Remember those “trick” worksheets your teachers gave you in elementary school that asked you to answer a series of questions, but the directions also said to read all questions before beginning? The last question said something like, “Write your name at the top and skip all other questions.” Our teachers weren’t deliberately annoying us; they were simply trying to emphasize how important it is to follow directions. The graders of the GRE Issue Essay are attempting to determine whether you’ve learned this lesson. Though the instructions for each of the sample items from the Issue Essay Pool might all look the same, don’t be fooled—there are actually six slightly different sets of instructions that differ from each other in key ways. I present each of them below, along with an explanation.
1. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statement and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting your position, you should consider ways in which the statement might or might not hold true and explain how these considerations shape your position.
Explanation: For these kinds of prompts, you should choose a position (agreeing or disagreeing with the statement, or taking the middle ground), and then provide evidence to support your position. You also need to consider the other position, but you don’t need to use fully-fledged examples to support it. The conclusion is a good place to discuss your counterargument. For example, let’s say you disagreed with the statement, “To understand the most important characteristics of a society, one must study its major cities.” In your conclusion, you could say something like, “It is true that many societies, such as Greece and Rome, were memorialized because of their major cities. However, by focusing exclusively on the lives of people in major cities, many other lives are overlooked. This marginalization of rural people distorts our view of history.”
2. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the recommendation and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting your position, describe specific circumstances in which adopting the recommendation would or would not be advantageous and explain how these examples shape your position.
Explanation: Unlike the first prompt, this prompt is asking you to use specific examples when building your counterargument. You can still place your discussion of these examples in your conclusion, but you can also place them in a body paragraph after the introduction. Then, in the remaining paragraphs, you can write a rebuttal of the points you just made. For example, if you were responding to a prompt about standardizing K-12 education for all citizens of a country, you could first argue that not all citizens need to be well-versed in the liberal arts, since some will become manual laborers. However, in your next paragraph, you could argue that universal access to the liberal arts could create new opportunities for disadvantaged students.
3. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim. In developing and supporting your position, be sure to address the most compelling reasons and/or examples that could be used to challenge your position.
Explanation: This prompt is similar to prompt two; be sure to include well-developed examples to support both your argument and counterargument.
4. Write a response in which you discuss which view more closely aligns with your own position and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting your position, you should address both of the views presented.
Explanation: Unlike the prompts that ask you about the extent to which you agree or disagree with a statement, allowing you to take the middle ground, this prompt is explicitly asking you to choose one of the two positions provided. Similar to Prompt 1, you need to discuss the other position, but you do not need to use specific examples to support it.
5. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim and the reason on which that claim is based.
Explanation: For this prompt, be sure to focus your discussion on whether the reason for the claim is valid and why, rather than providing other reasons why you agree or disagree with the claim. Also, note that this prompt does not ask you to consider both sides of the issue.
6. Write a response in which you discuss your views on the policy and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting your position, you should consider the possible consequences of implementing the policy and explain how these consequences shape your position.
Explanation: The key word for this prompt is “consequences.” You are not only being asked whether you agree or disagree with the policy, but to think critically about the implications of the policy. This prompt isn’t explicitly asking you to provide support for the other side of the debate, but for a stronger essay, I recommend doing so in one of your body paragraphs or the conclusion. For example, let’s say you were disagreeing with the statement, “Educational institutions should dissuade students from pursuing fields of study in which they are unlikely to succeed.” You might discuss how this policy could prevent thousands of students from dropping out of college, but how it could also stifle the dreams of students who might struggle in school but who would ultimately succeed if they are encouraged.
Ephemeral GirlyGirl 