Your Guide to Academic Writing

Riccardo Galgani is a Lecturer in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) at the University of Glasgow. He works with postgraduate and undergraduate students across a wide range of disciplines, including social sciences, engineering, maths and statistics, humanities, and education. His teaching focuses on supporting students’ transition into academic study by clarifying expectations and helping them develop confidence and autonomy.Riccardo’s approach encourages meaningful interaction with texts, teachers, peers, and ideas through listening, speaking, reading, and writing. He has designed and delivered a wide range of academic courses, many of which have shaped this textbook. Committed to criticality and reflection, Riccardo’s work supports students whose prior educational experiences may not have prepared them for UK academic conventions. He views academic writing as more than a technical skill: it is a way of engaging with knowledge and participating in scholarly communities.

• IntroductionPart I: Joining the Conversation: Writing in Disciplinary ContextsContext: Knowledge & DisciplinesText: The Essay TaskLinking Text and Context Units 1 to 4Unit 1: Situating the Essay TaskUnit 2: Brainstorming the Essay TaskUnit 3: Analysing the Essay TaskUnit 4: Academic VocabularyPart II: Reading with Purpose: Preparing to WriteContext: Knowledge & PurposeText: ReadingLinking Text and Context Units 5 to 8Unit 5: Locating and Identifying Source MaterialUnit 6: Identifying Relevant Content in Source MaterialUnit 7: Citation Systems, Noting Source Information & Academic IntegrityUnit 8: Talking About Reading and Your EssayPart III: Shaping Meaning: Building Structure and ArgumentContext: Knowledge & EngagementText: Shaping ContentLinking Text and Context Units 9 to 12Unit 9: Essay IntroductionsUnit 10: Essay Structures and PlanningUnit 11: Basic Paragraph OrganisationUnit 12: Coherence and DraftingPart IV: Positioning Your Voice: Integrating Sources in Academic WritingContext: Knowledge & CommunicationText: Developing ContentLinking Text and Context Units 13 to 17Unit 13: Technical & Linguistic Aspects of IntegrationUnit 14: Integration & IntentionUnit 15: Paragraph Organisation in DetailUnit 16: Rhetorical Aspects of IntegrationUnit 17: Essay ConclusionsPart V: Refining Your Voice: Style, Stance, and Academic IntegrityContext: Knowledge and IdentityText: Refining Content & SubmissionLinking Text and Context Units 18 to 22Unit 18: Academic StyleUnit 19: StanceUnit 20: Sentence Level ChoicesUnit 21: CohesionUnit 22: Proofreading, Final Checks & SubmissionPart VI: Transferable Skills: Beyond the Essay