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Writing good paragraphs Higher Education Language & Presentation Support UTS:HELPS

Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

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Page 1: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Writing good paragraphs

Higher Education Language & Presentation Support

UTS:HELPS

Page 2: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Objectives

• To understand how a paragraph is structured • To show cohesiveness in a paragraph, and coherence in a

piece of academic writing • To be aware of the different types of paragraphs in a

piece of academic writing

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Page 3: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Questions

• How long should a good paragraph be? Is there a minimum/maximum length/number of sentences?

• Is a one-sentence paragraph ok? Yes/no? Why? • Do I need to have references in every paragraph?

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Page 4: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Paragraphs

• A paragraph is a related group of sentences which develops one main idea.

• The topic sentence expresses the main idea and usually occurs as the first sentence in each paragraph.

• Supporting sentences follow the topic sentence. • A paragraph may also contain a concluding sentence, or

sentences which provide a transition to the following paragraph.

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Page 5: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Structure 5

Page 6: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Long or short?

Choose Appropriate Paragraph Length • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and

unpleasant to read. If it is too long – break it at a logical place and create new topic sentence.

• Also look for paragraphs only two or three sentences long. They make academic writing seem disjointed or skimpy. Try combining a few short paragraphs into one, using a single topic sentence to hold them together.

(Example of student writing that needed restructure)

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Page 7: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Paragraph structure

• http://emedia.rmit.edu.au/learninglab/content/paragraphs

• How a paragraph can be structured • Examples of good topic sentences • Use of linking words

• Handout examples+ link to Monash essay

sample • http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/writing/

general/essay/sample-essay/index.xml

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Page 8: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Writing an introduction

• An introduction is used in an essay, a report, an article, a

thesis, a journal, a literature review, or any other piece of academic writing.

• If an introduction is poorly written, then you have lost your readers' goodwill and have confused them right from the beginning, and can be sure of losing marks.

• If the introduction is poorly written, then it usually follows that the rest of the essay /report etc. will be disorganised and confused. Getting the introduction right makes it far easier to write the rest of the assignment.

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Page 9: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

• Any introduction must contain the following: • Brief, relevant background information and/or other

contextualising material • A thesis statement • Scope points • Depending on the type of essay, etc. – your point of

view. • Any definitions that are needed to explain or limit the

scope of the essay question.

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Introduction

Page 10: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Workplace diversity is now recognised as an important feature in organisations, especially in multicultural nations like Australia. What communication problems might arise in a culturally diverse workplace, and how can managers best deal with them?

Over the past twenty five years, since Australia embraced multiculturalism as a policy, issues of intercultural communication have become more and more prominent in the workplace. However, until relatively recently, little had been written on these issues, and even now, many organisational managers have no training or knowledge of how to deal with communication problems, even though most workplaces are staffed by people of diverse cultures. Particular problem areas include the difficulties that some non-English speakers have in understanding safety instructions (figures produced by the ABS in 1997 show that migrant workers have a higher incidence of accidents at the workplace); an ignorance of the different forms of non-verbal communication used by other cultures (for example it is considered impolite in some societies for an employee to look directly at his or her employer), which can lead to misunderstandings and unpleasantness; and the lack of knowledge about differing expectations. Based on interviews with managers and staff in six organisations (public and commercial), this report examines these three problem areas, and shows that many of the difficulties faced by both natives and migrants in the workforce are caused by a lack of awareness of, and training in, intercultural communication.

This provides background information about the subject. This sentence explains the problem. Note that words from the report question are being reused to signal appropriate content The scope points start here and identify the subjects to be examined. The thesis statement explicitly states the specific focus of the report – to examine – and tells how this is achieved. I.e. through interviews.

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Conclusions

The conclusion should: • summarize all your arguments from the body, refer back to the

scope points from the introduction and the central topic; and evaluate it. This gives your essay a sense of unity.

• usually be a paragraph in length, but an extended essay (3000+ words) may have two or three paragraphs.

• make your final statement about the topic. • note any implications resulting from your discussion of the topic,

as well as recommendations, forecasting future trends, and the need for further research.

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Page 12: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Workplace diversity is now recognised as an important feature in organisations, especially in multicultural nations like Australia. What communication problems might arise in a culturally diverse workplace, and how can managers best deal with them?

It is clear, therefore, that not only do employees have to be trained for working in the Australian multicultural workplace, but managers also need to be trained. Managers must ensure that effective in-house training programs are provided for migrant workers, so that they become more familiar with the English language, Australian communication norms and the Australian work culture. In addition, Australian native English speakers need to be made aware of the differing cultural values of their workmates; particularly the different forms of non-verbal communication used by other cultures. Furthermore, all employees must be provided with clear and detailed guidelines about company expectations. The interviews with managers and staff reveal that a majority of managers must also have training in cross cultural communication and in managing a culturally diverse workplace. Above all, in order to minimise communication problems and to maintain an atmosphere of tolerance, understanding and cooperation in the multicultural workplace, managers need to have an effective knowledge about their employees, to understand how their social conditioning affects their beliefs about work and to have the communication skills to develop confidence and self-esteem among diverse work groups. The culturally diverse Australian workplace may never be completely free of communication problems, however, further studies to identify potential problems and solutions, as well as better training in cross cultural communication for managers and employees, should result in a much more understanding and cooperative environment.

This sentence provides a link to the previous paragraph and refers to the main subject discussed in the body . It uses keywords such as 'managers' and 'multicultural workplace'.

These sentences refer back to the problem areas stated in the introduction (scope points) and identify solutions.

This refers back to the thesis statement in the introduction and identifies a key finding of the study.

This is a statement about what the writer considers to be the most important recommendation.

The final sentence suggests future trends and makes a final recommendation for further study.

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Page 13: Higher Education Language & Presentation Support …Higher Education Language & Presentation Support . UTS: ... • A series of long paragraphs can make prose dense and ... • Handout

Conclusions

• The conclusion should not: • just sum up • end with a long quotation • focus merely on a minor point in your argument • introduce new material • Just rewrite the scope points from the introduction

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