Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[JaneDoe]

My friends tell me it is helping me to buy the model papers to help me with learn English. I don't no if this tru but I study in USA now and the paper will be hard soon and I need help,

so if this is true, tell me how they help me and where I get them.

Thank you, Jane

[redset]

You could give these a try:
http://www.studyenglishnews.com/
http://www.englishclub.com/thisweek.php
http://www.simpleenglishnews.com/ <- videos with subtitles

Really though I'd recommend trying to read articles in real newspapers if possible. Some will be easier to read than others (for example the New York Times is probably too advanced) - maybe some Americans can recommend some good online papers you could look at.

[JaneDoe]

Thank yu but these are newspapers i mean papers for classes.

[redset]

Haha, sorry Jane! I don't know why I assumed you meant newspapers.

I'm not familiar with the US system, so maybe another teacher has some suggestions, but here are some papers from the British ESOL scheme:
http://www.cambridgeesol.org/resources/teacher/sfl.html
(Some other Cambridge resources here: http://www.cambridgeesol.org/resources/teacher/index.html)
There are some Trinity papers here:
http://www.trinitycollege.co.uk/site/?id=850
These are all free to download, by the way.

Even if they're not for the exam you're taking, they should be useful - just watch out for British English!

If you're taking English classes in America you should talk to your teacher, they can probably provide you with some model papers (or at least some information).

[JaneDoe]

What about the one you buy from the place you tell them what you want and they do it, do you know about that?

[redset]

Honestly I have no idea about companies you'd actually buy papers from. According to this site, they're the official examiners for the US TOEFL exams:

http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem.fab2360b1645a1de9b3a0779f1751509/?vgnextoid=69c0197a484f4010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD

They have a link at the bottom to 'Practice Online', which has some sample papers you can purchase - however they're $45 each. And this is in no way an endorsement - I know nothing about this site, their reliability nor the quality of their products.

There are some free TOEFL resources here:
http://www.testmagic.com/FreeStuff/newsletter.htm

Honestly if you're currently taking classes, you should ask your teacher for information about this. They can give you relevant advice and point you in the right direction. If you're determined to spend money on sample papers, you need to make sure you're not wasting it.

[JaneDoe]

Thank you, I let you know what they say, I will ask soon.

[Lorikeet]

[JaneDoe]

Is it cheating if it is model like they say.?

I find www.powerpapers.com, a few others, they are telling me it is model I use for my own work, you tell me why this is bad?

[redset]

[CP]

By chance, I read this article online today, concerning Web sites that sell term papers to students, who pass them off as their own work.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090911/pl_afp/useducationobama

Not only is it dishonest and dishonorable to buy someone else's work and pass it off as your own, it is not very smart: You are very likely to be detected and punished. Even a very poor paper that is your own work is better than an F or perhaps expulsion from school for plagiarism.

Besides, some of the papers are just horrible. I Googled a couple of the sentences quoted in the story and found the Web sites that sell the papers. Wow--some of them are laughably bad!

I would say it is helpful to read other people's term papers, especially ones that have been awarded high grades by the instructors, but only to become familiar with the format, style, research, and level of depth expected of you. I would not recommend reading papers that are on the same topic as yours, because that makes it too easy and tempting to copy the paper, even if not consciously.

You learn nothing by copying someone else's work, but you learn so much by researching and writing something original. It is hard work, but so what? Everything of value is hard, but satisfying.
_________________
You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[JaneDoe]

Yes, thank you, I see, but you see I do not use their papers to turn in, just to help me write them, you know, they are very good.

[CP]