(Sáng kiến kinh nghiệm) applying some innovative solutions to improve the gifted students’ argumentative writing skill at nhu thanh high school

THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL
-------***-------

INNOVATION IN TEACHING

APPLYING SOME INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO
IMPROVE THE GIFTED STUDENTS’
ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING SKILL AT NHU
THANH HIGH SCHOOL

The writer: Nguyen Thi Kim Lien
The post: The teacher
Innovation of subject: English

THANH HOA, 2019


TABLE OF CONTENT
PART ONE: INTRODUCTION........................................................................1
I. RATIONALE OF THE STUDY.......................................................................1
II. AIMS OF THE STUDY..................................................................................2
III. RESEARCH QUESTIONS...........................................................................2
IV. METHODS OF THE STUDY.......................................................................2
PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT........................................................................2
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW..........................................................2
I. OVERVIEW OF WRITING SKILL................................................................2
II. THE ARGUMENTIVE ESSAY......................................................................3
III. THE DIFFICULTIES OF WRITING ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS.......4
V. THE SOLUTION OF DETERMINING THE STRUTURE OF

ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING THROUGH THE NETWORK AND A
FIFTEEN-PHRASE/SENTENCE SOLUTION AND THEIR IMPACT ON
DEVELOPING THE STUDENTS’ ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING SKILL.. 5
CHAPTER 2: PRACTICAL SITUATIONS.....................................................6
I. METHODS OF THE STUDY..........................................................................6
II. THE REALITY OF TEACHING AND LEARNING ENGLISH
ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING SKILL AT NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL. 6
CHAPTER 3: RECOMMENDATIONS TO HELP.........................................7
I. RECOMMENDATIONS..................................................................................7
II. PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS............................................................................7
SOME PRACTICAL EXAMPLES OF USING A FIFTEEN- SENTENCE/PHRASE
SOLUTION IN THE WRITING LESSON AT NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL.......14
CHAPTER 4: RESULT....................................................................................18
PART THREE: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION.................................18
I. CONCLUSION...............................................................................................18
II. REFLECTIONS............................................................................................18
REFERENCES..................................................................................................20


PART ONE: INTRODUCTION
I. RATIONALE OF THE STUDY
Studying English nowadays has become an essential demand for
everyone. Learning English is important. It is simple as English is one of the
most popular international languages and it is most not only all over the world
but also in all aspects of society. Therefore, learning and mastering it would
greatly give advantages to the person concerned. Especially, since Vietnam
became the 150th member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), it has been
required that we have to build the labor force who are skillful at work and use
English well as an effective tool of communication.
Although many Vietnamese students get excellent certain qualifications,

their ability of communicating in English is limited. As a result, they must give
up their dream jobs. There is no doubt about that English is the optimum
standard for applicants into foreign and state- owned companies. On account of
the above demands, English is compulsory not only at school but also in
examinations at certain stages of the school education system. According to the
national curriculum, English is built with the aim of communicating. Creating
the ability of communication in English for students is the most important target
in the process of teaching.
As teachers, I think we’d all agree that communication is important. In fact,
it’s a necessary component of education, livelihood, and basic functionality in our
society. It’s also fairly obvious that there are two main ways to communicate,
although more obscure forms exist. Basically, we talk and we write. That’s how we
let other people know what’s going on, and it’s an important skill to have. Just
about every student can talk, but how many Vietnamese students can truly write
well? Writing is important because it’s used extensively in higher education and in
the workplace. If students don’t know how to express themselves in writing, they
won’t be able to communicate well with friends, teachers, professors, employers,
peers, or just about anyone else.
Much of professional communication is done in writing: proposals,
memos, reports, applications, preliminary interviews, e-mails, and more are part
of the daily life of a college student or successful graduate. Even if students
manage to learn the material in their college classes without knowing how to
write well, they won’t be able to express their knowledge to the people who are
making the big decisions. Potential employers won’t know whether or not head
knowledge can be applied to everyday demands unless it’s through a spoken
interview. Even the majority of certifications and licensures require basic
writing skills to obtain. The inability to write makes for a stillborn career.
Argumentative writing has been confirmed by researchers to be the
hardest model in writing. This genre of writing is important for gifted students to
express their own points of view in academically appropriate forms and

strategies. Unfortunately, students often encounter difficulties in the use of
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complex syntactic patterns and appropriate elements in composing
argumentative writing. Consequently, by means of the drawbacks in language
teaching methods of the past, particularly in the argumentative writing skill, a
number of research studies have sought to investigate and demonstrate how
argumentative writing can be improved by using effective methods to gauge the
weaknesses of students’ writing ability.
Therefore, in this research I present some innovative solutions including
The solution of determining the structure of an argumentative essay and its own
paragraph through the network and a fifteen – sentence/phrase solution which I
have applied effectively over the last few years to improve my gifted students’
argumentative writing skill.
II. AIMS OF THE STUDY
On the basis of surveying students’ ability of writing an argumentative
essay in English at Nhu Thanh High School, I have given feasible solutions
including innovating methods of teaching writing skill.
This study also investigates whether the solution of determining the structure
of an argumentative essay through the network and a fifteen – sentence/phrase
solution in improving argumentative writing skill can have positive impact on
writing process among gifted students and can develop their argumentative writing
skill or not. I decide the research with title “Applying some innovative solutions to
improve the gifted students’ argumentative writing skill”
III. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
This study aims at finding answer to the following research question:
How can innovative solutions help the students at Nhu Thanh High School
improve their argumentative writing skill ?
The question has been addressed to one group of students that I have been

teaching in Nhu Thanh High School with the aim to examine how innovative
solutions affect the process of argumentative writing here.
IV. METHODS OF THE STUDY
- The method of collecting and analyzing materials for the research:
research for materials concerning about the subject, analyze and get certain
knowledge from previous researches, finally give the foundation to the research.
- The method of talking to students: through talking to students, I have got
to know real situation of students’ writing learning in language classes at Nhu
Thanh High School.
- The method of surveying through answer sheets.
PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
I. OVERVIEW OF WRITING SKILL
What is writing?
"Writing" is the process of using symbols (letters of the alphabet,
punctuation and spaces) to communicate thoughts and ideas in a readable form.

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To write clearly it is essential to understand the basic system of a language. In
English this includes knowledge of grammar, punctuation and sentence
structure. Vocabulary is also necessary, as is correct spelling and formatting. A
writer may write for personal enjoyment or use, or for an audience of one person
or more. The audience may be known (targeted) or unknown. Taking notes for
study purposes is an example of writing for one's self. Blogging publicly is an
example of writing for an unknown audience. A letter to a friend is an example
of writing for a targeted audience. As with speaking, it is important to consider
your audience when writing. There are many different styles of writing, from
informal to formal.

Some of the difficulties associated with the teaching of writing in foreign
language classes come from the nature of writing itself. Writing is an artificial
activity in a way that speech is not; while every normal human being on this planet
learns, eventually, to talk and to listen, far fewer people become literate, able to
write. Writing is learned, while speaking is acquired as part of growing up.
Writing is indeed difficult, for several reasons. Firstly, the writer has to decide
what information the reader needs, and how best to express this. So there is a
psychological difficulty, in that the writer cannot consult the reader- the audience is
not immediately present, in contrast with most conversations. Writer has no
immediate feedback to let them know how they are doing and whether they should
change their approach. There is no immediate interaction between the producer and
receiver. Secondly, there is a linguistic difficulty, in that the language used in
written language is different in most ways from that used in speech. It is either
simplified (lists, telegrams, notes, etc.) or more elaborate, more formal. In our
mother tongue we have to learn an elaborate network of conventions and rules
before we become “good writer”. In a foreign language this process is all the more
difficult as there may be interference on a cultural level, not just the linguistic,
between mother tongue and the foreign language. Thirdly, there is a cognitive
difficulty, in that students have to organize thoughts on paper.
In schools, writing is taught partly as a vital part of literacy program, but
also in order to show that work is being done. Writing is often associated,
particularly in weaker students’ minds, with “chores” or even with discipline
(the traditional writing lesson is quite quiet, so the teacher is easily able to keep
control). This “homework syndrome” can lead to students making less and less
progress because they are poorly motivated, perform badly, receive low grades,
and end up disliking writing more and more.
II. THE ARGUMENTIVE ESSAY
The argumentative essay is a genre of writing that requires the student to
investigate a topic; collect, generate, and evaluate evidence; and establish a
position on the topic in a concise manner.

Please note: Some confusion may occur between the argumentative essay and
the expository essay. These two genres are similar, but the argumentative essay
differs from the expository essay in the amount of pre-writing (invention) and

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research involved. The argumentative essay is commonly assigned as a capstone
or final project in first year writing or advanced composition courses and
involves lengthy, detailed research. Expository essays involve less research and
are shorter in length. Expository essays are often used for in-class writing
exercises or tests, such as the GED or GRE.
Argumentative essay assignments generally call for extensive research of
literature or previously published material. Argumentative assignments may also
require empirical research where the student collects data through interviews,
surveys, observations, or experiments. Detailed research allows the student to learn
about the topic and to understand different points of view regarding the topic so that
she/he may choose a position and support it with the evidence collected during
research. Regardless of the amount or type of research involved, argumentative
essays must establish a clear thesis and follow sound reasoning.
The argument essay is the most common type of writing assignment that
gifted students will encounter throughout their exams. While there are different
variations of the argument essay, the overall foundation is always the same: the
writer is tasked with investigating an issue, taking a stand on the issue, and
finding and incorporating a multitude of evidence in a logical manner to support
the overall claim.
Most of us have experience with arguing, but an argumentative essay is quite
different than a verbal argument that arises out of the blue. Verbal arguments often
become heated and unreasonable, while the goal of an argumentative essay is the
opposite: the argument must be specific, reasoned, detailed and supported with a

variety of evidence. Furthermore, a verbal argument often focuses on who is right
regarding a specific issue, while a well-written, researched argument essay focuses
on what is the right side of a particular issue. In short, an argument essay must be
logical from beginning to end.
III. THE DIFFICULTIES OF WRITING ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS
Writing an argumentative essay can be easy in many aspects because
students are given the opportunity to take a personal stance on a topic. This can
be a more entertaining essay to write, but we must remember that although
students’ main idea may be opinion based, it is important that students’ paper is
still research based. Here are some common problems students may experience
while writing an argumentative essay:
Finding Support
Once students have selected a topic or argument that students would like
to prove through their essay, it is crucial to locate reputable support. The
Internet is full of opinion-based articles, but these are not what students will
want to use to develop they argument. Arguments or opinions must be
supported with factual data or research in order to be credible. They can also
quote an authority on the topic.

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Contradictory Arguments
Another common problem to be weary of when writing an argumentative
essay is contradictory arguments. Make sure to thoroughly read their sources. A
quote or idea from a source can easily be taken out of context, changing the
meaning of said quote all together. Students want to be sure to maintain their
credibility on the topic, and honestly make their argument.
Avoid Personal Opinion
When writing your argumentative essay you must be sure to keep a

neutral tone on the topic. There is a difference between making a compelling
argument, and bombarding your readers with overly emotional personal opinion.
With strong facts and reliable sources you will find that harsh or passionate
language is unnecessary to prove your point.
Consider Your Audience
Your audience quite frequently influences the way you approach your
topic. The means to convince an audience of college professors will surely be
different from adolescent readers.
IV. THE IMPORTANCE ELEMENTS OF A GOOD ARGUMENTAIVE ESSAY.
Most people do not require special skills to prove their point of view when
providing arguments on various day-to-day issues. All of us sometimes argue
why the movie we have watched is so impressive or why we should get a
promotion. This means that we argue not only in the academic field, but also in
our everyday lives. That is why writing an argumentative essay does not require
any additional skills and most students can deal with the assignment with
much success. However, it is also important to structure an argumentative essay
in a correct way. For this reason, before writing an essay, you need to find out
what elements should be included in your argumentative essay. You also need to
support your viewpoint by providing an explanation of your ideas and specific
examples. Let us discuss the fundamental elements of argumentative essays.
* Organization and focus. When writing an argumentative essay, you need to prove
the main viewpoint by providing enough evidence and well-grounded arguments.
* Description and analysis: Description and analysis are two more elements of
an argumentative essay that should be included in your paper if you want it to be
consistent and relevant.
* Evidence. Evidence can be provided in different way. You should support
your ideas with certain examples and make the readers accept your point of view
by providing well-grounded evidence in favor of your position.
* Answering a counterargument. If you add a counterargument in your essay,
it will make it clear for the readers that you fully understand the material you are

discussing in your paper.
V. THE SOLUTION OF DETERMINING THE STRUTURE OF
ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING THROUGH THE NETWORK AND A
FIFTEEN-PHRASE/SENTENCE SOLUTION AND THEIR IMPACT ON
DEVELOPING THE STUDENTS’ ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING SKILL.

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Determining the structure of argumentative essay in the right way is
extremely important, which helps students arrange logical ideas in suitable places.
An argumentative essay is one of the most common type of essays in the academic
world. It is conceivable that every student will be expected to write an argumentative
essay at one point or another in their academic career. To write a good argumentative
essay, it is imperative for the writer to know the structure of the essay.
In addition, using sentences and phrases in the fifteen- phrase/sentence
solution is based on the criteria of band 7 in IELTS writing task 2. The fifteenphrase/sentence solution is actually a format of an essay. Although students use
the model to write, they still give their own ideas.
The benefits of this fifteen- phrase/sentence solution are that the essay is not
only logic, but the students also think and write more quickly and easily
This study is beneficial for teachers to provide valuable insights into the
weaknesses in their learners’ language variants that can be used to develop their
teaching programmes and instructions to more effectively support students’
argumentative writing development.
CHAPTER 2: PRACTICAL SITUATIONS
I. METHODS OF THE STUDY
The research is done qualitatively in the context of one group of thirty students At
Nhu Thanh High School. In this survey, I use the survey questionnaire for students.
This survey is designed to collect information for the study on “An investigation into
the Reality of teaching and learning English argumentative writing skill at Nhu Thanh

High School.
II. THE REALITY OF TEACHING AND LEARNING ENGLISH
ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING SKILL AT NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL
The whole procedure of teaching and learning is implemented similarly to
all students of the class after all of them give consent to be part of the research.
However, due to the limit of the study, I only focus to collect information from
the learning engagement of one gifted student group ( total: 30 students) during
this process as the data for analysis. Below is the survey of the practical
situation of learning English writing skill at Nhu Thanh High School.
Table 1: Frequencies of argumentative writing difficulties faced by students
Number of students
Difficulties faced by students
have difficulty
fulfilling task demand
20
grammar structure
27
Topic sentence of each paragraph
20
Length
20
organized ideas
23
Pacing
20
solid evidence
20
The structure of argumentative writing
27
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During the interview, the students talked about the difficulties in writing
argumentative essay. As shown in Table 1, students reported that grammar
structure in English and the structure of an argumentative essay were the great
difficulties for their argumentative writing. They felt that they did not have
enough knowledge of the complex sentences.
Understanding the argumentative writing structure and grammar ones
were also considered difficult for students because students pointed out that the
structure of argumentative writing posed the main barrier for them to produce a
good piece of argumentative essay. In relation to the difficulties of solid
evidence, they stated that providing solid evidence was one of the most difficult
aspects for them to convince the audience to believe in what they wrote. With
reference to the difficulties of time constraints in argumentative writing,
students faced the difficulties in this aspect. One of students stated:
“Another problem is the limitation of the time. I cannot write a good piece of
writing because I feel hectic. I need more time to write because of the limited
time I cannot think of strong evidence to write”.
They admitted that it was difficult to write a well-organized argumentative
essay. For example, the following students pointed out that “I don’t know how
to organize the idea of argumentative writing essay. I do not know that I have to
write the Introduction or I have to control the idea. I have to write supporting
detail 1,2,3 and then I have to write the conclusion. I write down what I can
think of without controlling the idea”. With the reference to the difficulties of
fulfilling task demand and understanding the questions, students considered this
task demand difficult. Students stated that writing the thesis statement was
difficult for them to write in order to convince the audience
CHAPTER 3: RECOMMENDATIONS TO HELP
THE GIFTED STUDENTS TO IMPROVE
THEIR ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING SKILL

I. RECOMMENDATIONS
According to the data analysis from the survey, The aim of this study was
to identify the argumentative writing difficulties that students encountered when
they compose argumentative essays. It was noted that teachers have realized that
there is a critical need to accord greater attention to the improvement of writing
teaching for students. The way to improve writing instruction is to develop
insights into the diagnostic evaluation of writing. This type of evaluation
provides valuable data about students‟ weaknesses in argumentative writing.
Therefore, I have applied some innovative solutions to improve the gifted
students’ argumentative writing skill at Nhu Thanh High School.
II. PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS
A. The solution of determining the structure of an argumentative essay
through the network.

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I have given my students the following structures and ask them to get to
know them and analyse them in detail.

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The structure of paper's outline is the same as the structure of their entire
essay. The difference is that they include the entire information in the body text
while students only name the arguments in their outline. An English essay
outline is worth their time as it figures as their plan during the whole writing
process.
There are three basic sections of any argumentative essay students should
follow:

1. Introduction paragraph
2. Body with 2-3 strong arguments and refusing opposing arguments in one
paragraph
3. Conclusion
Of course, students must focus on supporting your thesis statement rather
than the opponents. The opposing point of view is included just to show the
writer is objective with his judgments, and he respects all existing arguments.

Outline Section 1: Introduction
Every essay starts with an introduction, and an argumentative essay is not
an exception.
1. Hook
First of all, think about a powerful, eye-catching hook to grab reader's attention.
Sure, it is important to know who your target audience is first. Different people
require different approaches. Let's look at the example. Writers used to write an
argumentative essay on why there should be a second official language in the
United States in addition to English. They have chosen Spanish as my point of
view. Based on the primary research, my hook could be,
"As far as most of the immigrants in the United States speak Spanish due to the
neighborhood with Latin America, Spanish should be made the second official
language in the United States."
2. Background information
Don't try to write too much in this part. Simply name a topic and give a
hint on what you'll be talking about in your argumentative text. Briefly explain
why the topic is important and who cares about it. An example might be,
"The research shows that immigrants from Latin America feel uncomfortable
with studying in English schools as they require more time to learn this
language. Thus, it is important to work on the question of the second national
language."
3. Working on the thesis statement

This part contains the main argument. Don't pose any questions here - just
state your main point of view clearly and without any hesitations.
You may look at the additional information on how to write an eye-catching
essay introduction with a hook.

Outline Section 2: Working on students’ arguments and refusing
opposing arguments
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As you remember, every claim is supported by the corresponding
evidence you found during the research. If you have more information to share,
you may include up to five body paragraphs.
1. Claim
It is a statement to support your argumentative essay's thesis. An example
of an opening sentence in body paragraph is: "Making Spanish the second
official language in the IS would positively impact the economic relationships
between Mexico and the United States." Without a good evidence, no one is
going to believe my words.
2. Evidence is based on credible facts and statistics the writer finds during
the research process.
It has nothing to do with your personal knowledge or information based
on your experience. Choose sources carefully. The example is: "12% increase in
trade between the US and Mexico was a notice in 2014 when Arizona's local
government send people who spoke Spanish to take part in the deal." Also, the
reader will think your judgments are subjective until you add an opposing
argument.

Looking for Opponent's Claims
You need to understand that different people have different points of view

regarding the same topic, so be patient. Check the arguments of the US citizens
who do not support the idea of the second national language. They may be
helpful while working on the third section of your argumentative essay. You
may pose a question why they don't like the idea of any other language except
for English. Make it clear that they fear are connected with the unwillingness to
study one more language or cooperate with Mexican population. Remember that
your personal ideas should be supported by the facts you find during your
research. For every argument against, you should present enough evidence to
prove you're right.
It all may sound difficult, but please keep in mind you have a right to buy
papers online!

Outline Section 3: Conclusion
While arguing with various opinions, you have lost the focus. Remind the
readers of your topic by restating your thesis. Make it clear why your argument
is a winning one. The best way to do so is to present how the things would turn
without your idea being implemented ASAP.
After my students understand the above structures clearly, I will give them my
prepared completed argumentative essays to ask them to determine what the
structure of these argumentative essay and their own paragraphs are through
the network above.
HERE ARE SOME PRATICAL EXAPLES MY STUDENTS HAVE
APPLIED THIS WAY:
Example 1
Topic 1:
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Smoking should be prohibited in public places. To what extent do you
agree or disagree with this statement? Write an essay of about 250 words to

show your opinion.
The question of whether smoking should be banned in public places or not
remains controversial. Some people advocate while others criticize. From my
point of view, I support the ideal that: no smoking in public sites is a good
decision. I have some reasons for this.
One of major disadvantages of smoking a lot in public places is that it has
a negative effect on both healths’ active and passive smokers. Every year, in the
world, a large number of people who get lung cancer result from smoking
frequently. Furthermore, non- smokers also inhale poisonous substances from
cigarettes. As a result, they also get the same diseases as smokers. According to
some statistics, there is a strong link between smoking and cancer. A recent
medical survey shows that the cancer rate among smokers is as high as nonsmokers
Another point of view in favor of banning smoking is that it causes
environment pollutions, fire accidents and financial problems. In fact, smoking
makes the air polluted, especially when smokers use means of public transports
with numerous passengers including children and pregnant women. What is
more, a plenty of fire accidents happens from smoking such as forest fire,
market one…In addition, smokers must spend much money on smoking.
Supporters of smoking in public sites would argue that this can take
away their privacy freedom. Nevertheless, as stated previously, smoking is
always badly influential to other people.
In the final analysis, I am convinced the idea that the government should
give the law of banning smoking in public places. It is likely that in the future
smokers will have a tendency to smoke less and we will live in the clean world
without smoke.
Students will read the completed essay and find out its own structure and here
are their typical work:
INTRODUCTION PARAGRAPH: The question of whether smoking should be
banned in public places or not remains controversial. Some people advocate
while others criticize. From my point of view, I support the ideal that: no

smoking in public sites is a good decision. I have some reasons for this.
BODY: PARAGRAPH 1: One of major disadvantages of smoking a lot in
public places is that it has a negative effect on both healths’ active and passive
smokers( TOPIC SENTENCE 1). Every year, in the world, a large number of
people who get lung cancer result from smoking frequently. Furthermore, nonsmokers also inhale poisonous substances from cigarettes. As a result, they also
get the same diseases as smokers. According to some statistics, there is a strong
link between smoking and cancer. A recent medical survey shows that the
cancer rate among smokers is as high as non-smokers(SUPPORTING IDEAS)

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PARAGRAPH 2: Another point of view in favor of banning smoking is that
it causes environment pollutions, fire accidents and financial problems(TOPIC
SENTENCE). In fact, smoking makes the air polluted, especially when smokers
use means of public transports with numerous passengers including children
and pregnant women. What is more, a plenty of fire accidents happens from
smoking such as forest fire, market one…In addition, smokers must spend much
money on smoking(SUPPORTING IDEAS).
PARAGRAPH 3: FOR REFUSING OPPOSING ARGUMENTS:
upporters of smoking in public sites would argue that this can take away their
privacy freedom. Nevertheless, as stated previously, smoking is always badly
influential to other people.
CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH : In the final analysis, I am convinced the
idea that the government should give the law of banning smoking in public
places. It is likely that in the future smokers will have a tendency to smoke less
and we will live in the clean world without smoke.
Example 2
Topic 2: ” Parents are the best teachers”. Do you agree or disagree with this
statement? Write an essay of about 250 words to show your opinion.

INTRODUCTION PARAGRAPH: The question of whether parents are
the best teachers or not remains controversial. Some people advocate while
others disapprove of this ideal. To my way of thinking, I support the statement
that: Parents play the most important role in educating their children. I have
some reasons for this.
BODY: PARAGRAPH 1: The first reason is that parents who bear and
take care of us, teach us everything in our lives such as how to eat, speak, drink,
stand, walk, communicate( TOPIC SENTENCE 1)….Parents are the first
teacher that are always with us whenever we need. With parents’ teaching, we
are growing –up and become an independent person(SUPPORTING IDEAS).
PARAGRAPH 2: Another reason is that parents are influential to our
behavior( TOPIC SENTENCE 1). Nobody can understand as deeply as our
parents can. If we make any mistakes, it is easy for them to realize reasons for
the problem and give advice to us. Whenever we get into troubles, parents are
persons who worry about us, make us more optimistic about life. Furthermore,
they are willing to share happiness and sadness with us. Last but not least,
there is no doubt about that parents always try to have the most perfective
conditions at the time we are at the primary school where professional teachers
join hands in teaching us. (SUPPORTING IDEAS).
PARAGRAPH 3: FOR REFUSING OPPOSING ARGUMENTS Some
people say that teachers at school are really the best ones because they are
well- trained and skilled in teaching, each teacher is good at a certain subject
and knowledgeable. However, as stated previously, parents are always with us
at the time we are born.

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CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH : In the final analysis, I am convinced of
the ideal that our best teachers are parents. Each child will get good

development of character providing that he has educational environment from
his parents.
By this way my students are able to determine the structure of an
argumentative essay and its own paragraph through the network, which helps
them have an argumentative writing in the right way in the first step.
B fifteen- phrase/sentence solution:
I give my students typical sentence structures used for argumentative writings:
the
- According
to
recent Introduce
statistics, the number of background
1
users on ......... has been
considerably increasing....
- The
question
of Introduce the debate
whether........... or not topic.
Introductio 2
remains controversial.
n
- There has been a lot of
Introducing
argument
about
topic, idea
whether..........or not
- From my point of view, I Give writer’s own idea
support the ideal that....

3
- . To my way of thinking, I
am convinced of the idea
that..........
4
- One
of
major Give the 1st reason
(dis)advantages of.........is ( topic sentence)
that…….
Paragraph
5 This means that……….(effect)
Explain more
1
This is because……….(cause)
specifically
Supporting
If……….not………( opponent
idea
approach).
6 So/ Therefore, ………………..
The idea is basic
- Another point of view in Give the 2nd reason
favor of + ........ is that…
( topic sentence)
8 For example,………………
Give example relating
the fact
9 ………………………
Explain the example

more specifically
10
Supporters/ opponents Don’t deny the opposite
of.... would argue that...... ideas
nevertheless, as stated
previously,
7

Paragraph
2
Giving an
example

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Paragraph
3
(counterargument)
Making
concessions

Admit that there was
11
still rational aspect for
the opposite idea
However/yet…………………
Indicate that there was
12 Nonetheless,
it

is
more no rational aspect for
important to remember that…/
the opposite idea
- In the final analysis, I am Restate their own idea
convinced of the idea that.......
- In conclusion
13 - To sum up
- Overall/ all in all
- On the whole
Of course,………………

Conclusion
Meanwhile,………………..
14

15

By
doing
…………………………

Simultaneously,
they
shouldn’t
disregard
completely the opposite
ideas
so, Extend the topic

SOME PRACTICAL EXAMPLES OF USING A FIFTEEN- SENTENCE/PHRASE
SOLUTION IN THE WRITING LESSON AT NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL.
Example 1: Le Yen Nga’s essay ( the 10th grader)
Topic: Students at high schools should not use Facebook because of
negative effects. Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Do you agree
or disagree? Write an essay (about 250 words) to express your personal point
of view”
According to recent statistics, the number of users on
1 Facebook has been considerably increasing.
Introductio
n
To my way of thinking, I support of the idea that
2
Facebook has some negative effects on students’ work.

Paragraph
1

1
2

1
Paragraph

2

The first disadvantage of using Facebook is wasting time,
especially for students who should spend their time studying.
Moreover, many boys and girls are interested on logging in
facebook in order to share, like, comment on things that I

must call “meaningless”.
Another point of view in favor of not using facebook is that
it has a bad impact on your health and communicative skill
In addition, online facebook limits our direct

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2

Paragraph
3

3

1

2

communication. Too much time spent online makes us feel
afraid of going out, talking with neighbors
It causes many bad effects to your eyes, your skin. Sitting
all day long before the Pc even makes you fatter
Opponents of not using facebook would argue that it has
lots of advantages as it helps you communicate with anyone
easily with little money, make friends in wherever you like,
or express your own interests….
However, as stated previously, it has its great
disadvantages especially for students’ study.

On the whole, with the main reasons above, I
strongly believe that high students should not waste their
Conclusion 1
time on facebook. Instead, they had better focus on their
own plan for their future life.
Example 2: Ha Viet Cuong’s essay( the 10th grader)
“Studying the English language in an English speaking country is the
best but not the only way to learn the language”. Do you agree or disagree
with this statement? Write an essay (about 250 words) to express your
personal point of view”
The question of whether studying English in an English
Introductio 1 speaking country is the most effective way for learners or
not remains controversial.
n
Introducing
From my point of view, I support the ideal that: learning
2
topic, idea
English in English speaking countries is really good yet
there are still various ways to master the language.
There is no doubt about that English learners have
perfective conditions for studying English in English
1
speaking countries such as naturally communicative
Paragraph
environment
1
. In addition, in English speaking countries, all
2
people speak English that requires learners to try their best

to adapt to this.
Nevertheless, studying English is not only way for them to
1 master the language because learners still study English
well in other countries.
Paragraph
Moreover, they can take the advantage of the language
2
2 conditions in their homeland such as television, internet,
magazines, language websites…..
…..In fact, a large number of English learners who
3
master it have increased considerably.
Many supporters of the ideal that studying E in an E
Paragraph
1

15


3
(counterargument)
Making
concessions

2

1
Conclusion

2

speaking country is the only and the best way.
However, as stated previously we can learn English
in various ways.

In the final analysis, I am convinced the idea that it is very
effective for learners to study English in an E speaking
country but it is not the only way.
It is likely that next year’s opportunities for E learners in all
countries are equal.

Only by doing so can tourism brings us sustainable
development.
Here are some of my students’ completed works after applying these above
innovative solutions:
15

16


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CHAPTER 4: RESULT
In conclusion, The aim of this research study was to identify the
difficulties that students encounter when writing argumentative writing. The
findings showed that providing detailed information about students’ weaknesses
in their writing activity can raise awareness among teachers and students. This
can also be combined with other appropriate teaching approaches toward
making significant contributions in having a detailed profile of students’

weaknesses in writing argumentative essays. Such information would be
beneficial for teachers to design and improve their writing programmes and
teach effectively to further support students’ writing improvement.
The benefits of determining the right structure of argumentative writings
and taking this fifteen- phrase/sentence solution help students not only write a
logic essay but think and write more quickly and easily. It also helps students
overcome the pressure of structure of argumentative writing, providing solid
evidence, time constraints, organized idea, fulfilling task demand, understanding
the questions, writing the thesis statement, interpreting the questions, pacing.
* The following is the result :
Before applying innovative
After applying innovative solutions
Group of
solutions
30
Excellent
Good Fair
Excellent
Good
Fair
students
30

3

8

19

10

15

5

PART THREE: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
I. CONCLUSION
Argumentative writing has been confirmed by researchers to be the hardest
model in writing. This genre of writing is important for gifted students to
express their own points of view in academically appropriate forms and
strategies. Unfortunately, students often encounter difficulties in the use of
complex syntactic patterns and appropriate elements in composing
argumentative writing.
It is also proved by the research that students are more engaged in the
writing activities when the tasks are more meaningful to them. More
specifically, in my case that means the tasks that give my students a more
meaningful reason to complete engage them more.
II. REFLECTIONS
This study has given me a chance to know more about my students, about
what goes wrong with them when they are not engaged in my writing class. In
the study, I also have chance to access a number of researches of many
experienced language educators and teachers, from which I obtain new
knowledge of language teaching and learning in general and knowledge of
meaningful tasks in teaching writing in particular.

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During the research, I also learn more about the methods of doing research
in a scientific way. Firstly, I learn to look at the situation of my English teaching

and learning critically and make research questions with the hope of improving
it. I also learn to arrange and organize my ideas and my work systematically to
fit the timetable of the research procedure. But the most important thing is that I
learn how to put my background knowledge into the knowledge repertoire of
related previous studies to have a broader view of the situation and to make my
research skills (such summarizing and synthesizing) useful by activating them
creatively and critically.

The Headmaster’s identification

Thanh Hoa, the second of May, 2019
I ensure that this study has been written by me
The writer

Nguyen Thi Kim Lien

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REFERENCES
1. David Cross (1994): Practical handbook of language teaching
2. Penny Ur ( 1998) A course in language teaching - Practical and Theory
Cambrige university press
4. Nguyen Hanh Dung Methods of teaching English at Secondary education

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