topic 3 - Mai

In some countries, teenagers have jobs while they are still students. Do you think this is a good idea? Support your opinion by using specific reasons and details.


I used to be a teenager and I used to have part time jobs while being at high school. At that time, people, especially adults gave me a lot of reasons and a load of worries in order to prevent me from working – “It will harm your health”, “It will influence badly on your study”, “it is no use for a teenager like you”...... But what happened to me? I was employed when being a monitor, volunteering for charity work and my grade did not drop. I honestly think it is a good idea that teenagers have part time jobs while still students; they will gain many benefits.

The most obvious advantage is that they can earn money. Teenagers have a lot of expenses – clothes, books, extra-curricular activities, hanging-out with friends....They can not ask their parents for money all the time, so may not be able to buy an exciting book or miss school camping. Part time jobs, however, help them cover these costs.

Some people believe if teens have much money, they will spend on wasteful, even harmful things; part time jobs are not good for them, therefore. The fact is actually opposite their belief. Jobs offered to teenagers are almost low- wage and manual ones like baby-sitting, dog walking, pet care or dishwashing. When working, they learn that money does not come easy; then form better spending way.

Moreover, part time jobs are the key open society door. They are exposed to people from variety of backgrounds, so can build communication skill. For example, when working as cashier in a mall, they have to communicate with many people, from a doctor to an entrepreneur, from a rich lady to a poor unemployed person, from a five year boy to an old man; sometimes must handle with awkward situations. Clearly, part time jobs help them get experience prepared to get out in the real world and somehow make them more mature than just sitting at school.

Last but not least, having jobs is a fantastic way to teach teenagers about responsibility and discipline which will be beneficial to them later in life. They must learn how to manage time efficiently so that they can keep up with studying at school. In work, they must be always on time and make sure their task run well.

“A little hard work never hurt anyone”. I totally agree with this saying. Part time jobs give teenagers a lot of benefits that help them to grow up. This experience may be an unforgettable memory in their life.

Topic 2- Mai

Some people believe that university students should be required to attend classes. Others believe that going to classes should be optional for students. Which point of view do you agree with? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.

The biggest difference between high schools and colleges is that colleges treat their students as adults. Children are forced by law to attend school, but adults are not. Therefore, no college student should be required to attend classes.

In fact, some teachers always complain about the students who are absent from classes. They keep conservative opinion that these students are lazy and are forecasted to get bad studying results, then mandatory attendance policy is implemented strictly in their classes. Yet, have they ever wondered if the reason of students’ absence turns out to be their lectures? Some professors just read from Power Point presentation or from books students already have, ramble and ramble about a topic in a monotonous voice, which make students feel sleepy. And because they take points off for missing classes, the motivation for most students to attend classes is to get their points.

College is so much more than just classes; sports, clubs, part-time jobs, social activities like fund raise for charity or organize events...all play an important role on students’ lives and help them perfect their skills besides academics at school. Once in a while, students can not either attend classes or join these activities. They must trade-off, they must manage their time and take responsibilities for what they do. At the age of college students, over 18, they have already reached maturity stage; therefore, can make rational decisions.

In addition, many students can study on their own, they find it more efficiently than just attending lectures. They spend time studying at the library, finding materials by themselves; this way, on the other hand, practices students’ independence in learning. A student who does not attend classes all the time does not mean that he is a lazy and bad one with always low grades. And the core of the issue is that most students enter the colleges with their own free will. In other words, they actually want to study there, they actually want to gain knowledge prepared for their future; hence, they actually don't need much persuasion to attend classes.

In short, I honestly think mandatory attendance policy should not be enforced at college level. Professors are not baby-sits of students who are adults. This policy places a burden on both professors and students; therefore make them uncomfortable when teaching and studying.