Students will develop a draft working thesis or controlling idea and conference with their teacher.
Review your preliminary research before you begin to draft your thesis statement/controlling idea. Consider what you want to argue/research about your topic and what you can prove/support with your research. Not all of the information you find will be useful to you.
Whether you decide to write an argumentative paper or an informational paper will determine whether you need to draft a Thesis Statement or a Controlling Statement to focus your writing. A thesis needs to be proven in your argumentative paper. A controlling statement is supported in your informational paper.
Thesis Statement*
A thesis statement is a clearly written, tightly focused sentence that tells your reader what you intend to prove or argue in your paper. A thesis statement is not a statement of fact. Rather, it is an arguable point that it is your responsibility to defend and support in your paper. It should be neither too broad nor too general, nor should it be too specific or too factual (it should be argumentative, concise, and tenable - ACT). Your thesis should also address the counterclaim. A strong thesis statement is important not only because it tells your reader what your paper is going to be about, but also because it helps you, the writer, determine what information to include in your paper and what to leave out. Thesis statements usually appear at or near the end of the first, or introductory paragraph of your paper.
* Students developing a thesis statement must address the counterclaim.
Controlling Statement
A controlling statement is a clearly written, tightly focused sentence that tells your reader the topic you intend to research/analyze in your paper. It is a statement of fact that is your responsibility to support in your paper. It should be neither too broad nor too general, nor should it be too specific (it should be focused and concise and tenable - FACT). A strong controlling idea is important not only because it tells your reader what your paper is going to be about, but also because it helps you, the writer, determine what information to include in your paper and what to leave out. Controlling statements usually appear at or near the end of the first, or introductory paragraph of your paper.
An example of a thesis statement that demonstrates “mastery” on the rubric:
Although some critics contend that trading their privacy for protection from terrorists is indefensible, Americans cannot live in a secure nation unless they are willing to sacrifice the basic freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights.
An example of a controlling statement that demonstrates “mastery” on the rubric:
Recent technological advancements in scuba diving not only facilitate ecological research on global warming but also promote underwater safety.