Writing 1: Argumentative compositions (‘for and against’ compositions)

Exercise 1: Useful tips for argumentatives

• use formal style – do not include colloquial English

• do not use short forms

• write well-developed paragraphs

• use generalisations (It is said/ believed/ considered) but do not use overgeneralisation (e.g. everybody believes that…)

• do not use strong personal expressions (e.g. I think) – use milder language (e.g. In my opinion/ I believe)

• use linking words (e.g. therefore, although, however etc.)

• use sequencing (e.g. firstly, secondly, lastly)

• make reference to other sources (e.g. The government claims that …)

• abandon clichéd introductions (Don’t write: This topic has been important since ancient times.)

• use quotations or paraphrasing of quotations

Exercise 2: Say the sentence in as many ways as possible. Choose appropriate words or expressions that mean the same as the word or expression in bold

1. Killing endangered species is illegal. However, people will not stop hunting them. (nevertheless, firstly, therefore, yet, although)

2. First of all, the government must revise the out-of-date environmental laws, which were written twenty years ago. (to start with, firstly, according to, due to)

3. Furthermore, the city should conduct inspections of zoos. (what is more, at first sight, also, moreover, owing to, apart from that)

4. The greatest advantage of regular exercise is that it leads to a healthier lifestyle. (the main advantage/ the first advantage/ another advantage)

5. In my opinion department stores offer a greater selection of clothes than small boutiques. (in my view, with reference to, to my mind, it seems to me that, I feel very strongly that)

6. According to this report, that brand of sun-cream causes irritation to sensitive skin. (as far as I am concerned, with reference to, because of)

7. On the whole, the university offers a wide range of courses and provides modern facilities. (all in all, to my mind, in conclusion, to sum up, however)

8. Due to the harsh winter, many crops were destroyed. (because of, apparently, owing to, for this reason)

9. As a result many people have lost their jobs. (therefore, in spite of, consequently, in fact, as a consequence)

10. Needless to say, research has proved that eating healthy foods and exercising regularly reduce the risk of heart disease. (obviously, at first sight, so, of course)

Writing: Correcting mistakes

Read the following task.

University lecturers are now able to put their lectures on the Internet for students to read and so the importance of attending face to face lectures has been reduced.

Do you believe the use of the Internet in formal education is a good idea? What future effects will the Internet have on academic study?

Read a sample answer by a student. Find at least 12 mistakes (spelling, grammar, vocabulary)

Over the past several years, computer technology has started to change many aspects of our lives. One of this is our approach to teaching and learning. Many people believe that the Internet will greatly enhance students lives but, according to my opinion, the costs will outweight the benefits.

One future effect of the Internet on academic study is that the level of lecturer/student contact that we used to may be reduced. This might happen simply because students do not need spending so much time on the university campus. The same may be true of lecturers. If they are able to put their lecturers on the Internet, they may choose to do this from home and so be less available for consultation. On my view this would be a great disadvantage. In my home country, tutors usually stress the importance of regular, informal meetings and students’ work could suffer if efforts are not made to maintain these.

Apart from the negative impact that the Internet may have on student/ lecturer relationships, I believe we also have to consider the disadvantages to student health. Studing is by nature a very sedentary activity involving long hours reading books and writing assignments. In addition, these activities are usually done alone. Going to campus offers students change of scenery, a bit of exercise, and an opportunity to meet and socialise with other students. If it is no longer necessary to leave home because lectures are done available on the Internet, then students may suffer physically and mentally because of this change.

Whilst I can appreciate that the Internet will be a valuable source of information for students, I cannot agree that it is the best means of transmitting this information and I think we have to guard against develop an unhealthy dependence on it.

Airbnb: grown-up couch-surfing

Airbnb, winner of the Best Website category in our Travel Awards 2011, lets travellers bag a bargain stay in a private home – but what's it like to be a host?

It was one of those days. I was bored and on the internet. And without paying much attention, I clicked on a sidebar to see what the advert was about. A small act. But it would lead, over the subsequent year, to 68 total strangers arriving at my door, planning to stay the night. In that idle moment, I had signed up to be a host in one of the most successful travel start-ups of all time.

Airbnb (airbnb.com) was still in its infancy. It had been born, again by accident, two years earlier in 2007, when America's Industrial Design Society held its annual conference in San Francisco and the hotels were chock-a-block. Two cash-strapped friends offered to put people up in their loft for a small fee. The response was so positive that they realised they had stumbled on something.

The idea of staying in real homes, and with like-minded people, was bankable. There was a hunger for something more real and rooted – not the anonymity of hotel chains, minibars and uniform foyers. And Airbnb founders Brian Chesky, Nathan Blecharczyk and Joe Gebbia believed that supply would match demand. There must, they reasoned, be other people with a bit of space they'd like to let and an outlook that would regard visitors as half guests, half lodgers.

They were stunningly right. When I became one of their hosts, although Airbnb was still operating from its founders' loft, it had already gone international. Today the website lists apartments, rooms, houses and even tents and boats – from the humble to the palatial – in 186 countries and 16,000 cities. The company's fortunes have burgeoned: last July, it raised $112m of funding and was valued at $1bn. But the site stresses that it is providing more than just a place to lay your head. It holds out a warm invitation – connect with locals, experience life as the natives alone know it, get under the skin of the city and be no longer a mere tourist. Airbnb speaks the language of community. It aspires to put the local into the global.

I knew none of this when I clicked on the link. Nor did any of my acquaintances. On the contrary, my kids thought I was mad and my ex predicted axe murderers and kleptomaniacs. My friends were aghast at the idea of giving a key to people who'd come without any testimonial or guarantee. Indeed, if I had known last summer's horror story– when Airbnb guests totally trashed a house in Oakland, California, stealing passports and credit cards – I would have gone no further. But that was all in the future.

I was relaxed about it all at first. I offered a first-floor room in my Victorian terraced house in trendy Shoreditch, east London, and it was only when the first request came up on my screen that I began to realise what I had done. Two women from Chicago emailed to book a stay. I began to look at my house through strangers' eyes, especially those of Americans – doubtless super-clean to the point of obsession. Would they turn their noses up at my mess of books and pictures? Would they run their fingers along shelves and inspect the backs of the toilets? For days, I sweated, hoovered, washed and wiped. I bought new mugs and better bedding.. Finally, I awaited Elizabeth and Kerry's ring at the doorbell as if I was about to take an exam.

It was not as I had expected. On the doorstep stood a tall youth with the sweet face of a Botticelli angel and a skateboard under one arm. Half hidden behind him, beneath a gargantuan backpack, was a young dark-haired woman. He held out a spare hand – "Kerry …" I was speechless.

If you learn anything from Airbnb, it is to expect the unexpected. Of the regular stream of visitors, hardly any was as I had imagined. The Armenian sexologist was a retiring and graceful woman. The Turkish IT expert was a small moustachioed bundle of anxious energy who kept losing his keys. The marine who had served in Afghanistan was a slight bespectacled character, on an exotic world trip with his girlfriend.

The system couldn't be simpler. The traveller searches the site to see what's on offer in their city of choice, selects one that fits their taste and budget, and emails the host, who can then either accept or refuse. It was over-simple in the early days. Though guests do get reviewed by hosts (and the other way round), first-timers – and most of them were that – come with no form. I accepted people blindly, and quickly became almost blase. But the trauma of Oakland and the trashed flat proved a wake-up call for Airbnb's easy-going young co-founders, who used to say: "Working for Airbnb is like a really fun school where you get paid."

Grown-up couchsurfing needs some safeguards. Guests now need to include their personal details, hosts are asked to check that phone numbers are genuine, and a $50,000 policy has been put in place in case of further disasters.

Watching my guests from the sidelines is awe-inspiring. I am amazed by their energy, their zest. They walk incessantly. They are immensely curious about my life and my area – I am, I realise, part of their adventure – and sometimes it feels like speed dating. And on their side, they tell me about things I would never have known – the life of Russians in Lithuania, the art scene in Slovenia, voter registration campaigns in New York. And they try anything. They do things I had never thought possible. I'd politely poured cold water on one couple's desire to get in to hear a debate in the House of Commons. No, they said, they had just walked in. And they bring with them scores of personal stories – so many that I am gutted not to know how they turn out. I am living in the middle of a flow of tales and am constantly having the denouements snatched away.

Of course there is a downside. I am tired of laundering, ironing, cleaning. I find some people more interesting than others and have sometimes strained to share enthusiasms (Churchill's bunker – hot favourite.) I don't like it when people leave their plates for me to wash up and – once – their condoms to junk. There are times in between when I relish the silence, the ability to wander around if I care to in a state of undress. And there are times when the growth of Airbnb makes me feel my homespun offer is out of place among the holiday lets that are entering the fray. Am I, I wonder, being naive?

But then the riots happened, and in came emails – from ex-Airbnb-ers in Slovenia, Australia, America and Germany – inquiring if I am OK. It's a reminder and an affirmation. There are people out there who want to find corner shops rather than faceless chains, fresh experiences rather than beaten tracks, and real people rather than robots. And that is worth all the laundry in the world.

• Naseem Khan (airbnb.com/rooms/ 45087) charges from £55 a night for a double room, minimum three-night stay

Writing: 20 questions about academic writing

1. Can the adverb ‘in addition’ be used at the beginning of the sentence/ inside the sentence, enclosed by commas?

2. Can you use ‘And’ at the beginning of a sentence in academic writing?

3. How else can you say ‘Another point for them to remember is…’?

4. Which is more frequent in academic writing: ‘Besides its political and racial distribution/ In addition to its political and racial distribution’?

5. Do we use the comma after ‘moreover’ and ‘furthermore’ at the beginning of a sentence? Can these words occur within the sentence?

6. Which is more common for academic writing: ‘for example’ or ‘for instance’?

7. What is the difference between e.g. and i.e.?

8. Which is more typical of academic writing: ‘such as’ or ‘like’?

9. How else can you express the following: ‘A good illustration of this is the lack of certainty that…’

10. Can ‘because’ be used at the beginning of a sentence in academic writing? (Because they would have trained better).

11. What else (apart from ‘because’) can you use in writing to express a cause?

12. Is ‘therefore’ mainly used inside the sentence or at the beginning of a sentence?

13. Think of at least five ways of paraphrasing the sentence: ‘Much of modern sociology lacks a paradigm and consequently fails to qualify as a science.’

14. Correct the following sentences: ‘You get addicted to television like you get addicted to opium.’/ ‘Like Marx said, religion is a falsification of life.’

15. Which preposition do you use? ‘There is a sharp distinction … domestic politics and international politics’.

16. Can the conjunctions ‘while’ and ‘whereas’ be used in the same position to balance contrasting points? For example: ‘Biographies will be included in the present chapter, while catalogues will be treated in the next.’

17. What does the preposition versus mean? What is its abbreviation?

18. Can the expression ‘on the other side’ be used to describe differences between two or more points? (in the same way as ‘on the other hand’)

19. Can the adverb ‘on the other hand’ be used without the preceding ‘on the one hand’?

20. Which is more common for academic writing: ‘similarly’ or ‘in the same way’?

Writing: Argumentative compositions outlining advantages and disadvantages and expressing opinions

Exercise 1: Correct the 10 mistakes in the following argumentative (grammar, spelling, vocabulary). Define the type of argumentative.

Fame: a Blessing or a Curse?

At some point in their lifes most people have daydreamed about the joys of being famous. One must wonder, however, if being famous is an achievement or a curse – like Fred Allan said, “A celebrity is someone who works hard all his life to become known, than wears dark glasses to avoid to be recognised.”

The main advantage to fame is that it tends to go hand on hand with being rich, and despite the cliché that money cannot buy happiness, famous people can at least be miserable in comfort.

With fame also comes adoration, meaning that famous people will always be surround by people who want to be with, and be seen with them. This means that they are welcome whenever they go, surrounded by the best things in life and protected from the bad.

However, there are drawbacks from being famous, the most obvious being a complete lack of privacy. Nowadays celebrities are followed almost everywhere they go by photographers, and their lives are scrutinized in detail by newspapers and magazines. Furthermore, a famous person can never be sure whether people like him for the person he is rather than his name, what can lead to a sense of isolation.

In conclusion, as appealing as fame, wealth and adoration is, it seems that the cost to one’s personal life is just too great.

Exercise 2: Substitute the underlined words/ expressions with synonyms. Define the type of argumentative.

Experiments on animals should be banned. Do you agree?

The subject of animal testing is very controversial. In my opinion, animal testing should not be banned for a number of reasons.

The first reason for supporting animal testing is that many products must be tested on animals to ensure that they are safe for use by humans. For example, diabetics would not be able to inject insulin to control their diabetes had it not been developed by testing on animals.

Moreover, the effects of certain chemicals such as insecticides can be observed on animals and their offspring and results are achieved faster since animals have a shorter life span than humans and the ability to multiply easily.

The final and most important point in favour of animal testing is that it is aimed at finding cures for diseases such as cancer. Most of these tests cannot be done in any other way. Forty years ago polio was a common calamity amongst children. Animal testing led to the discovery of a vaccine and now this disease is very rare in developed countries. While some animals undoubtedly suffer, the end justifies the means.

Contrary to popular belief, laboratory animals are not ill-treated and their suffering is kept to a minimum. As already stated, I am in favour of animal testing provided that it is conducted under strict conditions and that there is no alternative.

Writing: Argumentative (solutions)

Task: Some employers reward members of staff for their exceptional contribution to the company by giving them extra money. This practice can act as an incentive for some but may also have a negative impact on others.

To what extent is this style of management effective? Are there better ways of encouraging employees to work hard?

(Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words)

Fill in the gaps with prepositions:

In times … high unemployment, employees need do very little to encourage their staff to work hard, but when job vacancies are not scarce, they have to find effective ways … rewarding their staff in order to stop them … going elsewhere.

One obvious way of doing this is to offer extra money … employees who are seen to be working exceptionally hard and this is done in companies with a product to sell. For example, real estate agents or department stores can offer a simple commission … all sales.

This style of management favours people who can demonstrate their contribution through sales figures, but does not take into account the work done … people behind the scenes who have little contact with the public. A better approach is for management to offer a bonus … all the staff … the end of the year if the profits are healthy. This, however, does not allow management target individuals who have genuinely worked harder than others.

Another possibility is to identify excellent staff through incentive schemes such … ‘Employee of the Month’ or ‘Worker of the Week’ to make people feel recognised. Such people are usually singled out … the help of clients. Hotels, restaurants and tour operators may also allow staff to accept tips offered by clients who are pleased … service. However, tipping is a highly unreliable source of money and does not favour everyone.

Basically, employees want to be recognised … their contribution – whether through receiving more money or simply some encouraging words. They also need to feel that their contribution … the whole organisation is worthwhile. Good management recognises this need and responds appropriately.