Self-help & resources

In addition to our workshops, drop-in zones, and one-on-one appointments, we also offer many online resources.

Research

See more videos from the Research playlist on YouTube.

Academic Writing

Introduction to Academic Writing
Writing academic papers can be daunting if you are unfamiliar with the expectations and requirements of research and writing at the university. This video presents the main characteristics and qualities of academic writing. We will discuss how research papers should answer specific questions, be original, demonstrate significance, and develop an argument in response to the larger scholarly conversation. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Image from kjpargeter/Freepik
Thesis and Dissertation Structure
Thesis and dissertations are structured rather differently from essays. Knowing the basic structure of research and academic writing can save you some headaches. Although each field, discipline, department, and even supervisor has their own set of expectations and requirements, this video focus on what is shared across various fields and review the most common sections in a number of disciplines. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Academic Language and Tone
Want to write more clear, concise, and ‘‘academic-sounding’’ essays? This video addresses how academic language differs from speech and other kinds of writing, and what types of informal language to avoid. We will also look at strategies for recognizing and replacing informal language in your work, and how to use ‘hedging’ language for better accuracy and credibility. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Photo by Gillian Saunders, 2012
Writing Better Introductions and Conclusions
If you struggle to write good introductions and conclusions, then rest assured, you are not alone. In this video, we offer strategies to help you create effective introductions and conclusions that make sense to your readers. We will look at the key components of introductions and conclusions, as well as review common errors that you should avoid when writing these sections of a thesis or dissertation. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
The Literature Review : A ‘‘Hands on Hips’’ Approach
Lost in a maze of literature without a map to find your way? This video presents a particular approach to the literature based on the work of Pat Thomson to help you confidently assess and organize the texts you are reviewing and position them in relation to your own research. We summarize the steps of the “hands on hips” literature review process and discuss how to avoid list-like writing when synthesizing information from multiple sources. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Photos by Hugho226 (Wikimedia Commons), University of the Fraser Valley (flickr), and Wellcome Collection
Strong Academic Writing - A UVic Writing Centre video workshop UVic TWC
This workshop on Strong Writing teaches students how to write clear, concise sentences and paragraphs through a combination of lecture and hands-on practice. Topics include unity, transitions, academic wording, and conciseness. For further reading: Our website: http://ltc.uvic.ca/servicesprograms/twc.php Strong paragraphs: http://ltc.uvic.ca/servicesprograms/documents/TWCWritingStrongParagraphs.pdf Strong Writing tips: http://ltc.uvic.ca/servicesprograms/documents/TWCWriteWell.pdf Video on transitions: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwfqZvinEbs Strong sentences: http://eslau.ca/lesson/unit61.php passive vs active: http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/activepassive.html Filmed using equipment from the UVic Libraries Music and Media Desk. Edited in Camtasia Studio 8 Footage from Prelinger Archives. Some images from Google images licenced for reuse and distribution, others from flickr: arripay, ms. information.

See more videos from the Academic Writing playlist on YouTube.

Planning

Getting Started I: Finding Your Topic
In the first of a series about how to get started on writing your papers, we offer practical strategies to find a topic and working on it so that it can be shaped into a research paper. We will talk about ways to come up with a topic that leads to original and significant questions, the importance of narrowing the scope of your topic by making it more dynamic and specific, and general approaches to conducting research. At the end of this video, you should know where to start and how to turn your ideas into a coherent and meaningful piece of research. The three approaches to combine your data and methods in new ways are adapted from Beicher, W.L. (2009). Writing your journal article in 12 weeks: A guide to academic publishing success. Thousands Oaks, Calif.: SAGE Publications. *** While editing this video, we noticed a grammatical error that found its way into the presentation. If you find it, come tell us and win a sweet reward! *** Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Getting Started II: Developing Research Questions
Having a research question give your research its focus and therefore it is one of the most important components of academic research and writing. In this video, we continue to talk about the steps to get started on your paper by looking at ways to turn your topic into a research question that is clear, feasible and worth investigating. We look at the strategies to develop research questions using “WH” question words such as “how,” “why,” and “what” and the importance of asking secondary research questions that supplement your main research question. Download the worksheet to practice drafting research questions: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/assets/docs/ResearchQuestions.pdf Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Getting Started III: Defining a Thesis Statement
In the final video of our series about the steps to get started on your paper, we talk about strategies to come up with and refine good thesis statements for your draft. Topics will include the key features of a thesis statement, the relationship between a thesis statement and the main research question, and how your thesis statement serves to connect every supporting point within your argument. Remember that what you draft while planning is tentative and you can always go back and revise it once you have your whole paper. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
The 40.20.40 Writing System, Research and planning, Writing, Editing and revising
A UVic Libraries Research Help Video about The Writing Centre's 40/20/40 system for effective writing habits. This system helps students improve their academic writing habits by providing a structure of 40% research and preparation, 20% writing, and 40% editing and revising for all papers and essays. Many thanks to Laurie Waye and all the Writing Centre staff. Created in Camtasia Studio 8 Music created in GarageBand Footage from Prelinger Archives.

See more videos from the Planning playlist on YouTube.

Revising and Editing

The Hierarchy of Writing Concerns
Are you ready to revise your draft but don't know where to start? This video provides some strategies to make the process of revising, editing, and proofreading your draft more organized and efficient. We will talk about the hierarchy of writing concerns and the advantages of editing your research paper in different stages as you work toward your goal: a final draft that fits the audience and the purpose. To learn more about higher order concerns and lower order concerns in academic writing, visit the Perdue University’s Online Writing Lab: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/690/1/ Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Strong Paragraphs
Paragraphs are the basic unit of academic papers, but writing well composed paragraphs is a difficult art to master. In this video, we will review the basic paragraph structure in academic writing and offer some tips for writing effective paragraphs that improve the strength and clarity of your argument. We will discuss what makes a paragraph unified, cohesive, and coherent, review the common problems of unfocused or “listy” paragraphs, and identify techniques you can use to fix these issues. Check out our resource on transitional words and phrases: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/assets/docs/TransitionalWordsPhrasesHandout.pdf Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Strong Sentences
Want to write better sentences? In this video, you will learn how to write sentences that convey your great ideas in a way that is clear and easy for your reader to understand. We will talk about sentence length and variety, the importance of choosing the right voice, and how to use strong subjects and verbs to convey information in the most meaningful way possible. Check out our ‘‘Sentence Types’’ resource for a review of the four English sentence types and the basics of clauses and phrases: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/assets/docs/SentenceTypesHandout.pdf Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Sentence Problems
How do you know if your complex ideas are easy to understand for everyone? This video addresses the most common sentence errors in writing and offers some practical strategies for achieving good structure and flow. We will discuss the main three sentence problems: comma splice errors, sentence fragments, and run-on sentences. Tips on how to avoid punctuation issues are also included. Check out our resource on sentence types: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/assets/docs/SentenceTypesHandout.pdf And our resource on comma use: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/assets/docs/PunctuationHandout.pdf Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Clear Concise Writing
So you wrote a paper that makes perfect sense to you, but it came back with ‘‘awkward,’’ ‘‘vague,’’ or ‘‘wordy’’ written all over the margins? This video will provide you with strategies for editing your writing to eliminate repetition, excess wordiness, and words phrases and structures that are not helping your writing to be easily read and understood. Writing concisely will help you to express your ideas with impact and precision. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Photo by Gillian Saunders, 2014
Conjunctions and Transitions
Transitions can be tricky! This video will help you to achieve good flow in your writing, thereby making it easy for your reader to navigate and understand. We will talk about the importance of using conjunctions and transitional words and phrases for joining ideas and making connections between sentences and paragraphs, and develop strategies to decide which ones to use and when. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Active and Passive Voice
Unsure about how and whether the passive voice should be used and how to transform it to the active voice as needed? This video explains the differences between active and passive voice in writing. We will look at how active and passive voice sentences are constructed in English, when to use passive voice and when to avoid it, and how to detect and correct it in your writing. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Academic Verb Use
Having trouble deciding which verbs and verb forms to use? This video will give you a better understanding of the types of verbs that are used in academic writing and how verbs are used to introduce research. We will review the main verb tenses used in academic research and writing and explore conventions in academic verb use for introducing research in different disciplines. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Articles and Nouns "A / THE / S" - A UVic Writing Centre video
This video helps writers and ESL EFL students learn when to use a, the, or s with nouns. Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/UVicTWC Our website: http://ltc.uvic.ca/servicesprograms/twc.php Articles and nouns PDF: http://ltc.uvic.ca/servicesprograms/documents/ARTICLESHANDOUT.pdf Our blog: http://uvictwc.wordpress.com/ Resources: http://ltc.uvic.ca/servicesprograms/Resources.php Filmed using equipment from the UVic Libraries Music and Media Desk. Edited in Camtasia Studio 8 Footage from Prelinger Archives. Some images from Google images licensed for reuse and distribution

See more videos from the Revising and Editing playlist on YouTube.

Reading

Becoming an Effective Reader
Does reading for your courses and research take much of your time? This video offers practical tips to help you read academic texts faster and understand them better. You will learn the three main stages of the reading process and techniques such as pre-reading, skimming, and scanning texts to improve your comprehension of the argument and remember what you’ve read. By adapting some of these strategies, you will be able to become a more effective and efficient reader. Download the note-taking worksheet: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/assets/docs/NotetakingWorksheet.pdf Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com Music from Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Images from kjpargeter/Freepik, DMacks/WikiMedia Commons and 1Greenjack1/WikiMedia Commons
Understanding Critical Thinking in a New Way
The term ‘‘critical thinking’’ is often used in University classrooms and assignments, but how exactly do you become a ‘‘critical thinker’’? In this video, Madeline presents the Visual Thinking Strategy to help you practice generating your own ideas and supporting them with evidence. This technique uses art viewing to develop your thinking and reflective skills while illustrating how to use factual evidence to back up your claims. Visit our website: https://www.uvic.ca/learningandteaching/cac/ Book an appointment with a CAC tutor: https://uvic.mywconline.com

See more videos from the Reading playlist on YouTube.

Citations

See more videos from the Citations playlist on YouTube.

Help Videos