How to write different
types of essays
Argumentative essay
• Natural disasters usually affect poor
countries severely. Many people think
that rich countries should help poorer
countries when they suffer natural
disasters. Do you agree?
Introduction
• 2 sentences
- Sentence 1: Paraphrasing the topic
- Sentence 2: State your opinion
+ I am convinced that wealthier countries should help
undeveloped countries
+ I believe that assistance from rich countries to poor countries in
case of natural catastrophe is necessary.
+As far as I am concerned,
+In my opinion,
Body
• 2 paragraph: Answer why you think rich countries should help
poor countries
- Paragraph 1: Topic sentence
+ The first reason why rich country should help poor countries
Supporting sentences: Explain and examples
- Paragraph 2: Topic sentence
+ The second reason why rich country should help poor countries
Supporting sentences: Explain and examples
Brainstorming
• The rich countries should help the poor
countries in disasters.
• Reasons:
1. Humanity (conscientious, urgent)
2. Benefits (the world is interconnected, the
damage in poor countries can affect the rich
countries; improve import and export; tax
reduction or exemption).
Example
First of all, countries with abundant prosperity should subsidize the underdeveloped
ones in the situation of natural catastrophes for the sake of humanity. What I am trying
to say is, despite the fact that we are divided by the boundary on the map, we are all
mankind. Therefore, giving a hand to each other in hardship is reasonable and
conscientious. To illustrate, the prolonged drought in African countries, along with the
poor economy has led their citizens to the verge of hunger. As a humanitarian action, a
cluster of European countries not only send in food and other contemporary necessities to
help them deal with the urgent situation, but also provide long term projects to establish
a sustainable livelihood for the local residents.
CAN YOU WRITE THE SECOND PARAGRAPH?
Conclusion
• In short,
• In conclusion,
• All considered,
Summarize the reasons why rich countries
should help poor countries.
Advantages and
disadvantages
Question
• Many people are doing their
shopping on the internet
nowadays.
• Discuss the advantages and
disadvantages of shopping
online and give your opinion.
Essay
Structure - Introduction: 2 sentences
• 1, Paraphrasing the topic
• Many people are doing their shopping
on the internet nowadays.
• “It is true that most people today opt to
purchase something through the
internet rather than in-store shopping”
• 2, Thesis statement
• - This essay will discuss both
benefits and drawbacks of this trend.
Body paragraph
• Paragraph 1: Topic sentence: There are
several benefits associated with online
shopping
- Supporting ideas: what are the benefits?
Explain
• Paragraph 2: Topic sentence: Shopping
online can also pose some demerits
• - Supporting ideas: what are the drawbacks?
Explain
Analyze the benefits and
drawbacks of online shopping
•On the one hand, there are several merits associated with online shopping. The principal
benefit of shopping via the internet is that thanks to the development of new technologies, the
internet offers people be more convenience in purchasing than before. To explain, people can
easily access the store throughout the world as well as purchase goods without transportation.
For instance, customers do have not to go to the store since they can check real-time stocks
through smartphones. As a result, they do not waste the time on traffic congestion.
•
•On the other hand, there are a variety of demerits of shopping on the internet. The main
reason to consider is that cybercrimes have rapidly increased over recent years, thus, online
shopping is the most popular platform that robbers use. This means that some people,
especially children and the older, are usually deceived since sellers can fake their profiles on the
internet. To exemplify, in Thailand news, many students have to purchase a mobile phone in
order to learn online, hence, they opt to buy via an Instagram application. Finally, they lose
their money and do not get their goods back.
Analyze the linking
words
On the one hand, there are several merits associated with online shopping. The principal benefit of shopping
via the internet is that thanks to the development of new technologies, the internet offers people be more
convenience in purchasing than before. To explain, people can easily access the store throughout the world
as well as purchase goods without transportation. For instance, customers do have not to go to the store
since they can check real-time stocks through smartphones. As a result, they do not waste the time on traffic
congestion.
On the other hand, there are a variety of demerits of shopping on the internet. The main reason to consider
is that cybercrimes have rapidly increased over recent years, thus, online shopping is the most popular
platform that robbers use. This means that some people, especially children and the older, are usually
deceived since sellers can fake their profiles on the internet. To exemplify, in Thailand news, many students
have to purchase a mobile phone in order to learn online, hence, they opt to buy via an Instagram
application. Finally, they lose their money and do not get their goods back.
Conclusion
• SUMMARIZE YOUR ESSAY
• All things considered, online shopping contains both positive and negative
effects. Therefore, individuals should carefully utilize these technologies in
terms of security and privacy.
Example 2: Advantages and disadvantages
(benefits and drawbacks; merits and demerits; pros
and cons)
• Many people these days rely on
information found on the internet.
What are the advantages and
disadvantages of this trend?
Introduction
• 2 sentences
- Sentence 1: Paraphrasing the topic
- Sentence 2: State that the essay will be about advantages
and disadvantages
+ This essay will discuss the benefits and drawbacks of
updating information from the internet.
+ Relying on the internet for information contains both
benefits and drawbacks.
Body
• 2 paragraph:
- Paragraph 1: Benefits
+Topic sentence: Online access of data offers several advantages./
There are several advantages of accessing data on the internet.
+Supporting sentences: Explain and examples
- Paragraph 2: Drawbacks
+ Online access of data poses several disadvantages./ There are
several disadvantages of accessing data on the internet.
Supporting sentences: Explain and examples
Conclusion
• In short,
• In conclusion,
• All considered,
Restate that the topic has both benefits and
drawbacks.
(State your opinion: which one is bigger)
Example: Computers are being used more and more in education.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages and give your own opinion.
It is argued that technology is playing an every increasing role in schools and universities. This essay will firstly,
discuss student freedom as one of the main advantages of this and secondly, outline decreasing levels of face to face
contact as one of the main disadvantages, followed by a reasoned conclusion.
One of the principle advantages of an increase in the use electronic devices in education is the autonomy it
provides students. Students have the freedom to focus on whatever topic or subject they want and study it in depth
through the internet. A prime example of this is the amount of online university courses available to students, covering a
myriad of subjects, that up until recently were unavailable to most learners. This has resulted in more people studying
third level degrees than ever before, at a pace and schedule that suits them.
The main disadvantage associated with increasing use of technology in education is the decrease in face to face
interaction between students. Students spend more time looking at computer screens by themselves than interacting with
each other. For instance, the recent explosion in smart phone use has been at the expense of genuine human interaction.
This results in soft skills, such as verbal communication and empathy, being effected.
In conclusion, the benefits technology brings to education, such as student autonomy, must be weighed against the
drawbacks, such as negative effects on human interaction. Overall, the educational benefits outweigh the disadvantages
because human beings will always want human contact and most people will not solely use IT for education.
Develop the ideas for
essay
• Question: Social Media has become an
integral part of our lives. What are the
advantages and disadvantages of this
platform?
• Advantages: Topic sentence
- Supporting: Benefit 1: ________________________________________
• + Explain: _____________________________________________
- Benefit 2: ________________________________________
• + Explain: _____________________________________________
• Disadvantages: Topic sentence
- Supporting: drawback 1: ________________________________________
• + Explain: _____________________________________________
- Drawback 2: ________________________________________
• + Explain: _____________________________________________
Causes, Effects – Problems,
Solution
Example 1: Causes and effects
• Today more people are overweight than
ever before.
• What in your opinion are the primary
causes of this?
• What are the main effects of this
epidemic?
Introduction
• 2 sentences
- Sentence 1: Paraphrasing the topic
- Sentence 2: State that the essay will be about causes and
effects
+ This essay will discuss the main reasons of this epidemic
and then describe the possible effects of the problem..
Body
• 2 paragraphs:
- Paragraph 1: state all the main causes of obesity
+Topic sentence: In my opinion, the foremost causes of obesity are inactive
lifestyle and unhealthy eating habits.
+Supporting sentences: Explain and examples
Today more and more people rely on cars instead of walking, have less
physical demands at work and prefer inactive leisure activities. This results
in burning less calories and gaining weight. Moreover, the problem is
accentuated by the growing number of people who eat irregularly and
consume large portions of high-calorie food. For example, about 50% of the
adult population in Europe with so-called disordered eating suffer from
obesity
Body
Paragraph 2: state all the main effects of obesity
+Topic sentence: The possible effects of this problem include physical
health problems and loss of productivity.
+Supporting sentences: Explain and examples
First of all, obesity results in incorrect functioning of the human body and
contributes to the risk of developing some chronic illnesses. For example, as
body fat percentage increases, the person’s metabolism worsens, which in
turn may result in diabetes or heart diseases. Secondly, overweight people
are very unhealthy and often suffer from stress and tiredness. This lessens
their work capacity and results in lower productivity. For example, it has
been proven that an obese person needs to put more effort to complete
some task than a person with normal weight.
Conclusion
• In short,
• In conclusion,
• All considered,
• restate the problem and sum up the causes and effects that you
described in your body paragraphs:
To sum up, obesity is a big problem that affects a lot of people
nowadays. It’s mainly caused by inactive lifestyle and eating disorders
and results in severe health problems and loss of productivity.
Problems and solutions
One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic
congestion.
What do you think the causes are? What solutions can you
suggest?
• Structure
• Introduction
Sentence 1- Paraphrase Question
Sentence 2- Outline Sentence
• Main Body Paragraph 1
Sentence 1- State Problem
Sentence 2- Explain problem
Sentence 3- Result
Sentence 4- Example
• Main Body Paragraph 2
Sentence 1- State Solution
Sentence 2- Explain Solution
Sentence 3- Example
• Conclusion
Sentence 1- Summary
Sentence 2- Recommendation or Prediction
Example: Students are becoming more and more reliant on computers.
What are some of the problems associated with reliance on computers, and what are some of the
possible solutions?
Learners are becoming ever more dependent on technology, such as the internet and mobile devices. This essay will discuss
one of the main problems associated with dependence on computers and suggest a viable solution, before coming to a reasoned
conclusion.
The principal problem with over reliance on technology, such as tablets and computers, is plagiarism. Students often use
search engines to answer a question and simply copy the text from a website, rather than thinking about the question. This practice is
not only prohibited in schools and universities, but also stunts a student’s intellectual development. For example, many teachers
complain that students copy web pages straight from Wikipedia word for word rather than giving a reasoned answer to their questions.
A solution to this worrying problem is asking students to email their answers to teachers and teachers using anti-plagiarism
software to detect copying. Moreover, students would be made aware of this practice and this would inspire them to answer questions
using their own words, rather than someone else’s. For instance, many universities already use this kind software to scan course work
for plagiarism and it could be extended to include all homework, by learners in both secondary and tertiary education.
In summary, one of the main problems with over-use of technology in education is plagiarism and this can be solved through
the use of plagiarism detection software. It is predicted that more and more students’ will email their work to their teacher and this
work will be scrutinised for plagiarism.
HOW TO DESCRIBE
CAUSES
• Describing causes then effects:
Improved healthcare increased life expectancy.
-Noun phrases: the main causes of/ a contributing
factor in
Improved healthcare is the main causes of/ a
contributing factor in increased life expectancy.
The plentiful availability and affordability of
plastic is the main cause of the current plastic
pollution crisis.
HOW TO DESCRIBE
CAUSES
verbs: cause/ result in/ lead to/ contribute to…
Improved healthcare has led to increased
life expectancy.
The splendid availability and affordability of
plastic causes the current plastic pollution
crisis.
HOW TO DESCRIBE
CAUSES
Subordinators Conjunctive Relative clauses Participle phrases
adverbs
Because Consequently, …Which led to …Leading to
As Therefore,
Since As a result,
For this reason, /
Thus,
Plastic has replaced all other alternative materials in packaging since its
invention, leading to our reliance on it on a daily basis.
HOW TO DESCRIBE
CAUSES
• Describing effects then causes:
Noun phrases verbs Other phrases e.g. The plastic
Increased life Be caused by/ Owing to/ due pollution crisis can be
expectancy is brought about/ to attributed to the
one result/ attributed to/ As a result of abundant availability
consequence triggered by Because of/ on and affordability of this
of universal Stem from/ account of product.
free healthcare. results from
DESCRIBING PROBLEMS
• One key problem to consider
• Several problems to consider
• poses several problems for…
• There is/ are one key problem to consider/
several problems to consider when looking
at plastic pollution.
• Plastic pollution poses several problems for
the protection of marine environments.
DESCRIBING PROBLEMS
• One of the main problems associated with
• Another problem to consider
One of the main problems associated with
plastic pollution is the availability of single-
use plastic bags.
Another problem to consider is harmful
chemicals entering the food chain.
Suggesting solutions
• One solution to the problem of plastic pollution crisis
in waterway is to ban all single-use plastic bags.
• The problem of plastic pollution at sea could be
alleviated by banning microbeads in beauty products.
• The cosmetics industry should address the problem
by ending the use of microbeads in beauty products.
• An example of how the problem of plastic pollution can
be solved/ reduced/ tackled/ mitigated/ addressed
is compulsory recycling.
• To solve the problem of plastic pollution crisis, all
countries in the world need to collaborate.
Evaluating
• It is likely/unlikely that a ban on single-
use plastic bags could succeed if/ unless all
major supermarkets participated.
• Compulsory recycling will have minuscule
effect unless all the companies that fail to
recycle are prosecuted.
• Plastic pollution cannot be solved solely
by government policies. Individuals must be
engaged.
Example
Desertification
Causes
Solutions
Brainstorms
Causes Solutions
Poor agricultural land Conservation
use Sustainable
Loss of tree cover agriculture
Causes
One of the major causes of the desertification is poor agricultural
land used, driven by the pressures of increasing population. To
illustrate, agricultural practices like overgrazing deplete the land by
preventing the grasses and other plants from recovering. The
increasing speed of desertification is also attributed to over-
cultivation in which too many crops are grown on poor land,
resulting in the soil becoming lass fertile and drier. This entails soil
erosion, and eventually the land turn into desert. Another
fundamental factor contributing to this desert advance is loss of
tree cover. Trees have been cut down for use as fuel and to clear
land for farming. As a matter of fact, trees bind the soil together,
conserve moisture, and provide a habitat for other plants and
animals. With the loss of trees, the soil dries up and loosens, easily
washed away by rain, leaving only bare rock and dust.
Solutions
The effects of increased drought appear to be irreversible.
They are, however, preventable through a variety of
feasible measures. Careful forest conservation and
sustainable agricultural land use demonstrate efficacy in
halting soil deterioration and mitigating the effects of
water scarcity. Furthermore, local communities can be
involved in forest management while also providing a
viable agricultural economy that has a lower impact on
farming land, such as soap making or bee keeping.
However, unless all governments and individuals
collaborate on a local and global scale, these solutions
will have insignificant effects.
