Academic Writing, Publishing, and Presentations in Educational Technology

Abstract

There are many misconceptions about academic writing and publishing that sometimes inhibit or intimidate educational researchers. One misconception is that academic writing should reflect the complexity of challenging scholarly research. As it happens, a complex writing style can detract from the comprehensibility of a manuscript. It is possible to tell a very complex story using simple, descriptive language. Short sentences are often more easily understood than long sentences containing multiple dependent clauses. Academic writing should not result in discovery reading; the reader needs to know the purpose, scope, and major point prior to embarking on the adventure of reading the rest of the manuscript. This document includes some tips on writing clearly for an academic audience along with an editor’s perspective on publishing research.