Essay 201 – Experiences as a teenager are more influential

GT Writing Task 2 / Essay Sample # 201

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Write about the following topic:

Some people say that the experiences a child has before starting school have the most influence on their future life. Others say that experiences as a teenager, especially at school, are more influential.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

Model Answer:

Many people claim that the experiences toddlers gains are crucial for their future life, yet others refute, claiming that adolescent years, particularly at school, shape their future the most. This essay will expound on both notions. However, I concur with the view that the experiences in teenage life have more influence on our adult life.

To commence with, a child’s everyday experiences are highly important. This is because the architecture of the human brain is built during the very first years of life when a child develops his or her brain connections rapidly through daily experiences. In addition to this, different areas of our brain are responsible for different abilities, such as emotion, language, movement and so on. Therefore, neural connections determine a child’s temperament. Besides, the abilities of our brain greatly diminish as it matures and interacts with more complex situations. Because of this, the first few years of life are particularly vital for supporting emotional, social and cognitive capabilities and thus shaping adult life.

On the contrary, the experiences of adolescence are of vital importance too. Teenage years are the tumultuous time of life when the human body performs miraculous physiological changes. The brain is restructured for adulthood during this period as well. In addition to this, juveniles exert their freedom and push the boundaries. Consequently, they learn and get a perceptive insight into life. In fact, the teenage years are the time when we mature to cope with our surroundings. As a result, the whole process of how one matures and what experiences one acquires in teenage time build the foundation for later life.

In conclusion, although pre-school years are a vital part of our lives, the teenage years exceed all other periods as it is when the foundations for the future are formed. It is therefore important that parents provide their children with an environment conducive to getting positive experiences.