DSE Chinese｜Argumentative Writing: Claim, Evidence and Reasoning — Tutor Prep Guide｜Defensible stance, three ascending layers, five techniques

2026-11-02

Tutor lesson-prep guides · Secondary Chinese

Students can write I think, but all three paragraphs say the same thing. This lesson makes each paragraph take one step further, with evidence attached.

Objectives — Students can: 1) write a stance that someone could oppose, not a truism; 2) order three points as an ascent from individual to society to long term; 3) identify and use five techniques: example, quotation, contrast, analogy and cause and effect.

01 Prerequisites (3-minute check)

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

Skill	Quick check	Pass mark
Paragraph function	What should the first sentence of a body paragraph do?	State that paragraph point.
Evidence types	What separates factual from theoretical evidence?	Cases and figures versus principles and quotations.
Word budget	Of 650 words, how much does each body paragraph take?	About 170 words each.

02 Lesson flow (60 minutes)

Time	Stage	Tutor does	Student does
0-5 min	Opening question	Write two stances on the board and ask which one can be opposed	Vote and explain
5-15 min	Prerequisite check	Three quick checks on topic sentences	Written answers
15-35 min	Three-act script	Deliver the stance sentence, the ascending layers and the five techniques; ask for a restatement after each act	Restate each act
35-45 min	Modelled questions	Model a stance rewrite and one complete layer, labelling the technique	Copy and label
45-55 min	Independent practice	Circulate and only ask what the evidence is	Work three items and self-check
55-60 min	Exit check	Collect answers and count errors	Written answers

03 Teaching script (read it out)

Scene 1: Act one: a stance must be opposable

Online learning is important is not a stance, it is a commonplace, and nobody will argue with it, so you have nothing to prove. A stance reads: online learning lowers overall results for junior students with weak self-discipline. Someone can disagree, which gives you three layers to build. The test is one question: would anyone raise a hand against this sentence? If not, rewrite it.

What makes a stance acceptable, and how do you test it?

Scene 2: Act two: three layers must climb

The three layers share 510 words. If all three describe the same inconvenience you have repeated yourself three times. Climb by scope: individual, then class, then society; or short term, then long term; or symptom, then cause. Open each layer by naming the scope it covers.

What relation moves one layer to the next? Give an example from your own prompt.

Scene 3: Act three: each technique does one job

An example makes the abstract concrete, a quotation borrows authority, a contrast makes a gap visible, an analogy makes the unfamiliar familiar, cause and effect explains why. Do not stack all five in one paragraph: one carries the paragraph, a second supports it. Contrast is the most neglected, because the same measure producing two different results is harder to dismiss than a single case.

Which writing problem does each of the five techniques solve?

04 Question types and worked steps

Type	Example	Steps	Answer
Stance rewrite	Turn charging for waste is important into a stance someone could oppose.	1) Name the group; 2) add the condition; 3) state the direction of judgement.	Example: In old districts without recycling facilities, a waste charge mainly raises costs for low-income families while cutting little waste.
One complete layer	In 170 words write point, evidence, explanation.	1) Open with the point; 2) place one concrete case or figure; 3) close by explaining how it supports the point.	Example: Enforcement costs more than the waste it saves; then one estate case; then one line tying it back.
Contrast technique	Contrast the same policy in two districts.	1) Give the result in the first; 2) give the result in the second; 3) name the difference in one line.	Example: One district with collection points saw participation rise; another without them saw violations concentrate.
Rebuttal	State the strongest opposing line, then answer it.	1) Restate the opponent accurately; 2) show the premise fails or the scope is limited; 3) return to your stance.	Example: Some say a charge builds habits, but that assumes residents have an alternative.

Sanity check (teach this): Check the arithmetic: 3 layers of 170 words make 510, and with the opening 80 and closing 60 the piece totals 650. Then copy the three topic sentences onto a spare sheet: if they can be swapped without changing the meaning, they are parallel, not ascending, and need reordering.

05 Independent practice (3 questions)

Question	Answer	What to watch
Rewrite tutoring benefits students into an opposable stance.	Example: For students who already study independently, tutoring yields less than the sleep they lose.	Check for a named group and a condition; a bare judgement is not enough.
Give three ascending layers for schools should ban phones for junior students.	Example: classroom attention, then campus order and peer relations, then long-term self-management.	Check the layers can be separated; overlapping layers need rewriting.
Write 80 words using contrast between two classes and their phone use.	Example: One class collects phones and questions rise; the other keeps them and heads drop midway.	Check both results appear under the same conditions.

06 Common mistakes and what to say

Mistake	Student writes	Say this
Stance written as a slogan	We should cherish time and study hard.	Nobody opposes that, so there is nothing to argue. Add a group and a condition.
Three paragraphs, one idea	First, tutoring wastes money. Second, it is useless. Third, it is not worth it.	Those three swap places, so you wrote one layer three times. Use individual, family, long term.
Evidence contradicting the point	Tutoring does not work, because my classmate got a top grade last year.	That is a success case against your own claim. Find evidence that supports the point.
Conclusion copying the opening	In conclusion, I think tutoring wastes money, so we should not tutor.	Concede one thing, then close: even with short-term gains, students still need to learn on their own.

07 Homework (paper, section and question numbers)

Secondary Chinese chapter index: finish the three practice items here, then practise summarising with the reading theme chapter — Practice 1-3 on this page

08 Exit check (last 5 minutes)

Question	Answer	Decision
Which two things must an acceptable stance contain?	A named group and an opposable judgement	Missing both means reteach act one
How many words do the three layers take, and how do you test ascent?	510 words; the topic sentences must change meaning when swapped	Cannot answer means reteach act two
Name the five reasoning techniques.	Example, quotation, contrast, analogy, cause and effect	Fewer than four means redo act three

09 Tutor FAQ

Which year is this for?

Mainly S5; also S4 second term and S6 catch-up, where structure matters more than style.

Must there be three layers?

Three is safest at 650 words; stronger students may write two deeper layers if the evidence is full.

Is there supporting practice?

The homework row links to the secondary Chinese chapter index, alongside the reading theme chapter.

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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.