Building a clear structure for a written work is an important aspect of successful research activities on the required topic. In my practice, I have learned the key components to include, and I am aware that formulating an introduction, particularly a thesis statement, is critical to making the work credible and academically valid. I have studied how a traditional introduction is built, where the thesis statement is, and what are the ways of formulating the main idea. Based on the theory proposed by Johnson-Sheehan and Paine (2013), I have sometimes had difficulty choosing the optimal type of thesis that can address distinctive goals depending on the purpose, such as argumentative or informative. Concerning the task of finding and addressing opposing viewpoints, I have learned to use evidence responsibly. Seyler and Brizee (2019) state that planning is an integral aspect of writing, and prioritizing relevant arguments and counterarguments helps assess a specific standpoint comprehensively, although it took me much time to do this initially. I have also studied how full paragraphs of the argument need to look to be considered academically valid. A topic sentence, references with evidence, and the main conclusion are the classic structure of such paragraphs, and adhering to it eliminates the author’s bias, which I inadvertently allowed unknowingly at an early stage. Establishing a cohesive argument as the key idea of ​​the paper ceased to be a problem for me once I began to evaluate the required issue from different perspectives to prove the diversity of positions (Johnson-Sheehan & Paine, 2013). I did not do it initially, which was my author’s mistake. Finally, following the advice suggested by Seyler and Brizee (2019), I have learned to write a concluding paragraph by following the structure of restating thesis statements and avoiding new ideas. Sometimes, I unwittingly added my personal views, but in the end, I learned to summarize the result of the work performed but not my position.
To hone my academic writing skills, I intend to strengthen my argument in several areas. For instance, to formulate engaging introductions and, at the same time, accurate thesis arguments, I will impartially assess the practical relevance of my topic, which, according to Seyler and Brizee (2019), is the key to relevant and necessary writing activities. To avoid individual author bias, I will also pay attention to the evaluation of opposing viewpoints based on the analysis of credible sources. Johnson-Sheehan and Paine (2013) draw attention to the significance of utilizing not only those references that are freely available to ordinary users but also highly specialized resources that contain unambiguous and valid findings. This will help me make my argument fair and logical. In the context of improving the skill of compiling full paragraphs of argument, I intend to conduct analytical work to expand my knowledge in the field of lexical coherence. As Seyler and Brizee (2019) remark, cohesion can be achieved through transitional words, logical connectives, and other tools that help make the text readable and, at the same time, academically valid. Creating a cohesive argument will not be a problem for me if I clearly understand assignment types and adhere to those principles of writing that correspond to specific objectives, for instance, informative, argumentative, or reflective. The same applies to creating a graceful and powerful conclusion. If I study the distinctive styles of writing assignments in detail, I will be aware of how, for example, findings in literary analysis differ from those in a research paper (Johnson-Sheehan & Paine, 2013). As a result, I will manage to strengthen my argument, thereby improving the quality of my writing practice.
References
Johnson-Sheehan, R., & Paine, C. (2013). Writing today (2nd ed.). Pearson.
Seyler, D. U., & Brizee, A. (2019). Read, reason, write: An argument text and reader (12th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.