Essay Writing Activities

Essay Writing Activity 1
Some people think that parents should teach children how to be good members of society. Others, however, believe that
school is the place to learn this.
Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Nowadays the way many people interact with each other has changed because of technology.
In what way has technology affected the types of relationships people make?
Has this become a positive or negative development?
Increasing the price of petrol is the best way to solve growing traffic and pollution problems.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?
What other measures do you think might be effective?
Millions of people every year move to English-speaking countries such as Australia, Britain or America, in order to study at
school, college or university.
Why do so many people want to study in English?
Why is English such an important language?
Is having a college education and a degree all that important today?
Explain advantages and disadvantages to seeking a college degree as opposed to beginning work after high school and
explain which of the courses of action you support.
Space research costs billions of dollars. Some people think that the money would be better spent on more practical projects
here on earth.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?
Child Labour is an abuse but still practiced even in civilized societies. Employers hire children against lower wages, on the
other hand, it has also been observed that poor parents allow or sometimes force their children to practice this abuse in order
to make both ends meet.
How does this compare with the situation in your country?
How can the authorities make sure that under aged children should not be forced to practice Child Labor?
Some employers reward members of staff for their exceptional contribution to the company by giving them extra money. This
practice can act as an incentive for some but may also have a negative impact on others.
To what extent is this style of management effective?
Are there better ways of encouraging employees to work hard?
Last year many famous pop and sports stars earned millions of dollars each. Many other entertainment and sports
personalities also have very high incomes. On the other hand, most people in ‘ordinary’ professions like nurses, doctors and
teachers earn only a small fraction of the incomes of these ‘stars’.
What do you think about stars receiving very high salaries? Is it fair that people with jobs that directly help people are paid
much less?
In Britain or America, the average child between the ages 4 and 15 watches more than 20 hours of television a week. Studies
show he/she spends about 7 hours per week on physical exercise.
How does this compare with the situation in your country? How can parents make sure children get enough exercise?
Nowadays the streets are overcrowded with traffic that has caused many problems like environmental pollution, noise, traffic
jams and an increase in road accidents.
What measures do you think should be taken to improve the situation?
In many countries the problem of drug-taking is increasing. Governments and the general public are particularly concerned
about young people using illegal drugs such as marijuana, ecstasy and heroin.
What methods could be used to prevent young people from taking drugs? Is it appropriate to send young drug-users to
prison?
There have been many technological developments in the 20 th century in transport, telecommunications, health etc.
What technological development do you think has been the most important? How has it changed people’s lives? Have all the
changes been positive?
In Western countries, people spend a lot of money on their pets. They buy special food for their cats and dogs, buy them toys
and often pay high fees for medical treatment. Some people think this is a waste of money, and argue that pets are dirty and
dangerous.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of having a pet? Should people spend too much money on pets?
Many newspapers and magazines feature stories about the private lives of famous people. We know what they eat, where
they buy their clothes and who they love. We also often see pictures of them in private situations.
Is it appropriate for a magazine or newspaper to give this kind of private information about people?
Television is now widespread in all communities. Almost everyone has access to this medium on a daily basis. However, the
effects of television are not always positive.
What are some of the negative effects of television? What can be done to minimize these bad effects?
We are becoming increasingly dependent on computers. They are used in business, hospitals, crime detection, and even to fly
planes. What things will they be used for in the future?
Is this dependence on computers a good thing or should we be more suspicious of their benefits?
What are your views?
In Britain and America, college and university students study material from a variety of areas.
Should courses concentrate only in the area of the student’s future careers, or should they continue to be in many different
areas?
Compare the benefits of the two options and explain which position you support.
Some people prefer to live in a house, while others feel that there are more advantages to living in an apartment.
Are there more advantages than disadvantages of living in a house compared with living in an apartment?
Who should be responsible for our elderly people?
In some countries the average weight of people is increasing and their levels of health and fitness are decreasing.
What do you think are the causes of these problems and what measures could be taken to solve them?
Nowadays the streets are overcrowded with traffic that has caused many problems like environmental pollution, noise, traffic
jams and an increase in road accidents.
What measures do you think should be taken to improve the situation?
In many countries the problem of drug-taking is increasing. Governments and the general public are particularly concerned
about young people using illegal drugs such as marijuana, ecstasy and heroin.
What methods could be used to prevent young people from taking drugs? Is it appropriate to send young drug-users to
prison?
There have been many technological developments in the 20 th century in transport, telecommunications, health etc.
What technological development do you think has been the most important? How has it changed people’s lives? Have all the
changes been positive?
In Western countries, people spend a lot of money on their pets. They buy special food for their cats and dogs, buy them toys
and often pay high fees for medical treatment. Some people think this is a waste of money, and argue that pets are dirty and
dangerous.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of having a pet? Should people spend too much money on pets?
Many newspapers and magazines feature stories about the private lives of famous people. We know what they eat, where
they buy their clothes and who they love. We also often see pictures of them in private situations.
Is it appropriate for a magazine or newspaper to give this kind of private information about people?
Television is now widespread in all communities. Almost everyone has access to this medium on a daily basis. However, the
effects of television are not always positive.
What are some of the negative effects of television? What can be done to minimize these bad effects?
We are becoming increasingly dependent on computers. They are used in business, hospitals, crime detection, and even to fly
planes. What things will they be used for in the future?
Is this dependence on computers a good thing or should we be more suspicious of their benefits?
In Britain and America, college and university students study material from a variety of areas.
Should courses concentrate only in the area of the student’s future careers, or should they continue to be in many different
areas?
Compare the benefits of the two options and explain which position you support.
Some people prefer to live in a house, while others feel that there are more advantages to living in an apartment.
Are there more advantages than disadvantages of living in a house compared with living in an apartment?
Who should be responsible for our elderly people?
In some countries the average weight of people is increasing and their levels of health and fitness are decreasing.
What do you think are the causes of these problems and what measures could be taken to solve them?
Failure is proof that the desire wasn’t strong enough.
Some governments say how many children a family can have in their country. They may control the number of children
someone has through taxes.
It is sometimes necessary and right for a government to control the population in this way?
The threat of nuclear weapons maintains world peace. Nuclear power provides cheap and clean energy. The benefits of
nuclear technology far outweigh the disadvantages.
Without capital punishment (the death penalty) our lives are less secure and crimes of violence increase.
Capital punishment is essential to control violence in society.
Some companies and organizations require their employees to wear uniform.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of wearing uniform?
It is generally acknowledged that are now not as close as they used to be.
Give possible reasons and suggest some ways to bring families closer.
When people succeed, it is because of hard work. Luck has nothing to do with success.
The most important aspect of a job is the money a person earns.
It is more important to work at a job that you enjoy than it is to earn a lot of money.
There are times when lying is acceptable.
Some people think that we learn our most important lessons in school. Others think that the knowledge we acquire outside
the school is the most important.
Which view do you agree with?
Every country has poor people and every country has different ways of dealing with the poor.
What are some of the reasons for world poverty?
What can we do to help the poor?
Ends here…

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Essay Writing Activity 1

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