Ways of Developing Paragraphs

How to make the paragraph

a unified whole?

The Topic Sentence

controls other sentences.
The sentences follow a
pattern of development.
 Cohesion of the paragraph
is achieved through
1) Tying all sentences to the topic
statement
2) Maintaining a clear pattern of
development
3) Using specific transition elements
within and between sentences.
The term "Learning Organization" is one that
has been around for some time, probably
since the early 1990s. For many managers in
many organizations the concept is the one
that is at best somewhat vague in their
minds and at worst, it is thought of as "just
one more piece of infernal human resources
jargon! Many managers around the world
may believe in its value but have yet to
experience it. In a large lake, Loch Ness, in
Scotland there is reputedly a huge,
prehistoric animal (the famous Loch Ness
Monster) living in the depths of the lake.
 Systems Thinking is the final component
of the learning organization concept.
Systems thinking is a conceptual
framework, a body of knowledge and tools
that has been developed over the past 50
years. It originated in the field of systems
dynamics to make the patterns clearer and
to help us see how to change them
effectively. Systems dynamics is an
offshoot of systems engineering. It was
first developed by Jay Forrester as
industrial dynamics in the 1950s and 1960s
and is still widely practiced around the
world today.
 Systems Thinking (ST) is not a panacea to be
applied to all the political, economic, societal, and
business problems that exist in the world; however,
it give us a way of seeing what our real problem is
and getting a better understanding of where we are
right now, or seeing our current reality. ST has to be
more than that. It also has the ability to enable us
to see not only what we have (current reality) but
also how we can make real and lasting beneficial
change in a structure or system. This is the arena
of the high leverage interventions. We need to be
able to understand the system so we can make a
targeted intervention to make change
 Ways To Begin and To Develop Paragraphs
Ser. Process WTB WTD
1 Action, Process to follow. X X
2 Advice: gives an important advice. X
3 Background, history X
4 Call for actions related to the topic X
5 Command/Request X
6 Comparison-contrast X X
7 Definition and classification X X
8 Statement of theory & technique X
9 Forecast and hypothesis X
10 Illustration and exemplification X X
11 Listing: lists parts or ideas X X
12 Statement of a point of view (of the author) X
13 Question & answer X X
14 Quotation: starts with a quotation. X
 Ways To Begin and To Develop Paragraphs
15 Refute-an-argument: against another argument. X x
16 Statement of scope: shows limitations X
17 Specific details: details of special importance X
18 Statement of a fact X
19 Statement of a point of interest X
20 Statement developmental plans X X
21 Statement of purpose X
22 Statement of the problem X
23 Summary of the main idea of the text X
24 Analysis, Discussion X
25 Cause-and-effect X
26 General-to-particular or Particular-to-general X
27 Combination X X
 Ways To Develop the Topic statement in
Paragraphs
Sir Process
1 Action, Process to follow
2 Comparison-contrast
3 Definition and classification
4 Illustration and exemplification
5 Listing: lists parts or ideas
6 Question & answer
7 Refute-an-argument
8 Statement of developmental plans
9 Analysis, Discussion
10 Cause-and-effect
11 General-to-particular or Particular-to-
12 Combination
 Each way-to-develop should show
Its supportive specific words
Use appropriate constructions:
comparatives/superlatives,
Use verbs and verb related constructions
causative verbs
tense-time relationship
conditional constructions
subordination/coordination: if, and
time adverbs, punctuation
passive-active voice, connectives
....
Examples of Ways-To-Develop
Definition
What is technical writing? Technical writing
as a term is not found in common
dictionaries. Websters New World
Dictionary defines technical as having to
do with applied sciences... and writing as
the occupation of the writer .... We might
combine these two definitions to define
technical writing as writing about science
and technology.
Associated Specific Words
this means, from this definition, in other
words, as a clarification, , is defined as,
use of to be, to have,
Process (Narration)
What happens when the source (person) tries to establish
commonness of experience with the receiver? First, the
source encodes the message he wants to communicate.
The message is then sent to the receiver. The receiver
gets the message and can decode it only within the
framework of his knowledge of the subject and his
personal experience.
When the brakes are applied, the pistons in the wheel
cylinder, acting on the brake shoe, through the connecting
links, force the shoe against the drum. Since the shoe
floats free in the brake, the force of friction between the
shoes and the rotating drum, turns the entire assembly in
the direction of the wheel rotation....
Transition Elements
Use sequence transition such as moreover, in addition,
also, then, afterwards, next, afterwards, again...,
Narration (process)
When the gasoline is burned in an internal combustion
engine, it produces, in addition to water and carbon
dioxide, noxious carbon monoxide and nitrous oxides
which are dangerous pollutants. The hydrogen in the gas
combines with oxygen from the air to form water vapor;
carbon in the gas combines with oxygen from the air to
form carbon dioxide. The net products of the combustion
are water and carbon dioxide. Gas-driven cars burn gas
that leaves the air relatively clean. Hydrocarbon gases
contain mainly hydrogen and carbon that contain very
little impurities. Gas-driven cars are environmentally more
friendly than gasoline cars.
Transition Elements
Chronological ordering: first, second, last
Time adverbs: When, then, after, before, ...
Verbs: follow, precede, come before or after, ...
Exemplification / Illustration
1. Not only the physical and life sciences but
also the social sciences and the humanities
require the services of technical writers.
For example, a discussion on language
testing can become very "technical."
Demography offers a variety of aspects
involving complex statistical data,....
2. Birds and animals communicate. For
example, a bee returning from flowers with
a load of nectar performs a dance that tells
the other bees in hive where to get nectar....
Transition Elements (exemplification)
for example, to illustrate, as an example, for instance, in
particular, namely, that is, in other words, Verbs: define,
show, illustrate, have, be (equative), ...
Comparison/Contrast
1. Some people would like to distinguish between the writing
done by scientists and engineers. However, the principle of
writing is the same. This text is concerned with the principle
common to the requirements for technical writing, no matter
who does the writing.
2. Clarity and precision are often interdependent. Clarity is
achieved when the writer has communicated meaningfully to
the reader. Precision is achieved when the writer attains
exact correspondence between the matter to be
communicated and written expression. Faults in clarity and
precision result when the following occur....
Transition Elements
not only... but also, but, yet, however, still, nevertheless, even
though, in spite of, despite, on the contrary, unlike, on the
other hand, conversely, whereas, also, similarly, likewise, in
the same way (manner)...
Cause-and-Effect Analysis
The source can encode and the destination can
decode only in terms of the experience each has
had. If the two have a large area in common,
communication is easy. If they share nothing,
communication is impossible. If we have never
learned Chinese, we can neither encode or decode
in that language. The presence of a common code
between the sender and the receiver is, therefore,
essential for any message to be understood.
Transition Elements
Because, therefore, for, so, although, if, causative
verbs: cause, result, produce, effect, give, as a
result, consequently, hence, because, if, thus, for
this reason, since, due to, when,...
Special Verbs: cause, result, give rise to, induce,
produce, affect, ... conditional tenses, ... .
Classification / Analysis
Displacement along a fault may be horizontal,
vertical, or a combination of these. Movement may
occur very suddenly along a stressed fault,
producing an earthquake, it may be very slow, or
what it is called "creep," unaccompanied by
seismographic evidence ....
As it presents itself, the earth can be physically
described as a ball of rock (the lithosphere), partly
covered by water (the hydrosphere) and wrapped in
an envelope of air (the atmosphere). To all these
three physical zones, it is convenient to add a
biological zone (the biosphere).
Transition Elements
Special verbs: classify, consist, composed,
describe, divide, ...
Other ordinal elements
Listing
In addition to coal and nuclear energy, a variety of other
power sources are also frequently discussed in the news
and in scientific literature.... Geothermal energy is one of
the more practical of proposed new sources.... Solar energy
seems an elegant idea.... Sophisticated windmills to
generate electricity are also under study by some ....

What makes for a good paragraph in scientific/ technical

writing? First of all, a good paragraph has unity: focuses
on a single idea or theme. Second, a good paragraph has
coherence: one sentence leads to the next in some kind of
logical sequence. Finally, a good paragraph has adequate
content: appropriate details to support the main idea.
Transition Elements
Use sequence transitions: first, second, ... and other ordinal
numbers, then finally, ...
Others: Lists show parallelism. (All lists start with the same
grammatical form or structure.)
 General-to-Particular Ordering
What kinds of things must writers learn to
become effective and efficient communicators?
Writers should understand the situation, uses,
and audiences for a given communication and
write for those audiences and uses. Also they
should have clear organisation and logical
reasoning; they should write clear and concise
sentences.
In other words, writers should produce sentences
that readers can easily understand, and they
should place those sentences in context of
paragraphs and larger.
Moreover, they should follow the standard
conventions for grammar, punctuation, and other
mechanics. Transition Elements: almost those of
listing, or exemplification, or ordering (ordinal
numbers and sequencing). Depending on the
topic, use appropriate transition.
What is the topic?
Customers in wheelchairs would mostly
benefit from this change. Individuals
who wear braces, who use canes or a
walker, who need other types of
assistance find it difficult to walk up a
flight of stairs. Individuals with asthma
or other breathing problems often find
stairs a menace. In addition to these
individuals, parents with small children
in carts or strollers would find the ramp
convenient. Older citizens, too, would
benefit from this small but significant
alteration in front of the building.
What is the topic?
Customers in wheelchairs would mostly
benefit from this change. Individuals
who wear braces, who use canes or a
walker, who need other types of
assistance find it difficult to walk up a
flight of stairs. Individuals with asthma
or other breathing problems often find
stairs a menace. In addition to these
individuals, parents with small children
in carts or strollers would find the ramp
convenient. Older citizens, too, would
benefit from this small but significant
alteration in front of the building.
What is the topic?
Changing stairs into ramp in front of the
building can benefit handicapped persons.
(Handicapped persons can benefit from changing stairs into
ramp in from of the building.) Customers in wheelchairs
would mostly benefit from this change.
Individuals who wear braces, who use canes or a
walker, who need other types of assistance find it
difficult to walk up a flight of stairs. Individuals
with asthma or other breathing problems often
find stairs a menace. In addition to these
individuals, parents with small children in carts
or strollers would find the ramp convenient.
Older citizens, too, would benefit from this small
but significant alteration in front of the building.
How many paragraphs?
Fat is an important part of everyones diet. Fat is nutritionally
present in the basic food groups we eat to aid growth and
development. The fats and fatty acids present in these foods
ensure proper metabolism, thus helping to turn what we eat in the
energy we need. These same fats and fatty acids also act as
carriers for important vitamins like A, D, E, and K. Another
important role of fat is that it keeps us from feeling hungry by
delaying digestion. Fat also enhances the flavor of the food we
eat. Customers in wheelchairs would mostly benefit from this
change. Individuals who wear braces, who use canes or a walker,
who need other types of assistance find it difficult to walk up a
flight of stairs. Individuals with asthma or other breathing
problems often find stairs a menace. In addition to these
individuals, parents with small children in carts or strollers would
find the ramp convenient. Older citizens, too, would benefit from
this small but significant alteration in front of the building. For a
noise breaker to work, it must be high and long enough to block
the view of a road. Noise breakers do very little for homes on a
hillside overlooking a road or for buildings that rise above the
barrier. Noise barriers can have functional limitations. Opening in
the noise barriers for driveway connections or intersecting streets
destroy its effectiveness, too. In some areas, homes are scattered
too far apart to permit noise barriers to be built at a reasonable
cost.
The basic principle to keep in mind in
preparing any kind of oral presentation
is that all listeners have a limited
attention span and cannot be expected
to follow everything you say. Their
attention will probably wander from
time to time, even if your presentation
is only 10 minutes long. So, if you want
to make sure that your listeners will
come away from your talk with your
main points clear in their minds, you
must organize your presentation in
such a way that these eight main points
stand out. Here is how to do it.
if you want to make sure that your
listeners will understand, organize your
presentation in such a way that these
eight main points stand out:
1 Analyze your audience, limit topics
2 Determine your primary purpose
3 Select supporting Information
4 Choose an appropriate organization
5 Prepare an outline
6 Select appropriate visual aids
7 Prepare a suitable introduction
8 Prepare a closing summary.
Nothing is more helpful to the ultimate
success of an oral presentation than
practice. Practice allows you to spot the
flaws in a presentation and eradicate
them. It enables you to work on making
smooth transitions from section to
section, instead of awkward stops and
starts. And practice gives you an idea of
how long your presentation will take, if
it's too long. All of these benefits
promote greater self-confidence, which
in turn leads to a more convincing,
emphatic, effective style of delivery.
The best way to practice a talk is by
rounding up a few friends and trying it
out on them. Ask them to hear you all
the way through, taking as many notes
as possible but not raising any
questions until you've finished. A good
alternative would be to use a videotape
recorder and then critique your own
performance. This is particularly
effective in allowing you to spot
nervous mannerisms that you might
not be conscious of while actually
performing.
Here are some specific things to work on while
practicing your oral presentation:
1. Devise ways of repeating your important
points without being too repetitive. Since
your important points should all contribute to a
single cumulative effect, it's a good idea to
reiterate these points occasionally as you go
along-especially in summary form at the end of
your talk.
2. Create smooth transitions between
sections. Take note of places where the flow of
your presentation seems to break down, and
see if you can't insert a phrase or two to act as
a bridge.
How can you control your
nervousness? Basically, by not being
self conscious, the best way to do this
is by establishing a "conversation" with
your listeners. If you concentrate on
your listeners and on what you're trying
to tell them-just as you do in small-
group conversation-you'll forget about
yourself and lose your self-
consciousness. And, in the process,
you'll lose your nervousness.