Three ways to respond Today we will discuss three general types of responses you can have to another person’s opinion. The key word here is response. We are going to look at ways to thoughtfully respond to another persons opinion as opposed to merely reacting (emotionally). Thoughtful responses can lead to positive and productive conversations. Today I will be sharing templates and transition words and phrases from the book They Say I Say. The book focuses on the use of the templates in writing, so sometimes I will adjust the language to better reflect a conversational tone.

Agree When agreeing it is important to still give reasons why you agree. This not only furthers the conversation, but also demonstrates you are truly listening and connecting to what is being said. In short, you are thoughtfully responding. “I agree that ____ because my experience confirms it.” “X is right about ____ because recent studies have shown____.” “I agree that _____ because as we can see/learn/know ____.”

Disagree The same rule for agreeing applies when you disagree. Respectfully express your disagreement and be sure to support and explain why you disagree. “I disagree with X’s view because research has shown____” “I disagree with X’s view because in my experience _____.” “I think X is wrong because s/he overlooks/doesn’t take into account/doesn’t factor in ____.”

Agree and Disagree This is a very popular response, and shows you are being open to other ideas and opinions. It allows us to share what we have in common and still express our differences. “Although I agree with X up to a point, I disagree with _____.” Although I disagree with much that X says/_____, I do agree that ____.” My feelings on the issue are mixed. On the one hand, I agree that ____. On the other hand, I’m not sure if ____.” “My feelings on the issue are mixed. I do agree with X’s opinion that _____. However, I find Y’s opinion about ____ and Z’s thoughts on ____ to be equally persuasive.”

Transitions This week, we are focusing on the idea of transition words that, in writing, connect independent clauses/complete sentences. There are various categories for these words and many choices. Here I will share some of the more common ones and offer links to larger lists.

Addition: also, in addition, furthermore, additionally Example: for example/instance, specifically, after all Elaboration: actually, in other words, to put it another way, in short Comparison: likewise, similarly, along the same lines Contrast: however, in contrast, on the other hand Cause and Effect: therefore, as a result, consequently, then, thus Concession: granted, naturally, of course, admittedly Conclusion: in sum/short, in conclusion, to sum up, to summarize ( and the cause and effect transitions)

References The templates and transition lists were taken almost exclusively from the Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein’s 2006 edition of “They Say/I Say” The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing. A copy of the book can be found here: y%20Say%20I%20Say.pdf y%20Say%20I%20Say.pdf Second editions of the book can be downloaded here: The OWL of Purdue also has a great page that includes a couple of extra categories: