Recommended Reading
An acronym which most students will know but many will struggle to utilise effectively, PEER (Point, Evidence, Explain, Refer back to the question) allows students to structure their work effectively when understood and used properly. It is not fool-proof but it is a means to covering your bases when writing an essay because it allows you to structure and brings you back to the question in hand.
One way of visualising PEER is to imagine it as a triangle. The 'point' is the smallest bit - and this is true when writing your point in your paragraphs. It should be short - 1-3 sentences long, emphasising what the focus of your paragraph is.
Follow this with some evidence lifted directly from the text and put it in to quotation marks (yes; remember those bunny ears "). Try to avoid saying "Here is a piece of evidence to prove my point". Just put it in after your point; the reader will realise that you're backing up your words with a relevant example. The evidence is the middle chunk of your triangle. Sometimes it's smaller than your point; just a few words maybe, but often it is longer as you take a relevant sentence or section to help you respond to your essay question.
The fat base of your triangle; the explanation. Students often struggle here because they have rushed into their point, believing they have to explain exactly what they are talking about straightaway and THEN put the quote in at the end. Take your time! You have made your point; the reader is looking for a hint of your point in the evidence you have provided so finally, give them what they are looking for; a thorough, critical and engaging explanation which tells the audience why your point is proven by the evidence you have provided. The base should finish with a reference back to the question, answering it to show you understand, you can analyse a text with relevant evidence and you know how it all links back to the reason you started writing it in the first place.
