Tips and Tricks for Structuring your Argument

Even the most well-written assignment which contains all the relevant information will not score highly if that information is not properly organised; it should be clear, then, that structure and content work together to build a good argument. As well as using the structuring tips outlined above, think about how you want to move your reader from your starting point to the conclusion of your argument: what does your reader need to know about one area of your assignment in order to understand another?

We are normally convinced by an argument if it does two things: it gives us good reasons in support of the conclusion and it gives good reasons as to why opposing points of view (if they exist) are incorrect or not as good. The opposing points of view are normally referred to as ‘counter-arguments’. Statements and evidence that persuade us of the weakness or invalidity (that is, the incorrectness) of counter-arguments are normally referred to as ‘refutations’. It is important to include counter-arguments to ensure your argument is not biased, but it is also important to include refutations to ensure that your argument stays on track and is coherent. The Critical Thinking course and the Academic Writing courses run by the Centre for Academic Success can help you develop the skills you need for building an argument.

The claims you make need to be situated within your field of study and that means engaging with the ideas of others (whether to agree or disagree). You will most often do this through quoting and paraphrasing. Most of us know that when we use somebody else's words without changing them, we are including a direct quote which needs to be contained in quotation marks and fully referenced. Paraphrasing can be a little more difficult because it is often considered to be ‘putting something in your own words’. However, it is a bit more complex than this because as well as working with somebody else's words, you are also using their ideas. Try following these key steps for good paraphrasing:

1. Read the source: make sure you understand what is being said
2. Identify key words: what are the main words that capture what the text is about?
3. Make notes: can you distil the ideas down into a few notes?
4. Reread and rewrite your notes: can you expand your notes to express the ideas in a different way (without referring back to the source text)
5. Write a full paraphrase, check against the original, and remember to acknowledge the source

When done well, paraphrasing enables you to demonstrate understanding of key concepts related to your degree and really control ideas when you are writing.

Tip: check your referencing guide for examples, get in touch with your subject librarian for help, or contact the Centre for Academic Success for further support.

Choosing appropriate academic sources to underpin your research is crucial to a good argument. Using the literature from your discipline in your own assignments serves a number of functions:

1. It provides you with an overview of the main theories and hypotheses in your field
2. It ensures you are up to date with academic thought on the subject as well as having background knowledge
3. And it demonstrates that you are able to think critically about your discipline through situating your own thoughts and ideas

It can be overwhelming trying to decide where to start when you consider how much literature there is. Your subject librarians are an excellent source of knowledge and can help with a range of issues from locating material in e-books and databases, to searching the internet, to referencing correctly. You can find your subject librarian on the libguides pages.

It is important to remember that your source material needs to be academically rigorous (peer reviewed material or sources from academic publishers often indicate that this is the case) so beware of using literature thrown up by a simple web search (check where it originates). Check the reading lists you have been given, keep a note of which scholars are referenced by your lecturers, and get to know the high impact journals in your field of study.

Tip: Using software like Endnote or Zotero will help you keep track of your references and keep your reference list up to date. But however you choose to organise your research, remember to note every piece of source material as you use it!