But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. She focuses on a small number of readability “champions” who have spearheaded the effort to improve academic writing. Many writers prefer to save the thesis statement for last, after they have explored their ideas in the first draft. First-Ever Review of Gender Parity in Psychological Science: From Idea to Research to Plan of Action, The Dark Side of Academia: Common Negative Experiences No One Talks About, Student Notebook: Advice for Future Graduate Students. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. More. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. The article paints a vision of a future with a clearer academic writing style, allowing academics to better understand each other, and consequently, better communicate with the public. Last year, Harvard’s Steven Pinker (who’s also written about his grammar peeves for The Atlantic) authored an article for The Chronicle of Higher Education in which he used adjectives like “turgid, soggy, wooden, bloated, clumsy, obscure, unpleasant to read, and impossible to understand” to describe academic writing. Topic: Academic Libraries. March 23, 2019 The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing A new movement strives for simplicity. Buchanan’s The Writer’s Palette): Seven scholars share some common negative experiences in academia that no one talks about. These cookies do not store any personal information. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing Make sure you allocate sufficient time for your research, outlining, writing and editing to avoid late nights or sloppy writing. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. This article, published in The Atlantic, describes the unnecessary complexity of much academic writing. The author explores why this is a problem, why it happens, and what might be done to improve the readability of academic work. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing, Clayton V. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing: A New Movement Strives for Simplicity. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. “Persistence is one of the great characteristics of a pitbull, and I guess owners take after their dogs,” says Annetta Cheek, the co-founder of the D.C.-based nonprofit Center for Plain Language. We began our conversation with the question of what makes academic writing complex and whether such complexity is necessary in academic writing. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. The problem of needlessly complex writing—sometimes referred to as an “opaque writing style”—has been explored in fields ranging from law to science. The Atlantic 2015. https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/10/complex-academic-writing/412255, Copyright © 2020 The President and Fellows of Harvard College, https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/10/complex-academic-writing/412255. Copyright © 2020 The President and Fellows of Harvard College, https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/10/complex-academic-writing/412255. The post dispels some of the myths around writing a blog post to accompany an academic article, including: a) it will take days or weeks, b) it is necessary to learn how to use software, and c) there is no benefit to personal research and career from writing a blog post. This article, published in The Atlantic, describes the unnecessary complexity of much academic writing. More, For psychology students who want to become clinicians or go into the academic realm of research and teaching, the next logical step is finding the ideal graduate program. The article paints a vision of a future with a clearer academic writing style, allowing academics to better understand each other, and consequently, better communicate with the public. The subject matter requires 1 abstruse term in lieu of 10 words explaining the concept. Once she retired in 2007 from the FAA and gained the freedom to lobby, she leveraged her hatred for gobbledygook to create an actual law. Education / Training . In fact, Cheek was among the first government employees to champion the use of clear, concise language. This blog post, published by the London School of Economics Impact Blog, advises academic authors on writing a blog post. biohack writes: While the general public might expect that researchers should want to maximize comprehension of their work, academic writing tends to follow an opaque style permeated with professional jargon and complex syntax. On Whimsy, Jokes, and Beauty: Can Scientific Writing Be Enjoyed? The Needless Complexity in Academic Writing: Simplicity vs. Flowery Language Cüneyt Demir The University of Siirt ABSTRACT Different from other elaborate proses, academic writing needs a clear language to extend its scope of audience. This article, published in Ideas in Ecology and Evolution, argues that we should incorporate touches of humor and beauty into academic writing, and suggests how to do so. The idea that writing should be clear, concise, and low-jargon isn’t a new one—and it isn’t limited to government agencies, of course. The idea that writing should be clear, concise, and low-jargon isn’t a new one—and it isn’t limited to government agencies, of course. ... complexity to your thesis statement (adapted from E.B. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing. This letter, published in Journal of Systems and Software, is a humorous take on the woes of the manuscript writing and review process. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing Our services are not forbidden by any institution, university or writing administration. We use technologies, such as cookies, to customize content and advertising, to provide social media features and to analyse traffic to the site. Learn how your comment data is processed. Yet in academia, unwieldy writing has become something of a protected tradition. Cheek, an anthropologist by training who left academia in the early 1980s to work for the Federal Aviation Commission, is responsible for something few people realize exists: the 2010 Plain Writing Act. This article, published in The Atlantic, describes the unnecessary complexity of much academic writing. We also share information about your use of our site with our analytics partners. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. by Victoria Clayton francois schnell / Flickr “Persistence is one of the great characteristics of a pitbull, and I guess owners take after their dogs,” says Annetta Cheek, the co-founder of the D.C.-based nonprofit Center for Plain Language. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. While scientists are often exhorted to write better, it is not entirely obvious what “better” means. The evolution from idea, to study, to action plan in the first-ever gender parity review in psychological science. Tags: Academia; Writing; The Atlantic: “Persistence is one of the great characteristics of a pitbull, and I guess owners take after their dogs,” says Annetta Cheek, the co-founder of the D.C.-based nonprofit Center for Plain Language. Proposed explanations for the emergence of this style range from experts generally finding it difficult to be simple when writing about their expertise to more … Employment This article, published in The Atlantic, describes the unnecessary complexity of much academic writing. In an email, Pinker told me that the reaction to his article “has been completely positive, which is not the typical reaction to articles I write, and particularly surprising given my deliberately impolite tone.”, Your email address will not be published.Required fields are marked*. More, Academic life is not just about discovery and excitement. Take a look at recent information put out by many government agencies such as the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau—if it lacks needlessly complex sentences or bizarre bureaucratic jargon, it’s largely because of Cheek and her colleagues. The author explores why this is a problem, why it happens, and what might be done to improve the readability of academic work. Submitted by Blake on October 27, 2015 - 7:53am . In the process of writing, the thesis statement does not always come first. The author explores why this is a problem, why it happens, and what might be done to improve the readability of academic work. October 30, 2015. Intending to be seen intellectual, competent, or … The Atlantic 2015. https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/10/complex-academic-writing/412255. Papers and assignments academic by 4Students LLC may be used for academic helps, a further understanding of the course, a … The author is an academic with little to no public writing skills to articulate complex ideas outside of the established vocabulary; or 2. Criminal Justice System / Legal . Largely undiscussed is the question of whether our goal of clarity in academic writing precludes us from making our writing enjoyable – by incorporating touches of whimsy, humanity, humor, and beauty.... A Letter from the Frustrated Author of a Journal Paper, How to Write a Blogpost from Your Journal Article in 11 Easy Steps. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing, Clayton V. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing: A New Movement Strives for Simplicity. The author explores why this is a problem, why it happens, and what might be done to improve the readability of academic work. The Needless Complexity of Academic Writing. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. 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