1 PR When people need to complain about a product or poor service, some prefer to complain in writing and others prefer to complain in person. Which way do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
　　When I want to make a complaint about a defective product or poor service, I would rather make my complaint in writing. Writing a complaint allows me to organize my points of argument in a logical manner. If I’m really unhappy with the way I’m being treated, I want to present my reasons clearly. I don’t want there to be any confusion about why I’m complaining. I like to list my complaints and then list supporting examples. That’s the best way of making sure everyone is clear about what I;m saying.
Putting my complaint in writing also ensures it won’t seem too emotional. If you feel that you’re been treated badly or taken advantage of, it’s easy to lash out. Losing your temper, though, is a sure ways to lose your argument. Yelling is very satisfying at the moment, but it only makes the person you’re yelling at mad at you. It doesn’t get them to agree with you or to offer help.
　　There’s also the issue of the person you’re dealing with. If you complaint in person, you have to talk to whoever is there.Chances are that he or she isn’t the person responsible for the defective product or the poor service. Often the people who take complaints are not the people in change, unless you’re dealing with a very small business. Yelling at them isn’t fair, and doesn’t do anything to get a refund or satisfaction for you. You need to reach the person in charge. The best way to do that is in writing.
　　Writing about your complaint and sending the letter registered mail also gives you written proof. It’s clear that you tried to settle the matter in a reasonable manner within a certain time period. This way, if you need to take further action, you have physical evidence of your actions.
　　Writing a complaint has the advantages of organization, effectiveness, and fairness. That’s why I prefer to write rather than personally present my complaints.
　　2 EX People remember special gifts or presents that they have received. Why? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
　　I think we remember special gifts we’ve received because these gifts often are part of a special memory for us. It may be a memory of someone special we’ve cared deeply about. He or she may no longer be alive. Or it may be a memory of a special event in our lives. It may even be a memory of the person we once were at some particular moment in our lives.
Gifts from other people can make us feel joy every time we look at them. A gift from our parents, or our husband or wife makes us feel loved each time we see or use it. If we have children, the first gift our child made for us in kindergarten is cherished long after the child has grown up. A family heirloom given to us by a grandparent makes us feel connected to our past. A gift from a good friend is a reminder of all the good times we’ve shared. A memento from a respected colleague of a reminder of a job we worked on successfully together.
　　Gift may also pinpoint special events in our lives. Gifts given to us as part of our religious heritage, such as First Communion or Chanukkah gifts, remind us of those celebrations. The same is true for gifts given for birthdays and graduations, and for the anniversaries of special days in our lives, like our wedding day.
　　Gifts can also be a symbol of the person we were at a particular point in our lives. A gift received in childhood may remind us of a passionate hobby that’s now boxed in the attic. A gift received when we left a job may bring to mind the first career we bad, now that we’re on our third or fourth.
　　The gifts that are important to us are the ones that remind us of family, friends and happy times. They’re a way of surrounding ourselves with our past.

　　3 AD Some famous athletes and entertainers earn millions of dollars every year. Do you think these people deserve such high salaries? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
　　Some athletes and entertainers earn millions of dollars annually. In contrast, an elementary school teacher, on average, probably makes less than $35,000 a year. I think the fact that this difference is commonplaces is a sign of our society’s misplaced values. It shows that we put more importance on entertaining our children than on educating them. It seems that the careers that are the least values in our society often are those that are the most important.
　　Why is this so? The market determines who gets paid what. Teachers are paid by tax dollars. Sports teams make hundreds of millions of dollars every year. These teams earn fabulous profits from radio and television rights, as well as everything sold at the concessions stands. The same is true of movies. They are produced by studios that make huge profits annually. These enterprises can afford to pay their entertainers and sports figures huge salaries, because those athletes and film stars draw people to the entertainment.
　　Why are we willing to pay so much to see a ball game or a movie, but not for a good teacher? Maybe it’s because we want distraction; we want to be entertained. Maybe it’s because we think of education as a right, which entertainment seems like a luxury. We expect to pay for our luxuries.
　　It’s not that I begrudge the players and entertainers their huge salaries. Most of them have very short careers. Athletes may be too old in their early 30s. Many of them gamble early in their lives on making it big in the sports or entertainment world, and deny themselves a good education. They have little chance of a stable career, so they need to earn enough money to support them for a long time. On the other hand, most of us aren’t going to earn $10 million in a lifetime of work. So it’s hard to sympathize with people who do.
　　We have to ask ourselves: who really give the most value to society?
　　4 EX Is the ability to read and write more important today than in the past? Why or why not? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
　　Today more than at any time in the history of the world it is important to be able to read and write. This change has been brought about by the Internet which we use to communicate with one another, to get our news, and to sell our product.
Millions of people communicate today through e-mail using the Internet. In the past people would have face-to–face meetings or call one another on the phone; today they use e-mail and chat rooms. It is obviously necessary to be able to read and write in order to participate in this technological revolution.
　　Today, one can subscribe to news and information services on the Net. When you turn on your computer in the morning, you are given the headlines, financial news, sports scores, or social events that you requested. The news from television or radio—as many still do. Yet, getting your news from the Internet is more efficient since the news is tailored to your specific interests.
　　E-commerce also demands that people be able to write and read. Of course, the people who design web retail who sites, must be able to express themselves clearly in writing. The potential customers must be able to read the product descriptions. In the past, people would go into stores (as many still do) and point to objects that they would like to buy. This physical approach to shopping does not require any special language skills.
　　The Internet will force us all to be literate not only in reading and writing, but also with computers. Today, we must be skilled readers and writers to be successful in the high tech world.