A COURSE OF LECTURE ON RESEARCH METHODS AND ACADEMIC WRITING

LECTURE 7

THE STRUCTURE AND OUTLINING OF AN ESSAY

Lecturer: Mrs. Yerekhanova, C.of Ph.Sc., Senior Lecturer

PLAN:
1. Essay Planning: Outlining with a Purpose
2. A typical structure for an Academic Essay
3. Basic Essay Structure: Three main parts of an Essay
4. A few different ways to present information in an Essay
5. A Chronological Essay
6. A Compare-and-Contrast Essay
7. Problems-methods-solution

Outline is a direct and clear map of your essay. It shows what each paragraph will contain,
in what order paragraphs will appear, and how all the points fit together as a whole. Most
outlines use bullet points or numbers to arrange information and convey points. Outlining is a
vital part of the essay planning process. It allows the writer to understand how he or she will
connect all the information to support the thesis statement and the claims of the paper. It also
provides the writer with a space to manipulate ideas easily without needing to write complete
paragraphs.
Outlining is a process that takes time and patience to perfect. It involves already having a
working thesis statement and a general idea of an essay theme. Outlining allows the writer not
only to survey the information he or she is presenting, but also to plan how he or she will
communicate with the audience. Outlining allows the writer to experiment with style and tone to
determine which presentation strategies are best.
How Do I Develop an Outline?
The first step to develop an outline is establishing a working thesis statement. After
completing this step, you will have basic ideas for your body paragraphs. In addition, you should
have already gathered the evidence you need to develop and support the claims in your paper.

Sample Prompt

Many societies believe that the pursuit of happiness is a fundamental human right,
but it is also true that attainment of happiness remains elusive. Perhaps Bertrand
Russell had it right when he said, "To be without some of the things you want is an
indispensable part of happiness." What gives us more pleasure and satisfaction: the
pursuit of our desires or the attainment of them? Write a personal essay in which
you draw on your own experiences, observations, and reading to discuss your
answer to the question posed by the prompt. An effective essay will construct an
argument that accounts for the complexity of the opening truth statement even as it
weighs specific examples of pursuit and attainment to arrive at its conclusion.
 Step One: Select Your Format and Input Basic Ideas. Determine if you want to use
numbers, bullet points, or another style of outline. After choosing your format, look at your
working thesis for the essay theme and body paragraph topics. The prompt above is from the
"Essay Planning: How to Develop a Working Thesis Statement" handout, in which we developed
the following working thesis statement: "The thrill of pursuing happiness, the experiences along
the way, and the knowledge that comes from trial and error provide people with more pleasure
and satisfaction than the mere attainment of desires, despite the common perception that
attainment is the final goal." Use the working thesis statement to develop basic paragraph order
and format.

This outline uses the information from Introduction

the
working thesis statement to establish a basic
structure for the essay.
The supporting arguments from the
working thesis statement have been
composed into topic sentences for each
paragraph. In addition, the conclusion now
contains a qualified point from the working
thesis statement.
The topic sentences are repetitive in the
first draft of the outline only to increase the
simplicity of the example. As the outline
develops, and in outlines for actual
assignments, the topic sentences should
specifically support your thesis statement,
but they need not include this much
repetition.
Indeed, as you generate an outline, you
can begin to see the relationships between
ideas and state them more succinctly. The
first topic sentence might be rewritten now to
say, "The thrill of pursuing happiness may
allow us to attain desires, but more
importantly provides us the pleasure and
satisfaction of the chase itself."
- Hook
- Working thesis statement:
The thrill of pursuing happiness, the experiences
along the way, and the knowledge that comes from
trial and error provide people with more pleasure
and satisfaction than the mere attainment of desires,
despite the common perception that attainment is
the final goal.
 Body paragraph one: The thrill of pursuing
happiness
- Topic sentence: The thrill of pursuing happiness
provides people with more pleasure and satisfaction
than merely attaining desires.
 Body paragraph two: Experiences while pursuing
happiness
- Topic sentence: The experiences gained from
pursuing happiness provide people with more
pleasure and satisfaction than merely attaining
desires.
 Body paragraph three: The knowledge that comes
from trial and error
- Topic sentence: The knowledge that comes from
trial and error provides people with more pleasure
and satisfaction than merely attaining desires.
 Conclusion
- Synthesized point:
Because of the thrill of pursuing happiness, the
experiences along the way, and the knowledge
gained from trial and error, the attainment of goals
is less satisfying than many believe.

Step Two: Add Supporting Information and Begin to Develop a Paragraph After
establishing your basic outline, begin to add supporting details that support each topic sentence.
Remember that these details must support the thesis statement. Also, begin to consider possible
transition sentences between paragraphs. The following example develops just one paragraph
from the basic outline we created above.
 The outline of the paragraph has been
expanded
to develop basic supporting information. It will
use
personal experiences, observations, and readings
to accomplish this task, as required by the prompt.
In addition, the transition sentence shows how
that
the paragraph idea fits into the next topic and
even connects into the conclusion.
The outline allows the writer to preview and
rehearse the contents of the essay before drafting.
 Body paragraph one: The thrill of pursuing
happiness
- Topic sentence: The thrill of pursuing
happiness provides people with more pleasure
and satisfaction than merely attaining desires.
- Supporting information:
 Small gains along the way
 Setting and reaching minor goals
 Many less important desires attained along the
way
- Transition sentence: In addition to the thrill of
the chase, people enjoy the experiences that
occur along the way.

Step Three: Elaborate on Supporting Information and Include Essay Details.

At this point, you have enough information in your outline to construct a strong paragraph.
If you are writing an argumentative essay, include the counterargument and how you will refute
it. If you are writing a persuasive essay, include the facts/statistics that you will use to persuade
your audience. If you are writing an opinion essay, state your opinion and how it is relevant.

Because the prompt for this example states the
essay
is argumentative, the outline includes
counterargument
following the topic sentence.
This counterargument will be included in this body
paragraph of the essay. After it, the supporting
information works to both refute the counterargument
and support the topic sentence and thesis statement.
The counterargument is rough, so it will need to be
developed in more detail in the essay.
As the essay develops, the writer may find—
depending
on how much detail is needed to explain each of the
supporting claims— the paragraph could be split into
more than one paragraph supporting this one point
about the thrill of the pursuit.
 Body paragraph one: The thrill of pursuing
happiness
a - Topic sentence: The thrill of pursuing
happiness provides people with more pleasure
and satisfaction than merely attaining desires.
- Counterargument: However, some believe
that attaining desires is the final source of
happiness, and it does not matter how one gets
it, so the thrill of pursuing happiness is
irrelevant.
- Supporting information:
 Small gains along the way add together to
create more happiness than just the attainment.
 Setting and reaching minor goals provides
experience for the future when you try
something similar, which will bring even more
happiness.
 Many less important desires are attained
along the way, and each one provides the
happiness from both pursuing and attaining it
 This process should be repeated for each body paragraph, again keeping in mind that any one
main point may be expanded, if needed, into more than one paragraph to explain the evidence
fully.
Step Four: Consider How You Will Conclude Your Paper. The concluding paragraph of
your paper should tie together all your points to draw a logical conclusion from the evidence you
have discussed. The example this handout has used is for an argumentative essay. Usually, these
essays conclude by restating the main points as well as synthesizing a new point that includes the
thesis statement and counterargument. Although the main audience is those who agree with the
main point, you still need to have considered those who disagree with you. By creating a
synthesized conclusion, you create consensus between the two groups.
Remember that your conclusion may change  Conclusion
as you write your paper and process the specific - Restate main points:
information you have gathered into paragraphs.  The thrill of pursuing happiness provides
As this revision happens, you should change the people with more pleasure and satisfaction
conclusion section in your outline. than merely attaining desires.
 The experiences gained from pursuing
In addition, avoid repeating your topic sentences happiness provide people with more pleasure
and thesis statement in your conclusion; instead, and satisfaction than merely attaining desires.
rephrase the main argument from each paragraph.  The knowledge that comes from trial and
error provides people with more pleasure and
Furthermore, be sure the final emphasis falls on satisfaction than merely attaining desires.
your point: ending with the counterargument may - Synthesized point:
undermine the validity of your entire paper
 Attaining goals provides some happiness.
because it will be what your readers remember.
 However, because of the thrill of pursuing
End with a final appeal to your central claim.
happiness, the experiences along the way, and
the knowledge gained from trial and error, the
attainment of goals is less satisfying than many
believe.
Introduction and conclusion
In the model of an essay demonstrated here, the introduction and conclusion do similar
things. They briefly introduce / summarise the topic and explain how the question or issue will
be answered/has been answered. This is done through a sentence (known as the ‘thesis
statement’) that directly addresses or answers the essay topic.
Thesis statement
A thesis statement is the main point of an essay. It summarises the main aim of the essay
and tells the reader what to expect in terms of an answer to the essay question (if it is given as a
question) or to outline the main point being made.
Example: This essay outlines the most commonly proposed initiatives for addressing
climate change and argues that to address this issue both practical and political solutions must be
found.
Topic sentences
A topic sentence is the main idea for a paragraph. (This idea is sometimes referred to as an
‘argument’). You should be able to identify one clear topic sentence for each paragraph. It is
usually (but not always) the first sentence. It tells the reader what to expect to read about in that
paragraph. The idea expressed by the topic sentence should relate to the overall main aim of the
essay (the thesis statement).
Example: One of the most frequently cited initiatives for addressing climate change is the
development of education programs for consumers that explain how to identify products that are
more environmentally sustainable.
If you show just your topic sentences to your tutor or lecturer, she/he should be able to get
a good idea of what your essay is about. Checking the topic sentences for each of your
paragraphs is a good way to see if your ideas are clear, and that you are not repeating the same
point. If you find your paragraph contains additional information that doesn’t relate to your topic
sentence, you might need to move this extra information to another paragraph or create a new
paragraph with a new topic sentence.
The other sentences in your body paragraphs. The remainder of the ideas in the
paragraph should elaborate on the topic sentence by providing more detailed description and
explanation, or by providing examples. These ideas make up the evidence that backs up the idea
or argument expressed by your topic sentence.
Using references
As part of the evidence you provide for each of your topic sentences, you draw on ideas
from a range of sources (e.g. the set readings for the unit or other readings you have located
yourself through your research into the topic. These include materials from journals, books,
reports and other sources, both hard copy materials as well as those available digitally via the
internet).
How to present your essay?
Presentation: The text must be presented so that it is readable in its expression and legible in
its format on the page. Word-processed presentations are expected, the main font being a 12-
point serif font (such as Times Roman). The text should be printed clearly in black (except where
colour is needed for illustrations). Express yourself as clearly as you can. ‘Signpost’ the structure
of your text for the reader—for instance, by including section heads (in bold).
The organization of the text can also be improved by paying attention to formatting
conventions like page numbers, (double) line spacing, margins (top and bottom, left and right),
bullet points, indentations for quotations of 4 lines or more, paragraphs (separated by a blank
line) and font (size, italics, and bold). Do not use underlining. Illustrations can be used to
enhance the presentation—figures and tables—they are indeed expected where your topic is
visually-oriented (shot-by-shot analyses of TV programmes, films or ads, for instance, should
include sample frames wherever possible).
The careful selection and use of relevant images scanned from print or downloaded from
electronic sources and strategically pasted into your document can improve both your
presentation and your argument. Cropping may also be used to good effect, focusing the reader’s
attention on key details. Avoid purely decorative images.
If you include an illustration, be sure to discuss it in the text. All illustrations must be
properly labelled (e.g. Fig. 1: Close-up of Coca-Cola bottle). Note that the titles of books, films,
television programmes, newspapers and magazines should always be in italics (without
quotation-marks). Copy-edit your text (e.g. for spelling, grammar and style) as carefully as is
expected for published work.
Coverage: All parts of the set assignment must be covered (note in particular where a
question has more than one part). All of the content must be relevant to the set question and the
relevance of each point must be clearly established. Get to the topic immediately: long
introductions which are not closely related to the exact topic are a waste of space. Waffle, in
particular, is guaranteed to lose marks. Make sure that you cover all of the key issues but on the
other hand don’t try to cover too much territory. If space limits your focus, explain what you are
not trying to cover. Make up for this in the detail which you go into about the aspects that you
are covering.
Sources: You must demonstrate consultation of relevant academic source materials, which
can include books, journal articles, reports, databases and webpages. Both broad and intensive
critical reading must be evident. Avoid referencing in footnotes; you should refer to your sources
in the main body of your text thus: (Smith 1990: 25). Secondary references should be cited thus:
(Smith 1990 cited in Jones 1999: 2).
Avoid over using direct quotation of academic sources-- demonstrate your understanding by
paraphrasing points and then referencing them. Where you do quote directly, indent quotes
which take up more than 3 lines and drop the inverted commas. Do not use italics to indicate
quotes. You are normally expected to include an alphabetical list of references at the end of your
text. These are works actually cited in the main body of the text (unlike a bibliography). All of
the in-text citations must appear in this list.
Follow this format closely unless otherwise specified (noting in particular that the titles of
books and journals should always be in italics):
1. Hodge, Bob & David Tripp (1986), Children and Television: A Semiotic Approach.
Cambridge: Polity Press.
2. Jaglom, Leona M. & Howard Gardner (1981), ‘The Preschool Television Viewer as
Anthropologist’. In Hope Kelly & Howard Gardner (Eds.): Viewing Children Through
Television (New Directions for Child Development 13). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass,
pp. 9-30.
3. Brown, Mac H., Patsy Skeen & D. Keith Osborn (1979), ‘Young Children’s Perception
of the Reality of Television’, Contemporary Education, Vol. 50, No. 3: 129-33.
Knowledge and Understanding: It is essential to demonstrate your knowledge and
understanding of relevant issues, concepts, theories and findings introduced in lectures and other
sources. You need to be able to provide an accurate and balanced summary of these and to apply
them appropriately to the topic.
Map out key standpoints regarding the main issues. Synthesise where appropriate — that is,
bring together similar approaches by different writers. Summarise the views of particular
theorists and researchers in your own words. Relate these closely to the specific focus of the
assignment. Provide appropriately detailed examples.
Critical Evaluation: The best work not only describes and summarises theories and findings
but also critically interprets them. When an author's views are simply declared as part of
evidence and argument, this is known as an ‘appeal to an authority’: you need to critically
evaluate such views. The task is not to 'criticise' the work of experienced professionals on the
basis of your own knowledge of the topic or of research methodology but to show that you are
capable of thinking critically and with insight about the issues raised. Relate different studies to
each other. Compare and contrast different approaches and identify their strengths and
limitations. What questions do they leave unanswered? Try to be as balanced and impartial as
possible.
Evidence and Coherent Argument: Organise your materials as effectively as you can to
support the development of an orderly argument. Do not leap from point to point. Take nothing
for granted. Simply quoting assertions does not count as evidence. All assertions must be
supported with the best evidence you can find. Evidence is provided by drawing upon the
analysis and interpretation of findings.
Conclusions must follow coherently from the evidence; do not be tempted into speculation,
prediction or moralising. Unless specifically called for, personal opinions should not feature.
Where data collection and analysis is required (qualitative or quantitative), it should be
undertaken by using an established methodology. Specify this methodology and refer to a
published example of its application in the field. Discuss the appropriateness of that method for
the task in hand. Show an awareness of the limitations of your own study. Have regard to any
legal or ethical considerations.
How Do I Write An Essay In Chronological Order?
Chronological essays to write about an event or person from history. Writing in
chronological order ensures there is an introduction of the topic right from the beginning to the
reader. Writing in chronological order can be difficult, but by arranging your facts and using the
essay's question as a guide, you can create flowing, informative essays.
1. Make a plan.
Collect all the facts and information you know about the subject of your essay. Include
anything that may be relevant.
2. Order your ideas.
Usually, a chronological essay will start right at the beginning. If you are writing about a
person, start at the person's birth.
An essay on the Titanic, for example, would begin at the start of its construction on March
31, 1909. Then go through the information, sorting by date, until the end. The end will usually be
a death or the end of a project. For the Titanic, it would be when the ship sank on April 14, 1912
at 2:20 a.m.
3. Separate your ideas into possible paragraphs.
For example, dedicate a paragraph explaining the idea behind the Titanic. What did they
aim to create when they built the Titanic?
The second paragraph may be about the construction of the Titanic, the third about the
planned voyage, etc.
The last paragraph(s) should sum up the information you have given. For example, you may
write about how the Titanic changed the boat-making industry and how people reacted to the
news of the Ship's sinking.
4. Research
Consider anything that might be an additional contribution to each paragraph to make it
more informative.
Chronological essays need to be factual, so the more relevant facts you can add, the more
interesting your essay will be.
5. Write your essay.
  Ensure you stick to the plan and proofread the finished copy. Make sure your facts have
proper referencing and that the essay flows smoothly.
 A Compare-and-Contrast Essay. First of all, we need to find out what is a compare and
contrast essay. The goal of a compare and contrast essay is to identify and compare similarities
and differences between two objects. There are various ways of comparative analysis. However,
let us dwell on the key points that should be included in the compare and contrast essay.
 Context. Define the context against which you will conduct a comparative analysis. In other
words, describe the problem, theory, or idea containing objects that you need to compare. For
example, if you are analyzing two similar legal norms, it is advisable to touch on the problems of
the field of law in which they are applied. For greater credibility, your own conclusions should
not lie in the basis, but a reference to authoritative sources. A comparative analysis outside the
context will deprive you of the foundation on which you will build your arguments in the process
of comparing the selected objects.
 Basis for comparison. In the study, you need to justify the reason why you are comparing
the selected objects. For example, you decided to compare what is more useful for a healthy diet:
cabbage or beets. Readers should be shown the logic that guided you when selecting objects for
comparison. And, for example, explain why you do not compare the nutritional benefits of
carrots and cucumber. This is necessary for the reader to see that your choice is logical and
conscious. Indicate the reasons of your choice.
 Arguments. You write a comparative analysis, so it is logical to operate with facts that can
and should be compared when comparing two objects. Your statements are designed to show
how objects relate to each other. Do these objects supplement and enrich each other? Do they
contradict, dispute, or exclude each other? The purpose of the arguments put forward is to show
the ratio of the two objects. Your facts are built on the basis of the context of the idea (problems,
 theories) from which you have identified the compared objects. Showing the ratio of objects, you
can use the following words: while, opposite, besides, complementing, excluding, etc.
 Methods of comparative analysis. Writing the introductory part of the work: the context,
reasons for comparison, and arguments determine how you will compare objects. There are three
methods for this:
A) First set out all the pros and cons of the object X, then do the same for the object Y.
B) Sequentially compare the similar elements of the objects X and Y.
C) Compare X and Y, placing more emphasis on one of the objects. This method is
recommended in case X and Y cannot be fully compared. Thus, the object X can act as a tool to
determine if the object Y corresponds to the arguments you put forward.
 The relationship of the compared objects to the arguments. The work will look like a
singular whole if you show the relationship between the objects and the key arguments. Without
such a connection, the reader will find it difficult to see how the next part of the object
comparison correlates with the arguments.
Problem solving methods are the steps we use to find solutions to problems and issues.
Humans are naturally quite good at problem solving, and we often use sophisticated methods that
we don't even know we're using to try to get to the answer. Learning about the methods will
enable you to recognize the approaches you already use and identify other approaches that could
be useful for you. Then, you will have several tools to help you strategize solutions to difficult
problems.
In addition, problem solving techniques encompass many of the other top skills employers
seek. For example, LinkedIn’s list of the most in-demand soft skills of 2019 includes creativity,
collaboration and adaptability, all of which fall under the problem-solving umbrella.
Despite its importance, many employees misunderstand what the problem solving method
really involves.
Effective problem solving doesn’t mean going away and coming up with an answer
immediately. In fact, this isn’t good problem solving at all, because you’ll be running with the
first solution that comes into your mind, which often isn’t the best.
Instead, you should look at problem solving more as a process with several steps involved that
will help you reach the best outcome. Those steps are:

1. Define the problem 1. First, you must define the problem.

2. List all the possible solutions What is its cause? What are the signs
3. Evaluate the options there's a problem at all?
4. Select the best solution
5. Create an implementation plan 2. Next, you identify various options for
6. Communicate your solution solutions. What are some good ideas to
solve this?
3. Then, evaluate your options and
choose from among them. What is the
best option to solve the problem?
What's the easiest option? How should
you prioritize?
4. Finally, implement the chosen
solution. Does it solve the problem? Is
 there another option you need to try?

As we have already seen before, you can use different tools during the problem-solving
process.
What, Who, Where, When, How, Why
Thanks to this popular tool, you can analyse precisely the situation by asking yourself these
simple yet important questions:
What: Describe the problem
Who: Who does this problem concern?
Where: Where has the problem taken place?
When: How long has this problem existed?
How: How can you proceed? What are the resources that you are able to put in place?
Why: What are the reasons and cause of the problem?

WORK CITED:
1. https://www.wrike.com/blog/problem-solving-techniques/
2. 1. Academic Writing from Paragraph to Essay. Dorothy E. Zemach., Lisa A. Rumisek.
Macmillan, 2006 - Academic writing - 131 pages.
3. Academic Essay Structures and Formats. Student Writing Support. University of Minnesota,
https://writing.umn.edu
4. https://www.sjsu.edu/writingcenter/docs/handouts/Essay%20Planning%20-%20Outlining.pdf
4. Cambridge English Language Assessment. Research Notes. Issue 64, May, 2016. Printed in
the UK by Canon Business Services.

KINDLY VISIT THE FOLLOWING LINKS FOR MORE DETAILS:

1. Solving Problem-Solving Problems: Solution Step Discipline Brian A. Alenskis Purdue
University file:///C:/Users/fatim/Downloads/solving-problem-solving-problems-solution-step-
discipline.pdf
2. Western Sydney University Library.
https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/1082500/Essay_Structure.pdf
3. https://www.tcd.ie/disability/assets/doc/pdf/essayWritingVisualGuide.pdf