Teaching the Prewriting Process using Outlining Software
Most of us aren't born essay writers. Constructing a compelling, logical argument is a learned skill and, as is often the case, developing that skill depends on good instruction combined with practice. Middle school students are usually exposed to formal essay writing using a standard five-paragraph structure consisting of three main argument paragraphs bracketed by an introduction and a conclusion. A "prewriting" process is typically taught with the goal of helping students organize their ideas into an outline before they begin to write. A simple prewriting process is a good introduction to the core organizational skills that lead to good writing. Once the basic process is understood, however, students need to be challenged to think critically about the logic, completeness and flow of their outlines, and to make structural improvements as an integral part of prewriting. Outlining software can help with that analysis and editing.
Before talking about software, let's take a closer look at typical first lessons in prewriting. David Dye's guide, How to Teach the Five-Paragraph Essay, emphasizes a pencil-and-paper prewriting process in which students produce a one-page, graphical outline of their essay before writing the first word of draft text. This outline page contains: (a) the central topic of the essay at the top, (b) three ideas that support that central topic shown in circles down the center of the page, and (c) three constellations of four or five points each, drawn as offshoots from the three central circles. This hierarchy forms the plan for the essay: the three supporting ideas become paragraphs and the constellations of points around those three ideas become sentences within the paragraphs. With the addition of an introduction and a conclusion, students are able to construct a complete five-paragraph essay in about an hour. This process is logical, easy to teach, and a good introduction to formal writing.
Outlining software can help students go beyond this introduction. Once the basic skeleton of the outline has been produced on paper using Dye's approach or something similar, consider a next step in which the student enters that outline into the computer and edits. Outlining software is specifically designed to support this type of structural review and modification. Ideas are captured in a tree-style hierarchy, much like the arrangement of folders and subfolders on a computer's hard-drive. Ideas can be moved around in the hierarchy simply by picking them up and dropping them in a new location. Of course, new ideas can be inserted anywhere in the structure as they pop into the writer's mind. The whole purpose is to facilitate reflection about the completeness and logical flow of the outline before proceeding to the first draft of text. This intermediate step between initial brainstorming and actual composition often yields new ideas that help to flesh out the outline and make the subsequent writing process that much easier.
Suppose the assignment is to persuade the reader that Band X's invitation to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is grievously overdue. The initial brainstorm for three major points yields the following:
- Their drummer is amazing
- They have been working hard for X years and they deserve it
- Their live shows are fantastic
The constellations of supporting ideas flow easily (e.g., "The drummer does an incredible 10-minute solo at every concert"), and the one-page prewriting exercise is complete. At this point, instead of going straight to the rough draft, the student transcribes the outline into the computer and starts asking whether the three major ideas are the most persuasive ones possible. You suggest that a visit to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame website might give some clues about what it takes for a band to get nominated. The student does this and returns with the following quote: "Artists become eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first record. Criteria include the influence and significance of the artist's contributions to the development and perpetuation of rock and roll." After looking up the word "perpetuation" in the dictionary, the student begins to think more specifically about the ways Band X has helped rock music develop and perpetuate.
As the new ideas come, the student copies them into the outline on the screen, under the three original main points:
- Rock music is high energy music. Band X has incredible energy, which millions of fans have witnessed over the many years that they have been playing live concerts.
- Rock music is about thinking for yourself instead of following along with the crowd. This is a central theme in Band X's lyrics.
Under this last point, the student lists examples of song lyrics that are about individual choice. These sub-points about lyrics are indented under the main idea so the relationship can be readily seen. Also, the original first point about the drummer becomes a sub-point under the fourth point about high energy music. Following the train of thought further, the student attaches the other sub-point about the incredible drum solos and how they contribute to the energy of the show. The original third point about the live shows being fantastic is now redundant and is deleted from the outline, leaving a revised outline:
- They have been working hard together for X years.
- Bands only become eligible for nomination 25 years after their first record.
- Not only has it been that long for Band X, but they are still together, still putting out albums.
- They have made X uniquely original albums over their X year career.
- Rock music is high energy music. Band X has incredible energy, which millions of fans have witnessed over the many years that they have been playing live concerts.
- The drummer is amazing.
- He does an incredible 10-minute solo at every concert
- Rock music is about thinking for yourself instead of following along with the crowd. This is a central theme in Band X's lyrics.
- Their song "Free your Mind" is all about making your own decisions, as you can see with the lyric "Life's too short to live under a thumb / I'm looking at the open road - Gonna get out and get me some."
(I know I'm not going to win any poetry contests with my fake rock lyrics, but you get the idea.)
The introduction and conclusion paragraphs flow naturally from these three main argument paragraphs. The student includes the part of the quote from the website about the "influence and significance of the artist's contributions" to the introduction to set up the arguments about their nomination.
The motivation for using outlining software during prewriting is to revise and embellish an outline as much as possible before composing actual text. Software does not replace brainstorming with a pencil and paper, but it can multiply the results of those initial brainstorming sessions, leading to richer and fuller treatment of the chosen topic. This principle applies to virtually any writing project we might consider — the need to reflect and revise an outline is definitely not limited to our first attempts at essay writing. Outlining software is a tool for developing proficiency at composing logical arguments, which is, of course, a skill that will be of value throughout and well beyond students' school years.
Acknowledgment
Thanks to my nephew Jon for his ideas about a persuasive essay about Band X. It's been a long time since I had to write a five-paragraph essay. Thanks Jon!
Reference
Dye, David. (2005). How to Teach the Five-Paragraph Essay. Electronic book downloaded from www.createbetterwriters.com.
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