Guidance needed!
 

Consider the topic: "Freedom of Media in Pakistan Blessing or Bane?"
Now the question is that are we supposed to discuss both blessing and bane or focus on only one side?

In such topics you have to pick a side and defend it with solid arguments and persuasive writing. Some people might pick a middle route and write about both in an attempt to objectively show both sides of the picture and allow the reader to make up their own mind. There are some drawbacks to such an approach. Firstly, we tend to prefer one side of the argument over the other and hence our discourse wouldn't be an objective study of both sides and also showing both sides might create an impression of indecisiveness on the part of the writer in the mind of the reader. It is much better to pick a side and defend it with clarity. In saying that, you can also show the other side of the debate and provide counter-arguments for them. Like in the example you have provided, I could be writing about how freedom of media is a blessing in Pakistan and how and why it is needed for progress. I can also, towards the end of the essay, provide instances when such a freedom had turned into a curse/bane but I would end that section by defending my original stance and saying how despite these arguments for "bane", freedom of media is a blessing. You must also note that there is no right and wrong in such debates (that is why they are debates in the first place). Every opinion is valid, granted as long as you can back that opinion with logical and solid facts and reasoning.

Note that if the topic was in the form of "opportunities [B]and[/B] challenges", "pros [B]and [/B]cons" etc then you are to show both sides of the argument in the essay. I hope this was helpful.

Is it important to write thesis statement in outline of essay? I have seen some outlines in which there is no thesis statement. I am confused that should I write thesis statement in outline or not?

And should we write the essay below the outline if the page is half empty or start writing our essay on the next new page?
And what about quotations? Can we write quotations in blue marker to highlight them or write in blue pen?

For the thesis statement and whether it should be included or not in the outline itself is a personal choice entirely. There is no right or wrong way here since the FPSC has not provided a standard we should follow. Traditionally essay outlines do not have thesis statements or objective statements written within them but a good reason to write it would be that the examiner at first glance has a clear view of your stance about the topic. So again a personal choice entirely. Essays should always begin on the next page in order to give a clear distinction. Quotations can be centered, written in black or blue or however you would like to present them. Again down to personal preference and as long as the essay and overall presentation is neat and clear these smaller points are rarely of any significance. Again its content and clarity of thought the examiner would like to read. Everything else is secondary.

[QUOTE=aishalam;1085519]For the thesis statement and whether it should be included or not in the outline itself is a personal choice entirely. There is no right or wrong way here since the FPSC has not provided a standard we should follow. Traditionally essay outlines do not have thesis statements or objective statements written within them but a good reason to write it would be that the examiner at first glance has a clear view of your stance about the topic. So again a personal choice entirely. Essays should always begin on the next page in order to give a clear distinction. Quotations can be centered, written in black or blue or however you would like to present them. Again down to personal preference and as long as the essay and overall presentation is neat and clear these smaller points are rarely of any significance. Again its content and clarity of thought the examiner would like to read. Everything else is secondary.[/QUOTE]


In précis paper i have been told that we just have to make sentences of idioms and pair of words and to not write their meanings. Should we write their meaning or not??

[QUOTE=aishalam;1085511]In such topics you have to pick a side and defend it with solid arguments and persuasive writing. Some people might pick a middle route and write about both in an attempt to objectively show both sides of the picture and allow the reader to make up their own mind. There are some drawbacks to such an approach. Firstly, we tend to prefer one side of the argument over the other and hence our discourse wouldn't be an objective study of both sides and also showing both sides might create an impression of indecisiveness on the part of the writer in the mind of the reader. It is much better to pick a side and defend it with clarity. In saying that, you can also show the other side of the debate and provide counter-arguments for them. Like in the example you have provided, I could be writing about how freedom of media is a blessing in Pakistan and how and why it is needed for progress. I can also, towards the end of the essay, provide instances when such a freedom had turned into a curse/bane but I would end that section by defending my original stance and saying how despite these arguments for "bane", freedom of media is a blessing. You must also note that there is no right and wrong in such debates (that is why they are debates in the first place). Every opinion is valid, granted as long as you can back that opinion with logical and solid facts and reasoning.

Note that if the topic was in the form of "opportunities [B]and[/B] challenges", "pros [B]and [/B]cons" etc then you are to show both sides of the argument in the essay. I hope this was helpful.[/QUOTE]
That pick a side approch is valid for all subjects or Essay only?

I've found that in most subjects the questions asked are highly specific. It is best to stick to what is asked and formulate whatever you are writing in relation to that. Some people have a tendency to write whatever they know about a topic because for 20 marks one needs a lot of material. But remember quality over quantity. For example last year in current affairs paper the first question was; "China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is considered as a game-changer. How the CPEC can be helpful to uplift the Pakistan’s economy? Discuss." Now of course you can write an introduction and an overview of the projects linked with CPEC but going into depth about each and every one of them (and who is responsible for them) is redundant. You are not asked to just reproduce data. You need to formulate the data in the light of the specific question asked (in this case the effects on Pakistan's economy and an overview of what it means for the world. You can break this later part down further into; regional game-changer, implications for the prevailing world order, implications for world trade, etc etc).

If in any case the question has an "either/or" statement then yes, pick a side and back it up with your arguments. Be as relevant and clear to the question asked as possible.

Let's look at the specific instructions in the paper.

Q.6 (a) Explain the difference between the following word pairs (Any FIVE) [B]by using each word in your own sentences[/B]:
(b) Use ONLY FIVE of the following[B] in sentences [/B]which illustrate their meaning:

They have not asked for meanings at all. The instructions are fairly clear; Use the words in a sentence so that their meaning becomes clear. What this means is sentences like "this is a nice dinghy" are [B]not[/B] acceptable. It is a complete sentence on its own using one of the pair of words from 2017, but in the sentence it is not clear WHAT or WHO a dinghy is. A better sentence with the same word would be, "Their small dinghy was unable to stay afloat when the storm suddenly hit." This clarifies the meaning of the word so that even if someone has never read or heard about this word before they now know that Dinghy are sea-vessels of some sort just by reading the sentence. I hope this clarifies your query :)