Writing an outline for the final
exam
You can bring an outline to your
final exam next week.
Making an outline
• You should bring an outline to class so that
you can refer to it when you are writing
your essay.
• Your outline can be a list of topic
sentences that you will then make into
paragraphs.
An example
• Remember the article, “RFID Tags: Big
brother in small packages”?
• On the next page is a sample of an outline
of that reading made with topic sentences.
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Problem Statement: Could we be constantly tracked through our clothes, shoes,
or even our cash in the future? Problem of privacy.
Definition: The generic name of this technology is RFID tags.
Background: You should become familiar with RFID technology because you’ll be
hearing much more about it soon.
Problems: It becomes unnervingly easy to imagine a world where everything you
buy that’s more expensive than a snickers will sport RFID tags.
Problems: In all of these scenarios, the ability to remain anonymous is eroded.
Counter-argument: on’t get me wrong, RFID tags are, on the whole, a useful
development and a compelling technology.
Response to the counter-argument: The privacy threat comes when RFID tags
remain active after you leave the store.
Counter-argument: Cantwell asserts that there’s no reason to fret.
Counter-argument: If the tags stay active after the leave the store, the biggest
privacy worries depend on the range of the RFID readers.
Response to counter-argument: But what about more powerful RFID readers,
created by criminals or police who don’t mind violating FCC regulations?
Response to counter-argument: Privacy worries also depend on the size of the
tags.
Conclusion: Call to action and recommendation
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If you care about privacy, now is your chance to let the industry know how you feel.
Basic elements you must
include in your outline
Introduction
• In the introduction you will explain the
topic of the essay and why it is important
to consider.
Body
• In the body of the essay, these are
paragraphs where you will provide a
paragraph that summarizes one of your
articles and then gives your response to
the article which explains how it relates to
your main idea.
Body
• Then, you will include another paragraph
that summarizes your second source
which is followed by your commentary on
the article and how you see it relating to
your main idea.
Alternative perspectives
• Make sure you include an alternative
perspective to your main idea. Maybe one
of your articles includes alternative
perspectives that you can discuss.
• You must consider the alternatives and
then explain why you prefer one
alternative over another.
Conclusion
• In the conclusion, you present the
alternatives to your reader, and then you
explain why you believe one perspective is
the most useful.
• You can include a call to action, some
advice on what the reader can do, or you
can offer a specific solution to the problem
you have presented.
Another sample outline
Introduction:
Obesity in pets is closely related to obesity in humans
Body:
article 1: “Pet obesity on the rise”
poor diet
lack of exercise
article 2: “American obesity epidemic”
poor diet
lack of exercise
Alternative perspective: Pets cannot control their environments but humans can, so
the solutions for human obesity is much more complicated and difficult than it is
for pets.
Response: It is true human obesity is a more complex problem than pet obesity, but
the solutions to both are simple and related to each other.
portion control
exercise
Conclusion:
A pet owner who is obese can use helping a pet lose weight and become more fit to
help him or herself in the same way.
The outline you bring to class
• You must bring an outline to class that is
either single words or just single topic
sentences. You may not bring the whole
essay written out. Part of the final exam is
for you to compose the essay in class by
yourself.
• You may also bring a dictionary.
Time Limits
• Remember that you only have about 2 and
a half hours to write this exam. Before you
write, you will need to complete a short
grammar test that may take about ½ hour.
• Be very familiar with your articles, and be
familiar with your topic and what you want
to write about.
Portfolios
• At the exam, you will need to hand in your
portfolio.
• Bring the last three essays we wrote and
be ready to add your fresh essay #4 to the
portfolio.
Questions?
• If you have any questions about the exam,
please send me an email.
• I’m happy to look at your outline, if you
want to email it to me before the exam.