English Essay Competition 2018/2019
Gymnรกzium Pavla Horova Michalovce
Contents Preface ........................................................................................................................ 3 Winners ................................................................................................................................ 3
Topics .......................................................................................................................... 4 Svetlana Szántová - “Our house is on fire.” ...................................................................... 5 Daniela Šoltésová - What should an ideal school look like? ............................................. 6 Nika Kocúrová - Does technology damage creativity? ..................................................... 7 Daniel Dzurjo - Travelling is like a book. .......................................................................... 8 Martina Muchová - Travelling is like a book. .................................................................... 9
Preface Is writing a forgotten language skill? This is the question some of the English teachers tend to ask when they face the everyday routine of teaching English through games, dialogues, presentations, all of the mentioned predominantly in a spoken form. A spoken word, a sound produced in the real space, has the charismatic power to influence the people at the time of speaking /which can sometimes be a handicap when you want not to undervalue its content/. In two hundred years, the words we pronounce will definitely be forgotten. However, thanks to the letters transformed into words in a written form, our ideas have a chance to be preserved. The most valuable advances of humankind have been spread and unforgotten in writing. This was one of the reasons why we decided to organise a competition in the skill of writing. Essays, written under the supervision of English teachers in the limited time of 90 minutes, were carefully read and evaluated by the selection committee / consisting of Mrs K. Bušaničová, Mrs Z. Hospodárová and Ms A.Luteranová/. The number of students taking part in the activity reached 15. Despite the fact that the students were not categorised into groups according to their age level, the first-year students showed a refreshing, promising talent. In the selection of 9 topics, the most popular one was about travelling. Even though many of the authors chose the same title, their style and ideas expressed were as diverse as unique their imagination and souls are. Students could use English dictionaries but the use of the Internet translator was forbidden. As to the criteria of evaluation, they were based more on creativity and imagination rather than on applying grammar rules. In the process of realisation, we met with many challenges. Nevertheless, we firmly hope that the practice of writing can be one of the steps how students can develop their command of English to complexity.
Winners 1st prize:
Svetlana Szántová, 3.F
2nd prize:
Nika Kocúrová, 1.C Daniela Šoltésová, 2.C
3rd prize:
Daniel Dzurjo, 1.C Martina Muchová, 2.C
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Topics 1. Does technology damage creativity? /Opinion Essay/ 2. „Our house is on fire, “says Greta Thunberg, a 15-year-old Swedish activist in the protest against climate crisis joining young people all around the world. What should we do to save our planet for future generations? /Persuasive essay/ 3. Mobile phones and young people – who is the master? /Opinion essay/ 4. What should an ideal school look like? /Opinion essay/ 5. Will traditional textbooks be replaced by computer notebooks? /Pros and cons essay/ 6. Do I feel about myself to be more a Slovak or a European? /Opinion essay/ 7. If I had a time machine... /Narrative essay/ 8. Travelling is like a book. And people who do not travel cannot read it. /Opinion essay/ 9. The beauty of Slovak art, customs and folklore. Should we take care of our national heritage? /Opinion essay/
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Svetlana Szántová
“Our house is on fire,” says Greta Thunberg, a 15-year old Swedish activist in the protest against climate crisis joining young people all around the world. What should we do to protect our planet for future generations? In 2012 the whole world was expecting catastrophic scenarios. The calendar predicted that the end is here and everybody believed it was true. Now, when we have scientific proofs that it will not take long until we destroy our planet, everybody has chosen to ignore it. Until one day when a young Swedish girl has risen her voice. We can see that in recent years more and more people are becoming aware of their daily actions. We can see the influences supporting zero-waste alternatives and this conscious lifestyle of famous people changes the mind-set of the whole world. What can you do to support Greta? Simply, daily actions. Starting with saying no to plastic. It is the step number one and, in my view, also the easiest one. The market offers us so many alternatives for products from drinking straws to toothbrushes. Sustainable options may be a little bit more long-lasting but in the long term they will save your money. If you live in a place where work, schools and shops are close to your home, walk or ride a bike. People nowadays are getting so comfortable but they would rather drive themselves to work even if it was right next door. This solution is beneficial not only for the environment, but for your health as well. Another point is cutting down on the amount of food waste. Many times we can hear the phrase: „Children in Africa have nothing to eat and you are wasting with water/ food like that! “ And I cannot agree more. The best way of eliminating this type of waste is home-cooked food. The whole family can eat it and you will also prevent buying and throwing away useless plastic packaging from takeaways. And what to do with leftovers? If you have a house, build a compost bin, or as my family, collect it somewhere and you can bring it to someone who keeps pigs. I am sure they will be thankful. The next question is what to do if you are on a holiday. You do not have your eco-utensils there, no bamboo straws, etc. What I do is that I take everything from home. Well, not everything, but the things like paper straws, wooden utensils, canvas, bags... Everything you can bring from home helps to prevent from creating extra waste. The last one of the things I would like to mention is that when you are swimming somewhere near coral reefs, do not stand on them! Not knowing about it, many people stand on them, which causes their dying. We kill them already with unconscious lifestyle that affects the world climate. The rising temperature of the oceans causes bleaching of corals, which is the first stage of their death. With no real reefs we have no algae, no food for fish, no home for fish, we have no marine life. I think everyone knows how it would affect the mechanism of the whole world if one part died out. I try to live as conscious as possible and that is why I know it is not easy. Probably the reason why it is so hard for us is that we are selfish. We always think and consider what the easiest way would be and, as we all know, life is not about choosing the easiest way. After all, we can see where these easy ways have led us. What Greta did and still does is the most selfless thing because she does it for the next generations. As one man said: „The one who plants trees knowing he won't sit in their shadow has understood the meaning of life. “ That is exactly what Thunberg did. She understood the meaning of life, but what is more, she wants to explain it to us as well
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Daniela Šoltésová
What should an ideal school look like? Nowadays, everybody is used to the system applied in our schools. Every little child is told to obey their teachers, to keep the head down and listen. From the early beginning, schools make us all the same. As expressed in Pink Floyd ́s song lyrics: “Another brick in the wall.” The result of the years spent in the present school system is a group of unhappy, not creative people living and working for this society. The question is: What should the ideal school look like? I would start with the appearance of the buildings we call schools. Many classrooms I have seen were dark, furnished with the old equipment because of the lack of money. Nevertheless, as many people say - our children are our future - and if we cannot give them a pleasant place to grow up, it cannot be certain what our world will look like. As I know, students are not allowed to go outside the school even though scientists proved that staying in nature is beneficial for physical as well as mental health. Why could not our teachers teach us outside? I believe everybody would feel better then. The next issue I would like to point out is the unimportance of grading. If every little child had an internal motivation to learn new things, nothing similar to marks would have to exist. Teachers give marks to students because they know that children would not be interested in doing anything without the sureness of a reward. To my mind, an ideal school would be voluntary. Children would go there because they want to, not because they have to. Classrooms would be furnished colourfully with cosy sofas and places to sit. The space would motivate students to be creative. Every student could pick up the subjects he or she wants to study. Teachers would not assign us tests or check our knowledge, instead of it they would just lecture presentations in many different fields of interest. No marks would be given, no rewards would be needed. Every student would learn the things that interest him. I am certain that we can change everything when we want to, provided that more money is invested in the healthy evolution of children being born in the 21st century by the government. Try asking students if they like the style it goes in the schools we have, and they will reveal many ideas about the way the ideal schools should look like. There could be some exceptions but I would guarantee they would not prevail in opinions.
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Nika Kocúrová
Does technology damage creativity? People often say that technology is damaging creative thinking as well as the characters of young people. Does it really cause so much of harm? It surely cannot be only my parents and grandparents who think that the kids and adolescents of this century are trapped by modern technological inventions. They think that since we spend a lot of time sitting with our mobile phones and laptops in our hands, we are slowly losing our creativity. Although it all makes sense and we can see that young people have a problem with using a pen and paper, I do not think technologies are so horrifying. Let us see it from a different point of view – the point of view of a young person who has grown up in these terribly technological times. How many people in the 70 ́s or the 90 ́s could really experience all of the things like travelling, singing, writing, etc.? We can do all of them if we have the resources. We can be creative with the clothes and make-up we wear, which is a kind of art as well. The Internet is full of people who use their creativity to earn money, e.g. fashion designers, writers, musicians and other artists who can freely represent their souls and opinions through the things they love. Is it really such a bad thing that a 16-yearold girl or a boy can publish their own book? Or is it so elementary that you can write a song and release it on a viral site so that other users can see it? Then you just have to wait for the right person to discover it. Furthermore, our parents are not completely off. How many of the students are instead of writing their homework to develop their skills, copying it from the Internet or even worse – rewriting it from their classmates? To conclude the subject, I would say that technology can be a great source of creativity if we are able to use it for the right purpose. They can help us reveal our positive thoughts and all the good energy into the world among all of the people we do not know. We can make new friends, learn languages online and we are able to do the things that make us happy. We can use technology for bad or for good and I hope we are clever enough to make the right decision.
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Martina Muchovรก
Travelling is like a book. And people who do not travel cannot find it. Earth. Such a masterpiece. Every country, every place, every little spot. Magical and special when we have our eyes wide open. In my opinion, not to speak of this glowing beauty would be such a shame. Nowadays, thanks to modern planes, boats, cars and via many other modes, we are capable of travelling in so many ways that not to travel is literally a sin. Many people are scared of being in unknown places. They feel frustrated and afraid of things going wrong, maybe losing their bags or getting lost. To be honest, people who are more likely to be in their comfort zone, will always find an excuse not to travel. As I see it, exploring the magic of our Earth, having this thrilling feeling when we finally reach the destination is such a blessing. I myself have been dreaming about it for a long time. That is the reason why I cannot identify with the people who underestimate the value of travelling. Sometimes when I go to bed and dream of sitting under the Eiffel Tower, walking near adorable tiny houses in Amsterdam, or standing under a big statue of Jesus in Rio de Janeiro, I think of travelling as if it was a book. A very rare, unique, extraordinary book. Every chapter can be written by weather about different places, unexpected adventures, every chapter in this book can be written so well that a reader would want to read it all over and over again. But I honestly think that the desire to read this book, not to be scared, not to doubt about yourself and just to go, travel and see all this magic is a blessing. It takes courage to step out of your comfort zone and to experience this adventure of travelling. It is the only way how to read, but what is more important - to live the book called Escape from Reality. In my opinion, the people who do not want to travel and want to stay only in one place forever are the saddest ones. I think they live their unhappy lives full of everyday struggles. I may be wrong but as I see it, they have only a few pretty memories they can think about when they are in a bad mood. Compared to a man who overcomes plenty of problems and bad days, a traveller can immediately start thinking about all the adventures, laughter, beautiful places and get in a better mood. In my view, only a person who travels can have a fulfilled life. I would recommend every single person just to go and I promise that he or she would not be disappointed at all. Because for me, when I get old, I will tell stories and show pictures to my grandchildren during a cold winter evening, with a cup of hot chocolate in our hands.
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Daniel Dzurjo
Travelling is like a book. And people who do not travel cannot read it. Travelling - the way of moving from one place to another. For eternity, the path in which humankind has evolved and the way it has created numerous cultures. It is a part of our lives, our jobs, our relaxation and our hobby as well. You can be a traveller every time you go out from your home to the next city, town or to other nations. And after you finally return, are you not feeling better or accomplished? You may or you may not be. You can also feel stressed-out and exhausted, but in many cases, it is not like that. Nowadays, more and more people can travel to other countries. It is good to discover new cultures and their national heritage. However, there still are few people or nations where you cannot or they cannot travel because of their political system and partly because of their own problems. We can clearly see that old people do not travel as often as those who are young. What is more, very often the elderly know about the world more than the youth. It is also the matter of the place where you were born and have been raised. In my opinion, if you are travelling, you are constantly maturing and you are going through valuable experiences of life. Some people take travelling as their job or as a part of their jobs. For a great example, we can take pilots. Always in the air, always in other states or with other nations. They are not in touch with their family for many parts of a year. However, it is their passion to fly, travel and help our society to travel. Another example can be biologists or discoverers going to extreme places on our Earth. A large majority of the people, like pilots or travellers, are happy to do what their dream job is. In contrast to it, there are some people who feel more exhausted and stressed-out while they are travelling. In these cases, the actual meaning of valuable experiences and life-lasting memories is less important. Travelling is meant to be adventurous but also refreshing for our mind and body. We can clearly see how discovering new cultures affects us or has affected our health. There is much evidence showing us that we have learned more from others than from ourselves. By discovering a route to Asia, Marco Polo also brought back the new methods of treatment. Unfortunately, more illnesses have spread across Earth and killed a lot of people. Basically, however, the history of mankind is written in the letters of travelling and discovering. In conclusion, you can read our past, see our present and vision our future via travelling. The more people will discover from other places, the more innovative and progressing they will be. If you are not afraid of it, I am sure you must jump right to it. Travelling is a path of human understanding and constant changing.
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