Course Basic academic and professional English writing for natural sciences and technical sciences

The course N/T 613/05 Basic academic and professional English writing for natural sciences and technical sciences is being offered by the Graduate School of Natural Sciences/GSNS and Graduate School of Technical Sciences/GSTS, Aarhus University, 2027.

Important: If you register for the same course in more than one semester, all duplicate registrations will be cancelled, and only the registration for the earliest upcoming course will remain active.

No. of contact hours/hours in total incl. preparation, assignment(s) or the like:
Contact hours: 16; 2.5 hour per contact hour for preparation, 6 hours for assignments: 40; grand total 62 hours

Criteria for participation:

Course participants are expected to attend a minimum of 80% of lectures, show active participation in on-site or on-line discussions and may complete two written assignments.

To achieve the learning outcomes and competences specified above, the student has to acquire the following qualifications: (A) knowledge about 1) the conventions of specific academic text genres in natural sciences and technical sciences, including research papers, posters and conference abstracts; 2) the basic textual and discourse features of such genres including their cohesion and coherence; 3) efficient and effective processes for writing papers and responding to reviewers; 4) the main differences between grammar and language usage in general between native English and non-native English scholars and the typical errors made by non-native researchers publishing their papers in English; (B) proficiency in 1) the production and revision of specific types of academic text genres and text types in accordance with prevailing conventions for presentation, argumentation, summarizing, etc., in the field of natural sciences and technical sciences; 2) tracing and correcting inexpedient language features, including unidiomatic English and typical grammatical errors made by non-English native writers of academic English.

Aim: 

This course aims to impart knowledge about and give course participants an introduction to academic text production in English within the field of natural sciences and technical sciences, applying textual and discourse strategies and methodologies in accordance with the current conventions of written academic English in natural sciences and technical sciences.

Learning outcomes and competences:  
At the end of the course, the student will have knowledge and proficiency as follows:

1. Knowledge about guidelines and conventions governing the structuring of research paper

2. Knowledge of principles of cohesion and thematic structure in general and in research papers in the natural and technical sciences.

3. Knowledge of some of the main differences between native and non-native English speakers’ use of syntax and grammar.

4. Ability to avoid common errors of syntax and grammar in English-language texts written by native English and non-native English researchers and scholars

5. Ability to produce structurally and linguistically appropriate posters, abstracts and papers within their research fields.

Course contents:

Day 1: 

1. Presentation of participants and course
2. Reporting guidelines and conventions in natural and technical sciences focused on research papers.
3. Writer- and reader-oriented writing
4. Academic writing style: formality, conciseness, active-passive voice, parallels, artificial intelligence in academic writing

Day 2: 

5. Text and context: research paper, conference abstract, poster
6. Text types: cause-effect, argumentation, comparison/contrast
7. Grammar: From clear line of thought to clear presentation: Cohesion and coherence: paragraph structure; controlling and supporting ideas, transitions; given and new information.
8. Conference abstract: Structuring and writing persuasive, crisp conference abstracts. How to get selected

Day 3:

9. Grammar: Grammar pitfalls. ‘Problematic’ word classes. Contrastive differences between English native and non-native users’ grammar and language usage. Grammar drills.
10. Poster: Building successful posters: the tricks of the trade.
11. Paper abstracts. Structure and language of abstracts; differences between conference abstracts and research paper abstracts; message condensation and compression. Compactify your own abstract

Day 4: 

12. Research paper I: materials & methods, results sections of research paper. Structure and language in descriptive text types. Comparison/contrast.  Prepositions in results sections. Analysis of language errors in sample text. Concord and tense use.
13. Research paper II: introduction and discussion sections of a research paper. Structure and language in expository and argumentative text types. Typical move structures in introductions and discussions
14. Odds and ends & introduction to supplementary exercises for post-course basic Written English self-study

The detailed contents of the course may be adjusted to ensure optimal learning outcomes, particularly in response to the availability of new technologies and tools relevant to academic writing in the natural and technical sciences.

Teaching methods: 
Activities and materials: The course will consist of lectures and presentations, followed by exercises and discussions.  Course materials will consist of texts, slides, drills and a collection of exercises and answer keys for in-course use and training on a self-study basis for three months post-course.

Literature:
Texts, including slides, research papers and scholarly presentations, will be available in Brightspace.

Instructors: 
Morten Pilegaard & Peter Steffensen

Venue:
Arhus University, Aarhus

No-show fee/late-cancellation fee:

To pass a course, you must be physically present at least 80 per cent of the time. Homework, assignments etc. do not count as participation. (i.e. up to 20 per cent of absence is accepted).

As a rule, a no-show fee of DKK 1,200 (the price of one ECTS) will be charged if

• you are absent more than 20 percent of the time, or
• you cancel after the cancellation deadline

The only exception to this rule is registered illness, death of nearest relatives etc.

In case of late cancellation due to illness, we may require a doctor’s note from you.

You must notify the course secretary in case of absence due to illness no later than 9:00 on the day of the course.

(*For online courses, the no-show fee is DKK 500).

Registration:

• Participation in the course is without cost for PhD students from Aarhus University

Due to an Agreement between Danish Universities that came into force as of 1 January 2011, participants from other universities than Aarhus University will have to pay DKK 1,200 per ECTS. In principle this also applies to external parties, but exemption can be granted under specific circumstances. Please note that you will be required to provide payment details in the course registration module. Your registration will not be considered valid if this information is missing or incorrect.

Please be aware that your registration for the course not necessarily equals your admission for the course. You will receive an e-mail after the registration deadline regarding whether you are admitted for the course or if you are registered on the waiting list. Please note that seats are allocated on a first-come-first-served basis.

If you have any questions, please contact the course administrators at: courses.nat.tech.he@au.dk

Course dates:

• 05 April 2027 08:00 - 12:00
• 12 April 2027 08:00 - 12:00
• 19 April 2027 08:00 - 12:00
• 26 April 2027 08:00 - 12:00