Starting with Inquiry Pg 1-14

Quote 1: "Any initial difficulty you have with academic writing will pay off when you discover new ways of looking at the world and of making sense of it. Moreover, the habits of mind and core skills of academic writing are highly valued in the world outside the academy" (Pg 2).

In this quote, the authors explain the importance of learning how to become an academic writer and how this acquired skill will benefit you in more ways then one might think. I've never been a big fan about scholarly writing whether it would be reading or writing it. It was always very hard for me to understand the concepts authors were trying to portray. However, I do recognize the importance of this writing skill. Academic writing opens up the door between different people with different view points. It serves as a communication tool between professionals and students or students and students. I believe this book will help me understand how to read academic writing and change my way of viewing certain topics.

Quote 2: "When you consider a variety of factors-the quality and functionality of the item you plan to buy, how it meets your needs, how it compares to similar items before making a shopping choice-you are conducting an analysis. That is, you are pausing to examine the reasons why you should buy something [...]" (Pg 3).

I have never realized how much we us critical thinking in our daily lives. I always believed critical thinking is something you use in school when your writing a response or argumentative paper. Using analytical skills in activities such as shopping as the quote describes is a great example of when we are using our critical thinking skills. I really like how the book is connecting academic writing to the real world. I believe this connection will help me to further understand academic writing and how I can become better at this.

Quote 3: "Academic writers usually study a body of information so closely and from so many different perspectives that they can ask questions that may not occur to people who are just scanning information" (Pg 4).

In my last English class, I was taught how to interpret different authors perspectives on certain subjects and how their information adds to the larger conversation. The scholarly authors I have read in the past were experts in their field and knew exactly what they were writing about. I've always questioned how I can one day become like these authors and analyze bodies of information to com up with new perspectives.