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How To Write Good Muet Essay Introductions
How To Write Good Muet Essay Introductions
A lot of students do not score well in MUET writing because they may be unaware of the Academic
Writing Format. Those who know about it find it hard to verbalise it or get it down on paper, as such,
their intros might not follow the appropriate formal writing style that is preferred for MUET level.
PART 1
1. Current situation/Commentary should include a HOOK,
which is a statement or question that can HOOK OR GRAB your attention.
Examples of HOOKS
a. Facts/Data/Statistics (News articles, data from graphs/surveys etc)
b. Questions (Rhetorical questions related to the issue)
c. An Anecdote (Story that is related to the issue)
d. Examples (Various related examples)
e. Contrast (Describing the opposite of a given situation, eg. topic: Money, opposite: No Money)
f. Projection (Imagining the future)
Basically, you may use any of the hooks above but make sure the tone of your essay is FORMAL.
Imagine a world without a cleanup crew, rubbish would be piling up high everywhere and diseases
would spread like wildfire to threaten the very existence of mankind.
PART 2
2. Stand
Refer to the question and focus on the key words to develop your stand.
Use these phrases to guide you:
a. In my opinion, I strongly/totally/completely/absolutely believe/feel/agree/disagree that...
b. From my perspective, I ...
c. From my point of view, I ...
d. It is my opinion that...
Your stand can also help you organise your essays in terms of paragraphing.
INTRO
AGREE 1
AGREE 2
DISAGREE 1
DISAGREE 2
CONCLUSION
or
INTRO
AGREE 1 vs DISAGREE 1
AGREE 2 vs DISAGREE 2
AGREE 3 vs DISAGREE 3
AGREE 4 vs DISAGREE 4
CONCLUSION
PART 3
3. Thesis Statement/Outline
For low bands, a simple Outline is enough. Use this template to help you.
or
e. etc.
For higher bands, omit the 'I' and replace with more formal structures.
or
There are many facets to this issue but let us focus on the ____________, ___________ and
_________ of ______________________(issue).
or etc.
There is a question at the end of this section and you may try your hand in writing your own 6 versions
of the introduction... practice makes perfect!!!
"The most important factor which contributes towards a person's success is himself."
Do you agree with the statement ? Justify your stand, giving relevant examples where
appropriate. You should write at least 350 words.
According to an article in Forbes magazine on World's 100 Top Successful people, 90% of people
become successful based on their unique individual characters rather than talent alone. This means
that people who have the same great talent - take singing for example - are both capable of becoming
successful but the one who has the characteristics fans like such as friendly, well-groomed with high
self-esteem and creativity are more likely to achieve superstardom compared to an introverted singer
with low self-confidence and charisma. It is my humble opinion that I absolutely agree with the
statement that the most important factor which contributes towards a person's success is himself. We
can analyse this issue in terms of the human factor which are his innate qualities, his drive for success
and his ability to sustain success.
Is talent enough to achieve success? How is it possible for a set of twins who are both equally good in
singing, yet only one becomes a successful singer while the other does not? Can a person's character
determine his or her ability to achieve success in life? From my point of view, the answer lies in the
fact that it is indeed the person himself which contributes towards his own success. In this essay, I
would like to discuss how a person's innate talent, his drive to succeed and his motivation to stay at
the top are the reasons that differentiate every one of us therefore controlling our success metres.
a few. From my perspective, the most important factor which contributes towards a person's success is
indeed himself. This can be proven in terms of his own talent, his character and motivation to remain
successful.
e. Contrast (Describing the opposite of a given situation, eg. topic: Money, opposite: No Money)
A person born into an affluent family, when taking over the father's business manages to run the
business down the ground. The question then arises as to why the son failed to follow in the footsteps
of his father when everything was handed to him on a silver platter. Simply put, he might have
inherited the same genes but this does not predetermine his individualistic characteristic which in
turn contributes to his ability to succeed or in this case, fail. Similarly, a person born into a poor
family with not much given to him, can scrape the barrels and claw out of his poverty and make a
success of his life unlike his parents or siblings. The sheer determination to succeed gives him the
necessary elixir to lift him out of his fate and create a new and brighter future for himself. Hence it is
my steadfast opinion that the environment does not play the most crucial factor in determining
success, but it is indeed the person himself what contributes to his rise or fall. To discuss this issue, let
us look at the three aspects of success, namely a person's aptitude, attitude and desire to sustain
success.
As mentioned earlier, below is a sample exam question that you can try writing introductions for.
Write at least 3 different versions of the introductions using any of the 6 hooks taught previously.
"The most important thing in life is health." Do you agree with the statement? Justify
your stand, giving relevant examples where appropriate. You should write at least 350
words.
If you really want to challenge yourself, you could use the first essay topic on success and try to
disagree with it or discuss both for and against it (come up with a 6 paragraph organisation). You will
need to figure out what are the external factors that leads one to success.
As usual, write the sample intros out and post in the comments below.. waiting to hear
from both teachers and students! Happy penning!