Academic Writing
Part 1
The importance of referencing in academics cannot be overemphasised. Any academic piece of work must be properly referenced to avoid plagiarism. Additionally, academic work must be formatted in a certain manner to ensure the targeted audience understands it effectively. Referencing and formatting are important hallmarks of scholarly work. There are several academic referencing styles that can be used, but the APA style is one of the most common. Understanding the APA style is imperative for scholarly communication. APA style guides provide crucial information about document formatting, in-text references, and writing references. These guidelines enable academic writers to communicate in a manner that is appropriate, understandable, and acceptable. Indeed, academic writing is different from other forms of writing. It requires not only demonstrating the source of information used in compiling a given piece of work, but also a unique tone and language. Accordingly, style guidelines must be effectively complied with to ensure effective scholarly communication. There are several resources one can rely on to improve their knowledge and use of the APA style. First, universities provide students with both printed and online resources with APA guidelines. In addition, knowledge of the APA style can be obtained from open access online platforms such as the Purdue Online Writing Lab. While university online resources may require authorised access, most online writing labs are open and free to the general public. These labs maintain an up-to-date record of the major academic referencing styles, including APA. There are also video sharing sites such as YouTube that provide informative presentations on academic referencing. On the whole, knowledge of the APA style is vital for achieving scholarly communication.
Part 2
Doctoral level writing is quite different from other levels of writing, especially with respect to process and style. At this level, a scholarly voice, effective engagement with other people’s ideas, and originality are crucial. Professors must ensure doctoral students demonstrate these skills by the end of study. They must ensure students have the ability to write papers that demonstrate doctoral level standards. This is vital for developing doctoral identity, which is essential for fostering productive relationships between students and faculty and for successful dissertation completion. The writing process and style are crucial in forming doctoral identity. Professors require students to write papers – from discussion posts and coursework to research papers and dissertations – that showcase their understanding of different research topics. Through the process, students learn to cite work, produce papers free from grammatical errors, use scholarly language, synthesise and engage critically with literature, present ideas in a logical manner, and to communicate original thought. These aspects are critical hallmarks of doctoral identity. While academic writing can be learned in the classroom, it is also important for doctoral students to go an extra mile. One way this can be achieved is by increasing contact with scholarly literature. As the ordinary saying goes, we learn from the best. Students must constantly read scholarly literature to not only get the messaged being relayed, but also observe formatting, citation, idea organisation, and critical thinking in the real world. Scholarly literature is literature that is authored in accordance with academic standards. This mainly includes peer-reviewed journal articles and books. Peers can also be a useful resource for learning academic writing. Having peers go through one’s work can result in valuable feedback. Overall, writing at the doctoral level must demonstrate doctoral identity.
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