Is the problem geographically isolated or is it prevalent all over the country?

What are the causes and consequences of the declining marriage rate?

1. Introduction and topic: The purpose of the introduction is to get the reader’s attention so you should provide some ‘shocking’ data that gets his or her attention.

At the end of the introduction, you should provide your provisional topic provisional because you are still researching this topic, so you will possibly modify your these before turning in the final draft a few weeks from now.

2. Evidence to prove that the problem exists: In this section, you should provide statistics that prove that the problem exists. Your goal should be to paint a picture of the extent of the problem.

Example: Ask yourself the following questions:

How many people are affected by the problem?

Who are these people? Rich, poor? White, African-Americans and so on. Children or adults?

Is the problem geographically isolated or is it prevalent all over the country?

Again, your goal should be to make sure the reader understands the WHAT regarding the problem.