Tuesday 27th may

Compare and Contrast is a text structure or pattern of organization where the similarities and differences of two or more things are explored. It is important to remember that with the compare and contrast text structure the text should be discussing similarities and differences. If the text only discusses similarities, it is only comparing. Likewise, if it only discusses ways that the things are different, it is only contrasting. The text must do both to be considered compare and contrast.

Example:

Australian Rules football and soccer are both team sports played on large fields with the objective of scoring by getting the ball into the opposing team's goal. However, they differ significantly in rules and gameplay. Soccer, or football in most of the world, is played with a round ball primarily using feet, with only goalkeepers allowed to use their hands. In contrast, Australian Rules football uses an oval-shaped ball and allows players to use both hands and feet to move and score with the ball. The fields also differ—soccer is played on a rectangular pitch, while Australian Rules football is played on an oval-shaped field. Scoring in soccer involves kicking the ball into a net, whereas Australian Rules football has four posts, with different points awarded based on where the ball passes through. 

When contrasting two or more things, this doesn't necessarily mean identifying them as either good or bad. Comparisons simply relay the differences; therefore, one thing could have both positive and negative traits.

Identifying when an author is comparing and contrasting is usually not difficult because the speaker will bounce back and forth between two subjects and this pattern is generally pretty easy to recognise.  However, here are some signal words that may indicate that the text is written using the compare and contrast organisational pattern: like, unlike, both, neither, similar, and different.

Here is a non-exhaustive list of words and phrases that indicate a text follows the compare/contrast text structure: