The Basics of APA Style
Directions for Writing Essays
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ALL PAPERS MUST BE EMAILED BEFORE THE START OF CLASS TO cfbruno@sbcglobal.net .
As I am reviewing your papers, I see that some of you are having trouble with structuring your essays. Think of the essay in three parts: introduction, body, and conclusions.
The introduction is where you tell me about the issue you will be discussing in the body. You may briefly write about the history of the issue and then give me a hint of what your conclusion will be. Oftentimes, I just write a few notes to myself here and then wait to write the introduction until I am finished with the body.
The body is where you discuss the issue. If you read three articles about the topic, spend a paragraph discussing the information of each article. That would be three paragraphs. Feel free to mix and contrast the various opinions of the authors. This is not the time to tell me about how you feel about the research or what your informed opinion is. Leave your opinions out of the discussion and focus on the evidence. Cite your facts with in-text citations! If you say that the evidence says this or that, give me a citation that supports that. If you write that research says this or that, cite the research. If you don’t read anything, you won’t have much to write about in the body and your grade will reflect that lack of effort. Read and report what you have read. A paper with one reference is not going to succeed in this class.
Now that you know where the evidence is leading, you may want to go back and polish your introduction.
The conclusion is where you summarize the evidence and give me your informed, enlightened opinion of how the issue should be dealt with. Don’t go off on tangents here—stick with the evidence. If the evidence is most convincing that status offenses should be decriminalized, don’t tell me that the proper action is to make penalties harsher, because that is an unsupported opinion. If the evidence is most persuasive that status offenders should be locked up for one week per offense, don’t tell me that action is too harsh unless you have evidence to back up that assertion. Do give me an opinion to solve the issue, but make sure it is supported by evidence.
If you follow these guidelines, you will write a good paper that will be well received. If you are lazy and throw something together at the last minute, you will not do so well. Remember, the purpose of the paper is to show me that you are now well informed on the issue and that you can use the evidence to solve a problem.
See the additional instructions on the left.
As I am reviewing your papers, I see that some of you are having trouble with structuring your essays. Think of the essay in three parts: introduction, body, and conclusions.
The introduction is where you tell me about the issue you will be discussing in the body. You may briefly write about the history of the issue and then give me a hint of what your conclusion will be. Oftentimes, I just write a few notes to myself here and then wait to write the introduction until I am finished with the body.
The body is where you discuss the issue. If you read three articles about the topic, spend a paragraph discussing the information of each article. That would be three paragraphs. Feel free to mix and contrast the various opinions of the authors. This is not the time to tell me about how you feel about the research or what your informed opinion is. Leave your opinions out of the discussion and focus on the evidence. Cite your facts with in-text citations! If you say that the evidence says this or that, give me a citation that supports that. If you write that research says this or that, cite the research. If you don’t read anything, you won’t have much to write about in the body and your grade will reflect that lack of effort. Read and report what you have read. A paper with one reference is not going to succeed in this class.
Now that you know where the evidence is leading, you may want to go back and polish your introduction.
The conclusion is where you summarize the evidence and give me your informed, enlightened opinion of how the issue should be dealt with. Don’t go off on tangents here—stick with the evidence. If the evidence is most convincing that status offenses should be decriminalized, don’t tell me that the proper action is to make penalties harsher, because that is an unsupported opinion. If the evidence is most persuasive that status offenders should be locked up for one week per offense, don’t tell me that action is too harsh unless you have evidence to back up that assertion. Do give me an opinion to solve the issue, but make sure it is supported by evidence.
If you follow these guidelines, you will write a good paper that will be well received. If you are lazy and throw something together at the last minute, you will not do so well. Remember, the purpose of the paper is to show me that you are now well informed on the issue and that you can use the evidence to solve a problem.
See the additional instructions on the left.
©
Christopher Bruno