Organizational Patterns in Academic Writing
How are Organizational Patterns used in Academic Writing?
The purpose of academic writing is to present a number of ideas that somehow
fit together to make sense. Sometimes the amount of new concepts, new words,
and facts can be very large and complex. Professors, textbook authors, and
researchers use a framework or plan that helps to communicate their ideas
clearly. There are several types of plans, called organizational patterns that can
be identified in academic writing. They help the author to organize his or her
ideas in a way that makes sense, and hopefully, they help you to understand the
material being presented.
How to Identify Organizational Patterns
Organizational patterns can be identified by what transitions or “signal words” the author uses.
Recognizing the type of pattern that academic writing is organized by can help the reader to put all the
facts together and understand what the text is all about. The following tables will help you to identify
different organizational patterns.
Organizational Pattern Purpose Signal Words
Definition
Explains the meaning of new words or
phrases.
is, refers to, can be defined as, means, consists
of, involves, is a term that, is called, is
characterized by, occurs when, are those that,
entails, corresponds to, is literally
Classification
Divides a topic into parts based on
shared characteristics.
classified as, comprises, is composed of, several
varieties of, different stages of, different groups
that, includes, one, first, second, another, finally,
last
Chronological Order
Describes the sequence in which
events occur in time.
first, second, later, before, next, as soon as,
after, then, finally, meanwhile, following, last,
during, in, on, until
Process
Describes the order in which things are
done or how things work.
first, second, next, then, following, after that,
last, finally
Order of Importance
Describes ideas in order of priority or
preference.
less, more, primary, next, last, most important,
primarily, secondarily
Spatial Order
Describes physical location or position
in space.
above, below, beside, next to, in front of, behind,
inside, outside, opposite, within, nearby
Cause and Effect
Describes how one or more things
cause or are related to another.
Causes: because, because of, for, since, stems
from, one cause is, one reason is, leads to,
causes, creates, yields, produces, due to,
breeds, for this reason
Effects: consequently, results in, one result is,