Fundamentals of English Writing

Supplementary Material for Cause and Effect Essays (Week 1)

Wei-Yan Miguel Li

Academic Writing Education Center

National Taiwan University

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Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.

1
Review Whole Class/ Group Task (40 minutes):

Instructions:
1. Chat shortly on the topic.
2. Read the Shyness article (P. 117~119).
Oshima, A. and A. Hogue. (2014). Longman Academic Writing Series (5th Edition). Pearson Longman.
3. Assign a reporter, a note-taker, a mediator, and a group leader. Have group discussion and try to answer
the questions.

Is the topic of this essay primarily the causes or the effects of shyness?
______________________________________________________________

Which paragraphs discuss the causes?

______________________________________________________________

Which paragraph discusses the effects?

______________________________________________________________
How would you categories the causes?
______________________________________________________________
What is the purpose of a transition paragraph?
______________________________________________________________
What is such an organization called?
______________________________________________________________
In what (emphatic) order are the environmental factors arranged? Why do you
think they are arranged this way?
______________________________________________________________

4. Have class discussion and share group discussion results.

2
Overall Practice Group Task (40 minutes): More and more well-educated young people choose to
work outside Taiwan

Instructions:
1. Read the following list first.
2. Each group identifies the statements causes and/or effects.

Causes Effects Causes and Effects

a. Average salaries (in proportion to labor content) in Taiwan are depressing

b. Crises of shut down or reshuffling will confront many industries
c. Companies in adjacent countries (e.g., Singapore and China) are willing to invest in youngsters from
overseas as long as they are competitive
d. Leakage of business secrets may occur, thereby making it difficult for domestic industries to compete with
their foreign opponents
e. The government lacks sound policies to retain young people
f. Enterprises do not have systemic strategies to train and retain young employees
g. Young people are unconfident about prospects for Taiwans economic growth
h. The era of globalization requires more refined international skills and perspectives
i. An increasing number of young people decide to settle in foreign countries permanently
j. Entrepreneurial upgrade or transformation are slow
k. Particular values and attitudes toward working overseas may have a negative impact on people of the same
or younger generations

3
3. Each group chooses from the items (i.e., subtopics) and collaborates on outlines that uses block
organizations. Diagram the block organizations below.

Block Organization 1 Block Organization 2

Block Organization 3

4. The selected groups diagram the organizations on the board.

5. Have whole class discussion.

4
Skills-Focused Drill Task (20 minutes): Transition Paragraph & Thesis Statement for Cause/Effect
Essays

Instructions:
1. Paired up the class and each pair selects one of the block organizations diagrammed on the board and
collaboratively writes a thesis statement.

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

2. Also, write a transition sentence/ paragraph.

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

3. Ask for volunteers to share the works.

4. Students upload their own group TSS and transition paragraph onto Ceiba after class, and every student
has to make comments on at least two works.

5

/
2 The Biological Oshima, A. and A. Hogue. (2014). Longman Academic
and Environmental Writing Series (5th Edition). Pearson Longman. P. 117~119
Causes of Shyness
This work is used subject to the fair use doctrine of Article
46, 50, 52, 65 Taiwan Copyright Act.