English Pointer Sheet
(Q2w1)
A social issue can be seen as a problem that has an impact on individuals in society.
❖ Social Issues as Theme Literature has always been one effective way to explore and address
social issues in human culture. Stories, plays, and other types of fictional media often have
some social or cultural concern embedded in the thematic background of a narrative.
A social issue is some problem or concern connected to a larger issue that affects society in
general. Often, the social issues brought forward in fiction reflect contemporary concerns in the
author's own world. This type of issue in literature often shows up as a theme that affects the
plot and outcome of the story. In reading a text, there are many types of social issues
developed by an author:
1. Global Issues: social issues that affect the entire world.
2. National Issues or Regional Issues: social issues that affect a particular country or region (e.g.
Philippines, Mindanao); or
3. Local issues: social issues that affect people more locally in their communities, schools or
places of work.
List of common social issues presented by writers in a text:
• Racial discrimination, abortion, suicide, and drug addiction, human trafficking
A social issue is a problem or concern connected to a larger issue that affects society in general.
• It is important to remember that as you read, new issues will be revealed. It is important to
make notes while reading and, of course, read the entire book/text.
• Ask yourself how the plot line is affected by aspects of the world depicted in the story.
• Determine which aspects of societal problems in the fictional world change the actions of the
characters and the outcome of the narrative
Social problems are the general factors that affect and damage society. Also known as social
issues sometimes. A social problem is normally a term used to describe problems with a
particular area or group of people in the world. Social problems often involve problems that
affect the real world. It also affects how people react to certain situations.
A social issue or problem is an issue that has been recognized by society as a problem that is
preventing society from functioning at an optimal level. It is essential to understand that not all
things that occur in society are raised to the level of social problems. Four factors have been
outlined that seem to characterize a social issue or problem. These include:
1. The public must recognize the situation as a problem.
2. The situation is against the general values accepted by society.
3. A large segment of the population recognizes the problem as a valid concern.
4. The problem can be rectified or alleviated through the joint action of citizens and community
(Q2w3)
What is linear text? Linear text refers to traditional text that needs to be read from beginning
to the end. Here, the reader makes sense of the text according to the grammatical and syntactic
arrangement of the words. Moreover, this type of text has an order or sequence; it’s typically
the author of the text who decides the order of the text, or its reading path. A linear text is the
most common type of reading among learners. It focuses on the arrangement of the words
grammatically and artistically. A good example of a linear text includes stories, speeches,
letters, newspapers, reports and etc. The reader in a linear text reads the piece sequentially
from beginning to the end.
What is nonlinear text? Nonlinear text is the opposite of linear text. As its name suggests, it is
nonlinear and non-sequential. In other words, the readers do not have to go through the text in
a sequential manner in order to make sense of the text. Examples of nonlinear text: • Flow
Chart
• The difference between linear and nonlinear texts mainly depends on their reading paths.
Since linear texts have a sequential order, they have only one reading path. However, nonlinear
texts have multiple reading paths since they are non-sequential.
• To understand the difference between linear and nonlinear text clearly, look at some of the
examples of both reading paths. Some examples of linear texts include novels, poems, letters,
textbooks, etc. In contrast, flow charts, knowledge maps, digital texts with hyperlinks, and
encyclopaedias are some examples of nonlinear text. Furthermore, non-linear allows readers to
you to find specific information more quickly and efficiently.
(Q2w4)
What is Prose? Prose has no formal metrical structure; rather, it contains sentences of
grammatical structure. It does not contain any rhythmic structure but a natural conversational
speech and a clear type of language. In general, prose can either be fictional or non-fictional.
Non-fictional Prose: This is a literary work that is based on facts and centred on actual events
and people. Examples include biographies and essays.
Fictional Prose: This is a literary work where characters, setting, plot, and other elements are
created based on the imagination of the author and is therefore not real. Examples are short
stories and novels
NARRATIVE this is the most common type of prose found in novels and stories. It relates to any
sort of writing that tells a story or develops a plot
Examples of Narrative Writing:
• Novels
• Short stories
• Autobiographies or biographies
DESCRIPTIVE here the main function is to describe, to give as accurately, or intriguingly, or
powerfully as possible a deep impression of a character, place, or situation. The reader should
'feel' the scene and be able to see it or hear it as vividly as possible
Examples of Descriptive Writing:
• Journal or diary writing
• Nature writing
• Descriptive passages in fiction
EXPOSITORY/DISCURSIVE writing offers the writer's thoughts on a particular topic such as 'the
delights of living in the country,' or 'the tribulations of urban life,' providing general
observations from his own and perhaps humorous or unusual, perspective.
Examples of Expository Writing:
• Textbook writing
• How-to articles
• Recipes
• News stories (not including opinion or editorial pieces)
• Business, technical, or scientific writing
PERSUASIVE/DIRECTIVE such writing attempts to influence the reader's thinking or behaviour in
a specific manner, as the writer seeks to persuade, or cajole, or coerce the reader into thinking
in a certain way. Generally, such writing deals with moral or political issues and is most
commonly found in the sermon, treatise, journalism, or, at its lowest form, propaganda.
Examples of Persuasive Writing:
• Opinion and editorial newspaper pieces
• Advertisements
• Reviews (of books, music, movie, restaurants, etc.)
• Letter of recommendation
• Letter of complaint
(Q2w6)
An argumentative text is a piece of writing in which the author presents a claim about a
controversial topic and provides evidence to support it and, at the same time, to refute a
counterclaim. In other words, the author provides the reader with evidence such as statistics in
order to present a counterargument as ineffective. Moreover, an argumentative essay is
structured with an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion. Argumentative essays
convince the reader that the author’s viewpoint is true or correct. This kind of essay is similar to
the persuasive essay because both essays present a viewpoint on an issue. However, the
persuasive essay can use opinions and appeal to the reader's emotions. While writing an
argumentative essay, the writer only uses facts and logic. Elements of argumentative writing
There are big ideas to remember when writing an argumentative essay: claim, reasons,
evidence, counterclaim and rebuttal.
1. CLAIM – This is the main argument of the essay. It might also be called a thesis or thesis
statement. When writers or speakers want to make a point, they support that point with
arguments called claims. Examples of Claim: A teenager who wants a new cellular phone makes
the following claims:
✓ Every other girl in her school has a cell phone.
✓ She will be safer with a cell phone because she can call someone in case of emergency.
✓ A cell phone with Internet access will help her do homework
2. REASONS – These are the ideas that support the claim. Reasons are statements of support for
claims, making those claims something more than mere assertions. Reasons can be linked to
claims with the word because:
✓ Liberal arts is best [claim] because it teaches students independent thinking [reason];
✓ That was Newman's best [claim] because it presented the most difficult role [reason];
✓ Global warming is real [claim] because the most reputable science points in that direction
[reason]
3. EVIDENCE – This serves as support for the reasons offered and helps compel audiences to
accept claims. With it, the writer attempts to win the reader over to his/her view of the topic,
or, at the very least, to show the reader a new perspective about the subject discussed. If the
writer is going to make some headway with an argument, however, he/she must be able to give
evidence to support the claims the paper will make. There are three main categories of
evidence that are essential to gain the audience's confidence in the writer's assertions. These
categories are Fact, Judgment, and Testimony
4. COUNTERCLAIM – the argument (or one of the arguments) opposing your thesis statement.
In your thesis paragraph, you make it clear to the reader exactly what you plan on proving and
how you plan to go about proving it. This paragraph is where you show the reader that you
have considered the opposing side's viewpoint and find it to be weak or invalid. A counterclaim
and rebuttal paragraph, if done well, gives you a chance to respond to the reader's potential
arguments before they are done reading. It also shows that you have considered both sides of
the debate, which strengthens your position. ✓ for example, if your thesis says, “Everyone
should eat chocolate ice cream,” and then your counterclaim might be, “Some people are
allergic to chocolate.”
5. REBUTTAL-The rebuttal directly addresses the opposing view and states why your claims are
valid. Essentially, in a rebuttal, you acknowledge the opposition but continue to argue why
you’re still right.
(Q2w7)
To summarize a text, we should follow these steps:
1. Skim the text to get a general idea of the topic.
idea of what the text is about.
2. Delete unnecessary or redundant material.
What is crucial to the message of the piece?
3. Find the main idea of the text.
keywords and phrases and jot down notes about the main idea. Look for signal
Words such as therefore, in conclusion, or summary.
4. Find or create a topic sentence.
a topic sentence is the most important sentence in a paragraph. Sometimes referred
To as a focus sentence, the topic sentence helps organize the paragraph by
Summarizing information in the paragraph.
5. Substitute general or "umbrella" terms when appropriate (for example, trees
Instead of oak, maple, and pine).
mmary paragraph. In summary, you should state the
Text’s main idea in the first sentence and include the most important information. Be
✓ Summarizing is retelling only the important parts of the text.
✓ Base your summary on the original piece.
✓ Keep your summary short.
✓ Use your wording.
✓ Refer to the central ideas of the original piece.
✓ Avoid putting, in your opinion, the issue or topic discussed in the original piece.
(Q2w8)
❖ Adverb of Degree (How Much?) Adverbs that express the importance/degree/level of the
action in the sentence are called adverbs of degree. They answer the question, ‘how much is
the action performed?’ Completely, nearly, entirely, less, mildly, most, thoroughly, somewhat,
excessively, much, etc. are common adverbs of degree. Example:
▪ He’s very good at playing the piano.
▪ She’s almost always late, arriving at school.
▪ It’s pretty interesting to see the history of China.
❖ Adverb of Frequency (When or how often?) Adverbs of time/frequency indicate the time or
frequency of the action in the sentence. They answer the question ‘when/how frequently is the
action performed?”. Always, never, often, eventually, now, frequently, occasionally, once,
forever, seldom, before, Sunday, Monday, 10 am, 12 pm, etc. are common adverbs of
time/frequency. Example:
▪ I usually go to the gym on weekends.
▪She always wakes up at 7:00 am.
▪ The family rarely eats brown rice for dinner.
❖ Adverb of Manner (How?) Adverbs of manner express how something happens. In most
cases, for adverbs of manner, you can take an adjective and simply add -ly to form an adverb.
For example, if you take the sentence – “The cat is quick (adjective).” However, not all adverbs
end with -ly. For example, the words ‘fast’ and ‘well’ describe verbs but do not end in -ly.
Example:
▪ The cat runs quickly.
▪ She plays the violin terribly.
▪ The horse moved fast.
❖ Adverb of Place (Where) Adverbs of place describe “where” action takes place. In addition,
we usually find adverbs of place after the main verb. Example:
▪ If you want to see the hot air balloon, you will have to go outside.
▪ When she entered the classroom, she sat down.
▪ I searched everywhere, but I couldn’t find him.
❖ Adverb of Time (When) As with all adverbs, they tell us more about the verb. For adverbs of
time, they tell us when the verb happened or will happen. For example, “afterward,” “every
day,” and “recently’ are adverbs of time and describe “when.” Example:
▪ We’ll go to the festival tomorrow.
▪ Yesterday, we played in the basketball tournament.
▪ She’ll eventually finish studying and go to university