Module 1 — Effective
writing: Strategies
and principles
| Course Guide | Module 1 | Module 2a | Module 2b |
Activity 12: Identifying controlling ideas in topic sentences
You will analyse the same paragraphs as the previous activity. So you’ve already discovered what the topic sentence is for each one. For this activity, do the following:
- Select the word or phrase that reveals the controlling idea of the paragraph. This controlling idea will be part of the topic sentence.
- Click on the Show Solutions link to check your answers.
Example 1 |
The approach of the ILO InFocus Programme on Child Labour (IPEC) is firmly based on partnerships among all relevant sectors of society. Right now IPEC is working actively with thousands of partners throughout the world, from national governments to local agencies, from multinational corporations and employers associations to small businesses, from international trade union federations to local unions, and from international organizations to rural charities. All of them are committed to the struggle against child labour. |
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The approach of the ILO InFocus Programme on Child Labour (IPEC) is firmly based on partnerships among all relevant sectors of society. Right now IPEC is working actively with thousands of partners throughout the world, from national governments to local agencies, from multinational corporations and employers associations to small businesses, from international trade union federations to local unions, and from international organizations to rural charities. All of them are committed to the struggle against child labour. |
Example 2 |
Many women suffer from unequal treatment in employment, as women, or specifically in relation to their reproductive role. Maternity protection is a crucial element in the struggle to achieve equality between men and women workers, as well as an essential element in the basic protection of women and children. The ILO was a pioneer in this area, and in the first year of its existence in 1919, adopted Convention No. 3 on maternity protection. By placing maternity protection on the agenda of the 1999 International Labour Conference, the Governing Body expressed confidence that the time was ripe for new international standards on this subject. |
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Many women suffer from unequal treatment in employment, as women, or specifically in relation to their reproductive role. Maternity protection is a crucial element in the struggle to achieve equality between men and women workers, as well as an essential element in the basic protection of women and children. The ILO was a pioneer in this area, and in the first year of its existence in 1919, adopted Convention No. 3 on maternity protection. By placing maternity protection on the agenda of the 1999 International Labour Conference, the Governing Body expressed confidence that the time was ripe for new international standards on this subject. |
Example 3 |
The need for better knowledge management has received considerable attention through the United Nations system, and has been noted in many reports and resolutions. While at the individual institutional level, and at the level of some of the inter-agency groupings, improving knowledge sharing and managing knowledge assets is being addressed, what has been lacking in an overall coordinated approach to this subject. Such an approach would allow existing efforts to join together under a consistent framework and guide future efforts. |
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“Coordinated approach” is our best controlling idea for this paragraph. But you’ll notice that this doesn’t really hold the paragraph together since the first sentence doesn’t touch on this idea, and the final sentence is more of a contrast to the second sentence, coordinated versus uncoordinated. The writer wishes to convey the need for a coordinated approach to knowledge sharing but the paragraph lacks unity. The first sentence is simply a statement of fact. It doesn’t set a direction. The second sentence repeats much the same information as the first sentence but now adds a main idea: the lack of the coordinated approach. The final sentence provides an argument for a coordinated approach. This is, in fact, another idea. |