ALLAMA IQBAL OPEN UNIVERSITY, ISLAMABAD

(Department of English Language and Applied Linguistics)

WARNING
1. PLAGIARISM OR HIRING OF GHOST WRITER(S) FOR SOLVING
THE ASSIGNMENT(S) WILL DEBAR THE STUDENT FROM AWARD
OF DEGREE/CERTIFICATE, IF FOUND AT ANY STAGE.
2. SUBMITTING ASSIGNMENT(S) BORROWED OR STOLEN FROM
OTHER(S) AS ONE’S OWN WILL BE PENALIZED AS DEFINED IN
“AIOU PLAGIARISM POLICY”.

Course: Compulsory English-II (1424) Semester: Autumn, 2022

Level: BA/AD
Assignment Submission Schedule
6 credit Hours Due Date 3 credit hours Due date
Assignment 1 20-1-2023
Assignment 1 15-02-2023
Assignment 2 15-02-2023
Assignment 3 15-03-2023
Assignment 2 14-04-2023
Assignment 4 14-04-2023
Note: Tutorial schedule (Rehnama-e-Tulba) will available on AIOU website: http://www.aiou.edu.pk
Please read the following instructions for writing your assignments. (SSC, HSSC & BA
Programmes)
1. All questions are compulsory and carry equal marks but within a question the
marks are distributed according to its requirements.
2. Read the question carefully and then answer it according to the requirements of the
questions.
3. Late submission of assignments will not be accepted.
4. Your own analysis and synthesis will be appreciated.
5. Avoid irrelevant discussion/information and reproducing from books, study guide
of allied material.
Total Marks: 100 Pass Marks (BA): 40
Pass Marks (AD): 50
ASSIGNMENT No. 1
(Units 1-4)
The following questions are based on Unit – 1. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.

Q.1 Read pages 1-14 carefully (the content is related to ‘academic writing’ and various
types of ‘essays’) and briefly answer the following questions (in your own words).
(10X2=20)
a) Write an academic essay (of about 250 words) on ‘Illiteracy in Pakistan’.
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 b) Define ‘Cause and Effect essay’. How it is different than other types of
essays? Provide one brief example of a ‘Cause and Effect’ essay.
Q.2 Read pages 31-34 carefully (the content is about formal and informal styles of
writing) and decide what type of writing style (formal/informal) is used in the
following text and how? (10)

It is often said that literature is an index, indeed the principal index, of the soul of an
age, and that to understand the spirit of any historical period, we should look first of all
the books that were being read by the people of the time. It is, however, much too easy
to suppose that the hooks we today value and associate with a particular period were
valued in an equal degree by the writer’s contemporaries. In point of fact, literary
repute of the kind which ultimately establishes a work as a classic is very often of slow
growth. John Keats’ Poems remained almost unknown to his own generation. It was
only among the second generation after his death that his genius became widely
recognized. It is important to remember that a great part of the reading done in any age
is of the rather books of a rather older generation.

The following questions are based on Unit – 2. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.

Q.3 Carefully read the text titled as ‘Chronology of the Mughal Kings’ on pages 51-52
carefully.

Now WRITE down a narrative essay about the last Mughal King ‘Bahadur Shah
Zafar’ by using appropriate SEQUENCE MARKERS. You are required to use at
least FIFTEEN sequence markers in you answer. (10)

Q.4 Read the text titled as ‘A Day in the Life of a Nurse’ on pages 56-57 carefully.
Also read Exercise-9 given on page 58.

Now write down a PARAGRAPH of about 150 words on ‘A Day in the Life of a
Bank Manager’. Follow the use of SEQUENCE MARKERS in your answer. (10)

Q.5 Read the text titled as ‘The Evolution of Computers’ given on Pages 64-65
carefully. Now write down a paragraph (of about 200 words) on ‘the History of
Printing’ in your OWN word and using appropriate SEQUENCE MARKERS. (10)

The following questions are based on Unit – 3. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.

Q.6 Classification is a writing style (which you studied in Unit 3). Read the text given
on pages 73-88 carefully and WRITE a classification essay on ‘Types of Books’
starting with an introduction, then going through main body and ending with
proper conclusion. (10)

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Q.7 Read EXERCISE 9 given on page 96 (which is about the classification of teachers
into five types). Now WRITE a descriptive paragraph about student you have seen
in your life (during your own school/college life) classifying them into various
types and categories. (10)
The following questions are based on Unit – 4. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.
Q.8 Read about ‘Cause and Effect’ (as give on page 107-111) carefully and WRITE
down TWO possible causes for each of the following effects: (20)

a. The doctors were on strike.

b. There is water pollution in the city.
c. His father didn’t pick him from school today.
d. They are not best friends any more.
e. He was imprisoned for many years.
f. He opened the door later for them.
g. Asiyah came home early form work.
h. The laptop’s battery was dead.
i. He got late form his office
j. The ATM was out of service.

Total Marks: 100 Pass Marks (BA): 40

Pass Marks (AD): 50
ASSIGNMENT No. 2
(Units 5-9)
The following questions are based on Unit – 5. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.

Q.1 Read about ‘Compare and Contrast’ (as given on pages 147-149) carefully. Now
use the following compare and contrast words in your own sentences. (10)

Both Each Neither Nor But

Whereas In contrast to As opposed to Likewise Similarly

Q.2 Read the text titled as ‘What’s Good for You’ (as given on pages 161-162)
carefully and complete the following tasks: (10)

Write a paragraph comparing ‘almost’ and ‘peanuts’ as two kinds of dry-fruit.

Explain how are they similar and on what basis they might be separated.

Q.3 Read the techniques for ‘Comparison and Contrast’ (as given on pages 147-149)
carefully. Now use the comparison and contrast features and compare Any two cities of

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 Pakistan. You must be familiar with the history and geography of you chosen cities so
that you can provide their similarities and differences. (5)

The following questions are based on Unit – 6. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.

Q.4 Read about ‘Academic Reading’ on Pages 183-185. Now carefully READ the
following text and infer the meaning of the highlighted (underlined) words by
guessing from the context. Also use these words in your own sentences: (10X2=20)

It is often said that literature is an index, indeed the principal index, of the soul of an
age, and that to understand the spirit of any historical period, we should look first of all
the books that were being read by the people of the time. It is, however, much too easy to
suppose that the hooks we today value and associate with a particular period were valued
in an equal degree by the writer’s contemporaries. In point of fact, literary repute of the
kind which ultimately establishes a work as a classic is very often of slow growth. John
Keats’ Poems remained almost unknown to his own generation. It was only among the
second generation after his death that his genius became widely recognized. It is
important to remember that a great part of the reading done in any age is of the rather
books of a rather older generation.

The following questions are based on Unit – 7. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.

Q.5 In Unit 7 you have read about ‘Implied Meaning and Making Inferences’. Now
read about the essay titled as ‘Life in the Indus Valley’ given on Pages 238-243
carefully. When you are done, complete the following exercise: (20)

Based on your reading about the features of the Indus Valley civilization and on the
basis of your inference of the information given in the story, complete the
following table by putting the relevant terms (words) below each category of
information. You should add at least TEN words for each category.
Category of Kitchen Agriculture War-related Houses Jewellery
Information items
Words

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 The following questions are based on Unit – 8. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.
Q.6 Read about ‘Denotation and Connotation’ given on Pages 249-260. Now carefully:
(10X2=20)
a) READ the following words and guess about their positive, negative and
neutral connotations.

b) USE them in your own sentences so that the meanings become clear:

Uprising Riot Protest Soldier Terrorist

Demonstration
Revolutionary Freedom Fighter Guerrilla Mercenary Stare
Watch Ogle Eccentric Unusual Obese
Weird Odd Activist Leader Dashing

The following questions are based on Unit – 9. Read the unit carefully and answer the
questions/solve the exercises given below.
Q.7 Select the last Sunday Edition of your favourite English newspaper and carefully
read it. Collect the information related to ‘educational institutions of the country’
given in them and comment on any FIVE News items (related to these educational
institutions) of your choice. (15)

While commenting you can add the following points:

a) Do you like those particular news items about the educational institutions?
Why or why not?

b) Would you apply for your higher education to these institutions? Why or
why not?