Argues that hedging devices are a major pragmatic feature of effective scientific writing, and that students of English for special purposes should be taught to recognize and use them in their own work. The article examines the frequency, functions, and realizations of hedges and discusses a range of strategies for familiarizing students with…

Use of a seminar technique to improve the oral English communicative competence of Chinese postgraduate students in science and technology helped the students to learn foreign culture, science, and technology, as well as the foreign language, and helped them to lose their communication apprehension. (Author/CB)