How to write a Life Science

argumentative essay for Paper

2
Time allocation – 1 hour

Mrs B. Soobramoney
Planning – 6 marks (not an
afterthought!!!!)
i) Key points present (1 mark)
ii) Key points developed – show how they relate to each other, make
connections between facts (1 mark)
iii) Identify your decision (whether you agree or disagree with the essay
question/statement) (1 mark)
iv) Identify the sources each key point came from (1 mark)
v) Under the heading “Own Information” – write your own key points
(1 mark)
vi) Have a separate heading for counter-argument and list your key
points under this heading. Here you need only have 4 points. (1 mark)
 D
K
Yes I agree that vaping is bad for our KD
S
health. O
C
For argument Counter argument
1. Health problems Key point -no nicotine in vaping liquids
-lung disease (F)
-popcorn lung (D) Key point developed
-moisture in lungs (A) – use short phrases
2. -
-
-
ONLY 4 POINTS NEEDED HERE – NO NEED TO
DEVELOP POINTS

OWN INFO:
-
-
ONLY 2 POINTS REQUIRED HERE
NB! NOT
MORE
THAN
ONE
PAGE
 Health problems
-
-
-

Own info: Peer pressure

Yes vaping
- -
-
is bad for -
- our health -

Counter:
-
-
-
The Essay – 34 marks
i) Introduction – state your opinion here and write an interesting
introduction around it. Your decision must be clear and must have no
‘buts’. Stick to this decision, don’t change your mind half way.
• NB!!! A clear decision earns you 2 marks.
• For example, if asked to state your opinion on stem cells used to grow
replacement organs, you must agree/disagree with it totally – you cannot
say for example, “I agree under certain conditions”. If you do not give
your decision, you will lose marks in the decision category and later on
for construction of a logical argument. You will also lose marks in
planning. You will also lose marks if you change your mind half way
through the essay.
Eg. of introduction
I agree that vaping is bad for human health. Vaping has become the
latest trend among teenagers. Vaping is more appealing than smoking
cigarettes due to the wide variety of different flavours available.
Teenagers think that vaping is safe however there are many health risks
associated with vaping.
ii) Use of knowledge from sources
(8 marks)
• Throughout your essay, you must use the information from the
sources to motivate your decision. You do not necessarily need to use
all of the sources. Some of them may be irrelevant or are biased,
anecdotal or from a non-credible source. Source facts need to be
integrated into the essay (never listed in point form) and need to link
up with each other. Do not reference in the essay (say which source
your fact is coming from – this is done in planning). Never quote
information from the sources directly. Use your own words. Usually
about 12 – 15 source-based facts are sufficient.
• NB!!! A complete essay needs an introduction, at least 3
paragraphs and a conclusion.
iii) Own facts (4 marks)
In addition to source-based information,
you are also required to include 2 – 3 of
your own facts (extra facts – not found in
the sources). This is out of 4 marks. These
facts also need to be integrated into the
essay (i.e. relate these facts back to the
topic).
iv) Content relevance (2 marks)
• You need to point out in the essay why you have used
certain sources and why you have not used others. Possible
reasons for not using certain sources may be that the sources
are biased, anecdotal or from a non-credible source (e.g. a
blog). Possible reasons for using a source may be that the
source came from a Scientific Journal or a publication like
National Geographic. (These are credible sources)
• Don’t repeat yourself or digress off the topic. You will lose
marks if you do this.
Egs. of how to state validity/quality
of sources
• Source X is reliable as it was published in a journal and thus would have been
peer reviewed first
• Cartoon in Source X is not reliable as it is not scientifically based but focused
on humour
• Interview in Source X shows a lot of bias and thus is not reliable
• Source X is a blog, although it is written in a conversational manner, it is
written by a professional with a degree and thus reliable
• Source X is funded by a pharmaceutical company, it may be biased to the
benefit of this pharmaceutical company
• NB! If multiple “little” sources are used in Source A for e.g., then be specific as
to which piece of info/study/stats you are referring to!!!
v) Quality of argument supporting the
decision (8 marks)
• It is extremely important to relate all your facts
back to the topic. Make sure that you are
answering the question/statement posed by the
examiner.
• Strongly support a clear position. Reasoning
should be clear and succinct. Flow should be
logical. Argument should be well integrated and
compelling with regular linkage.
REMEMBER: PEEL
Egs. of Linking words:
• In addition
• Moreover
• Furthermore
• Secondly
vi) Counter-argument (4 marks)
• Your counter-argument also needs to be integrated into your essay. A
counter-argument involves conceding the opposing point of view (in
the same way as a debate is done); you have to acknowledge that
other people may have opinions on the topic, and that these opinions
may have value. You should follow this up by making sure that the
marker knows that you have not changed your mind about your
original decision. It is a good idea to give a few supporting facts and
then use words like ‘however’, ‘but’ or ‘while it can be argued that...’
You need 4 counter-argument facts – if these are integrated into the
essay, you will receive 4 marks.
• When you integrate facts or counter-argument or own facts into the
essay, this means you should relate them back to the topic.
Use the following words

• However
• Although
• The counter argument is…..
• On the other hand
• Contrary to…..
• While it can be argued that….
vii) Presentation (4 marks)
• Your tone must be mature and you must use scientific
language. Don’t use emotive language or hypothetical
questions (you are not a politician, you are a scientist!)
• Make sure that you have used paragraphs. You must have an
interesting introduction and a satisfying conclusion.
• If you have no introduction or conclusion, you automatically
get 1 out of 4. Make sure you put these in.
• PS, if there is new information in your conclusion, it is seen
as an extra paragraph and not as a conclusion, meaning you
still only get 1 out of 4!
viii) Scientific merit (2 marks)
•To get these two marks, you must have
many supporting facts and you must
have related these facts back to the
topic (i.e. integrated them).