This is an ENG105 COURSE UNIVERSITY

Question 1 - Argumentative Passage Analysis (5 Marks) Read the following Argumentative Passage and answer the questions that follow. Youths again remind us of our tragic failure THERE are about 6,00,000 street children in Bangladesh, according to figures estimated by the United Nations, with 75 per cent of them believed to be living in Dhaka. Tragically, these children are living in horrid conditions, with no access to education, parental affection, security, shelter, food and even without as much as clean drinking water. Left to fend for themselves in some of the most dangerous streets in the city, these children are forced, in many cases, as reported by the New Age on Sunday, to beg, sell flowers and toffee, and these are the fortunate ones: for others are introduced to the world of drugs, smuggling, and trafficking, if not something even worse. Without the basic necessities of life, they often succumb to a life of crime, exploitation in factories, shops, houses and even in brothels In order to help them overcome some of their daily struggles, a grass-roots community organisation, Pathashishu Seba Organization, has been working for their rehabilitation. The organisation aims to uphold the rights of the street children isolated from their families and community and seeks to encourage them to find a better path in life, leading to rehabilitation through a holistic approach. Set up by an Italian, it had started off with only eight members but has now grown to a total of 62, with 600 volunteers having worked with it over the years, showing the willingness on part of the youth of the nation to serve those who are less fortunate. Volunteers, mostly university students, engage in various activities with the children, starting from games, plays, drawings, ctc., in order to motivate them to overcome their daily struggles. The children are provided with non-formal education and projects to help them learn and build confidence, and also with medical care. Volunteers said that they had also benefited from the experience, as it helped bring people together and create positive changes in society. There are, of course, many more similar grass-roots organizations working towards such admirable goals. Given the sheer number of children who are struggling without any assistance from the government or from society, however, it is perhaps impossible for them to provide substantial support for them. Nevertheless, what they can do, and are doing, is showing the rest of society, and the government, a willingness to change things for the better, which tragically seems to be lacking from both. The authorities, and society in general, would do well to take lessons from their noble deeds. The government especially should remember its constitutional obligation of protecting the basic rights -- access to food, water, shelter ---- of all its citizens, street children included, and make arrangements to provide them with such. It is clear that the government, and also conscientious sections of society, must stand beside these young individuals and help them accomplish their dream of creating a better society for all. (1) Q. 1. Identify the claim statement of the above passage and its type. Q. 2. What supporting points are provided for the claim? What kinds of support are they? (1.5) Q. 3. Evaluate the overall effectiveness of the given passage, using your own words to answer in one or two integrated paragraphs within 100-150 words. (Possible points you can discuss are the relevance of the topic or claim, the quality of the support, the acknowledgement of counter-arguments, the organisation of the passage, the quality of the language, etc.). (2.5)