Essay Writing
The word essay is described as a short piece of writing on a particular
topic that is done by mostly students as part of a course of study. It
is also used to describe an attempt or try or a trial design of a
stamp that is yet to be accepted.
TYPES OF ESSAY WRITING
Persuasive WritingArgumentative Writing
Expository Essay
Analytical Essay
The Expository Essay
What is it?
This is a writer’s explanation of a short theme, idea or issue.
The key here is that you are explaining an issue, theme or idea
to your intended audience. Your
reaction to a work of literature could be in the form of an expository essay, for example if you
decide to simply explain your personal response to a work. The expository essay can also be
used to give a personal response to a world event, political debate, football game, work of art
and so on.
This is a writer’s explanation of a short theme, idea or issue.
The key here is that you are explaining an issue, theme or idea
to your intended audience. Your
reaction to a work of literature could be in the form of an expository essay, for example if you
decide to simply explain your personal response to a work. The expository essay can also be
used to give a personal response to a world event, political debate, football game, work of art
and so on.
2) The Persuasive Essay
What is it?
This is the type of essay where you try to convince the reader to adopt your position on an issue or point of view.
3) The Analytical Essay
What is it?
In this type of essay you analyze, examine and interpret such things as an event, book, poem, play or other work of art.
4) The Argumentative Essay
What is it? This is the type of essay where you prove that your opinion, theory or hypothesis about an issue is correct or more truthful than those of others. In short, it is very similar to the persuasive essay (see above), but the difference is that you are arguing for your opinion as opposed to others, rather than directly trying to persuade someone to adopt your point of view.
Click on link for more information on Argumentative and Persuasive Essay
Argumentative Essay
As the essay paper has evolved it has become
more demanding with much
more emphasis on posing questions which allow
candidates to display the
higher order skills.
The
pyramid of skills: the
bottom two layers are 'Lower-order skills', while
the top four layers are
'Higher-order skills'.
As there is now less emphasis on testing the
lower order skills this implies
that it is not possible for candidates to
perform well in the essay paper by
rote learning of notes.
Command
words in essay titles
Examiners report that many candidates
under perform because they fail to
interpret the key words of an essay title.
Below is a glossary of some of the
most frequently used command words with
suggestions for interpretation:
Account for ...'
Explain how a particular event or situation came about i.e. 'Which factors
would have led a large retailing company to...'
'
Break down an argument or information into component parts and identify
ways in
which these parts are related. Always recognise the underlying
assumptions.
'Analyse the extent to which ...'
Show judgement over the relevant importance of different arguments or
events.
'Assess ...
'Make some kind of judgement on the relative importance of a particular
aspect
of business studies, discussing the influence of other factors or events
that
influence the topic.
'Compare ...'
Describe two or more situations and show the difference and similarities
between them.
'
Criticise ...'
Present a view on a particular argument, point of view or
theory, based on the
evidence available.
'Define ...'
A simple statement is not enough. Use appropriate examples or formulae to
illustrate and elaborate on your precise definition of a concept.
'
Describe ...'
Usually more than a mere description is expected, instead a critical review of
some particular set of circumstances or events is usually expected.
'Discuss ...'
Consider the arguments for and against the issue raised in the question.
'Distinguish ...'
Candidates need to show that they understand the differences between two
(probably frequently confused) concepts. Similarities and differences need to
be discussed and illustrated in distinguishing between the two concepts.
'Do ...' or 'Does ...'
Make a judgement on whether on set of circumstances is preferable to
another.
'Evaluate ...'
Make reasoned judgements about the validity of a particular argument or
statement, presenting evidence and reasoned argument of all relevant issues
involved.
'Examine ...'
Candidates need to unravel the events that led to a particular set of
circumstances or the validity of the reasoning that underlies a particular
point
of view. Stress the relative importance of the different arguments and
their
relevance to the basic issue under consideration.
'Explain ...'
Interpret the meaning of a particular concept with an example to illustrate
understanding.
'Outline ...'
Only a brief description is required. Usually there are follow up parts to this
question.
'To what extent ...'
This implies there is no definite answer to the question posed. Present both
sides of the argument and exercise judgement by stressing the strength of
some
arguments over others.
How to
improve your technique: some general
principles
Essays need a structure
o jot down
a simple plan
o make sure
you know where the essay is going before you start writing, i.e. your conclusion
·
Essays must be a response
to a specific title
o avoid
writing everything you know on a given topic, irrelevant material gains no
marks
o respond
to the command words in the question
· Do not forget the essay
title
o refer
back to the question regularly - probably at the end of every paragraph
o every
paragraph should answer the question set, aim for one theme per paragraph
·
Avoid one-sided essays
o usually
the only questions that A level examiners will set are ones which can provoke
differing viewpoints
o always consider
what your argument depends upon, i.e. the factors or assumptions inherent in
your argument
Demonstrate your depth of
knowledge
o analyse
the question with care to show your understanding of the subject content
o avoid
paragraphs of textbook description
o use
appropriate graphs which must be accurate
o use
topical examples to back up your points
o make
references to other writers if appropriate
Remember the higher order
skills of analysis and evaluation
o break
down the material in a way that helps reveal the issues involved
o use
relevant business concepts to explore causes and effects
o examine
arguments critically
o state
which arguments you believe to be the most important and why
·
Try to please the
examiners!
o use
appropriate concepts and terminology
o avoid
slang e.g. 'The firm will go bust...'
o be
concise and relevant
o leave
enough time to write a conclusion
The essay
plan - a suggested model
http://www.bized.co.uk/reference/studyskills/essay.htm
The seven steps
listed in the essay
writing process flowchart
you created could
be grouped, like the tire changing process, into three principal steps:
be grouped, like the tire changing process, into three principal steps:
}Planning
}Drafting
}Revising
Videos: How to write a good Essay
References:
Essay Writing Video 1 file
http://www.ask.com/question/what-is-the-definition-of-essay
Clink on Link to view "How to write an essay"
http://www.caribexams.org/persuade_essay
http://wizznotes.com/english/comprehension-exercises-prose-and-poetry
Click on link for Essay Questions for CXC
Click on link for Paper 2 Exam Topics
http://access-socialstudies.cappelendamm.no/c319365/artikkel/vis.html?tid=382115
click on link above to view the types of essay
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