Course: Scientific Writing

This scientific English writing workshop offers a practical guide to writing academic texts (e.g. progress reports, abstracts for conferences and research articles) in English. Participants learn the key elements of academic writing through a combination of instruction, guided practice, discussion and individual feedback on practical assignments.

This workshop consists of two key strands, one focusing on language use and the other on structuring.

Workshop Overview: Morning sessions focus on structuring each article section, with plenty of practical pointers and opportunities to apply the ideas to the researchers’ own work. Afternoons are dedicated to drafting each section and all participants have a one-to-one session with the workshop facilitator at the end of the week to discuss possibilities for improvement.

Course Content: This course takes participants through the manuscript section by section. A typical example of course content is shown below.

• Articulating your key message and identifying your story
• Writing an appealing abstract
• The Introduction: Providing a rationale for the research and arousing interest
• Methods and Results: Describing your methods and guiding readers through your findings
• The Discussion: Putting your findings in context and discussing their implications

Language components will focus on:

• General guiding principles
• Formality and precision
• Cohesion and flow
• Punctuation and grammar

Method: Workshop materials are based on a corpus analysis approach that reveals critical steps commonly included in each article section. Participants learn to analyse sections from their own field for such steps, to identify the associated key phrases and to critically evaluate the way in which information is presented. This enables them to create a skeleton structure for their own work, which can be used to streamline the writing process. The small group size maximises opportunities for discussion between participants, creating valuable opportunities for peer feedback.

More About our Trainer: Dr. Deborah Bennet has a PhD in Mathematical Biology, an MA in Teaching English for Academic Purposes and more than ten years of teaching experience in a wide range of teaching contexts. Since founding BETA in 2010, she has offered regular workshops for postgraduates and faculty members at various research institutions in Western Europe. She is an ILM-certified trainer and remains active in English for Academic Purposes research.