MUET ESSAYS

Prison is not a cure for crime. To reduce crime in the long-term, courts should significantly reduce prison sentences and focus on education and community work to help criminals not to re-offend. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the opinion?

Note: The general subject of the question is the best way to reduce crime. It has been given that long prison sentences should be maintained or to reduce it and emphasis on education and community work. Comment on both views. This is a short example. You should write at least 350 words. 4 body paragraphs. There are many different opinions on the best way to reduce crime. The traditional solution is to be hard on criminals and put them in prison for a very long time. An opposing point of view is expressed by people with more modern ideas. They think that education and community work are the long -term solutions to cutting crime. So, who is right - the traditionalist or the modernist? People in favour of reducing prison sentences often argue that prisons should not simply be places of punishment. In traditional prisons, people learn a lot about crime, so when they leave prison, they will commit more crimes. Education, however, gives people the skills to get a job when they leave prison, which means that they will probably not re-offend. Part-time work experience in the community is also very helpful as it is a step back into everyday life in society. People can be in prison, but they can also feel they are doing useful work. On the other hand, some people argue that long prison sentences are right because the punishment should fit the crime. If, for example, someone commits a serious crime such as bank robbery, they should go to prison for a long time. They also believe that reducing prison sentences significantly reduces people's fear of prison and consequently, people will commit more crimes. People will not be frightened of going to a prison which is like a university with learning and work experience opportunity. In conclusion, it is agreeable that education and community work can have an important role in helping reduce crime, but there should also be strict controls on the type of community work prisoners can do. It is important to understand that some people are a real danger to society and need to stay in prison for a very long time. SAMP;LE ESSAYS Stress is a common problem among university students. Discuss. Support your answer with examples. Give your views in not fewer that 350 words. Stress is a normal phenomenon in university life. It is an accepted fact that stress is a common problem for university students of different ages, disciplines of study, and social and economic backgrounds. Furthermore, research has shown that stress has negative impact and effects on an individual‟s health and lifestyle. In view of these situations, it is essential and necessary for university students to know how they can mange stress effectively. In my opinion, there are three ways that can effectively reduce or eliminate

stress. All these ways are inter related and bring about the maximum positive impact to deal with stress effectively. The first way is related to self awareness, self realization and acceptance of stress. These qualities build a foundation that will positively nurture the appropriate mindset and emotional attitude to deal with stress in realistic ways. The student must be aware, realize and accept the fact that he or she is experiencing stress. Such awareness, realization and acceptance are strong contributory factors to alert, motivate and initiate the student to think seriously of the nature, possible causes and potential consequences of the stress he or she is experiencing. The attention given to these issues is a strong catalyst to direct the student to want work out the solutions to deal with the problem or situation or people that generate the stress. Self awareness, self realization and self acceptance of stress will generate in students the need to confront stress with the right, positive, mental and emotional attitude. The second way that can help university students manage stress effectively is to educate and equip themselves with knowledge and relevant information on approaches, methods and techniques on how to identify the symptoms of various types of stress and stress related factors. For example, they can learn more about the causes and effects of stress on health, personality and lifestyle. Being university students, their maturity and mental and emotional intelligence should be their guides in searching for the above mentioned information from authorized sources like health reference books or the Internet. They can also seek advice from professionals namely doctors, lectors and counselors or experienced individuals like parents and elders. The third way relates to a holistic healthy lifestyle that involves constant physical activity, having good eating habits, adopting positive attitudes to problems and nurturing healthy family, social and working relationships. These characteristics effects of stress like anxiety, frustration and health problems of poor concentration, lack of sleep and loss of appetite. In sum, I leave in shot note these three ways can effectively help university students to mange stress mentally, emotionally and holistically. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com

SAMPLE 2 Suggest some measures that you think should be taken to prevent snatch thefts. Support your answer with examples. Give your views in not fewer that 350 words. Recently, there have been a lot of reports in the newspapers on the rising cases of snatch theft. I fully agree with the writer‟s opinions which were published in your editorial column. In order to curb this problem, the public and the police should word together. One of the ways to curb this problem is the public to be more aware of their surroundings. They should always be on the looked for suspicious-looking characters and make a report to the police, if necessary. Often, the police rely on public information to make a head start in solving cases. They must also learn to take better care of themselves. For example, they should make sure that they have a friend with them they have to walk in a deserted area. As far as possible, however, they should avoid dark and deserted areas. One mistake which people make is to wear a lot of jewellery or take along a lot of money when going out. Flashy jewellery will attract the attention of snatch thieves. In addition, they should take better care of their belongings. For example, girls or women with handbags need to ensure that they hold on their handbags properly so that they will not be easily snatched. They should always walk facing oncoming traffic so that they can see what

or who is approaching them. Women are also advised not carry handbags with long straps as these are easy to snatch. The public should also cooperate and be more civic minded in helping others. They should try and help victims of snatch thefts and not just turn a blind eye. In many cases of snatch thefts, not many people came up to help the victims even though there were cries for help. The least they could have done was to try to take down the vehicle registration number of the motorcycle or to help give a description of the perpetrators to the police. If people look out for and each other, snatch thieves will not have such an easy time. Last but not least, the police should come up with preventive measures to curb this problem. They should patrol snatch-theft prone areas such as bus stations and LRT stations. They should also come up with posters to remind the public to be more careful about snatch thieves. Aside from this, they can conduct seminars to educate the public on how to avoid becoming victims of snatch thefts. All in all, in order to curb this growing problem, it is necessary for the public and the police to cooperate with each other. By being more responsible for their own safety and working hand in hand with the police, the public can play a great part in helping to reduce the number of snatch thefts http://ocean1211.blogspot.com SAMPLE 3 Discuss suitable ways of eradicating disciplinary problems among secondary school students. Support your answer with example. You should write at least 350 words. In era of science and technology, disciplinary problems among secondary school students are getting out of hand. It is, therefore, imperative that action be taken by all sectors of society to eradicate these disciplinary problems. The school authorities play an important role in this fight against disciplinary problems in school. All teacher need to be vigilant and on the lookout for any form of indiscipline, even those as minor as absenteeism. They also need to investigate fights no matter how small as these are symptoms of more serious problems. Preventive measures such as strict enforcement of school rules and appropriate punishments are extremely necessary nowadays. Public caning and expulsion of repeat offenders of serious misconduct such as fighting, gangsterism and extortion, are highly recommended. In order for the schools to effectively combat indiscipline, the full support of the Ministry of education is necessary. The ministry could provide special training for heads of schools and discipline teachers. In addition, discipline teachers and counselors should be given teaching loads so that they can better carry out their special responsibilities. Moreover, the ministry could provide financial support to improve facilities in schools to gainfully occupy the students. Parents are also an important group of people who can help eradicate disciplinary problems in secondary schools. Parents have a very important role to play in ensuring the good behavior of their children at all times. They should not leave the responsibility of educating their children solely on the shoulders of school teachers. They should constantly monitor their children‟s whereabouts and make it a point to get to know their children‟s friends. Besides that, parents should be aware of the activities that their children are engaged in. a good way of keeping tabs on the going-on in schools is to play an active role in the parent-teacher association. Finally, the police can also be called upon to combat disciplinary problems. They can be called upon to counsel students through lecture, talks and workshops. The police

need to be allowed to patrol school compounds to make their presence felt. They should also be empowered to arrest students suspected of being involved in serious offences such as gang fights. To conclude, it is obvious that action should be taken by the school authorities, parents, the Ministry of Education and the police in order to eliminate disciplinary problems in secondary schools. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com

SAMPLE 4 SAMPLE 5 Foreign Workers Dilemma in Malaysia Foreign workers – can‟t live with them, cant live without them. . At least that‟s what quite a lot of Malaysians I now feel about them. Deputy Human Resources Minister, Senator Maznah Mazlan said that there are 1.403 million foreigners here holding the Temporary Employment Visit Pass, which accounts for 11.2% of Malaysia‟s total workforce. That‟s actually quite a lot of foreigners for a country with a 2.7% unemployment rate as of last year. But it‟s no use denying the fact that we need them. The fact that we still don‟t have minimum wage means that there are just too many jobs out there that pay too little (from the perspective of Malaysians) and are considered not worth the trouble by Malaysians. As our cost of living continues to rise against stagnating wages, even fresh graduates earning around RM2,000 will sometimes find it hard to keep things afloat living in Kuala Lumpur, let alone having to survive on a construction worker‟s wages. And even now we can see foreign workers in supermarkets and restaurants, jobs that are considered „comfortable‟ and not „heavy‟, but more and more locals are turning away from them simply because in the current economic climate the pay is nowhere near good enough. On the one hand it‟s a shame that we prefer being unemployed rather than at least earning something, even if it means working a hard job with not very good pay. But on the other hand it‟s also understandable why we‟d prefer to hold out and keep looking for something better, considering the economic realities that we have to face in our daily lives. The side effect of being dependent on foreign workers is that it puts a strain on a lot of things – public amenities and services especially. They also compete with the poor for low cost accommodation, and the congested living conditions have also contributed to societal and environmental problems. But blaming things on them will not solve anything. The fact of the matter is, these are men and women trying to make an honest living in a foreign country where their presence is not exactly welcomed with open arms. They had to leave their family behind, live in sometimes abominable and unacceptable conditions, and push themselves to the limit to work as many hours as possible in order to send as much money as they can home to their families. Try doing that and see if you won‟t find yourself in similar social problems should you be in their exact same shoes. It‟s easy to blame the „other‟ when you‟re comfortably on the other side of the fence, but not so easy when you really look and try to empathise with them.

Trying to combat these problems will definitely cost money, and if we‟re being honest with ourselves, it‟s just like dousing a raging fire – it‟s unlikely that we can totally put a stop to it. The only way we can avoid these problems is by not having them here or not being too dependent on foreign workforce. Paying the 3D jobs (dirty, dangerous and difficult) better wages to attract locals to do it is a start. A good minimum wage is a start too. Of course companies employing foreign workers will moan that this is not good business, but that is why we vote and have a government – to think about how best to solve this dilemma, because what‟s a government here for if not to take care of its people? http://kopitiamekonomi.com/kopitiam-blog/the-foreign-worker-dilemma-in-malaysia/ SAMPLE 6 MOBILES EVERYWHERE, EVERYTHING Malaysians are getting more and more attached to their mobile phones. I am no different. I love my smartphone – it‟s with me from the moment I wake up to the time I go to bed. However, like many other Malaysians, I‟m also starting to see real possibilities of the mobile internet platform that my phone brings. It‟s much more than just fun and games. It has progressed from a lifestyle accessory to a living necessity. This little thing in your hand can connect you with more than 7 billion people on the planet if you want it to. Just imagine the possibilities… What if we could apply this potential to improve the lives of fellow Malaysians as we know it? Because I work in a telco, my friends often share with me their ideas for mobile apps that can potentially wipe out traffic woes in the city, improve public transport capabilities, enhance personal safety, and so on. Everyone seems to have a point of view on one topic or another, but no one has any real plan of action, seeing this area to be the exclusive domain of only techy geeks. You no longer need to be a code technician to be involved in the burgeoning global App Economy. Any regular Malaysian with a good idea can make a difference in our local community. If you want to get started immediately, I encourage you to enter our DiGi Challenge for Change (seewww.dgcfc.my) – an exciting avenue for average Malaysians to bring their ideas to life. We created this challenge because we know that solutions to real life issues come from normal people, not just from software engineers. This new innovation model involves creating collaborations between those with ideas and those that can make the good ideas happen. Here are some amazing facts and figures that I‟d like to share with you: It‟s estimated that nearly 46 billion mobile apps were downloaded globally by end 2012; almost double the 25 billion downloads in 2011. In four years (2016), this number is predicted to grow more than six times to 310 billion downloads[1] – more than 30 times the number of people on this planet! The fact that apps first appeared in the world just 5 years ago makes this even more amazing. I reckon we Malaysians are an opinionated and creative bunch, so can you imagine the potential for local apps if we can each contribute some great ideas? By doing so, we would be positively supporting our economy at the same time. I love the MyTaxi App which allows users to book a taxi painlessly and to even track the taxi‟s journey to their location. It is also a win-win for the taxi driver, because it translates into savings in time and fuel as there is less of a need to drive around aimlessly scouring for customers when you have a greater chance of finding a customer closest to your current

location. Apps like Waze also help road users to plan their routes better, avoiding stressinducing traffic congestions along their drive to a certain destination. The way we live today has changed because of the mobile internet. Before, the internet was seen just as an alternative channel or technology to carry out activities like shopping, banking and general commerce. In time, it will be just how we do things every day; no longer science fiction but just our way of life. When we look around us, we see how mobile internet has changed the way services are delivered in Malaysia, not to mention the savings in time and cost that these apps have helped to bring about in the general economy. Nowadays, I no longer stand in long queues at the bank to pay bills, or send letters through the post. All these things now happen at my fingertips, breathing new life into dead time; freeing up precious hours for more productive pursuits. I can‟t wait to see what other useful Malaysian-inspired mobile apps will be uncovered as part of our DiGi Challenge for Change in the next few months. If we can convert every Malaysian armchair critic into a community-driven mobile app advocate, we may just have started the wave of the Great Malaysian App Revolution. http://kopitiamekonomi.com/kopitiam-blog/mobile-everywhere-everything/- by Frank Chan SAMPLE 7 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. : 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. http://kmtkenglishoasis.blogspot.com/2011/03/muet-writing-paper-8004-question-2.html SAMPLE 8 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. 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. http://kmtkenglishoasis.blogspot.com/2011/03/sample-essay-fuel-price.html SAMPLE 9 Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Parents are the best teachers. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer. Parents play the most important role in the bringing up of their children. In my opinion, despite some very good characteristics parents have, they can‟t be the best teachers of their children. First of all, parents are able to have knowledge in some fields, but not all the fields. It is not true that parents know everything in the world. Sometimes, they just have a passing acquaintance of some subjects. They shouldn‟t teach their children something that they don‟t know thoroughly. For example, a very famous physicist can‟t teach his children chemistry though he is very good at physics because his knowledge of chemistry isn‟t enough to teach his children. So that‟s why parents always search for good teachers to teach their children what they need to learn properly. Secondly, parents want to teach their children by their ways/EXAMOLE. They are right, and they are wrong sometimes. For those who aren‟t be educated how to be good teachers, it might be a very big problem. They can be good parents, but hardly good teachers. For instance, it‟s not simply to telling children what they should do and what they shouldn‟t. If the children don‟t follow, their parents might get angry. In that case, they lose their temper, and they just want their children to obey them without any decent explanation for their behavior. Parents should help their children be aware of right and wrong in order that they will know why their parents want them to follow their advice. Thirdly, parents can easily be wrong in educating their children in that they have a lot of emotion. In their eyes, their children are obviously the best ones. They praise their children and encourage them to keep doing things though in other people's eyes, the children should

stop behaving like that. Consequently, parents should be strict and thoughtful in some situations. As children don‟t recognize what is right and wrong, they do anything they like. Parents should always watch on their children and guide them to do the right thing instead of letting them do whatever they want. In brief, parents aren‟t always good teachers though they might be good parents. To be good teachers, it is the way they educate their children, which they should be concerned with rather than the way they love their children. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com/2011/01/essay-3-do-you-agree-or-disagree-with.html SAMPLE 10 You have enough money to purchase either a house or a business. Which would you choose to buy? Give specific reasons to explain your choice. People always have to decide how they will invest their money after they have saved it for a while. Some people invest in a house but some people invest in a business. If I have enough money, I will purchase a house as it has no any disadvantage to me. Purchasing a house means that it belongs to me as my property. I can feel that I do not waste my money. It is just turned into a house. Besides, the house price is rising higher and higher so this is a good investment. If I have my children, they will not have to purchase a new house. They can take one of mine. If I let them find money and afford a house themselves, I can not imagine how the house price will be at that time, and how hard my children will have to work to earn enough money. Moreover, I can either move to the new house after I get bored with the old one. Some people in my country have more than one house. One is in the city near their workplaces. Another is quite far away from the city so they can have their rest there on weekends. In addition, I can let other people rent this house if I do not need to live there that time. By doing this, I can also have income from my house. On the other hand, purchasing a business is full of risk. As I am not good at business, I need to take time in studying the business to purchase one. Even if I have studied well on the business, it is still risky. I would rather not try on my own business although I can make more profit on it. It is obvious for me which choice I will choose after compare two options, to purchase a house or a business. Purchasing a house is surely my last answer. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com SAMPLE 11 Nowadays, food has become easier to prepare. Has this change improved the way people live? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer. 1: With the advancement of technology and science, many instruments and equipments are being introduced in our daily life. One of their benefits is processing of food material faster and easily. this has brought some changes in the people life. Firstly, due to the advent of food preparing machines like mixers, microwave, pressure cookers , making food items have become easier and faster. This help the people who have busy schedules like the proffesionals and research scientists. So people do not have to schedule much time preparing the food and food can be quickly served. So the change has adapted with the fast life of the people. Also, the people who do not have families and live life singly, particularly the bachelor

guys, feel these equipments easier and more convenient . Generally they do not have the knowledge of making food dishes, but with the help of the modern machines and technologies they can easily prepare food. So they now prefer to lead life alone rather than in families and concentrates more in their career. But, the machines and equipments have also made people little bit lazy due to the easiness and fastness. People do not work hard to make food, which have the changed the conventional ives and mothers. Still, the easiness to prepare food have changed to people life positively in respect of development, accceleration, career, and time management . 2. Nowadays, wherever we turn our gaze, we can see different types of food that are easier to prepare. It cannot be doubted that our eating style has encountered a revolutionary change in the last few decades. It is the change in the type of food that has had the greatest influence. For instance, we can buy frozen food in a supermarket and just prepare it in a couple of minutes, whereas before it could have taken us maybe hours to prepare this kind of meal. Not only have the recipes of certain food types have been altered, but also new ones have been created. Examples include yet are not restricted to beef hamburgers, potato chips, ready made available yoghurt, frozen meat and cold drinks. I would accept that this so called improvement changed our lives, but i believe there are some drawbacks as well. It is true that these kinds of food do not involve hard work to prepare, but food that is easy to prepare generally has some artificial ingredients mixed in it that makes it "easy to prepare." If we take time to read the ingredients, we would definitely come across the words like preservatives or artificial flavorings. Many newly emerged types of food have not the essence of a "complete meal" as defined by the nutritionists. To add to the problem, these food types are often served alone. In fact, there are many medical reports warning people from dependingupon such fast meals in their food. Other reports indicate a high potential of malnutrition among those who are "addicted” to the common duet of burgers and colas. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com/2011/01/essay-4-nowadays-food-has-become-easier.html SAMPLE 12 SHOULD WE BEAT CHILDREN? CORPORAL PUNISHMENT Effective when used wisely Many parents use physical punishment to discipline their children. Others prefer to use different methods to reward good behavior or punish misbehavior. This essay will look at some of the arguments for and against physical punishment of children. It is often claimed that physical punishment will damage children in later life. Opponents of corporal punishment claim that the children will grow up to become delinquents or even beat their wives. However, many happily married adults today were slapped when they were younger but have never hit their spouses. Another point often made is that physical punishment teaches children that you can use force to make others do what you want. In fact children brought up well soon learn that force by itself is nothing - it must be associated with right. Finally, some people say that punishing a child by smacking him will damage the relationship between the child and the parents. This is clearly wrong. Children who understand the reasons for rules will be happier than children who are not given clear guidelines. There are definitely concerns about physical punishment. Some parents lose control and can injure children - even breaking bones or causing bruises. Others can use violence

excessively or as the only method of discipline. In this case, the child will be hurt, fearful and anxious and will not learn to distinguish right from wrong. The biggest problem with physical violence is when it is not appropriate to the age of the child. It can be very effective to quickly smack a two-year-old who is screaming. However, it is not effective to beat a 16-year-old who is late for school once again. In conclusion, physical punishment can be a useful method of discipline. However it should be the last choice for parents. If we want to build a world with less violence we must begin at home, and we must teach our children to be responsible. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com/2011/01/essay-3-should-we-beat-children.html SAMPLE 13 Question: Nowadays, food has become easier to prepare. Has this change improved the way people live? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer. 1: With the advancement of technology and science, many instruments and equipments are being introduced in our daily life. One of their benefits is processing of food material faster and easily. this has brought some changes in the people life. Firstly, due to the advent of food preparing machines like mixers, microwave, pressure cookers , making food items have become easier and faster. This help the people who have busy schedules like the proffesionals and research scientists. So people do not have to schedule much time preparing the food and food can be quickly served. So the change has adapted with the fast life of the people. Also, the people who do not have families and live life singly, particularly the bachelor guys, feel these equipments easier and more convenient . Generally they do not have the knowledge of making food dishes, but with the help of the modern machines and technologies they can easily prepare food. So they now prefer to lead life alone rather than in families and concentrates more in their career. But, the machines and equipments have also made people little bit lazy due to the easiness and fastness. People do not work hard to make food, which have the changed the conventional ives and mothers. Still, the easiness to prepare food have changed to people life positively in respect of development, accceleration, career, and time management . 2. Nowadays, wherever we turn our gaze, we can see different types of food that are easier to prepare. It cannot be doubted that our eating style has encountered a revolutionary change in the last few decades. It is the change in the type of food that has had the greatest influence. For instance, we can buy frozen food in a supermarket and just prepare it in a couple of minutes, whereas before it could have taken us maybe hours to prepare this kind of meal. Not only have the recipes of certain food types have been altered, but also new ones have been created. Examples include yet are not restricted to beef hamburgers, potato chips, ready made available yoghurt, frozen meat and cold drinks. I would accept that this so called improvement changed our lives, but i believe there are some drawbacks as well. It is true that these kinds of food do not involve hard work to prepare, but food that is easy to prepare generally has some artificial ingredients mixed in it that makes it "easy to prepare." If we take time to read the ingredients, we would definitely come across the words like preservatives or artificial flavorings. Many newly emerged types of food have not the essence of a "complete meal" as defined by the nutritionists. To add to the problem, these food types are often served alone. In fact, there are many medical reports warning people from dependingupon such fast meals in their food. Other reports indicate a high potential of

malnutrition among those who are "addicted” to the common duet of burgers and colas. Not having to cook has also taken the fun out of cooking. Cooking is an art, but in today's world, this is no more true. People are so busy in their work that they just rely on these simple foods. The invention and production of these foods have made people lazy not only for cooking but also for a well family get together. It was not like former times when families would sit together and eat freshly baked food. With the absence of regular family get together, relationships are likely to be weaker. People think that fast prepared food types dp improve our style of life. This opinion comes especially from bust people, working wives, and younger people. They believe that we have many things in life more important than eating. Time spent on food preparation is considered waste by them. Wives will have more time to care of their families' souls not just stomachs. Family relationships will get stronger. Business men and women will have more time to concentrate on their arrangements. In general, people will have a greater opportunity to take care of their minds and hearts. I agree with that food preparation should take its necessary time and care. Otherwise, the time saved in food preparation can lead to longer times of headache or even of staying in hospitals suffering from malnutrition. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com SAMPLE 14 Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Parents are the best teachers. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer. Parents play the most important role in the bringing up of their children. In my opinion, despite some very good characteristics parents have, they can‟t be the best teachers of their children. First of all, parents are able to have knowledge in some fields, but not all the fields. It is not true that parents know everything in the world. Sometimes, they just have a passing acquaintance of some subjects. They shouldn‟t teach their children something that they don‟t know thoroughly. For example, a very famous physicist can‟t teach his children chemistry though he is very good at physics because his knowledge of chemistry isn‟t enough to teach his children. So that‟s why parents always search for good teachers to teach their children what they need to learn properly. Secondly, parents want to teach their children by their ways/EXAMOLE. They are right, and they are wrong sometimes. For those who aren‟t be educated how to be good teachers, it might be a very big problem. They can be good parents, but hardly good teachers. For instance, it‟s not simply to telling children what they should do and what they shouldn‟t. If the children don‟t follow, their parents might get angry. In that case, they lose their temper, and they just want their children to obey them without any decent explanation for their behavior. Parents should help their children be aware of right and wrong in order that they will know why their parents want them to follow their advice. Thirdly, parents can easily be wrong in educating their children in that they have a lot of emotion. In their eyes, their children are obviously the best ones. They praise their children and encourage them to keep doing things though in other people's eyes, the children should stop behaving like that. Consequently, parents should be strict and thoughtful in some situations. As children don‟t recognize what is right and wrong, they do anything they like. Parents should always watch on their children and guide them to do the right thing instead of letting them do whatever they want.

In brief, parents aren‟t always good teachers though they might be good parents. To be good teachers, it is the way they educate their children, which they should be concerned with rather than the way they love their children. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com 2#: I definitely agree that parents are the perfect teachers. They have superiority over the others due to a few explicit reasons: the connection between parents and children is exceptionally firm; parents teach children filled with desire and benevolence; children spend more time with their own parents than other people. Occasionally, the generation gap impedes the conception of the communication problem or some parents don't care about the bringing up of their own children. Recently, there was a survey in our school. The matter was whether our parents spend a part of their spare time to develop our general knowledge. The results were positive - most of us are satisfied with their concern. Similar surveys were held in other schools and the returns were according to the expectations. One week ago I had a conversation with a friend of mine. Now he is learning in a math School. He told me that he had taken the exam with excellence due to his father, who had been interested in math when a boy. His father explained to him plainly and understandably all mathematical problems. My friend was also obliged to solve definite numbers of problems every day to gain an insight into math gradually. After the exam's results he was very grateful to his father for helping him constantly. Unfortunately, some children haven't got responsible parents. The latter leave their children bring up alone because they are too busy with work or have no will to communicate each other. A social poll was held in my city few days ago. The query was "Why the connection between parents and children is fading away today?" and most of the parents answered that they hadn't got time to pay attention to them despite their will to. Therefore, they must hire a domestic or a tutor to bring up or educate them. These latter people won't live forever with the children in comparison with parents in spite of that they can be experienced teachers. Yesterday my best friend told me that he couldn't comprehend why his parents compel him to tide up his room every day or why whenever he goes out he should be in formal clothes without caring a rucksack. I told him that it is normal there to be a distinction between the generations, but parents are one of our closest friends and what they do they do for us. In spite of these few shortcomings parents always direct their children to the true way and they build the foundation of children's future life by teaching them. I believe that they have the ability to teach them in the most adequate way. SAMPLE 15 "Friends Should Never Hide Anything From Each Other." Do You Agree? No man is an island. Everyone depends on his friends to a certain extent. Ever since man formed a system of verbal communication, all people have been in constant chatter with one another. Relationships are important to man, so much that people may shape their entire lifestyles simply to find favor with their clique or circle of friends. Therefore, much caution must be applied when dealing with our friends, especially in our speech. So then, must we always tell

our friends the whole truth and nothing but the truth or is it sometimes simply none of their business? One thing is clear: finding out that your friend has lied to you always hurts. In cases where lies have been told to hurt you or other parties on purpose, the friendship will never be the same. If the lie caused you great damage, the friendship will not be salvageable. Who would want a treacherous person for a friend? Yet, even when the matter is not of great importance, little lies can lead to the spoiling of relationships. I have a friend who often tells little untruths. Sometimes, he exaggerates circumstances a little, just to impress others, sometimes he tells half-truths to get out of trouble, sometimes, he makes up stories just to entertain his friends. Personally, I just do not feel comfortable with him. You see, I just never know whether he is telling the truth or one more of his little lies. Apart from the question of maintaining credibility, sharing one's problems and joys with a friend can also be helpful as we deal with the problems of daily living. As the saying goes, shared joy is double the joy and shared sorrow is half the sorrow. Sharing the good times can brighten up a friend's day if he feels down. Sharing one's problems and despairs with a friend will bring forth the encouragement and advice we need to hear. Sometimes simply having an ear to hear our heart's cries and knowing that someone understands us will make us feel better. People have been saved from suicide just by having a friend to listen to their troubles. It is clear, then, that some things need to be said to our friends without any twisting of the truth. However, there are times when telling a friend too much can also lead to problems. An all-too-common example of such a time is when one hears rumors. Gossip can start simply because someone thought a rumor was true and shared all her thoughts on the rumor with a friend. The friend, who actually had no real knowledge of the matter, passed all her thoughts and ideas to another friend and so on and so forth. The final result can be a mangled product which could really hurt the parties involved. The thing to do about rumors is not to spread them, even if you have strong opinions, about them. Another noteworthy fact is that sometimes, telling the truth may be worse than saying nothing. If an ugly girl with an inferiority complex were to ask you if she was unattractive, it would be a very bad idea to tell her just how unattractive she was. One must use his discretion in such situations, stressing on her good qualities, of course. Telling the whole truth in this case would destroy her remaining shreds of confidence. In conclusion, I feel that friends, even the closest of friends, need not tell each other everything they know or feel. Some matters, of course, should be discussed with friends, while some others should be hidden. We have to balance our love for truth with the practicalities of the situation. Not being perfect, we are bound to make mistakes, of course. So, one must then be prepared to make up with our friends, apologizing for our verbal blunders and forgiving them for theirs. Well, that's what friendship is really about -- accepting people for what they are, imperfections and all. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com SAMPLE 16

Question: Today the high sales of popular consumer goods reflect the power of advertising and not the real needs of the society in which they are sold. What are your views on this? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge on experience. Nowadays millions of companies produce billions of products and the role of advertising is quite obvious. Ads help consumers to find the goods or services of their needs. However, do our needs grow equally fast as the number of products? Some market analysts insist modern commercials are not merely matchmakers of a product and a consumer, but actively interfere with buyer‟s desires, developing artificial needs. Undoubtedly, advertisement guides people through the market, serves those who do not have time to learn differences between goods. These products are probably the same, but loyalty to a particular brand, formed by a commercial helps make a choice. When a person buys one mobile phone out of 50 models, he thinks he made his choice himself. But that was a commercial who told him about the features of this phone. Nevertheless, ads not only inform us about new goods, but force people to want them. This can be even useful, for example for someone who suffers from back pains and without commercials he would never imagine there are new mattresses which could ease their pains. Unfortunately, promoters now operate our minds more aggressively. Commercials no longer promote products, but lifestyles. They told us to purchase things just because they are fashionable or up to date with the image of successful person. And we buy new cars, gadgets and clothes in order to match this image and not because old ones are no longer usable. Personally I think that high sales of popular commodities are the result of new promotional technologies. The best illustration of that is that everyone now is concerned mostly about how a new mobile phone will reflect his personality, a new shirt – his image, or will a new car make colleagues feel jealous. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com Nowadays, there are lots of advertisements on television or on the streets. Some people think that the advertising boosts the sales of goods and it encourages people to buy things unnecessarily. This arguments may be true. In my country, many advertising companies produce advertisements with famous and popular actors or singers. People, especially youngsters, buy goods that their favourite singer advertise, although they do not really need the products. Also, on the television screen, a product may look gorgeous and good quality. As a result of it, people often buy goods without enough consideration. Consumers may not actually need it but they buy goods impulsively soon after they watch the advertising. Furthermore, as many customers buy a particular product due to its advertising campaign, the other people may be affected by the trend, even if the product is not of the real needs of the society. On the other hand, there are various aspects against these arguments. Moreover, it is people's choice to make a decision to buy goods. Advertising may be not a cause of customers' buying habits. Individuals have their own spending habits. If they have got enough disposable Income then the right to mane a decision‟s given to them. No one actually can fudge whether the goods sold are the real needs of the society or not. In addition, as there should be a limited amount of disposable income consumers are able to spend, people try to allocate their budgets. They cannot be simply swayed by those advertisements. In conclusion, as customers have their own strong opinions and standard of good

quality goods, it‟s better to leave them to make their own decision in buy goods. It‟s fairly difficult to say everyone‟s swayed by advertising and buy good impulsively. However, in sensitive area of businesses such as toy industries, it may be necessary to band advertising to those children as children have not got enough ability to control themselves or to know what they need. http://ocean1211.blogspot.com SAMPLE 17 Many people have a close relationship with their pets. These people treat their birds, cats, or other animals as members of their family. In your opinion, are such relationships good? Why or why not? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer. Sample 1# Being near a pet, with a lot of people, always has positive and negative effects. There are a few people who do not want to have a close relationship with their pets and treat them as members of their family. But in my own experience, if we do that,we gain more than we lose. When we are have a pet, it means we are have a great and loyal friend. Let‟s take one example. After a hard-working day, I often get stressed and tense. But when I come home, my dog wags its tail and barks to welcome me home. It often makes me feel a bit better. I frequently take my dog to the park near my house. That is the time for me to relax, enjoy the fresh air, and escape from my problems in real life. Besides, you can learn a lot from taking care of your pets. Throughout a long time taking care of my dog, I know how hard it is to raise and teach it to do the right things. And it reminds me about my parents, who always take care of me, stand by me when I need them. So, this can also teach us more about responsibility, love, etc. In contrast, having a pet also brings with it a lot of troubles. You need to go to buy food when it is hungry, medicine when it is sick. It really takes you a lot of time to take care of them every day. To sum up, I support the idea of a close relationship with our pets. If we treat them with a kind heart, they will love us back the same way.

2# Everyone has normally had a pet at one point or another in their life. While some people may view their pets as nothing more than a toy that can be discarded at anytime, others believe that their pets are members of their family. I believe that pets are part of the family and should be treated as such because animals foster emotional development and help people's mental health. First, pets encourage emotional development. As society becomes increasingly chaotic and global, people find it difficult to foster relationships. The lack of relationships will result in people feeling lonely at all hours of the day.

However, if someone has a pet, the attention they can give and get in return will ease their feelings of loneliness and isolation. A lack of interaction with other people will cause people to become less emotionally developed. Having a pet helps people not forget feelings of love, affection or other emotions. Pets prevent people from becoming emotionally distant and emotionless, still capable of having a relationship. In addition, pets are good for people's mental health. These days, most people live hectic and chaotic lives, with little time to relax and relieve stress. A constant build up of stress can seriously affect someone's mental health. Knowing that a pet will be waiting at the door, almost smiling and saying welcome home can ease this mental burden. A hungry pet may follow an owner around as soon as they get home; even try opening the food cupboard. These actions will amuse the pet's owners, helping them relax and unwind by the humorous( antics of a pet. For example, as soon as I get home from school my cat likes to sit on my shoulders and cry until I take him for a ride in the car. He enjoys it when I put the window down so he can put his head out, his tongue hanging out like a dog. The looks I get at stop lights when other drivers see a 20 pound cat sitting on my shoulders sticking his head out of the window and purring softly always makes me smile and forget about the stress of exams and studying. In conclusion, many people through out the world do not realize the value of pets and treat them like toys. Pets are very important and should be treated like a member of the family since they foster emotional development and help people maintain balanced mental health. A pets love and antics ensure people are able to relate to the world and don't become emotionally distant.

SAMPLE 18 The Absence Of Sporting Spirit And Its Consequences The world from the dawn of civilization has been enjoying sports. One of the pastimes of the rulers was to arrange for periodical sports. It may be hunting, chariot race , horse riding, wrestling and boxing. Organized sports were popular in Greece, especially Olympia from which modem Olympic games have derived their names. Sports were for fun and frolics . In the middle ages sports were very popular in European countries. Sports are supposed to develop many good qualities. There may be healthy competition and rivalry and never enmity or bitterness. It is and should be for the sports' sake and not for winning the laurels . This is the real sporting spirit. There are rules and regulations in play and games. The sporting spirit implies the following of rules whether one wins or loses. The outcome or the result is not the important thing but how the game is played. A real sportsman takes things easy. Take for instance, an angler sitting by the river side from morning till evening, casting his line into the water. He may not always be lucky to have a catch. Still he whistles back home happy in the evening when the night sets in. It is not the catch that is the point but the angler's attitude. He cannot grow angry and break the fishing rod. Then he has lost the fun. So too in any game the winner or the loser, much more so the latter must be able to take things easy. A real sportsman does not lose his head when he wins nor is he bowled over when he loses. The crux of the problem is whether a sportsman plays the game; in other words if he strictly follows the rules of the game and never adopts foul means to get a win. But unfortunately this point is missing. In certain modem sports, games like horse racing, they dope the horses. The Olympic games where one expects the ideas to prevail seems to be

no exception. There are instances of doping and impersonation and hence vigorous tests are given and the competitors are checked seriously. When the sporting spirit is absent or missing, naturally very unpleasant consequences can ensue. Very ugly scenes are more often the rule in football matches. Referees are manhandled and the crowd become partisan Cricket was a king of games where such behavior was unheard of. But of late, even in cricket unpleasant things do happen; when a player is signaled out by the umpire , he loses his temper and grimaces at the umpire and so on and makes a show of his unpleasantness. Bowlers are being very often warned. All these result from lack of sporting spirit. A good sportsman knows his game rather than the rules of the game and follows them willingly. In whatever position he is placed he plays his part. He cooperates with all the members of the team and works always for the good of the team of which he forms a part. He develops espirit de corps morale) and in and outside the field he shows this sporting spirit. He never plays foul though there are few who turn mercenary and wreck the fortune of their team for the sake of money or other considerations This sportsman's spirit may be developed in ordinary life. In whatever walk of life one finds himself he must be able to do his duty. Material gains apart, he must be able to deliver the goods. He must be reliable and a good companion(同伴) to his comrades. He is faithful and obedient to his superiors . He goes about his duty without gossiping and scandal mongering . Then people call him a good sportsman. Such people are scarce but they are assets wherever they are found. If people do know the value of the sporting spirit why then the rarity or the absence of it ? Simply it is because of selfishness. For personal glory or ownership or name, one grows selfish. The selfishness gets started in early childhood. Jealousy and rivalry and sometimes even lack of security lead to selfishness. Very often children do not want to part with their play things or share them with, others. When this selfishness grows into life, there will be absence of sporting spirit. Such people keep themselves in isolation and they never mix freely with others. Temperamentally they are non-companionable and they are never happy nor add to the happiness of others. So we see that this sporting spirit must be developed even when they are children. Here comes the Cubs, Girl Guides and Boy Scouts movement which develop in their incumbents all the good qualities of a sportsman. Are undergraduates ready for the real world?

This article was written by Kwan Will Sen, a third-year Law student at University of Malaya. “You take the blue pill -- the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill -- you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes." – Morpheus Although fictional, the Matrix world as in the blockbuster movie „The Matrix‟ by the Wachowski Brothers is very relevant in the context of our society today. Undergraduates, especially the ones from local universities are akin to those stuck in the Matrix. Fed with the belief that they will make it in life, armed only with a scroll, they succumb to complacency. Their minds start to rot, intellectual growth is suppressed, and the end result; they hit rock bottom in the „real‟ world. Groping in the dark, they try to find a way out, but to no avail. Thereafter, enlightenment ensues, a harsh realization, that the scroll in their hands is merely that, a scroll.

Since pre-school, our parents and teachers have constantly imparted upon us, that success in life can only be achieved through education. This is true to a certain extent, but apparently, as we grew older, something got lost in translation along the way. Education is no longer interpreted in the normal sense of the word, but solely equated with academic achievement. Our undergraduates are products of a system that hails the number of As and a CGPA of 4.0 as the only testament of success, indicating a bright future ahead. Rote learning seems to be the order of the day, while the holistic approach is now almost obsolete. Such „values‟ to life in university defeats the whole purpose of a tertiary education. Undergraduates strive to get CGPAs of 4.0, and are further exhorted to do so, especially when an ex-Minister proclaimed that it is their duty to get 4.0 in university. As preposterous as this may sound, it is very real. A right-minded person would shun such statements, but for some, it‟s almost like a matter of filial piety. Time spent mugging and memorizing might get you good results, but it does not prepare you for the „real‟ world, where problem solving skills and the ability to think outside the box is valued instead of the text book stuff. Students spend so much time studying, they forget about everything else, except where to find that particular book in the library. Ask them if they know anything at all on current issues, and they respond with a blank look, expecting you to fill them in. The other problem with our undergraduates is that, they seem to idolize pop culture a tad too much. Try organizing a public lecture by Warren Buffet and a concert by some Akademi Fantasia singers on the same day. It is not that hard to predict which event will have a bigger crowd, unfortunately. Then, there is the other group of students, i.e. those who believe that life in university is a bed of roses. There is, of course, nothing wrong with that. Problem is, some tend to stretch it a little too much, so much so that they don‟t even know what they are doing. They believe that just as in the university, everything will be taken care of when they are out there in the „real‟ world, i.e. that their precious scrolls will take them places. No effort whatsoever is made to improve themselves and participating in ridiculous activities is deemed to be the ultimate indicator of what is to expect in the „real‟ world. For instance, a senior while ordering around a junior to do this or that project will justify it by saying “This is to prepare you for working life, especially when facing employers”. And the poor subordinate believing it, bids the senior‟s wishes. We should never send across such wrong messages. Kow tow is not fun, and will never be. Period. Furthermore, why should we continue the negative and perpetuate such myth? Whatever happened to entrepreneurship?

wholesome undergraduate. More importantly, undergraduates must be provided with room and space for holistic growth. Intellectual discussions, debates and forums on any topic at all should be encouraged and the underlying fear that students will rebel, retaliate or even form extremist groups, I would like to state, is unfounded. As adults, they should be respected as such, which means also to be given inter alia, the right to freedom of expression. What is right or wrong is not the point. The focal point is, undergraduates must be allowed to think, to express themselves, and to dissent if they want to. Keep pushing them around, and what do you get? A bunch of pushovers in society. The bottom line is this. Whether or not an undergraduate will ever be ready to face the „real‟ world is essentially a matter of choice. Choose to maintain your status quo, you continue in your temporary bubble in Neverland, waiting for the „real‟ world to come crashing through. Choose to free your mind from the fetters of tradition for tradition‟s sake, and to move out of your comfort zone, you embark on a journey with nothing guaranteed, except unfamiliarity. The latter sounds like a better deal, at least to me. Does School Prepare Us for Life? Posted by Chong

This was an essay that I wrote long time ago during my preparation for examination. I was glad that I finally managed to republish the article online today. I was inspired to post this article after reading the thought-provoking 'Are undergraduates ready for the real world'. The school days are crammed with facts and figures, encompassing various subjects ranging from English to Mathematics. All of these require students to learn, memorise, understand and to be tested. Besides grades and examinations, the school also encompasses a wider curriculum including character moulding, citizenship building and personality development. Indeed, I think the school does prepare us for life. Firstly, the school teaches us self-discipline. We learn to keep to a schedule and to adhere to the timetable. We also learn to appreciate time and to be punctual. Moreover, we are trained to plan and manage time wisely. We also abide by and respect rules and regulations. The disciplined students will grow up to be disciplined adults and they will do well in their future undertakings.

Another issue which bugs a portion of undergraduates today is the inability to converse and write in English. Needless to say, in the era of globalization, the importance of English cannot be over emphasized. One might have plenty of mind boggling ideas, but without the ability to articulate them, such ideas cannot be conveyed to others. While such facts are known to every student, they prefer to converse in their mother tongues. Getting out of the comfort zone is often the toughest nut to crack.

The school also helps to fortify our determination and perseverance. We learn to fulfil the demands of the school. We also learn to meet deadlines and hand in the homework on time. Moreover, we learn to face stress and pressure. In school, students learn to overcome challenges. Students with strength of character will be well-prepared to face the challenges of work and life in the future.

On the other hand, the introduction of a compulsory soft skills course serves only to magnify the deficiencies of our education system. Students have forgotten how to interact, how to communicate, and how to ace that interview, to the extent that such drastic measure has to be taken. While this solves the problem on the surface, it effectively sweeps the bigger chunk of it under the carpet. Undergraduates cannot be expected to learn the art of eloquence and to gain self confidence overnight. It takes more than a course to create the

Co-curricular activities are part and parcel of a student‟s life. They help to mould students‟ character and personality so that students learn to be confident. They help to hone the leadership qualities in the students themselves. Students learn to work together and cooperate with others. They also learn to appreciate good values like esprit de corps. Students learn to contribute positively and to put their best foot forward besides to take success and failure in their stride. We as the students learn to honour values of sportsmanship and fair

play. Through co-curricular activities, students also learn loyalty, commitment and responsibility. When they grow up, they will work well as a team with others and committed in serious work. The school is a micro-society. The everyday social interaction is an excellent preparation for life in the society outside. In school, students have the opportunities to interact with other students from varied background, creed and race. Indirectly, they learn tolerance, acceptance and understanding. The students also have the opportunity to work and to mingle together. This can help to foster an open mind and promote unity. Just mention the word „school‟ and images of grades and examinations come to our mind. Indeed students spend a lot of time and energy preparing and sitting for examinations. Along with that they gather a string of qualifications as well as knowledge and skills. They are crucial since they are the stepping stones and the foundation for the future. They can help students to secure a good job and successful career. In short, school does prepare us for life. It helps to nurture and to build strong character in ourselves. School also prepares students with the necessary „tool‟ so that students can fit into society and contribute positively to the nation and people in future. People commit crimes for selfish reasons. Do you agree? Discuss. People commit crime for selfish reasons. Discuss It is normal for people to describe the world now as a dog eat dog world where we sometimes need to literally hurt or harm another just for our own survival or good. Hence, it is not surprising for us to see an increase in crime and lawlessness in our society as we see people harden themselves to commit bad deeds against their fellow humans. Thus it is not wrong to say that most people commit crimes for selfish reasons as most crimes are caused by selfish desires like greed, lust, anger or jealousy. Many people commit crime for their desire for money. Everyday, we read reports of increase in the number of cases of snatch theft, armed robbery and burglary, embezzlement of funds, and cheating. These criminals selfishly think of their own needs and wants, and in order to get easy money without working hard to earn their own money, they selfishly force or coerce and trick others to part with their hard-earned money and possession. They don‟t care if other people or families are affected or do not have enough, they just focus on themselves, what they want to do with the money they have taken by force. Sometimes, because of their love of money, they might just kill their uncooperative victims. In addition, many people commit heinous crimes out of lust. They just want to satisfy their sexual desires and as a result they might force another unwilling party to engage in sexual acts. It hurts our heart when we read of rape cases that happen, especially when they involve young children or even mentally handicapped victims. These victims‟ whole lives are destroyed, and they are traumatized for a long time, but these rapists have no regard for all that. They were too selfish to think about other people except themselves. Lastly people also commit many other crimes for selfish reasons like anger or jealousy. We read reports of how people commit murder during fights or commit road rage or kill someone just to silent those who know their secret or have something that they covet for. Some even kill their lovers who have a change of heart. These murderers are very selfish because they deny someone else the chance to live just for their own interest, survival or anger. They

don‟t think of the hurt and harm they cause to those who might lose their loved ones because of their actions. Thus, the main driving force behind crimes is indeed selfishness. Although we are imperfect and would definitely seek our own interest, we must not deaden our conscience. If we are so self centered until we are willing to sacrifice others for our own good, we will reap the consequences one day. SAMPLE 1) YEAR END 2008: MUET WRITING 800/4 QUESTION 2 “People are becoming more materialistic. They are concerned with making more money and what money can buy.” What is your opinion on being materialistic? You should write at least 350 words. [60 marks] They say that money makes the world go round. And indeed it does as without money, life would be very difficult as in today‟s society, nothing is free. The side effect however is that people are becoming more materialistic; more concerned with making money and what money can buy. But how much money is enough? Is it ever enough? To some, it will never be enough. In my opinion, I truly believe that this statement is true and that people are becoming more materialistic in nature. In this essay, I will discuss how materialism has affected modern society‟s way of life on an individual level, the country‟s economy as well as our spiritual and moral beliefs. First and foremost, each individual is affected by materialism to some extent in this day and age because hedonism is becoming an uprising trend. This is because today's generation are geared towards making more and more money so that they can enjoy the carefree lifestyle that is so popular these days. Moreover, people now are striving to earn more income in order to afford things that are more expensive and branded. For example, people spend their hard earned money on material objects like genuine LV and Coach handbags, expensive gadgets like Iphones and Tablet pcs and so on which in my opinion is a waste of money when regular goods may prove to be good enough. Therefore, while individuals become more focussed on their pursuit of material wealth and improving their standard of living, they may forget that what matters most in life is quality time spent with family and friends and not the quantity of their material goods. Secondly, when society starts spending in a materialistic manner it will surely have a domino effect on the country‟s economy. This means that the spending power of society will help boost the economy and create more business opportunities for the booming trade. However, when a society overspends, using plastic money or credit cards, or when they take loans they cannot afford to repay, then the country‟s debt margin will be higher. For instance, USA today is facing an economic crisis because banks have approved home loans to people who aspire to own bigger houses than they can actually afford and this is causing the collapse of the country‟s economy there. Thus, while a society‟s spending habits helps our economy to grow, overspending due to materialism will have an adverse effect to the country‟s financial stability. Last but not least, materialism affects our spiritual and moral beliefs. This is due to the fact people who are materialistic may become „amoral‟ whereby they disregard their spiritual and moral upbringing and instead turn to crime to satisfy their materialistic needs. In fact, the crime rate is increasing because criminals these days have developed many ways to gain more money from society. Take for example, there are more reports of snatch thefts, burglaries, kidnapping for ransom, credit card fraud, internet banking hacking and others that are driven by materialistic criminals. Hence, when people lose sight of their spiritual and moral beliefs and believe instead in the greed of materialism, therefore the crime rate is bound to increase.

In a nutshell, materialism is a common agenda in the 21st century as more people are working hard to afford things beyond their reach. While this may spur individuals to work harder to improve their standard of living, overspending due to materialism may cause the downfall of a country‟s economy and their morality. In my opinion, I still firmly believe that materialism has a strong hold on today‟s society; both positive and negative effects. Our government can encourage society to be less frivolous and wasteful in spending by running campaigns such as „Consumer Awareness‟ and „Buy Malaysian Made Products‟ in order to educate our younger generation for the prosperity of our nation. 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. [60 marks] As time goes by, the world is changing rapidly; so are its people and the technology itself. Technology brings about a lot of amendments in people‟s life. It is getting more advanced from day to day especially when it comes to Information Technology or in this case; electronic communications. Back then, mailing was seemingly to be one of the most vital ways of communication especially for the world communication. In contrast, nowadays people are more prone to communicate the easier ways; by staring on their electronic accounts on their computers or through their iPods and sending short messages from their iPhones or Blackberries. Why is it so?In my slight opinion, this growing trend gives a lot of dominances in today‟s life, which are helping people to save their time and money, create borderless communication and make it easy for people to gain prominent information. First and foremost, the world today is turning more to electronic communications like e-mail, Facebook and Short Message System (SMS) and other electronic communications is because they will prevent people from wasting their time and money. How do these work? As we all know, sending a letter to someone will take a lot of processes and will eventually take a long time and waste a lot of money. On the contrary, electronic communications entail only the tip of our fingers so as an electronic device to work with. Then, what is left for us to do is just, typing! Has that not taken a much lesser time and money? For instance, an e-mail only requires us to turn on our laptops, open our accounts on the website and then, you can start write your letter and send them through e-mails. In short, with the very unstable economy nowadays, having these kinds of communications will ease everyone‟s burden especially on their daily expenses and also their valuable time will not be wasted. Secondly, the growing trend of electronic communications is making it possible for a borderless communication which is vital these days. Why is it vital? A lot of things require borderless communication; in education field, businesses and even daily activities, especially when foreigners involved. For example, when trading with foreigners, in order to communicate with each other, they need Skype or Yahoo Messenger as mediums to interact and be able to do the trade at a faster rate as compared to by using „snail mails‟ or regular letters. Skype is the perfect example of an electronic communication which will cut the boundary that has separated each country and make communication between two different countries from around the world possible. In conclusion, it is crucial to have these electronic communications in today‟s age of globalization as they make it easier for people around the world to connect with each other. Last but not least, the dominance of these electronic communications is people could gain prominent information more efficiently than before. As there are lesser borders between countries, the efficiency of getting much more relevant and prominent information is higher. People will have the ability to provide and gain information effectively through Facebook or Twitter accounts. For example, international artists who have planned to do a world concert can inform their fans about it through their Facebook account. Likewise, the fans also can

ask just about anything to their favourite artists regarding the concert. Hence, this explains why people make these electronic communications as a huge trend these days and in order to keep the trend ongoing, each person has the responsibility to adapt with the technology itself. In a nutshell, the growing trend of using electronic communications is inevitably vital in people‟s lives as it gives out a lot of benefits as stated in above paragraphs. So, to avoid ourselves from not getting the chance of keeping up with the changing trends, we have to try our best to adapt ourselves with the rapid changes. I believe that the electronic communication trend is a trend which is very important to be followed as the world is getting more advanced day to day. Man's careless attitude is the main cause for the destruction of the environment. Discuss. You should write at least 350 words. (60 marks) Below is a good sample answer written by Franky, my 2013 lower 6 science student. In this modern civilization, man struggles to survive the high cost of living expenses, which significantly increases with each passing year. This causes them to use any method available that generates income and they start to sideline the importance of preserving nature. This is due to mankind realising the potential of economy that can come from nature. So, I strongly believe the destruction of nature is mostly caused by man's careless attitude whereby they prioritise their greed for money and the development of civilisation. Let us analyse this phenomenon in terms of the country's development, illegal activities of exploiting nature and the job opportunities. First of all, many nations try to achieve the title of the most leading nation in economy or infrastructure. So in order to compete with other countries, most nations try to explore any available land in their country for development such as industries, tourist spots and many other purposes that are related to money. Whenever they see the potential of a certain piece of land, they tend to develop it despite some of these places might still be uninhabited or the home for many wildlife. Sometimes, they would also plod through jungles or level the mountains for road development which severely changes the landscape of nature. As a result, this selfish and careless act will cause the deforestation and global warming. For example, Indonesia has become quite careless with their handling of these problems. In Kalimantan, Indonesia, the forest is being severely deforested by their people for land development. And to make matters worse, they even choose the fastest and cos-saving method of deforestation which is by burning down the trees, the mass release of carbon dioxide from the mass burn down of trees lead to ozone thinning and greenhouse effect. Also, the haze problem is another negative side product. As for the real victims of these acts, they are the neighbouring nations such as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Philippines especially as haze causes many health issues such as lung cancer and breathing problems. Therefore, these careless acts and greed not only cause the destruction of nature but also endanger many lives, both man and animals. Secondly, some people's greed for great fortune and easy life make them become selfish and careless by over-exploiting nature. They willingly do illegal activities such as cutting down trees or animal hunting, seeing the high demand for these materials. It will slowly cause the depopulation of different kinds of flora and fauna. In China, these activities of eating inner organs of animals such as tiger or bear and they even use these animals' body parts for economic purposes such as tiger skin, crocodile skin and elephant teeth and tusks by exporting it to those who pay a high price for it. This has a serious effect on the ecosystem which is the extinction of animals. In Indonesia, trees are being cut down for

making expensive house furniture made of material such as teak wood. In fact, these trees require a long period of 10 to 20 years to mature. Thus, the continuous cutting down of trees will eventually lead to its extinction. These activities are illegal by law and still occurs widely despite many countermeasures that have been taken by the authorised organisations such as World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Somehow, these criminals are able to slip through the organisations's enforcement laws of protecting the wildlife and nature. Plus, most society are careless to even take notice of these problems because they have yet to come to awareness of the dangers that would happen from these illegal acts. If only they had given more attention and cooperation to the authorised organisations, these problems might have been able to be prevented. Lastly, to survive in this modern world, every person needs to be able to make a living for themselves of their family, but many people with low education level cannot get high salary jobs, even university scholars are yet to be certain of getting a proper job after their graduation despite their high level of education. The competition is just like the survival of the fittest among these graduates and people with low qualifications. Therefore with the growing demand for more natural materials such as petroleum gas and minerals from the earth as well as a high demand of smuggled goods, people are willing to pay high prices to have employees do their job of exploiting nature because these jobs are high risk. So people that are desperately in need of jobs are usually tempted with the pay and they would take up the call. This situation had opened up a lot of job opportunities, but they are careless to not realise that these jobs are the main cause of nature's destructtion because they are being pinned down by the pressure of high living cost in this modern world that they have forgotten the importance of preserving nature. In a nutshell, I still strongly believe in my opinion that nature's destruction is mainly caused by man's careless attitude. They strive to make a living in the world so desperately that some eventually deny the truth that it is their own fault for nature's destruction. If no serious and proper actions are being taken immediately by many wildlife and nature preserving organisations or authorised organisations such as WWF, UNESCO and ASEAN to prepare an effective strategy or blueprint to prevent this problem, there probably won't be any jungles or wildlife left in the future and our young generaton will have to live in a polluted world. MUET Writing Answer Below are 4 samples of good essays... Band 4 or 5... Band 6 essays will demonstrate a much better command of linguistic fluency and accuracy as well as show more mature and critical thinking skills. FYI: I'm sticking to my writing template so that the organisation of your essay is clearer and it makes writing 350 words easier. Read up on my template here: http://muetmyway.blogspot.com/2009/08/foolproof-academic-writing-template.html Plus: Fix your grammar in 15 mins: Read my grammar notes n take the grammar test! http://muetmyway.blogspot.com/2011/10/muet-2011-grammar-tips.html SAMPLE 1) YEAR END 2008: MUET WRITING 800/4 QUESTION 2 “People are becoming more materialistic. They are concerned with making more money and what money can buy.” What is your opinion on being materialistic? You should write at least 350 words. [60 marks] They say that money makes the world go round. And indeed it does as without money, life

would be very difficult as in today‟s society, nothing is free. The side effect however is that people are becoming more materialistic; more concerned with making money and what money can buy. But how much money is enough? Is it ever enough? To some, it will never be enough. In my opinion, I truly believe that this statement is true and that people are becoming more materialistic in nature. In this essay, I will discuss how materialism has affected modern society‟s way of life on an individual level, the country‟s economy as well as our spiritual and moral beliefs. First and foremost, each individual is affected by materialism to some extent in this day and age because hedonism is becoming an uprising trend. This is because today's generation are geared towards making more and more money so that they can enjoy the carefree lifestyle that is so popular these days. Moreover, people now are striving to earn more income in order to afford things that are more expensive and branded. For example, people spend their hard earned money on material objects like genuine LV and Coach handbags, expensive gadgets like Iphones and Tablet pcs and so on which in my opinion is a waste of money when regular goods may prove to be good enough. Therefore, while individuals become more focussed on their pursuit of material wealth and improving their standard of living, they may forget that what matters most in life is quality time spent with family and friends and not the quantity of their material goods. Secondly, when society starts spending in a materialistic manner it will surely have a domino effect on the country‟s economy. This means that the spending power of society will help boost the economy and create more business opportunities for the booming trade. However, when a society overspends, using plastic money or credit cards, or when they take loans they cannot afford to repay, then the country‟s debt margin will be higher. For instance, USA today is facing an economic crisis because banks have approved home loans to people who aspire to own bigger houses than they can actually afford and this is causing the collapse of the country‟s economy there. Thus, while a society‟s spending habits helps our economy to grow, overspending due to materialism will have an adverse effect to the country‟s financial stability. Last but not least, materialism affects our spiritual and moral beliefs. This is due to the fact people who are materialistic may become „amoral‟ whereby they disregard their spiritual and moral upbringing and instead turn to crime to satisfy their materialistic needs. In fact, the crime rate is increasing because criminals these days have developed many ways to gain more money from society. Take for example, there are more reports of snatch thefts, burglaries, kidnapping for ransom, credit card fraud, internet banking hacking and others that are driven by materialistic criminals. Hence, when people lose sight of their spiritual and moral beliefs and believe instead in the greed of materialism, therefore the crime rate is bound to increase. In a nutshell, materialism is a common agenda in the 21st century as more people are working hard to afford things beyond their reach. While this may spur individuals to work harder to improve their standard of living, overspending due to materialism may cause the downfall of a country‟s economy and their morality. In my opinion, I still firmly believe that materialism has a strong hold on today‟s society; both positive and negative effects. Our government can encourage society to be less frivolous and wasteful in spending by running campaigns such as „Consumer Awareness‟ and „Buy Malaysian Made Products‟ in order to educate our younger generation for the prosperity of our nation. SAMPLE 2) MID YEAR 2010: MUET WRITING 800/4 QUESTION 2

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. [60 marks] 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 free 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 3) MID YEAR 2011: MUET WRITING 800/4 QUESTION 2 The most valuable thing in life is friendship. Do you agree? Discuss. You should write at least 350 words. [60 marks] It is true that no „man is an island‟ meaning that no one in this world can live alone without friendship. That person would be very socially challenged as he or she would miss the camaraderie and life experiences that come with friendship. However, I completely disagree with the statement that the most valuable thing in life is friendship as there are certainly more important and priceless things in life besides this. In this essay, I will outline how life itself is more valuable than friendship, and elaborate on why family and the individual‟s principles in life are ranked higher. First and foremost, before one can enjoy the beauty of friendship, one must surely value life itself or in other words, we should value our health. This is because, the quality of our life is the single most important criteria in life if we are to live a meaningful and wholesome life. Moreover, without good health, we will be hard pressed to do even the simplest of tasks like feed ourselves or relieve ourselves without the help of doctors, nurses and caregivers. For example, if we are paralysed, lost our sight, hearing or ability to speak or even a simple case of a fever or allergic reactions, then the quality of our life is greatly reduced and no amount of friendship can make us healthy again. Therefore, while friends can stand by us in our time of need, pristine health is still the most valuable asset in our lives. Secondly, we are no one without our family as indeed blood is thicker than water. This means that however you analyse it, friendships will almost always play second fiddle because family always comes first. Furthermore, if we do not value our family above others, then there must be a problem among the family members that has caused their relationship to be strained. For instance, people tend to turn away from family if the family member(s) themselves are the ones to cause them to react negatively such as divorced parents, abusive parents or siblings and so on. Thus, when people consider friendship to be the most valuable thing in life, more often than not they may come from a troubled household. Last but not least, a person‟s principles in life is by far more valuable than friendship alone. This is due to the fact that each person needs to have a code of ethics, quite often prescribed by their individual religions. In addition, this code will guide each person to live their lives according to the good and right principles. Take for example, if an individual has set his principles to do good, then no amount of friendship especially negative influence from friends, can shake his hold on his principles and cause him to commit undesirable deeds like smoking, stealing, raping, murdering and others. Hence, if a person values friendship so much to the point where he is willing to break his principles, then he has done a serious misdeed against himself and will most likely regret his actions later in life. In short, friendship is the rainbow of life as it colours our horizons with invaluable experiences but without good health, a supportive family and strong principles, life becomes empty and meaningless. In my opinion, it is beyond a shadow of a doubt that I still firmly believe that friendship is not the most valuable thing in life. Our government can encourage people to prioritise health, family and principles in life by organising awareness campaigns especially in primary schools where the younger generation should learn about priorities in life because they are the leaders of tomorrow.

SAMPLE 4) MUET WRITING 800/4 QUESTION 2 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. [60 marks] 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.

SAMPLE OF ESSAY FROM ONLINE STUDENT JEFF (TQ FOR ALLOWING ME TO BLOG THIS) ON WHAT NOT TO WRITE IN YOUR ESSAYS. On 9 November 2011 00:53, jeff lai wrote: A university education is better than a college educaton.Give your opinion. After the SPM examination,many students have to decide their future on which education to pursue.Some of my friends chose to enrol in college.I decided to study in matriculation college as a Pre-U qualification to enter university.My reason is university education is better than college education. This is because university has a better education system,more dedicated lecturers and better facilities. First,university education provides a better education system than college does.A SPM certificate is enough for you to enrol in a college but to enter a university you need a Pre-U qualification such as STPM or A-level.This simply shows that it is harder to study in university as you need some qualifications in which the college does not demand.Besides,the grading system in university is stricter than that of college.So,students have to work harder to get a good result.On the other hand,most college change their grading system,according to the overall result of their students.Moreover,the the syllabus in university is well designed.Besides giving knowledge,it helps to develop the social skills of students.For example,Students have to do survey on public about topics related to their study.This ensures that the graduates can have critical thinking skill and communication skill. Universities usually hire more experienced lecturers with better knowledge.According to a research, these lectures possess a Master or PhD degree and some even graduated overseas.Thus,they have higher level of of knowledge which benefits the students.Besides,Most of them have years of teaching experience and so they know how to guide their students,developing their skills and exploring their potential.For instance,a Physics lecturer does not only talk on theories.Instead,he teaches the students to analyse a problem logically.They are also more caring and responsible to their students.These qualities are hard to seen in college lecturers,who are mostly bachelor degree holder and work just for money. (very serious generalisation here!) Last but not least,university usually has better facilities,for example,the state-of-art computers.Unlike those college such as Inti College which are run by private companies,university has a better management.Thus every single thing in the university,including the infrastructure is planned and developed well.This is beneficial to students.For instance,university with advanced laboratories is beneficial to students as they can learn science better by being explored to the real situation while conducting experiments.Besides,university with better sports facilities can help the students to relax their mind.In other words,better facilities means a more conducive environment for university students. In a nutshell,university education is better than college education for its better education system,lecturers and facilities.Despite the growing number of college in our country,I advice fellow friends to choose university education so that when you graduate,you are competitive enough to survive in this ever developing world.