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C2 Sample Essay 39 (School or family shapes one's personality)

In the minds of ESL exam candidates, e ssay writing is one of the most daunting tasks they are required to complete, regardless of the level of the exam, the administering body or the ease with which they themselves use the language. The same applies to students who are asked to write an essay by their teachers at school.  In the previous sample essays posted on the blog, the main point I stress is the need to become acquainted with this form of writing (as opposed to writing a letter, review or report, for instance), to get a feel of what authorial voice is and how to organize and progressively express the arguments you wish to make in a coherent manner.  Unfortunately, the best way to prepare for exam writing or learn how to write good essays for school is to read as many essays from as many sources as possible, then write as

ECPE Writing - Sample Article (Plastic Bag Fee)

This is the second sample article I'm posting that conforms to the writing section requirements of the ECPE ( Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English) of the University of Michigan as of 2021. As seen in the first post to deal with articles , there are a number of points candidates need to bring to the table when it comes to writing. The main ones are: argumentation organization of paragraphs development of one's reasoning wide range of grammatical structures  lexical range  authorial voice   Don't forget to engage the reader from the start by including an apt title. As always, I refer you to the post that tells you what to take from these sample essays. If you haven't read it, click the image below:    Now, let's take a look at the topic, taken from  Practice Tests for the ECPE Book 1 (revised 2021 version) . The question is accompanied by the following writing prompts:

ECPE Writing - Sample Essay (Online Classes)

T he writing section of the ECPE ( Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English), administered by the University of Michigan, gives a choice between two topics.   In contrast with the previous post dealing with the ECPE writing section, this one offers a sample essay not article on the topic of online classes. To access the article for the same question, click on the image below.  

IELTS Academic Task 1 Report 5 (Graph - News Sources)

This is the fifth sample report (Task 1) which follows IELTS guidelines for the Writing section of the Academic Module.  The graph in this case deals with where people get their news from.  The sample written is much longer than what a candidate would have time to draft (over 300 words), but the reason for this is to give candidates more words to underline and add to their list of phrases to use in such types of writing tasks.   First, make sure to have read my post 

ECPE Writing - Sample Article (Mandatory Online Class)

2021 is the first year to see the new version of the ECPE exam. The major change in the Writing section of the Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English is undoubtedly the addition of an article and proposal alongside the essay.    Of course I'm leaving out the added time because teachers have already been training and candidates have already been trained to present a polished piece of writing in 35 minutes, so the added 10 minutes is a welcome bonus. The important thing to focus on is the entirely new genre students should become acquainted with. In this post, we'll be looking at a sample article.  

Cambridge Proficiency (CPE) Paper 2: Writing Part 1 Overview - The Essay

Examinations for the Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) are one of the most widely recognized English-language exams that certify one has mastered the language at C2 level (based on the Common European Framework of Reference or CEFR for languages).    It is not without apprehension that candidates sitting this exam prepare to tackle Paper 2 -- the dreaded Writing section.  This post will outline the various points candidates should keep in mind when dealing with the essay in Part 1 of Paper 2 and provide tips to help with the whole task through a step-by-step approach.  

IELTS Academic Task 1 Sample Report 3 (Air Pollution: Emissions of black smoke, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides)

This is the third sample report (Task 1) which follows IELTS guidelines for the Writing section of the Academic Module.  The graph in this case deals with three categories of gas emissions that contribute to air pollution. It is a longer report than what a candidate would have time to draft (230 words approximately), but the reason for this is to give candidates more words to underline and add to their list of phrases to use in such types of writing tasks.   You can begin by reading my post 

IELTS Academic Task 1 Sample Report 2 (Road & rail passenger transport use)

This is the second sample report (Task 1) which follows IELTS guidelines for the Writing section of the Academic Module. 

IELTS Academic Task 1 Sample Report 1 (Undergraduate & postgraduate students)

This, I hope, is the first of several sample reports to come. They follow the guidelines for the IELTS Task 1 writing section which asks candidates to write a summary of data presented in a graph or diagram.  Task 1 can therefore be seen as consisting of two subcategories of tasks:  a graph, chart, table or a diagram, map, image showing a process or object In this series of reports, I'll focus on the first type which deals with graphs so that candidates can see how facts can be grouped together and presented in an orderly manner.  You can begin by reading my post  

C2 Sample Essay 37 (Careers and further education)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .   The topic of this essay is to discuss single versus multiple careers in addition to further education (how the former is becoming "old-fashioned"). If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

C2 Sample Essay 36 (Helping Poorer Nations)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .    The topic of this essay is to say to what extent you agree or disagree with the idea that richer nations should take more responsibility when it comes to helping poorer nations develop in terms of health, education and trade. If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

C2 Sample Essay 35 (Prevention is better than cure)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .   The topic of this essay is to say to what extent you agree or disagree with the idea that money should be diverted from treatment of diseases to health education and preventative measures. If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

C2 Sample Essay 34 (Happiness)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .   The topic of this 650-word essay is to discuss why defining happiness is so difficult and what factors are important in being happy. If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

Essay Writing: The Main Body - Concluding Sentence

In our previous essay-writing posts, we dealt with the the overall organization of an essay , the introductory paragraph , the main body paragraph's topic sentence , and lastly the supporting sentences of the main body. I stress once again, for those who haven't read my previous posts in this series, that the information contained within focuses mostly on English as a foreign language exam-type essay questions. This means the advice I give is there to help complete the Writing Section of an exam in approximately half an hour, so all parts of the essay have been whittled down to the bare essentials.  For those who need to work on longer papers of 400 words or more, simply follow the outline given but expand each section. Additionally, feel free to be more creative in adding more paragraphs to the introduction and conclusion. It is rarely possible to write over a paragraph for either the former or latter in an exam when time is pressing, but this is not case with ess...

C2 Sample Essay 33 (Good news versus bad news in the media)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .     The topic of this essay is to discuss what factors influence news editors' choice of news items to broadcast, whether we've become accustomed to bad news and if more good news should be reported. If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

C2 Sample Essay 32 (Richer nations sharing wealth)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .     The topic of this essay is to discuss whether wealthier nations should share their wealth with poorer nations or if each nation should fend for itself. If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

Essay Writing: The Main Body - Supporting Sentences

Having discusse d the overall organization of an academic essay, the introductory paragraph and the topic sentence of main body paragraphs, let's ta ke a look at what we need to do to develop an argument .  As mentioned in the first article in this series, student s wr iting an essay as part of an assign ment or an ESL/EFL examination often find it difficult to elab orate on t he topic they have been given. One cause which can only be remedie d by reading newspapers, academic journals or discussin g current affairs and a variety of subjects with others, is a lack of ideas. The other is no t knowing how to expand an argument , but f ortunately this can be solved by putting into play the various types of supporting sentences available. Let's see what these six types of sentences are.

C2 Sample Essay 31 (Traditional versus international music)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .     The topic of this essay is to discuss why music is a necessary part of life and whether the traditional music of a nation is more important than the international music most often heard nowadays. If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

Essay Writing: The Main Body - The Topic Sentence

This is the third article in my essay-writing series which will clarify issues relating to the main body of an essay. In the two previous articles, I discussed the overall organization of an essay and how an introductory paragraph should be set down. I'd like to clarify once again that these articles can be useful to anyone who has to compose an essay but have main ly been aimed at giving test-takers a practical guide as to how they can manage to successfully complete the Writing Section of an EFL / ESL examination and so are in no way the definitive answer to all essay organization queries. Candidates who are studying to take the IELTS, MSU-CELC or CELP, ECPE, ECCE, ESB, LRN, TOEFL, CPE, FCE (First for Schools), PTE and need to write an essay in approximately half an hour can use the layout I propose to quickly structure their answer and not waste time having to come up with something more inventive.

C2 Sample Essay 30 (Labelling works of art masterpieces)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .  

C2 Sample Essay 29 (Failure)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English (IELTS, CPE, ECPE, CELP, LRN, ESB, TOEFL), make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy .     The topic of this essay is to give your opinion about the statement "failure is proof that the desire wasn't strong enough." If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss this topic, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.