Report about

(( How is text organized in academic writing?))

Prepered by :
Khajo Boko
Mazin Khalaf
Najwa Haji
Kavi Sadq
Bushra Alias
Sawsan Hassan

Supervised by :Dr. Ghayda

Topic: Academic Writing

2023-2024

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Table of Contents

1.Introduction .

2.What is organization in writing ?

4.How to organize text in academic writing?

5. There are many ways of organizing a texts.

6 .Why organizing texts is important in academic

writing

7.Conclusion .

8. References .

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 Introduction

So at the first we should know what is organization in writing ,

Organization is one of the most important elements of an essay
that is often overlooked. An organized essay is clear, focused,
logical and effective.

Organization makes it easier to tunderstand the thesis. To

illustrate, imagine putting together a bike. Having all of the
necessary tools, parts, and directions will make the job easier
to complete than if the parts are spread across the room and
the tools are located all over the house. The same logic applies
to writing an essay. When all the parts of an essay are in some
sort of order, it is both easier for the writer to put the essay
together and for the reader to understand the main ideas
presented in the essay.

Organizing is an important means of creating coordination and

communication among the various departments of the
organization. Different jobs and positions are interrelated by
structural relationship. It specifies the channel and mode of
communication among different members.

The patterns of organization are : chronological pattern ,

Sequential Patterns , Spatial Patterns , Compare-Contrast
Patterns , Advantages-Disadvantages Patterns , Cause-Effect
Patterns , Problem-Solution Patterns , Problem-Solution
Patterns , Topical Pattern .

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What is organization in writing?

Organization in writing is how ideas are presented. Typically,

organization refers to the larger parts of a piece of writing,
although it also refers to how paragraphs and sentences are
written. The flow of a piece of writing affects how readers
interpret ideas.

The three common methods of organizing writing are

chronological order, spatial order, and order of importance.
You need to keep these methods of organization in mind as you
plan how to arrange the information you have gathered in an
outline.

Organization typically refers to the large elements of text

structure. Sometimes these elements are formalized in
practice, as in the typical lab report, through consistent use of
headings. Sometimes elements of organization are only
informally acknowledged -like the thesis of an academic paper.
Most writers across the university would agree, however, that
organization refers to the ordering of ideas.

If the organization does not provide readers with the

information they are looking for in an orderly manner, they will
quickly lose interest . Unorganized writing makes readers
search for the information they need. There are many types of
orgainzation in writing which are: Communication Department
, General Organization Patterns, Cause/Effect , Chronological
Order, Comparison , Alternating Organization

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How to Organize texts in academic writing ?

At first we should know how to ordering the parts of speech like :

Noun , Verb ,AdjectiveAdverb, Pronoun , Conjunction, Preposition .

What is the function of each main word class( parts of speech)in

English?

A good understanding of the different types of words (parts of

speech) is integral to understanding the key principles of
organization in English.

Noun, like organization; text; mystery; study: Refers to a person,

place or object which forms the subject or object of the sentence.
Generally appears with an article or determiner. Verb , like appear;
reveals; is; developing: Describes what the subject does - relating
to events, actions, states of being. Adjective , like basic; simple:
Describes (modifies) the noun. Adverb , like initially; soon :
Describes (modifies) adverbs and adjectives. Pronoun, like he , she
, they: Can replace a noun. Conjunction , like however; therefore:
Links sentences together. Preposition like of , in , on : Precedes
nouns and pronouns, indicating a range of different relationships
including space, time, cause, agent, possession.

Ordering the parts of speech

1.the basic word order of English is subject- verb- object .

2.adjectives come before nouns.

3. the position of adverbs is flexible- ifindoubt,placetheminmid-

position.

4. prepositions come before nouns.

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What are the key principles of organization in English?

Having looked at word order, we now turn to how content is

organized in English. Two main principles govern this: old
information comes before new information; and topic (general
information) comes before comment (specific information).

Principle 1: old information precedes new information

‘Old’ information here means information the reader is already

familiar with. This information may already have been discussed in
a previous paragraph, or may be ‘common knowledge’ and need no
introduction. New information - the information which we are
waiting for - comes at the end of the sentence. This principle is
known as End-WEIGHTING.

Principle 2: topic precedes comment

We need to understand what the topic is before we move on to

making a comment about it. Compare this to looking at a painting in
an art gallery: most people would look at the whole painting first - to
get an idea of what it is about - before looking at the interesting
details.

What flexibility is there in the order text is organized?

Useful phrases which can introduce a topic: As noted above,

academic writing in English follows two main principles in terms of
its organization. However, depending on the particular emphasis
you may want to put on a sentence, there is some flexibility. For
example, some sentences may be FRONT - WEIGHTED h t e d rather
than END-WEIGHTED i.e., the new information precedes the old
information) and in others the comment may come before the topic.
The reasons for doing this are:

Surprise: doing the unexpected is a good way of generating interest

Explanation: justifying a situation before it happens, so the reader is
prepared.Persuasion: putting your key information first may help to
convince your reader. Clarity: changing the structure of the
sentence may aid understanding.

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Front-weighting can be done in various ways Like:

Strategy1:will change the emphasis of the sentence.

END -WEIGHTED (EW): I am not clear about how text is organized

because of my difficulties in English.

FRONT-WEIGHTED (FW): As a result of my difficulties in English, I

am not clear how the text is organized.

Strategy 2: Clefting (using cleft sentences) places a particular

clause at the beginning of the sentence, giving it prominence.

EW: The emphasis of the sentence is changed by clefting.

FW: What clefting does is to change the emphasis of the sentence.

Strategy 3: Using the passive places the object at the beginning of

the sentence, changing the emphasis.

Another way to organize academic writing is through the use of the

RCAAPE (Reflection, Contextualisation, Analysis, Activation,
Personalisation, and Extension) framework, which is commonly
used in language teaching and learning. Here's an overview of how
each element of RCAAPE is used to organize text in academic
writing:

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1. Reflection: This element involves reflecting on the topic or issue
being discussed, often by asking questions or making connections
to personal experiences. It can help to provide a deeper
understanding of the topic and generate new ideas.

2. Contextualisation: This element involves providing background

information and situating the topic within a larger context, such as
historical or cultural context. It helps to provide a framework for
understanding the topic.

3. Analysis: This element involves breaking down the topic into its
component parts and examining each part in detail. This can involve
comparing and contrasting different aspects of the topic or
identifying patterns and themes.

4. Activation: This element involves using the information and

analysis presented to generate new ideas or suggest solutions to a
problem. It can involve making recommendations for future
research or proposing ways to address a particular issue.

5. Personalisation: This element involves connecting the topic to

personal experiences or interests. It can help to make the topic
more relatable and engaging for the reader.

6. Extension: This element involves taking the discussion beyond

the scope of the original topic and exploring related issues or
applications. It can help to broaden the reader's understanding of
the topic and suggest new avenues for research.

Using the RCAAPE framework can help to organize academic

writing in a way that is engaging, informative, and easy to follow.
However, it's important to keep in mind that not all elements of
RCAAPE may be relevant to every topic or assignment, and the
organization may need to be adapted to fit the specific requirements
of the assignment.

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There are many ways of organizing a texts

Sequence :The writer places events in the order in which they

happen. This is known as chronological order. Look for words like
"first," "then," "finally," "a few minutes later," "next," "after lunch,"
"last year."

Example: First, Rhett was late getting to school. Then, he lost his
homework. A few minutes later, the teacher asked him to clean out
his desk. Now Rhett thinks it will be a bad day.

Comparison/Contrast :The text shows how ideas or things are alike

or different. Look for words like "best," "more," "better," "less,"
"worse," "easier," "than."

Example: The best time to visit the Rocky Mountains is early fall. The
weather is cooler in the fall than in the summer. You will see fewer
people and more animals. The fall dolors are more beautiful.

Cause/Effect :The text shows that one event causes another thing to
happen. Look for words like "because," "then," "since," and "as a
result."

Example: It rained for the first few days of the camping trip. As a
result, most of the campers were restless and wanted to go home.
When you understand how the writer has organized information, you
will understand and remember the text better. Writers organize text
in several different ways to fit their purposes.

Problem/Solution :The text is split into two parts: One part presents
a problem, and the other part gives the solution to the problem. Look
for words like "problem," "solution," "solve," and "plan."

Example: The city of Taylor has fifteen public swimming pools. In the
past, plenty of lifeguards

have been available for staffing the pools throughout the summer.
Most of the lifeguards were teenagers out of school for the summer.
This year, however, not enough lifeguards have signed up to work.
The city has started asking healthy, retired people to be lifeguards.

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They will be trained by the city for free if they will agree to work 10
hours per week at a city pool. They will be paid $8 an hour for their
work.

The problem: Taylor doesn't have enough lifeguards to staff its city
swimming pools. The solution: Encourage retired people to become
certified lifeguards and work at the pools

Description

The text simply describes a situation or a thing. Passages that are

organized to describe often use a lot of adjectives.

Example :My boat runs very well. It would be the perfect boat for a
weekend with the family, and/or water sports. The open bow makes
it ideal for bringing some extra people and catching some nice sun.
The boat has two covers, a V8 OMC engine, depth finder, Four Winns
trailer, open bow, and extras such as vest, fire extinguisher, and
paddle.

Proposition/Support

The text presents a suggestion or a proposition. Then, the author

supports his or her suggestion with reasons. This pattern is often
found in editorials.

Example: The school needs to invest money in repainting the lines in

the parking lot. The yellow and white lines have faded so badly that
many people do not notice them. Confused drivers cause traffic
jams in the parking lot during pick-up and drop-off times. Repainting
the parking lot lines will make everyone safer

Question/Answer

The writer presents a question and then tries to answer it.

Example: Many schools are thinking about this question: Should

students be made to wear

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uniforms? I believe they should not. First, clothing is a very
important way that kids express themselves . .

Classification

This type of structure can be very helpful when writing research

reports. All of the information is organized by like groups.

Example: You are writing a paper about the food pyramid. One
paragraph is devoted to the benefits of fruits and vegetables. One
paragraph is devoted to the benefits of breads and carbohydrates,
and so forth.

Definition

The text defines a difficult term or idea. The definition is stated and
expanded with examples and restatements. Look for bold or italic
words to emphasise new vocabulary.

Example: The pharaoh was the ruler of ancient Egypt. The pharaoh
was believed to have been the human form taken by the gods. One
of the best known pharaohs is Tutankhamen, who ruled during the
18th dynasty.

Narration

The text has details about people and events that tell a story.

Example: Allison looked at the ocean waves from the comfort of the
ship. She could stare at the waves for hours because they never
came back the same way; they were always changing. They were
nothing like the humdrum life on the ship, which consisted of short,
repetitive conversations and reading. There was nothing else to do.
Allison couldn't wait for the next stop.

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Why Organizing texts is important in academic writing ?

When you’re preparing long form text, your goal is to make that
text as easy for your reader to absorb as possible. If the reader
has to double back to make sense of your article, or if it’s
presented in a babbling stream of consciousness from which
the reader must fish for your main points, your article will have
less impact.

The organization of a text is important for the author because

he (her, other ) is trying to sell the reader on something the
author feels is important enough to write about — but the reader
may not give a fig about it.

So the problem for the author is to motivate the reader to read

the message the author wants to convey. Good organization,
can get the reader’s attention and keep it — provided, of
course, that the message is of any interest to the reader. Sloppy
organization means the reader must go out of his way to read
the text, thus requiring a much higher level of reader motivation.
And then there’s the further problem that if the text is not well
organized the reader may try his best but still “not get the
point”, or maybe misinterpret it. Give the reader “the net” — act
is if every reader was your chief executive officer (CEO) and you
work for him and he has no time to waste or patience for
listening to run your mouth off.

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Conclusion
Organization is the internal structure or design of a piece of
writing. It gives ideas direction, purpose, and momentum,
guiding the reader skillfully from point to point. Good
organizatior, holds a piece of writing together, making it easy to
see the big picture - much the way puzzle pieces fit to create a
recognizable image. It also makes the reading easier. Readers
can follow the writer's thinking easily when they have a pattern
to help them.

Strong writing has a clear beginning, middle, and ending. The

overall writing is < Well organized and easy to follow. Think of
organization as an animal's skeleton or framework of a building
under construction. Those bare bones, that organization , holds
the whole thing together.

References

• .https://www.grammarly.com/blog/organization-tips-for-
writers./
• https://oer.pressbooks.pub/informedarguments/chapter/meth
ods-of-organizing-your-writing/.
• https://study.com/academy/lesson/organizational-patterns-
for-writing-purpose-and-types.html.
• https://www.quora.com/Why-is-the-organization-of-a-text-
important.

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