issue 49-model essay

tesolchina_RAUID：3675555

Claim: We can usually learn much more from people whose views we share than from those whose views contradict our own.
Reason: Disagreement can cause stress and inhibit learning.

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.


Whether the claim and the reason hold true or not depends on the specidic contexts of the discussion.  When it comes to issues in science and research, talking with people from different POVs can promote learning as we can more critically examine our methods and data with their input. It is also important to discuss political issues with people holding contrasting opinions as we may learn how other stakeholders think about the problems.  Nevertheless, discussing religious matters with people from different backgrounds often leads to more disagreement, confrontation and embarrassment as people seldom change their religious beliefs that are at the core of their identities.   

In the context of science and research, we can learn more from people holding different views as discussing with them forces us to examine more critically our own methods and data.  Consider a researcher in applied linguistics who concludes that learning vocabulary by memorizing word lists is an effective method based on a single case study of a Chinese student preparing for GRE tests.  He may benefit from presenting his study in a conference and   answering questions from his colleagues who may challenge the validity of the single case study approach.  By exploring the advantages and disadvantages of the method, the researcher can learn a great deal from his colleagues about different methods that can be used to study this issue.  He can also learn from people who may question the reliability of the data he collected and improve his future studies regarding data collection.  Such learning opportunities are not possible if the researcher only presents his/her study to people who agree with him/her.  

When it comes to political debate, holding a conversation with people from different backgrounds may also help us to learn how other stakeholders view the issues and reach consensus as a society.  An advocate for gay and lesbian marriage, for example, can be enlightened through a dialogue with more conservative people who believe that rights to marriage should be reserved for heterosexual couples.  The advocate will learn that people who oppose gay and lesbian marriage may have been motivated by some beliefs that are deeply rooted in their lack of interaction with people with different sexual orientations.  Through such communication, people from both sides will realize that disagreement can be better understood and handled by promoting mutual respect.  Again, people from both sides would miss valuable learning opportunities if they only discuss such matters with friends sharing their views.  

As the above two examples clearly illustrate, the claim and the reason do not hold true so long as people can have a rational and peaceful discussion despite their different points of view.  Nevertheless, such discussion should be avoided on more sensitive topics where people may become more emotionally charged.  Consider a conversation between an atheist and a devout christian.  The christian may maintain that the Bible is the main source of truth and wisdom as it was written with inspiration from God. On the other hand, the atheist may ask for concrete evidence about certain claims made in the Bible about Jesus.  Such conversation may easily turn into an emotional and irrational conflict as both sides could not hold a rational and peaceful discussion on such a sensitive topic. In cases like this, little can be learned through such discussion as disagreement will likely to cause stress and rule out any possibility of learning.  

In conclusion, I believe that people can learn more from communicating with people holding different viewpoints in various contexts so long as they can remain calm and reasonable throughout the conversations.  Nevertheless, for certain sensitive topics, it is better to avoid such discussion which can often lead to stress and inhibit learning.




issue范文与提纲目录(tesolchina)
https://bbs.gter.net/forum.php?mo ... amp;fromuid=3675555