PART 2 : FACTUAL/EXPOSITORY/ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY

WRITING INTRODUCTIONS
HOW TO START YOUR ESSAY?

Your introduction must be something that grabs the reader’s attention. Use the following ideas:

1. USE SOME STARTLING INFORMATION OR FACT

Start with a pertinent fact that clearly and strongly illustrates the point
you wish to make. Then, elaborate with a sentence or two.
 Example:

Topic: Teenagers and their problems

A recent survey on teenagers provided some food for thought for parents. It was found that about 70 per cent
of them smoked, 40 per cent watched pornographic videos and 14 per cent took drugs. Several factors have
been identified as contributing to these problems.
2. USE AN ANECDOTE
An anecdote is a short story that illustrates a point.
Example:

Topic: The loafing syndrome among teenagers

Raj and his friends do not go home after school. They hang out daily at a shopping complex to while their time
away. There, they join students from other schools. Sometimes, they play some video games or just enjoy each
other’s company. Raj and his friends are just the tip of the iceberg of the loafing syndrome among teenagers.

3. DIALOGUE
Use an appropriate dialogue to start your story or convey a point. Use
only two or three exchanges between speakers to make your point.
Example:
Topic: An unforgettable incident

“Help! Someone just snatched my purse!” The screams shattered the still of the night. Suddenly, lights were
switched on and heads popped out of doors and windows. “ Hey, what’s the matter?”

4. USE A QUESTION
You can also use a rhetorical question which catches the reader’s
attention.
Example:
Topic: Reduce, reuse and recycle

Did you know that Malaysians throw away 1.2 million tones of newspapers daily? For every ten newspapers
bought, only four are recovered for recycling. Thus the government has spearheaded a recycling campaign to
encourage Malaysians to separate their waste.
Topic: Coping with peer pressure

What choice do you have if your friends are pressuring you to do something which you can think is wrong? Would
you walk away? Are you able to say ‘no’?

5. USE A DEFINITION
Define your topic.
 Example:
Topic: Gawai Dayak Festival

In Sarawak, the word Gawai is the equivalent of festival. Numerous Gawais are celebrated throughout the year by
the state’s indigenous people but Gawai Dayak marks the end of the harvest season and heralds a new year.

6. USE A QUOTATION
Example:
Topic: How to save water

It is better to be safe than to be sorry. That is the message of the environmentalists to those who take water for
granted, for one day, we may be faced with the situation whereby there is not enough water for everyone. Thus,
we should take steps to save water.

7. USE A GENERAL STATEMENT

Use a general statement about your topic, then narrow it to a specific
point of view.
Example:

Topic: Ways to reduce pollution

Of late, there has been increasing concern about the impact of pollution on the environment and our society.
The public outcry over the various environmental disasters in our own country should be lauded. How do we
resolve these problems?

ELABORATION TECHNIQUES

The following are some elaboration techniques with examples that students can use in their writing. These
techniques can apply to open-ended responses, persuasive essays, explanatory essays, and speculative writing;
some strategies are more appropriate for specific genres than others.

METHOD EXAMPLES
Definition Pollution is the term used to describe toxins in our environment
Fact There are 4 major types of pollution
Response/Reaction/Opinion In my experience, many students find recycling to be an afterthought - not
necessarily a critical issue.
Example For example, the weather in Florida never used to get below 30 degrees. Now, it is
usual for them to experience temperatures in the teens!
Small Story/Anecdote One time when I went swimming in the ocean, I couldn't paddle two feet without
touching a piece of garbage floating around me
Data/Statistic Out of 30 students interviewed, 28 reported seeing garbage all over the
schoolyard when they come back from the weekend
Quotes Michael Osmond, Director of the Centers for Disease Control, reports, "Pollution
(Direct or indirect) from spreading is an extremely critical issue that must be addressed by policy makers
authorities or and the general public in order to get it under control."
primary/secondary sources
 Concession
Acknowledge opposing points
of view and offer your rebuttal
Rhetorical Questioning
A rhetorical question can be
phrased so that the only
answer is in favor of your
opinion.
While some people believe that pollution is only a problem for those living in major
cities, they are inaccurate. Pollution spreads far beyond the invisible boundaries
that outline our cities and metropolitan areas.
Who would want to live in a world surrounded by heaps of garbage and breathing
poor quality air?
• *avoid simplistic rhetorical questions: Don't you hate pollution?

Logic If every school is America agreed to stop producing paper-based fliers and went
green with online fliers instead, we would reduce our carbon footprint by 30%
Personal Appeal We all want a cleaner world for our generation and for future generations.
Everyone should have the right to be born into a clean world.

WRITING EFFECTIVE CONCLUSIONS

1. Summarise your main points
Example:

As we have seen, peer pressure and media influence are the main reasons why teenagers take up
smoking. Thus, it is important to look into these reasons when considering solutions to this problem.

2. Express your hopes about the topic

Example:

Finally, it is hoped that as people become more aware of the need to recycle, more will come forward
and get involved in environmental issues.

3. Express the implication of the topic in the future and issue a call for action
Example:

The situation does not augur well for Malaysia’s future if teenagers continue to loiter and waste their
time. Something needs to be done urgently to arrest this problem.

4. Use a rhetorical question and a call for action

Example:

Shall we just sit back and wait till our landfills overflow? Let us get involved and do something about it.
Let us recycle today.
5. Close with a lesson or moral value
Example:

Sally learnt a valuable lesson that day. She should not judge a book by its cover. Fortunately, her
parents were able to help her.
 SIGNPOST/COHESIVE DEVICES
ADDITION COMPARISON CONTRASTING TIME

• Further • Similarly • However • meanwhile

• Furthermore • Comparable • Nevertheless • presently
• In addition • In the same way • On the other hand • at last
• Additionally • Likewise • On the contrary • finally
• Then • As with • Even so • immediately
• Also • Equally • Notwithstanding • thereafter
• Too • Just as…so too • Alternatively • at that time
• Besides • As similar • At the same time • subsequently
• Again • Another…like • Though • eventually
• Equally important • Like • Otherwise • currently
• First, second • As with • Instead • in the meantime
• Finally • Nonetheless • in the past
• As well as • Conversely •
• And • Whereas
• Instead of
• unlike

RESULT/CAUSE AND SUMMARY EXAMPLE PLACE

EFFECT
• in short • for example • there
• Hence • on the whole • for instance • here
• Therefore • in other words • that is • beyond
• Consequently • to be sure • such as • nearby
• Thus • clearly • as revealed by • next to
• Thereupon • anyway • illustrated by • at that point
• As a result • in sum • specifically • opposite to
• In consequence • after all • in particular • adjacent to
• So • in general • for one thing • on the other side
• Then • it seems • this can be seen in • in the front
• Because • in brief • an instance of this • in the back
SEQUENCING ILLUSTRATING QUALIFYING EMPHASISING
• Above all
• first, second, third • for example • But • In particular
• finally • such as • However • Especially
• next • for instance • Although • Significantly
• meanwhile • In the case of • Unless • Indeed
• after • As revealed by • Except • Notably
• then • Illustrated by • Apart from
• subsequently • As long as
• If