Literacy Essay Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1.) How do I write an introduction for this essay?

• Go to this page for more information

2.) How do we write a conclusion for this essay?

• Go to this page for more information

3.) Do I need a thesis statement for this essay?

• YES, but let's not worry about it until AFTER the individual conferences. Let's get our body paragraphs solidly written and in the order we want them. Then, we'll worry about crafting a thesis statement that matches the essay and brings the whole essay (with all the main points) together.

• See also this page

4.) How should I organize my essay?

• The "planning exercise" I had you do started with the 2-3 paragraphs that involve what other writers have to say about the topic (and your responses). These paragraphs were followed by the 1-3 paragraphs that included your own ideas about the topic (which did not involve other writers). However, this is NOT the order you need to use for your paper. Organize your body paragraphs -- your main points -- in the order you think is best:

  • Maybe you want to ALTERNATE ideas from the other writers with ideas of your own.

  • Maybe you want to SANDWICH ideas of your own in between ideas from the other writers -- ideas from other writers begin and end the body, and your ideas are in the middle.

  • Maybe you want to SANDWICH ideas from the other writers in between ideas of your own -- your ideas begin and end the body, and ideas from other writers are in the middle.

  • Maybe you want to arrange your main points from WEAKEST to STRONGEST.

  • Maybe you want to arrange your main points from STRONGEST to WEAKEST.

  • Maybe you want to arrange your main points from MOST COMMON reasons to LESS COMMON reasons.

  • Maybe you want to arrange your main points from LESS COMMON reasons to MOST COMMON reasons.

  • Maybe you want to arrange your main points so that somewhat "similar" or "related" ideas follow each other.

5.) I feel that my essay doesn't "flow" from paragraph to paragraph. How can I improve this?

• Your paper might NOT "flow" in the first or second drafts -- because in these drafts you should be more worried about developing paragraphs rather than about "flow." The paragraphs in your first or second drafts might not even be in the order you will eventually put them in -- so worrying about "flow" this early might be unnecessary. Also, since this essay is NOT a "narrative" (story) told in a "chronological" timeline, you might feel that there is no "flow." This is common. But, once you have your body paragraphs developed and in the order you want them, then we can worry about flow. At this point, go to this page to see a list of transitions, which can help you with "flow."

6.) I feel like I'm "repeating myself" in each paragraph -- each paragraph seems to follow the same pattern. What can I do about it?

• This is COMMON, especially since the "planning exercise" I had you do was set up so that the paragraphs were all structured the same way. Hopefully, as you revise from your first draft to later drafts, you can "smooth out" the sentences in each paragraph, which might help them sound less "patterned." Also, you might consider re-ordering sentences in your paragraphs. Perhaps ALTERNATE sentences about another writer's ideas with sentences about your own ideas, rather than putting all the other writer's ideas first and following that with your own ideas.

7.) Do I need to include reasons for going to college that I disagree with?

• NO. I just suggested that you think about reasons for going to college that you disagree with to get you to look at all sides of the issue and perhaps maybe to find 1-2 reasons that you felt particularly opposed to. If this isn't the case for you, don't worry about it. Your paper could contain just reasons that you agree with. Or, your paper could contain reasons that you agree with and reasons that you are ambivalent about.

8.) When I write the paragraphs about my own ideas about why people go to college, can I include my own reasons for going to college and use my personal experience? Or should it only be reasons that others go to college? Can I do both? Should they all be in the same paragraph?

• YES, you can definitely include your own reasons for going to college. Maybe 1-2 of your reasons for going to college match what the other writers had to say, so you can put your personal experiences in those paragraphs. Or maybe you have reasons for going to college that none of the writers mentioned; then, you can put those reasons in paragraphs that are only about ideas of your own. And, you could include reasons for going to college that apply to your friends, family, or others you know. And, you can do both.

• I'm not sure that all your reasons for going to college should be in the same paragraph. Remember the "one idea per paragraph" rule. Of course, if they all closely relate together, then it's possible they might belong in the same paragraph.

9.) How do I include the other writers' ideas? I feel like I'm not "interpreting" them correctly.

10.) I'm having trouble putting other writers' ideas into my own paper. I feel like I'm not putting their ideas into my own words correctly. I'm wondering if that is what they really meant.

• There are basically two (2) ways to include other writers' ideas in our own essays:
   

  • The first way is to QUOTE what another writer has to say. This means copying their words and punctuation marks EXACTLY and putting quotation marks " " around the entire quotation. Using quotations reduces the chances of you mis-representing someone else's ideas. But too much quotation in a paper is also bad.

  • The second way is to SUMMARIZE what another writer has to say. This means SELECTING the ideas you want to use and putting them into your own words. But doing this means that you should have a good understanding of what the other writer is saying. Of course, the way YOU understand or interpret a text might be a little bit different than how someone else understands or interprets the same text. However, as long as you are "being true to the text" -- that is, you are not putting in something that is not there or putting words into the other writer's mouth -- you should be OK. If in doubt, always ask your professor!

11.) Do we need to introduce other writers using their full names and essay titles (in " " marks) when we quote or summarize them in our essays, and do we need to put the page numbers in parentheses ( ) after we quote or summarize them?

• YES, YES, YES.