Writing Samples for Students
(Importance of reading and writing in modern and past societies.)
Is it more important to be able to read and write today than it was in the past?
Essay 1:
It is a very dangerous thing to say that basic literacy skills are more important now than they have ever been in the past. While a strong argument can be made in favor of this idea, making such an argument would imply that reading and writing were somehow less important in the past. While there is a grain of truth to the argument that literacy was not fundamental to the daily existence of most people in the pre-Industrial Revolution period, rationalizing such a lack of need for education in such a way is the first step to withholding education from certain groups, a great social crime that has led to the disempowerment of disadvantage groups all over the world throughout history. However, if we can keep in mind that education is a basic human right, then we can discuss the strengths of the proposition that literacy is more important now than it has ever been before.
It is true that in the past the majority of people all over the world made their livelihood from agricultural activities and that the vast majority of these activities required little or no literacy skills. In some senses, we could argue that literacy skills were less important in the agricultural age than they are now, but to do so would be to forget that literacy also reflects an active mind and that people have always needed to engage in activities of the mind. For example, even though a farmer might have labored all day in her corn field, she may enjoy reading the latest Jane Austen novel when arrived at home. We can see in this example that while literacy was not directly related to this laborer's livelihood, literacy was important to her quality of life.
However, we could make a good argument that literacy is more important now that it was in the past. As we all know, the world is experiencing a revolution that may turn out to be more important than the Industrial Revolution. We are now entering the Information Age, an age in which information and knowledge have more value than the ability to build machines, create "stuff," grow crops, or even mine precious metals and produce gemstones. Nowadays, accurate information may be worth more than the most expensive Rolls-Royce or the biggest diamond. The perfect example of this increasing dominance is the explosive rise in the popularity of the Internet--the Internet offers the world countless bytes of information twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Companies all over the world, but principally in the United States, are rushing to stake their claim in cyberspace and stiff competition among companies has resulted. In order to gain dominance, these companies must have the best-skilled workers, an advanced understanding of computer systems, and good intuition about what will happen in the future. All of these abilities to compete in the global marketplace stem directly from literacy skills and those without these skills will be stuck in the service, agricultural, and heavy industry fields.
In short, we can see that people in the past who were lacking in literacy skills essentially had more company than those lacking these skills have today and could still earn their livelihood. Further, we could argue that because of the nature of the global marketplace and because of the emergence of the Information Age, we could make the argument that literacy is fundamental to professional success nowadays. However, literacy should be considered a basic human right in a literate society--all people throughout history should have learned to read and write.
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Essay 2 :
While some countries have strong programs against illiteracy, others still do not care that much. But, illiteracy has become a big obstacle during the last century and is still problematic question now with quick development of technology and automation. From my everyday experience and observation I can state several factors which defend the statement that reading and writing now is more important than ever before.
First of all, it is essential for a person to have at least basic knowledge of reading and writing to survive in our society. While in the past, some people could live in wilderness or even in cities without any knowledge of written language, now it is almost impossible. The way of living has change so much that it is impossible to be a part of nation, especially in developed countries, without ability to read and write your bills, to understand your mortgage documents or job applications. Moreover, you can go nowhere by yourself but in your own small town without reading the maps and signs on the roads and in cities
Second, nowadays, most of jobs require reading and writing as necessary skills and tendency that these skills will be more and more important for future jobs increases. In fact, because of sharp development of technology, more of jobs on the labor market are for literate people and less of them are for people without any or slight reading or writing knowledge. For example, there are not needed so much people who can work on lands or select parts in auto-factories because the machines do that kinds of jobs now. On the other hand, factories and corporations need people who can read the instructions and control the machines. It is bare true that without jobs that need only physical abilities, illiterate people are forced to be constantly on unemployment lists.
In conclusion, the most scare part of living illiterate in our society is maybe living dependable of someone. A illiterate person will have difficulties not only to do simple tasks such as writing bills, withdrawing money from cash machines, or reading menu in a restaurant, but also to be a productive and useful individual of our society with job and normal life.
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Essay 3 :
For ages, reading and writing has been vital aids to the intellectual, emotional and spiritual growth of mankind. But with rapid changes in the society and scientific advancement of human race over the decades, the necessity and importance of reading and writing has increased remarkably.
Several reasons account for the lesser importance of reading and writing in the past. Firstly, education was restricted to certain sections of the society and not everyone benefited from its advantages. Only the learned few enjoyed intellectual satisfaction. Knowledge was not shared freely due to lack of proper means of communication, thus preventing many from realizing the benefits of education and learning. Secondly, technology was not so advanced in the past. Hence the general pace of life was slower than it is now and people did not feel the need to keep themselves abreast of affairs around them. In other words, the need did not arise for mass awareness and participation in efforts for intellectual enlightenment through reading and writing. Nevertheless, writing was a more popular than reading since it was the most common means of communication - in the form of letters.
However, at present the scenario has changed considerably. Innovation and change are integral parts of life. Now advancement in technology marks the day. To cope up with the rapidly evolving new ideas and concepts, reading has become more important now than ever before. Invention of high-tech gadgets and state-of-the-art information systems in areas of communication, transport and general business demands more awareness about contemporary events and changes With advancement in technology, man's eagerness to succeed has increased. Consequently the realization has dawned on him that such dreams can be materialized through intellectual advancement - a feat possible only through self reading and personal research. With the invention of computer has commenced an age of electronic communication and online commerce. Although writing letters has decreased considerably with the advent of electronic mail, it will take some time to make our varied businesses paperless. Thus though reduced, people still do some writing, wither in forms of documents, memorandums, business contracts or research papers. Education has made people more aware of his potential and reading and writing has become instrumental to man's success in today's competitive world.
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Topic 2:
(Put some land to use.)
What would you do with some free land?
The world is becoming increasingly smaller and smaller. The world’s population is now at six billion. The world’s cities are getting larger and larger. At least two cities, Mexico City and Sao Paulo have almost 30 million inhabitants. In this context, one could say that a gift of land is the greatest gift of all. Land is perhaps the most permanent thing in the world. Unlike diamonds, which really have little value in and of themselves, land actually has great value. Unlike televisions and cars, land cannot be destroyed—if you remove land, there is still more land under it. In this context, I will discuss what I would do were I given some land as a gift. It will be necessary, however, to discuss four things first: First, it is necessary to establish the size of the land. Second, we need to know where the land is. Third, the topography of the land is important. Finally, the weather in the location is fundamental.
For the purposes of this essay, I will assume that I have received a rather large parcel of land (it is a gift, right?!) in a temperate climate with four seasons. I will assume that the land is fairly flat. Most importantly, I will assume that this land is mine and that I have control over the land, i.e., that no other government controls the land.
Having grown up in a rather poor family, I think I would be quite excited about receiving some land. I have never owned anything of any great value and to own some land would be a wonderful thing for me. For a long time, it has been a dream of mine to be able to build a beautiful house for my mother. My mother is still living in poverty and it saddens me to think of her living in that situation. She often does not have enough money to use the heat in the wintertime and cannot afford to buy new clothes. I would love to be able to give her the gift of a house and a happy place to live for the rest of her life. Since we lived in a country with very cold winters, my family often felt very cold. I would love to bring my mother to a warm place to spend the rest of her days.
However, I would not devote all of the land to houses for my family. I would use most of the land to develop a business. In my case, doing this would be very important since I grew up poor. I would need to ensure that I would have a source of income and a way to sustain the activities on the land. An efficient way to do this would be to develop the land in some way suitable to the land. In this case, I would use the land to develop a language and confidence training camp. It has long been my dream to build a perfect language learning center—a place where people could go to learn a language, to immerse themselves in the language, to meet other people and to have fun while doing so. In conclusion, I would like to make one more point. I must admit that I feel somewhat guilty about the idea of accepting such a gift of land. There is a part of me that is somewhat idealistic and would like to think that the world is a beautiful place and that all humans should live together peacefully. From this viewpoint, I would say that no one can own land. As an American Indian once said, “Own the land? You might as well own the air or the sky!” However, this idea is inconsistent with the world today. Being more realistic, I would do what I detailed above.
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Topic 3:
(Value of history and literature vs value of math and science.)
Discuss the value of history and literature in relation to the value of math and science.
It has long been a controversy amongst critics and students in the majors of the sciences and arts as to which subjects would be more beneficial to study. While science students claim that its field of study involves intellectual ability, art students feel that the understanding and study of art is far richer in its importance, chiefly in its influence through the evolution of human history. I conclude that a balance in the knowledge of both the subjects is essential, the reasons of which I will lay down.
Science and math subjects are intellectually rewarding in that they teach the understanding of theories that improve humans’ living standards, such as research conducted in universities and science laboratories to enhance the lives of human beings with vaccines constantly being researched, produced and tested for incurable diseases. Without such a study, the world would be in serious trouble of poor health and living standards. Every theory that is founded would have been tried and tested to prove its success, concluding how the study of science and math subjects requires intellectual capabilities in its challenging field. While it is essential that the study of the sciences and math continues to ensure a healthy living environment, it is also important that a science student receives adequate education in the arts subjects to develop an artistic side of his life.
A distinct culture of the arts student is his detailed and subjective approach toward a subject which he has particular interests and talent. It is the beauty of life amidst all the things that could be explained by a science student and a mystery to study. While history had taken place, the study of human evolution is equally beneficial in developing a knowledgeable individual. It helps enhance an individual's life in the ability to appreciate the beauty that life comes bundled in.
In conclusion to my opinion, it is essential to have a balance in the study of arts and science subjects as they complement an individual's life with knowledge and facts and the ability to appreciate the beauty of life, with god's gifts of music, literature and art.
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Topic 4:
Do you agree or disagree? "Playing games is important for both children and adults."
Essay 1
Playing games has always been thought to be important to the development of well-balanced and creative children; however, what part, if any, they should play in the lives of adults has never been researched that deeply. I believe that playing games is every bit as important for adults as for children. Not only is taking time out to play games with our children and other adults valuable to building interpersonal relationships but is also a wonderful way to release built up tension.
There's nothing my husband enjoys more after a hard day of work than to come home and play a game of Chess with someone. This enables him to unwind from the day's activities and to discuss the highs and lows of the day in a non-threatening, kick back environment. One of my most memorable wedding gifts, a Backgammon set, was received by a close friend. I asked him why in the world he had given us such a gift. He replied that he felt that an important aspect of marriage was for a couple to never quit playing games together. Over the years, as I have come to purchase and play, with other couples & coworkers, many games like: Monopoly, Chutes & Ladders, Mastermind, Dweebs, Geeks, & Weirdos, etc. I can reflect on the integral part they have played in our weekends and our "shut-off the T.V. and do something more stimulating" weeks. They have enriched my life and made it more interesting. Sadly, many adults forget that games even exist and have put them away in the cupboards, forgotten until the grandchildren come over.
All too often, adults get so caught up in working to pay the bills and keeping up with the "Joneses'" that they neglect to harness the fun in life; the fun that can be the reward of enjoying a relaxing game with another person. It has been said that "man is that he might have joy" but all too often we skate through life without much of it. Playing games allows us to: relax, learn something new and stimulating, interact with people on a different more comfortable level, and to enjoy non-threatening competition. For these reasons, adults should place a higher priority on playing games in their lives.
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Essay 2:
I agree with the statement "Playing games is important for adults". In this challenging world, adults work very hard to earn a better living and thus don't get time to keep their body and mind fit. By playing games, adults can not only remain fit but can enjoy life too.
Games can be of two types: physical and mental. The former keeps the body fit whereas, the latter keeps the mind fit. The following are the reasons to support my answer.
Physical games include indoor games like table tennis and outdoor games like football and basketball. These games not only increases blood circulation but also burns the excess fat present in our body that keeps us fresh and thus improves our working habits. These games also teaches discipline, co-operation, respect for others, builds self-confidence and teaches us to face defeat bravely, which in turn helps us face failures in life too.
Mental games include chess, puzzle, quiz and IQ. These games increases our mental ability and thinking power. These games teaches to make decisions, increases our knowledge, improves our way of thinking and the ability to remember things, and thus keeps us mentally alert and allows to take the right decision in life.
By looking at the above reasons, I conclude that games whether they are physical or mental, indoor or outdoor not only improves our lifestyle but also helps us achieve our goals in life.
Therefore, playing games is important for adults.
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Essay3 :
Some people assert that playing games is important for adults. In my opinion the importance of playing games depends on the types of games considered. While some games may benefit to health, mental abilities, working capacity, or help to relax, others may harm the person playing in different ways.
I think the games that are important for adults to play include those requiring action, intensive thinking and team work. It has been medically proven that physical training is extremely important for adults. It helps not only to maintain fitness, but also enhances the capacity of thinking and working. Therefore participating in sports games, such as basketball, football, tennis and other action games is essential. Games that require intensive thinking develop logic, attention and unconventional approach.. Among this type of games are puzzles, crosswords, and strategy games. And last, but not least, games that involve team work are important to develop further communicability, ability to make correct decisions with consideration of opinions of different people and other skills, because these skills are often used in everyday situations.
Still there are other types of games that may be harmful. These are majorly computer games, which cause severe eye-strain and exposure to radiation. Moreover, computer games not only harm health, but also have a negative impact on the working capacity. Many companies have stringent rules against their employees playing games during work-hours.
There is also one category of games which I believe can be both harmful and beneficial. These are games played for money. On one hand, winning such a game the player feels positive emotions, which have an overall positive influence on the players health and financial situation. On the other hand, loosing the game can drive the person playing into disappointment and even into depression, thus harming his health, not to mention the loss of money.
Thus, in my opinion, the importance of adults playing games can be evaluated depending on the level of positive or negative influences that those game may have on the person involved.
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Essay 4 :
I do strongly support the idea that playing games is important for adults.It is useful and fun,too.It is one of the most important ways to cope with the problems of business and daily life.There are several benefits of playing games for adults.First,playing games creates leisure time that every adult must have to lessen the stress of business life.Its another benefit is that It can improve reflex,intelligence or health depending on the kind of the game ,and it also gives pleasure to the adults as well as children.
As we know today business life is a place full of stress.People generally come to their homes being tired and irritated.Therefore,every individual adult must create leisure times to forget the daily life's problems and to feel relieved.So,playing some kinds of games can help them to have free,without stress,times and to relax.Parents also,by this way,can make a better communication with their children by playing some games such as backgammon,chess, puzzles or computer games.Children gain self confidence due to this relationship with their parents,too.It certainly is a notable point of playing games referring to a family life.Consequently,playing games alone or with their families gives support adults to preserve their healths,to lessen their stresses and to deal with business problems.
With the development of technology,people,both adults and children,began to give more and more importance to computer based games.The computer based technology actually made games more interesting and more complicated than were they before.Because of their visual and sophisticated subjects,the computer based games can easily contribute to maintain an adult's reflex and intelligence thanks to their interactive skills.Moreover,brain gymnastics with these games are beneficial for adults to solve their personal problems.For example,some business men or consultants achieve much success or make better decisions after playing some computer games when tried of working.This means that computers seem to remove the idea that games are merely for kids.
Enjoyment is another factor that should be considerated while thinking of the relation between adults and games.It is certain to believe that many adults get very much pleasure from games.They gain the amusement of their previous childhood again and again while playing games with the child living in their spirits.So,if a director of a company or a president of a country is seen while he or she is playing a computer game or playing football with some kids,it should not be peculiar. Obviously,they will spend more happier time than any child will and forget every types of problems that they have during the game.
Last but not least i wish to say that playing games is important for adults as well as all human beings.It is useful,necesary,enjoyable and educational.Since life,itself,is a game in which the players are we,it is unavoidable to spend time without playing games at any age.
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Topic 5:
Do you agree or disagree? "There is no reason to study the past since we live in the present."
I disagree wholeheartedly that learning about the past has no value for those of us living in the present. In fact, the definition of learning includes the idea of an accumulation of experiences from the past. Learning can only take place if we make an association between things that have happened in the past or between something in the past and something that we predict will happen in the future. All knowledge that we acquire as we grow is from the past—language, customs, academic subjects, and so on. While it may be helpful sometimes to be able to overlook previous knowledge in order to avoid the constraint conformity, the vast majority of knowledge that we learn is a huge boost—imagine if each of us had to discover by ourselves that 2 + 2 = 4! So, in a very real sense, all learning depends on past events.
We are only able to live in this world with our current standard of living because we have learned from the past. We receive knowledge from the past and we are able to use it and improve it. We examine our actions in the past and we make judgments about what was right and what was wrong. Then, it is hoped, we will attempt to avoid those same mistakes again. For example, one of the great mistakes all over the world has been depriving women and the disempowered classes status in society and many industrialized and developing countries all over the world are attempting to avoid such mistakes both in the present and in the future
Furthermore, all of the knowledge that we have today is a result of all the work of our predecessors. The ancient Greeks developed geometry, which helped other European scientists analyze the solar system, which in turn gave us a new understanding of our place in the universe. The great majority of technology today depends directly on several thousands of years of work of past thinkers. To ignore the knowledge of the past would be to throw away five thousand years of history and experience.
There is, however, some seemingly small, but important value to ignoring the past. It is often the case that history or tradition has the effect of constraining our thought in the present and many important philosophical and scientific breakthroughs have only been possible as a direct result of ignoring the past. The past, in a sense, can blind us to the truth, we can become bound by tradition. For example, at one time, leading thinkers in Europe thought that the Earth was at the center of the universe and those who disagreed were persecuted as heretics, even Copernicus, who we now know was correct about his heliocentric model of the Solar System. However, scientists were eventually able to break from the past and accept the new model of the universe.
In short, learning from and analyzing the past has enormous value for us and life as we know it on Earth today would not be possible without the benefit of thousands of years of history and accumulated knowledge. It is important, however, to ignore the past so that we can make a step forward, and such free thinking should be encouraged, although not at the expense of past knowledge. Learning from the past is something like learning from our parents—in most cases, their past helps us have a better future, but there are times when we need to make a break from the past and make a bold step into an unknown future.
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Topic 6 :
Would you prefer to live in one place for most of your life or move to different places?
It seems like the world is becoming smaller and smaller, almost by the minute. When I was a child, I had never met anybody from outside my hometown, much less somebody from another country. However, nowadays I routinely interact with people from all over the world. I might discuss a topic with my classmates from Iran, Korea, Brazil, or Palestine; buy computer parts from the shop run by Chinese; have lunch at a Mexican restaurant; or buy Russian pastries at the café near my house. In these experiences I can see the product of a world in which borders are falling and people are free to move about as they wish. There is nothing more invigorating for me than being a part of this emerging “global village.”
I have now lived in three different countries, Argentina, France, and the United States and am convinced that I am a better person for it. In each country I found something different. I remember the warmth of the human interaction of my hometown in Argentina; I enjoyed the great sense of culture and wit in France; in the United States, I am impressed by the feeling of liberty and acceptance. In each country I have learned a different language, experienced a different climate, conversed with people in different ways. I have learned that each place has something special about it and that no place on Earth is a perfect place. We may lose one thing when we leave a country, but we always gain something else in its place.
So, the greatest benefit of having met so many people from all over the world has been learning that each person and each culture has a different yet valid way of seeing the world. I cannot say that Argentines have a monopoly on how to view the world; nor can I say that the American system of doing things is best. I can only say that from my experience each system works for each culture and that each one is a valid way of seeing the world.
Perhaps this point is the most important one for the coming age of information and technology and falling political and trade barriers. As people from all over the world migrate more freely in search of better lives, they will necessarily have to learn to be tolerant of different worldviews. People who do x will learn to accept people who do y and perhaps even experiment with the new way. By accepting cultures different from our own, we learn more of the broad range of the human experience and we are richer people for seeing beauty and truth in its many forms.
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Topic 7
Do you agree or disagree? "It is sometimes important for people to do things that they do not enjoy doing."
Essay 1 :
It is our parents who are the first people that make us to do so many things we do not like. The list of all unpleasant chores is lengthy, including doing homework, helping about the house, brushing teeth, getting up early - I think everyone has her own specific list. However, when a child grows up, she understands that there were reasons for parents to demand all these things: doing homework helped to study well and get into college, brushing one's teeth prevented tooth decay, and helping about the house developed useful skills and prepared for grown-up life.
Most things that are unpleasant now usually promise greater rewards in the future. Studying instead of going to the cinema eventually leads to a better, more interesting and rewarding job; regular exercise brings fitness, health and a long life; eating low-cholesteral food inhibits cardio-vascular diseases; pregnancy brings a happiness of motherhood, and paying taxes brings social protection.
Doing things one does not like to do is similar to physical exercise; only it trains character, not leg muscles. Overcoming one's own laziness requires determination, giving up bad habits requires will, mastering new skills also develops intellectual flexibility, and admitting mistakes takes courage. These important personal qualities develop little by little and mostly by doing things one does not like, but has to do.
Sometimes doing something you don’t like is important in enjoying life. A person gets used both to good and bad, so with time, pleasure loses its intensity and turns into habit. Contrast refreshes feelings and returns pleasure. Doing unpleasant things makes nice things seem even nicer. Hard work makes rest desired; house chores make evening out a genuine party, a year at the office makes vacation a real holiday.
It is important to keep balance in doing things one does like and does not like. Sometimes a person gets so involved in doing unpleasant things in the pursuit of some distant goal that he loses the very talent for enjoying life. Being with family, traveling to some distant exotic place, and having a child are put off until it is too late. One needs to stop in the everyday rat race, just to look at and admire the world around him, to share several words or thoughts or jokes with his closest people, to make something with his own hands.
In short, one certainly needs to do things he does not like to do, but he still should not forget about life pleasures.
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Essay 2:
Because we live in a free society, people are not force to do things that they do not like. And, it is normal for people to reject to do things that are not interesting for them or can hurt them in some way. According to constitution people are free to choose almost all of their actions, to choose a job, style and place of living, hobbies and friends. However, people need to do things sometimes even they do not want or do not like to do. In my view, it is better for people to follow requirements or fulfil a task in some situations than to turn the work down, because that can bring them some positive effects in their personal or professional life or help them to build better relationships with other people.
First of all, it is important to make children to go to school and do their homework, even they refuse to do. Very often children want to skip their homework or classes because they want to do more exiting occupations, like playing computer and video games or watching movies. However, school lessons, homework, quizzes and tests are important part of education, and children has to do their studies, even they are not very exited of doing them. In fact, lessons that children learn in school help them to gain knowledge and develop their skills and abilities, which are important for understanding our society and preparing for future jobs.
Second, people need to obey some rules and follow some requirements in work place even they do not like the rules or feel that requirements are not appropriate for them. Indeed, almost every person in a corporation has his own opinion for a problem or situation. Although co-workers have different views, and sometimes they are irritated from other people's actions, they have to find a way to work well with and listen to others, otherwise they can get fired. Moreover, there are times then people do not feel like job because of family or health problems but they have to do their work, and be patient with their colleagues and clients. If they complain or excuse themselves all the time, they can destroy their own reputation or lose friends.
Third, people have to obey the law even they are against some rules. For instance, most smokers complain the prohibition of smoking in public places. However, if they smoke in these places, the police can arrest them. Moreover, there are some people who do not like people from other races or gender, or ones who obtain higher positions in the society. These people can have their own opinion but their have to behave properly in public places and do not broke the law. Otherwise, they can go to court and receive punishment of several years in jail.
In conclusion, most of the time people can do things that they want to do and enjoy doing them. However, there are some situations when people are restricted by written or unwritten laws to follow some rules and behave in a way that government, society, or people around require.
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Essay 3 :
Every one remembers that he has done things that he did not like to do, because our life has been so arranged that it is not always possible that all people do just things, which they like to do. Because of potential benefits sometimes it is best that people do what they are not completely convenient with. So, I do agree that it is important for people to sometimes do things that they do not like to do.
When a child is grown up enough to begin to express his wishes and his wills, he will undoubtedly begin to face objections. His parents may think that what he wants is not logical or even hazardous for him. Besides a child is always made do what he does not like to do; for example, he is forced to eat what he thinks is not delicious or he is forced to be hygienic and polite. When he is older, he is forced to go to school that is one of the worst events in every child's life. In his adolescence, every child will certainly realize the benefits of these obligations. By means of these obligations he is healthy, he has learnt public relationship and he is literate. Psychologists say that children who have not faced these obligations would have several personality disorders. Even in adulthood, one may do what he does not like to do and this may be essential for his life. Consider a young man who has finished his school and is forced to do his military service. He may not like to become a soldier, but it would be his first separation from his family that can make him more convenient in his further separations. He will learn to obey what he may consider irrational but is really essential for him. There are also some fatal events that one cannot act as he likes; for example, most people do not like to kill others but a soldier should kill the enemy or he would be killed. Some times people should do things that they do not like to do because there is no other way; for instance, a clerk may dislike his job but unable to find a better job. My own experience shows me that when a person does things that he does not like to do, he would become stronger in his real life events and he would not get upset in his difficulties.
Human life especially our modern life has many aspects that are not completely desirable for us so that we are all obliged to do things that we do not like to do but in some cases we will later understand their benefits. There are also possible unpredictable events in our daily life that require special power to cope with; like wars, earthquakes, etc. It is well known that people who have faced obligations would be much stronger in such events so it is important for people to do things that they do not like to do.
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Topic 8
Do you agree or disagree? "Never stop trying to reach your goals."
Essay1 :
Some people think "never give up" is a good attitude to life; others consider it is impossible never to give up because of the matters that surround us. I personally consider that "never give up" is not only good but is also appropriate attitude to life in order to succeed in this cruel world. In my opinion everybody must never give up himself when follows his aims. Even he has not achieved them he has to try again. Maybe next time he will succeed. I have always believed that this is the best way to survive. I will give you arguments to support my opinion.
First of all I think you have to trust yourself, realize your targets one by one, and never to give up in every difficult moment. People always have to put aims to theirselves and follow them. When they achieve one aim they are satisfied of this success and put another aim to be reached. This is the man's nature. If you give up at the first problem you will lose belief in yourself and will reach nothing.
On the second place I would like to say that even if you fail you achieve much. Everybody knows that sometimes you cannot complete or even realize your goals because of the environment. I believe that you do not have to give up at first bad shot; you have to try again and again until you succeed. From the failures you learn how to proceed next time and revise your actions in order to thrive. I bet finally you will.
Last but not least "never give up" is the best way to survive in these days. If you do not have aims to achieve you are nothing. Your life will pass unnoticeably and you will be insignificant person that nobody sees. Many people around us always give us examples of never to give up. Ballet-dancers who were fractured their legs and with a lot of efforts manage to dance again because this is their main purpose. Deaf-and-dump people learn to communicate with gestures with the others. Thus give meaning of their lives. Undoubtedly reaching these targets is very hard but they never give up and they survive.
From the argument I have stated above it can be seen that no matter how difficult it is to realize your aims you have to never give up and this is the best attitude to life.
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Essay 2:
Some people are ready to quit easily when they cannot endure the difficulties of some work or cannot find a way to finish the required task. Those kind of people usually become upset and disappointed of failure and lose their self-confidence that they can really do the work done. On the other hand, there are people who become more confident, organized and hard working when they experience some difficulties. In my view, the second type of people are more willing to succeed in life, have a better job, and enjoy many friends. The motto "never, never give up" is very important in people's lives because those people who follow it can survive almost everything and take the opportunities of the next step in their lives.
First of all, a positive attitude can help a person to survive and live with some disease or when he suffers an inconvenient situation or disaster. In fact, many people endure a disease or obstacles that put them in a desperate situation. However, only ones with a positive view and unbelievable hope make the difference and find a way to overcome their disabilities and continue to live and enjoy the life. On the other hand, people who lose hope and give up end in awful situations and are more inclined to addiction of alcohol and drugs or committing suicide.
Second, a strong positive attitude can help a person to make bigger career. From my observation, people who do not quit because of some obstacles but keep working make inevitable progress in their job and studies. For example, students with positive attitude who fail a quiz or do not do well on an important test are more willing to try again and do well on the next time. This is true for the working people too. Indeed, many executive managers save their almost bankrupt company and success primarily because they do not quit.
In conclusion, believing in second chance is very important for an individual because we live in constant changeable society that force us to endure many difficulties in our studies, complicated situations in our jobs, unexpected events like car accidents or a disease or nature disasters. There is not insurance that can save us of from happening of these things. However, the attitude of never give up can help us to endure and overcome the difficulties and make a progress and achieve our goals.
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Topic 9
(Importance of reading and writing in modern and past societies.)
Is it more important to be able to read and write today than it was in the past?
Essay 1 :
It is a very dangerous thing to say that basic literacy skills are more important now than they have ever been in the past. While a strong argument can be made in favor of this idea, making such an argument would imply that reading and writing were somehow less important in the past. While there is a grain of truth to the argument that literacy was not fundamental to the daily existence of most people in the pre-Industrial Revolution period, rationalizing such a lack of need for education in such a way is the first step to withholding education from certain groups, a great social crime that has led to the disempowerment of disadvantage groups all over the world throughout history. However, if we can keep in mind that education is a basic human right, then we can discuss the strengths of the proposition that literacy is more important now than it has ever been before.
It is true that in the past the majority of people all over the world made their livelihood from agricultural activities and that the vast majority of these activities required little or no literacy skills. In some senses, we could argue that literacy skills were less important in the agricultural age than they are now, but to do so would be to forget that literacy also reflects an active mind and that people have always needed to engage in activities of the mind. For example, even though a farmer might have labored all day in her corn field, she may enjoy reading the latest Jane Austen novel when arrived at home. We can see in this example that while literacy was not directly related to this laborer's livelihood, literacy was important to her quality of life.
However, we could make a good argument that literacy is more important now that it was in the past. As we all know, the world is experiencing a revolution that may turn out to be more important than the Industrial Revolution. We are now entering the Information Age, an age in which information and knowledge have more value than the ability to build machines, create "stuff," grow crops, or even mine precious metals and produce gemstones. Nowadays, accurate information may be worth more than the most expensive Rolls-Royce or the biggest diamond. The perfect example of this increasing dominance is the explosive rise in the popularity of the Internet--the Internet offers the world countless bytes of information twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Companies all over the world, but principally in the United States, are rushing to stake their claim in cyberspace and stiff competition among companies has resulted. In order to gain dominance, these companies must have the best-skilled workers, an advanced understanding of computer systems, and good intuition about what will happen in the future. All of these abilities to compete in the global marketplace stem directly from literacy skills and those without these skills will be stuck in the service, agricultural, and heavy industry fields.
In short, we can see that people in the past who were lacking in literacy skills essentially had more company than those lacking these skills have today and could still earn their livelihood. Further, we could argue that because of the nature of the global marketplace and because of the emergence of the Information Age, we could make the argument that literacy is fundamental to professional success nowadays. However, literacy should be considered a basic human right in a literate society--all people throughout history should have learned to read and write.
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Essay 2
While some countries have strong programs against illiteracy, others still do not care that much. But, illiteracy has become a big obstacle during the last century and is still problematic question now with quick development of technology and automation. From my everyday experience and observation I can state several factors which defend the statement that reading and writing now is more important than ever before.
First of all, it is essential for a person to have at least basic knowledge of reading and writing to survive in our society. While in the past, some people could live in wilderness or even in cities without any knowledge of written language, now it is almost impossible. The way of living has change so much that it is impossible to be a part of nation, especially in developed countries, without ability to read and write your bills, to understand your mortgage documents or job applications. Moreover, you can go nowhere by yourself but in your own small town without reading the maps and signs on the roads and in cities.
Second, nowadays, most of jobs require reading and writing as necessary skills and tendency that these skills will be more and more important for future jobs increases. In fact, because of sharp development of technology, more of jobs on the labor market are for literate people and less of them are for people without any or slight reading or writing knowledge. For example, there are not needed so much people who can work on lands or select parts in auto-factories because the machines do that kinds of jobs now. On the other hand, factories and corporations need people who can read the instructions and control the machines. It is bare true that without jobs that need only physical abilities, illiterate people are forced to be constantly on unemployment lists.
In conclusion, the most scare part of living illiterate in our society is maybe living dependable of someone. A illiterate person will have difficulties not only to do simple tasks such as writing bills, withdrawing money from cash machines, or reading menu in a restaurant, but also to be a productive and useful individual of our society with job and normal life.
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Essay 3:
For ages, reading and writing has been vital aids to the intellectual, emotional and spiritual growth of mankind. But with rapid changes in the society and scientific advancement of human race over the decades, the necessity and importance of reading and writing has increased remarkably.
Several reasons account for the lesser importance of reading and writing in the past. Firstly, education was restricted to certain sections of the society and not everyone benefited from its advantages. Only the learned few enjoyed intellectual satisfaction. Knowledge was not shared freely due to lack of proper means of communication, thus preventing many from realizing the benefits of education and learning. Secondly, technology was not so advanced in the past. Hence the general pace of life was slower than it is now and people did not feel the need to keep themselves abreast of affairs around them. In other words, the need did not arise for mass awareness and participation in efforts for intellectual enlightenment through reading and writing. Nevertheless, writing was a more popular than reading since it was the most common means of communication - in the form of letters.
However, at present the scenario has changed considerably. Innovation and change are integral parts of life. Now advancement in technology marks the day. To cope up with the rapidly evolving new ideas and concepts, reading has become more important now than ever before. Invention of high-tech gadgets and state-of-the-art information systems in areas of communication, transport and general business demands more awareness about contemporary events and changes With advancement in technology, man's eagerness to succeed has increased. Consequently the realization has dawned on him that such dreams can be materialized through intellectual advancement - a feat possible only through self reading and personal research. With the invention of computer has commenced an age of electronic communication and online commerce. Although writing letters has decreased considerably with the advent of electronic mail, it will take some time to make our varied businesses paperless. Thus though reduced, people still do some writing, wither in forms of documents, memorandums, business contracts or research papers. Education has made people more aware of his potential and reading and writing has become instrumental to man's success in today's competitive world.
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