Cause & Effect Essay:

500-750 words

Outline

Research: 1 Source Max 2 sources

Third Person

No preposition at the end of the sentence

No passive

MLA In-Text

Causal Analysis

1) Stay focused on the purpose of your analysis.

Peer review March 31 and April 5th

       Due April 10th

-Informative Approach

-Persuade

-Speculate

2) Adapt content and tone to your purpose and readers

3) Think rigorously about causes and effect.

Cause:

         What happened?

         What are the possible reasons?

         Which are most likely?

         Who was involved?

         Why?

Effects:

         -What happened?

         -what are some future possible future consequences?

         -Which consequences are negative?    

         -Which are positive?

4) Write a thesis that focuses the paper on causes, effects or both.

         Thesis on causes: our school system has been weakened by an overemphasis on trendy electives.

         Thesis on effects: an ineffectual school system has left to crippling teacher’s strikes and widespread disrespect for the teaching profession.

         Thesis on both: Bureaucratic inefficiency has created a school system, unresponsive to children’s emotional, physical, and intellectual needs.

5) Choose an organizational Pattern

         -Chronological

         -Emphatic

1) You present what you consider the erroneous or obvious views first, show why they are unsound or limited, and then present what yoy feel to be the actual causes & effects.

6) Use language that hints at the complexity of cause-effect relationships

AVOID

         -Must be obvious

         -There is no doubt

USE

         Most likely

         It is probable that…

NO CONTRACTIONS in this essay

Transition:

         Led to

         Because

         Cause(s)

         Reasons(s)

         Explanation(s)

         So

Effects:

Therefore

As a result

Consequently

Thus

Then

Thanks to