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A few points to bear in mind:
Drop a coin and choose whichever side the coin suggests
Don’t keep pondering over it. You don’t have the time to ponder, and the result of pondering will be no better than a random choice.
Use the three-part and five-paragraph format
First tell people what you want to say, then say it, and finally tell people what you have just said.
Give each of the main paragraphs a topic sentence.
The topic sentence tells the reader pointedly what you think. Remember that a topic sentence embodies a debatable statement that calls for support, development or elaboration. It expresses some sort of judgment rather than states hard facts.
Put each option through both of the tests
The basic structure of the facts is as follows:
Test1Test2Additional factor
Option 1
Option 2
Indent your paragraphs clearly to show neat organization
The first impression is the last impression.
Be clear but not categorical
Support your document, but don’t try to prove it.
Anticipate opposition
Give ground where the other side has a valid point. Remember how you play Ping-Pong
写作范例:
Topic
The English department at a university must choose a text for its first-year composition course. Write an argument in favor of selection either of the following texts with these. Considerations in mind:
The department has a strong commitment to teaching basic writing skills, such as grammar and essay organization
The department wants to increase the students’ enthusiasm for and interest in writing.
During the three years that the department has used The Standard Textbook of English, instructors in other departments have reported significant improvement in students’ writing skills. Nicknamed "The Best and the Dullest" the text contains classic essays from both ancient and modern authors and is organized to illustrate the various forms of the essay- such as narration, exposition, and persuasion. The essay average more than 10 pages and almost all are written in a formal style. While students find some of the subjects foreign, they feel the materials covered are often useful in their other coursework.
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A new text, The Modern Writer, contains both an introductions describing the basics of grammar and a number of journalistic essays by contemporary authors. The pieces are typically short (only 2 to 3 pages) and explore topics of interest to most college students, such as popular music and career planning. The style of the essays tends to be informal, even colloquial. Each chapter contains several essays on a given topic and exercises designed to aid students in developing essays of their own. Although the introduction provides an adequate overview of basic grammar, the text does not discuss the essay form.
范例:
English writing textbook
I would urge the English Department to change its English composition textbook from The Standard Textbook of English to The Modern Writer. By helping to make the students more enthusiastic about writing, the new textbook should ultimately boost the students’ writing skills in general.
To give credit where credit is due, we must acknowledge that The Standard Textbook of English is not a bad book. This textbook has shown itself to be somewhat effective in helping to improve the students’ basic writing skills, and it presents a variety of essay forms, exposing the students to different types of essays they have to either write or understand late on. It would be a safe choice for the department to continue its use of this time-tested book.
But the past glories of the old textbook cannot hide its problems, particularly its dullness. The essays in this textbook are obviously too long for first-year students to appreciate their beauty. While various essay forms are illustrated in this textbook, they are often illustrated with content that students find very hard to relate to. Students using The Standard Textbook of English may have improved their writing skills in the past three years, but if that is true, they must have had a hard time doing so, to the possible detriment of their performance in other areas. Such problems can only be solved with a new textbook like The Modern Writer.
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The Modern Writer is such that it should generate a lot more enthusiasm in students for learning English writing. The essays in this book are much shorter and therefore easier for university beginners to grasp. Moreover, these essays explore topics that are of interest to most college students such as popular music and career planning. Given the built-in appeal in this new textbook, just no student will have to be compelled to read and learn from it. With this book, the students can be expected to learn while they are having fun or at least thinking of issues that they care about. In all likelihood, the enthusiastic student will be a better student than the bored student.
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