Author: paschmann

Michael Dallaire

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A designer is at once an engineer who imagines the object and determines its feasibility, an entrepreneur who is able to understand his clients’ business objectives, and an artist who creates an expressive and desirable aesthetic

Michael Dallaire

Answering Essay Questions

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QUESTION TYPEVERBS / CUESDEFINITION / STRATEGY
Factual Recall   NAME, LIST, STATE, SUMMARIZE, OUTLINERestate or summarize from your notes. 
Analysis / Explanation of Relationships EXPLAIN, DISCUSS  (Main ideas and Major supporting points) Explain in detail, based on the information in a lecture or reading Note: Do not express your opinion!
use Critical Analysis
use Cause/Effect; (C/E)
use Comparison/Contrast (C/C) 
Synthesis / Application of previously learned principles ANALYZE, EVALUATE, EXPLAIN, PROVE, SHOW, JUSTIFY, ILLUSTRATE, COMPARE/ CONTRASTTransfer the principles or material learned in class to another example or situation (synthesis /“think”-question) 
Note: Do not express your opinion!
OpinionIN YOUR OPINION, …    WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT …?State your opinion and prove it with examples and/or supporting points by referring to information from a lecture or reading. 

  • Read the questions very carefully at least 2 or 3 times. 
  • Circle  the main verb (= action verb/imperative) in the question and decide on the necessary rhetorical strategy for answering the question (cause-effect, comparison-contrast, definition, classification, problem-solution). 
  • Make sure you understand what type of answer the main verb calls for (a diagram a summary, details, an analysis, an evaluation). 
  • Circle all the keywords in the question. 
  • Decide if you need to write a 1-paragraph or a multi-paragraph answer. 
  • Write a brief outline of all the points you want to mention in your answer. 
  • Restate the question and answer it with a topic sentence (for a 1-paragraph answer) or a thesis statement (for a multi-paragraph answer).  
  • Answer the question according to general rules of academic writing.  Use indentations; begin each paragraph with a topic sentence; support the topic sentence(s) with reasons and/or examples; use transition words to show logical organization; write a conclusion.  Use correct punctuation throughout. 
  • Read over your answer again and check if all the main ideas have been included. 
  • Check your answer for grammar and punctuation. 
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    Posted in MBA