How to tackle an essay

 HOW TO TACKLE ENGLISH ESSAY PAPER 

CSS is a highly subjective exam, which means tips, tricks, and methods of study vary for different candidates. What worked for one person, may not work for others and what led others to success may land me to the murky waters of failure. So, these are NOT hard and fast rules for allocation and passing CSS examination in Pakistan.. 

A few guideline for you that may help you in handling topic of CSS essay 

1. First of all, Try on to be as simple as possible. You should have a good set of vocabulary to avoid repetition but don't use flowery language or fancy vocabulary. It won't do any good, in fact, it may harm you. But too simple and too wordy both are dangerous. 

2. Needless to say, the outline is very important So, when the paper is given to you then select 2-3 topics on which you can write the essay. Then quickly decide on which topic you can write the best essay and select that topic. 

            (i) Brainstorm and prepare a rough outline in just around 10-15 mins. Then, prepare a                                 comprehensive outline on that topic within 20 minutes and either write it with a pencil or                         write it in the area designated for rough work. It should be done so as to accommodate any                     new ideas generated while writing an essay. 

            (ii) Make sure that your essay should be organized according to outline.

            (iii)  20 points or ideas in are sufficient because you write each paragraph on each outline

            (iii) A void repetition of words

            (iv) Outline should be self explanaotry and clarify the thought you want to convey.    

3. Then prepare the Introduction. Write it in the rough first and then amend it and when the final draft is prepared and seems good to you then write it in the paper. The introduction must be to the point and contains main idea of your topic. Examiner can judge your perspective and approach in introduction and outline of your essay. At the end of the introduction, write the Thesis Statement. It should be precise, not much long, and catchy as well. This shows your understanding and view of the given topic.

4. Now start writing your essay according to outline. Remember not to miss any heading in your outline because if you do that, the examiner will easily catch you and they are very harsh about that. If you think you will not be able to conclude your essay then omit some headings and remove these from the outline as well. 

                    (i) Believe in your self and try to write best ever of your whole life. 

                    (ii) Always write in your own words. Don't memorize whole paragraphs. The examiners are                             experienced teachers and they can easily detect such acts. 

                    (iii) justify your argument with quotations, references and little bit facts. there must be 10 to                         15 references in whole of your essay. and don't use different color marker or pen to                                 highlight important points. 

5. The conclusion of the essay should be on an optimistic note, if possible. It's like a summary of your essay.

6. Quotations, facts, figures can help you in the essay but these aren't necessary (if the essay is factual then facts are must). Your arguments in your own words matter the most so focus on that.

7. Write at least 10 -15 essays before final examination and check, discuss and rewrite on various other topics. and for that purpose finalize the topics and write on that. avoid grammar and spelling mistakes. develop intra and and inter paragraph coherence.    

8. Much focus of checking is on the outline, introduction including thesis statement and conclusion but it's a myth that body paragraphs aren't checked. They check all the parts of the essay so don't be lenient or careless while writing the body paragraphs.

10. An essay is nothing but a collection of paragraphs so if you wanna write a good essay then start practicing paragraph writing. There are many models but the generally followed one is Topic Sentence (much like Thesis Statement of the paragraph)-Body (where you will use argument to prove your point) and Conclusion (where you will be starting the sentence with adverbs or adverbial phrases like Hence, Thus, Therefore, As a result, etc.

11. Try to avoid controversial and literary topics if you don't have enough grip on those topics, then don't write on these topics. Always focus on general topics like social, economic, global warming, climatic change, human security issues etc. 

12. During your practice session ask your mentor to make a statement of your topic as appear in Past papers of CSS. It will help you a lot.