A CONCLUSION MUST: ANSWER THE RESEARCH QUESTION.
The conclusion should reiterate the key findings and main points developed in the body of the essay and provide a resolution to the research question.
Conclusion – 600 words
Paragraph one: Answer the Research Question! Clearly tie all the main points of your argument together to address the exact wording of your RQ.
Q1: What was your thesis statement? How has this changed as a result of your research?
Q2: How has your hypothesis been validated? In other words, what is the conclusion of your essay?
Q3: What is your key argument and key pieces of evidence that support your main argument?
Paragraph two: Include an implicit link to TOK. Once you have become very familiar with your investigation you will find it easy to identify the knowledge questions that arise.
Q1: Why is your research important? What impact or significance does your final argument in the EE have?
Q2: What were the limitations of your research methodology? What implications does this have on your conclusion? What are the new questions that have arisen as a result of your research? Why would it be interesting to explore these? What original questions remain unanswered?
Q3: How has your research impacted you and your views: as a researcher, as a learner, and as an individual?
Paragraph three: Any construction of new knowledge – which is what your investigation has achieved! – leads to further questions to be answered in future investigations. Suggest future lines of inquiry.
To address all the criteria, you must stick to the word limit as closely as possible! Do not exceed the word limit at all – this is a very easy way to lose marks.
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Good: |
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1. Restate the RQ. A response to the actual question on the titlepage (ensure that you have not drifted into responding to a slightly different question or focus). |
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2. It must be consistent with the argument and evidence presented in the essay. |
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3. Includes limitations and any new or unresolved questions that arose during the research (if appropriate). |
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4. Summarize the key points raised in the main body and synthesize them into a final analysis. |
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Avoid: |
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1. Beginning with an unnecessary, overused phrase such as "in conclusion," "in summary," or "in closing." Although these phrases can work in speeches, they come across as wooden and trite in writing. |
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2. Introducing any new material, new idea or subtopic (this includes quotes not seen before in the essay). |
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3. Offering no conclusion whatsoever (student should offer a resolution even if it is partial or incomplete) |
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4. Making sentimental, emotional appeals that are out of character with the rest of an analytical paper. |
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5. Including any accusations, (it is not the student’s role to judge). |
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6. Answering a question that is different to the one on the cover. |
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7. Ending with a rephrased thesis statement without any substantive changes. |
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8. Including evidence (quotations, statistics, etc.) that should be in the body of the paper. |
Q1: What was your thesis statement? How has this changed as a result of your research?
Q2: How has your hypothesis been validated? In other words, what is the conclusion of your essay?
Q3: What is your key argument and key pieces of evidence that support your main argument?
Q1: Why is your research important? What impact or significance does your final argument in the EE have?
Q2: What were the limitations of your research methodology? What implications does this have on your conclusion? What are the new questions that have arisen as a result of your research? Why would it be interesting to explore these? What original questions remain unanswered?
Q3: How has your research impacted you and your views: as a researcher, as a learner, and as an individual?
1. The "That's My Story and I'm Sticking to It" Conclusion. This conclusion just restates the thesis and is usually painfully short. It does not push the ideas forward. People write this kind of conclusion when they can't think of anything else to say. Example: In conclusion, Frederick Douglass was, as we have seen, a pioneer in American education, proving that education was a major force for social change with regard to slavery.
2. The "Sherlock Holmes" Conclusion. Sometimes writers will state the thesis for the very first time in the conclusion. You might be tempted to use this strategy if you don't want to give everything away too early in your paper. You may think it would be more dramatic to keep the reader in the dark until the end and then "wow" him with your main idea, as in a Sherlock Holmes mystery. The reader, however, does not expect a mystery, but an analytical discussion of your topic in an academic style, with the main argument (thesis) stated up front. Example: (After a paper that lists numerous incidents from the book but never says what these incidents reveal about Douglass and his views on education): So, as the evidence above demonstrates, Douglass saw education as a way to undermine the slaveholders' power and also an important step toward freedom.
3. The "America the Beautiful"/"I Am Woman"/"We Shall Overcome" Conclusion. This kind of conclusion usually draws on emotion to make its appeal, but while this emotion and even sentimentality may be very heartfelt, it is usually out of character with the rest of an analytical paper. A more sophisticated commentary, rather than emotional praise, would be a more fitting tribute to the topic. Example: Because of the efforts of fine Americans like Frederick Douglass, countless others have seen the shining beacon of light that is education. His example was a torch that lit the way for others. Frederick Douglass was truly an American hero.
4. The "Grab Bag" Conclusion. This kind of conclusion includes extra information that the writer found or thought of but couldn't integrate into the main paper. You may find it hard to leave out details that you discovered after hours of research and thought, but adding random facts and bits of evidence at the end of an otherwise-well-organized essay can just create confusion. Example: In addition to being an educational pioneer, Frederick Douglass provides an interesting case study for masculinity in the American South. He also offers historians an interesting glimpse into slave resistance when he confronts Covey, the overseer. His relationships with female relatives reveal the importance of family in the slave community.