Essay-writing - Purpose and context May Horverak 2014

Competence Aims in the English Subject Curriculum evaluate and use suitable reading and writing strategies adapted for the purpose and type of text write different types of texts with structure and coherence suited to the purpose and situation evaluate different sources and use contents from sources in an independent, critical and verifiable manner http://www.udir.no/kl06/ENG1-03/Hele/?lplang=eng (Coherence = building the text into sensible paragraphs with logical links and using cohesive devices to do so.) May Horverak 2014

Essay What is an essay? formal text, common term in English educational systems Factual text, argumentative text Similar to «article» in Norwegian (not like Norwegian «essay») May Horverak 2014

Essay as a genre? What is the purpose of writing an essay? What is the context in which essays are written? May Horverak 2014

Essay – suggested answers Purpose: To argue a case To convince To elaborate on something Context Educational settings Transferrable skill to all subjects May Horverak 2014

Other genres What other types of written genres or texts can you think of? What other purposes of writing can you think of? What other contexts for writing can you think of? May Horverak 2014

Some suggestions for answers Genres: Factual: applications, CVs, reports, formal letters, informal letters, blogs, newspaper articles, scientific papers Fictional: short stories, novels, poems, plays, fairy tales, other narrative texts Purposes: To inform To entertain Context: Applying for a job Personal communication Different channels on the internet, facebook, blogs etc. (The list is not exhaustive, other answers are possible) May Horverak 2014

Why learn to write ESSAYs? Preparation for exams and higher education Limited to school contexts, but important to succeed within the educational system The structure of essays – useful in all types of subjects – how to structure an argument Internationally acknowledged genre – useful if studying abroad, any kind of subjects, any level May Horverak 2014

Exercises – group work Look at the essay-example on the next slide. Try to find out what the main message of the essay is: What is the author trying to convince the reader of? What are the main arguments? Choose another genre, find a text and compare this with the essay you just read. What is the purpose of this text? How does it differ from the essay? Compare answers in class May Horverak 2014

Essay - Example Immigration or not? Immigrants come for different reasons and from different countries. Should we continue accepting immigrants or not? This text will discuss the issue of immigration and give arguments for helping people who need help. It is important that we help people who are less fortunate than we are. Many asylum seekers need food and clothes. They may come from poor countries like Afghanistan, Somalia and other African countries. Migrating to other countries might be their only hope. Some people immigrate because they have fled from their homes. They may have fled from war, or they may have been persecuted because of political opinions or religious beliefs. These people may have feared torture or execution. On the one hand, it may be a challenge accepting people having different cultures and religious practices. On the other hand, this may enrichen our culture in various ways. Some people migrate to find better job opportunities. We have immigrants doing unskilled work like berry-picking. However, some immigrants come to work here because they have skills we need, like carpenters, dentists and doctors. We may say that some of these people come to get the benefits we have in Norway, but sill, they kind of do us a favour. To sum up, people come to Norway for different reasons, and it is good that we can help people who are less fortunate than we are. People may come because of hunger or war, or they may come to get better jobs. It is important that a rich country like Norway accepts immigrants, and it is important that we continue helping those who need help. May Horverak 2014