The following is a suggested organizational structure. You don’t have to follow

The following is a suggested organizational structure. You don’t have to follow the exact same pattern, but your essay should have at least seven paragraphs total.
First, you will have an introductory paragraph. Your introductory paragraph will have a claim (remember from your reading that in an argumentative essay, you need a strong claim). If I get to the end of your introductory paragraph and do not find a claim, you will not earn a passing score on this assignment.
Second, you will have three to five supporting paragraphs that support your claim. Each of these paragraphs will bring up and discuss one point in support of your claim. Do not use two paragraphs to discuss the same point. Do not use one paragraph to discuss two points.
Third, you will have two to three rebuttal paragraphs that will discuss one opposing viewpoint in each of the paragraphs. Remember: since these are rebuttal paragraphs, you just need to bring up the opposition’s point in two or three sentences and then spend the rest of each paragraph rebutting the opposition’s point. Do not spend the entire paragraph supporting the opposition’s point. In other words, in each of your rebuttal paragraphs, you should address one of the opposition’s arguments, identify with the opposition, and then rebut the opposition’s argument that you brought up at the start of the paragraph.
Fourth, do not forget to write a conclusion paragraph.
Research Guidelines
Guidelines and requirements have changed. Please review.
As you begin to plan your essay, please re-read and review Chapters 16-18 in Patterns for College Writing. The information in these chapters is crucial to your research process.
You must use and cite at least three *credible secondary sources. (up to -100 points)
Up to three of your sources may come directly from the textbook (essays or articles)
Textbook sources will be cited as either “Essay in an Anthology” or More than One Essay in the Same Anthology” (example on page 738).
Any other sources must be accessed through the library database (online or in person)
These will be cited as “Material from a Library Database” (example on page 742).
Basic internet searches or sources, Google, Google Scholar, Yahoo, or any other search engine as well as reference sites like Wikipedia are not credible sources.
You must cite every source both in-text and on a works cited page according to MLA format. Essays that do not have a works cited page will not be graded and will earn 0 points.
You must include at least five properly formatted direct quotations (examples on pages 731+). (up to -25 points)
You must include at least one, but no more than two, block/long quotations (examples on pages 731+). (up to -10 points)