11
Conventions of academic writing
A rule stands there like a sign-post. – Does the sign-post leave
no doubt open about the way I have to go?
Ludwig Wittgenstein
This chapter explains how to use style guides, what you
should look for in them, and why the rules for one school
or department might differ from those of others. It covers
r how to navigate through some conventions of formal and
informal language
r how to be wary of using the technical language of one
discipline in another
r how and when (and when not) to use devices of layout –
headings and sub-headings, numbered paragraphs, bullet
points, tables and figures, and so on
r how to set out quotations
r how to attune yourself to the often minute and
mysterious differences in the rules for setting out notes,
references and bibliographies.
1
Academic culture
To be a student in a college or a university is not only to be a learner.
It is also to be a member of a community and a culture with customs,
myths and rituals which differentiate it in significant ways from other