Archive 22: article

Question You have been asked by the editor of your school magazine to write an article on the following topic:
Today`s television
"A load of old rubbish" or
"More choice than ever before"? Is today`s television still good value for money?
Write your article for the magazine (around 120-180 words).

Name: nadan
School: Everyday English
TV: Is it a good thing?
Television is one of the most important inventions of the century. Almost everyone owns a TV set at home today. Be it educational or entertainment life would be so boring without one nowadays.
First of all, thanks to television we have the latest information at our fingertips. We are constantly informed of what is happening around the world without leaving home. Furthermore, television has made learning at home possible. In fact, some TV stations dedicate their programmers to specific interests.
A further advantage is that old people living alone find television a {1} very good company. It helps them forget their loneliness.
On the other hand, too much television can create problems in the family. If it {***} {2}not the constant argument of which channel to watch, it is the isolation of family members. One{3} watching television doesn`t feel like talking or being disturbed as they are so absorbed in what they are watching. Hence, the term `couch potato`. Too much television implies {***} lack of outdoor activities and we find that there are less{4} and less people taking exercises.
Television, nevertheless, remains one of the most interesting inventions. Carefully controlled viewing makes it an indispensable instrument in our daily lives{***} {5} otherwise, it can turn into an addiction with harmful consequences.
Feedback This essay demonstrates excellent language control; it is virtually error-free and the register is consistently formal. Let`s look closely at the task itself now. Today`s television: "A load of old rubbish" or "More choice than ever before"? Is today`s television still good value for money? Unfortunately you don`t really get to grips with the above questions. What you have written is more of a generalized essay on TV rather than a comment on its quality and value for money. You have to be very careful in the exam to answer all aspects of the tasks or you could lose valuable marks. To sum up, therefore, there are no problems in terms of language expression - just make sure that you pay close attention to the task in the exam and answer the right question! Archive 23: article
Question You have seen the following competition in an magazine for young people.
 
"In your experience what are the benefits and drawbacks of learning another language? Is is something you would recommend to ALL young people?"
If we publish your article you will win a prize of fifty pounds!

Write your article for the magazine (around 120-180 words).

Answer Click on the underlined words or phrases for comments. The numbers in brackets offer suggestions. General feedback appears below the essay.

Name: Gabriel
Learning foreign languages is necessary nowadays because the world works like an international community and is important to know how to communicate with each other.{1}
I come from Brazil and I speak portuguese {2} as my native language. However I can speak a litlle {3} bit of spanish as well.
First of all foreign languages can be very useful when you are abroad on holidays and when you need to speak with people from other nationalities. Secondly the internet have {4} information in all kinds of language but most of it is in english and also is good to have friends in other countries and try to communicate with them by email. Finally if you want to work in the business sector or in many others like tourism you must know at least others languages appart {5} from your own.
But not all is perfect{6}. Even that {7} learning is so important, it is not easy to become a master in a language or to start speaking fluently. What is more, {***} {8} is dificult {9} to maintain a lot of new things in your head especially when you are young (I know this because I`m 16).Other {10} thing that is important to raise is that the costs to learn another language are very expensive{***} {11} therefore {***} is not everybody that can afford it.
I think it is very important to learn a different language because {***} {12}will help you a lot in the future when you are looking for a job. It`s also a good idea to start learning when you are young when you don`t need to worry with {13} adult things like: bills, job, house & etc and {***}is very interesting to learn other cultures and customs from other countries.


Feedback This is a really good article, Gabriel. The organisation and coverage of all the points is splendid and it was also interesting to read