Some Exams We Prepare for at EssayKKN

Singapore    JC/ GCE A     GP    Essay 

Aims of this exam : Future-ready skills such as "argumentation, communication, critical thinking and writing skills"... "challenges and opportunities present in the 21st century" ... "the realities of the world ... the aspirations of humanity"

Deliverables : 500 to 800 words in 90 mins. Only 1 out of about 12 essay titles!

Marking/Grading: Total=50; Language=20; Content=30

Singapore    GCE O     English    Essay, Free Writing 

Aims of this exam : "to use accurate and consistent spelling, grammar and vocabulary," "to generate and select ideas for writing and representing," "to develop, organise and express ideas coherently and cohesively,"                

Deliverables : 350 to 500 words in about 60 mins. Only 1 out of about 5 essay titles!

Marking/Grading: Total=30; Language=?; Content=?        

IELTS     Writing    Data Description, Essays, Letters

Aims of this exam : Task 1 (Academic): Can you describe information presented in graph, table, chart or diagram etc and present the description in your own words? Task 2 (Academic): Can you formulate and develop a position in relation to a given question or statement, providing evidence, examples, and reasoning? Task 1 (General): Can you respond to a given problem with a letter requesting information or explaining a situation?  

Deliverables : Task1 : 150 words in 20 mins. 1 out of 1 given topic!

Deliverables : Task2 : 250 words in 40 mins. 1 out of 1 given topic!

Marking/Grading:Out of 9 according to these requirements: Task Achievement, Coherence and Cohesion, Vocabulary, Grammatical Range and Accuracy.

Singapore    PSLE     English    Essay, Continuous Writing   

Aims of this exam : "generate and select relevant ideas, organising and expressing them" nicely, "use correct grammar, spelling and punctuation," "use a variety of vocabulary appropriately, with clarity and precision"

Deliverables : 150 words or more in about 50 mins. 1 out of about 3 essay titles!

Marking/Grading:Total=40; Language=?; Content=?

Timeless Essay RootOutlines

Persuasive or Argumentative

What is the topic about? Can you define terms, vocabulary, concepts?

What are the sides to the argument? For, against, integration/synthesis/combination, transcending, or your own unique point of view?

What is your stand, for or against ?.

Show pros and cons of each side.

Show sound reasoning, valid logic, reasonable conclusion.

Show solid evidence. statistics, quotes and examples. solid facts, and undeniable examples as proof.

Finish strong. End convincingly.

"Persuasive" means trying to persuade readers towards your case, and to change the reader's perspective.

Sample: Should cigarette smoking be banned?

Absolutely. Many people die from lung cancer and heart disease each year from smoking. So I honestly think it should be banned and I'm 13 years old. My grandfather died of lung cancer about 6 years back and it just causes a great sense of denial and emptiness if you lose someone close at the hands of nicotine.

Expository

It can look a lot like a debate between friends.

What issue, theme, idea or concept are you explaining to your intended audience?

To make things clear: make use of comparison and contrast, definition, example, cause and effect.

Make use of evidence, proof, facts and reasoning to back up your thesis statement.

Analytical Essay is a type of an Expository Essay. But it has more depth, more balance and more perspectives. It examine many specifics.

Sample: How to download HD or MP3 from the home page?

To do this, you need to download a free program called Ummy Video Downloader. Installation instructions can be found here. After you have installed the extension, you will see a "Download" button under each video. Click it and select "HD via Ummy" or "MP3 via Ummy". Attention! This method is only available to Windows XP/Vista/7/8 users.

Narrative

Just reuse the structure of any famous classic story.e.g. Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Aesop's Fables, etc.

What characters are there in your story?

What is the setting?

How does the plot unfold?

Involve the reader by making the story as vivid as possible.

Sample:

Aesop Fable. Any short story or a novel. Walt Disney stories. Tom and Jerry, Mickey Mouse, Snow White

Descriptive

What thing are you describing? Paint a picture with words, in your reader's mind. Makes the story or image seem clearer and more real to the reader.

Show, through the use of colorful words and sensory details, not tell.

Appeal to senses of sight, sound, smell, touch/ texture, taste.

Specific details alone are not enough. Give us information that we can easily grasp and perhaps empathize with. Evoke emotions and feelings. Help readers connect with you on an emotional level as they read. Appeal to the reader's emotions, with a result that is highly evocative. Make sure your readers gain a vivid impression imbued with your emotion or perspective.

Your choice of details, your choice of words are clues to your feelings about the thing you are describing.

Sample:  What does an owl look like?

Owls have short, thick bodies, strong, hooked beaks, and powerful feet with sharp claws, or talons. Most owls have feathers on their legs and toes.  The feathers protect them from  the cold. There are tufts of feathers that stick up like ears on an owl's face.  But they aren't ears at all!  In fact, nobody knows what they are for.  How strange. An owl's large ear openings are on the sides of its head.  The stiff feathers around the eyes act like an antenna.  They reflect sound toward the ear openings. The owl has a curved beak. The eyes are very large.  These eyes point forward, unlike the eyes of most birds.  For this reason owls can watch an object with both eyes at the same time.

EssayKKN's Adverts

Our favourite method of operation is trickery, or legitimate "cheating". We will help you exploit all legal loopholes.

We will even teach you how to find or make new ones all by yourself!

We don't waste time teaching what you already know.

We find out your natural strengths and help these strengths come to the center brilliantly.

We have analyzed the types of writing for PSLE and their marking schemes. This insight helps us cut short your kid's study time drastically.

Our speciality is never running out of ideas.

Your brain cannot shrink to its original size once you study with us even for a few hours!

RootOutline: Perspectives and Framing, Introduction, Body, Conclusion

RootOutline: Perspectives and Framing

What do you know about the reader or audience? Their background knowledge, their assumptions, their points of views?

Can you pinpoint shared interests and goals? Can you highlight common grounds?

Can you relate your viewpoint to theirs?

RootOutline: Introduction

Start the story in an interesting way.
Tell them what your going to say? Or be coy and just make a few hints to whet their curiosity?
Make an outline of things you are going to say?
Go straight into the heart of the matter?.

RootOutline: Body

Details and more details.
Examples, dialogs, conversations, actions and movements.
Comparisons and contrasts. Similarities and differences.
Essence and minor trivias

RootOutline: Conclusion

A finality, a closure? Can the reader feel that things have come to a completion? Nothing more to happen?

Invention in Essay Writing

According to the canons of rhetoric, there are 5 parts or steps in rhetoric.

1. Invention
2. Arrangement
3. Style
4. Memory
5. Delivery

Invention means knowing what to say, having ideas and visions. It covers creativity, brainstorming, perspective-taking and perspective-making, reframing.

This kind of skill is essential in any subject or career: liberal arts, social sciences or any hard core science.

Our speciality is never running out of ideas.

Your brain cannot shrink to its original size once you study with us even for a few hours!

Self-Belief in Essay Writing

Believe you are creative and brimming with ideas. Assume you already have enough knowledge about this essay, this topic.

If you still feel clueless, keep faith. Keep believing that you know lots of things about this topic but you are unaware of your own knowledge.

It is very likely that you don't yet see how to relate your own knowledge about the world to this essay topic. 

Reading List at EssayKKN

Read them carefully.

Just as we selected merely "Twelve Essays to Make Any Exam Easy, from 2,000 Years of Examples,"  we got this short list from hundreds of available books on writing and essay-writing in particular.

• The Elements of Eloquence: How to Turn the Perfect English PhraseRated 9/10
  
  
• Words Like Loaded Pistols: Rhetoric from Aristotle to Obama   Rated 9/10
  
  
• Building Great Sentences: How to Write the Kinds of Sentences You Love to Read  Rated 9/10
  
  
• The Elements of Expression: Putting Thoughts into Words  Rated 9/10
  
  
• Cassius Longinus The Sublime  Rated 9/10
  
  
• Quintilian's Institutio Oratoria (English: Institutes of Oratory)  Rated 1/50, Too long to bother!
  
  

Thinking Creatively in Essay Writing

Let's be honest, frank and lazy. Why do we need to sweat our brains to write at all?

The very first of the five canons of Rhetoric is "invention", which means having good ideas to express.

Cassius Longinus on The Sublime listed five sources that produce sublimity or greatness in writing. The very first one is “vigor of mental conception.” Lifeless, feckless ideas, stories cannot and will not shake, grip, capture any hearts or minds.

Here come a few short sets of practical, battle-tested methods to get inspirations:

1. Think of opposites.
2. Make a matrix of attributes of the thing you want to have ideas about.

1. Use 3 random nouns.
2. Use random words, pictures or objects.
3. Combine them in any random ways.

1. Invite Sherlock Holmes, Andrew Carnegie etc and ask for their ideas.
2. Imagine you are that thing.
3. Imagine you are at that place.
4. Imagine that thing has already happened. How do you feel now?

1. Speed write. Write without any thought or plan. Preferably with your non-dominant hand!

Twelve Essays to Make Any Exam Easy, from 2,000 Years of Examples

There are only four types of essays : Narrative, Expository, Argumentative, Descriptive, NEAD for short. If you write just 3 essays for each type sincerely, honestly and methodically, meticulously and in-depth, you will do well for any type of essay in any type of examination.

Narrative

1. A memorable lesson of leadership that I learned in high school
2. The first time I realized I was in love
3. The first time I failed an exam

Expository

1. Learning a craft
2. Stereotypes
3. Making good decisions in life

Argumentative

1. Should smoking be declared illegal?
2. Is bullying natural?
3. Should the death penalty be abolished?

Descriptive

1. A dream I could never forget
2. When robots take over all our jobs
3. My favorite movie theater

Common Signal Words in Academic Writing

Writing Better Essays by Chris Baker and Ross Vermeer

Common signal words used in academic writing, page-30 

words that signal an additional point:
  moreover, in addition, and, also, additionally, furthermore, as well

words that signal an effect or consequence:
   as a result, thus, consequently, therefore, so

words that signal stages in an sequence:
  first, then, next, lastly,  finally

words that signal an example: for example,
  for instance, such as

words that signal a conclusion or summary:
  in short, in conclusion, to summarize, to sum up

words that signal similarity:
  similarly, in the same way, likewise, equally

words that signal difference: however,
  in contrast, but, yet, nevertheless,  though

words that acknowledge an alternative or contrasting idea or opinion:
  while, although, despite, in spite of

IELTS Task1 Graphs

Writing Better Essays by Chris Baker and Ross Vermeer

Describing Visual Materials, page-56-58

The following graph shows levels of corporate information technology expenditure in the USA from 1960 to the early years of the 21st century. As you can see,there was a dramatic increase in IT expenditure in the late 1990s...

Subject                             Verb                               Object
The following graph          represents/illustrates        an increase in...
The chart below               shows/depicts                 changes in...
Figure 1.2                      highlights                       the rate of...

Vocabulary for describing trends and data
Noun phrase                                 Verb                      Adverb or adverbial clause
Levels of investment                       rose                  significantly during this period.
The percentage of...                        fell                   sharply/steadily.
Government spending                      continued           at this rate.

Adjectives                                    Nouns
A sharp/sudden/marginal          rise/increase
A slight/continuous                  decline/reduction/fall
An unexpected                       fluctuation

Sentence Style Beyond Basic: Yitzhak Rabin

Three Ways to Go beyond Tough-Guy Kernel Predictive Sentences, page-44

Building Great Sentences by Brooks Landon

1. Add conjunctions or connectives to it.
2. Add subordinates to it.
3. Add modifiers to it.

Brainy Tough-Guy-Farmer Style

Elements of Expression by Arthur Plotnik, page 112

Some scholars believe that over-use of kernel/basic predicative sentences is suitable only to uneducated farmers, do-or-die Rambo's, bounty-hunting Clint Eastwood's and so on.

Then what about this extract of speech by Yitzhak Rabin condemning settlers who sanction murder:

"You are not part of the community of Israel. You are not part of the national democratic camp which we all belong to in this house, and many of the people despise you. You are not partners in the Zionist enterprise. You are an foreign implant. You are an errant weed. Sensible Judaism spits you out. You placed yourself outside the wall of Jewish law. You are a shame on Zionism and an embarrassment to Judaism."

You cannot say the speaker here is under-feeling, under-thinking, under-calculating or under-sophisticated. His sentences are simple, even his words are. But the speech as a whole does not sound simplistic. Why?

Four Principles for Cumulative Sentences

Building Great Sentences by Brooks Landon

Four Principles for Cumulative Sentences, page 58-63

1. Add
2. Add direction of modification or direction of movement
3. Downshift in levels of abstraction
4. Add greater texture of density of information.

Importance of Processing Information or Imagination

Building Great Sentences by Brooks Landon

Importance of Processing Information page-123-125

Writers should "reveal their distinctive individuality, their personality as sound thinkers, through their writing." They need to present information to readers, but they should also show how they "process" the info they are sharing with their readers.

Writers devalue themselves whey they operate like "a security camera in a convenience store."

One supreme goal of writing is to "reveal the nature of the writer's mind at work, a process in which the writer wants readers to value the writer's thoroughness,accuracy and logic, but also writer's unique way of looking at and understanding the world." Stop writing like "an unthinking and unfeeling security camera."

Look at the opening sentence of Joseph Conrad's "The Secret Sharer"

On my right hand there were lines of fishing stakes resembling a mysterious system of half-submerged bamboo fences, incomprehensible in its division of the domain of tropical fishes, and crazy of aspect as if abandoned forever by some nomad tribe of fishermen now gone to the other end of the ocean; for there was no sign of human habitation as far as the eye could reach.

The narrator has "a very active imagination, and loves to use it to make stories out of what he sees."

If you are endowed with a fertile imagination flaunt it for the benefit of the world !!!

Sincerity First

Elements of Expression by Arthur Plotnik

Sincerity, page 115, 183

1. Use anything, say anything only when, only because you truly feel them inside.
   
   
2. "The cunning use of figures arouses a peculiar suspicion in the hearer's mind,a feeling of being deliberately trapped and misled. That is why the best use of a figure of speech is when the figure goes unnoticed." ---- Longinus
   
   
3. "False enthusiasm is a display of passion, hollow and untimely, where none is needed ... For writers are frequently carried away by artificial emotions of their own making which have no relation to the subject matter. Like drunkards, they are beside themselves, but their audience is not ... " ---- Longinus, page 110
   
   
4. Don't use quotations simply because it is easy to find them online. "A fine quotation is a diamond on the finger of a man of wit, and a pebble in the hand of a fool" --- Joseph Roux
   
   
5. Study with sincere feelings. Savor, chew on it, not wolf down. Sip, not gulp down. Feed, let it sink to the very fibers of your inner core. Your style will be changed forever.
   
   

Wake-up Images and Why Shakespeare?

Wake-up Images

Elements of Expression by Arthur Plotnik, page 101

"The Chinese yak is a lovely long-haired animal, like a cow on its way to the opera." Riding the Iron Rooster by Paul Theroux.
"The startling and amazing is more powerful than the charming and persuasive ..." To be convinced is within your control. Amazement is beyond your control. ---- Longinus, page 110
"A camel is a race horse designed by a committee."

Why Shakespeare?

Elements of Expression by Arthur Plotnik, page 7

Average American commands 20,000 words, and about 4 minutes of attention.
Shakespeare used about 18 000 words, and has gained four centuries of attention.

Impressionistc Overview of Cassius Longinus

Elements of Expression by Arthur Plotnik, page 110

1. "five sources most productive of great writing ... vigor of mental conception ... strong and inspired emotion" word choices, word arrangement, and rhetorical devices.
   
2. "The startling and amazing is more powerful than the charming and persuasive ..." To be convinced is within your control. Amazement is beyond your control.
   
3. "Those who aim at greatness try to escape the charge of feeble aridity and are somehow led into turgidity,believing it 'a noble error to fail in great things'"
   
4. "... amplification [occurs when] .. fine, well-rounded passages succeed one another, increasing the effect at every step ... Greatness implies distinction, amplification implies quantity; the former can exist in a single thought, the latter always involves length and a certain abundance."
   

Entertaining Fluff-Free Guide to Better Essay Writing

How is an essay graded in whatever exam?

1. Ideas: relevant, sound, fresh, deep?
2. Sentence Variety: length, pattern/structure, rhythm
3. Word Variety: length, difficulty, pattern/structure, idiomaticity.
4. Paragraph Variety:length, pattern/structure, rhythm
5. Rhetorical and figurative devices.

In short, to do well with school essays, first have good ideas and second, use good language.

Then, "good ideas" is a matter of minutes if you are a natural born trickster. You will always have interesting or reasonable things to say, whatever tight spot you are in. Even if you are not born that way, you can acquire a good bag of tricks in a matter of days.

But "good language" is a matter of months or years. You cannot "experiment" your language use in exam time.

Let's see what happens when you attempt to experiment with language and fail. In real-life, such errors are amusing but in exams, it's altogether a different matter.

Let's begin with Sentence Variety. What is wrong with the following:

• We are interested of painting.
• This is the story what our neighbor told us.
• No matter which she says, they are not convinced.

Will you be rewarded for your adventurism, or be punished for your daring but sloppy grammar? Be honest with yourself.

Now let's do experiments with Word and Idiom:

• Be very careful in these markets. A miss is as good as a kilo meter.
• Although the poor girl gave him her heart, the guy left her wickednessly.
• At the close of the day, what we do for our customers will be recognized.

Experiments with Paragraph Variety, and Experiments with Rhetorical and Figurative Devices are left to our readers for exercise.

The gist: we can wing or bluff with Ideas. But not with Language: not with Sentence Structure/Grammar, not with Words and Idioms, not with Paragraph Organization, etc.

How We Provide Feedback at EssayKKN --- 4

IELTS, Task2

Question: Development in technology has brought various environmental problems. Some believe that people need to live simpler lives to solve it. Others, however, believe that technology is the way to solve these problems. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

[View1= Live simpler. View2= Use more techno.]

[P1 = ] It is true that recent advances in technology could create numerous environmental issues. As a result, some environmentalists suggest that people should change the way they live [and live ] as simple as possible to help reduce this. In my opinion, I believe that technology can be applied in various means to safeguard the environment. [You seem to support V2. Whatever V you support is fine. Just state your stand clearly.]

[P2 = ] There are many reasons why many prefer to live in non- luxurious lives in order to reduce environmental problems. Firstly, driving cars inevitably produce toxic fumes which cause air pollution. If people walk instead of using cars, particularly for short distance travel to town, this will save fuels as well as reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. Secondly, modern day lifestyle is full of comfort and convenience with availability of various domestic appliances and household electronics. Some green thinkers advice to live a life without these facilities as this would reduce energy consumption which further save[s] the world's limited natural resources. My view is that cars and domestic appliances are not for luxury as they are basic facilities to ensure a good quality of life.

[P3 = ] Despite [the] above arguments, I believe that  technology can also be applied in several means to tackle the environmental damage. One effective solution would be the development of recycling technology. By this means, old glasses, metal and plastic products are being transformed into new forms, which prevent illegal dumping of waste and contamination of safe water supply. Another possible solution would be the latest development in renewable energy farms. For example, use of solar panels and other methods of renewable energy production which protect natural resources to be depleted in a long run.

[P4 = ]  In conclusion, although some people think a simple living in order to reduce environmental impacts caused by using modern technology, I strongly believe that application of these new technologies can certainly safeguard our planet.

[P2 = home technos; P3= recycle+ solar etc. Analyzed this this way, seen this way, you will agree that the easiest, safest way to increase your score is to have more ideas. What about pollution at land, in sea, in air? noise? Their teach solutions. ]  

[Open intro more strongly, firmly. Finish even stronger.]

[Thank you. I'm just to busy right now. I am writing code to answer such question automatically ;-) ]

How We Provide Feedback at EssayKKN --- 3

IELTS/ Academic

"Technology"  Development in technology has brought various environmental problems. Some believe that people need to live simpler lives to solve it. Others, however, believe that technology is the way to solve these problems. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

It is undeniable that technology is responsible for damaging the environment in several ways. Although some people think that the best way to address these issues is to live as simple as possible, I believe that breakthrough technology itself can solve these problems. [V1 and V2, you support V2.]

On the one hand, some people argue that the only way to tackle technology-induced environmental problems is by removing the causes of these problems. The main reason is that factories and vehicles produce emissions and exhaust fumes which contribute to global warming. In addition, people are using several kinds of labour-saving devices which consume too much electricity generated from burning fossil fuels. They also point out that  manufacturing technology creates large amount of waste, and throwing away of broken or unwanted electronic devices is also a big issue because most of them contain hazardous materials like lead and mercury which can contaminate land, water and even food chain. Therefore, they think that the most effective solution would be living simply not by producing and using any technology.[ not-so-simple life styles -> production -> wastes -> env problems. So shall we uproot the root cause? Life style as the root of all env evils?]

Nevertheless, I believe that new technology would be the best way to address these environmental problems. Firstly, technology helps us develop and produce new materials and devices that are sustainable and do not harm the environment. For example, introducing electric cars or solar cars would be the most effective way to solve air pollution caused by carbon emission. Secondly, production of electricity from renewable energy resources such as solar, wind, nuclear energy and invention of energy efficient devices could be a solution to save natural resources which are running out in the near future. Finally, using appropriate recycling method and technology to dispose electronic wastes could solve the land pollution problem. [1. new materials and devices 2. new energy 3. recycle. Very good.]

In conclusion, I believe that it is simply unrealistic to get back to the old paths because it can have an extremely negative impact on our living standards. In my opinion, new technologies can help reduce environmental problems caused by technological advances. [You go back to your support of V2. Good, a clear finish.]

[I am happy with your essay. you 'll do well in IELTS. You get about 7.1 band if I am the grader.]
[No problem, so, no solution. Only 2 ways to improve.]

First, have more ideas and compressed them. Say, now you pack 4 suits (1 cause-effect chain in Para2 and 3 way-outs in Para3 ) in 1 suitcase. What if you pack 20 suits instead? Try, the quality will shoot up.

Second, up your style. 1, weed out filler and weak connectives. 2, use more active, energetic verbs, more descriptive, vivid nouns and adjectives.

I will not rewrite this essay b/c it is enough. But next time, I am going to press you on these 2 points: compressed content and vigorous, compact style.
Thank you.

(323)

IELTS Task 2
 Q: improvement in health, education and trade are essential for the development of poorer nations. However, the governments of the richer nations should take more responsibility for helping the poorer nations in such areas.

To what extent do you agree or disagree.

[question analysis == 

health+education + trade for poorer nations.

richer nations take more responsibility]

[ Ideas that crop up in mind right away (1) What about self-help? (2) No saint. Win-win only will be sustainable.]

It is undeniable that public services such as healthcare, quality education and business opportunities are important for poor countries to develop in many aspects. While I agree that wealthier States should contribute more to support those areas, I also believe that individual country should take several steps to improve their essential services to citizens.

There are many reasons why I think the rich nations should provide a greater level of support to the countries in need. Firstly, these economically strong nations possess technological advances and human resources to help establish infrastructure. For example, new town plans and road networks could be established in order to provide consumers' demand and free flow of goods within the area. Secondly, there are many trained professionals and experts who could advise and  lead the educational institutions in developing countries. Finally, support money and grants and international investment from richer part of the world can be used in areas to improve literacy rate and unemployment which are common problems facing third world nations.

[It is in their self-interest to help poorer nations. They should do it as a form of investment. ]

Nevertheless, I disagree with the view that poor nations could expect long term comprehensive support from richer nations. Because there are many ways these disadvantaged countries could strive for on their own instead of waiting for more international aids. One effective means is to maintain law and order within the country. By this mean, local and international businesses would find a way to succeed. If there is no political stability, there would be no investment from multinational companies which would fail to create jobs for local people. Another possible means is to open foreign policy as fair and flexible as possible which is highly essential for further establishment of global trade.

[Even in the very high-tech Silicon Valley, companies do not die or live by technology, not by knowledge, not by assets and resources, not by wit and strategy. "Culture eats strategy for lunch," everyone agrees. The same goes for countries. A country where law and order reigns, where justice is served and shown to have been served, where love and self-respect work hand in hand, where dreams materialize in one's life time ... shall not live poor for long whether anyone helps her or not.  So it is in rich countries' self-interest to help such a country. It will go with or without their help! ] 

In conclusion, the richer countries should provide various types of aids to the poor, however, the government of poorer nations also have responsibility to welcome[use] these upcoming international aids [effectively].