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ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING

Sample Essay

Examinations good or bad? (SPM 2008)

The word examinations may frighten some of us, including me. It is a }


mean to evaluate the performance and assess the academic achievement of }Introduction
students. They aim at testing the students grasp and understanding of the }paragraph
subjects taught to them. However, one needs a lot of revision and }
preparation in order to face examinations so as to obtain an excellent result. }
So, is examination good? It is good as no doubt it has come to play an Thesis statement of
important part in ones educational career. agreement

Examinations give the opportunity for students to study as much as Topic sentence 1
they want. No examinations lead students to nowhere. Studies will no more (Reason 1)
be an orchard of knowledge. It is a valuable quality if one is able to pass an }
examination. It shows that the student is able to express his thoughts and }Supporting ideas
ideas in a manner others can understand. It also shows that the student has }to support topic
acquired a certain amount of knowledge in some branches of study. Besides, }sentence 1
the mind of a student including a dull person, receives good exercise when }
he prepares for an examination. A students success in an examination helps }
the teacher to assess his mental or general ability. }

If there are no examinations, one will doubt about the existence of Topic sentence 2
educational institutional such as colleges. They will be closed and (Reason 2)
knowledge will be of no value. Other things like college unions would be }
much more important than the classes. Teachers and the administration of }Supporting ideas
the institutions will have to struggle to find ways and programmes which }to support topic
would attract students to attend classes or even enroll in colleges. As such, }sentence 2
students will only go for selective studies done through selective books, }
guides and notes. Not only that, the strenuous two months before the }
examinations will be left for relaxation. }

Institutions of education will face difficulties in assessing students Topic sentence 3


competencies and capabilities without examinations. Selections of (Reason 3)
candidates for careers will become a problem as paper qualifications play a }
vital role to determine the career of an individual. Examinations help to }Supporting ideas
distinguish the quality of a student besides helping to decide qualification }to support topic
for certain scholarship. They enable students to gain entry into institutions of }sentence 3
higher learning too. }

Examinations pave the route to students to portray their excellence in Topic sentence 4
studies. Competitions are made available to prove each others mental (Reason 4)
powers. Students will be able to boast their intelligence and reasoning power }
especially if they are sitting for higher level of examinations. On top of that, }Supporting ideas
students can in indicate their grasp of the subjects taught in their studies }to support topic
through their performance in the examinations. }sentence 4

In short, the goal of examinations is to evaluate the quantum of }Conclusion :


knowledge acquired by students so as to produce a good quality of students }Restatement of
who can perform excellence in the fields that they venture. Therefore, } opinion
examinations are good and important otherwise the world of academicians }Summary of main
will be filled with poor or unknown souls without examinations. }points

A. Tips on the format in writing argumentative essay

1. Introduction
Look at issues or topic concern
Explain the issue or topic given
Express stand (if required) in the thesis statement

2. Body (1 4)
Arguments for
Give supporting statement
Justify with examples or explanation
Arguments against
Give evidence
Justify argument

3. Conclusion or recommendation
Restate your stand
Summarize main points

B. Some useful expressions in argumentative essay

I agree../I disagree../I strongly believe../I am definitely sure


There is no doubt. / It cannot be denied/ Certainly.
I am of the opinion that
It is truly clear that ..

1. Vocabulary Practice

Word association

Which of the words below do you associate with items a d?


a destruction b water c light d fire

1 trickle 9 ripple
2 drenched 10 glow
3 Crumble 11 glisten
4 Shimmer 12 cascade
5 Drizzle 13 Splash
6 Smolder 14 float
7 Wrecked 15 collapse
8 soaked
2. ERROR IDENTIFICATION
Read all the short paragraphs below. Find and correct the mistakes.
A

I am in Ms Clarkss physical education class since two months. I enjoy it a lot and
have only miss two classes since the beginning of the term. I especially like
tennis but since September we dont play because the weather have been too cold.
I also like volleyball and my team has win two matches since we have started to
compete with Lincoln school. Im looking forward to the next month.

Dear Hermis Im in a hurry. I havent went shopping already but Ill do it on the
way home. Rita have just had dinner and shes already had her bath. Have you
call Mr Jacob yet? Hes called already three times today. His daughter has had her
flu shot yet. Is it too late? See you later.

Ive never laugh so much in my life! Did you see the blind date episode on
Family? Have you never seen anything so funny? I LOVE the show! Its the best
show I have ever saw in my life. I really enjoyed it lately. By the way, have you
notice that Gary and Alison are beginning to get on? I think Gary have started to
fancy her. Last night, Alison has moved next door to Gary but he doesnt know
yet! I cant wait to see what happens in the next episode. Does anyone know
when Garys book is coming out?
D

Its 8.00 pm. It was a hard week and its not over yet! I still have to finish that
report. Ive started it last Monday but so far Ive wrote only five pages. And its
due next week! Work was so difficult lately. Ive worked late every night this
week. I am tired and I havent got much sleep last night. I miss Joe. Ive seen him
last weekend but it seems like a long time ago.

3. Idiomatic Expressions

Read the following text and fill in the blanks with the correct idiomatic expressions.

We got the shock of our lives last Christmas. We were sitting round the fire, forcing third helping of
Christmas cakes into our mouths, when the doorbell rang. It made everybody jump. Aunt Jane
_______________________________________. I was pretty startled myself, I must admit. Anyway,
there at the door believe it or not was Uncle Marc, with an armful of presents. (It was the first time in
living memory that he had ever given anything to anybody.) Everyone _________________________
when they saw him. No one could really _______________________________________. Poor Aunt
Flossie actually fainted, and Uncle Bill kept blinking, as if
______________________________________. And Granny, who had been talking non-stop since
breakfast, was absolutely speechless. I thought her eyes ______________________________. I reckon
you could have knocked _____________________________________________.

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