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Glossary

Academic (adjective)

Of or relating to university or higher learning.

Academic (noun)

A professional in the field of higher learning.

Academic Integrity

What is it?

Academic integrity refers to honesty and trust in all aspects of academic work. It includes the way students and staff write assignments and papers, conduct themselves during examinations, and behave as researchers.

Why is it important?

Whether your future career lies in academic institutions, in an independent professional role or in industry, government or community-based organisations, the people you interact with will respect the honesty and trustworthiness demonstrated in your professional life.

In universities, academic integrity is important because, without honesty and trust, true academic discourse becomes impossible, learning is distorted and the evaluation of student progress and academic quality is seriously compromised.

http://www.griffith.edu.au/academic-integrity

See also Plagiarism.

Academic Journals

Where authoritative, leading research and scholarship by top academic researchers is published. Academic journals are usually peer-reviewed (see below). The research you find in academic journals is usually considered to be the highest quality possible in that academic discipline. Academic journals host the introduction and presentation of new research, as well as discussion and scrutiny of new and existing research. Academic journals publish research articles presenting original research; theories relating to academic research; and critical reviews of books and other texts. Academic journals are also called periodicals. One strong indication that you are reading an article in an academic journal is that it features an issue number, a volume number and page numbers.

Analysis

The process of breaking something (a text, concept, proposition, etc) up into smaller, manageable parts in order to understand it more fully. By breaking up or isolating these parts, we can ask questions about the meaning of something. Analysis involves thinking through the connections and interrelations between ‘bits’ of information to develop a deeper understanding. See: Discussion of analysis in Smart Thinking (Allen 2012, p. 174).

Argument

In academic usage, argument means something different to the ‘normal’ understanding (“a disagreement”). An academic argument is a specific form of reasoning that asserts a particular proposition. We might say, “the author’s argument is very convincing”, or perhaps “The counter-argument needs to be considered here”.