SAMPLE OUTLINE
INTRO:
I.
Attention Getter-Although Al Gore won the popular vote in the 2000 election, George W. Bush
won based on the Electoral College.
II.
Background- (brief background info necessary for thesis to make sense)
A. Happened in 4 elections
1. John Quincy Adams
2. Rutherford B. Hayes
3. Benjamin Harrison
4. George W. Bush
III.
Thesis-The Electoral College should be abolished and presidents should be elected by popular vote.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND (Briefly explain the history of your topic):
I. Reasons the Electoral College Exists
A. 200 year history/ 50 elections
B. Create a buffer between population & selection of president
1. feared that a tyrant could manipulate public opinion & influence election
2. Supported by Hamilton’s statement in the Federalist Papers:
“It was also peculiarly desirable to afford as little opportunity as possible to tumult and
disorder. This evil was not least to be dreaded in the election of a magistrate, who was to
have so important an agency in the administration of the government as the President of
the United States. But the precautions which have been so happily concerted in the system
under consideration, promise an effectual security against this mischief” (Shulman).
3. Power that extra strength to small states
“Under the system of the Electoral College each state had the same number of electoral
votes as they have representative in Congress, thus no state could have less than 3”
(Shulman).
MAIN ARGUMENT (The main points that prove your thesis):
II. Reasons Electoral College No Longer Applies to Today
A. Has forced us into a 2 party system
B. Has ignored the will of the populace, essentially meaning “my vote doesn’t matter”
C. Has no application to our society today
1. no slaves
2. US is fully expanded/no “unknowns”
3. In general, we are a more literate society than when Constitution was formed
III. Why Popular Vote is the Way to Go
A. Every Vote Matters
1. Current apathy among voters suggests disenchantment
2. Despite “Rock the Vote” and other voting campaigns, the populace knows that
ultimately their vote has no weight in the current system.
3. Shift to popular vote would mean that more people would participate in elections
4. Ultimately, in a democracy, the populace should be spoken for & this system does
B. Two Party System Inherently Flawed
1. Rise in Tea Party
2. Not what framers intended
3. 3rd Parties Not Recognized by current system
a. not allowed in publicized debates
b. lack financial support due to unlikelihood of election
CONCESSIONS & REFUTATIONS (Concessions are what the opposition believes, refutations are you
shooting them down. You should integrate research here too!)
1. Concession: Gives smaller states an equal say.
Refutation: Presidents won’t have any incentive to go and visit and campaign in smaller states
like South Dakota.
2. Concession: Many people believe that things should stay the way they have always been.
Refutation: Policy is antiquated because our country was so spread out and technology has
changed this so dramatically.
CONCLUSION
I. Restate Thesis- While the need for the Electoral College was present when the Constitution was
written, it is now an outdated policy that needs to be replaced by popular vote.
II. Restate rationale
III. Barbara Mukulski , senator from Maryland said it best, “Every vote counts and every vote must be
counted.”
Sample Abstract for the “Plagiarism Lines Blur for Students in Digital Age” article
1. Gabriel, Trip. “Plagiarism Lines Blur for Students in Digital Age.” New York Times 1 August 2010; np.
Web.
2. In this article the effects of the digital age on plagiarism are discussed. Examples were given of
students who plagiarized, yet they failed to see the importance of what they did. There was no remorse
and the percent of people “who believe that copying from the web constitutes [as] ‘serious cheating’ is
declining” (Gabriel). The article also emphasizes the fact that we are losing originality. More and more
references in songs, books, and movies to other pieces of work are being made.
3. The key issue of this article is to understand why students don’t believe why plagiarism is a crime.
4. Key subtopics discussed in the article were about certain students and how they plagiarized, about a
German teenager whose book was simply made from excerpts of some other books. She claimed that
this is the nature of today’s society. The article also explores more about the loss of hard work and
creativity in students. It also discusses the idea of loss of originality.
5. This supports the idea against plagiarism in my essay. It would fit in my main argument section of my
research paper as it argues that it helps explain that plagiarism is simply an act of slacking off, that it is a
crime, and how the internet is worldwide invitation to do so with the press of a button or a few clicks on the
mouse. I could also utilize the examples at the beginning of the article for an attention getter in my
introduction.