[ti:Structure Your Essay in Five Paragraph Essay Format] [ar:Jerri Watson] [al:Education Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA Learning English Education Report. [00:05.24]Many students say there is no easy way [00:09.42]to write college papers. [00:11.56]This may be especially true [00:14.27]if English is not your first language. [00:18.20]Most teachers agree that there is no single correct way [00:24.08]to create a personal essay or research paper. [00:28.26]But there are methods to help you structure your papers. [00:33.24]One way often used to structure writing [00:37.07]is the traditional five-paragraph essay. [00:40.59]Many students learn this form in middle and high school. [00:45.89]The paragraphs follow conventions or established rules. [00:52.06]The first paragraph is introductory. [00:56.29]It tells the reader what the paper is about. [01:00.23]It is followed by three paragraphs containing evidence [01:05.36]that support the writer's argument. [01:07.65]The final paragraph is the conclusion. [01:11.73]It provides a reasoned opinion based on the evidence. [01:17.32]Allison Cummings teaches English at Southern New Hampshire University. [01:24.00]She is among many professors who find this form [01:29.19]too simple for college work. [01:31.68]Still, on the positive side, [01:35.16]Ms. Cummings says the five-paragraph essay form [01:39.24]teaches a student some tools for writing a paper. [01:43.23]She says the form teaches the need [01:46.96]for the opening statement or thesis. [01:49.81]This thesis tells the reader what will come next. [01:54.74]In addition students who have learned [01:58.92]to write a five-paragraph essay [02:01.31]know they must provide evidence. [02:04.77]And Ms. Cummings says [02:06.92]the writer will know a conclusion is required. [02:10.45]But she also says the five-paragraph essay [02:15.68]falls far short of college writing needs. [02:19.40]"Most of the subjects that students [02:23.39]are asked to write about [02:24.57]are going to involve more paragraphs, [02:27.17]and more points and more complexities." [02:29.22]So if a traditional method [02:32.16]for structuring a research paper does not work, [02:35.71]what steps can help you structure your writing. [02:39.15]Ms. Cummings' students learn several ways [02:42.68]to organize their papers. [02:44.82]The pace at which they learn differs. [02:48.50]Ms. Cummings says doing research for a paper [02:52.20]helps some students in their writing. [02:54.84]The teacher says noting the way [02:58.42]the research is structured [03:00.01]can help students organize their own writing. [03:03.21]"They will read articles [03:05.70]and see what other people argue about whatever issues [03:08.43]they are writing on and get a sense of [03:11.02]what the points out there, [03:13.86]what the debates are out there, [03:14.80]and then let that structure what they come up with." [03:17.74]Allison Cummings offers sample outlines -- [03:21.29]examples for organizing papers. [03:24.33]"If they want to use them, [03:26.87]they are free to follow that kind of standard template." [03:29.80]Ms. Cummings also provides her students [03:34.03]with examples of successful and unsuccessful student papers. [03:39.17]That way her class can see [03:42.15]what works in a piece of writing and what does not. [03:46.05]And that's the VOA Learning English Education Report. [03:51.97]I'm Jerri Watson.