14505 Concepts
TOEFL Independent Writing Task
Test of Written English
Essay Question: Facts vs. Concepts
Example Answer by Jeenn Lee Hsieh
谢振礼老师通信讲座 引用论语
ielts360toefl@hotmail.com
TWE Essay Topic:
>Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? It is more important for students to understand ideas and concepts than it is for them to learn facts. Use specific reasons and examples (based on your knowledge or experience) to support your answer.
Example Writing (Jeenn Lee Hsieh 谢振礼老师):
For students, understanding concepts is as important as learning facts. To oversimplify the difference, facts are related to learning about information, whereas concepts are associated with thinking about abstract ideas that are meant to be understood rather than to be memorized. For that matter, it is particularly interesting to copy what Confucius had to say regarding learning without thinking as well as thinking without learning.
On the one hand, some people argue that for students understanding concepts is more important than learning facts. It may be because that learning facts is key to understanding abstract ideas or concepts. In an extreme sense, it could be dangerous to think without learning. As an explanation, a fact is something known to be true, something that has really occurred and is actually the case. In linking the importance of learning to thinking, Confucius shared his experience and knowledge with then students: "I once spent all day thinking without taking food and all night without going to sleep, but I found that I gained nothing." The great sage went on to say, "It would have been better for me to have spent the time on learning. (from the Analects of Confucius)"
On the other hand, other people claim to the contrary. That is, it is more valuable is for students to be able to understand concepts such as abstract ideas generalized from particular evidence or thought. Again to paraphrase Confucius: " To think without learning, one will be imperiled in thinking; by contrast, to learn without thinking, one will be lost in learning." At this point, it is appropriate to explain that the goal is to clear students' minds to understand abstract thoughts. Accordingly, understanding abstract ideas helps students stimulate more analytic thinking. In other words, the process of critical thinking makes more sense of learning facts as pieces of information or as supporting evidence.
In conclusion, with each having the other in mind, both learning and thinking are indispensable to students, according to Confucius. While it tends to be useless to learn without thinking critically, it tends to be dangerous to think without learning essential facts. After all, there are facts to be learned and there are concepts to be understood as well. (Essay created by Jeenn Lee Hsieh, 谢振礼 猫头鹰在线写作实验室ielts360toefl@hotmail.com pigai zuowen)
