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Academic writing, a strategic practice

IEL-Unicamp's line of research investigates the different aspects involved in the preparation of scientific articles

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The production of a scientific article requires the author to master different skills. One of the premises to be met is the understanding that academic writing must be, above all, strategic, as well as technical and objective. The statement comes from professor Inês Signorini, from the Department of Applied Linguistics at the Institute of Language Studies (IEL) at Unicamp. “The scientific article is the end of a long process, which begins with the first notes about the project, goes through relationships within the research group and with international networks and culminates with the understanding of the characteristics of both the journal in which it is intends to publish as much of the public that reads it”, explains the teacher.

Professor Inês coordinates a line of research on Academic Literacy, which has language as its interface. According to her, there is a current that considers that writing and reading are essentially related to the cognitive issue. The premise is that a person who thinks well writes well. “In literacy theories, the cognitive aspect is present, but it is not the only element considered. There are other points to be analyzed, all of them permeated by the practice of writing” she points out.

The scientist, continues the professor, is made up of the writing he produces and consumes, the professional relationships he establishes and the knowledge he has about the segment in which he operates, among many other points. “There is a tendency to think that a successful scientist is one who thinks well, and that is why he stands out. According to this view, competence would belong exclusively to the individual level. However, this is not how things work in practice. The researcher is inserted in a process that escapes him as an individual”, says Professor Inês.

Antoninho Perri
Professor Inês Signorini, from the Department of Applied Linguistics at IEL: “There is a tendency to think that a successful scientist is one who thinks well, and that is why he stands out. According to this view, competence would belong exclusively to the individual level. However, this is not how things work in practice. The researcher is inserted in a process that escapes him as an individual”

To make this idea clearer, she offers a real example. A researcher with considerable experience has submitted an article to an important scientific journal. The referees provided feedback with criticisms related to the structure of the text. The problem highlighted was linked to the use of the English language. The information contained in the work, although interesting, was not being presented, in formal terms, as it should have been. The research group's conclusion was that the quickest way to overcome that obstacle was to invite a native speaker to become a co-author of the article and take over reviewing the text.

It turns out that this person, obviously, had to be involved with the research group and the topic investigated. “In other words, the episode demonstrates that scientists increasingly need to be part of international research networks, which can facilitate the publication process. This interaction, however, does not happen overnight. It is the result of years of investment”, explains the IEL professor. Within the Academic Literacy theme, Professor Inês has worked more frequently with undergraduate and postgraduate students in the Literature course, although demands from other areas are emerging.

In this contact, the specialist says she identified that the authors of articles follow the opposite path to that recommended. First they write the work and then think about which journal to publish it in. “In this aspect too, you need to be strategic. The writing has to be produced according to the magazine. You need to analyze the profile of the publication, its audience and which topics have received the most attention. In other words, you need to identify what interests that publication and its readers. This is a very high-level reading, which is unlikely to be done in isolation. It is a practice that has to be carried out by the entire research group, through discussions and exchanges of experiences.

Producing a scientific article, continues Professor Inês, requires completing several steps. One of them can be compared to entering a given market. In this sense, it is not enough for interested parties to display their merchandise and wait for the consumer to respond. “The process is much more complex. In the case of the scientist, he will compete with his peers. Thus, to publish an article, he will need to know what the rules of that 'market' are, which 'products' are most accepted and who will consume them. This is why writing is strategic. When I talk about writing, I'm not just referring to language, grammar. I'm also talking about gender, geopolitics, relevance of themes, etc. You need to know all aspects of the game well, so you can play well,” she ponders.

In researcher training environments, according to the IEL professor, there is a lot of annoyance on the part of authors when they receive opinions critical of their articles, which are sometimes rejected for publication. “Researchers are squeamish, but they should take advantage of this. The way forward is to rewrite the article and, eventually, submit it to another journal. The tendency is for the work to increase in quality and be accepted on the second attempt. It is necessary to see this experience as a learning process”, she argues.

These and other aspects related to Academic Literacy will be worked on by Professor Inês in the Scientific Writing Workshop, which she will teach on the 13th and 19th of August, within the Writing Space project, maintained by the Dean of Research (PRP) at Unicamp . On the first day, the theoretical part will be worked on, based on four axes: Situation of academic writing in times of internationalization; Communities of production and consumption of valid or publishable knowledge; Conventions and practices for the production and consumption of valid or publishable knowledge and Conventions and practices for preparing scientific articles in valued journals.

On the second day, participants will have the opportunity to develop exercises to prepare and develop abstracts and plans for writing a scientific article based on the knowledge acquired in the first part of the course and their experience as a producer and consumer of articles in their specific area. Registration for the workshop is closed.

 

 

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