AEP  8 ESSAY  

STEP 1:    Understanding the Essay Question and Narrowing the Thesis

1.   Finding a Focus for your Essay and Justifying that Focus.

Look at this Essay Question:     ICT  has brought a number of changes to the nature of work.

                                                     Have these changes been more beneficial for employers or employees?

The thesis of the Essay comes from the Question. The key word is Benefits. The decision you have to make

is your position = WHAT IS YOUR ARGUMENT   i.e. has it benefited employees or employers more.

The Question has also suggested that this is a COMPARISON or CONTRAST.  So once you decide who ICT benefits more

(eg employers), the other one (employees) will be the concession.

• In other words, If you decide ICT (teleworking) has mainly benefited employers, you admit that ICT is also beneficial to employees.
• This Concession should also be stated in your thesis, alongside your main argument.

• But before you can make a POSITION, you must look carefully at the Key words in the Essay Topic.
• This is so as to find a  specific FOCUS for your Thesis, since the topic is too large to write an Essay.

• ICT :   what technologies will you write about?
• Which technologies have brought significant changes to Working?
• What are the main change(s)?

The answers to these questions and therefore the focus of the Essay can come from your Readings.

The Readings  indicate TELEWORKING is a significant CHANGE to How we work, or more generally,

the location of the worker is now more flexible - he can be in another location - eg. the home or in another office

in a different  city or country.

OK, now you have decided to focus on Teleworking. What technologies have made teleworking possible?

• see   Developing a Thesis
•         What is a Thesis

2.  Parts of the Essay

INTRODUCTION

So now you must introduce the general topic then gradually lead into your focus and thesis.

eg What are the major changes in ICT? what changes have they made to the way we work?

What are the benefits to companies and employees?

Your introduction must show why you chose this focus and then  introduce the key words/ideas

that you use in your thesis.

Your introduction can include a preview (after your thesis), which gives the general topics your BODY paragraphs.

see writing page for introductions

BODY

• Now get back to the Key word in the Essay Question -  BENEFITS
• Which benefits will you choose?
• How will you divide your paragraphs?
• What will be in your Concession Paragraph?
• What other concessions will be in your main argument paragraphs?

Each paragraph topic must clearly support the thesis

The Topic Sentence therefore must have a clear LINK to the thesis

The Rest of the Paragraph must then support the paragraph topic

• Example: Using the thesis above, you need to find the main benefits to employers

From your readings, it appears one of the main economic benefits is saving costs

so BODY 1 could be the various costs the company saves on teleworking

Body 2 could be increase in productivity

Body 3, your concession paragraph, could argue some benefits for employees, but also indicate

that these could also cause disadvantages for employees  OR

that there are still more benefits to employers

see Writing page for more info on Paragraphs

CONCLUSION

• Restates your thesis but with added emphasis, since you have proved your argument
• Sums up the key arguments supporting your thesis
• Makes any predictions about the future impact of technologies on the work environment
• Makes any recommendations on how any negative effects may be reduced or avoided

see Writing page for more on Conclusions

REVISION

• After your first draft, REVISE - read your essay slowly to check how well it is written
• Finally, EDIT your Essay for common grammar ERRORS

see Proof Reading/Editing/Revising your Essay on the Writing page

WRITING STYLE (from Hamilton College)

see general Writing Advice

and Essentials of English Usage