The working outline provides the structure not only for collecting information but also for classifying and evaluating it. A comprehensive and organized system of research notes is essential for a successful essay. A good piece of work should have a clear linear structure that should be worked out at this stage. If your notes have been classified according to the headings in your outline, the progressive breakdown of detail at each stage is not difficult. Drafting the material in the body to substantiate the thesis is a most important task.
Many students seem determined to cram all their research notes into the paper.
In doing so, they clutter and destroy their answers. If the research has been carried out properly, you should end up with far more material than you can possibly use. In the rough draft stage, there is a tendency to overwrite, and this is all right to a point, but be prepared, in the final stage, to prune ruthlessly. Ideally, every word, every phrase, every sentence, every paragraph must justify its presence. Now is the time to let it flow without worrying too much about the niceties of style and form.