1 Surefire Way to Improve Your Academic Writing
For those college students currently struggling at Zoom University
Online college is very different than a traditional college. You don’t need me to point that out, though. Chances are that if you’re reading this, you know exactly what I mean.
In lieu of class discussion and debate, you have to write and post discussion threads. In lieu of traditional multiple-choice tests in many humanities-based courses… You typically have to write research papers. Every traditional program moving online approaches the changing workload differently. But in my experience, and what I’ve observed, many programs have gone more writing-heavy to make up for the fact that learning is occurring outside the classroom.
A friend of mine recently came to me, asking me for tips on how to do better in her classes. She’s usually an A+ student, highly vocal and extraverted, and plays off the energy of a classroom to succeed. When I asked where she was struggling and receiving bad enough grades to barely be scraping a D- in some classes, she said it was all the discussion posts and papers she was having to write. I found this strange, but then it suddenly made sense.
We often approach academic writing as if it is foreign and removed from regular writing as if academic writing is a higher and more difficult form of communication to master. We see it as something to be feared; as something to dread.
But here’s the thing: It shouldn’t be seen as so terrifying, or be so hard. So, here is one simple way that you can improve your academic writing. My friend is inching towards a B, now, and she is proof that anybody can do it.
Understand What Is Being Asked of You
Seems a bit obvious, but it’s not as simple as one might think.
The biggest problem I see in the academic writing of my classmates, and of my friend, is that they completely miss the point of the writing they are being asked to submit. The worst thing you can do for yourself is to write a wonderfully crafted response, only for it to hit all the things that your professor wasn’t asking for.
I struggled with this myself through my education, and it has only really clicked since I began attending college.
But think about it this way.
If your professor is standing in the lecture room and asks you a direct and specific question, you would likely answer it and do your best to address it in its entirety. You wouldn’t start wandering off-topic or ignore the question overall, not in a room full of other college students. So why should it be different in academic writing? Why should it be different when all of us college students have been so suddenly enrolled in Zoom University? You are still answering to a professor. But instead of face-to-face, or through a Zoom call, a lot of it is happening through the page.
And when we write, it’s best that we write with some sort of purpose. Academic writing is no different than regular writing, in that respect. It just becomes a lot scarier when there’s a grade attached.
So let me show you what I mean.
Let’s look at a relevant example, at a prompt I had to address a few weeks ago:
“First, briefly explain the physical geography of both Jamaica and Cuba; and secondly, compare and contrast the physical geography between the two countries.”
This question is not asking you to talk about US policy in the region. It is not asking you to explore the history of Jamaica or talk about healthcare in Cuba.
Thing is? I saw student responses wander into all of those topics. There is no language in that prompt that suggests that the professor is asking for that, but students still did it. They are all topics we discussed in class, and I think that’s where the amount of content covered in college classes is not so great. It’s easy to get confused, to know what to include, and what to omit.
But the professor wants you to address two separate portions of the prompt (the two separate clauses), and undergo three different tasks (what you need to do in your response).
Here is the breakdown, for those who need it:
He wants you in the first portion (first clause) to explain the physical geography of each country (Jamaica, Cuba).
Then, in the second portion (second clause), he wants you to both compare, and contrast the physical geography between both countries (Jamaica, Cuba).
There is one task in the first portion that you have to do twice (explanation, for both countries).
There are two tasks in the second portion (comparing and contrasting the two countries).
It is important to understand and be able to break down prompts like this, to focus your writing. Understanding what is being asked of you, is one of the biggest things you can do to strengthen your academic writing overall. It’s the number one thing I see students getting D- and F’s for. Each and every college student is capable of doing well, but the approach and execution while attending online college have to change. Success in online schooling right now will come from strong writing. And strong writing comes from a strong foundation. A strong foundation comes from knowing what you’re supposed to be writing about in the first place.
Don’t be afraid to ask for clarifications if a prompt confuses you, and don’t be afraid to print out that prompt and break it down like above to really understand what that professor is looking for.
I personally break down each and every prompt that I am given and make a fast check-list on a notecard to check off as I go, to make sure I addressed everything that my professor has asked for.
Warning: This Takes Practice.
A brief note: You won’t instantly be good at focusing your writing, now that you’ve read this article. It takes practice to be able to identify where you’ve missed the mark, and how to break down prompts and craft the proper responses to said prompts.
But now that you see how it can be done, I promise that it’s worth trying. Go back to old prompts and papers. Go through the language that your professor provides you. Look at what you wrote, and identify where you went wrong and where you might have gone right. Writing is a craft that develops through practice. And academic writing is no different.
Best of luck to you all in your academic pursuits!
