| Abstract: | Since there is no single pedagogical theory that may provide all necessary strategies for the successful teaching of academic essay writing at senior levels, this paper makes a small but hopefully interesting contribution from the basis of Systemic Functional Grammar. It is intended to supplement teachers’ insights into the linguistic characteristics of academic writing considered ‘Excellent’, as much as to offer strategies for empowering students with a clearer idea of what is expected of them in academic writing. It attempts this by making explicit some of the grammatical choices made by successful writers, and how those choices facilitate the presentation of knowledge and ideas in ways that fulfil the expectations readers (and examiners) have of merit‐worthy writing. |
