Argument and Persuasive Language

Year 10 English – Pre-Test

This test is designed to determine your knowledge BEFORE we start studying this area of study. It
provides your teacher with a snapshot of where to pitch their teaching and what areas require the
most work.

1. Match the following terms in the left hand column with the definitions in the right hand
column by recording the letter relating to the definition in the middle.

Term Correspondin Definition

g Letter
Issue a. The person who has presented the argument
Contention b. The mood or feeling of the language used by the
writer or speaker. It conveys an attitude towards an
issue, argument, individual or group.
Tone c. An important topic for debate or discussion
Persuasive Devices d. The points an author uses to support their
contention
Supporting Points e. The writers viewpoint or position on an issue

Author f. The people or group the piece is aimed at

convincing.
Audience g. Language or visual features that help to persuade a
reader of a point of view.

2. Read the following article and answer the questions below:

Support Our Youth

Many adults in our community are quick to criticize the young people they see
roaming the streets or "getting up to no good". This was a condemnation that stereotyped
the teenagers in our community last week, with complaints to this newspaper, after a spate
of vandalism and graffiti in the CBD. Of course, I’m not condoning illegal activities, but don’t
tar them all with the same brush.
Some of us have short memories, forgetting that we, too, were once young, and at
times, bored. But times were different then: there were dances, discos, live bands to watch,
we could go shooting, camping, fishing, motorbike riding. All without adult supervision – and
I’m sure sometimes we pushed the boundaries. We had many freedoms not provided to
today's youth. Their lives have become intensively restricted, controlled and scrutinized. So
what are they to do? If they spend hours with on-line gaming, on Facebook, Netflix or
watching Youtube, we also criticize that.
However, there are many great kids out there doing great things in our community.
They volunteer for service organisations, play many sports and support their clubs, they can
be seen performing in drama groups and music gigs. And this is just to name a few. But the
 one thing I see less and less of, is the adult community actually supporting and motivating
these young people to be their best.
When events are on around the town, get out and support them. The organisers have
often spent months in planning and rehearsals. Events cost money and groups will lose
interest in putting them on if audiences don't go. They will also lose the important funding
that supports much community development in the area. But most importantly, you should
see the kids’ faces when an audience consists of only a dozen people. That hurt can take a
long time to go away.
We call our youth lazy, but aren't we all? Come on East Gippsland, get behind our young
people and start attending - and get your own teenage kids and grand-kids to go with you.
Put a smile on someone else's face as well as yours, and you will see there is still a great deal
of good going on in the world. And much of it is being led by the younger generation.
We want to build strong, resilient, caring communities in the future, but that has to
start with adults; supporting, encouraging and modelling such behaviour every day.
Acknowledgement and praise go a really long way.

Janine Rooks
Bairnsdale

a. What is the issue being discussed by the author of this letter to the editor?

b. Re-read the title and first paragraph. What is the author’s contention?

c. Who is the intended audience of this piece? Choose from one of the below options:
a. Youth
b. Teachers
c. Adults in Bairnsdale
d. Adults in Melbourne
d. Write a sentence explaining how you know who the intended audience is.

e. In the second paragraph, the author tells a story. What is the purpose of this story and how
would it persuade the audience?

f. In the fourth paragraph, the author presents a ‘call to action’ asking readers to do
something. What is she asking readers to do?
g. In the fifth paragraph, the author uses a rhetorical question. Write the rhetorical question
here:
and explain how that would help to convince an audience to her point of view:

h. The “rule of 3” is a very powerful persuasive tool where an author uses 3 examples or lists 3
things.. Give two examples of where the author has used the rule of 3 in the final paragraph:

a. Eg.
b. Eg.

i. Why is the rule of 3 persuasive?

j. Below is a word cloud that includes a range of tones. Which of these do you think best
represents:

a. The author’s feeling towards most youth:

b. The author’s feelings about adults who criticise youth: