Anker Susan. Real Essays with Readings with 2009 MLA Update

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WRITING ESSAYS

Chapter 21 • Writing the Research Essay 377

Hernandez 2

they treat school as their job” (1A). Uniforms also improve

students’ test scores and attendance. A survey of school principals

indicated that 62 percent reported an increase in academic achieve-

ment that they attributed to the sense of community created by

school uniforms (“Information and Resources”). Apparently, when

students feel more a part of the school community, they are more

likely to attend school in the first place and are more likely to

concentrate on learning when they are there.

Mandatory school uniforms can also improve students’ gradu-

ation rates, which would have positive effects on society as a

whole. “Dressed for Success,” a pro-uniform editorial in the

Columbus Dispatch, highlights Virginia Draa’s 2006 study showing

that graduation rates at sixty-four Ohio high schools improved

after they implemented mandatory uniforms. As noted in “Dressed

for Success,” Draa’s study found that graduation rates at the

schools rose by 10.9 percent between 1994 and 2002, while

graduation rates at similar high schools dropped by 4.6 percent.

The editorial concludes that “more diplomas will translate into

increased job and training opportunities for the young people.

A high school diploma is a key to success beyond the classroom”

(“Dressed for Success”).

The most important benefit of mandatory school uniforms,

however, is the reduction of violence in schools and the over-

all increase in safety. For example, in 1994, the Long Beach,

California, school district became the first large urban system to

adopt school uniforms. It drew extensive national attention and

generated a good deal of controversy; however, the results were

overwhelmingly positive. In a 1996 study of data from the

Long Beach schools, the U.S. Department of Education found

a 36 percent decline in overall crime in elementary and middle

schools, a 50 percent decrease in weapons offenses, a 34 percent

drop in assaults, and a 19 percent decline in vandalism (“School

Uniformity” 40). Similarly, New York City schools have seen a

Indirect

quotation,

paraphrase

Summary

Paraphrase

Direct quote

(For full text

of article cited

here, see p. 364.)

Topic sentence

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WRITING ESSAYS

378 Part Three • Special College Writing Projects

Hernandez 3

76 percent drop in crime since 1994, when students in most

elementary schools started wearing uniforms (Fanning). In a 1996

State of the Union Address, former president Bill Clinton drew

more national attention to the issue when he said, “And if that

means teenagers will stop killing each other over designer jackets,

then public schools should be able to require school uniforms.”

Since then, many more schools have made school uniforms

mandatory.

Some people believe that school uniforms are not a good

thing, but their objections are not convincing. For instance, in

a 1998 study, David L. Brunsma and Kerry A. Rockquemore found

no relationship between wearing uniforms and reductions in

violence or improvements in academic achievement; in fact, they

reported that uniforms could be correlated with reduced academic

performance (53-62). However, their analysis has since been

challenged (Bodine 69). Other experts say that dress codes violate

students’ right to free speech under the First Amendment and

their liberty interest under the due process clause of the

Fourteenth Amendment (Hudson 87; West 22). The courts have

ruled, however, that schools may regulate what students wear.

Others claim that most of the evidence of benefits of wearing

school uniforms is not scientific. I would direct those opponents

to the many studies that have found that there are direct

benefits, starting with a bibliography that the National

Association of Elementary School Principals provides on its

Web site (“Information”).

There is convincing evidence that mandatory school uniforms

have significant benefits. If such a small change in policy can

improve students’ self-esteem, attendance, academic performance,

graduation rates, and safety, why would anyone question it? The

potential for positive change is well worth a try.

Acknowledgment

of opposing view

Indirect quotation,

summary

Summary

Conclusion

reminding readers

of main point

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WRITING ESSAYS

Chapter 21 • Writing the Research Essay 379

Hernandez 4

Works Cited

Bodine, Ann. “School Uniforms, Academic Achievement, and Uses

of Research.” Journal of Educational Research 97.2 (2003):

67-72. Print.

Brunsma, David L., and Kerry A. Rockquemore. “Effects of Student

Uniforms on Attendance, Behavior Problems, Substance

Abuse, and Academic Achievement.” Journal of Educational

Research 92.1 (1998): 53-62. Print.

Clinton, William Jefferson. State of the Union Address. Washington,

DC. 23 Jan. 1996. Address.

“Dressed for Success.” Editorial. Columbus Dispatch. Columbus

Dispatch, 16 Jan. 2006. Web. 22 Jan. 2008.

Fanning, Karen. “To Wear or Not to Wear?” Scholastic News Online.

Scholastic, 11 May 1998. Web. 27 Apr. 2004.

Hudson, David L., Jr. Rights of Students. Philadelphia: Chelsea

House, 2004. Print.

“Information and Resources: Public School Uniforms.” National

Association of Elementary School Principals. NAESP, n.d. Web.

10 May 2004.

Polacheck, Karin. Letter. Press-Telegram Jan. 1996: 15. Print.

Ritter, John. “Uniforms Changing Culture of the Nation’s

Classrooms.” USA Today 15 Oct. 1998: 1A. Print.

“School Uniformity Yields High Marks.” DSN Retailing Today

3 May 2004: 39-40. Print.

Stacey, Julie. “Our View: Morale Is Up, Crime Is Down, and Kids

Can Concentrate on Learning Instead of Self-Protection.”

USA Today 22 Aug. 1995: A11. Print.

West, Charles K., et al. “Attitudes of Parents about School

Uniforms.” Journal of Family and Consumer Sciences 91.2

(1999): 92-7. ProQuest Direct. Web. 5 Apr. 2004.

■ Note that in Works

Cited entries, all lines

after the ﬁ rst one are

indented. Also, titles

of books, periodicals,

and Web sites are

italicized, and page

ranges are included

when available.

Source without

author

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WRITING ESSAYS

380 Part Three • Special College Writing Projects

After you have taken notes, found outside sources, and written a draft

thesis statement, use the writing guide that follows to help you write your

research essay.

WRITING GUIDE: RESEARCH ESSAY

STEPS IN WRITING THE

RESEARCH ESSAY HOW TO DO THE STEPS

Focus.

■

■ Reread your guiding research question.

■

■ Reread your working thesis, and revise it if it has changed

based on your reading of outside sources.

Review your sources.

■

■ Evaluate the support from outside sources: Are they strong

sources? Do they support your thesis?

■

■ Make sure that you have all the information to cite your

sources accurately.

Review the range of your

support.

See Chapter 6 for more on

supporting a thesis.

■

■ Consider if you have enough facts, examples, and expert

opinions.

■

■ Find more kinds of support if you need it.

■

■ Add your own thoughts to support your thesis based on

what you have found out.

Make an outline.

See Chapter 7 for more on

making an outline.

■

■ Write your thesis statement, and note what else you might

say in your introductory paragraph.

■

■ Write the main point you want to make in each of your

support paragraphs.

■

■ Decide what outside sources to use for each paragraph.

■

■ Decide the order of paragraphs, saving what you believe is

your strongest support for last.

Write a draft.

See Chapter 8 for more on

drafting.

■

■ Write an introductory paragraph that describes your

topic and includes your main point about that topic. If your

essay is presenting your position on an issue, state your

position clearly and with energy. (For more on argument,

see Chapter 18.)

■

■ Write topic sentences for each of your support paragraphs.

■

■ Use your outside sources in your support paragraphs.

■

■ Write a concluding paragraph that reviews the information

you have provided, reviews your main point, and makes a

ﬁ nal observation based on your ﬁ ndings.

■

■ Title the essay.

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WRITING ESSAYS

Chapter 21 • Writing the Research Essay 381

STEPS IN WRITING THE

RESEARCH ESSAY HOW TO DO THE STEPS

Work your outside sources

into the essay.

• Indirect quotations

(summary and paraphrase)

Ex: In their article “Effects

of Student Uniforms on

Attendance . . . ,” David

L. Brunsma and Kerry A.

Rockquemore state . . .

(53–62).

• Direct Quotation

Ex: In a letter to the Long

Beach Press-Telegram,

Karin Polacheck wrote,

“Uniforms help to create

unity” (15).

■

■ Use your own words. For more on summarizing, see

Chapter 20.

■

■ Introduce and identify the writer(s) or speaker(s) as in the

example.

■

■ Do not use quotation marks for indirect quotations.

■

■ Give the page number(s) or the whole section you have

summarized or paraphrased. The page numbers are in

parentheses before the period.

■

■ Use the exact words that are in the source.

■

■ Introduce and identify the writer(s) or speaker(s).

■

■ Use quotation marks before and after the speaker’s or

writer’s exact words. For more on using quotation marks,

see Chapter 39.

■

■ Give the page number(s) where you found your quote. The

page numbers are in parentheses after the last quotation

mark but before the period.

■

■ If the direct quotation is more than four typed lines or

forty words, indent the whole quotation, and do not use

quotation marks. Write the page number in parentheses

after the period.

Revise your draft.

See Chapter 9 for more on

revising.

■

■ Ask another person to read and comment on your draft.

■

■ Review your support, and delete any points that don’t

relate directly to your thesis.

■

■ If you feel your support is weak, ﬁ nd more, or expand on

what you have.

■

■ Add transitions to move your readers smoothly from one

point to another.

■

■ Rewrite your thesis statement to make it more concrete

and forceful.

■

■ Reread your introduction to be sure that it sets up your

essay and makes readers want to continue.

■

■ Reread your conclusion to be sure that it reminds your

readers of your main point and support and makes a strong

ﬁ nal observation.

Prepare a Works Cited list.

See pages 368–74.

■

■ List all of your outside sources, and be sure that they are

formatted correctly.

continued

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WRITING ESSAYS

382 Part Three • Special College Writing Projects

STEPS IN WRITING THE

RESEARCH ESSAY HOW TO DO THE STEPS

Edit your essay.

■

■ Use the spell checker and grammar checker on your

computer, but also reread your essay carefully to catch any

errors.

■

■ Reread your in-text citations and works cited list to be sure

they are documented correctly.

■

■ Find and correct errors in grammar, spelling, and

punctuation.

■

■ Ask yourself: Is this the best I can do?

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EDITING ESSAYS

Part Four

The Four Most

Serious Errors

22. The Basic Sentence 385

23. Fragments 401

24. Run-Ons 418

25. Problems with Subject-Verb

Agreement 434

26. Verb Problems 452

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385

The Basic Sentence

An Overview

The Four Most Serious Errors

This book emphasizes the four grammar errors that people most often

notice. These four errors may make your meaning harder to understand,

and they give readers a bad impression of you. It’s like going for a job

interview in pajamas. People will notice.

1. Fragments (see Chapter 23)

2. Run-ons (see Chapter 24)

3. Problems with subject-verb agreement (see Chapter 25)

4. Problems with verb form and tense (see Chapter 26)

If you can edit your writing to correct the four most serious errors,

your sentences will be clearer, and your grades will improve. Learning

how to correct these errors will make a big difference in your writing.

This chapter will review the basic elements of the sentence; the next

four chapters cover the four most serious errors.

The Parts of Speech

There are seven basic parts of speech in English:

1. A noun names a person, place, or thing.

Heroin is a drug.

■ IDEA JOURNAL

Write about any prob-

lems you have had

with grammar in the

past.

■ In the examples in

this chapter, subjects

are underlined once

and verbs are under-

lined twice.

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EDITING ESSAYS

386 Part Four • The Four Most Serious Errors

2. A pronoun replaces a noun in a sentence. A pronoun can be the subject

of a sentence (I, you, he, she, it, we, they), or it can be the object of a sen-

tence (me, you, him, her, us, them). A pronoun can also show possession

(mine, yours, his, her, its, our, their).

It causes addiction.

3. A verb tells what the subject does, or it links a subject to another word

that describes it.

Heroin causes addiction. [The verb causes is what the subject Heroin does.]

It is dangerous. [The verb is links the subject It to a word that describes it:

dangerous.]

4. An adjective describes a noun or pronoun.

[Heroin is dangerous. [The adjective dangerous describes the noun Heroin.]

It is lethal. [The adjective lethal describes the pronoun It.]

5. An adverb describes an adjective, a verb, or another adverb. Many ad-

verbs end in -ly.

Heroin is very dangerous. [The adverb very describes the adjective dangerous.]

Addiction occurs quickly. [The adverb quickly describes the verb occurs.]

Addiction occurs very quickly. [The adverb very describes the adverb

quickly.]

6. A preposition connects a noun, pronoun, or verb with some other

information about it (across, at, in, of, on, around, over, and to are some

prepositions).

Dealers often sell drugs around schools.

[The preposition around connects

the noun drugs with the noun school.]

7. A conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) connects words.

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