DSE Chinese | Argumentative essay structure lesson plan (for tutors)

DSE Chinese | Argumentative essay structure lesson plan (for tutors) — stance, three tiers, one rebuttal

2026-11-04

Tutor lesson-prep guides · Secondary Chinese

Students produce opinions but the essay reads as a list of feelings. This lesson turns stance, three tiers and rebuttal into a frame they can fill paragraph by paragraph.

Objectives — Students can: (1) write a stance that someone could disagree with; (2) allocate 97 words to the introduction, 455 to the body and 98 to the conclusion out of 650; (3) build three tiers of reasoning (personal, group, society), each with one example and analysis; (4) add a rebuttal that restates the strongest opposing reason and then tests its premise.

01 Prerequisites (3-minute check)

If any of these fails, fix it before the lesson starts.

Skill	Quick check	Pass mark
Question analysis	Which word limits the scope?	The qualifier, e.g. for young people
Examples	What three details does an example need?	Who, situation, outcome
Connectives	What do therefore and however each do?	One closes, one turns

02 Lesson flow (60 minutes)

Time	Stage	Tutor does	Student does
0–10 min	Stance	Circle key words, model three candidate stance sentences	Choose one and write it centrally
10–25 min	Three tiers	Personal, group, society; one angle each	Write one topic sentence per tier
25–37 min	Rebuttal	Model the sentence some argue that but this assumes	Write the strongest opposing reason
37–43 min	Conclusion	Restate in new words, add one forward-looking line	Write two closing sentences
43–52 min	Timed writing	Introduction plus tier one only, marked line by line	Finish in eight minutes
52–60 min	Exit check	Mark three items on the spot	All three correct

03 Teaching script (read it out)

Scene 1: A stance must be disagreeable

The sentence I think hard work matters is not a stance, because nobody argues against it. I think effort decides S6 results more than talent can be argued against, so it can be supported. The formula is judgement, direction of reason, scope. Every paragraph must then serve that sentence. If a paragraph could stay in an essay with the opposite stance, it is doing no work.

Ask students to rewrite online learning has advantages into a stance someone could oppose.

Scene 2: Three tiers grow in scale, they are not three parallel points

The usual loss comes from three points at the same height: honesty to friends, to family, to classmates. That is one idea told three times. Change the scale instead: personal cost and benefit, then the group (class, family), then society (institutions, long-term norms). Each tier gets a topic sentence, one concrete example and one closing line that returns to the key word of the question.

Ask where the third tier goes if the question is about the internet, and why.

Scene 3: A rebuttal tests a premise, it does not insult

Four steps: restate the strongest opposing reason better than the opponent did; name the premise it relies on; show that premise fails here; return to your stance. Calling an opposing view shallow earns nothing because the reason is never addressed. One rebuttal of about eighty words is enough, and two weak ones are worse than one that lands.

Ask students to write eighty words using all four steps against a single reason.

04 Question types and worked steps

Type	Example	Steps	Answer
Stance	Turn a feeling into a claim	Judgement, reason, scope	One sentence
Body paragraph	Write one tier	Topic sentence, example, analysis, close	About 151 words
Rebuttal	Handle the opposite view	Restate, premise, test, return	All four steps
Conclusion	Restate without repeating	New wording plus one forward line	About 98 words

Sanity check (teach this): Check the arithmetic: 97 plus 455 plus 98 equals 650 words, so each tier of the body is about 151 words. Check the clock: 10 minutes on the question, 15 on the body, 12 on the rebuttal, 6 on the conclusion, 15 on timed writing and 8 on checking makes 60. If a paragraph runs past six sentences, it is usually repetition or drift.

05 Independent practice (3 questions)

Question	Answer	What to watch
Rewrite phones make people distant as a debatable stance	I think phones weaken deep family conversation in shared households	Can it be opposed
Write three topic sentences at rising scale	Personal impatience; gatherings of silent screens; fragmented public debate	Does the scale grow
Write an eighty-word rebuttal on legalising euthanasia	Restate dignity, name the premise, test it, return	Is the reason handled

06 Common mistakes and what to say

Mistake	Student writes	Say this
Stance written as a description	Many people are addicted to phones today	That describes; add a judgement someone could oppose.
Three points at one height	Be honest to yourself, your family and your friends	Those are the same tier; push the third one to institutions.
Example without a situation	For example Bill Gates	An example needs a situation and an outcome, not a name list.
Rebuttal becomes an insult	People who disagree are short-sighted	Attack the reason, not the person; state it at its strongest first.

07 Homework (paper, section and question numbers)

Chinese subject index — All chapters
Practice paper — Writing task: one argumentative essay

08 Exit check (last 5 minutes)

Question	Answer	Decision
Three parts of a stance	Judgement, reason, scope	Redo if one is missing
Words per body tier	About 151	Rewrite if off by half
Four rebuttal steps	Restate, premise, test, return	Two wrong: restart act three

09 Tutor FAQ

Is a rebuttal always required?

When the question asks for discussion, a rebuttal shows both range and judgement.

Can news events be used as examples?

Yes, but give the situation and outcome, not only the name.

Does a short essay lose marks?

Yes. Aim at 650 words with seventy percent in the body.

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A TutorZone lesson-prep guide. Written by the TutorZone team; questions and lesson flow are original and are not taken from any school or publisher material.