Discourse Markers and Cohesive Ties: The Missing Links of Academic Writing

The speech community of science and technology, more than spoken medium of communication, is dependent on the written one and successful communication of ideas necessitates that not just within-sentence grammar but text organizers and cohesive devices/ties be aptly used. In academia, when it comes to science and technology, the need for foregrounding the importance of textual moves, the underlying discoursal values, and discourse markers is more highlighted as the negligence brings about misinterpretation. The current study aims at making an investigation into the extent to which non-native, here Iranian, students of science and technology are aware of the proper use of such devices/ties and markers in developing academic papers. To this end, a sum of 23 PhD candidates of Mechanical Engineering enjoying sound knowledge of English grammar and vocabulary participated in a four-month course in academic paper writing. The results of the preliminary assessment of some samples of their writing tasks indicated that despite proper English usage, communication due to deficient application of cohesive devices and discourse markers suffered to a large extent. Subsequent to the sessions allocated for making the participants aware of the mentioned devices and markers as well as of the (lack of) concordance between form and function, some other consecutive academic writing tasks were assigned to them to probe whether or not the course objectives have been met. Utilizing a text analysis method based on the appropriacy of the use of cohesive devices and discourse markers, the results indicated that the participants’ effectuality in communicating ideas through written medium significantly increased after providing the treatment. The research has implications for university professors and enthusiastic students who are inclined to improve their teaching effectiveness and writing skill for academic purposes. Further, such awareness contributes to better decoding/comprehension of academic texts particularly in EST-domain.