Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples
Argumentative or Persuasive essay is an essay written to convince readers of a certain thing or position. It is a form of non-fiction writing the writer uses to develop logical arguments, making use of carefully chosen words and phrases. This is about Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples.
Another word from argumentative essay is debate. This is because you are trying to take side on a particular topic or position, trying to convince your audience to accept your view. Read: “Can I Combine WAEC and NECO for Admission?”
Wrting Argumentative essay (debate) – Format
- Choose a topic
- Take a position for or against: This is the writer’s or debater’s claim or his stance on the overall argument.
- Gather evidence: These are facts that support the debater’s reason or claim.
- Provide counter claim: This is a claim by the opposition that disagrees with your claim. That is, the opposition stance.
- Provide rebuttal evidence: These are evidence that dispute or disagree with the counter claim.
- Conclude your argument, hitting back on your claim or stance.
How to Write Argumentative/ Persuasive Essay or Debate
According to an essay expert, the success criteria for Persuasive or Argumentative writing are as followed:
- I will state my point of view.
- I will use the present tense.
- I will make strong points.
- I will back up my opinions with evidence,
- I will use conjunctions. (therefore, then, although, while, etc).
- I will use strong words.
- I will write a convincing conclusion. Read also: Can I Use WAEC GCE to Study Abroad?
Samples of Argumentative/ Persuasive Essay or Debate
- QUESTION #1
Write for or against the topic, “Children of the literate parents perform better in school than those of illiterate parents”
Good day Mr Moderator,
Panel of judges,
Accurate time keepers,
Co-debaters and
My fellow students.
My name is Njide Mkparu. I stand before you this morning to debate on the topic which says, “Children of the literate parents perform better in school than those of illiterate parents”. I am here to presents my arguments in favour of the motion.
To start with, let us understand what the topic of the debate is all about. The crux of the matter is the academic performance of the children of literate parents and illiterate parents. When we talk about literate parents we mean those parents who can read and write. Those parents who have attended various academic levels are said to be literate. They have been to classrooms trainings with or without certificates. The illiterate parents are those parents who do not pass through formal education. They can neither read nor write.
With this explanation above, I wish to state the following points to back up my stand that “Children of the literate parents perform better in school than those of the illiterate parents.
YOU CANNOT GIVE WHAT YOU DO NOT HAVE: Our parents make us learn many things at home and then send us to school after age of three years. Our home is first education institute where we learn how to behave to others and learn other skills. Since the literate parents have passed through formal education, they understand every rudiment in education. They give their children early assistance which they need in school which will make them to blend once they are enrolled in the school. But the illiterate parents know nothing about early or late education; they cannot give what they do not have.
LITERATE PARENTS ARE SOURCE OF MOTIVATION TO THEIR CHILDREN: The children of literate parents are always challenged academically by their parents’ level of education. The son of a Professor will always strive hard in his class in many subjects to please his father who understands the importance of each subject. But, the illiterate parents know nothing and will not bother even when their children are failing.
LITERATE PARENTS ARE PROACTIVE: I have mentioned that literate parents understand the rudiment of every subject; they take early action when they discover that their children are not doing well. They hire home teacher to augment the effort of the school teacher. But the illiterate parents do not go through their children’s books. They do not know where they are lagging behind. They only act when they hear that their children fail in their examinations.
LITERATE PARENTS CANNOT BE DECEIVED: The children of literate parents understand that they cannot play smart before their parents when they fail academically. They study hard to come out with better performance. But most of the children of illiterate parents play with their academics having in mind to deceive their parents with fake good performances. There have been several cases where a child of an illiterate parent took the last position in the class. He mutilated the position and wrote first position with different colour of biro. He forgot to change the total aggregate and average. He also forgot to amend the teachers comment ‘very poor result, failed’.
He went home and pointed his parents to the first position and they went into jubilation. He continued to trick them until he was caught by a teacher. This can never happen with the literate parents. Even when they see first position, they will look at the average, each subject performance, teachers’ comment and query any funny mutilation.
I can go on and on. The children of literate parents receive assistance from their parents in their academic home works. Some of them go as far as setting target for their children and back it up with mouth watering incentives. They help their children to select the right careers based on the assessments of their past performances. The children of the illiterate parents are left at the mercies of the teachers and peers.
With no doubt, I know I have presented convincing points for the motion, “Children of the literate parents perform better in school than those of illiterate parents.
Thanks.
This is about Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples.
Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples
- QUESTION #2
Write for or against the topic which says that Education is the best legacy a parent can give to a child
Good day Mr Moderator, Panel of judges, accurate time keepers, my co-debaters and my fellow students. My name is ——-. I stand before you this morning to debate on the topic which says, “Education is the best legacy a parent can give to a child”. I am here to argue in favour of the motion.
Education plays a great role in the life of everyone all through the life. Getting proper education is very necessary to get success and happy life just like food is necessary for healthy body. It develops personality of the people, provides physical and mental standard and transforms people’s living status. It promotes the feeling of physical, mental and social well being by providing better life.
Good education is constructive in nature which constructs our future forever. It helps a person to improve his/her status of mind, body and spirit. It provides us lots of confidence by giving us bulk of knowledge in many field. It is a single and vital way to the success as well as personal growth.
Lots of social issues crop up daily in our society just because of the lack of proper education. Social issues like inequality, gender discrimination, religious differences, terrorisms and so many problems are there because of the lack of education in peoples’ life. When you give a child proper education, it helps him or her to maintain the personal and social standards in daily living. One cannot make his/her good image in the society and live prosperous and happy life without getting appropriate education. It makes us able to maintain the healthy surroundings.
The more knowledge we get, we grow and develop more in the life. Being well educated never only means to earn certificates and good salary from the recognized and reputed organisation, companies or institutions however it also means to be a good and social person in the life. It helps us to determine whether something is good or bad for us and other persons related to us. The first purpose of getting good education is being good citizen and then being successful in personal and professional life. We are incomplete without a good education because education makes us right thinker and correct decision maker. In such a competitive world, education has become a necessity for human beings after food, clothe and shelter. It is able to provide solutions to all problems; it promotes good habits and awareness about corruption, terrorism, and other social issues among us.
When a child is the given adequate education, it helps him to be healthy, saves many lives, boosts economic growth, earns money, raises quality crop, promotes peace in the society, eradicates poverty, removes gender discrimination and inequality, promotes women and children rights, brings good governance, removes corruption, makes aware about fundamental rights and so many.
Give a man a fish, he will eat it all and go hungry. Give a man a bag of money, he will finish it one day and become stranded. But giving a child adequate education is like taking him or her to the river and equipping him or her with fishing tools. That child will never lack in life. Education is the most important tool which offers inner and outer strength to a person.
With no doubt, I know I have presented convincing points for the motion. Wealth is better but education is the best legacy a parent can give a child.
Thank you.
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Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples
- QUESTION #3
Write for or against the topic which says; “Students in the rural schools have more advantage than those in urban centres”.
Good morning Mr Moderator, the panel of judges, the accurate time keepers, my co-debaters and fellow students. I stand before you this morning to debate on the topic, “students in the rural schools have more advantage than those in the urban centres”.
Before I declare my stand on this debate topic, I want to draw our attention to the meaning of rural and urban centres. When we talk about rural schools, we mean those schools that are situated in the hinterland. That is, an area with less or no development. A layman in the street will define it as schools that are built in the village. Rural areas are characterized by the absent of infrastructural facilities like; good road network, pipe borne water, electricity, hospital and communication facility.
I stand here this morning to argue against the motion that students in the rural schools have more advantage than those in the urban centres.
Having explained the meaning of rural areas, anyone who is attentive will agree with me that the great differences or gaps between the urban schools and the rural schools have been spelt out. I want to begin to enumerate my point by asking this question; what actual advantages do schools in the rural areas have over the schools in the urban centres?
ADVANTAGE OF SOCIAL AMENITIES: Rural areas are characterized by poor or no infrastructural facilities. The roads to schools in the rural areas are death traps during the raining season because of the poor nature of the road. But the schools in the urban centres are surrounded with social amenities like pipe borne water, electricity, hospitals, good road network, and others. Many students in the rural areas trek for a long distance to their schools every day. This is not the case in the urban areas. Public transports are accessible to everyone at any point in time.
RURAL URBAN MIGRATION: Abled young men and women are leaving rural areas for the urban. They seek for greener pasture and better opportunity. The rural areas are left with the aged and the feeble. It is no fallacy to state that the best brain and skill are leaving the rural areas. They settle in the urban areas and render their services their too. These able migrants are also teachers and school workers. The schools in the urban centres make selections from these teaming migrants and employ the best. Those who do not measure up in the city go back to the rural areas. These left outs are used to fill schools and office positions in the rural areas. No man in his right senses with a great skill will like to remain in the rural areas. Because urban areas have better opportunities to offer, everyone moves out from the rural areas to grab the best.
This is a great advantage to the schools in the urban areas. There are many teachers trooping into the city. The schools in the urban areas select the best. On the other hand, the schools in the rural areas are battling with dearth of teachers. The available ones are unqualified and mediocre.
ABSENT OF MODERN TEACHING AIDS: The schools in the urban centres stand in better advantage in the usage of modern teaching aid like, projector, audio-visual and computers. The schools in the rural areas do not have the capability to install and manage these modern teaching aids. In a case where the government helps in installing them, they still face the challenges of poor power supply and manpower or techniques to man the equipment. When you visit some schools in the rural areas, you see some of these teaching aids covered with a trampoline. Computer system is like a god before some students of the rural schools while most students of the urban centres are gods before these modern educational gadgets.
In summary, saying that the students in the rural schools have more advantage than those in the rural centres is like comparing secondary school certificate with that of the university. The gaps are enormous. With these points enumerated, I hope I have been able to convince you that students in the rural schools do not have any advantage over those in urban centres. Thank you.
This is about Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples.
Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples
- QUESTION #4
Write for or against the topic which says; “Education is not as important as riches”.
Good day Mr Moderator,
Panel of Judges,
Accurate time keepers,
My co-debaters and
Fellow students.
I stand before you today to argue against the motion which says, “Education is not as important as riches.”
Let us begin with the explanation of the two terms; education and riches. Riches are the treasures of the earth like money, fixed assets, investments, stocks, livestock, silver, gold, diamond and other natural resources. Education on the other hand means the acquisition of knowledge and skills through formal learning setting.
It is a big fallacy to state that education is not as important as riches. It is in the saying that where riches take a man, education will and surpass. We can see this in the personality and social class. We see that by wealth man can attend to the first class cadre and by education too, man can also be in the first class cadre.
Today in our society, people with great wealth are popular. People too who had no wealth had become world figures through education. People like; Professor (Mrs.) Ngozi Okonjo Iweala has become fame through education. She addresses the world and everyone listens. The late Chinua Achebe of the Nobel Laureate was a world figure through education. Education made these people what they had become.
The importance of education is inexhaustible. Education is very important to all of us. Our parents make us learn many things at home and then send us to school after age of three years. Our home is first education institute where we learn how to behave to others and acquire other skills. Through school education we learn and develop personality, mental skills, moral and physical powers. Without proper education, one gets lack of all educational benefits in his/her life.
Education is the only key to success in personal and professional life. Education provides us various types of knowledge and skills. It is a continuous, slow and secure process of learning which helps us in obtaining knowledge. It is a continuous process which starts when we take birth and ends when our life ends. We learn to become a good person, learn to live in home, society, community and friend circle.
Attending school and receiving education is extremely vital for every person and necessary for those who want to achieve success. We all take birth in same manner at the same planet however do not get same opportunity to receive such type of formal education which may lead everyone of us towards success because of the lack of money and knowledge of parents. One who gets proper education becomes admired by the members of the family, community and country. Proper education by all brings equality among human beings and removes the feeling of difference.
Education not only makes us able to learn about history, science, math, geography, and other subjects however it makes us smart enough to learn how to live life and handle bad situations. With these points of mine, I know I have been able to convince you that it is a fallacy to state that education is not as important as riches. Education is as important as riches.
Thank You.
This is about Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples.
Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples
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QUESTION #5
Write for or against the topic which says; “Violent Video games should be banned’’.
Good day Mr Moderator,
Panel of Judges,
Accurate time keepers,
My co-debaters and
Fellow students.
I stand before you today to propose for the motion which says, “Violent Video games should be banned”. Violent video games are programmed motion picture which are known to contain violent, dreadful and strong language actions.
I have thought severally the reason for the production of violent video games. The only possible reason could be for the purpose of training in a war scenario. Training on how to fight the enemy, how to lay ambush, how to use and apply weapons. Since war training is for those who go for war like the Military, Video games should be banned.
Violent is the opposite of peace. A child who feeds on violent materials knows nothing about peaceful co-existence. His life is all about survival of the fittest. He is not qualified to become a leader of an organised setting.
To start with, the youths and the children fall into the majority of the consumers of these violent contents. A child who feeds his or her mind with violent contents tends to be violent. He or she sees the world as what he consumes. This is because a man is what he consumes. This claim is further backed by a communication theory called Hypodermic Needle syringe theory. It says that audio visual messages are like a hypodermic syringe. Once injected, it permeates and absorbs all. That is, whatever a child sees on the television screen affects his or her life directly.
For instance, if you take a child to a cinema and expose him or her to violent movies, the child will go home and begin to see his environment unsafe. If that child is sent on an errand at night, he will decline. Some will be bold to confess that the horrible beings they saw at the movie centre will come after them. Some will be disturbed for a longer period and experience nightmares.
The same way, violent movies or video games assimilate into its consumers. They are prone to practice what they see. They are the first to lay hands on weapons and smash peoples’ head in a small fight. At home, they are ready to defend themselves with knives and metals against their siblings.
Violent video games make a child to see his environment as being hostile. He or she learns that resolving issues is only through violence. He speaks violently and walks violently.
Finally, there is no fun in violent video games. The majority of its consumers are the youths and the children. People argue that it is for fun and entertainment. But anyone in his or her right senses knows that there is no entertainment in bloodletting and terrific actions. Rather it brings fear and mould a kind of hardiness in the viewers’ heart. Therefore, violent video games should be banned.
With these points enumerated, I hope I have been able to convince you that there are no gains in violent video games. Therefore, it should be banned. Thank you.
Argumentative Essay – Samples
QUESTION #6
Write for or against the topic which says; “Television is doing more harm than good to our youths’’.
Good day Mr Moderator,
Panel of Judges,
Accurate time keepers,
My co-debaters and
Fellow students.
I stand before you today to debate on the topic which says, “Television is doing more harm than good to our youths”. I am here to argue for the motion.
Television is an electronic device that is used to transmit audio-visual messages. It is a channel of Mass communication. Through the help of electromagnetic wave, messages are disseminated to the mass audience simultaneously. That is, the messages or information disseminated are passed down to millions of heterogeneous (vast) audience at the same time.
Television message has great advantage over other media of communication like Radio and newspapers or books. Newspapers and books appeal to the sense of sight only while Television messages appeal to the sense of sight and hearing. Television belongs to the category of broadcasting media.
Television has helped mankind in various ways like; reaching to a vast audience both in rural and urban at the same time. It is a teaching aid. The use of motion pictures and audio helps the views to understand its message better. This is because what is said is shown and demonstrated. However, Television is doing more harm than good to our youths in the following ways:
USAGES: – Television is used to disseminate informative, educative and entertainment messages. But our youths have turned television to become an entertainment medium only. Entertainment movies and games have taken over the spaces for other educative programme. They do not show interest in the news or commentaries. They go away or avoid the station at that time and tune in to other stations that are airing movies. In many homes, Televisions are being used for game purposes. Day and night, the youths are glued to the television playing violent or entertainment video games.
The place of study: It is no longer a new trend the manner which our youths prefer watching the Television at the detriment of their studies. They wile away their time meant for reading and doing assignment on the Television screen. Many youths used to watch the Television into the late hour of the night and end up going to school late.
Lack of Concentration: Television has ways of distracting the youths. The madness for Zee-world, Telemundo, Soap opera and African magic has gone beyond control. Sports channels have not done better either. It has done more harm than good. It has led our youths into betting games. Some are ready to miss school day for a champion’s league. No wonder many parents place embargos on the Television during the week days and allow it for their children to watch only on Saturdays and Sundays with restrictions to some channels.
Immorality on increase: The Big Brother Naija and The Big Brother Africa television programme is doing more harm to the youths. The programme allows the participants to dress indecently, discuss and practise sexual intercourse openly, and was launched few years ago. It has quenched many virtues in the lives of the youths and awakens desire for sex and quick riches.
Health implication: The eyes clinics are recording great number of youths with serious eye disease. Constant fixing of the eyes on the Television screen causes damages to the retina. If the youth have blur vision at the youthful age, what will the future hold?
Finally, Television has its own advantages like I earlier mentioned but the disadvantages have outweighed its advantages. Looking at the listed points, we can boldly say that television is doing more harm than good to our youths. Thank you.
This is about Argumentative Essay, How to Write, Format and Samples.
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