Padrões Tipológicos da Função Interpessoal Modalidade em Artigos Científi cos de Ciências Agrárias: Diferenças e Similitudes entre Português e Inglês Typological Patterns across the Interpersonal Metafuntion Modality in Agricultural Scientifi c Articles: Differences and Similarities both in Portugue

ABSTRACT The purpose of this investigation is identifying typological patterns of modality present in Brazilian Portuguese and English, specifi cally in scientifi c articles in the area of agricultural sciences. This would contribute to the teaching of English for Academic Purposes for graduate students of agricultural sciences. Thus, the authors compare scientifi c articles both in Portuguese and in English to observe the use of modal patterns. The computational tool AntConc 3.2.1w enables us to both identify and categorize the modalized structures so that use and frequency can be contrasted. The results unveil a strong convergence of use, which envisions the possibility of teaching approaches in the foreign language based on the familiarity with the genre. In conclusion, the authors reflect on the contribution of Systemic Functional Linguistics to the teaching and learning of English in academic context. Key-words: Modality – Scientifi c Articles - Agricultural Sciences – Portuguese and English.What can the language educator do to help those who have been shut out of scientifi c discourse? The language educator can only help the learner if (s)he understands how the discourse works