Reading with Critical Comprehension

Identifying the Author’s Organizational Pattern

An author always organizes the ideas of a passage to better communicate them to the reader. As a consequence, the good reader finds the author's organizational pattern to be an excellent clue for better understanding the passage.

The most common organizational patterns are:

(1) Time order (sequence) of events. For example, passages involving a progression of dates (days, months, years) are organized on this basis.

(2) Simple listing of events, ideas, activities. For example, this list of common organizational patterns.

(3) Definition – extended to provide examples. For example, a passage might define "Americanism" and require many examples to make the definition clear.

(4) Division/classification of ideas from general to specific. For example, a passage might classify different types of schools of architecture.

(5) Cause and effect relationships. This type of relationship is very strong because it claims that the existence of a first event (Cause) is sufficient to guarantee the occurrence of a second event (Effect).

(6) Comparison and contrast. For example, a passage might compare/contrast the value of renting and purchasing.

(7) Description of a place, person, or event. For example, a passage could describe the life of Abraham Lincoln.

(8) Sequence/process. For example, a passage could describe the process of preparing a Thanksgiving dinner.

(9) Spatial/place order. For example, a passage could describe the location of a mountain home.

(10) Order of importance. For example, a passage could list in order of importance the items needed by a homeowner encountering a hurricane.

Which organizational pattern listed above would be appropriate for a discussion of the welfare policies of the Democratic and Republican Parties? Click the "Next" button below when the choice has been made.