Master Student: Elena Baldea Coordinator: Prof.

Violeta Januseva Subject: Academic Writing Faculty of Education, Bitola (MK)

Date: 25.03.2014

Global Warming
(Problem-Solution Essay) One of the major problems facing the entire world these days is global warming. Many scientists and scholars have concluded that the production of gases such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide or the acids used for industrial manufacturing processes is affecting the surrounding atmosphere by overheating it. As a result, this fact could be very dangerous for human life in terms of continuity and quality of life on earth. Through this essay I intend to examine the problem of global warming and propose some solutions for it. As I already mentioned above, a lot of problems could appear as a result of global warming. In my opinion, one of the biggest problem consists in rising the sea level. This fact can cause serious damages due to flooding of low lying coastal areas and cities, such as Italy, Denmark, Netherland, India or Egypt. Another problem is unexpected changes in weather patterns. For example, many regions of the earth are experiencing harsh nature manifestations such as tsunami, floods, hurricanes or other natural disasters. A final issue directly connected with this phenomenon is the negative impact on living creatures. For example, marine species including fish could be affected, while some insects, with a primordial role in spreading diseases, will probably come up with a growth of their populations. But there are few things people can do to defeat this new threat that puts people's lives at risk the global warming. A first solution is to stop producing C02 and CO. How to achieve this? Well, our people can do this by reducing the production from the mining industry or by switching from oil and gas to renewable energy. A second answer is to determinate people to plant more trees because one of the important role that trees have is to absorb C02 and produce oxygen, which is not a greenhouse gas. A third solution would be to save energy by using less energy than we use today and of course to recycle more products. In conclusion, by taking attitude and doing little changes today in the way we live we will avoid irreversible changes in the future.This is why, scientists, scholars, the governments representatives as well as individuals must work and find solutions together to overcome this serious threat.

Master Student: Elena Baldea Date: 28.03.2014 Coordinator: Prof. Violeta Januseva (PhD) Subject: Academic Writing Faculty of Education, Bitola (MK)

Thesis Statement ( Seminar Paper II - Essay)

Introduction An academic essay is often organized using the following pattern: introduction, body paragraph and last paragraph. Introduction represents the first paragraph of the essay. The thesis statement is usually the last sentence of the introductory paragraph. Body paragraphs are paragraphs which usually begin with a topic sentence. The last paragraph is called the conclusion or concluding paragraph. This paragraph should reiterate the thesis idea and wrap up the entire essay to bring it to a meaningful close. In this essay I will discuss in particular about the thesis statement. Thesis Statement. Definitions. Thesis statements as well as topic sentences have the role to help organize the ideas in an essay. More exactly, a thesis statement conveys the overall idea of the entire essay and is usually (though not always) the last sentence of the first paragraph of the essay. The thesis statement should appear early in the essay because it will let readers know what to expect. In other words, the thesis statement of an essay is the one or two sentence statement that expresses this main idea. Also, the thesis statement identifies the writers topic and the opinion the writer has about that topic. For example, an essay could have this thesis: Participating in volunteer work is essential to the development of strong character.

This thesis statement presents both the essays topic and the writers opinion: Topic: participating in volunteer work Writers opinion: it is essential to the development of strong character. In the following I will present some examples of the thesis statements: Domestic violence is harmful to women. The death penalty is good. Cultural centers provide many benefits to our minority communities including those of Germans, Russians and Hungarians. Computers has changed our lives. Bullying went up. The fall elections will not be relevant for our community. I enjoy my coffe. Taking care of the older people can be a demanding job. Participating in volunteer activities is essential to the development of strong character. The neighbors dog is very ugly.

The functions of the thesis statement. The thesis statement performs two functions. First of all, the student has a role to create a thesis to focus the essays subject. If a student is not able to come up with the essays main idea in one or two sentences, then he/she probably does not yet understand the topic. Second, a good thesis statement facilitates student comprehension. So, the thesis statement is the one which will announce the topic of the essay; next, the body of the essay will explain and support that topic. Actually, the thesis statement has the role to create an expectation in the students mind about what will follow in the rest of the essay. After the expectation of the student is fulfilled by the body paragraphs, the content of the essay will appear very well organized and of course, it will make sense. But if this condition is not fulfilled (for example, the thesis statement is misleading, or missing altogether) than the body of the essey can seem confusing or irrelevant because it is not viewed in relation to the esseys overall topic (the thesis). As a result, the thesis statement is very important because it answers the readers question, Why are you telling me this?

The purposes of the thesis statement. The purposes of the thesis statement are as follows: To announce the topic to the reader; To reflect a judgment about the topic; To provide the reader with a plan for what is to come in the paper.

Common assignments and their corresponding thesis forms. As it is stated on line (http://www.wlu.ca ), almost all forms of academic writing conform to a thesis-support structure, a structure in which we find the main claim near the beginning of the essay, followed by evidence and analysis in support of this claim in the body of the essay. The thesis statement should serve as the main argument that drives the paper forward. The following table lists some of the most common assignments and their corresponding thesis forms: Type of Assignment Form of the Thesis Statement Analytical Essay Lab Report Book Review Critical Review (i.e. review of an academic journal article) Position Paper Comparative Essay Research Paper Resarch Proposal Personal Reflection Case Study (Table as it is presented on http://www.wlu.ca) Type of Assignment Form of the Thesis Statement Statement of main claim about the topic in relation to the object of study Statement of main purpose Review Statement of critical evaluation about the book Statement of position + reasons Statement of position + reasons Statement of main argument + main points of comparison Statement of main claim about the topic, issue, or problem Tentative statement of main claim about the topic, issue, or problem Statement of main focus or direction Statement of problem + recommendations

Writing the first draft with a preliminary thesis statement. The choice of a boring or self-evident thesis statement has less to do with how brilliant you are as a writer and more to do with how good you are at identifying a problem that is significant not just to you, but to your readers as well (Booth et al. 48). Because of that, the student must work on it carefully, and that means writing the first draft with a preliminary thesis statement in mind. What represent a preliminary thesis statement? A preliminary thesis statement represents an early version of the thesis statement used to guide the first draft and to help focus and organize it. The preliminary thesis statement states the essays topic and the writers opinion of the topic, but it does so in an early, rough form. Because we speak about a first draft, the preliminary thesis statement is subject to change and that is why it is called preliminary. Moreover, in the course of drafting and revising, the writer may decide to shift focus or change topics dramatically, writing being an ongoing act of discovery and revision. This is why such changes are common and not a source of concern. Once the student has chosen a writing topic, established a purpose, identified the

audience, and discovered ideas for developing the topic, it is time to shape the preliminary thesis. When doing so, the student should consider the following qualities of an effective thesis statement: 1. A good thesis statement will clearly suggest an essays direction, emphasis, and scope. 2. A good thesis statement should neither be too broad nor too narrow. Too Broad: Technology has changed our lives. / The death penalty is wrong. / Media violence is harmful to society. / Violent crime is up. Too Narrow: I like my apartment. Just Right: School uniforms provide many benefits to students, parents and educators. / Participating in volunteer work is essential to the development of strong character. 3. A good thesis statement usually argues a point of view. 4. A good thesis statement is concise.

5. A good thesis statement is specific, not vague so the student must make surethat the thesis statement contains specific language. Too Vague: Vernes adventure stories are really good. More Specific: Vernes adventure stories helped to create a new fiction style. 6. A good thesis statement is strong. The thesis statement should be as strong as possible. This means avoiding weak phrasing such as in my opinion, I believe, I think, and it seems to me. Since you, the writer, wrote the paper, it is obvious that the content of the paper is your opinion; you dont need to tell your reader.

The difference between the thesis statement and the research question. It often turned out that students have difficulties in distinguishing between the thesis statement and the research question. These are the two components of an academic paper which are closely related, but not interchangeable. Sometimes the research question is given to student as a part of the assignment question; other times, the student will have to come up with the research question on his/her own. It can be concluded that the research question can be defined as follows: It is the question that focuses the research on a significant problem, issue, controversy or contradiction; It represents the main question outlined in students assignment, or the final question students have arrived at after having asked questions to narrow your topic

Example of research question: What was the most important cause of Americas increased involvement in the Vietnam War during the 1960s? (Avery et al. 22).

Example of a thesis statement in response to a research question: The escalation of the Vietnam War during the 1960s was caused primarily by AmericasantiCommunist foreign policy (Avery et al. 22).

How can be tested the thesis statement? Students can test the thesis statement by taking in consideration the following questions: Does the thesis show analysis and depth of thought, or is it mainly descriptive?

 Does the thesis present an argument about the material, and is it worded as an argument? Is the thesis contestable? (Would someone potentially want to argue with you about it?) Is the thesis defensible? (Have you used qualifying expressions such as primarily or for the most part to make the thesis more defensible?) Does the thesis statement take into account the so what question?

Conclusions In conclusion, it can be stated that a good thesis statement will help our students form an intelligent reflection about the topic theyve chosen to explore. It will also saves their work, as it will help students to narrow research to a specific area of a broader topic.

Works Cited Avery, H., et al. Thinking It Through: a Practical Guide to Academic Essay Writing. 3rd ed. Peterborough: Trent University Academic Skills Centre, 1995. Booth, Wayne C., Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. The Craft of Research. 2nd ed. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 2003.

On line electronic resouces: http://www.wlu.ca