Paragraph Structure: The Checklist That You Can Use

1. To start the paragraph, you have to write a clear and convincing topic sentence that outlines the key idea that you’ll discuss in this part of the paper.
2. The argument expressed in the topic sentence has to be substantiated by various examples. Supporting sentences are specifically intended for this purpose. Remember that you should always provide first the most convincing or interesting examples. In other words, you need to put your best foot forward.
3. Finally, you have to write a concluding sentence that summarizes the key points of a paragraph. Remember that this sentence should not present new information.

These are the most important components of paragraph structure. Yet, there are several important rules and principles that you should remember when writing paragraphs. Here are the most important ones:

1. First, you should not start or end your paragraph with a quote. Quotations should be used in supporting sentences where you give the main examples. Remember that the professor is interested in your ideas, rather then someone else’s
2. Secondly, you need to make sure that your topic sentence is not too general. It has to advance an interesting and debatable argument. You need to avoid banal statements such as “Shakespeare was a great playwright.” It doesn’t really tell anything new.
3. Use quotations sparingly. A paragraph that consists only of direct quotes borrowed from someone else will not improve the quality of your paper.
4. Don’t write extremely long sentences that may make it difficult for the reader to understand your ideas.
5. Make sure that your paragraphs are not too long. Certainly, it is rather difficult to determine the optimal length of a paragraph; yet, a paragraph shouldn’t be longer than half a page.
6. Finally, your paragraph should be logically complete. It has to provide a clear discussion of a single, main idea, and you shouldn’t let the idea suspended in mid air.

Paragraph Structure: What Else You Need to Keep in Mind

Case study format: main parts

What are case studies? Case studies are thorough, in-depth explorations of a single, specific subject (person, company, historical period). You, as a researcher, will need to dig deep into the problem and collect the tiniest details related to it. Based on the case study research you perform, you then write a report containing the main parts of a case report form:

1. Background information.
2. Problem statement.
3. Analysis of case data.
4. Discussion of several alternative solutions.
5. Recommendation (the choice of the best solution).

Case study format: basic recommendations

Now, as you know the main parts of a good case study template, you may have a reasonable question: how to write each of these parts? Here are some valuable recommendations for you:

• When providing background information, you should enumerate the most important factors or players relevant to your case. For example, you might discuss the organizational structure and reporting procedures if you discuss a company. Or, you might describe the main symptoms if you discuss a person’s condition.
• When stating the main problem, you should explain why you consider this issue as the most important. Remember that formulating the right questions is the first step to finding the right answers to them. Find the dependent and independent variables and try to establish the cause-and-effect relations between them. For example, you may write that the company’s sales decreased within recent months. In the next sentence, you might state that staff turnover had a significant impact upon the sales. In this scenario, the sales are the dependent variable, and the turnover rates are the independent variable. Do not forget to include tables and graphs in your case study whenever they are necessary to support your claims.
• To analyze case data, you should consider the following criteria: importance, urgency, causes and effects, constraints and opportunities. Use these assessment criteria to address the research problems you have chosen.
• To discuss alternative solutions to the problems raised, you should discuss several options and weigh the pros and cons of each of them.
• Finally, the recommendations are your main conclusion. After you have discussed the best suitable solutions, you should give a concrete answer to the main research problem you identified in the second section.

Case study format issues

Even if you know what to write in your case studies, you may still have difficulties formatting your reports. Here are some tips to help you polish your papers:

1. Use font 12 Arial or Times New Roman;
2. 1 inch margins on all sides;
3. double spacing;
4. consider the rules of a particular citation style (for instance, APA and Harvard have different requirements for not only citing sources, but also formatting title pages);
5. if you use tables and graphs, do not forget to mention the source where you have found them (it will help you convince your audience that the data is genuine and it will also help you avoid plagiarism).

Hopefully, these recommendations have saved you from a case study disaster. Do not hesitate to use these valuable tips and have a nice day!

Common Errors in English: The Danger of Typos

Misspellings are probably the most common mistakes in English that ESL students and even native speakers sometimes make. Special attention should be paid to words which look or sound similarly, for example:

1. Week vs. weak. Don’t confuse a period of seven days with someone who is lacking in physical or mental strength.
2. Two vs. too. Again, there is no need to use a numeral and an adverb interchangeably.
3. Advise (verb) vs. Advice (noun).
4. Desert vs. Dessert. Again, a waterless land has nothing to do with sweat meals.
5. Then (adverb) vs. than (conjunction).
6. Right vs. write.
7. See vs. sea.
8. Vocation (an occupation) vs. vacation (a break that is taken from studies or work).

These are quite common errors in English, and they cannot be eliminated by text editors because they don’t understand what exactly a person had in mind when writing a sentence. In addition, students shouldn’t forget lexical mistakes. Proper word choice is a vital component of a good paper. Here are some common mistakes you should keep in mind:

1. Ascribe (to give credit to) vs. describe (depict);
3. Affect as opposed to effect;
4. To regret of something. In this case, the preposition of is not necessary.
5. Anyways instead of anyway. Remember that the first word anyways is too colloquial and it cannot be used in a paper.
6. To borrow vs. to loan. The first verb means to receive money from somebody, whereas loan means to give money to somebody.
7. Another vs. other. Again, this is a common error in English. Another generally means extra or one more, while other implies difference between two or more things.

Common Errors in English: Understanding Grammar

Surely, grammar mistakes are the reason why students often receive low grades for their papers. These are the things that you need to avoid:

1. Can not instead of cannot.
2. The use of ones instead of one’s in Possessive Case.
3. Failure to use the proper sequence of tenses;
4. The use of plural number with uncountable nouns. For example, words such as knowledges or informations are not acceptable in any way.
5. Fail to distinguish between which and that.

Overall, there are many textbooks and reference books that can help students avoid common mistakes in English. If you use them, your papers will earn you higher grades. So, a paper free from any mistakes is the goal that you should aim for.

Response paper: main goals

When writing a response essay, your main goals are:

• to show that you perfectly understand the author’s messages (by providing a brief summary);
• analyze the authors’ style and techniques;
• express your personal opinion about the text under analysis
• explain why the work affected you the way it did.

Response paper: good starters

How to write a response paper? Imagine that you have a unique chance to write a letter to the author and share your opinion of his/her work and ideas concerning the discussed problem. Respect the author and show that you have done your homework and you have something to say about the text. However, you should note that the author already knows what his/her text contains and therefore, if you provide a summary, it should be a very brief one and followed by your concrete response to the ideas and text itself.
 
What you always need to add toresponse papers is a discussion of the ideas and impressions that you had after reading. To do this, you could try for instance to answer the following questions:

1. How do you feel about the author’s main ideas?
2. Do you agree or disagree with the author?
3. Do you have any experience relevant to the topic and that you would like to share?
4. Have you read or heard previously anything related to the discussed topic?

Response paper: sample outline

This is a sample response paper outline you may want to use in your essays:

1. Introduction (do not forget to introduce the author and the work you are going to discuss and briefly state your main response in a thesis statement.)
2. Main body
   • A brief summary
   • Analysis and evaluation of the author’s main ideas and manner of presentation.
   • Personal response (discuss your reaction to the text, your feelings and impressions and try to explain why you feel that way.)
3. Conclusion (briefly summarize what you have said and repeat your thesis statement using different words.)

Response paper: phrases to use

When writing response papers, feel free to use “I”. Also, these phrases can be helpful for expressing your personal opinion:

• In my opinion…;
• I feel that…;
• It seems to me that…;
• I am suggesting that…;
• I would argue that…;

As you see, writing papers of response can be rather easy. You could simply use this quick guide to direct your efforts and gain maximum effect.

1. Should government toughen up gun control laws?
2. Is it ethical and reasonable to pursue the policy of affirmative action?
3. Should school administrators promote bilingual education?
4. Is it necessary to set caps for the compensation of corporate executives?
5. Should government invest more in space exploration?
6. Is global warming a real threat to people’s wellbeing?
7. Can a preventive war be ethically justified?
8. Is it necessary to stop Iran’s nuclear program?
9. Is it possible to make a distinction between Eastern and Western cultures?
10. Is it effective and ethical to outsource jobs to developing countries?

These questions are still open to debate, and one can make a good persuasive speech about each of them.

Persuasive Speech Ideas: The Ethical Dimensions of Science

• Should government promote stem cell research?
• Are genetically modified products a solution to the world’s problems or a potential threat?
• Is the use of antidepressants always justified? Are they a good solution to mental disorders?
• Can IQ tests effectively measure various aspects of intelligence?
• Are the principles of social Darwinism compatible with modern science?
• Can psychological experiments on obedience be ethically justified?
• Is it ethical to rely on racial profiling while treating hereditary diseases?
• Is it necessary to continue the development of nuclear power technologies?

You can use one of the above questions as a persuasive speech idea. If you put forward a good argument about it, you will definitely impress the audience.

Persuasive Speech Ideas: What Else You Can Discuss

1. Dress code in high schools;
2. Ethical aspects of euthanasia;
3. Stop Online Privacy Act and its hypothetical outcomes;
4. Peer-to-peer file sharing;
5. Hackers and their moral code;
6. Nuclear weapons as a deterrent of war;
7. Animal testing: its advantages and disadvantages.

On the whole, these persuasive speech ideas can be used by people who want to speak before an audience or write argumentative papers. You can definitely pick one of them.