DIRECTED WRITING

Question no. 1
You are unhappy with the poor condition and services of your school library. Write a report to your principal. You must use the notes given below.

• Rude librarian
• Insufficient space 
•  Old furniture
• Old and torn books
•  Faulty media equipment
•  Short borrowing period

When writing the report, you should remember:

•  to provide a title
• to use all the notes given 
•  the elaborate the notes

Answer: Example 1

To: The Principal of Sekolah Menengah Sains Bertam

The Poor Conditions And Services By The Library

            My name is Ahmad Bin Mohd. Ali. I am very unhappy with the conditions and services provided by our school library. This is a serious matter and should be solved as soon as possible.

            First of all, the librarians are very rude. They often scold us when we return the books late although we pay the fine. It is hard to see them smile. So I hope you will do something about this.

             There is insufficient place to sit and read. Our school has about 1000 students. The library is too small. We have to stand and sit outside the library along the corridor to read books or newspaper.

            Besides, the library has old furniture. The chairs are all rusty and some even broken. The tables are shaking and might fall one day. The racks are very old. We are afraid if would fall anytime. I request the school to buy new furniture.

            Apart from that, our library is filled with old and torn books, which are not suitable for the students. Some of us have asked the teacher in charge to buy new books but he said the library has financial problems.

            Other than that, the media equipment is faulty. The students cannot access computers anytime they want. The television cannot be switched on. We hope that the school will buy a new television or repair the old one.

            Finally, the students are not satisfied with the borrowing period, which is too short. We can only borrow the reference books for two days. We can borrow the story books for one week. We hope the library would expand the borrowing period. This is all I would like to complain about. I hope you will look into this matter as soon as possible.

Reported by,

…………………………

(Ahmad bin Mohd. Ali)

Student from form 5ALPA,

SM Sains Bertam,

Pulau Pinang.

Question no. 2
Imagine that you were very dissatisfied with the food and service at an expensive restaurant where you entertained your family. Write a letter of complaint to the restaurant’s management. Include the following points:

            - Rude waiters

            - Poorly cooked food

            - Unhygienic conditions

            - Wrongly totalled bill

            - Noisy surroundings

            - Old and uncomfortable furniture

In your letter you should:

            - state your complaint

            - elaborate on your complaints

            - ask the management to rectify the complaints

            - express your thoughts about dining at the restaurant again

Answer: Example 2
Lot A13 Taman Berjaya,

Nibung Tebal,

13500 N.Tebal,

Pulau Pinang.

The Manager,

Seasons Restaurant,

Jalan Simpang Ampat,

13500 Simpang Ampat.                                              09 SEPTEMBER 2013

Dear Sir,

Complaint About Unsatisfactory Food And Restaurant Service

I wish to express my dissatisfaction about the food and service at your established and well-known restaurant. On behalf of my family, I would like to raise a few points regarding this matter. My family and I had dinner at your restaurant on 08 September 2013 to celebrate my mother’s 50th birthday. We expected to have a great time at your seafood restaurant but unfortunately we did not.

2.     Your waiters treated us rudely and inconsiderately. We had to wait for about half an hour before we could order any food. The waiter spoke to us rudely whilst taking the orders. In fact, he scolded my mother who wanted to have a cup of tea without sugar. He claimed that the restaurant does not serve such a drink. For your information, my mother has diabetes and is trying to avoid taking sugary food and drinks.

3.   The poorly cooked food was also unsatisfactory. We were surprised to find out that the roast chicken and fish that we had ordered were still raw and inedible. The mushroom soup tasted a bit sour and the fried prawn was overcooked. We made a complaint about the food to your waiters and cooks but no further action was taken.

4.      Besides, the poorly served food we also felt uncomfortable with the dirty and unhygienic conditions at your restaurant. The food was greasy. There were some cats wandering searching for food. These bad conditions are harmful as they might get food poisoning and other health problems.

5.      I nearly lost RM57 as a result of the wrongly totalled bill I was given. It was my sister who noticed the unreasonable price of the food. Then, we recounted the bill and found that out it was wrongly calculated. The total was supposed to be RM120 but the calculation made by the cashier showed RM177.

6.    Another problem that spoiled our evening was the noisy surroundings, especially the yelling of waiters and waitresses calling names and taking orders from the customers. Besides this, the loud music and noise coming from the kitchen also contributed to this unsatisfactory situation. What more disappointing were the defective fans and air-conditioners? The weather was very humid and there were a lot of people in the restaurant. There are also old and uncomfortable furniture in your restaurant.

7.      Hereby, I would like to make suggestions to help you solve these problems. First of all, I suggest that you look at your restaurant and make sure no more cats and other stray animals are on your premise. You should also train your waiters and cooks to provide good service and food to customers. It would be better to use a calculator to avoid mistakes in totalling the bill. You need to repair the defective fans and air-conditioners immediately. Last but not least, cleanliness should be maintained in all parts of your restaurant. I hope that you will look into these complaints and take immediate actions. It is very important to remember that ‘The Better The Service, The Better The Business’.

Thanking you in advance for your co-operation.

Yours faithfully,

Rodziana

(RODZIANA RAZALI)

Question no.3

You are the President of the Environmental Club of your school. You have been requested by your principal to give a speech during school assembly. Your speech is in conjunction with the “Love your Environment” campaign. Using the notes below, write your speech.

•  Collect waste material and separate
• Send to recycling centers/Collect old newspapers
• Poster competition
• Do not litter

Answer: Example 3

A very good morning I bid to the principal, Pn. Aqilah binti Ahmad, senior assistants, teachers and friends.

            I am Izzairy bin Azmie, proudly standing here as the President of the Environmental Club, and am really honoured to be given this opportunity to talk to all of you today. In conjunction with the “Love your Environment” campaign, I would like to talk about the activities to be carried out to show that we love our environment.

            As students, it is our responsibility to keep our environment clean. We play a vital role in protecting our environment. A lot of waste can be reused such as bottles, cans, and newspapers. Therefore, every morning we will go around the school compound and collect all waste materials. Then we must separate these waste products in different garbage bags. These garbage bags will then be sent to Recycling Centre.

            The next activity is collecting old newspapers from our home. You are requested to collect old newspapers and bring them to school every morning. The collection centre will be the school canteen. There will be someone from the club who will be in charge of the collection. Please make sure that you tie the newspapers into bundles before handing them in.

            Another activity that will be held is the poster competition. Anyone interested must register with Lim May May from Form 5 Mulia. The closing date of submission is the 10th March 2011. The theme of the posters must follow the theme of our campaign. The first prize winner will get a book voucher of RM200, the second prize winner will get a book voucher of RM100, and the third prize winner will receive a book voucher of RM50.

            Finally, I wish to give a word of reminder to you all. Please do not litter. We must avoid the habit of throwing rubbish indiscriminately. We must always remember that a cleaner environment would ensure a happier and healthier life. I would like to make an appeal for full cooperation from all parties to make this campaign a success. With that, thank you.

Question no.4

You find that many of your friends are under a lot of pressure. They spend most of their day studying and appear to suffer from stress. Write an article for your school newsletter on how to cope with stress.

Include the following points:

• ·         Regular exercise
• ·         Hobbies
• ·         Work in groups
• ·         Balanced meals
• ·         Enough sleep
• ·         Study skills
• ·         Make a check-list
• ·         Seek advice
• ·         Talk to your family
• ·         Listen to music
• ·         Counsellors
• ·         Game

Answer: Example 4

Coping with Stress

by Wira Mohamad

The phenomenon of students under pressure is evident from the behaviour of those students affected. I am a student and I know when my friends are under pressure. Some of those active ones will suddenly turn passive. Some will become too quiet while some tend to get angry fast.

There are many ways one can get rid of stress. Firstly, student, especially teenagers, must go for regular exercise. A brisk walk in the park would release a lot of tension. Students should play football, hockey, basketball and badminton to reduce stress.

Exercise is also said to relax the body muscles and keep you calm. Students must have hobbies such as reading, collecting stamps, fishing or listening to music of your choice. These leisure activities help keep students free from school-related stress.

Therefore, students should plan a time-table. They can also work in groups to solve some of their academic problems. Besides making friends and discussing certain issues, group discussions can help improve study skills. One of these is the ability to make a check-list of all the activities planned and carried out. This in turn will make studying more effective and avoid unnecessary pressure.

Students should also have balanced meals and enough sleep. These are said to be basic to healthy lives. Students, especially those in examination classes, must sleep and eat well because a healthy body creates a healthy mind. However, the process of going to sleep can sometimes be difficult. Hence, it is necessary to seek advice from those whom we trust and love. Counsellors in school are helpful but you can always talk to your family first. However, if nothing works, there is a need to seek treatment from the relevant authorities. You may be surprised but a friend of mine said that screaming at the mountains and laughing your heart out can take away stress.