you’re a prospective undergraduate or postgraduate or are currently undertaking university-level study - this course will build on your ability to research, write and reference essays and extended writing projects.

What topics will you cover?

Week 1

• Differentiating between academic writing and other types of writing
• Choosing the correct structure for an academic essay
• Analysing essay questions
• Activating what you already know about the topic

Week 2

• Searching for information as a starting point to build your knowledge
• Evaluating resources and reading academic texts
• Annotating and surveying information from source texts

Week 3

• Components of a paragraph and the notion of paragraph leader
• Paragraph development and writing a paragraph

Week 4

• Understanding how to use facts, statistics and research in your writing
• Showing critical thinking through a choice of citation type
• How to incorporate appropriate evidence
• Avoiding plagiarism

Week 5

• Writing a plan
• Essay introductions and conclusions
• Proofreading
• Peer support in writing

When would you like to start?

Most FutureLearn courses run multiple times. Every run of a course has a set start date but you can join it and work through it after it starts.

• Available now

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to:

• Assess the difference between academic writing and other types of writing.
• Identify the different features of an academic essay.
• Identify appropriate search systems to find reading texts relevant to your topic area.
• Apply critical reading skills to analyse and evaluate an academic text.
• Explain why most academic texts are organised into paragraphs.
• Produce a well-organised, coherent paragraph as part of an academic essay.
• Identify information from source materials and texts to include in your writing according to the appropriate academic conventions of referencing.

Who is the course for?

This course is aimed at anyone interested in undertaking academic study in English, but it may be of particular interest to international students. You will require an IELTS English level of 5.5 and above.

Who will you learn with?

Jonathan Smith

I’m an Associate Professor in Technology-enhanced Learning at the University of Reading. I also teach pre-sessional courses in the English language and study skills.

Brian Turner

I’m an English for Academic Purposes teacher & materials developer at the University of Reading. My research interest is different modes of thought & reasoning across different language & cultures.

Who developed the course?

University of Reading

The University of Reading has a reputation for excellence in teaching, research and enterprise.

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