ESSAY WRITING / PRACTICE ON SAMPLE ESSAYS

Student’s members:

TOPIC 1: Education used to be a period of schooling. But now people regard it as a lifelong process. Do
you agree or disagree?   

RESPONSE
The world education usually refers to formal education, starting from primary school to college or
further still. But learning is something we do all the time and at all ages. So in a larger sense, education,
or learning, should last a lifetime.

To really master a subject, one needs to devote his or her whole life to it. In nearly all fields, the
accumulation of knowledge through generations makes it impossible for any individual, even the most
gifted ones, to become an expert in just a few years. Any academic or scholastic achievement requires
years of hard work and persistence. Even if we have no scholastic pursuits and just do an ordinary job,
we still need years to perfect certain skills to excel or even to survive at the workplace because all the
repetitive work is now handled by machines and we are supposed to tackle tasks that require a certain
amount of skill and knowledge.

Besides, science and technology is advancing at breathtaking speed. It is estimated that the total
amount of knowledge doubles every 20 years and the speed is accelerating. Fifty percent of what we
learn at college will become outdated in ten years’ time. Indeed, change is omnipresent. It can
overwhelmed us if we do not learn to adapt. If a man of a century ago were revived today, he would not
be able to perform many of the daily tasks. He has to learn how to use the television set, the computer,
the automated teller machine, and so on.

In fact, lifelong education is desirable to many people. It is not an unavoidable chore but a pleasure. This
kind of education need not be very formal and rigid. We can pick up a book and read a few pages at our
pleasure, we can turn on the computer and watch a live demonstration. It depends on us and can be a
refreshing experience. It is human nature to explore and satisfy our seemingly insatiable curiosity.

To conclude, it is indeed never too old to learn. The changing world and intensifying competition require
it. Besides, mankind is inherently curious and knowledge-hungry.

FEEDBACK
Word count
Introduction General Statement
(Paraphrases)
Specific Statement
Body paragraph 1 Topic Sent.
Supporting Ideas
Supporting Ideas
Vocabulary-to-remember
Good structures
Body paragraph 2 Topic Sent.
Supporting Ideas
Supporting Ideas
 Vocabulary-to-remember
Good structures
Conclusion Opinion
Summary