Maryknoll high school of sto.

tomas
JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL UNIT

Office of the religious education

REFLECTIVE ESSAY PAPER GUIDELINES

Reflective essay writing differs from other writing. In this paper, one must make a reasoned defense
of some claim.

Virtues of a good reflective paper include:

 Claims must be defended, reasons must be offered;

 Modesty--should make a small point;
 Originality;
 Clarity, simplicity, straightforwardness;

DEVELOP A THESIS

In doing a reflective essay papers, your thesis will state a position or claim.
The thesis is the most important part of your paper; it tells the reader what your stance is on a
particular topic and offers reasons for that stance.
Since the rest of your paper will be spent defending your thesis--offering support for the thesis and
reasons why criticism of the thesis may not be valid--it's crucial that you develop a strong thesis.
A strong thesis will:

1. answer a question;
2. be engaging; it can be challenged or opposed, thus also defended;
3. pass the "so what? why should I care?" test;
4. be supported by your paper;
5. not be too broad nor too vague.

FORMULATE AN ARGUMENT

What is an argument?

"An argument is a connected series of statements or propositions, some of which are intended to
provide support, justification or evidence for the truth of another statement or proposition.

Arguments consist of one or more premises and a conclusion."

STRUCTURE

A philosophy paper presents a reasoned defense of some thesis. So a philosophy paper typically
does at least one of the following:

 Defend a thesis by offering plausible reasons to support it

 Defend a thesis by showing that arguments against it are unconvincing

 Criticize a thesis by showing that the arguments for it are unconvincing

 Contrast two or more views on a given issue and argue for one view over the other."

I. INTRODUCTION
a. The question being answered (the thesis statement)
b. Clarification of the question
c. An explanation of why the question is important

II. ANSWER TO THE QUESTION

III. ARGUMENT FOR THE THESIS

IV. RESTATEMENT OF THESIS.

a. This may include a reply to the critic that is a rejoinder to the argument
against the writer’s thesis that were actually made by scholars,
philosophers, among others.
V. CONCLUSION
a. Summarize the arguments presented in III.

PROPOSED RELECTIVE ESSAY QUESTION:

What is religious experience?

Definitions according to:

St. Thomas Aquinas

St. Ignatius of Loyola

Technical details:

10-PAGE (minimum)
Arial, 12
Double Space
APA Format Style
 Maryknoll high school of sto. tomas
JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL UNIT

Office of the religious education

Synthesis Paper Outline Format

I.Introduction: In this section, give the reader an idea of why your paper will be important and/or
interesting, what you will be arguing, and make the organization of the paper clear to the reader.

a. Explanation of purpose and background information: Explain why this topic needs to
be written about (may require some background on the topic)
b. Thesis statement: A basic statement of your position; your answer to your research
question
c. Expanded thesis statement: A brief listing of the major points that you will make in
your paper, in the order in which you will make them

II.Arguments: Each of your main arguments can either argue a point that supports your position, or
argue against something you believe is wrong. This is a lengthy paper, so ideally you will have more
than three arguments to make. You should make as many as you can. Organize your arguments to
flow from one to the next or, ideally, to put your strongest arguments first and last.

a. Argument 1
i.Supporting evidence (author, pg. or para. #)
ii.More supporting evidence! (author, pg. or para. #)
iii.Even more supporting evidence!! (author, pg. or para. #)
b. Argument 2
i.Supporting evidence (author, pg. or para. #)
ii.More supporting evidence! (author, pg. or para. #)
iii.Even more supporting evidence!! (author, pg. or para. #)
c. Argument 3
i.Supporting evidence (author, pg. or para. #)
ii.More supporting evidence! (author, pg. or para. #)
iii.Even more supporting evidence!! (author, pg. or para. #)

III.Conclusion: This section of your paper should summarize and look to the future.
a.Acknowledge the opposing side of the argument
b.Re-emphasize your own argument by summarizing the main points that you made
c.Draw final conclusions about the strength of your position
 Writing a Synthesis paper: a guide
1. WHAT IS A SYNTHESIS? A synthesis is a written discussion incorporating support from several
sources of differing views. This type of assignment requires that you examine a variety of sources and
identify their relationship to your thesis.

2. SYNTHESIS IS USED IN:

 Analysis papers to examine related theories. For example a comparison between the theories of evolution.
 Research papers to incorporate multiple sources. For example looking at economic and social effects of
proposed legislation.
 Argument papers to compare differing views and support a coherent claim. For example, is Turn-It in a
violation of student’s rights? One side may argue that the company steals students’ papers while others
claim that students agree to have their work archived.
 Business reports to examine differing ideas and blend into a coherent plan.

3. TIPS FOR AN EFFECTIVE SYNTHESIS ESSAY:

 Establish your purpose to shape the way you want to argue and form your thesis. The thesis is the main
claim or idea of your essay.
 Select your sources and become familiar with them so that you can discuss them in relationship to your
thesis and supporting argument(s). If you simply quote sources without evaluating them then the sources
will control your paper and your audience will may misinterpret the information.
 Develop an organizational plan. Arrange more than just one source per point; multiple sources will
increase your credibility. Look at how sources may agree or disagree with one another and evaluate which
source has better logic or more credibility.
 Evaluate or interpret each source, then show the relationship between the sources and your thesis. 
Document each source; note the author and page number as well.

4. STRATEGIES FOR ORGANIZATION:

 Climactic order- arranges the most important/persuasive evidence last since this is what is remembered.
 Problem/solution-establishes the problem in the introduction, then offers a few solutions.
 Comparison and contrast - Summarizes each source and shows their similarities and differences. Can
move from point-to-point, back and forth between items being compared. Can be set into blocks, where one
item is completely discussed before moving on to the next.

5. ANALYZE THE POSITION OF EACH SOURCE: You can use these verbs to note the author’s tone:

Argumentative:  affirms  argues  confirms  contends  denies  disagrees  believes  concedes 

insists  rejects  responds  emphasizes Research:  adds  reveals  states  mentions  finds  verifies

Emphasis:  alleges  warns  advises  admits  complains  holds  predicts  proposes  acknowledges 
speculates  suggests

6. WHICH TENSE DO I USE?

APA- use past tense: Dr. Quack affirmed the value…
 Maryknoll high school of sto. tomas
JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL UNIT

Office of the religious education

SAMPLE PROPOSED SYNTHESIS TITLES:

a. Pro-life or Not: A Synthesis Paper On The Philippines Reproductive Health Law

b. Altar of Secrets: A Synthesis Paper On The Lived Experiences of Sacristans of Sto. Tomas
c. Spit or Swallow: Is Pervert Lifestyle of An Identified LGBT Merits Damnation In Hell
d. “F*CK YOU, LEBRON!” Hate Culture In Social Media: A Synthesis Paper
e. Bata, Bata Maganda Ba Sila: A Paper Discussing The Reading of Beauty In Television
Commercials

Note:

The above sample titles cannot be used anymore. These titles are given to illustrate the possible titles
that you can have. Anent above, each title is anchored on a certain issue like moral, life, values, among
others. It is essential that your paper should elaborately discuss an issue as against or for the teachings of
the magisterium.