How to structure an academic paragraph

The pattern: claim, evidence, interpretation, link

• Claim - a topic sentence stating what this paragraph proves
• Evidence - a quotation, statistic, case detail or finding, cited
• Interpretation - two or three sentences explaining how the evidence supports the claim
• Link - a sentence tying the point back to the thesis or forward to the next point

A worked example

Claim: Standardised testing narrowed what schools taught rather than raising achievement.
Evidence: In a 2007 study of 349 districts, 62% reported cutting time from science and social studies to expand reading and math instruction (Center on Education Policy, 2007).
Interpretation: The reallocation was not incidental. Because accountability measured only two subjects, reducing untested instruction was the rational response for schools facing sanctions.
Link: This pattern of measured-subject substitution reappears in the district-level data examined below.

The four faults graders see most

• Quote-dumping: evidence with no interpretation after it
• Two arguments in one paragraph, so neither is developed
• A topic sentence that announces a subject rather than a claim
• Interpretation that restates the quotation in different words instead of explaining it

How long should it be?

Roughly 120 to 200 words in most undergraduate work. Under 80 words usually means the interpretation is missing; over 250 usually means two claims are sharing one paragraph.