MODULE 1: Differentiate

language used in
academic texts from
various discipline

Hi! I am teacher Debs. I am going to guide you in your learning journey to this first part of
your modules in English for Academic and Professional Purposes (EAPP).

This module includes reading articles which vary in subject matter, length, and style of
writing to give you a wide range of reading exposure. The reading materials thus provide
exciting learning opportunities. The activities included will develop and enhance your
learning competencies as a student which will encourage you to apply new learnings to
practical situations independently.
Read on and enjoy doing the activities prepared for you.

YOUR VOCABULARY BUILDER

As you work on this module you will encounter difficult words. These
words play very important role in understanding this lesson.

Read Me:
▪ Academic Language – Academic language includes language
used in textbooks, in classrooms, on tests, and in each discipline.
It is different in vocabulary and structure from the everyday
spoken English of social interactions. Each type of
communication (both academic and social) has its purpose, and
neither is superior to the other.
▪ Linguistic register - are certain registers of language (types of
language use) peculiar to specific professions such as medical
science, engineering, and business.
▪ Medical language - is used to describe components and
processes of the human body, medical procedures, diseases,
disorders, and pharmacology. Simply put, it is the vocabulary that
medical professionals use to describe the body, what it does, and

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 the treatments they prescribe
▪ Legal language -means a language used by the persons
connected to the legal profession. The language used by the
lawyer, jurist, and the legislative drafts man in their professional
capacities. Law being a technical subject speaks through its own
register.
▪ Journalistic language - This type of language helps understand
how journalists create their stories or reports, shape points of
view, deliver expected news and how media language is different
from other languages we encounter.
▪ Literary language - register of a language that is used in literary
writing.
▪ Jargon - special words or expressions that are used by a
particular profession or group and are difficult for others to
understand.
▪ Legal indictment - An indictment is a formal accusation of a
felony, issued by a grand jury based upon a proposed charge,
witnesses' testimony and other evidence presented by the public
prosecutor (District Attorney). It is the grand jury's determination
that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the
crime to justify having a trial voted by a grand jury. In order to
issue an indictment, the grand jury doesn't make a determination
of guilt, but only the probability that a crime was committed, that
the accused person did it and that he/she should be tried. District
Attorneys do not present a full case to the grand jury, but often
only introduce key facts sufficient to show the probability that the
accused committed a crime.
▪ Sob Story - a sentimental story
▪ Autopsy – (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or
autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a
thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the
cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any disease or
injury that may be present for research or educational purposes.
▪ MIMS - The Monthly Index of Medical Specialties or MIMS is a
pharmaceutical prescribing reference guide published in the
United Kingdom since 1959 by Haymarket Media Group

YOUR READINESS CHECK

Read carefully, analyze, and determine the register of language used in the
following text. Choose from the options inside the box.

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 Language of Medicine Language of Law Language of
literature
Language of BusinessLanguage of Journalism

1. Text 1

Republic of the Philippines

Regional Trial Court
________ Judicial Region
Branch ______, _____ City

EX-PARTE MOTION FOR

EXTENSION TO SUBMIT
COMPROMISE AGREEMENT
Defendants, by the undersigned counsel and unto the
Honorable Court., respectfully state that:
(1) On the 5 January 2015, the Honorable Court, in open
court, directed the parties
to submit their Compromise Agreement within ten (10)
days therefrom, or on 15 January 2015. Said day being
a Sunday, the parties have until the next working day,
16 January 2015, to submit said Compromise
Agreement.
(2) Defendant Hanna Dy is presently abroad and needs to
execute a Special Power Attorney authorizing her
brother and Co-defendant Roland Dy to sign the
Compromise Agreement.
(3) Thus, the defendant respectfully prays that the parties
be given additional fifteen (15) days from today, or until
30 January 2015, within, which to submit their
Compromise Agreement.
(4) This motion is not intended to delay the instant
proceedings but filed solely by reason of the foregoing.
Moreover, the filing of the same will not result in any
injustice or prejudice to any of the parties.

2. Text

Bicol’s COVID-19 cases double in just 12 days

The number of COVID-19 cases in Bicol region has doubled in only 12 days, as
it crossed the 200 mark on Thursday (July 9). The Department of Health (DOH) in the
region reported 10 new cases of COVID-19, raising the number of cases in the region
to 208. The last time Bicol had less than 100 cases was on June 27.
Seven of the new cases on Thursday were reported in Naga City in Camarines
Sur province. The history of exposure and travel of all of the Naga City patients were

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 “for verification” as Thursday afternoon, according to DOH.
Also, on the list of new cases were two returning residents of Mandaon town in
Masbate province. The two—a 29-year-old woman and a 4-year-old boy—arrived from
Zambales province on June 27 and were found to be positive for SARS-CoV-2, the
virus that causes COVID-19. Both were not showing symptoms yet but were the first
cases in Mandaon town.
In Virac town in Catanduanes province, a two-year-old boy who arrived from
Rizal province on June 29 showed symptoms of the disease five days later.
Albay province still has the most virus infections in Bicol with 82.
Camarines Sur recorded 76 cases. The island province of Masbate has
recorded 18 cases. Sorsogon has 11 cases. Catanduanes, another island province,
has eight cases. Camarines Norte has six cases.

3. Text

Our Mother Tongue

(A poem originally in Tagalog written by Rizal when he was only eight years old)

IF truly a people dearly love

The tongue to them by Heaven sent, They'll surely yearn for
liberty
Like a bird above in the firmament. BECAUSE by its
language one can judge
A town, a barrio, and kingdom; And like any other
created thing
Every human being loves his freedom. ONE who doesn't
love his native tongue,
Is worse than putrid fish and beast; AND like a truly
precious thing
It therefore deserves to be cherished.
THE Tagalog language's akin to Latin, To English, Spanish,
angelical tongue;
For God who knows how to look after us This language He
bestowed us upon.
AS others, our language is the same With alphabet and letters
of its own,
It was lost because a storm did destroy
On the lake the bangka 1 in years bygone.

4. Text

Once upon a time, there lived a shepherd boy who was bored watching his flock
of sheep on the hill. To amuse himself, he shouted, “Wolf! Wolf! The sheep are being
chased by the wolf!” The villagers came running to help the boy and save the sheep.
They found nothing and the boy just laughed looking at their angry faces.
“Don’t cry ‘wolf’ when there’s no wolf boy!”, they said angrily and left. The boy just
laughed at them.
After a while, he got bored and cried ‘wolf!’ again, fooling the villagers a second
time. The angry villagers warned the boy a second time and left. The boy continued
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 watching the flock. After a while, he saw a real wolf and cried loudly, “Wolf! Please
help! The wolf is chasing the sheep. Help!”
But this time, no one turned up to help. By evening, when the boy didn’t return
home, the villagers wondered what happened to him and went up to the hill. The boy
sat on the hill weeping. “Why didn’t you come when I called out that there was a wolf?”
he asked angrily. “The flock is scattered now”, he said.
An old villager approached him and said, “People won’t believe liars even when they
tell the truth. We’ll look for your sheep tomorrow morning. Let’s go home now”.

5. Text

President Duterte approves limited face-to-face classes in low-risk areas

starting 2021
As several local government units and private schools are requesting to hold limited
face-to-face classes in low-risk areas, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on Tuesday
approved its conduct starting next year.
This development came after the Department of Education (DepEd) received queries
from local chief executives, legislators, private and international schools, and other
education stakeholders on the possibility of conducting limited face-to- face classes in
areas where it is deemed safe to do so by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) and the
Department of Health (DOH).
Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones noted that limited face-to-face classes will ONLY be
allowed upon the request of the LGU and school concerned and can only happen
January 2021 under conditions set by the DOH, DepEd and IATF.
Moreover, it can only be considered in low-risk areas or in areas at least under
Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) or in the transition phase between
GCQ and the New Normal.
The Education chief emphasized that decisions to allow limited, localized face- to-face
classes will be made with due coordination between DepEd, the LGUs concerned, and
the local health authorities.

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 YOUR GUIDE

Academic Text

Academic text is typically used for textbooks, tests, in classrooms, and any
other discipline related to the field of academics. It is very different from the structure
of vocabulary and structure from everyday conversations through social interactions.
Academic text is a formal way to present words and terms typical for the field.

Content and Style of Academic Texts

 Include concepts and theories related to the specific discipline
 Have clearly structured introduction, body, and conclusion.
 Include information from credible sources that are properly cited.
 Include concepts and theories that are related to the specific discipline they
explore.
 Usually exhibit all properties of a well-written text --- organization, unity,
coherence, and strict adherence to the rules of language and mechanics.

The specific ideas in various academic texts are dependent on the field of
academic text one is reading in. For example, Humanities texts discuss more
about the various human expressions, such as art and languages, while the
sciences contain the scientific method that discusses the objective result of an
experiment or the specific research methodology. The specific ideas in
various academic text can be understood after skimming and closely reading
the text.

Now that you already have an idea about

an academic text, let’s discuss the
register of language so it will be easy for
you to differentiate language.

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BAYER ASPIRIN Bayer Non-Rx

C: Acetylsalicylic acid

I: Prophylaxis of thromboembolic disorders, MI, transient ischemic attacks & stroke. D: 1 tab

daily.
CI: Gastric & duodenal ulcers. Hemorrhagic diathesis. Children <16 yr.

SP: Renal disorders, G6PD deficiency. Pregnant women close to delivery, patients with flu,
chickenpox or hemorrhagic fever, GI ulceration or asthma. Onset of persistent vomiting may
be a sign of Reye’s syndrome (immediate treatment).
AR: Gastric hemorrhage, hypersensitivity, thrombocytopenia.

DI: Anticoagulants, corticosteroids, antirheumatics, sulfonylureas, methotrexate,

spironolactone, furosemide, antigout agents. Alcohol.
P/P: Tab 100 mg x 300’s (P393.50).

US FDA Preg Cat: C; D if full dose used in 3rd trimester.

What is the easiest reading assignment you have

done so far? How about the most difficult one?
What do you think made the reading assignment difficult or easy?

Read information about the medicine called aspirin.

Did you find the information useful? Did you
encounter difficulties in understanding the
information? Who do you think is the intended reader
of this write-up about aspirin?

When you access information, you should pay

attention on how ideas are arranged in the text.
There are instances when complex information can
be better understood if the ideas are presented in an
organized manner which is one of the characteristics
of an academic text.

Look how every piece of information about this

medicine is conveyed in the above entry taken from
MIMS, 107th Edition 2006 Philippine Index of Medical
Specialties.

The clustering of ideas under specific headings can

facilitate understanding of texts.

I know you find it difficult to understand some

information because of the language used.

There are certain registers of language (types of

Language use) peculiar to specific professions such
as medical science, engineering, and business.
These types of language use may be unintelligible to

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 people not belonging to the same profession. Such
language use is also referred to as jargon.

In the case of aspirin, its common use as a drug

to relieve pain and reduce fever has gained
popular knowledge. The explanation given in the
MIMS entry, however, contains jargon and
codes that are not familiar to the lay reader. It is,
therefore, important to grasp the coding system.
What do the initials stand for?

MIMS explains that C stands for

“Contents.” Therefore, aspirin is acetyl
salicylic acid. D is for “Dosage,” which is 1
tablet daily. "I" stands for “Indications” or
what the medicine is recommended for,
that is, it prevents certain health
threatening conditions. The list that follows
again consists of jargon in the medical
sciences. CI stands for “contra
indications.” When these conditions are
present in the patient, the medicine should
not be administered. SP stands for
“Special Precautions,” when extra care
should be taken when the medicine is
prescribed. AR stands for “Adverse
Reactions” or bad or unfavorable effects
or reactions to the medicine. DI stands for
“Drug Interactions.” This means aspirin
interacts with any of the items included in
the list. P/P, or Presentation and Packing,
shows how the medicine is sold or its
available packaging

Now that you already have an idea on

how to access information in a text and
how academic language plays an
important role in the learning process, let
us have an additional discussion about the
register of language before you proceed to
doing a series of activities.

What is Linguistic register?

~The concept of the linguistic register has been described by Trudgill (1983:101)
as follows:
 Linguistic varieties that are linked to occupations, professions, or topics have
been termed registers. The register of law, for example, is different from the
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 register of medicine, which in turn is different from the language of
engineering---and so on. Registers are usually characterized solely by
vocabulary differences.
 Registers are simply a rather special case of a kind of language being
produced by the social situation.
~ According to Harold Schiffman (1997) it is a set of specialized vocabulary and
preferred (or dispreferred) syntactic and rhetorical devices/structures, used by
specific socio- professional groups for special purposes. A register is a property or
characteristic of a language, and not of an individual or a class of speakers.

Stylistic Variation: Degrees of Formalities in Language Usage

1. Registers are marked by a variety of specialized vocabulary and turns of phrases,
colloquialisms, and the use of jargon.
2. A register can be considered a unique way a speaker uses language in different
circumstances.
3. Registers encompass all the ways in which humans communicate to one Another in
specific parameters.

Some of the Language Registers are as follows:

Language of medicine/medical science (medical terminologies)

Law (legal language
Journalism (journalistic language)
Literature (literary language)

These language registers as these varieties of English in the

different fields of learning are called, are distinctly shown in the
following tasks that you are going to do.

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 YOUR DISCOVERY TASK
The following text in these series of activities illustrates the use of the
English language in different disciplines. Read carefully and evaluate its content by
answering the questions that follow.

Reading Text A

From the Autopsy Surgeon’s Report

Death occurred from the effects of asphyxia, cerebral anemia, and shock. The
victim’s hair was used for the constriction ligature. Local marks of the ligature were
readily discernible: there were some abrasions and a slight ecchymosis in the skin.
But I found no obvious lesion in the blood vessels of the neck.
Cyanosis of the head was very slight and there were no pronounced
hemorrhages in the galea of the scalp. I should judge that very great compression
was affected almost immediately, with compression of the arteries as well as of the
vein, and that the superior laryngeal nerve was traumatized in the effect of throwing
the victim into profound shock…
The lungs revealed cyanosis, congestion, over aeration, and sub pleural
petechial hemorrhages.

Questions:
1. Did you encounter difficulties in understanding the text? Why?
2. List down words that you found difficult to understand and look for its definition in
the dictionary.
3. How was the report structured?
4. What did you learn from each sentence in the report? Begin with a simple grid like
the one below:

Sentence Number Topic

1. Cause of death
2. Manner
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 3. Evidence
4. Evidence
5. Evidence
6. Manner
7. Evidence
State briefly the content

The ideas that relate with one another can now be grouped together for
better appreciation of the text
In order to determine the structure of a text, the readers should look for
markers such as “first..., “ “ next...,” “ as a result...,” “finally...,” “in
conclusion...,” “to sum up...”These markers help situate the succeeding
statement or sentence in the entire text. The last three expressions in the
list given above (i.e., “finally...,” “in conclusion...,” and “to sum up...,”)
clearly end a discourse.

Reading Text B

(“legal indictment - Google Search,” n.d.)

Legal Indictment

State of ----
--- Country
TWENTY-FIRST JUDICIAL
DISTRICT COURT

THE GRAND JURORS of the State of --- duly impaneled and sworn, in and for ---
County in the name and by the authority of the said State upon their oath, find and
present:
That one John Doe late of --- County, on the 223rd day of January in the year of our
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Lord One Thousand Nine Hundred and Twenty-Four, with force and arms, in -- -
County, aforesaid and within jurisdiction of the Twenty First Judicial District Court of
---, for the --- County, did unlawfully, feloniously, with malice aforethought kill and
slay one Porphyria Blank by strangulation.
Contrary to the form and the Statutes of the State of ---, in such cases made and
provided and against the peace and dignity of the same.

District Attorney for the 21st

Judicial District of ---

Questions:
1. Did you encounter difficulties in understanding the text? Why?
2. List down words that you found difficult to understand and look for its definition in
the dictionary.
3. Discuss the text focusing on the type of language that is used in the selection. Is
this language commonly used in ordinary communication?
4. In plain language that can be understood by an ordinary reader, share the findings
of the Great Jurors.
5. What does the last paragraph of the District Attorney’s statement means?

Reading Text C

(“black and white newspapers - Google Search,” n.d.)

Local Girl Found Slain by Rejected Lover

(Newspaper Account)

Ms. Porphyria Blank, 21, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. R. J. Blank, of Barton Park,
was found strangled this morning in the cottage owned by John Doe, 25, who was
apprehended on the scene of the crime by officers Bailey and Hodge. Doe was
found holding the body in his arms, and appeared to be in stupor, his only reply to

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repeated questioning being, “I killed her because I loved her.”
According to the members of the Blank family, Doe had paid attention to Miss
Blank for the last several months, though it was strenuously denied that his regards
for Miss Blank was returned. Miss Blank’s engagement with Mr. Roger Weston was
announced last month. Mr. Weston could not be reached for a statement. Mrs. Blank
was prostrated by the news of her daughter’s death.
The slain girl vanished last evening at approximately eleven o’clock from a
dinner party given at her parent’s home in honor of the approaching wedding. The
family became alarmed when it was discovered that she was not in her room and
instituted a search for her about midnight. The police, who were promptly notified, in
the course of their search knocked at Mr. Doe’s cottage, a building some quarter of a
mile from the Blank estate, at five in the morning. Receiving no answer, they forced
the door and discovered Doe sitting with the dead girl in his lap. She had apparently
been strangled, Dr. A. P. Reynolds, Autopsy Surgeon for the county, state that, from
the condition of the body, death must have occurred at about midnight.

Questions:
1. Get a copy of any broadsheet/newspaper and read an article from it. Compare this
text with the article “The local girl found slain by rejected lover.”
2. What kind of information did you get from the text? Did you notice any
similarity/difference between the two?
3. Pay attention to the words and sentences used in the news article. Are the words
and sentences difficult to understand? Why?
4. Who is narrating the event?
5. How was the event narrated?

YOUR FINAL TASK

Watch the House hearing on Anti-Terrorism Bill / Anti-Terrorism Law: Hearing of the
Senate Committee on National Defense. Answer the questions that follow and write
them in your notebook.
Video Links: https://youtu.be/k-TYYenwOok https://youtu.be/r0Y2E0tJKvw

1. How are the arguments presented?

2. What kind of language is used in the hearings?
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3. How do people address one another in the hearings

Reference

How a Case Moves Through the Court System. (2019). Retrieved from
Azcourts.gov website: https://www.azcourts.gov/guidetoazcourts/How-a-Case-
Moves-Through-the-Court-System
Simplified curriculum, guidelines for distance learning now available online -
DepEd. (n.d.). Retrieved July 26, 2020, from GMA
News Online website:
https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/742656/simplified-curriculum-
guidelines-for- distance-learning-now-available-online-deped/story/
President Duterte approves limited face-to-face classes in low-risk areas
starting 2021 | Department of Education. (n.d.).
Retrieved July 26, 2020, from
https://www.deped.gov.ph/2020/07/21/president-duterte-approves-limited-face-
to-face-classes- in-low-risk-areas-starting-2021/
Mercado, N.A. (2020). Duterte’s SONA: A mix of attack, warning, plea, wish
list, promises. [online] INQUIRER.net. Available at:
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1312951/dutertes-sona-a-mix-of- attack-warning-
plea-wish-list-promises [Accessed 28 Jul. 2020].
Ostria, R. A. (2020, July 10). Bicol’s COVID-19 cases double in just 12 days |
Inquirer News. INQUIRER.Net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1304655/bicols-
covid-19-cases-double-in-just-12- days

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