G.B.C. 2 Basic answer structure

Logical structure!

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Mikael Hvidtfeldt Christensen via Flickr

In order to succeed in G.B.C., you need to make sure your answers are well structured. In this lesson, we'll teach you a simple recipe to make great, well-structured answers.

Introduction

A large part of the G.B.C. test focuses on your ability to communicate your message. How you use logic and structure, as well as argument and evidence, will affect your score. This lesson will look at structure first and teach you a technique you can easily use for simple and more complex questions. We'll work on argumentation, evidence and logic another time.

This is the first lesson on the section of this course about communication of information. (This is one of the main components of the G.B.C. grade, and so make sure you use the key phrase "communication of information" when you teach this class to take it back to their test score and remind them of the objectives.)

The main point of this class is to teach students how to make more organised answers on the fly.

There are two possible ways in which a student can be ill-prepared in this respect:

They give rambling and disorganised answers to questions and are penalised for this.
They give a three-reasons-for-this* style of answer.

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* Japanese students are taught in junior high school to write essays following a three-reasons-for-this structure. If the question is "Why do you like milk?" a typical answer might be: "I like milk for the following three reasons. First, milk is very healthy. Second, milk is delicious. Finally, milk is good in coffee and tea. For these three reasons, I like milk." This is a style that is difficult to shake for a lot of people, despite its simplicity and lack of sophistication. This pattern of answer will ensure that the student cannot score high in terms of logic and communication of information.

Warm Up

Your teacher will ask you a G.B.C.-style question. Answer as you would in the test.

Ask your student one of the following questions:

Why do foreign companies sometimes struggle to succeed in Japan?
What is your opinion of the Japanese education system?
Are you positive or negative about the Japanese economy?

This could go three ways:

you'll get a rambling mess of disjointed ideas;
you'll get a three-reasons-for-this answers (e.g. "I think that Japan's economy is going well for the following three reasons"); or
you'll get something decent (possibly because the person has thought about or practiced this question before).

If you get (1) or (2), the point is easily made. If you get answer like (3), then praise and reinforce the method we are about to cover.

Language

Your teacher is now going to give you feedback on the way that you answered the question in the warm up.

You'll then learn a technique that will help you answer smoothly and quickly, and help you improve the logic and structure of your answer.

The technique

The essential technique is this:

Say what you are going to say;
Say it; and
Say what you have said and what it means.

That's not that different in structure from the three-reasons answer, but there are key differences.

Work through each aspect below with reference to the question you asked them originally in the warm-up and brainstorm an answer. For our purposes, let's say that the question was about the economy.

We'll deal with introductions, then conclusions and then touch on argument.

Introductions

This should be a clear statement of position. A good introduction should be self-contained. It is also the plan for your whole answer. The problem with the three-reasons intro is that it keeps most of the answer a mystery. It's something you say, before you really even know where you are going with your answer. You are not writing a novel or a movie script. I don't want any surprises. I want to know immediately what you are on about and what your point is.

A clear summary of your position is the most important thing for organising your thoughts and presenting a logical argument:

I think that the Japanese economy is in good shape and will grow stronger in the future: the prime minister is doing a great job with policy; the weakening Yen is good for exports; and the Olympics in 2020 will boost tourism and investment.

Side note:

Make sure no-one gets distracted by the content of the answer. Who cares?
Make sure they take a second to think about the introduction. If it's good, then all else follows. You can teach them a phrase or two to stall for time: e.g. "That's a good question. Let me see."

Conclusions

The weak version of a conclusion is something like this:

For the reasons I mentioned, I am positive about Japan's economy.

What reasons? I already forgot! You have to finish on a strong note: a powerful summary of your position:

I think it's clear that after years of hard times Japan's economy is on the up: we have strong political leadership; the balance of trade is very promising; and the Olympics in 2020 is going to give us a real boost.

Here we get to make a really good point: a weak and vague conclusion is a terrible note to finish on, not for G.B.C. but for all kinds of communication. Take it back to our theme of "you need to be good at English to be good at G.B.C. and if you are good at G.B.C. you will be good at English." This is a technique that will help your student throughout their career.

A further point to make here is that a conclusion should not just be a conclusion in the sense that it is an ending, recap or summary. It has to be a conclusion in the "so what?" sense of the word. What does this mean? What should I infer? Where to from here? In many instances (this is heavily dependent on the question) a summary is precisely the wrong kind of conclusion to present in an answer. This is to avoid answers that peter out, or the student saying, "Finish", or "That's it."

Evidence

We won't talk much about evidence in this lesson. That's for later in the course. It is sufficient that the student is able to give some evidence and support for their position. You don't need to do much here. Just find out what their evidence is for their answer (they should have already told you), and link it together.

Ramblers

If you've got a rambler, the essential point here is for them to develop a thesis or main point to their answer. Focus on getting that introduction sentence nailed down and then keep them to it.