Concepts and Requirements of Academic Writing Academic writing is about gaining new perceptions of the world by generating technical information and expert knowledge.  The purpose of academic writing is to discover new facts through research using the knowledge you have acquired and to coherently structure these new facts to produce new knowledge.In general, academic writing in school refers to experiment reports, research report, survey reports, topic reports, book reviews, midterm/final essays, and short 5-6 page journal articles.    Journal articles best embodies the purpose of academic writing.  They use a certain format to describe the results of academic research and in particular systematically identifies and discusses academic issues in various disciplines such as humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences.   Academic writing is the process of providing an analytical and critical view of the research topic fr|om your own perspective, establishing your own views or arguments, and presenting rational grounds to demonstrate that your views or arguments are correct.  The most important thing when writing a journal article, which is an emblematic format of academic writing, is the originality and validity of the topic or your view, and the validity and logic of the supporting evidence. Therefore, the purpose of a journal article is to reach an objective and steadfast original conclusion by taking a deep dive into the academic question, analyzing and examining its fundamental characteristics fr|om as many different angles as possible, and collecting as much evidence as possible. Journal articles delve into specific questions pertaining to a special area of expertise, and is written under the assumption that the readers will also be professionals who have majored in that particular field.  These days, reports are the most are the most common style of academic writing you will encounter in university curricula.  Although reports do not follow as strict of a format compared to journal articles, the purpose of ‘transferring knowledge and producing new knowledge’ is a common denominator.  Report assignments are given out at the university level to educate and train students new to research methods, organizing and structuring knowledge obtained about a particular issue, and reporting and expressing research results. Although the level of proficiency between journal articles and reports are bound to be different, both are underpinned by their ‘academic nature’.   Then what is the basic thought process of academic writing? Critical thinking.  Critical thinking is “not not simply aimed at finding problems and fault with someone’s argument. Critical thinking is a reflective thought process through which an argument is analyzed and evaluated in order to gain a more in-depth and multifaceted level of understanding” (Kim Young-jung et al., Critical Thinking and Academic Writing, Seoul National University Center for Teaching and Learning Report, 2003). Richard Paul defines critical thinking as an activity that seeks to improve the quality of thinking by examining the structures inherent in opinions about a subject, content, or problem, and imposing an intellectual standard to evaluate it (Paul, R., Fisher, A. and Nosich, G., Workshop on Critical Strategies, Foundation For Critical Thinking, Sonoma State University, CA, 1993, p.4). To put it simply, the act of thinking overall in determining whether an argument is right or wrong by logically examining why, how it unfolds, and what the conclusion is, constitutes critical thinking.  Academic writing encompasses both 'long and short writings that make arguments through demonstration' based on such critical thinking.  When writing an academic article, you should select a given topic or topic of interest and read research papers or books related to the topic to enhance your understanding. You also need to familiarize yourself with a well-formed and coherent way of writing. The requirements for academic writing include originality, objectivity, well-formedness, accuracy, and ethics.         REQUIREMENTS FOR ACADEMIC WRITING    Originality  Come up with a new topic or perspective. Even if there is prior research that has been done on a topic, you must approach it fr|om new point of view (methodology) focusing on issues that have been overlooked or contain errors. Originality also applies to the process of discovering and utilizing new materials.    Objectivity  Academic writing should develop your argument through valid and objective data. Academic writing should contain the argument of the researcher, but that argument should be demonstrated using objective data.  Well-formedness  The process of writing involves objective analysis and compilation based on systematic and logical thinking. The writing should establish a valid and logical relationship between your argument and evidence presented, and the overall structure of the text must also meet certain structural requirements. Certain structural requirements—certain formality, idiomatic expressions, symbols, punctuation, and orderly sentence structure—must be met.    Accuracy  Evidence supporting your argument must be accurately presented. The bibliography of the cited literature and citations must also be accurate. Academic terms must be accompanied by a clear definition. You should refrain fr|om using ambiguous concepts.  Ethics  You must not use other people's ideas, research materials, processes, or content without permission, and make sure to cite your sources when quoting another person.