Academic Language
Academic Writing
US30507 & Social Media
APA Citations
Random
100
What should NOT be in this sentence?
My essay is about social media.
My & "essay is about"
(No personal pronouns, and don't draw attention to the fact you are writing an essay by stating it!)
100
What is the writing acronym that we are using for our paragraphs, and what does it stand for?
PEEL
Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link
100
How many sources should the two body paragraphs have?
2 in each body paragraph (but a total of 3 different texts minimum).
100
Make an intext citation using:
Mike Winter June 2026
(Whitaker, 2026)
Whitaker (2026) suggests that...
According to Whitaker (2026),...
100
Who is this, and what year (approximately) was it taken?
Ms. Harrison and her mum circa 1981.
200
Name the problem, and fix the sentence:
I think that social media has many negative aspects.
Social media has many negative aspects.
[remove the "I think that" --> no personal pronouns or opinion!]
200
What makes the language of academic writing different from other types of writing?
It is formal and does not include any personal pronouns, contractions, phrasal verbs, or informal language.
200
Which article is this from?
"A social media influencer is someone who has built a dedicated audience on social media platforms"
Article 3 (Unwin, 2025)
200
Make an in-text citation from this reference:
Chen, H., Patel, R., Smith, J. A., Garcia, M., Kim, S. Y., Muller, K., Nguyen, T., Rossi, L., Taylor, E., Johnson, M. L., Singh, A., & Williams, D. (2024). Advances in artificial intelligence models for healthcare. Journal of Medical Technology, 15(2), 112–128. https://doi.org/10.1000/jmt.2024.012
Chen et al. (2024)
(Chen et al., 2024)
According to Chen et al. (2024)
200
Which (not human) animal wears other animals as hats?
Orca whales (also known as killer whales). According to the BBC, orcas wear dead fish as hats after playing catch with them, and no one knows why. 
300
Give three examples of cause and effect language.
Because, therefore, as a result, leads to, due to, consequently.
300
Why is formal language important in academic writing?
It shows professionalism, preciseness, and clarity.
300
Name three positives - as noted in the texts - of using social media.
Connection, sense of belonging, job opportunities, share ideas, enhance creativity, etc
(You can add add additional ideas but will need to find the text you got them from).
300
Fix this sentence by giving it an in-text citation: Doctor Gerard Longbottom suggests water is not wet in his book from 1985.
Longbottom (1985) suggests water is not wet.
300
This country is considered the happiest in the world - perhaps because it is home to Santa Claus and saunas. 
Finland.
400
Replace the following informal words with appropriate formal words: quite, good, let, help.
resign or withdraw, positive, allow or enable, assist
(other answers are possible and up to Ms. Harrison to accept)
400
How many paragraphs does your whole essay need to be, and how many words (approximately) should you have per paragraph?
4 "paragraphs"
thesis statement (introduction): 25-30 words
BP x2 --> 125 words each (approx)
conclusion (restated thesis): approx 20 words
Overall, a minimum of 300 words
400
1) Will you have an opportunity to resit this timed write assessment + 2) is this an achievement standard or a unit standard + 3) how long will you have to write?
No, you will not
Unit Standard (Achieved / Not Achieved ONLY)
P4, lunch, P5
400
In his research Simon Uttinger suggests that social media is leading us further into despair (2024).
What are the four errors in this sentence?
- comma after research
-no first name
-no personal pronouns
-move the date to after last name: Uttinger (2024)
400
Which marine animal forms orderly lines in emergencies?
Fish! Schools of neon tetra fish queue so that they don’t collide or clog up the line. Scientists interpreted this behaviour as showing that fish can respect social rules even in emergency situations, unlike us humans. 
500
What are these called, and what academic language could replace them?
look up --->
go over --->
Phrasal verbs
look up --> research, consult, retrieve, locate
go over --> consider, analyze, examine
500
Without changing the sentence structure, make it more cautious and formal.
Taking English for Academic Purposes [EAP] is fun at first, but after some time, is boring.
Example answer:
Taking English for Academic Purposes [EAP] may seem enjoyable in the beginning; however, after a sustained time may be less so.
500
Give the last names of at least two authors that we can reference in our timed academic essay.
Aleen, Winters, Kannan, Unwin, Amin, Ambrojo.
500
Why do we include citations in an essay?
To avoid plagiarism/academic dishonesty.
500
Which land animal can hold its breath longer than a dolphin? 
A sloth! They can hold their breath for up to 40 minutes, while a dolphin must surface after 10.