Writing

Questions 1

Reports obtained from the Malaysian Department of Statistics indicate that over the past four decades, the Malaysian economy has been transformed.

     In the 1960s and 1970s there was great dependency in the fields of agriculture, forestry and fisheries. This was the time when the country’s main exports consisted of primary commodities such as rubber, tin and palm oil. Today in the 21^st century the country’s economy is driven by exports of services and manufactured goods. The continued expansion of these two sectors has seen a steady growth in the economy where the GDP for the manufacturing sector increased more than 20% whereas the services sector increased from 45% to 51.8% in 2006.     

     These achievements since independence are most probably due to the government’s macro economic and structural adjustment policies to keep up with the changing market trends. On the other hand, mining and construction have remained rather unchanged over the four decades.

    Similar changing trends can also be observed in the Malaysian employment structure. In the 1970s the agricultural sector provided employment to about 43% of the population but today this sector provides employment to only 12%. On the other hand the manufacturing sector has increased employment from 14% in the 1970s to 29% in 2006.

     A great increase in employment is also seen in the services sector. This sector has witnessed an increase of 16% from 35% in 1976 to 51% in 2006. Currently it is also Malaysia’s largest provider of employment with Government Services providing the lion’s share of employment for Malaysians.

The actors and actresses of KMTK

Arabian night,maybe?

The Dancing Princesses

Bewitched !

Roadside stall event

The Zorro is singing

Cause & Effect

Cause and effect is the relationship between two things when one thing makes something else happen. For example, if we eat too much food and do not exercise, we gain weight. Eating food without exercising is the "cause;" weight gain is the "effect." There may be multiple causes and multiple effects.

Looking for the reason why things happen (cause/effect) is a basic human drive. So, understanding the cause/effect text structure is essential in learning the basic ways the world works. Writers use this text structure to show order, inform, speculate, and change behavior. This text structure uses the process of identifying potential causes of a problem or issue in an orderly way. It is often used to teach social studies and science concepts.

Teaching Strategies that have been found effective in teaching the cause/effect text structure include:

• Teaching signal words that show cause/effect relationships, e.g., because, so, so that, if… then, consequently, thus, since, for, for this reason, as a result of, therefore, due to, this is how, nevertheless, and accordingly.
• Teaching how to look for the different kinds of cause/effect relationships:
• Stated cause/effect relationships: the relationship is stated clearly
• Unstated cause/effect relationships: students must be taught how to "read between the lines"
• Reciprocal cause/effect relationships: effects may be part of a chain. In this kind of structure, one effect goes on to cause a second effect, which may then cause a third effect, etc.

SKIMMING AND SCANNING

SKIMMING

If you are skimming a book, you should read the blurb, the preface and table of contents. The Chapter headings provide a reliable indication of the content of the book. You can turn the pages randomly and check its readability, style and seriousness in terms of treatment. You can focus your attention on subheadings, bold, italicized or underlined text, diagrams, graphs, charts and photographs, if any. If there are chapter summaries, you get the vital points quite easily. You can go to the text to find the details of points in the summary you found interesting. Once you find that the book is worth detailed study, you can go for it. If it is a work of fiction, you can easily form your assessment; you are not looking for the accuracy of facts.

An indirect advantage of skimming is that it improves your general reading speed. It saves your time and betters your learning efficiency. Suppose you are reading a second textbook in a subject, after studying thoroughly one standard textbook. You can afford to do a lot of skimming without any loss. If you practice skimming, you would be exposed to a larger volume of literature than a person who insists on reading it word by word. Research scholars or students pursuing specialized higher studies may have to go through a number of journals regularly. Unless Skimming is practiced, they would not be able to fulfil their obligations.

SCANNING
An illustration can help us to appreciate easily what scanning implies. Suppose you go to a festival crowd with a friend, but miss him in the surging throng. Your eyes travel quickly over the crowd to locate your friend's face, totally ignoring all other faces. Scanning is a similar process in the world of rapid reading.

Difference between Skimming and Scanning
Skimming implies looking for a general overview aimed at identifying the main ideas of a text. In Scanning, you move eyes quickly identifying the main ideas of the text .In scanning, you move your eyes quickly down the page seeking a specific word, phrase, number or idea. Unless you practice scanning, you may waste a lot a time while using reference books. In fact, drill in scanning is an essential part of training in the use of reference books.

Skimming or Scanning requires practice 

Enhance your Reading Skills

Unless you practice the art of moving your eyes vertically or diagonally for skimming and gain experience in it, you may not be able to do it effectively. Skimming should not be applied to anything you read. School or college textbooks, serious documents or material that has to be analysed in depth cannot be skimmed or even read rapidly. Every word may be significant. An analogy would help in this context. You know how to walk slowly, walk fast and run. It does not mean that you always run. Reading, rapid reading and skimming can be considered to have some similarity with the modes of locomotion suggested. Francis Bacon, English lawyer and Philosopher (1561-1626), wrote: "some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed and some few to be chewed and digested".

MUET WRITING PAPER 800/4 QUESTION 2

Generally, in answering academic essays, you need to really focus on a higher level of thinking which befits a Band 6, university style response. If you were to just answer that this electronic communication trend is good and that you can chat with your friends and keep in touch, then you really haven't explored the question in a mature and critical way.

How do you train your mind to be more critical and mature in approaching the question? Well, you need to focus not just on the effects of the concept to yourself and the people around you, but focus on how it will affect society not just in your country but globally.

Anyway, have a read of the sample answer below. Take note that I'm sticking to my writing template, but better students can use a more creative style to show their flair in writing effective compositions.

Topic :The world today is turning more to electronic communications such as the e-mail, Facebook and Short message System (SMS). What is your opinion of this growing trend? Discuss. You should write at least 350 words.
Sample essay :          Everywhere we turn today, the world is crowded with people busy typing SMSes on their Nokias or iPhones or someone is staring unblinkingly at a Facebook or Yahoo page on the computer screen. Whether you like it or not, the age of Information Technology is upon us, and we can either learn new skills and adapt to this new technology, or be forever lost and stuck in the older generation. In my opinion, I am fully convinced that this growing trend is the way of the future, and it brings countless benefits to mankind. In this essay, I will discuss three positive effects of electronic communication, namely its efficiency, enhances communication and creates a borderless world community.
         First and foremost, more and more people are relying on e-mail, Facebook, Short Message System (SMS) and other types of electronic communication tools because of its high efficiency. This is because in today's age of globalisation, we need information at the tip of our fingers. Moreover, with the use of these tools, we can increase the speed of getting the necessary and relevant information within seconds and this will increase our productivity. For example, gone are the days of using 'snail mail' or regular letters using stamps and envelopes and many more examples of 'old' technology because it is simply too slow and inefficient. Therefore, these e-communication tools increases the access to important information which is why the new generation is fully accepting this growing trend.
          Secondly, this form of technology enhances communication among people today. This means that when we use SMS, e-mails and websites like Facebook, we are able to communicate clearly and directly to our target audience. Furthermore, people today find that the message is more important than the form it comes in as an e-mail in short but clear sentences is just as good or even better than a long and formal letter. For instance, an SMS can give clear instructions in just a few words and this communicates what needs to be done quickly and directly. Thus, when the intended message can be spread clearly using short and clear information like in SMSes and emails, communication can be enhanced and there will be less problems of miscommunication.
         Last but not least, e-communication creates a borderless community in the world we live in today. This is due to the fact that the boundaries that separate each country becomes less relevant when information is transferred without limitations. In addition, the world would be a better place because there is a sense of 1-World commitment, respect and tolerance for the global community through efficient and clear e-communication. Take for example, we are able to connect with people on an international basis using Facebook, Friendster, Tagged, Hotmail, Yahoo and others. Hence, these tools will enhance global unity and create a more peaceful world.
          In a nutshell, this growing trend has many positive effects not just to individuals but the global society in terms of efficiency, enhancing communicative skills and shaping a borderless community. In my opinion, I still firmly believe that this latest trend is the best way forward and if we do not catch up, we will be left behind by the tide of development. Our government can encourage the proper usage of electronic communications by increasing communication amenities and broadband accessibility especially in rural areas so that they can enjoy the same facilities as city-folks therefore balancing the development of our country towards achieving Vision 2020.

Sample Essay : Fuel price

Sample MUET essay on fuel price

Question:
The rising fuel price has pushed up the price of other consumer products. How will this affect the society? Give your opinion. You should write at least 350 words.
When tackling this question, one should think in terms of :

1. short term effect,

2. mid term and finally

3. long term.

This question gauges a student's level of critical thinking and prediction.
I would like to stress that it is unnecessary to pepper the entire essay with bombastic words. Better to keep it short and simple.
Note: affect (verb), effect (noun)
Here's a sample answer.

               Money is always an issue in today's era of materialism. Most people need it for basic survival while the lucky few indulge in luxuries without worrying about money. In my opinion, I strongly agree that the rising fuel price has pushed up the price of other consumer products and this will definitely affect the society. In this essay, I would like to touch on the effects this price increase has on society today, namely increasing vice activities, widening the gap between the rich and the poor and affecting the population trend in the long term.

               First and foremost, society will immediately be affected by the rise in fuel prices because consumer products will be more costly and this leads to an increase of vice activities. This is because basic necessities such as rice, flour, sugar and so on will be in great demand and some warehouses will store or hoard the items to further increase the price of the product. Moreover, in the newspapers today, reports of smuggling of these items prove that this vice activity is on the rise. For example, the recent sugar price hike caused a furor among the Malaysian society as it costs more fuel to travel to and from the supermarket and when arriving, most places had run out of stock even though the government had allocated 2kg of sugar to one person. Therefore, the fuel price increase had definitely caused more hardships to society today.

             Secondly, it is undeniable that the rise in fuel prices leads to the widening of the gap between the rich and the poor. This is due to the fact that people are greatly affected by the price of basic necessities such as food and fuel in particular. Furthermore, the rich people will still be able to afford such things but the poor will face greater challenges as the popular saying goes: "The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer." For instance, when money is used to purchase consumer products that are necessary for survival, then less money will be spent on health and dental check-up, educational purposes and others. Thus, it is clear that the fuel price hike will further stress on the differences between the rich and the poor which is such a tragedy.

                Last but not least, in the long term the population trend or demographics of the society will be greatly affected. This means that new families will consciously decide not to have too many children in order to increase their quality of life. In addition, society is now more aware of birth control and family planning so this will greatly reduce the population as most families will have 1 to 5 children instead of more. Take for example, new families with less children will surely spend less on basic necessities like food, clothes, transport and many more. Hence, the demographics of the whole country will be affected and this in turn will reduce our workforce which will affect our country's productivity and prosperity.

                 In short, there are many short term to long term effects of a fuel price increase which includes more crimes like hoarding and smuggling will occur and this leads to the widening of the gap between the rich and the poor as well as a change in the society's demographics. I still strongly believe that the rising fuel price has pushed up the price of other consumer products and this will surely cause a negative impact to society. The government must find a way to stabilise the fuel price at a reasonable rate so that it does not affect the productivity of this country towards achieving the aspirations of the nation for Vision 2020.