Writing for an Academic Discussion What form of transportation do you believe will be more common in the future?

Question: What form of transportation do you believe will be more common in the future?

 

 

☆Let’s Think

1.        What form of transportation are common currently? What are the advantages of using them?

2.        What environmental challenges will we have in the future?

3.        What social changes will happen in the future?

 

 

☆Hints for Points

Means of transportation that are currently common and their good points

・Cars and EVs allow privacy and freedom.

・Buses are less harmful to the environment than cars because they can carry more people than cars.

・Trains are environmentally friendly because they can transfer many people and things at once. Also, they don’t use fossil fuels directly although the electricity is mainly from thermal power planets.

・Planes allow us to travel overseas.

 

Environmental challenges

・Climate crisis caused by global warming.

・Air, water, and soil pollution will be exacerbated.

 

Social changes

・World population will increase.

・Due to climate change and some other factors like economic issues, populations in cities will increase.

・Nothing will change other than sophistication of technology because of the status quo.

 

 

☆Sample Response Structures

Sample 1 

【Thesis】I share my view with Ryan especially in terms of how society will cope with environmental challenges caused by climate crisis and pollution.  

【Supporting Details】Trains are much more efficient than cars. Trains can carry a large number of people and materials than cars. Also, even though they run on electricity, which is produced mainly by power plants that emit greenhouse gases, they don’t pollute the air like combustion engine cars do. In the same sense, electric buses and coaches will be adopted more. They also fit aging society for obvious reasons.

【Counterargument-treatment】I don’t think that freedom and comfort of cars will be missed when environmental destruction and population growth stress people’s lives even harder than now.

【Conclusion】Thus, public transportation will be used more in the future. (127 words)

 

Sample 2

【Thesis】I am convinced that cars with combustion engine will still be popular in the future because vested interests dominate will keep dominating society.

【Supporting Details】Social structure won’t change much. The movement of environmental protection started half a century ago, and talks about global warming started about 30 years ago. Little has actually been made to protect the earth. Although some goals like raising awareness and making related laws were met, extinction has been exponentially increasing and average temperature has been highest every year over the past several years. Even though technologies to solve problems exist, there is little will to use it. Despite extensive government support for decades, EV diffusion rate is around 20%, for instance.

【Counterargument-treatment】EVs run on electricity, which is produced mainly by burning fossil fuels. Alternative energy sources that are said to be environmentally friendly actually use fossil fuels and emit greenhouse gasses in their making and running. The green industry and the movement are one big lie.

【Conclusion】Unless governments take up a new value and plans based on a value totally different now, value of compassion, neither society nor its transformation systems won’t change. (170 words)

Write your response in 10 minutes. Show each other your responses. Write down questions or suggestions to each other’s response.

 

                                                   DRAFT