LNAT Practice Essays

“The UK should codify its Constitution” Discuss.

The UK is unusual in that it does not have a written constitution, which are a set of fundamental laws
that form the basis of a state. Instead, it is established in common law through precedence, and statues
passed by parliament. Codifying Britain’s constitution would mean writing it into law, but this would
be more detrimental than beneficial.

Britain’s constitution should not be codified because of the unchangeable nature of a written
constitution which will eventually become outdated. This is clearly demonstrated by America’s
constitution, wherein the right to bear arms was codified at a time where weapons were virtually
harmless compared to the capacity of modern firearms. It is partially due to the fact that the
constitution was written centuries ago that gun possession has become an integral part of American
culture throughout most of the nation. Consequently, the part of the US constitution that clearly is in
desperate need of change to present the increasingly frequent mass shootings that plague the nation
has proven unchangeable. Although it may be argued that that it is beneficial to have an unchangeable
set of rules to maintain consistency and harmony, the constant progression that occurs within society
means that if its laws do not change with it, people such as the victims of mass shootings will be the
ones who suffer. This illustrates how codifying a condition means that it is only suitable in the context
of the period in which it is written, and therefore can negatively affect a country when it remains
unchanged over time.

Furthermore, the fact that Britain has an unwritten constitution is beneficial because it allows the law
to be applied more subjectively on a case-by-case basis. While it may be argued that the stronger
foundation provided by a written constitution would be beneficial towards the rule of law by
removing any ambiguity or doubts around it, having the law set in stone prevents the most suitable
legal rules being applied to each specific case, which would negate the fairness with which it is
employed. The fact that precedence is used to establish the UK’s constitution means that the law is
derived from its real life application instead of from a universal standard which may not consider the
intricacies of the rarity of law, indicating that an unmodified constitution is more beneficial to the UK.

In conclusion, the UK should not codify its constitution. An unwritten constitution allows for easier
change in order to suit the developments in society, and means that the law is applied fairly in each
case. Codification may ensure a more concrete legal basis, but setting law in stone can make it
outdated and unsuitable for universal application.
Is social media damaging for teenagers?

Teenagers are notorious for their use of popular social media applications such as Snapchat,
Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. This had led to widespread concern about its effect on young people.
However, while it is true that social media has the potential to damage teenagers, the enjoyment of
staying in touch with friends and outlet for self-expression that can be gained from social media
makes it an overwhelmingly positive addition to teenage life.

One of the major features of social media is its ability to allow users to interact people from all across
the globe. Sharing photos or instant messages enables teenagers to stay in touch with loved ones,
especially those who they are unable to see in real life or who live across the globe. It prevents
damaging feelings of exclusion in situations where a teenager may have to withdraw from their social
lives, such as going on vacation or even being hospitalised for a long period of time. Admittedly, it is
true that the ability to constantly contact people without requiring face-to-face interaction can lead to
negativity such as cyberbullying online, as well as safety issues with older people grooming children
and young adults. However, the constantly improving safeguarding policies that are being
implemented by social media organisations means that this is becoming less and less concerning:
comments can be reported and deleted with just a few taps and it is just as easy to block any user that
may come across as suspicious. This disproves the idea that social media is damaging because it
shows how its capability to help teenagers to maintain their relationships is.

Furthermore, social media benefits teenagers by acting as a space for self-expression. Teens may
display their photography on Instagram, put tutorials for hair or makeup on Snapchat, and share
quotes or inspirational words on Twitter. A common argument against social media is the pressure
that it creates to exhibit a perfect image that gains the most interactions, which can even result in body
image issues that exhibit themselves in self-harm or eating disorders. However, it is extremely easy to
self-regulate the content you are exposed to — unfollowing influencers and celebrities whose job it is
to curate the perfect online image of themselves will greatly reduce the danger of teenagers’ body
images being impacted by their use of social media. The use of social media for self-expression makes
it the opposite of damaging: it is a source of creativity.

In addition to this, the idea that social media is detrimental due to the proportion of time that teenagers
spend using it is also largely untrue. While it is true that the duration of time spent online is
significant, this has simply replaced other recreation uses of time by teenagers. Moreover, the public
awareness of the issue and the many demands of school and social life means that many teenagers will
self-regulate the time they spend on social media. Apple in particular has a feature that allows users to
set limits on the amount of time spent on certain apps, and social media apps have also adopted this.
For example, Instagram allows you to set a daily time limit that notifies the user when they have spent
the selected amount of time on the app. This not only illustrates the falsehood of the time impact of
social media, but shows how it can be beneficial by encouraging time management skills.

In conclusion, social media is not damaging to teenagers but can even be beneficial. While there is a
significant amount of negativity online that may lead to bullying or self-images, the safeguards that
can easily reduce the risk of this means that these qualities are outweighed by the ability of social
media to keep teenagers socially active and express themselves creatively online. The fact that it is not
damaging means that the duration of time spent on social media apps is less of a concern, but this in
itself is greatly reduced by the ease of self-regulation. Overall, social media teaches teenagers
responsibility, not only for ensuring their own online safety, but also for time management - an
essential skill in later life.