TOEFL, iBT, Independent Writing, Should university students be required to attend classes? -rewrite-

Writing Topic

Some educators and students believe that it should be required for university students to go to classes. Other people think that attending classes should be a choice that students have the right to make for themselves. Which opinion do you share? Explain your opinion using specific reasons.

☆ “Should…?” question with hints

The word “should” is used to promote or prevent some results. We say, “You should study harder,” to help raise someone’s test scores or “You shouldn’t eat so much junk food,” trying to improve someone’s diet. For what purposes should university students attend classes? Is attending a class indispensable and essential for acquisition of knowledge and skills?

The second view given in the writing topic provides an idea that university students have the right to decide whether they attend classes or not. Discussing it would be a part of your essay. For example, you can discuss the freer environment of university by making sure that the topic is about a rule at university, not grade school. Unlike compulsory education, many things such as what subject to take are left to each individual at university. Also, unlike high school, which is not really compulsory but many things are decided by the school authority, university allows more freedom and promote self-discipline of students. Who has the authority on class attendance at university, the school, the professor, or the student?

☆ Hints for points

♦Students should be required to attend classes because …

1.    students cannot decide whether they already know what is taught in class or not. Even if the content of the text is familiar, the professor may say something different and provide you with new information or inspire you to reach an insight.

2.    if there is a course in which class attendance is meaningless, there should not be lesson schedules for the course first of all. As long as lessons exist, students are supposed to attend them.

3.    attendance is the first step of the communication between professors and students. People tend to be fond of those whose faces they regularly see.

♦Students should not be required to attend classes because …

1.    class attendance requirement is not always necessary to create or discover something , which students are expected to do at university.

2.    it is the professor who should decide when they should attend classes. Whether full attendance is necessary or not depends on the subject or the professor’s teaching style or plans.

3.    it is waste of time if the content of the class is already familiar. Class contents are set for the average level and those who have higher knowledge but are taking the course because it is the prerequisite for the higher level course should be allowed to be absent for more productive usage of time.

4.    mind works in many ways. Very often, regular attendance, or activities on schedule, is an obstacle of deep thought or creative brain activities. Many people do their real study in their free time and doodle in class.

5.    people tend to lose appetite for things they are forced to study.

☆ Paragraph Development

Compare the following two sample paragraphs

Sample paragraph 1

【Explanation】 Some students would have their learning style disrupted by the rigid rule that does not take secret of creativity into consideration.

【More Specific Detail / Example】 Bill Gates, for example, never minded getting up the next morning when his friends visited him in his dorm room and stayed there all night for discussion. Descartes, a great thinker and mathematician, needed to sleep 10 hours a day. Within a year after he started giving early-hour lessons, he died.

Sample paragraph 2

【Main Idea】 Class attendance requirement would hamper academic pursuit.

【Explanation】 Some students would have their learning style disrupted by the rigid rule that does not take secret of creativity into consideration.

【Detail / Example in General】 Many geniuses had lifestyles different form the norm.

【More Specific Detail / Example】 Young Bill Gates, for example, never minded getting up the next morning when his friends visited him in his dorm room and stayed there all night for discussion. Descartes needed to sleep 10 hours a day. Within a year after he started giving early-hour lessons, he died.

【Follow-up / Counterargument Treatment】Some might argue that those who perform well with a flexible attendance policy have pulled through the regular attendance requirement till their graduation from high school and that they should keep the habit. The truth is that if high school did not require students to be at school by 9 a.m., many students would do better jobs. In fact, a lot of students study at night and sleep in class.

【Conclusion】Every student has his or her own learning style and university should respect it to make the most of the ability of its students.

The second sample is easier to read and thus gives impression that it is better developed mainly because it goes from general to specific, the golden rule of English essay writing.

Note 1) A counterargument is an expected rebuttal. While writing an essay, sometimes you ask yourself, “Well, but what about this case? My point is vulnerable to this case.” Then this “case” is the counterargument. Hitting a counterargument is a chance to grade up your essay because you have found an untied end of a rope (the weak point of your logic). If you can tie it well, you can confirm your point, making your essay more persuasive. Thus, taking up a counterargument when necessary is important to get a higher score. You can deal with a counterargument in an appropriate part of a paragraph or use a whole paragraph to deal with it.

Note 2) It is safe to start a paragraph with a sentence in simple words and elaborate on the idea in the next one: a main idea (topic sentence) in simple terms and a longer sentence that explains the first sentence, and an example in general and a more specific example or two. Of course starting with the main idea with expressions for transition like “Another reason for school requiring students to attend classes is that” or “Last but not the least” is a good idea and these expressions can sometimes be long and complicated, but the core of the main idea should be short and simple so that you can make the point clearly. Very often, we lose our point by being particular about details at the beginning of the paragraph, so putting your idea simply before you go into the detail might be a good strategy, especially when you are taking a test. A main idea (topic sentence) is the pillar of the paragraph to which you attach other parts (details). Making it straight and firm in the beginning would be safe.

Now let’s practice paragraph development.

Choose one of the reasons you have come up with, make it the main idea, and develop it using the following form. As this is a sketch of a part of your real essay, use simple words and sentences for supporting details and focus on the logic and ideas.

Your sample paragraph development

【Main Idea】

【Explanation】

【Detail / Example】

【More Specific Detail / Example】

【Follow-up / Counterargument Treatment】

【Conclusion】