An outline is a tool to help organize writing. Since students must typically limit themselves by word count in DDE USAWC written requirements, an outline will help ensure the essay addresses all parts of the question. In some of the DDE courses, outlines are a “formative assessment” tool – an ungraded means for faculty instructors to provide guidance and feedback to students on their essay.
Most well-written papers flow from an outline. Developing an outline should be standard practice for USAWC students when drafting essay papers. There are many ways to prepare an outline: mind-mapping, jotting down ideas and then organizing them logically, or even writing in stream-of-consciousness, then going back to organize/outline the resulting thoughts. In any case, students should be sure to carefully analyze the prompt (question) and ensure the outline answers each part of the question.
An Outline provides a preliminary sketch of the paper’s logic and organization, including the main points and types of evidence that will support the thesis.
These are the steps to create an outline based on a question/prompt:
Start with the main body paragraphs. For each main body paragraph, choose one of the subordinate elements from the overall essay prompt. Lay each of these subordinate elements out in the order they will appear in the paper to form the backbone of the question outline.
Answer each question in one concise declarative sentence, and put this sentence at the beginning of each outline point. This sentence will become the topic or assertion sentence that will lead each paragraph.
Follow each assertion with strong declarative bullets presenting evidence from the readings that support each assertion. Then follow with bullet phrases for the analysis section, making sure the analysis ties the evidence back to the assertion.
After addressing each of the subordinate questions, the thesis statement and essay road map should become clear. Create the thesis and essay map, and place these in the introduction. Use the same information to summarize the thesis and main points in the conclusion.
Creating a good outline will usually take the bulk of essay-writing time. The recommended order of writing an outline is: Body, Introduction, Conclusion. The Introduction introduces the Body of your essay [A, B, and C]. Most students find it helpful to first decide on the assertions which form the Body, then write the thesis and essay map that will comprise the bulk of the Introduction.
Introduction Paragraph
Thesis: Make an overall thesis statement followed by the two or three points in the essay map or road map. These points are assertions, which each become a topic sentence for the following paragraphs. The introduction should provide the reader a clear “roadmap” of the remainder of the essay.
Body Paragraphs (use bullet points, not complete sentences)
Assertion #1
Support for assertion #1 (define theory, cite/reference sources as appropriate)
Analysis of assertion #1 – ties evidence to prove the assertion
Assertion #2
Support for assertion #2 (define theory, cite/reference sources as appropriate)
Analysis of assertion #2 – ties evidence to prove the assertion
Assertion #3
Support for assertion #3 (define theory, cite/reference sources as appropriate)
Analysis of assertion #3 – ties evidence to prove the assertion
Conclusion Paragraph.
The final paragraph should restate the thesis statement and also briefly summarize the author’s key arguments and takeaways, or the “so what” of the argument for strategic leaders. Students should remind the reader about the main points of the essay, and how they have answered the question prompt. Note that a conclusion does not introduce new evidence. A good conclusion is usually only about 10% of the total word count of the essay. Overly long conclusions come at the expense of analysis within the body paragraphs. The final paragraph drives home the importance for current/future thought and research, suggests areas for further investigation, and calls the reader to action when appropriate. For example, what can we learn from this? The conclusion answers the larger question of “So What?”
Notes:
When converting this outline to essay, points A., B., and C. should each be a separate paragraph. Therefore, the above essay example outline will become a 5-paragraph essay. If there are only two Assertions (A and B), then it would be a 4-paragraph essay (Intro, A., B., Conclusion).
Footnotes are optional in the outline and do not count toward outline word count.