Writing English 2A: Writing assignment 2・作文2

Hello! 

How are you? Here is our second writing assignment (作文2) – writing opinions on news and issues (時事問題) topics.

Topics

You have a lot of freedom with topic choices for this writing assignment. Choose any news item, or an issue in society – in Japan or another country – that you have an opinion about.  

But if you have trouble thinking of a topic, here are some choices for you. Look at these and choose one (1):

• The aging population (老齢人口) of Japan and what older people need for their support
• Social media and its problems (for example, fake news, or selling of people’s personal data by Facebook or other social media sites)
• Issues and/or things that need improvement for student life at Daito Bunka
• Possible problems and/or issues connected with the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics 
• Voting rights (投票権) for 18-year-olds in Japanese elections (選挙) 

For an extra challenge, here are two topics that are even deeper, but also even more timely and important. I will give extra points to students who try for writing about these topics - and I have separate supporting blogposts for these topics: 

• Refugee issues (難民の問題) and what refugees need for immigration (移住) to Japan
• Hikikomori and their problems of social adjustment (社会適応) in Japanese society

I am gathering writing on these topics into a book called Voices & Ideas - this is a book about student opinion writing on news topics and social issues. The best of your writing on this topic could go into this book, so write to the best you can! 

How much to write

I would like you to write as much as you can, because your work may be published (出版した) on both this blog and in the Voices & Ideas book. 

I would like to see maybe 3-4 paragraphs' worth of writing. 

Deadline (締め切り)

It will be June 13th (6/13), so I want you to bring in a first draft (下書き) next week in your notebooks in pencil. I will go over more how you can build your opinion writing, with language for opinions - phrases, expressions, and vocabulary. Then you can write to the finish and turn in your work on 6/13. 

Good luck! I look forward to reading your great writing on news and issues topics!

Image: Screenshot taken from https://www.japanvisitor.com/japanese-culture/cult-japan-newspapers

I do not own the rights to the original photograph. All rights reserved on original photograph to the copyright holder(s). Uploaded for classroom purposes only.