Main Problems In Academic Writing And Their Reasons

Many students find academic writing difficult as it is accompanied by a set of rules and instructions and they find it difficult to adhere to the given guidelines, so they look for essay help online from expert services to save their grades and time. In this essay, I would analyse the various problems pertaining to academic writing which include, but are not limited to, setting the essay structure, use of grammar and punctuation, following the proper format and making sure that the text is not plagiarised. 

It is challenging for students to understand and establish the proper structure of writing the essay. Typically, all essays are based on three main components: introduction, main body, and conclusion. Though there are only three elements that might seem easy but students consider this as a task due to the inability to draw up every single part considering the singularity of all other (tntmagazine.com). 

Writing is an art and academic writing is a form of it, and one needs to be creative to achieve the given task while adhering to the outline.  Students also find it difficult to effectively present an argument and providing the highlights of the evidence from their essay. Sometimes, even students face writer’s block and are unable to write anything or even able to start the paper, let alone finish it. 

Well-edited paper garners more marks and hence, a better grade. Misplaced comma, irregular spacing, inconsistency, etc. are very basic things that students face difficulty with. This is a common problem for ESL students. Also, it is important to write a paper in active voice and in the third person to give the reader a clear explanation of their point of; students usually face problems with this because they get confused in understanding who is doing the action. 

Using the MLA format is considered to be one of the biggest challenges for students when writing academic papers (UKEssays.com). Aspects like in-text citations, paraphrasing, integrating quotations and, especially the Works Cited page of the essay are of concern for many students. 

Thorough research is also one of the main problems in academic writing. Students need to do thorough research and for that, they need to take out ample time and put in significant efforts to reap results, and maximum students aren’t willing to do either. It’s hard work to incorporate researched text into one’s own way of writing. There are other aspects too like lack of self-confidence, inability to stay focussed, and poor time-management which can be the underlying problems. 

Plagiarism is another hurdle that students have to overcome. In a hurry to submit the paper in time or unable to write the paper themselves, most students look into the previous work of others for guidance but end up borrowing a passage or line from an article, book or website, which results in a high similarity index affecting the overall grade (tntmagazine.com).  Nowadays, teachers check every submitted paper for plagiarized content. 

These are the main problems that students face in academic writing and their reasons. Writing an academic paper can be challenging for many, especially for ESL students. They can focus on working on the structure of the text, getting themselves familiar with grammar and punctuation rules, following MLA format thoroughly and avoiding plagiarism. Working on self-confidence, time management and staying focussed can go a long way in writing good.

Works Cited

“Academic Writing Problems Faced by Today’s Students.” Tntmagazine, 23 Nov. 2016, https://www.tntmagazine.com/lifestyle-career/jobs/academic-writing-problems-faced-by-todays-students.

"The Challenges Of Academic Writing English Language Essay." ukessays.com. 11 2018. UKEssays. 10 2021