Which of the following is false about writing academic essays? A) The content should be general and focus on summary B) Topic sentences should...

A is, indeed, the correct answer.

Because an essay is a rather short work, it will not be general. It also does not summarize works; instead, it has a specific purpose. Here are main purposes of an essay:

•  to inform about various topics


•  to persuade readers to certain viewpoints or actions


•  to explain a process or situation


•  to entertain readers

Essays also conform to a specific, not general, structure. They do not summarize.

• Essays have an introductory paragraph that contains a motivator or hook relevant to the main purpose of the essay. 
  This introduction contains a thesis statement. This is the main idea of the essay, and this thesis statement  is a single idea, and is a precise opinion. This thesis statement contains a "blueprint" of the rest of the essay. The blueprint is the pattern that the essay will follow. Blueprints can answer "Why?" "How?"and  "When?"

• 
  Topic sentences are formed from the blueprint of the essay. These begin the main body paragraphs of the essay.


• A conclusion restates the main points introduced in the blueprint and developed in the body. It also has a "clincher" sentence that invites thought about the content of the essay as it concludes ideas.
  Therefore, a conclusion reminds the reader of the main point (thesis) of the essay, and it provides the reader a sense of finality.