What is academic English like?

Introduction
In this activity you will find out how you can best express ideas in academic English
Each of the following sentences has two versions. Choose the one which you think is better suited to a piece of academic writing.

Sample sentences
Sentence pair 1
a)	The calculator does not make mistakes in the way that human brains tend to.
b)	The calculator doesn’t make mistakes in the way that human brains tend to.
Sentence pair 2
a)	Lots of witnesses came forward to testify at the court hearing.
b)	Many witnesses came forward to testify at the court hearing.
Sentence pair 3
a)	Moreover, family relationships have to adapt to changing circumstances.
b)	And family relationships have to adapt to changing circumstances.
Sentence pair 4
a)	We heated the mixture in a flask.
b)	The mixture was heated in a flask.
Sentence pair 5
a)	The label was removed because it was misleading.
b)	The label was taken off because it was misleading.
Sentence pair 6
a)	The way to prevent the possible extinction of fish stocks is to introduce regulations which ban overfishing.
b)	One way to prevent the possible extinction of fish stocks would be to introduce regulations which ban overfishing.
Sentence pair 7
a)	Your organisation may have a standard approach for constructing a checklist of characteristics that someone requires for the job.
b)	Your organisation may have a standard approach for constructing a person specification.

Answers
The correct answers for the sentence pairs are: 
Sentence pair 1
a)	The calculator does not make mistakes in the way that human brains tend to.
Academic English usually uses the complete form of a word or group of words, rather than a short form or contraction. For example, it uses
•	does not instead of doesn’t
•	it is instead of it’s.
Sentence pair 2
b)	Many witnesses came forward to testify at the court hearing.
The vocabulary you use influences whether a piece of writing is formal or informal in tone. In academic English, the writing is more formal than you would see in an email or text message, but at the same time should not be so elaborate that it becomes difficult to understand.
Sentence pair 3
a)	Moreover, family relationships have to adapt to changing circumstances.
And is rarely used at the beginning of sentences. Alternatives are furthermore, additionally, moreover or in addition.

However is preferred to but at the beginning of sentences.
Therefore is preferred to so.

Sentence pair 4
b)	The mixture was heated in a flask.
Academic English tends to be impersonal: it gives information about something  but doesn’t usually include information about the writer or the person the writer is talking to. It therefore usually avoids personal pronouns such as I, me, we  or you and your.
In addition, the passive form of the verb is commonly found in instructions or for reporting what was done in an experiment, when it more important to focus on what is done to particular objects and not who is actually doing it.
Sentence pair 5
a)	The label was removed because it was misleading.
English contains elements from several source languages. This means there are often several ways of expressing similar concepts. Some of these are considered more formal and appropriate to academic writing than others.
For instance, multi-word verbs like take off, give up and put up with are often used in informal communication. However, the more precise and formal alternatives, which come from Latin – remove, abandon and tolerate – are considered more suited to academic contexts.
Sentence pair 6
b)	One way to prevent the possible extinction of fish stocks would be to introduce regulations which ban overfishing.
Since it is often difficult to be completely sure that their conclusions are correct, academics and researchers often explain their findings in a cautious way, using what is known as ‘hedging language’. Examples include
•	the indications are that …
•	the evidence suggests that …
•	it is possible (or likely) that …
Also, the expressions used often include words such as ‘may’ and ‘could’.
Sentence pair 7
b)	Your organisation may have a standard approach for constructing a person specification.
Each academic subject has its own specialist terms that are understood by others in that area of expertise. Learning this vocabulary is part of the skill of academic writing in your subject.

The main features of academic English 
Academic English
•	is usually formal in tone and impersonal in style
•	avoids contractions or shortened forms of verbs, such as won’t, doesn’t or it’s
•	avoids using a linking word such as ‘and’ or ‘but’ at the beginning of a sentence
•	avoids personal pronouns such as I, me, you, your
•	may use the passive form of verbs
•	avoids verbs that are composed of multiple words, such as ‘give up’, ‘put up with’
•	tends to employ a cautious way of explaining findings, using expressions such as ‘may’, ‘it is possible that…’, ‘could’
•	may use specialised vocabulary.