Argumentative essay

Al Muslim Senior High School

Academic Year 2023-3024

Name : Kayla Naia Shareefa Shahab

Class : XII Al Alim
Date : 29/09/2023

In an argumentative essay, your job is to make the reader agree with your opinion about a controversial topic.
You have to (1) state your opinion, (2) give reasons to support your opinion, and (3) argue against the opposite
opinion. Overall, you must convince the audience that your side of the
argument is correct. To convince the audience, your essay must be
balanced—it must include your viewpoint and the opposing viewpoint, or
counterargument.
Even though you are arguing only one side of an issue, you must
think about what the other side would say about your opinion. After you
give the counterargument, you must refute it by showing that it is wrong.
If your essay is balanced, a reader is more likely to agree with you.

ORGANIZATION
Like all essays, it begins with an introduction and ends with a conclusion. In between are the body paragraphs
where you must do three things: support your opinion, present the opposing point of view, and tell why that viewpoint
is wrong.

Hook (opening statement to grab readers’ attention)

INTRODUCTION Paragraph 1 Connecting/Background Information
Main idea Statement/Thesis Statement
Support 1 (first reason)
Paragraph 2  Explanation, detail, example
 Explanation, detail, example
Support 2 (second reason)
Paragraph 3  Explanation, detail, example
 Explanation, detail, example
BODY Support 3 (third reason)
Paragraph 4  Explanation, detail, example
 Explanation, detail, example
Opposite Side
Paragraph 5  Counterargument
 Refutation (ATTACK)

Repeat your thesis statement in different words

CONCLUSION Paragraph 6 Suggestion/Opinion/Prediction for the future

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Studying an Argumentative Essay
The following essay argues for the use of school uniforms. Discuss the Preview Questions with the class. Then
read the example essay and answer the questions that follow.

Preview Questions
1. Did you wear a uniform when you went to school?
2. Some people believe that children are too materialistic these days. For example, they may be too interested in
wearing expensive brand name clothes. What is your opinion?
Text 1

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Post-Reading
1. What is the topic of the text?

2. What is the hook in the first paragraph?

3. What is the thesis statement, the writer’s idea/position on the topic?

4. Paragraphs 2, 3, and 4 each give a reason for requiring school uniforms. These reasons can be found in the
topic sentence of each paragraph. What are the reasons?
Paragraph 2 :

Paragraph 3:

Paragraph 4:

5. In Paragraph 4, what supporting information does the writer give to show that uniforms make students equal?

6. Which paragraph presents a counterargument—an argument that is contrary to, or the opposite of,
the writer’s opinion? What is the counterargument?

7. The writer gives a refutation of the counterargument by showing that it is invalid. What is the writer’s
refutation?

8. Write the sentence from the concluding paragraph that restates the thesis.

9. Reread the concluding paragraph. What is the writer’s opinion about this issue?

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Text 2
Should parents educate their children at home?
In Britain some parents are now choosing to educate their children at home. This is often because some
children find it difficult to fit into the school system because they are especially gifted or have problems of some
kind. However, despite the various arguments that have been put forward for home tutoring, this essay will argue
that it is better for a child to be educated at school.
Sending children to school has a number of advantages rather than educating them at home. First of all,
children are isolated at home. At school, on the other hand, they are able to socialise and meet people of different
ages and so become increasingly independent. Children also need their peers to do subjects like sports and drama.
Another important point is that schools have more resources and equipment than can be provided at home such as
libraries, sports equipment and laboratories for science experiments. A final argument is that school can offer a
much wider range of subjects and expertise than parents can provide on their own. Parents would need to have a
whole range of professional knowledge in science subjects like physics and chemistry to English literature and
economics. It is also questionable whether parents could keep a disciplined study atmosphere at home because of
the friendly family atmosphere. In sum, home tuition can affect social independence and fail to provide the correct
resources and professional teaching.
However, there are also certain advantages to educating children at home. Firstly, parents feel that their
children will be able to realise their potential better if they can work at their own rate and concentrate on specific
subjects. For example, there have been cases of children who have gone to university as young as twelve or
thirteen because they are especially gifted and have opted out of the school system. Besides, parents feel that they
will also be able to protect their children from harmful influences they may encounter at school if they keep them
at home. Problems such as truancy and drugs are common and adolescents particularly can be led astray by their
peers. Thus, school can prevent learning from taking place effectively. Nevertheless, one must acknowledge
that not all children are equally self-motivated or capable of self-directed learning. The school system
provides a structured environment with set curriculum and assessments, which can help less motivated or
disciplined students stay on track and acquire a well-rounded education. While p rotecting children from
negative influences is a valid concern, it's also important for them to learn to navigate the real world. Shielding
them too much from external influences may hinder their ability to develop resilience and adapt to challenging
situations
To sum up, it seems that education at school is preferable to learning at home. Although home education aids
concentration and protection, it limits socialising, availability of resources and professional teaching. There may be
particular cases where home tutoring would be advantageous, such as for severely disabled children; however, for the
vast majority of children there are greater benefits from going to school.

1) What is the topic of the text?

2) What is the hook text?

3) What is the thesis statement of the text, the writer’s idea/position on the topic?

4) What is the topic sentence of paragraph 2?

5) What are the supporting ideas of topic sentence in paragraph 2?

6) What is the topic sentence of paragraph 3?

7) What are the supporting ideas of topic sentence in paragraph 3?

8) The writer gives a refutation of the counterargument by showing that it is invalid. What is the writer’s
refutation?

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 9) Write the sentence from the concluding paragraph that restates the thesis!

10) Reread the concluding paragraph. What is the writer’s opinion about this issue?

TOPICS FOR ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS

What is a great topic for an argumentative essay? Obviously, it should be an issue that you feel strongly about,
know something about, and would like to share your opinion about. What is your opinion, why do you feel this way?
Can you think of some reasons why people might disagree with you?

When you choose a topic, consider these two questions:

 Does the topic have two sides?
 How much do you know about the topic?

Look at the list of argumentative topics below. What is your opinion about each topic? Are they two sides of each
topic?

Topics for Argument

Banning cigarettes Banning cell phones in schools
Requiring school uniforms Using animals for medical research

Identifying
ACTIVITY Topics for Argumentative Essays

Read these eight topics. Put a check mark (v) next to the ones that could be good topics for argument essays.
1. The first time I flew in a plane.
2. University education should be free.
3. How and why birds fly south for the winter.
4. High school teachers need a higher salary.
5. Steps needed to get a driver’s license.
6. Legalizing gay marriage.
7. How to become a karate master.

Can you think of two additional topics that would be excellent for an argumentative essay?

1.

2.

TOPICS FOR ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS

After you choose a topic, think about what you know about it. What do you know about your side of the
argument and what do you know about the opposite side of the argument? A good way to organize your ideas is to use
a Pro & Con T-chart. [Pro = in favor of thesis statement, Con = against thesis statement]
If you cannot think of several ideas for one or both sides, you should do more research about that topic or
choose a different topic.

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 Here is a Pro & Con T-Chart for an essay about cell-phones being allowed in classrooms

Thesis statement: Cell phones should not be allowed in university classrooms.

PR CO
O N
1. Cell phones distract students from 1. Cell phones can easily be turned off
learning if they send messages or play games in and kept out of sight.
class. 2. University students are not children and
2. Cell phones might ring in class and cellphones are important in an emergency.
disturb the teacher. 3. Cell phones can be useful tools for education
3. Students could use cell phones to cheat on tests. such a being used as a dictionary or to make memos.

ACTIVITY Brainstorming Supporting Ideas

Read the thesis statements and complete the Pro & Con T-charts. Write three ideas to support each statement.
Then write three ideas against each statement. Finally, choose an original topic and write a thesis statement of
your own. Then fill in the pros and cons for your new topic.

1. Thesis statement: Cigarette should be banned

PRO CO
N
1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

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Name Class

Original Student Writing: Argument Essay

Brainstorming will help you get started with your argumentative essay. In this section, you will choose a topic for
your essay, write your thesis statement, think about several supporting ideas for your opinion, and think about the
counterargument.

ACTIVITY Planning your Essay

Follow the steps below to develop ideas for an argument essay.

1. First, choose any other topic and thesis statement that you want to write about. Remember that the topic
must have more than one point of view to qualify as an argument.
Essay topic:
Thesis statement:

2. Now brainstorm ideas about your topic. Fill out the Pro & Con T-Chart with as many ideas as you can.

PRO CON
1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

4. 4.

5. 5.

3. Look at your Pro & Con T-chart again. Choose three reasons from your PRO list that support your
thesis most effectively and circle them. You now know what your major supporting information will be.

4. Now give attention to opposing points of view. In the box below, choose two counterarguments from your
CON list and write a refutation for each.

Counterargument (from CON list) Refutation (ATTACK - Why is it wrong?)

1.

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 ACTIVITY Planning with an Outline

Try to complete the following outline before you begin writing your essay. You may use more support
sentences if you need. And try to use complete sentences when it is possible.

1. Introduction (Paragraph 1)
A. Hook:

B. Connecting Information:

C. Thesis Statement:

2. Body
A. First Reason (Paragraph 2) topic sentence:

1.
Support

2.
3.
B. Second Reason (Paragraph 3) topic sentence:

1.
Support

2.
3.
C. Third Reason (Paragraph 4) topic sentence:

1.
Support

2.
3.
D. Counterargument (Paragraph 5)
1. Counterargument #1:

Refutation (attack):

2. Conclusion (Paragraph 6)
A. Restated Thesis:

B. Opinion/Suggestion/Prediction:

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