To improve the paragraph, Miguel should add

• A. citations
• B. a final insight
• C. a thesis statement
• D. transitions

Answer: (D)

Coherence in a paragraph comes from smooth connections between sentences, and transitions provide those connections. They show how ideas relate to each other—adding information, indicating sequence, signaling cause and effect, or drawing contrasts. With transitions, the reader sees the logical path through Miguel’s points: one sentence sets up the next, a link clarifies addition, or a consequence connects evidence to conclusion. Without these linking words, the paragraph can feel choppy and hard to follow.

Using transitions helps guide the reader through the argument, making the progression clear and the relationships explicit. While a thesis statement helps identify the main claim and citations can support it, transitions are the practical tool that makes the paragraph flow from one idea to the next and keep that flow consistent. A closing insight can reinforce the point, but it won’t fix the internal movement of ideas like transitions do.

In short, transitions are what tie the ideas together and carry the reader smoothly from one sentence to the next.