The introduction discusses altruism from multiple perspectives such as genetics and evolution. It defines altruism and provides background on studies of altruism. The essay aims to examine altruism from an evolutionary perspective and identify three motivating factors for altruism that will be evaluated.

1. Introductions and Conclusions

2. IntroductionsActivity One – In pairs
You are going to introduce yourself to your
partner.
Think for a few minutes about what you are
going to say.
You cannot ask each other questions -only listen.
Activity Two
Now introduce you partner to the rest of the
group.

3. Analysis
Order
Name
Age
Course
Place from
Hobbies/
interests
General
Specific
Hobbies
Interesting Fact
Course
Name
Age
General
Specific- related
to what we found
interesting or
significant.
Introduction Conclusion
Did you use the same
order for the
information?

5. Assignment Question
Critically evaluate approaches to
the teaching of prepositions to
language learners.
Activity Three
You have a number of sentences.
Some of these sentences are from
of the introduction to this essay.
Some are from the conclusion.
Work together to separate the
sentences into their groups and
put them in order.

6. Introduction
6. The use of prepositions in English has always been problematic for
language learners. 5. These small connecting words do not necessarily
exist in other languages, or may not have exactly the same meanings.
8. This makes teaching of this area very difficult, and research
(Lindstromberg 1998, Brala 2002) indicates that no single method has
yet proved successful. 2. The essay which follows gives a brief history
of prepositional theory and discusses two major teaching strategies
from a cognitive linguistic perspective.
Critically evaluate approaches to
the teaching of prepositions to
language learners.
Focus on the question.
Moving to more
specific analysis of
the issues.
Addressing the
question directly and
highlighting line of
argument.
Signalling the
structure of
the rest of
the essay.

7. Essential
• Give background and context
moving from the general to the
particular.
• Provide a rationale for
researching and writing the text.
• State the overall purpose and
aims of the text.
• State how the whole text is
organised.
Optional
• Gain the reader’s interest by
offering a hook or an opening
statement.
• Present evidence and citations
to support your argument.
• State limitations e.g. to previous
research, to the current text.
• Indicate the conclusions of the
text.
Features of
Introductions

8. Conclusion
7. In conclusion, it is apparent that the most effective element in teaching
of English articles is the reinforcement of the notion of countability.
4. The evidence presented here suggests that learners do not use
articles randomly, but that they choose articles according to whether or
not the noun is countable.
3. The concept of definiteness in relation to articles remains, however,
more problematic, and needs further investigation.
1. Despite these problems, it is possible for teachers to make a positive
contribution to learners’ knowledge in this important area.
Signalling the end of the
essay. Addressing the
question and the line of
argument.
Critically evaluate approaches to
the teaching of prepositions to
language learners.
Summary of the
points raised in the
essay.
Suggestion for
further research,
based on analysis of
the research.
Ultimate statement –
must link to the
evidence and
conclusions presented
in the main body.

9. Conclusion

10. Features of Conclusions
• Recap of the topic/thesis statement
• Summary of the main points of the
essay
• Reference to the findings of research
• Acknowledging the limitations of the
essay
• Identifying areas for further research
• Comment on the implications/
applications of the findings
• Offer predictions for future
developments
• Always part of a conclusion
• Evaluation/ comment on other feature
• May be part of the conclusion
depending on assignment type and
purpose

11. Language
Click the image to access
the Phrasebank.
Language for
your
introductions.
Language for
your
conclusions.

12. Look at this example essay
introduction.
Can you predict what the
student is going to write
about- in each of her body
paragraphs?
Can you identify her line of
argument or opinion?
It has long been recognised that human behaviour does not
always have to be focused towards the gain of the individual and
their circle of family and friends. Many people behave in
altruistic ways that seem to help unknown people for no obvious
reason, for example, by giving money to distant charities.
Altruism may be defined as ‘ helping behaviour that is motivated
by a selfless concern for the welfare of another person.’
(Psychology and Society, n.d.). This phenomenon has been
studied from a number of perspectives. The work of Reuter,
Frenzel, Walter, Markett and Montag (2011.pp.662-668)
approaches the issue from a genetic perspective, identifying the
neurotransmitter dopamine as a key factor affecting human
altruism. Other research adopts an evolutionary perspective,
investigating group selection as an explanation for altruism. A
key reason for the importance of understanding altruistic
behaviour is the increasing influence of the charity and non-
profit sectors in many economies. This essay aims to examine
altruistic behaviour from an evolutionary perspective, leading to
three possible motivating factors, which are then evaluated.

13. It has long been recognised that human behaviour does not
always have to be focused towards the gain of the
individual and their circle of family and friends. Many
people behave in altruistic ways that seem to help
unknown people for no obvious reason, for example, by
giving money to distant charities. Altruism may be defined
as ‘ helping behaviour that is motivated by a selfless
concern for the welfare of another person.’ (Psychology and
Society, n.d.). This phenomenon has been studied from a
number of perspectives. The work of Reuter, Frenzel,
Walter, Markett and Montag (2011.pp.662-668) approaches
the issue from a genetic perspective, identifying the
neurotransmitter dopamine as a key factor affecting human
altruism. Other research adopts an evolutionary
perspective, investigating group selection as an explanation
for altruism. A key reason for the importance of
understanding altruistic behaviour is the increasing
influence of the charity and non- profit sectors in many
economies. This essay aims to examine altruistic behaviour
from an evolutionary perspective, leading to three possible
motivating factors, which are then evaluated.
Opening
statement
Giving background
and context by
moving from the
general to the
particular.
Defining core
terms.
Giving background
and context by
moving from the
general to the
particular.
Presenting evidence
and citations to support
your argument.
Providing a rationale for
researching and writing
the text.
Thesis Statement
Outlines the
structure and aims
of the essay.