A Critique of: Academic Writing a Handbook for International Students (Bailey, 2006)

An Academic Writing Foundation Course Embracing Practical and Theoretical Training

Bailey (2006) acknowledges the importance of the use of academic writing when international students embark on university course of studies. Not only does the book provide the possibility of learning different styles of writings, but also of using the material with various levels and groups.

Another interesting characteristic is that this book can be used either with a teacher or individually on the grounds that “the structure of the book has been made as simple as possible” (Bailey, 2006, p.7) .

In this traditional book, Bailey (2006) divides his work into four parts which are intrinsically connected with simple and basic characteristics of academic writing. Part one and two help the students to understand the format, layout and important skills of academic writing. Then, part three and four deal with grammatical issues and some limited writing models. Towards the end of the book, there is a small section devoted to writing tests which are connected with some of the aspects of the units.

After working with this book, the students might feel they have acquired useful academic writing tools- in other words; the learners would be able to recognize and use the fundamental elements of academic papers. However, Bailey’s (2006) would have been more appealing if he would have added further writing models such as book reviews, book critiques and annotated bibliography.

            In addition to this, the book encompasses some flaws related to specific aspects of academic writings. For instance, it would have been better if Bailey (2006) had added more detailed information as regards the different types of in text citations and references. Besides, in no case does Bailey (2006) provides data concerned with the various academic styles, for instance, APA(American Psychological Association) and MLA (Modern Language Association) styles.

In this academic writing book, Bailey (2006) explores the most significant features of academic writing consequently, it could be claimed that this book is suitable for elementary levels. Nevertheless, Bailey (2006) fails to delve into various useful and important academic topics which are of paramount importance for advanced and proficiency levels.

References

Bailey, S. (2006). Academic Writing: A handbook for International Students (2nd ed.).Retrieved October 2012 , from Taylor & Francis e-library:http://npu.edu.ua/!e-book/book/djvu/A/iif_kgpm_t27.pdf.