How to Score Maximum Marks in Essay Writing ?

One of our friends, M.Sai Amrut, an NIT Graduate from Warangal has shared some valuable tips for Essay writing section of upcoming SBI PO Exam. We are very thankful to him on behalf of our readers and team members for his contribution. We hope these tips will helpful to you in your last time preparation. Read on....

Friends, There is just one day left for the exam, so I just want to share some tips on Essay Writing. There are 4 points you should keep in mind to score maximum marks in an essay type questions of SBI PO Exams. Those are :

1) Choosing the topic:

In SBI PO you will be given 3 topics and you have to chose one among them. 

• One of them will be related to Economy / Financial issues or something very close to it which we can attempt only if we have proper idea / knowledge on it.
• One among the remaining two will be related to social causes like Dowry,Unemployment,Women empowerment e.t.c.
• And the third one will be very very general topic like reading books,role of newspaper,television impacts e.t.c.

Well choosing first type of the topic that I mentioned above is not at all very good idea unless one has COMPLETE knowledge on it.

2) Introduction and Conclusion:

These are the very important parts of any essay. Your introduction should be awe-inspiring and it should be not more than three lines. Starting with a related quote is always a plus point.

And conclusion must be very clear, precise and it must be related to what you have stated in the whole essay.

3) How to start :

Pick any general topic (Because we can cover a lots of matter when we pick up a general topic). Think about the topic for few minutes. Make few questions on your topic like HISTORY / PRESENT USAGE / CAUSES / REASONS / ADVANTAGES / DIS ADVANTAGES / SOCIETY POINT OF VIEW e.t.c and finally your perception on it.

• These keywords that I've given can be any depending on the topic.

• Your body of essay should be minimum 2 paragraphs, 3 is preferable.

4) Be creative:

One thing what you have to understand is, the evaluator evaluates many papers and all what he come across are very common thoughts and views from maximum papers on any particular topic.You should be ahead of them, so be creative, state your view from a different perception and in a organized and coherent way. This will surely fetch you good marks.All the best :)

10:50 - By Unknown 0

 Essay Writing Tips for Competitive Exams - Drafting

In our last posts we have discussed the basic concepts of essay writing. So it is advisable to read those posts before reading this last post.

Read

Lesson I here

Lesson II here

Lesson III here and
Lesson IV here

In our previous posts, we have discussed about Preparation and Planning our Essay Writing.. In this post we shall discuss about the final stage of letter writing.

Drafting :

Having outlined your ideas as mentioned in above posts, you are now well equipped for writing the essay. You have to execute your plan through paragraphs. Each paragraph normally deals with one key point and the supporting information or ideas as pointed out earlier. As long as you observe this principle, your sentences will be automatically linked to each other. A few paragraphs and an appropriate introduction and conclusion make a good essay.

a. Paragraph Writing : Each paragraph will have a beginning, a middle and an end. Generally you should begin a paragraph with a topic sentence. Supporting information or ideas can be given in the succeeding sentences either in a parallel manner or linked to each other in a chained manner. 

Read the following Paragraphs

1. 'Road accidents are common in India. Recently, 50 people were killed in an accident on Pune - Bangalore highway. Last year a bus collided into a truck taking the life of 30 passengers. In 1996 a bus carrying 60 passengers plunged into a river leaving nobody alive. Thus, road accidents are fatal'. Look at the arrangement of sentences. The main idea or key point is stated in the first sentence. The remaining sentences give an example each illustrating the topic. Though the examples are not related to each other, they are linked in a parallel manner to the topic sentence.
2. Road accidents are common in India. Indian Roads are mostly responsible for accidents. Accidents take place due to bad roads and reckless driving. Drivers are normally less paid and some have bad habits. Drinking is one of the major causes of accidents. Whatever the reasons, road accidents are fatal.

 Look at the last and the first words of each sentence in this paragraph. The repetition of words helps establish a link between the sentences. It also indicates that the same idea is continued or extended in the succeeding sentence. This kind of linkage is called chaining. 

b. Introduction and Conclusion : Introduction is one of the most challenging sections to write. It has to catch the attention of the reader, establish a relationship with him / her, introduce the topic, set the tone and, by doing that, control the reader's expectations. Let us consider a few examples.

1. The essay entitled 'An Ascendancy of Man' written by Paul R. Ehrlich begins with the following sentence :    "The most starting terrestrial event in the two-billion year history of life on the earth has been the rise of the species 'homo sapiens' to its present position of global pre-eminence...'
2. Jane Austen begins her books Pride and Prejudice with the following sentence : "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in a possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife".

Both the introductions not only catch the attention of readers, but also state the topic. Apart from being statements of irrefutable facts, they are put in carefully selected words Each one of these beginnings very effectively indicates what is going to follow.

Concluding an essay is equally challenging. It has to appropriately summarize the essay or highlight the main points.  At the same time it is advisable to make the conclusion interesting. An essay can also be concluded with a moral or a striking contrast with something that has gone before in the essay. Look at some examples given below. 

1. The essay 'All About a Dog' by A. G. Gardiner portrays the character of an ill-mannered bus conductor, Being a witness to his rude behavior, the author gives him a piece of advice, and the essay is concluded as follows " "He took it very well, and when I got off the bus he said 'Good night' quite amiably".
2. Violet Markham in ' Women in Our Changing Society' writes about the emancipation of women and mentions, in this connection, different milestones / landmarks in history. She sums up this essay as follows : 'One after another the barriers about her had fallen. Today she is a free agent as never before'.

Both these conclusions adequately summarize the essays. In almost a scientific manner, a cause and effect relationship  is established. We seen the conclusion as a natural outcome of whatever happened before.

That's all for now friends. From our next post, we shall discuss some example essays for SBI Bank PO Exams. All the best :)

10:48 - By Unknown 0

 Essay Writing Tips for Bank Exams Descriptive Paper - Planning

This is the Lesson IV of our Bank Exams Descriptive Paper Writing (Essays) Lesson Series. Before reading this article, it is advisable to read previous lessons first. 

Read Lesson I here

Lesson II here

Lesson III here

In our previous post we have discussed about Preparation of Essay. In this post we shall discuss about Planning.

Planning

The ideas thus generated need to be logically arranged. Main ideas and supporting (subordinate) ideas need to be properly grouped together. Identify main ideas and group the relevant ideas around each of them. Develop each main idea into an independent paragraph. This exercise will help you decide on how many paragraphs your essay will have. While planning you can use tree diagrams, a table / column or note-form as follows.

• Topic : English in the 21st Century
• Introduction :
• English as the world language
• Spread of English - an overview
• Facts about English :
• Users of English
• English as a window to the world
• Literature
• Culture
• Ideas
• Use in business, trade and industry
• Information Technology :
• Dominance of Information Technology
• Role of English in IT
• Conclusion

Check the Lesson V (Last lesson of Essay Writing )Drafting Here

10:45 - By Unknown 0

 Essay Writing Tips for Bank Exams Descriptive Paper - Preparation

Friends, this is the Lesson III of our Essay Writing for Competitive Exams' Descriptive Papers series.

you can read Lesson I here and Lesson II here.

Preparation :

Any piece of composition has a topic, a purpose, a point of view, and an intended reader. When we write an essay we have a definite purpose like narrating, persuading, or writing an exposition. Our reading, experiences and imagination help us develop an approach which decides the treatment given to a topic of the essay. By keeping the reader in mind we decide the appropriate organization and style. The following are the major activities performed at this stage of essay writing.

• Defining the Topic : Asking different questions about the topic helps define the topic and understand its different aspects. Look at the following questions that we may ask ourselves about the topic 'Empowerment of Women'.

1. What is meant by 'empowerment?'
2. What are the weaknesses and strengths of the female sex ?
3. Do women need generous help from men?

         Here Question 1 demands definition, question 2 expects a list of characteristics and question 3  introduces an argument.

•  Generating Ideas : Answers to these questions provide us ideas. The more questions we ask ourselves the more ideas are generated. List all these ideas as they occur to you. For jotting down, you can use tree diagrams, tables or columns. Look at the following example relevant to the topic "Pollution".

Read Lesson IV Planning Here

Read Lesson V Drafting Here 

10:44 - By Unknown 0

 How to Write Essays for Bank and Other Competitive Exams

Before reading this post, read Introduction of Essay Writing Here. 

To write a good essay, you must first plan it properly. In descriptive and narrative essays, you can describe or narrate things in a chronological manner. If it is an exhibition you are describing, after a short introduction, start with the entrance and proceed as you would go along; different stalls, decor and display, any eye catching or exciting thing, people,k your feelings of happiness or boredom etc. If it is a train journey follow the chronology, how it started, what you felt, how you enjoyed and how it ended.

While writing expository essay, you must link logically all the different aspects of the process or phenomena that you choose to describe. In the reflective essay, adopt a balanced approach. If you are writing an essay on "Should India make an atom bomb" take a stand for or against. Put your explanation in a logical manner, show awareness of the opinion of the opposing side (as in a debate); counter the opposing arguments "to justify your stand and come to conclusion that supports the stand you have taken.

In an imaginative essay, let your imagination take over, because you have no experience of the situation or position you have taken. Be consistent in your explanation and logical in your arguments.

As we have already discussed, writing an essay is not merely adding one sentence to another. You may write very good sentences, but the problem is how to arrange them logically. The best solution to this problem is to look at sentences as parts of the overall plan of an essay. In other words, instead of beginning with sentences, we should think of the entire essay and then break it down into paragraphs and then into sentences. Thus essay writing is a systematic process involving the following steps.

Preparation ---------> Planning ------------->  Drafting

In our next post we shall discuss about them in detail.. All the best and happy reading :)

10:41 - By Unknown 0

 SBI PO Descriptive Paper Essay Writing - Introduction

In real life situations we express our feelings, ideas and thoughts largely through the spoken medium where as in academic situations expressing and thinking is done mainly through writing. The ability to collect, select, arrange and use information is developed through essay writing. While writing an essay aspirants are constantly judging, analyzing, self examining and self correcting. Thus writing an essay can be looked at as an exercise in thinking and self understanding. This is the main reason why they ask you to write essays in bank exams' descriptive paper.

The word "essay: means to try, to attempt. When you write an essay, you attempt to explain the topic to the best of your knowledge and ability. It is the similar to the exercise of expansion of the topic (simply we can say that this is just the opposite of precis writing).

Essays can be classified as Narrative, Descriptive, Expository, Reflective and Imaginative.

Narrative Essay :

A narrative essay is a narration of some event or incident. The narrative can cover historical events (the 1857 mutiny); social events (a marriage or festival); incidents like  an accident or earthquake; a journey or a story.

Descriptive Essay

A descriptive essay deals with the description of a place or a thing. It can describe a historical building (Lal Quila or Charminar); a city or town (Hyderabad or Delhi); a botanical garden or a Zoo etc

Expository Essay

An Expository essay consists of an explanation or exposition of a subject it can be an exposition of a scientific process (how computers work)l a biological phenomena (how our respiratory system works); or a literary topic (all that glitters is not gold).

Reflective Essay

A reflective essay, as the name suggests, is a reflection or thoughts on some subject. It can contain arguments, debate and discussion which could also be abstract in nature. It may deal with philosophy or theology (science and religion), social or political problem (is democracy suitable for india); abstractions (does God exist) or general thought provoking subjects.

Imaginative Essay

In imaginative essay you have to imagine a position or situation such as 'if I were the prime minister; or if all the motor cars are banned, autobiography of a washing machine etc.

Read  
Lesson 2 : How to Write Essays for Bank and Other Competitive Exams Here
Lesson 3 : Preparation of Essay Here
Lesson 4 : Writing Plan of Essays Here 
Lesson 5 : Drafting and writing Conclusion Here
Lesson 6 : How to score Maximum Marks in Essay Writing ?

Example Essays :

1. Model Essay - 1 
2. Model Essay - 2

Read More English Lessons for SBI Probationary Officers Exam Here

10:39 - By Unknown 0

 Business Letter Writing Tips

Before reading this post, please read our basics of letter writing here

Business letters are formal letters. In business or formal letters, one has to be quite particular about both format and the body. A business letter may contain some or all of the following elements.

Letter Head

Usually  printed on the top center portion of the page containing the address of the Business house. In the absence of the letter head, write your address on top of the date line.

Address

1. Your Address : The return address should be written in the top right-hand corner of the letter.
2. The Address of the person you are writing to : The inside address should be written on the left, starting below your address.

Date .............

Different people put the date on different sides of the page. You can write this on the right or the left on the line after the address you are writing to. Write the month as a word.

Subject.....................

To indicate the 'sujbect' of the letter, write 'subject' between the inside address and salutation, or in the middle of the page. Subject line is useful in business letters as it indicates the main purpose of the letter.

Reference...............

Used when referring to an earlier communication; should be placed below the subject

 Salutation or Greeting

1.  Dear Sir or Madam :  If you don't know the name of the person you are writing to, use this. It is always advisable to try to find out a name.
2. Dear Miss Sharma : If you know the name, use the title (Mr, Mrs, Miss or Ms, Dr etc.) and the surname only. If you are writing to a woman and do not know if she uses Mrs. or Miss, you can use Ms, which is for married and single women.

Leave one or two spaces between the inside address and salutation.

Body 

Indent all paragraphs. A business letter should be simple direct to the point (no need to enquire about the person's health and  the weather conditions in his home town :P), precise and yet complete in all the respects. It should contain all the necessary informatin that the recieving party needs, so that the necessity of any further clarification should not arise. No slangs or short forms should be (hi dude, how r u bro etc). The language should be formal, but avoid all hackneyed phrases.

First Paragraphs

The first paragraph shoudl be short and state the purpose of the letter - to make an enquiry, complain, requrest something etc.

The paragraph or paragraphs in the middle of the letter should contain the relevant information behind the writing of the letter. Most letters in English are not very long. So keep the information to the essentials and concentrate on organizing it in a clear and logical manner rather than expanding too much.

Last Paragraph

The last paragraph of a formal letter should state what action you expect the recipient to take - to refund, send you information etc.

Closing

Closing should be one line below the text followed by signatures and then the name written below, along with designation, if necessary.

1. Yours faithfully : If you do not know the name of the person, end the letter this way
2. Yours sincerely : If you know the name of the person, end the letter this way
• Note : Your's Faithfully and Your's Sincerely are wrong expressions. 
3. Your Signature : Its not advisable to write your name and details in competitive exams. In the letter itself they clearly mention NOT TO USE YOUR NAME and OTHER DETAILS. Even if they don't ask, its better not to use your details. Just put xxxxxxxxxxx instead of your details.

Thats all for now friends. In our next post we shall discuss some examples of business letters. 

20:59 - By Unknown 0