WHAT IS "ACADEMIC" WRITING? According to L. Lennie Irvin, most people who arrive at college or university often fear the unknown and have misconceptions about what "Academic" Writing is. The author claims that after their freshman years, students have half-baked ideas about what they are doing when they write an essay. At the very worst, some of them have no clear idea at all. L. Lennie Irvin points out the importance of developing a "writer´s sense" within the writing situation. In writing, learners are separated from the audience in place and time so they must create a context. As their words are silent, they need to use punctuation and word choice to communicate their tone. Furthermore, students need to develop researching skills, complex text reading ability, key disciplinary concepts understanding, and some strategies for synthesizing, analizing and responding critically to new information. This context must be physical, social and cultur