Academic voice: A dialogical framework for academic writing

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.56285/jltVol60iss1a6880

Keywords:

academic voice, academic acculturation, academic literacy, academic discourse, academic writing, framework, higher education

Abstract

This article explores the multifaceted concept of academic voice in higher education and operationalises voice as a powerful tool enabling students to navigate the academic landscape and effectively contribute to academic discourse. Drawing on a synthesis of theoretical insights this contribution outlines how academic voice, acculturation, literacy, discourse, and writing are intricately linked. By identifying critical challenges students face, such as maintaining disciplinary alignment while developing authorial identity and reader engagement a framework for understanding academic voice is proposed. This framework links key areas of academic discourse to core aspects of voice. Additionally, the applicability of this framework is provided to support educators, course developers and material designers in fostering students' academic voices. The article concludes with directions for future research, including the role of remedial academic writing programmes and emerging technologies in developing academic voice.

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Author Biography

DJ Cloete, Akademia, South Africa

DJ Cloete is a lecturer in Languages and Cultural Sciences at Akademia. He teaches the modules Afrikaans and Dutch as well as Linguistics to undergraduate students. He is furthermore the coordinator and lecturer for the academic language proficiency programme. Mr Cloete is currently a PhD student at the University of Antwerp, where his research investigates the integration of AI literacy into academic literacy development and language education in higher education contexts.

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Published

2026-06-29

How to Cite

Cloete, D. (2026). Academic voice: A dialogical framework for academic writing. Journal for Language Teaching , 60(1), Article 6880. https://doi.org/10.56285/jltVol60iss1a6880

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