Mock Test 4.2 | General Reading

READING PASSAGE 2

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 15-27, which are based on Reading Passage 2 below.

Section 1 (Questions 15 – 21)

Study Notes Series: Essay Writing

A.      Essay, whether written as part of a secondary school program or further education course, is designed to test your thinking, writing, and study skills. Creative essays offer you the freedom to demonstrate your abilities to communicate effectively. [Crack IELTS with Rob] Analytical essays, on the other hand, will require you to show that you have researched the topic and drawn on the work of others to come to your conclusion.

B.       The amount of time and effort you devote to writing an essay will depend on how it fits into the overall scheme of assessment and should be in direct proportion to the percentage of marks allotted. If the essay constitutes part of your coursework, the time and effort required will depend on what marks, if any, are going towards your overall mark and grade.

C.       However interesting and well prepared your essay may be, if it does not address the question, you will not receive a good mark. It is therefore essential that you examine the question and understand what is required. [Crack IELTS with Rob] A list of keywords that may appear in an essay question is provided in Appendix 4. Be sure you know what is being asked for and then consider what information is relevant and what is not.

D.       Use a variety of relevant background texts, refer to your lecture notes and heed any advice given by your lecturer. When you collect material, always ask yourself what questions need to be answered and then take good notes in your own words. Begin notes on each source on a new page and do not forget to record details of the author, title of the book, and date of publication. Remember that copying words from another writer’s work without acknowledging the source constitutes the serious crime of plagiarism.

E.       Once you have collected your source material you should then sketch out a plan. [Crack IELTS with Rob] Begin by writing three or four sentences, which provide a summary of the essay. You can amend or add to the plan as you proceed and it provides a useful scaffold for your essay. It also ensures that you cover all the main themes and that your essay focuses on the question. Ideally, you should plan to examine the question from all sides, presenting various views before reaching a conclusion based on the evidence.

F.       The introduction to the essay should explain to the reader how you are going to tackle the question and provide an outline of what will follow. Then move on to the main body of the essay. Refer to your notes and develop two or three logical arguments. Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence, which clearly states the subject to be discussed, and then use the remainder of the paragraph to fill out this opening sentence. A good essay should finish rather than simply stop. [Crack IELTS with Rob] That is to say, the conclusion should provide a statement of your final position, summing up the arguments that your opinions are based upon.

G.       It is important to keep the essay relevant and to provide some examples, quotations, illustrations, diagrams or maps wherever appropriate. However, it is equally important to avoid the temptation to pad your essay with unwanted information: this wastes your time and undermines the relevant parts of the essay. In coursework and assessment essays not written under examination conditions, do not forget to acknowledge your sources in a bibliography.

Section 2 (Questions 22 – 27)

School of Design: Course Guidelines

2.1 Assignments

Coursework assignments will involve the production of artefact (something shaped by human beings rather than by nature) or an investigation of some kind followed by a report. This is to demonstrate the relevance of your study to society today. [Crack IELTS with Rob] If you opt to produce an artefact, (e.g. a working model or piece of machinery) you will also be expected to provide some written explanation of how and why you produced it.

You need to follow these steps:

- Find out precisely what is expected of you. Talk to your tutor and refer to the syllabus document.

- Be aware of what skills and abilities you must demonstrate.

- Always plan a project thoroughly before you begin it but be realistic about how much time you can seriously devote to it.

Choosing a topic

Remember that this course is essentially concerned with the achievement of desired ends. So first identify a real-life problem, then consider it in detail, specify a precise need and then define your design task. [Crack IELTS with Rob] As you plan, wherever possible, consider using new materials, techniques and technology such as computer-aided design (CAD).

There is nothing wrong with talking to knowledgeable people about your project; in fact, this shows initiative. However, the projects is yours so you must do the work yourself.

You will need a fairly flexible plan because sometimes resources, apparatus and consumables may not available when you need them. It is a good idea to work backwards when planning so you know you will meet your final deadline. [Crack IELTS with Rob] Finally, when you plan the various stages of your project give due regard to safety and costs.