POST A CPE SAMPLE WRITING

Are you taking CAE or CPE this year? Have you got a letter/ essay/ article/ or story you would like to share with us? Send your Word document to gustavo.albarracin.q@gmail.com

We will read it, edit it a little together if necessary and post it straight away. See it as an opportunity to help other fellow teachers or students become proficient.  THANKS a lot.

CPE Writing Paper 2013 / Part 1 Essay by guest blogger Javi Montoliu from Barcelona

Task: Write an essay summarising and evaluating the key points from both texts. Use your own words throughout as far as possible, and include your own ideas in your answer. You should write 240-280 words. (Texts are about "Positive Psychology", see Proficiency Expert book)

Positive Psychology

Both texts discuss the way positive psychology affects people’s lives. The first one advocates that it has a beneficial effect on those who put it into practice. The second one, on the other hand, states that it might not be favourable for everyone.

The first passage argues that people who buy into positive psychology attain a more joyful life not only for themselves but also for the wider society, but claims that experts of the field compare it to the frivolous self-help books. I personally feel this last statement will resonate with many people because therapies of this kind tend to be fairly senseless and unrealistic, for they tell you what to do but not how to do it. As reported by the text, this particular psychology enhances the person’s well-being and quality of life, thereby giving rise to a much more cheerful and healthy population.

In contrast, the second text proposes that a specific group of people called defensive pessimists react negatively to positive psychology thus stating that it is not suitable for everyone. Whilst we might think these so-called defensive pessimists really expect the worse, they actually adopt a pattern of behaviour which helps them be successful in life, they trick themselves into thinking they’ve performed badly. I would agree that being pessimistic might help them reach their own targets in life; nevertheless, I feel it isn’t beneficial for them to get fully involved in this pessimism.

In conclusion, it could be argued that joy and optimism are not what make us succeed in life. In my opinion, everyone has their own quirks that help them overcome their problems; therefore, any forced beliefs or behaviour will result in an unfavourable response.

Javier Montoliu

Proficiency exam sample article

Task: You have been asked to write an article for an international environmental magazine on the topic: Crisis, what crisis? 300-350 words

The crisis we can stop

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the environment has been seriously damaged, whether or nor we are still in time to do something about it is yet to be discovered.

Denying things like Global Warming or a probable future lack of natural resources seems nowadays absurd. Nevertheless most people fail to realise the innumerable ways in which they can contribute to a future crisis by contaminating the world on a daily basis. I say it is high time we analyse our own lifestyles and embrace a new more environmentally-friendly style of living.

There are simple things we can start doing that would really make a difference. I myself have recently taken up cycling as a way to both save energy and avoid polluting the air with exhaust fumes. I have also begun to recycle plastic bottles and paper and to turn off the lights whenever I am not at home.

There are some other activities that require a bit more organisation but that can be done by universities, schools or members of any other communities. Some ideas on what to do include picking up rubbish from natural areas such as beaches or parks, reforesting or planting new trees and launching educational campaigns on how to save the planet.

Last week my sister and I took a group of children from our neighbourhood to a trip organised by our local school. We camped by a beautiful crystal-blue lake in the outskirts of town. Sadly, though, we discovered that other groups of campers had been there before and dropped their litter litterally everywhere but in the dustbins. Great was our surprise when two of the youngest kids voluntarily started cleaning a spot near our tent. Soon we followed in their footsteps inspired by them.

Is it too late to turn things round and make things better? Can we help prevent future wars for oil and water just by teaching our sons to take better care of the existing resources? I may be an optimist but I certainly hope so.

Gustavo Albarracín 

Are you ready for CAE/ CPE? Try this "Phrasal verbs with DO quiz" to find out !

What do these phrasal verbs mean?


1. Do sb in.
Example "The mugger threatened to do me in if I didn´t give him my wallet."

A. Rob
B. Kill
C. Hit

2. Do sth up.
Example "We are doing up an old house we bought in the outskirts of town".

A. Repair
B. Sell
C. Rent

3. Do with sth.
Example "Are you busy? I could do with some help here, if you are free".

A.Relate
B. Demand
C. Need

Answers


1. B

2. A

3. C

Writing Sample: A Review

Bewitch, also known by its French name "Ma sorciere bien-aimée", is a successful sitcom which was produced in the 1960s in the USA and aired in more than 30 countries. It stars actress Elizabeth Montgomery, who plays Samantha, a very attractive young witch who falls in love and marries a red-blooded very typical and at times dull mortal man.

This absolutely hilarious story begins with the couple´s wedding night when Samantha decides to come out of the broom closet and confess Darrin (Dick York), the mortal husband, that he has married a spell-casting cauldron-stirring one-hundred-percent American witch. This of course leaves Darrin baffled for a while but he ends up accepting Samantha´s "difference" with the condition that she promises to do her best to quit witchcraft and become a totally normal dinner-making, house-cleaning  ( very-1950s)  housewife.

Such promise, however, proves impossible to honour, as Samantha´s eccentric and extravagant relatives appear in her house chapter after chapter to mess up with her peaceful domestic life and force her to use her magic.

It is actually these secondary characters which have made the tv show immortal. Perhaps the most memorable one being Endora (Agnes Moorehead), Samantha´s mother, who is a kind of super witch with extraordinary powers, which she uses to torture and make fun of her son-in-low, Darrin. With a twitch of her nose and a tiny bit of magic Samantha saves her beloved husband´s life night after night to the delight of the show´s audience.

Even though this is an old tv programme, it is still available on the Internet via Youtube, and I thoroughly recommend watching it. I think everyone will enjoy the fantasy of this comedy.

Gustavo Albarracín


Writing sample: A film review, click here.

Idioms Idioms Idioms... Can you guess what these idioms mean?

1. To know someone or something like the back of your hand.

2. To learn something by heart.

3. To go in one ear and out the other.

4. To have something on the tip of your tongue.

5. To pull somebody' s leg.


Answers

1. If you know someone or something like the back of your hand, you know it very well.

2. To learn something by heart means to memorise it.

3. If something goes in one ear and out the other, you listen to it but you really don´t pay any attention to it.

4. If you have something on the tip of your tongue, you can´t really remember it and you are just about to say it but the words just don´t come to mind.

5. To pull somebody´s leg means to joke or to be kidding.

Example sentences

1. "I don´t really need to study for the exam. I know the lesson like the back of my hand."

2. "When I was at school there were several things we had to learn by heart, like the names of the planets and the multiplication table."

3. "He did tell me when he was coming to town but I didn´t really pay attention, sorry. It went in one ear and out the other."

4. "I wanted to say hi but I just couldn´t remember her name. And the worst part of it is that I had it on the tip of my tongue..."

5. "What? You won the lottery? I don´t believe you. You are pulling my leg, aren´t you?."



Would you like to learn more idioms? Click here.

CPE/CAE Writing to impress the examiner

When it comes to the CPE and CAE writing exams, showing off your high level of English by using a wide range of vocabulary and the most complicated grammar structures you learnt at school is not only ok but a have-to-do. No time nor place for being simple and humble, really! You need to demonstrate how good you are and how much you deserve to pass the exam by doing your very best.

Here there are some tips on how to enhance your text and make an excellent impression on the examiner:


1. Avoid using plain common adjectives like "nice" or "interesting" when writing a book/film review.

Instead of writing "It is an interesting book with a nice argument." Try something like "It is a riveting book, with a gripping plot and an unpreddictable ending."


2. Use idioms, especially when writing articles, informal letters or stories.

Instead of:
"She told me the dress had been expensive but I didn´t believe her. I thought maybe she was joking."

Try:
"She told me the dress had been expensive but I didn´t believe her. I thought she was pulling my leg."

*pulling someone´s leg = joking


3 Use inversions when writing stories to make them more sophisticated and dramatic.

For example:

Little did I know of was about to happen that dark and stormy night...

Had I listened to my heart, I would have known that...( he was not a good man...)