sdCOMPOSING ACADEMIC WRITING

• Lesson 1 – Book Review or Article Critique

• Lesson 2 – Literature Review
• Lesson 3 – Research Report
• Lesson 4 – Project Proposal
• Lesson 5 – Position Paper

A book review describes and evaluates a work of fiction or nonfiction and offers the book’s overall
purpose, structure, and style of narration to the unknown readers. It tells not only what a book is about,
but also how successful it is at what it is trying to do. It is a sneak peek at a book, not a summary.

How do you START writing a book review?

1. Identify the book by author, title, and sometimes publishing information.
2. Specify the type of book (for example: fiction, nonfiction, biography, and autobiography). Help your
readers to review with perspective.
3. Mention the book’s theme.
4. Include background, if necessary, to enable reader/s to place the book into a specific context.
5. You may also use an interesting quote, an interesting fact, or an explanation of a concept or term.

What do you DO with the content?

1. For nonfiction books like biography, history, and the like: pay primary attention to the major points
(the argument) the author is putting forth and to the sources the author has drawn upon to back up
his/her point of view.
2. For fictional works such as novels, chick lit, graphic novels, manga: Pay attention primarily to the novel
or book’s setting, plot, style, characters, theme/s, use of language and voice. Caution: Do not give away
the story for no one appreciates a spoiler!
3. Provide your reactions to the book.
4. Describe the book.
5. Respond to the author’s opinions and analyze it.
6. Explore issues the book raises.

How do you CONCLUDE?

1. Relate your argument to other books or authors.
2. Relate the book to larger issues.
3. Tie together issues raised in the review.
4. Briefly restate your main points and your thesis statement.
5. Indicate how well the book has achieved its goal, what possibilities are suggested by the book, what
the book has left out, how the book compares to others on the subject, what specific points are not
convincing, and what personal experiences you’ve had related to the subject.

How do you REVISE the draft?

1. Allow time to elapse, at least a day, before starting your revision.
2. Correct grammatical mistakes and punctuation as you find them.
3. Read your paper through again looking for unity, organization, and logical development.
4. If necessary, do not hesitate to make major revisions in your draft.
5. Verify quotations for accuracy and check the format and content of references.
 BOOK REVIEW

Read the sample book review below and complete the matrix with information about the text on a
separate sheet of paper.
Handbook of Disaster Risk Reduction & Management Climate Change and Natural Disasters
By Yingigba Akenyemi

Climate change is increasingly of great concern to the world community. The earth has witnessed
the build-up of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere changes in biodiversity, and more
occurrences of natural disasters. Recently, scientists have begun to shift their emphasis away from
curbing carbon dioxide emission to adapting to carbon dioxide emission. The increase in natural
disasters around the world is unprecedented in earth’s history and these disasters are often associated
to climate changes. Many nations along the coastal lines are threatened by massive floods and
tsunamis. Earthquakes are increasing in intensity and erosion and droughts are problems in many parts
of the developing countries. This book is therefore to investigate ways to prepare and effectively manage
these disasters and possibly reduce their impacts. The book takes an in-depth look at climate change
and its association to socio-economic development and cultures especially in vulnerable communities;
and investigates how communities can develop resilience to disasters. A balanced and a multiple
perspective approach to manage the risks associated with natural disasters is offered by engaging
authors from the entire world to proffer solutions.

Main Idea

Purpose

Your Evaluation of a Text

A project proposal is a document that is written for problem solving, service provision, event planning,
or equipment selling. Generally, proposals are used to convince the reader to do what the proposal
suggests, such as buying goods or services, funding a project, or implementing a program. Proposals in
the professional world are used for internal (within an organization) and external (from one organization
to another) purposes. They are ways of generating income for companies or seeking funding for
projects. This is provided to the sponsor of the project for approval.
Guidelines in Writing the Proposal
1. Gathering the Data. One of the characteristics of an effective proposal is being well researched. It
needs concrete data to back up its claims so it can become more credible. You can gather data from
primary and secondary sources and apply the strategies that you learned in writing a research paper in
the previous lessons.
2. Organizing the Data. A proposal becomes more effective if the information on it is clearly organized.
You can use the parts of the proposal to guide you in your organization or use an outline to structure
your discussion more effectively.
3. Writing the Proposal. Fill out the parts of the proposal with the relevant data.
4. Revising the Proposal. Make sure to review your proposal for accuracy and organization before you
send it out. A good proposal will be comprehensive and will put your organization in the best light.

Formatting the Project Proposal

Proposals are primarily categorized according to their length. An informal proposal is about 2-4 pages
long. Meanwhile, a formal proposal has 5 or more pages. Regardless of their purpose and audience,
they have standard parts such as the following:

1. Introduction. This part provides the background necessary for understanding the project, which is
done by telling your reader the following:
• Rationale - this identifies the problem to be addressed and shows the need to solve it.
• Objectives - these reveal what the project intends to achieve in terms of results. It also gives the reader
an idea of the intended solution. Good objectives are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-
oriented, and bound within a realistic Time frame).
• Benefits - these show what the reader or the target audience can gain from the proposal, which may be
improvements in processes or systems, an increase in revenue, or a change in behavior of the
beneficiaries of the proposal.
2. Project Description. This section gives specific information about the project itself. It indicates how the
project will address the identified problem through the following parts:
• Methodology – this entails the different activities; the project will take on, including the manpower (i.e.,
the people involved and their duties), resources to be utilized and the expanded output.
• Schedule - this discusses the task duration and expected start and end dates of each activity in the
project.
• Budget - this presents an analysis of all the costs anticipated in the project, which can be itemized or
shown as a whole, depending on the needs of the project.

PROJECT PROPOSAL

Activity 1
Think of the barangay from where you are presently residing. Then do the following on a separate sheet
of paper:
A. Brainstorm and list down the different problems that exist in your barangay.
B. Select the top three problems which you think should be resolved.

Problems in the Barangay Descriptions

The position paper is a composition that highlights an opinion of an author or specified entity about an
issue. As a debate, it presents one side of an arguable opinion and persuades the readers or audience
that the author has a well-founded knowledge about the issue.

In writing the Position Paper, your goal as a writer is not only to state and defend your position on the
issue but also to show how your stance relates to other position. Do remember that arguments should
be supported with reasons and evidence?

Writing Center of the University of Hawaii, stated that in choosing the issue or problem to be discussed,
you may ask yourself the following questions as issue criteria to ensure that you will be able to present a
strong argument:
1. Is it the actual and real issue?
2. Can you clearly identify two positions?
3. Are you an advocate of one of these positions?
4.Is the issue narrow enough to be manageable?

After choosing the argument to take, you must present relevant supporting evidence like:
1. Factual knowledge, which are valid and verifiable information
2. Statistical inferences, which are conclusions drawn from data gathered
3. Informed opinions, which are based on knowledge of the facts and carefully
considered principle, and rely on evidence instead of limited personal experience
4. Personal testimony, which are personal or first-hand experience of the writer or knowledgeable party

Now, here are the components of a position paper.

I. The Introduction – identifies the issue that will be discussed and states the author’s position on that
issue.
A. Introduce your topic with background information
B. Build up your thesis statement which asserts your position
• Fast food restaurants are bad for our health.
• Fast food packages should contain warning labels.

II. The Body – contains the central argument and can be further broken up into sections:
A. Possible objections to your position (counter argument)
• Whose job is it to determine which restaurants are bad?
• Such labels would affect the profits of major corporations.
B. A discussion of both sides of the issue, which addresses and refutes arguments that contradict the
author’s position (your argument)
• It would be difficult and expensive for any entity to determine which restaurants should adhere to the
policy.
• Nobody wants to see the government overstepping its boundaries.
C. Explain that your position is still the best one, despite the strength of counterarguments. This is where
you can work to discredit some of the counterarguments and support your own.
• Restaurants might improve the standards of food if warning labels were put into place.
• The role of the government is to keep citizens safe.

III. Conclusion – restating the key points and when applicable, suggest resolution to the issue
(Thoughtco 2020).
A. restate your position
B. provide Plan of Action
Activity 1. Your position paper should have a clear and relevant claim or argument. Choose between A and B
which you think is the better thesis statement.
1.
A. Milk tea is delicious.
B. Milk tea tastes better than other drinks because of its creamy and refreshing flavor.
2.
A. The governor is a bad and ungrateful man.
B. The governor has continually done the community a harm by failing to listen to his
constituents.
3.
A. Reading to babies is the best predictor of academic success.
B. Babies are born with the ability to swim.
4.
A. Drug use is disadvantageous to society.
B. Illegal drug use is dangerous because it encourages gang violence.
5.
A. We should vote for candidates who are willing to make the necessary changes because our education system is
in need of reform.
B. In this essay, I will persuade you to vote for candidates who support education reform.

Activity 2. Is social media helpful or harmful? Brainstorm and list down your claims using the format below.

Issue/argument_________________________________

Helpful Harmful
(Include details/evidence) (Include details/evidence)

Activity 3. Create an outline showing your position on the topic: Children below 10 years old should not be given
access to social media.

Description Highest Point Your Score

Has appropriate quality of well- 5 points
organized points to support the
topic
Has clear and specific details 3 points
Grammar, spelling, and 2 points
punctuation marks are correct
Total 10 points