The essay title you have been set is

Could you live happily without TV?

Approach

What are the key words in this title? One of them is YOU which means that you are being asked for a personal response. This does not mean that you should just write what you think, and leave it at that, but that you should be able to show WHAT you think WHY you think it and WHERE you got the information from to base your opinion on.

This means you have to present an argument.

1. Research

No one will respect your opinion unless you have facts and data as evidence for what you are saying. You need to show that you have made up your own mind and are not just relying on the opinions of friends (or teachers or parents). You will find the following websites useful:

• Electric Snow: TV in our Time - An award-winning Webquest designed by students in the US and Sweden. Lots of info and ideas
• Real Television - You'll need Real Player to view this multimedia exhibition
• Campaign now for Bad TV - a longer article arguing that TV needs to be bad in order for us to switch it off and do other things
• Turn Off TV - all the bad things about TV at the Kill Your Television homepage - and some cool sounds and images
• Don't forget your textbook, which contains many useful nuggets of information on television in the chapter "Telescapes: Popular Television". Re-read pp92-103

2. Organising Your Ideas

Before your start writing you need to plan your essay. Think in terms of paragraphs, and how your ideas link to each other. Have you put them in a logical sequence? Here is a guide to help you if you are stuck:

Introduction - what does the question mean? Why is it being asked? Show you are aware that there are two possible answers and that you are considering both options carefully.

Paragraph 1: Your first reason for happily living without television (or not). Make this your best reason, and gather lots of evidence to support it.

Paragraph 2: Your second reason for happily living without television (or not). Again, you need to note not just the reason but the reasons why it is a good reason.

Paragraph 3: Your third reason (and you need at least three to make a good argument) and the supporting evidence.

Conclusion: Sum up your argument, but demonstrate awareness that different people might argue in different ways.

3. Writing Your Essay

Once your plan is organised, writing should be easy.

• Make sure that you Identify, Describe and Analyse.
• BUT keep description to a minimum. Two-thirds WHY to one third WHAT.
• Use media terminology to keep your language concise.
• Link ideas - use words like because, despite, on the other hand, therefore etc
• Check your language - re-read your essay carefully, and check that each and every sentence makes sense.