Planning a Research Paper
Milly Grillone
FAO Consultant

Writing as a Process
The communication of complex ideas is a process that requires thinking and re thinking, working and re working
The essay
2 Revisions: Text and Editing/Self Assessment
First Draft (Mistakes, Punctuation)
Research/Reading
The Outline
Choosing a thesis
Brainstorming
Choosing a Topic

Before writing….
Brainstorming write down your ideas just the way they come in your mind
Brainstorming
Choosing a Topic

….organize your ideas

Imposing order on your ideas make the information easier to understand and
 easier to remember.
If you choose a clear, recognizable pattern (on the level of the paragraph and also on the level of the whole essay body) you guide your reader in discovering relationships that connect things.

Thesis Statement
1. The Thesis Statement is that sentence or two in your text that contains the of your essay
FOCUS or CORE
2. Try to narrow your topic .
Example: “Agricultural Policy” “Agricultural Policy in the EU”
“Agricultural Policy Changes in the EU”
3. The TS should remain FLEXIBLE until the paper is finished.
If you discover new information that ought to be included in the TS, you’ll have to rewrite your TS. On the other hand if you discover that the TS appears to include things that you haven’t addressed, then you need to limit your TS.
Choosing a thesis
Brainstorming
Choosing a Topic

Structure of the Essay Outline
INTRODUCTION-ARGUMENT-CONCLUSION
 Construct your Outline by listing all the important points you want to cover in your essay
 Provide one main point for each paragraph
 Start with the introduction under which you will write out your TS and work through LOGICALLY, point by point until you reach the conclusion
The Outline
Choosing a thesis
Brainstorming
Choosing a Topic

Structure of the Essay Outline (2)





Group related ideas together under general headings and arrange them so they flow logically
Each point in your outline should connect with the next
Each main category should be linked to your thesis
Focus your outline by discarding anything not useful or pertinent
Categorize your points according to their importance , keeping in mind the method of organization you intend to use
The Outline
Choosing a thesis
Brainstorming
Choosing a Topic

Principles of Organization:
Transition between Ideas
Organize your information according to a:
 Chronological Order (Order of Time)
Following the order in which events occur
 Spatial Order
Items are arranged according to their physical position or relationship
 Climactic Order (Order of Importance)
Items are arranged from least important to most important

Principles of Organization (2)
 General to Specific
Order
 Specific to General
Order
 Simplest to Most
Complex Order
 Topical Order

5 Golden Rules……
Try to be always
 Clear
 Simple
 Brief
 Coherent
 Logical

RESEARCH or/and Field Research  Reading
 Collecting and verifying data
Research
The Outline
Choosing a thesis
Brainstorming
Choosing a Topic

RESEARCH (2)
 Selection of information
 Summary of information

Ready to start…

Some Simple Rules...
 No comma between subject and verb
Agriculture, is one of the main component of GDP
 Subject-Verb Agreement: the subject and the verb must agree in number, both must be singular or both plural (
≠
Arabic!)
Syria have a comparative advantage
The media was biased in it’s reporting of the event