Argumentative essay

r opinion	PRO idea 2 : showing arguments and/or reasons to support your opinion	CON(s) + Refutation(s)	ConclusionPattern 2:Thesis statement:	CON(s) + Refutation(s)	CON(s) + Refutation(s)	PRO idea 1 : showing arguments and/or reasons to support your opinion	ConclusionPattern 3:	Thesis statement:	CON idea 1 	+	Refutation	CON idea 2	+	Refutation	CON idea 3	+	Refutation	ConclusionPattern 4:	Thesis statement:	PRO idea 1: showing arguments and/or reasons to support your opinion	PRO idea 2 : showing arguments and/or reasons to support your opinion	PRO idea 3: showing arguments and/or reasons to support your opinionConclusionExample EssayTEENAGERS AND JOBS	“The pressure for a teenager to work is great, and not just because of the economic plight in the world today. Much of it is peer pressure to have a little bit of freedom and independence and to have their own spending money. The concern we have is when the part-time work becomes the primary focus.” These are the words of Roxanne Bradshaw, educator and officer of the National Education Association. Many people argue that working can be a valuable experience for the young. However, working more than about fifteen hours a week is harmful to adolescents because it reduces their involvement with school, encourages a materialistic and expensive lifestyle and increases the chance of having problems with drugs and alcohol. 	Schoolwork and the benefits of extracurricular activities tend to go by the wayside when adolescents work long hours. As more and more teens have filled the numerous part-time jobs offered by fast-food restaurants and malls, teachers have faced increasing difficulties. They must both keep the attention of tired pupils and give homework to students who simply do not have time to do it. In addition, educators have noticed less involvement in the extracurricular activities that many consider a healthy influence on young people. School bands and athletic teams are losing players to work and sports events are poorly attended by working students. Those teens who try to do it all for examples homework, extracurricular activities and work may find themselves exhausted and prone to illness. A recent newspaper story, for example, described a girl in Pennsylvania who came down with mononucleosis as a result of aiming for good grades, playing on two school athletic teams and working thirty hours a week.	Another drawback of too much work is that it may promote materialism and an unrealistic lifestyle. Some parents claim that working helps teach adolescents the value of dollar. Undoubtedly that can be true. It is also true that some teens work to help out with the family budget or to save for college. However, surveys have shown that the majority of working teens use their earnings to buy luxuries such as video game systems, CD players and disks, clothing and even cars. These young people, some of whom earn $400 or more a month, do not worry about spending wisely as because they can just about have it all. In many cases, experts point out; they are becoming accustomed to a lifestyle they would not be able to afford several years down the road, when they no longer have parents paying for car insurance, food, lodging and so on. At that point they will be hard-pressed to pay for necessities as well as luxuries. 	Finally, teenagers who work a lot are more likely than others to get involved with alcohol and drugs. Teens who put in long hours may seek a quick release from stress, just like the adults who need to drink a couple of martinis after a hard day at work. Stress is probably greater in our society today than it has been at any time in the past. Also, teens that have money are more likely to get involved with drugs. 	Teenagers can enjoy the benefits of work while avoiding its drawbacks, simply by limiting their work hours during the school year. As is often the case a moderate approach will be the most healthy and rewarding.ExampleTopic : “Is grading harmful to students?”Three pieces of evidence for us to say Grading creates competition between students, which prioritizes "winning" over learning. Low grades become equated with a sense of failure, which can diminish the motivation of involved students.Students focus primarily on the assignment's grade instead of comments made by the teacher -- comments which are important in the student's continuing educational growth.Which pattern do we use to write this essay? Topic: What do you think about the opinion that “the best place for children is always in their homes with their own parents”?Three pieces of evidence for us to say1: 	Parents and children need to spend some time apart. 2: 	Childcare centers may actually assist children in their early learning.3: 	We need to free parents from childcare so that they can contribute to national economyConclusion: The solution is implied: “the government should support for childcare services.”Which pattern do we use to write this essay?Some faulty supportsThesis: Leaving the university and starting to work is good for the adolescent because Feelings, emotional arguments ( it makes one feel much better.) Irrelevant examples (wandering off the topic) ( he would then be able to take his girlfriend to expensive restaurants.) Refuting opposing argumentsBefore we start saying that the opponents are wrong, we should specify their opposing ideas.EX: Compare these two statements:	 	1 - Some people may say that adolescents should not leave university education; however, they are wrong. 	2 - Some people may say that adolescents should not leave university education because they are not physically and psychologically mature enough to cope with the problems of the real world. However, they forget one fact: adolescents can vote or start driving at the age of 18 (in some countries even before that age!), which proves that they are considered physically and psychologically mature at that age. strategies of refuting the opposing idea compromise but prove that their argument is not powerful enough: EX: 	They have a point in thinking like that.	To a certain extent they are right.completely disagree: EX: 	After seeing this evidence, there is no way we can agree with what they say.say that their argument is irrelevant to the topic: EX: 	What we are discussing here is not what they are trying to prove. 	Their argument is irrelevant.Oversimplification ( only then would he understand what it means to be an adult.) Hasty generalizations (... it is a widely known fact that all adolescents look forward to earning money.) Unreliable, even false outside sources ( according to www.doubtme.com, 80% of working men wish they quit school when they were at university and started working at an earlier age.) SAMPLE:Body	Language skillsidentifying a debatable statementSentence structures to form a counter-argumentlisting ideasswitching on a contrastive ideaexemplifyingshowing you are aware of both sides of the issueconcluding an argumentative sequenceIdentifying a debatable statementAn argumentative essay is built around a specific statement (or main premise) that is debatable within the field in which you are studyingDebatable statement = statement which other people might or might not agree. These are sometimes called "arguments", "assertions", "propositions" or "premises". Non-debatable statement = statement which no-one would normally disagree or argue. These are sometimes called "facts". Some sentence structures to state the counter - argumentsMany people believe/argue/feel/think/suppose that [state the counter-argument here] It is often thought/imagined/supposed that [state the counter-argument here] It would be easy to/One could easily think/believe/imagine/suppose that [state the counter-argument here] It might seem/appear/look/ as if [state the counter-argument here] listing ideas	When you have more than one argument in a paragraph, you may combine listing ideas like followingFirstlySecondlyFurthermoreIn additionMoreoverFinally Switching on a contrastive idea: Contrast, conversely, instead, on one hand, on the other hand, on the contrary, yet, but, however, still, nevertheless, in contrast On one hand, watching so much television will may develop for sure obesity. On the other hand, research says when the ability of getting information from images is over-developed, the ability of getting information from reading dwindles.People worried about education of young generations blame television for bad scores at school. However, I would blame Internet games instead of the harmless screen. Exemplifying: for example and such as Such as helps enumerate things of same nature. 	Ex 1: A great deal of game shows, such as “Who wants to win a million dollars”, “Questions for a champion”, etc. have a brainstorming effect, which is good for everybody.	With for example, we give only one example, but of which the complexity may extent to the size of a whole paragraph.	EX: Television democratizes knowledge. For example, one of my friends took advantage of it preparing for his university entrance examination. His family was very poor. He watched TV programs that gave lessons on mathematics, chemistry and biology everyday. Eventually, he was admitted to The University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City. in fact & indeed.	With these connectives, real facts are mentioned to support a statement. Ex : Television is the most wide-spread media in Vietnam. In fact / indeed, 56 % of people questioned in an interview said they watched TV more than one hour per day. Showing you are aware of both sides of the issueIt may be argued that television shows are waste of time. However, millions of people are “wasting time” to have access to necessary knowledge. It has been argued that reading book practice is being erased by television. However, who can assert that publication industry is dying because of the small screen?Synonyms of argued: It may be asserted / contended / maintained / claimed / said. Thank you for listening!