Notes on Academic Language and Social Language

Academic language represents the language demands of school: used in textbooks, in classrooms, in tests, and in subject disciplines.
Social language is everyday English used in casual settings; Academic language differs in vocabulary and structure; neither is superior; each serves its own purpose.

Exempli gratia (e.g.) meaning "for example" used to introduce one or more examples; interchangeable with "for example" or "such as".
Slang: informal words/phrases; common in speech; limited contexts/groups.
Jargon: specialized words/expressions used by a profession or group; may be hard for others to understand.
Lexical: adjective describing anything pertaining to words or vocabulary or language.
Grammatical: function words (determiners, conjunctions, prepositions, pronouns, auxiliary verbs, modals, qualifiers, question words).
Nominalizations: nouns created from adjectives or verbs; examples: interference from interfere; decision from decide; argument from argue.
Lexical variation: using a linguistic element (e.g., perhaps/maybe) without changing meaning.

Formal: essential; writers avoid jargon, slang, and abbreviations.
Complex: written language tends to be lexically dense; more lexical words than grammatical words.
Objective: focus on facts; avoid biases; consider multiple sides; avoid evaluative adjectives when not needed.
Specific: each discipline has its own discipline-specific variations; some meanings overlap; some language unique to a discipline.
Concise: avoid vague expressions and wordiness; precise references; reduce ambiguity.
Note: academic writing often uses nominalizations and lexical density, contributing to complexity.

Examples of formality:
- Informal: I’m really amazed with the song ‘24K Magic’ by Bruno Mars and I am having LSS with it.
- Formal: ‘24K Magic’ by Bruno Mars is truly a superb musical piece worth sharing. Additionally, it won an award because of its impact on the music industry.

Written language is often more complex and lexically dense than spoken language.
Written texts are lexically dense: more lexical words than grammatical words.
Written texts are often shorter but use longer, more complex words and phrases; more noun-based phrases and nominalizations; more lexical variation.

Spoken: Because the technology has improved its less risky than it used to be when you install them at the same time, and it doesn't cost so much either.
Written: Improvements in technology have reduced the risks and high costs associated with simultaneous installation.

Objective writing focuses on facts; avoids personal feelings or biases; considers multiple sides; avoids evaluative terms unless warranted.
Examples:
- Instead of several, use the exact number (e.g. (10)).
- Instead of "most of the population", use an exact statistic (e.g. (70\%)).
- Instead of "some time ago", use a specific timespan (e.g. Three years ago; or in 2006).
- Avoid using intensifiers such as (awfully, very, really).

Notes: a written record of the main points for personal use.
Report: a description of something done (e.g., conducting a survey).
Project: a general term for any academic essay, report, presentation or article.
Essay: the most common type of written work; typically 1{,}000–5{,}000 words; title given by the teacher.
Dissertation / Thesis: the longest piece of writing (often 20{,}000+ words) for a higher degree on a topic chosen by the student.
Paper: a piece of research, either individual or group work, with a topic chosen by the student(s).

Social Language: repetition of words; limited vocabulary; sentences may start with words like “and” or “but”; slang present (e.g., guy, cool, awesome).
Academic Language: variety of words; more sophisticated vocabulary; sentences start with transition words like “however”, “moreover”, and “in addition”; no slang.

SunStar post (SunStar Cebu, 3 hrs): formal news-like language; content about Covid-19 governance; uses proper nouns, dates, and a structured news style.
Random Facebook post: informal, personal advice; uses direct address, colloquialisms, capitalization for emphasis; minimal formal structure.

Language: SunStar is formal; Random FB is informal.
Content: SunStar reports news; FB gives personal guidance.
Sentence Structure: SunStar uses complete, formal sentences; FB uses shorter, casual sentences and imperative or conversational phrases.