1. SURCON PROFESSIONAL TUTORIAL SERIES
TOPIC: THE ESSAY
OBIAGELI NNAMANI (Ph.D)
ENUGU STATE UNIVERSITY OF
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY,ENUGU
By
2. Whatshouldbefoundin an essay?
• Introduction, body & Conclusion
• Introduction- The question must be mentioned, main points
for answering question must be stated, NOT explained.
• Body- Main points stated in introduction explained,elaborated
one by one.One point= one paragraph
• Conclusion- Wrap up, re-state main points or suggest solution
• No mixture.3 parts must stand out.
3. TheEssay-Introduction
• What is expected in an introduction?
.
• a.General statements related to the question or quotation
relevant to the question-.
• b. A sentence containing the question- to keep writer on track.
• c. Main points that address the question- this is the most
important aspect of the introduction.
4. Questioninterpretation.
.
• Survey Question 1: The use of local origin in the advent of
CORS has rendered such a surveyor obsolete. Discuss
• What does this question require?
5. • Parallel Question: The use of the blackboard in the classroom has
rendered some lecturers obsolete. Discuss
• What does this question require/ what is the examiner looking for?
• A comparison between use of blackboard and computer.
6. Introduction-aplace for stating mainpoints,not
elaborating.Whatshouldbeinanintroduction?
• Introduction- The continual use of the blackboard in the
classroom has rendered some lecturers obsolete. (Sentence
containing question) The blackboard was used by teachers
from the 30s to the late 80s . Though the blackboard served
its purpose at the time, it was highly limited in its operations.
(General statement related to the answer)From the early 80s,
the computer was introduced to classrooms in advanced
countries. The computer enables teachers to do the
following: teach students with a power point, google
information in the classroom, give students assignments via
the internet and students summit same via the email.(Main
Points)
7. Compare two introductions
• Survey Question 2: Topographical maps covering the whole
country are obsolete and technologically outdated. Discuss
the problems and the way out.
• Answer 1- Topographical maps take time to be produced.Most
equipment used for the production of these maps were
manual.Production of topographical maps are capital
intensive.Updates are not regularly carried out.The way out is
the use of modern equipment and continous updating.
• Point weakness of this introduction?
8. Introductions
• Answer 2-Topographical mapping covering the whole country
are obsolete and technologically outdated.This is because of
the poor mapping policy in Nigeria,poor funding of mapping
projects and lack of technological know-how in using modern
mapping softawares.These prob;lems can however be curbed
by enacting good mapping policy,improvd fundingof mapping
projects and retraining of personnels on mapping softwares.
• What are the strengths?
9. Introduction-strengthsandweaknesses
• Weakness of Answer 1:
• Question not visible in the answer
• Answers are in form of bullet points. No coherence.The
sentences in an essay should flow.
• Strength of Answer 2
• a.Question is mentioned early in the answer.
• b. Sentences cohere,sentence fluency or interconnectivity-
There is a connection between sentence 1 and sentence 2.This
is achieved through the use of “This is because….”
• Connection between sentence 2 &3 is achieved
through..”These problems can,however ,be curbed by…”
10. Body- Opening sentence of each paragraph must
contain the main point for that paragraph
• The computer enables teachers to teach students with a
power point ; therefore, the teacher who uses a blackboard is
old fashioned. {Old fashioned is another word for obsolete}
• The NIS & SURCON have been in a legal battle for a while.This
has caused wastage,severed relationships reduced the full
participation and has impacted on the practice of some
registered surveyors. {Introduction}
• Firstly,both bodies have engaged the services of lawyers.
Thereby spending the funds meant for developing the bodies.
• Identify the weakness of the opening sentence of the second
paragraph?
11. • Survey Question 3:The National Boundary Commission for
political stability national peace and development. Prospects
and Problems.
• Answer- The national boundary Commission plays an
important role in the political stability ,national peace and
development through the following ways:It enhances national
unity,improves local businesses, improves the social economic
development of the people.
• Identify the weakness of this introduction?
12. Body of Essay- In elaborating, never lose sight of the key
words in the question : blackboard & obsolete
• The computer enables teachers google information in the
classroom. As you explain, show the advantage of computer
over the blackboard.
• -If you focus on only the computer without mentioning the
blackboard, you are not fully addressing the question.
• Mentioning blackboard in the elaboration is one way of
keeping the question in view.
• Likewise, discussing local origin without mentioning CORS in
your answer will undermine you.
13. • Survey Question 4
• Some surveyors believe that controls are now in the sky
hence there is no need for control densification. Discuss
• Points to Guide Answer.
• The position of satellites in the sky are known at any point.
• The positions of controls station on ground are also known but
they are far and wide and need connections.
• GPS positions are instantaneous.
• Only DGPS equipments can bring the satellite coordinates to
millimetre accuracy. Therefore ground control stations are still
needed for surveyors using Digital Theodolites, Total Stations
and level instruments.
14. Survey question 5
Surveyor -Generals are project managers and not programme
managers. Discuss
a. A project manager manages one project at a time.
b.A programme manager manages many projects wthin a Survey
programme.
A Surveyor General is a consultant Surveyor.He or she manages
many projects within the Survey department of a state.
Therefore, he is a programme manager.
16. TheReadwriteConnection
• The reader must learn to write from what others have written.
The ability does not come through deliberate formal analyses
{English lessons} because what is learned is much too intricate
and subtle. There is not enough time to learn the complexities
of register ,genre, spelling, form etc through DIRECT AND
DELIBERATE study….In short, readers must read like writers in
order to write like writers” (Hudson,2007:269)
• Sentence patterns rob off on readers; punctuation, spellings…
• The best way to learn a language is to live among the native
speakers. The second best way to learn a language is to read
extensively in that language. Christine Nuttul ( 1979:24)
17. Aswedrawthecurtains,ponderon thefollowing…
• “If the first button of a man’s coat is wrongly buttoned,all
the rest are certain to be crooked. Reading is the first button
in the garment of education”- Giordano Bruno
• “Every failure in school is a failure in reading.”
Onukaogu,2005
“Reading skills do not guarantee success for anyone, but
success is much harder to come by without being a skilled
reader.” (Garbe,2009)
18. PracticalWritingSession
• Attempt a full introduction , first sentences of the body and
conclusion of any of the 3 Survey questions.
• Submit 2 copies of your answer.
27. ResearchInstrument:1
Entire chapters of prose texts under examination:
Recommended texts for 2013 literature in -English National
Examination Council (NECO) examination:
i.Lord of the Flies –written by a male, British, William Golding.
ii.Purple Hibiscus- written by a female Nigerian from south-
eastern Nigeria, same location as the study population,
Chimamanda Adichie.
iii. A Woman in her Prime- written by a male, Ghanian,Asare
Konadu
28. ResearchInstrument2: FleschReadabilityFormula
• Flesch Readability formula –Most publicized Readability test Formula; Easy and
Cheap; Math Behind Microsoft Office (Dubay,2007:56)
• Position on a scale of 0 (difficult) to 100 (easy),with 30=very difficult & 70 easy.
• ASL=Average Sentence length (the number of words divided by the number of
sentences)
• ASW=average number of syllables per word(No of syllables divided by no of words
• A.Count 100 words in a text-100
• B.Count number of syllables in 100 words=125
• C.Count number of sentences within 100 words=5
• ASW=B ÷ A= 1.25X84.6=105.75.
• ASL=A ÷ C=20 X 1.015=20.3
• 105.75+20.3=127.217
• 206.835- 127.217=79.6% Readability score
29. ResearchInstrument3:Clozetest
Cloze test (Taylor,1953)- Comprehensibility test .Best measure
of word difficulty is not words but how words relate to each
other. Those who understand passage will be able to fill gaps.
3 passages from each prose text .Each passage selected
from beginning, middle and end of each prose text. Each
passage made up of 100 words,
First and last sentences in each passage left intact to provide
background for readers.
Every 5th word deleted in passage. Total of 50 deleted spaces
created in each passage.
30. ResearchInstrument3,4 &5
3-Descriptive statistics: Results of cloze test subjected to
descriptive statistics:Mean,Frequency
Percentages
4-Corpus Analysis: Sentence count of :
Simple sentences, compound sentences, compound complex
sentences; asyndetic sentences, code mixing elements,
parallel sentences , colloquial , number of logopeia, unfamiliar
words, double negative constructions
linguistic analysis of prose texts using checklist
5: Teachers’ Questionnaire & Interview
Instruments validated by a Professor of English and an
Associate Professor in Linguistics.
31. Chapter4:Results&Findings
Lord of the Flies
A.No of words = 100
B.No of syllables in words= 125
C.No of sentences=5
B ÷ A= 125 ÷100=1.25X84.6=105.75
A ÷ C=100 ÷ 5= 20X1.015=20.3
105.75+20.30=127.217
206.835-127.217=79.6%
Purple Hibiscus= 76%
A Woman in Her Prime=74%
33. Results&Findings
Golding’s Lord of the Flies= 50 % of entire study population did
not answer correctly more than 17 out of 50 questions.
Text is difficult
Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus= 50% of population answered
correctly 41 or less out of 50 questions.
Text =Readable &Comprehensible
Konadu’s A Woman in Her Prime= 50% scored 34 out of 50
questions= Readable &Comprehensible
36. FindingsfromCorpusanalysisofLordoftheFlies
Examples of unfamiliar words:
i.Ralph pursed his lips and squirted air into the shell….p.23
ii…Piggy snivelled and Simon shushed him quickly…..p.86
iii.Can I borrow yours, Ralph ,to make a nick in the hilt…?p.87
iv.A shadow fronted him tempestuously. P.113
v.As though they were serenading the rising sun, Jack went on …p.155
Examples of double negative constructions:
i.We never done nothing, we never seen nothing. Nobody don’t know.p.20
ii.Nobody don’t know that we’re here. Your dad don’t know. Nobody don’t
know.
iii.The most important thing on the island is the smoke and you can’t have
no smoke without fire.p.160
iv.It’s them that haven’t no common sense that make trouble on the
island.p.164
v.I didn’t vote for no ghost.p.113
37. Table5
PercentagesandFrequenciesofTeachers’Questionnaire
Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus
n (%)
Golding’s Lord of the flies
n (%)
Woman in her prime
n (%)
Level of
difficulty
Difficult to
understand
0 (0.0) 11 (22.0) 0 (0.0)
Simple and
easy to
understand
44 (88.0) 5 (10.0) 40 (80.0)
Technical and
incomprehensi
ble
0 (0.0) 28 (56.0) 0 (0.0)
Literal and
comprehensibl
e
0 (0.0) 6 (12.0) 10 (20.0))
None of the
above
6 (12.0) 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0)
Strange
Idioms and
proverbs
Yes 0 (0.0) 39 (78.0) 6 (12.0)
No 50 (100.0) 11 (22.0) 44 (88.0)
Appropriate
use of figures
of speech
Yes 50 (100.0) 16 (32.0) 44 (88.0)
No 0 (0.0) 34 (68.0) 6 (12.0)
Most
commonly
used sentence
types
38. Results&Findings
10% of the teachers agreed that Lord of the Flies is easy to understand.
This finding agreed with cloze test result which showed that 50% did not
score up to 17 out of 50 questions. However disagreed with Flesch test
result which placed readability rating of text at 80%.
88% of teachers noted that Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus is easy to understand
This result collaborates findings of both cloze test where 50% scored 41
out of 50 questions and Flesch Readability formula which placed the
readability scale of the text at 76%
80% believed A Woman in her Prime is easy .Collaborates positively with
Flesch readability formula result which placed the readability scale of the
text at 74% and cloze tests results which showed that 50% of population
had 34 out of 50
39. Chapter5:DiscussionofFindings
Predominance of rare words, unfamiliar background and
negative constructions made Lord of the Flies difficult for
study population.
Even though Purple Hibiscus is a very long for reluctant
readers, familiarity with background of text, predominance of
simple sentences and code-mixing elements made it readable
to study population.
Some literature in English teachers,even in private schools, do
not read recommended texts they teach.
Teaching a book repeatedly can make a difficult text an easy
–read therefore teachers require objective tool to measure
text readability.
40. Discussionof Findings:2
Most texts used in primary and secondary schools were
written by university teachers and some university teachers
write difficult- to read -texts .
Readability is not a yardstick for book selection in secondary
schools in Nigeria.
Book selection in secondary schools in Nigeria depends on
teachers’ subjective choice, influence of publishers or
government.
41. Chapter6:Summary,Conclusion&
Recommendation
Study focused on need to ascertain readability profiles of prose texts
recommended for NECO & WASC examinations.
Language –intricate, complex , building blocks of literary creativity.
Language could aid or mar text readability.
Only one of three texts is unreadable.
Though two texts are readable students still fared poorly in
literature in English examinations.Therefore low readability appears
not to be the reason why students are not reading recommended
prose texts.
Linguistic features responsible for text difficulty of Lord of the Flies
include rare words double negative constructions, & unfamiliar
background
42. Recommendation
To overcome reading phobia among students, writers could
adopt lassiez- faire readability- a process where demand of
students determine what writers supply.(De George et
al,1984:110)
This means writers study linguistic patterns in texts that
students enjoy and use such in writing academic texts,
including prose texts.
Government, school authorities and teachers should use
objective tools to measure readability profiles of texts used in
schools,not personal opinion or experience of teachers.
Sufficient background should be provided where author
comes from a background different from that of the students.
43. ContributionstoScholarship
• 1.Positive correlation between readability of prose texts & comprehension.
• 2.Logopeia in prose texts affects readability and comprehensibility of prose
texts.
• 3.Unfamiliar words and double negative constructions impede readability of
texts.
• 4.Recursion &inversion in language of prose texts can cause readability
challenges.
• 5.Semantic and comprehension problems created by asyndetic co-
ordination structures can be ameliorated by use of simple diction and
familiar background.
• 6.Texts can be readable without being comprehensible. Aligns with finding
of Doak,Doak & Root:1996:28
• 7.By identifying elements that cause difficulty, study provided benchmarks
which stakeholders can apply in selection of prose texts
44. Contributionstoscholarship
• Applied linguistics is using what we know about language to
solve problems in the real world;
• Using what we know about how language is learned to solve
challenges in schools, government, in society. ( Schmitt &
Mucia,2010:1).
• This study is deeply rooted in applied linguistics because it has
increased our knowledge of text characteristics that facilitate
• reading & those that make weak readers drop a text.
• By identifying elements that cause text difficulty, this study
has provided benchmarks which those responsible for taking
language related decisions in schools can apply during book
selection processes.
45. References
Adesonye,Festus (2000) ‘”On Communication and Mass Communication in
Nigeria” http:lib.mus.edu
Akere, Funso ( 1995) “Languages in the Curriculum: An Assessment of
the Role of English and Other Languages in the Education
Delivery Process in Nigeria” In New Englishes: A West African
Perspective (eds) Ayo Bamgbose,Ayo Banjo & Andrew Thomas
Ibadan:Mosuro
Cummins,J ( 1979) “Linguistics Interdependence and educational
development of Bilingual children.” Review of Educational
Research 49,222-251
Cunningham,Anne and Keith E.Stannovich ( 1998) “What Reading Does
for the Mind”In American Educator Spring/Summer
46. References
DeGeorge,James,Gary A.Olson & Richard Ray (1984) Style and
Readability in Technical Writing: A Sentence-Combining
Approach. New York: McGraw- Hill
Maduka,C.T (2007) “The Igbo in World Culture” Goodbye to Identity”
Journal of Igbo Studies Vol. 2 pp.14- 20
National Examination Council Chief Examiners’Report ( 2007) Ibadan:
Stirling –Horden Publishers Ltd
Nuttall Christine ( 1996) Teaching Reading Skills in a Foreign Language.
Oxford:Macmillian
Ohiri-Anichie Chinyere (2001)” Language Endangerment Among a
majority group: The Case of Igbo” Being a Paper
presented at the Nigerian Millennium Sociologist
Conference University of Lagos Nigeria Aug 16-18
47. References
• Okoye,Ifeoma ( 1996) The Language of Social Science Research Report: A
Report of a Research Sponsored by the Social Science
Association of Nigeria,Lagos
• Oluipke, Benson (1979) “Can a knowledge of Grammar make us Better
Writers”In The Teaching of English Studies (ed) Ebo
Ubahakwe.Ibadan:Ibadan University Press pp.46-54
• Pilkulski, John I ( 2002) Readability New York: Houghton, Muffin
• Umole, Joanne and Oyetunde ,Timothy O (1991) “Matching Texts With
Readers: Beyond Readability Formulas” In Literacy and Reading
Vol.5,pp.243-253
• Widdowson, H.G (1985) “The Teaching, learning and Study of Literature”
in Randolph and H.G Widdowson (Eds) English in the World
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