A company has announced that it wishes to build a large factory near your community.

Discuss the
advantages and disadvantages of this new influence on your community. Do you support or oppose
the factory? Explain your position.

Having a factory being built in my community has its advantages and disadvantages; an advantage of
this is the greater rate of employment in my area. Previously unemployed people can apply for jobs in
this sector and earn a living. Since it’s close to their homes, it reduces the cost of travel and they can
easily work nearby.

However, compared to the advantages, there is a greater number of disadvantages which is why I
oppose this factory. A major disadvantage of this factory is pollution, mainly air and noise pollution. The
exhaust fumes released by the factory will trigger allergic reactions in people with asthma or other lung
diseases. It will exacerbate their condition and cause a deterioration in overall health. Along with this,
the machinery in motion will create a lot of sound which will prove to be a nuisance to the residents of
my community, especially the elderly.

Another problem that would occur would be traffic. Workers will commute to the factory and this will
lead to the roads being packed with vehicles. This will also prove to be another nuisance to the residents
of my community.

In conclusion, the disadvantages of having a factory being built in my community outweighs its
advantages and I oppose it.

I agree with the statement that it is more important for students to understand ideas and concepts than
it is for them to learn facts for multiple reasons.

Learning facts requires rote learning. Facts regarding history includes learning dates and locations which
is unnecessary for the student in the long run. The student will forget these over time and testing this is
not going to help the student overall. A student will also be disinterested in such a class and not pay
attention to the subject matter.

However, if a student understands the idea or concept behind a certain topic the student will rarely ever
forget. A concept is built into the brain where connections are made regarding ideas and this remains
engraved in a student’s memory. Testing concepts also proves more fruitful. Understanding, for example
the idea behind why the traffic light was made or how it was made makes more sense to the student
rather than rote learning as to when it was made or in which century.
A student also is more involved and enjoys the subject if the concept behind a certain topic is explained
rather than asking a student to rote learn hard facts.

In conclusion, I would support the statement that teaching students ideas and concepts is more
important for a student’s education.

In the 21st century, technology has developed at a rapid pace where now the use of smart phones has
become a necessity to function in this world. Smart phones have multiple uses in addition to the
standard text messaging and phone calls. These include games, videos, music, social applications and
much more. However, when it comes to children, I believe that young shouldn’t be allowed to own
smart phones.

Firstly, smart phones involve the use of a LED screen, and long term use of this can damage ones
eyesight especially in a growing child. The rays that are emitted from such screens are harmful and in
the long run have a negative impact on vision. At a young age they would have to wear spectacles and
their eyesight can continue to worsen with use.

Secondly, smartphones provide access to a wide variety of information and this can include violent and
disturbing content for a child to see. If a child accidentally comes across such things or if a parent is not
monitoring their child, such content can have a negative impact on the child. It can be mentally
distressing and be harmful for a child

In addition to this, children can become addicted to playing video games on their smartphones and not
engage in physical activity or outdoor sports. Such children become lazy and lose interest in playing
outdoors and spend hours on their phone. Due to this they are not physically active and are weak in
comparison to other children.

In conclusion, I believe mothers should not allow their children to own a smart phone at a young age.

The lecture casts doubts on the points made in the passage that the first grain-based food was bread.
The lecturer claims that the passage is wrong and it was actually beer that was the first grain-based
food. The lecturer uses many points to support his claims.

The first point the lecturer gives is that to make beer, one doesn’t have to grind wheat. If left exposed to
open air, wheat will be softer, sweeter and more nutritious and would sprout more. This does not
require any human efforts; whereas in making bread wheat would have to be ground first into a paste
and then exposed to air.

Another reason the lecturer gives to cast doubt on the passage is that she says that fermentation begins
as soon as wheat is stored. The wheat is exposed to water and yeast in the air and bubbles form. The
people in those ancient times would have immediately tasted it instead of using this fermented paste to
be baked in fire to form bread.

The lecturer states that unlike in modern times, back in ancient civilization people did not cook their
food in fire to improve their eating. And so the formation of bread through baking in the fire could not
have been the first possible invention.

In conclusion the points made by the lecturer are in contrast with the points made in the passage. The
points made by the lecturer about how the formation of beer requires less work, and lack of use of fire
by people in ancient civilization demonstrate that the points made in the passage are wrong.

I agree with the statement that parents should limit the amount of time that children can use electronic
devices, like phones, tablets, and computers for several reasons.

Firstly, with the rise in technology usage and more people relying on technology to interact; this has
limited people’s ability to interact in real life. Children using this technology from such a young age will
become antisocial and adapt sitting indoors and interacting with their friends only through technology.
They will not be able to enjoy their time with people outdoors and this will reduce their social capability
for the future.
Another reason as to why parents should limit their children’s screen time is because children would not
focus on their studies or homework and prefer playing video games on their tablets and phones. These
video games can be addicting and affect a child’s performance in school.

Lastly, major usage of electronic devices and these screens can affect eye sight. Spending hours and
hours staring at a screen for a child can be detrimental to their vision and health. Studies have reported
a correlation between phone usage and poor vision in children. In this modern age, many at a younger
age have started wearing spectacles. To prevent this from happening, parent’s should limit the screen
time of their children.

In conclusion, I believe parents should limit the usage of electronic devices by their children to prevent
poor eyesight from developing, enhance their social skills and improve their performance in school.

I disagree with the statement that its more important for students to study math and science compared
to grammar and literature. I believe a holistic approach to education should be taken where all areas of
education should be focused on including grammar and literature. I disagree with the statement for
several reasons.

Firstly, in the real world there is a huge job market; jobs are not only limited to subjects such as science
and math. There are doctors and engineers as careers, however theatre, poetry and linguistics are all
other fields of work. To be able to avail the opportunity of working in these fields, students need to have
the knowledge related to grammar and literature. Being taught these subjects, students would
understand the importance of these fields and not miss out on such job opportunities.

Secondly, studying literature imparts creativity in students; this will not only be helpful in literature
related fields but in other fields as well. For example, in business to come up with new ideas and
strategic plans this can be very helpful. Studying various types of poetry and prose can help nurture new
ideas.
Grammar is required in almost every field as well. Most jobs require you to apply using a resume and
giving an interview. Both these things require fluency in grammar and being taught this in school will
prove beneficial to students later in life.

In conclusion schools should focus on literature and grammar as well, a well-rounded student would
have greater job opportunities and perform better in the real world after graduating.

I disagree with the statement that success is defined by the amount of money someone earns. I believe
that success is defined by what a person considers success for him or herself.

For example, some people consider success to be simply be content and happy in their life. Such people
are not living lavish lifestyles or earning millions, yet they consider themselves to be successful in their
lives. Money is not considered the key to happiness.

Some consider their biggest success to be something they have always wanted to achieve. An example
of this can be given by the founder of India Gandhi. He rid India of British rule and colonization and is
still known to date by everyone around the world. He lived a simple lifestyle, yet was known and loved
by everyone around him.

A person can be rich, however, have a terrible family life. They can be isolated and alone and no one at
home that loves them. Such people are usually depressed despite their lifestyle. Many famous
celebrities and singers routinely suicide due to this which dictates that success is not only fame and
fortune.

Success can be defined as success in your career, success in your family life or elsewhere. Success cannot
be simply quantitatively defined by how much money one is earning. I believe success in someone’s life
is when one is content in their life and has achieved their goals.
In the reading passage, several reasons are described as to why American companies will not ecocertify
their wood. The lecture casts doubt on the specific points made in the passage.

In the passage, it is stated that many Americans do not trust the claims made by advertisements. The
professor states Americans do not trust certification made by the companies themselves but do find
internationally recognized independent agencies as reliable. He says that the American population will
react very favorably to the ecocertification.

In addition, the professor disagrees with the passage when it comes to pricing. The passage states that
people prefer buying wood at a lower price and will not buy the expensive eco certified wood. In the
lecture the professor says that having a small difference in prices will not deter the consumer from
buying the higher priced wood and the consumer will look at other factors besides pricing.

Lastly, the professor discusses how American companies should expand into foreign markets and should
not only be confined to selling to the American population. He states that, foreign companies may enter
into the American market as eco-friendly American consumers will seek out such companies to meet
their demands for eco-certified wood.

In conclusion, the professor casts doubt on the points made in the reading passage related to the
demand for eco-certified wood in the American market by discrediting its claims about advertising, high
pricing and the foreign market.

The reading passage discusses the introduction of a new computerized voting system to replace the old
one. The lecture opposes the points made in the reading passage in several ways.
Firstly, the passage states that in the traditional way of collecting and counting votes, there’s a
possibility of human error to occur and votes to be miscounted. This can disrupt the election if the
people contesting in the elections have a close draw. The professor argues saying that computers are
made by humans too and are prone to human error as well, however, computers can miscalculate in
large numbers or even completely lose the data. Since computers don’t have any data base it wont even
be possible to recount the votes.

Secondly, the passage discusses that some people vote for the wrong person that they did not intend to
due to poor eyesight. The ballot paper has a long list of names, and they have to mark in a very small
box. Such people can be prone to error. Instead having a computerized system people will just have to
tap on the screen. The professor debunks this by stating that a computerized system would only be
easier for those that know how to use computers. People that are too old, or people that cannot afford
it wont understand how to use it. In such a situation, people will not even vote or cast the wrong vote
instead.

Lastly, the passage discusses how people use machines and computerized systems on a daily basis in
banks etc. The professor argues that at first these were not as efficient either and had to be improved
upon. However, elections occur only twice a year and it will not be easy to improve the computerized
system at such a fast pace.

In conclusion, computers are not effi

REFUTES

CONTRADICTS

ARGUES