Academic writing is more formal, therefore one must put thought and consideration into what they write.

Spelling, grammar, and sentence structure is highly important in academic writing. In less formal types of writing, such as a letter to a friend, these things are not nearly as important. You can get away with using abbreviations or "text lingo" in informal writing but certainly not in academic writing.

Writing Theory
Writing is a means of communicating ideas and information. The responsibility lies on the teacher's shoulders to enhance their students' abilities to express themselves effectively. In order for students to communicate well they need to have to expand their cognitive academic language proficiency level (CALP). CALP contains the genres of power that leads to success. It is important for students to learn how to think critically and creatively. It is the teacher's responsibility to initiate this thought process. Writing improves a person's ability to think concisely and clearly. Students learn to organize their ideas in a cohesive and flowing manner. Writing is an essential part of the developing child. As teachers, we are given the responsibility of improving and enhancing students' writing, in both content and in grammar. George Hillocks is a renowned author and advocate for opposing the instruction of grammar in isolation. Hillocks believes that learning grammar in isolation (by using instructional work sheets or lessons specified to be focussed on grammar) does not improve student writing, but can be in fact detrimental. Hillock's definition of grammar is punctuation, spelling, and usage. This grammar instruction needs to be addressed in the intermediate level of elementary education. The approach in such lessons or instructions does not have to be addressed in a formal designated time period. The grammatical structures of sentences and spelling should be addressed as the problems are presented in the context of their own work. Rosemary Buck has an opposing view of George Hillock's theory. "The teaching of grammar in isolation helps to develop high-order critical thinking skills that are essential to the development of 'good writing' but that critical thinking skills are very difficult to measure

and have an indirect impact on a piece of writing rather than a direct effect." (Buck March 1997) Buck believes that studying grammar improves the quality and clarity of critical tinking. Grammar may not directly improve the student's writing immediately but will improve their thought process and analytical abilities. As teachers, our role is to prepare children for the challenges of tommorrow's society. In order for these children to succeed, they need to be equipped and well aware of the genres of power which rule the world. Whether oral or written, the different types of genres are a child's key to power, prestige and priviledge. By developing these styles of writing, a child is empowered to use this key to unlock any door that leads to success. Writing is a transitory verb, therefore, one should not just teach writing, but teach to write something. For example, to have children succeed, they need to be taught to write good persuasive arguments. A successful person is respected and influenced in their interaction with others because they are able to express themselves in expository and persuasive forms of language. There are a number of controversies with Donald Graves' creation of the writing process. From beginning to end, this process includes pre-writing, drafting, revising,editing, and finally, publication. However, a writing process should not be linear since it does not conform to sequential stages. In today's technologically advanced society, computers are an essential means of preparing and writing essays. The writer is now able to be recursive during the development of his/her written work. Therefore, because of this element, the Socio-Culture Anticipatory Recursive writing process (S.C.A.R.) is an excellent model. In this model, students are able to sharetheir drafted work with each other which can be a very good learning experience. In Graves' writing process, this vital component of sharing work is overlooked. Also, in the S.C.A.R. model, presenting the written work is the final stage. This is a lot more realistic than Graves' final stage, which is publishing. Very few people actually reach the final stage of getting their work published. Thus, having a realistic final stage such as presentation is a very motivational factor for students.

1. 2. 3. 4.

Home

Education

Learn to Write

Write a Research Paper

5. How to Write a Theory Top 5 To Try

How to Write a Theory Paper Ten Tips on Writing a Good Theory of Knowledge Essay How to Write a Paper Using Critical Theory How to Write a Hypothesis How to Conduct Research Using Grounded Theory

Ads by Google

How to Write a Theory

By Juanita King, eHow Contributor

IELTS Writing Test Narrative Writing Example

Take it slow when forming a theory.

Before you consider writing your theory, choose an important topic and conduct research. Select something of interest that you wish to share with others. The theory may be a problem with gaps in the premise. It may also be a subject that needs updating because of new findings; it may be something the previous author wasn't privy to when she wrote her thesis. Theories are scientific. To write a good theory, learn the scientific method.
Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions
Things You'll Need
Research books 1. o

1
List what you hope to accomplish.

Jot down the goals of your theory paper clearly and succinctly. Start with a topic sentence, making sure that your argument engages or sparks interest for both you and your audience. You can't hope to interest your reading audience unless you're passionate about the subject, too. Do keep your goal in mind during the process of coming up with a written theory.
o

2
Read as much as possible about your subject.

Review the literature. Read books, journals and peer-reviewed articles. During the research, take copious notes on ideas that you agree with. This will help you form the paper in an unbiased way. Next, jot down those items that you disagree with and believe need clarification or will help you come up with a theory. Try to understand each author's premise before forming your own.
o

3
Write what you think is true about the topic.

Write a hypothesis or an assumption from the research notes. Take your time. Work and rework the hypothesis. It should state exactly what you intend to find out about the independent and dependent variables. The independent variables experience no changes in regard to the dependent variables; however, dependent variables are affected by changes in the independent variables.
o

4
Decide how you'll test your theory.

Write out in detail how you plan to test the theory. Consider surveys, observation, interviews, tests, experiments and/or assessments. Make sure the testing method is suitable for your experiment. You don't want to test five-year-old children for an experiment better suited for adults, such as self-report surveys.
o

5
Categorize your findings.

Compile and organize the findings. Does the hypothesis still hold true? If not, rework it according to the results. Do not try to fit the hypothesis to personal opinion; instead, remain objective throughout the research.
o

6
Write your theory.

Write your theory, in a few sentences, based on your findings. Also, include information that goes against your ideas or thesis statement. Make the theory as well-rounded as possible. Stick to your goal, but let others know where to find different points of view.

Read more: How to Write a Theory | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_6603890_writetheory.html#ixzz1dB3ozSKz