Requirements for writing an essay in social studies. How to write an essay on social studies on the Unified State Exam. Essay writing rules and assessment criteria

Draft demo versions of the Unified State Exam 2018 have been posted on the FIPI website. Changes are still possible in them. The final, sealed and signed demo versions will be published in November. Nevertheless, based on the demo versions it is already possible to judge what will change in the Unified State Examination tasks and what will remain the same. Our teachers took a closer look at the new demos and gave a quick overview.

Russian language

There is one more task. Before the tasks on the text, a new task 20 was added. It tests knowledge of speech norms and the ability to find lexical errors. This task is of a basic level of difficulty and is worth 1 point.

The lexical error in this sentence is pleonasm, speech redundancy. The extra word that needs to be written out is “main” (the word “essence” already means something main, important).

What changed:

Now in the Unified State Examination in the Russian language there are 26 tasks and the numbering of tasks in the text has shifted one point forward. The first part includes tasks 1-25. This is 34 primary points. The second part is an essay, task 26. The maximum number of points for an essay is 24. The total for both parts is 58 points.

Social science

We increased the maximum score and changed the criteria in tasks 28 (plan) and 29 (mini-essay). Now four primary points are given for the plan, six for the essay. The maximum number of primary points for the entire work has increased from 62 to 64.

Task 28 (plan)

In the new demo version for the plan there were separate evaluation criteria:

Criterion 28.1. Topic disclosure(2 points)
To get the maximum number of points you need:

1) include in the plan at least two out of three points that cover the topic in essence;
2) disclose at least one of these points in subparagraphs.

Criterion 28.2. Number of plan points(1 point)
The plan must have at least three points, two of which are detailed in subparagraphs. Only those points that are relevant to the content of the topic are taken into account. Off-topic and abstract paragraphs (such as “Introduction” or “Conclusion”) do not count.

Criterion 28.3. Correct wording of points and sub-points of the plan(1 point)
There should be no errors in the wording of the points and sub-points of the plan.

What changed:

The complex evaluation algorithm (a two-page table) was replaced with three separate criteria - like an essay. The requirements for the task have become clearer.
The maximum number of primary points has increased from three to four.

Task 29 (mini-essay)

The maximum number of points was increased from five to six. The wording of the assignment and evaluation criteria were changed.

Formulation of task 29

What changed:

The “problem” is no longer mentioned in the task conditions. Previously, this caused confusion, since the criteria did not say anything about the formulation of the problem.
The assignment specified requirements for theoretical and factual argumentation separately.
The actual argument must now illustrate the points made in the theoretical argument.

Task Criteria 29

The essay is now graded according to four criteria:

Criterion 29.1. Revealing the meaning of a statement(1 point, if not completed, compliance with other criteria is not taken into account and 0 points are given for the entire task)
This is the former criterion K1. The new demo version added a condition: in order to reveal the meaning of a statement, you need to highlight the main idea or formulate a thesis in the context of the statement.

Criterion 29.2. Theoretical content of the mini-essay(2 points)
This criterion evaluates the coherence of the argument: explanations of key concepts, reasoning and theoretical positions must explain the thesis or idea formulated.

Criterion 29.3. Correct use of concepts, theoretical positions, reasoning and conclusions(1 point)
There should be no erroneous statements in the argument.

Criterion 29.4. Quality of facts and examples provided(2 points)
As before, you need to give examples from two different sources: the media, other school subjects, facts of personal experience. Examples with factual and semantic errors will not be counted. New requirement: if both examples are not formulated in detail or are not related to the provisions of the theoretical argument, zero points are given according to the criterion.

What changed:

Difficulties were caused by the vague wording “disclosure of meaning” in the first criterion. The assessment according to this criterion was subjective and depended on the personality of the expert. Now we have added an objective condition: in order to reveal the meaning, you need to highlight an idea or formulate a thesis. The criterion has become clearer.
The quality of theoretical argumentation is now assessed according to two criteria; more points are given for theoretical argumentation.
The requirements for factual argumentation have become more stringent: examples must be detailed and illustrate the points of theoretical argumentation.

Literature

We increased the maximum number of points and changed the evaluation criteria in tasks with a detailed answer: 8, 9, 15, 16, 17. The maximum number of primary points for the exam increased from 42 to 57.

Tasks 8 and 15

Maximum score - 4.
Two criteria:

1.The depth of the judgments made and the persuasiveness of the arguments(3 points; if 0 or 1 point, 0 points are given for the second criterion).
2.Following speech norms(1 point).

Maximum score - 5.
Three criteria:

1.Matching the answer to the task(1 point; if 0, 0 points are given for the entire task).
2.Argumentation, involvement of the text of the work(2 points; if 0, the third criterion is also scored 0 points).
3. (2 points).

What changed:

Assessing the “convincingness of arguments” caused big problems; the subjective factor played a significant role here. Now the quality of arguments is assessed in all three criteria: in the first criterion, it is established whether the student answers the question posed in the assignment, in the second - to what extent the arguments are based on the text of the work, in the third - the absence of logical errors in the argumentation.

Tasks 9 and 16

Maximum score - 4.
It was necessary to justify the choice of work.
Speech errors were not taken into account.
Complex estimation algorithm.

The maximum score is 10.
There is no need to justify the choice of work.
Speech errors are taken into account (criterion 3).
Three criteria:

1.Selection of works to complete the task(4 points; if 0 is given, the entire task is worth 0 points).
2.Comparison of works(4 points; if 0, the entire task is worth 0 points).
3.Factual, logical and verbal accuracy of the answer(2 points).

What changed:

The maximum score has increased from four to ten. Problems 9 and 16 are more difficult than 8 and 15. The score now takes into account this difference in difficulty level.
There is no need to justify the choice of work.
In addition to factual accuracy, logical and verbal accuracy is also assessed.

Task 17

The maximum score is 14.
Three essay topics.
Five criteria:

1.The depth of disclosure of the topic of the essay and the persuasiveness of judgments(3 points; if 0, the entire task is worth 0 points).
2.Level of proficiency in theoretical and literary concepts(2 points).
3.Validity of using the text of the work(2 points).
4.Compositional integrity and consistency of presentation(3 points).
5.Following speech norms(3 points).

The maximum score is 15.
Four essay topics.
Seven criteria.

An essay is understood as a literary genre of small volume and free composition. This written form was introduced into the Unified State Exam as a means of certifying and assessing students. In a prose essay, the examinee should express his own thoughts and impressions on the formulated problem. In order to understand how to write an essay on social studies, you need to properly organize your educational activities and practice systematically on this task.

During the preparation process, you should learn to analyze the content of the text; check the style, logic and consistency of the material presented; work with the final version and make important amendments to it. The study takes place in five blocks (man and society; sociology, economics, politics and law), each of which will be reflected in the test material.

How to write an essay on social studies - features of preparation for the Unified State Exam 2018

Every year, the Federal Institute of Pedagogical Measurements (FIPI) introduces innovations into the demonstration version of the Unified State Exam in social studies. In 2018, the requirements and assessment system for social science essays (tasks 29) changed slightly.

Let's look at the amendments using specific examples:

The form remained the same - a mini-essay.
The term “problem” that the author of the statement highlights has been replaced by the word “idea”. There are no fundamental differences in this. We will also talk about considerations that arise when understanding a quote from a thinker.
The requirement to highlight several ideas if they are contained in the author’s statement is more clearly formulated. In the 2017 demo, this was described as “if necessary...”.
Two examples from a variety of sources are still being evaluated.
The claim to a detailed argument and its obvious connection with the idea of the designated quotation is more strictly expressed.

It follows from this that the volume of an essay vying for a high score will be increased (examples will need to be expanded in more detail, several ideas need to be highlighted). The essay begins to gradually move away from the genre of light and transparent composition, when it is not necessary to thoroughly reveal the example, it is enough to voice the idea.

Plus, the criteria for evaluating the material written by the examinee have changed. A provision has appeared on the correctness of the use of concepts, theoretical positions, reasoning and conclusions.

For example, if a student writes that the reproductive function of the family is raising children, that stratification is the movement of an individual in the social structure, then he will receive 0 points on this basis, since his theoretical arguments are incorrect.

In all other respects, the 2017 and 2018 KIMs are similar.

Essay structure and content

The mini-essay form provides scope for creative thought, subjectivity and artistic expression.

However, in the practice of assessing task No. 29, a special rigor, accuracy and balance has developed, which follows from the structure and content of the written material.

The final version of an essay for a high score should include the following components:

Quote. One of the five proposed statements by the author, on which the examinee chose to express his position. To do this, it is necessary to identify which sections of the social science course the problem considered by the thinker is related to and evaluate one’s own knowledge on it.
Quotes and statements of thinkers may be used in the work
The problem (topic) raised by the thinker, its relevance. It represents the subjective author's position. The student must identify the problem and express a personal written response to the question posed.
List of topics in philosophy
Proposed list of topics in economics and sociology
The meaning of the author’s statement represents his subjective opinion on the identified problem. The examinee can support the proposed idea in whole or in part, or completely refute it. In any case, this point must be clearly reflected in the prose essay, since a clearly defined evaluation criterion has been established in relation to it. Material written by a student without a correctly understood meaning will be graded 0 points.
The meaning of the statement is the subjective opinion of the author on the designated topic
Own point of view. This is the examinee's personal opinion regarding the issue raised. The expressed judgment must meet the criteria of logic and certainty. It flows through the entire text and cannot have contradictory statements.
Your own point of view must be logical and definite
Theoretical argumentation. Social science knowledge (concepts, terms, contradictions, directions of scientific thought, relationships, as well as the opinions of scientists and thinkers). They must correspond to the topic of the block on which the student is writing an essay.
Theoretical argumentation must necessarily correspond to the topic of the essay
Factual argument. Two options are allowed here: using examples from history, literature and events in society; appeal to empirical experience.
When making a factual argument, you can use examples from history or refer to empirical experience
Conclusion is the logical result of reasoning. It should not coincide verbatim with the judgment given for justification. When written correctly, it should cover the main ideas of the argument in one or two sentences and arrive at the final conclusion that the student adheres to throughout the essay.
The essay must have a logical conclusion

Thus, to write an essay on social studies with a high score, you should read all the quotes in task No. 29 and determine their problematics. In each statement you will need to find an answer to the question “What did the author want to say?” and choose the most suitable topic.

You can mentally assess your strength by answering the following questions:

What basic social scientific theoretical principles does the proposed statement correlate with?
What do I need to know to unlock it?

After this, make sure that you know the fundamental concepts of the block to which the statement belongs and understand its meaning.

Make an expected plan for the written work, but do not forget about the time limit for the exam.

Subject to all the conditions described above and regular training on task No. 29, the examinee is guaranteed to cope with the essay.

How to apply

It must be borne in mind that an essay is a short composition characterized by semantic unity.

Additional advantages for assessing assignment No. 29 by experts will include the following:

basic information about the author of the statement (for example, “outstanding German economist”, “famous Russian thinker of the Golden Age”, “famous existentialist philosopher”, “founder of the rational trend in philosophy”, etc.);
indications of alternative ways to solve the stated issue;
descriptions of various points of view on a problem or different approaches to solving it.

These grounds are not directly noted in the assessment criteria, but they will demonstrate the erudition of the examinee and his deep preparation.

It is also worth remembering that your work will be assessed by an expert. It will be an advantage to write the text on the Unified State Examination form in neat handwriting, systematized and without careless blots..

Cliché phrases

Cliche phrases are understood as standard patterns of word usage, typical patterns of word combinations and syntactic structures. With the help of these speech formulas, the process of writing an essay in social studies is significantly simplified.

For the first part of a prose essay, when formulating an understanding of the statement, its problem and relevance, the following phrases are perfect:

“In his saying, the author meant that...”;
“The thinker tried to convey to us the idea that...”;
“The meaning of the proposed statement is that...”;
“The relevance of the problem raised is manifested in the fact that...”;
“This issue is relevant in the conditions of...”

In the following paragraph, to justify one’s own position regarding the statement, a number of standard clichés are used:

“I completely agree with the author of the quote that...”;
“One cannot disagree with the thinker of the indicated statement...”;
“The activist was absolutely right in asserting that...”;
“In my opinion, (the writer, philosopher, economist) very accurately reflected in his statement the picture of modern reality in that...”;
“I beg to differ with the author’s opinion that...”
“Partly, I share the thinker’s point of view regarding..., but with... I cannot agree.”

When making theoretical arguments, the following expressions are used:

“Let us analyze the idea proposed by the author from the point of view of (economic, legal, sociological) theory...”;
“Let us turn to the theoretical understanding of the statement...”;
“In (sociological, political, philosophical) science, this statement has its grounds...”;
“The proposed quotation has a deep social scientific justification...”;
“To substantiate this statement from a theoretical position...”;
“In the social studies curriculum (law, political science, etc.) ...”;

In terms of selecting facts, examples from public life and empirical social experience, the following phrases are used:

“Let’s give justification from public life that confirms my idea...”;
“Based on personal experience, (according to the stories of my parents, classmates...) circumstances indicate the opposite...”;
“The position I sympathize with is confirmed by examples from life...”;
“Let’s turn to similar situations in (history, literature, cinema) ...”;
“We meet confirmation of the thinker’s quote at every step...”;

In conclusion, the following speech cliches are used:

“Based on the above, it should be concluded that...”;
“To summarize, I would like to note that...”;
“When finishing the work, we can say that...”;
"Thus …";

Some experts suggest that the overuse of such hackneyed phrases should be avoided. Although when writing an essay, they help formulate thoughts and clearly delimit the text. It will be better if you do not take a large number of cliches ready-made, but change them while maintaining the meaning.

Criteria for evaluating social studies essays

In general, you could get 6 primary points for the mini-essay, which are assessed according to the following criteria:

Revealing the meaning of the statement. In this case, one or more ideas contained in the author’s statement must be correctly highlighted. For this, the examinee is awarded 1 primary point. For non-disclosure, you will receive a 0 not only for this criterion, but for the entire essay.
Theoretical content of the mini-essay. The maximum score is 2 points if a connected chain of theoretical reasoning and constructions can be traced. Separate provisions that are not connected into a single picture, but related to the topic, are scored only 1 point. Not related to the topic 0 points.
Correct use of concepts, theoretical positions, reasoning and conclusions. This criterion gives the student 1 point for the absence of errors in theoretical constructs and terms. It is not scored if there are theoretical inaccuracies.
The quality of the facts and examples provided. Two examples should be clearly related to the selected provisions and theses, and also expanded. Then the examinee will receive the maximum score for this criterion - 2. With one written example, only 1 point. Complete absence of examples - 0 points.

In the Unified State Examination in Social Science, the essay is the most valuable task in point equivalent. This creative composition should be given special attention and practiced frequently.

Reading additional literature on law, philosophy, sociology, economics and political science will greatly help you choose the right argument and most fully reveal the proposed problem. Understanding the assessment criteria will help you to include the required points in your essay and get the maximum score.

A mini-essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies is an alternative task. This means that the exam participant can choose from several proposed options the one that is closer and more interesting to him.

Essay topics are short quotes - aphorisms related to the five blocks of the curriculum, one for each. The thematic areas of statements are as follows:

Philosophy,
Economy,
Sociology, social psychology,
Political science,
Jurisprudence.

Of the five statements, you need to choose only one (the closest or most understandable) and write a mini-essay that reveals the meaning of the chosen aphorism and contains illustrative examples.

The “weight” of the social studies essay in the final points is quite small: about 8% of the total points. A perfectly written paper can earn only 5 primary points out of 62 possible, about 8%. Therefore, you should not approach the work as fundamentally as when writing essays on the Russian language or essays on literature.

The compilers of the Unified State Examination themselves suggest taking 36-45 minutes to write an essay on social studies (this is exactly the time period indicated in the specification). For comparison: an essay on the Russian language takes 110 minutes, and a full-length essay on literature takes 115.

All this suggests that the approach to social science should be different: there is no need to create a “masterpiece”, there are no mandatory requirements for presentation style (or even literacy), and even the volume of work is not regulated. Here it is not necessary to write 150-350 words of text: after all, the task is positioned as a “mini-essay” and if you manage to reveal the idea briefly and succinctly, this will be welcome.

It is enough to simply demonstrate knowledge of the subject and the ability to find suitable examples to support your point of view - and express your thoughts coherently and convincingly on the exam form.

Criteria for assessing essays in social studies on the Unified State Exam

The essay is scored based on three criteria in total. To earn the maximum five points, you must meet the following "required minimum":

Reveal the meaning of the original statement, or at least demonstrate that you correctly understood what its author meant (1 point). This is a key point: if you did not understand the quote and received 0 points on the first criterion, the work will not be assessed further.

Demonstrate knowledge of theory(2 points). Here, to get a high grade, it is necessary to analyze the meaning of the statement, using the knowledge acquired during the study of the school social studies course, remember the main points of the theory, and use the terminology correctly. Incomplete compliance with the requirements, deviation from the original topic or semantic errors will result in the loss of one point.

Ability to find relevant examples(2 points). To receive the highest mark on this criterion, you must illustrate the problem with two (at least) examples - facts that confirm the main idea of the essay. Moreover, they must be from sources of different types. Sources can be

examples from fiction, feature films and documentaries;
examples from popular science literature, the history of various branches of science;
historical facts;
facts gleaned while studying other school subjects;
personal experience and observations;
media reports.

If only personal experience is used as examples or examples of the same type are given (for example, both from fiction), the score is reduced by a point. A zero for this criterion is given if the examples do not correspond to the topic or if there is no information at all.

Social studies essay writing plan

There are no strict requirements for the structure of the essay - the main thing is to reveal the meaning of the statement, demonstrate knowledge of the theory and support it with facts. However, given that you don’t have much time to think about it, you can stick to a standard essay plan that includes all the necessary elements.

1. The optional part is the introduction. General statement of the problem (one or two sentences). In an essay on social studies, this point of the plan can be omitted and go straight to the interpretation of the proposed aphorism, but schoolchildren often find it difficult to deviate from the usual compositional scheme, when the “gist of the matter” is preceded by general reasoning. Therefore, if you are used to starting with an introduction, write it, if this is not important for you, you can omit this point, the points will not be reduced for this.

2. Revealing the meaning of the original statement– 2-3 sentences. There is no need to quote in full; it is enough to refer to its author and state the meaning of the phrase in your own words. It must be remembered that, unlike an essay in Russian, where it is necessary to isolate a problem, an essay in social science can be devoted to a phenomenon, a process, or simply a statement of fact. To reveal the meaning of a statement, you can use templates like “In the proposed statement, N.N (a famous philosopher, economist, famous writer) considers (describes, talks about ...) such a phenomenon (process, problem) as ..., interpreting it as ... " or “The meaning of the statement ( expressions, aphorisms) N. N is that...”

3. Theoretical part(3-4 sentences). Here it is necessary to confirm or refute the author’s point of view, relying on the knowledge gained in class and using special terminology. If you agree with the author’s point of view, then, by and large, this part is a detailed translation of the original phrase into “textbook language.” For example, if the author called children’s games in the yard a “school of life”, you will write about what institutions of socialization are and the role they play in the process of an individual’s assimilation of social norms. Here you can also quote quotes from other philosophers, economists, etc., confirming the main idea of the text - however, this is not a mandatory requirement.

4. Factual part(4-6 sentences). Here it is necessary to give at least two examples confirming the theses put forward in the previous paragraph. In this part it is better to avoid “general words” and talk about specifics. And do not forget to indicate sources of information. For example, “experiments devoted to” have been repeatedly described in popular science literature; “as we know from the school physics course...”, “writer N,N. in his novel “Untitled” he describes the situation…”, “on the shelves of the supermarket opposite my school you can see...”.

5. Conclusion (1-2 sentences). Since an essay on social studies on the Unified State Exam is, by and large, a proof of a certain theoretical position, you can complete the essay by summing up what has been said. For example: “Thus, both real-life examples and reading experience suggest that...”, followed by a restatement of the main thesis.

remember, that the main thing is to correctly reveal the meaning of the statement. Therefore, when choosing from the proposed options, take a quote whose interpretation is beyond your doubts.

Before you start writing the text, remember the terminology on this topic. Write them down on a draft form so you can use them later in your work.

Choose the most suitable examples on this topic. Remember that examples from literature may not be limited to works of the school curriculum - in the social studies exam you can use any literary works as arguments. We should not forget that relying on reading experience in the case of social studies is not a priority: remember cases from life; news heard on the radio; topics discussed in society and so on. Also write down the selected examples on the draft form.

Since literacy, style and composition of the text are not graded, if you are confident enough to express your thoughts in writing, it is better not to waste time writing a full draft. Limit yourself to drawing up a thesis plan and write straight away- this will help save time.

Start the essay after you have answered all other questions.– otherwise you may not fit in the time limit and lose more points than you gain. For example, the first four tasks with detailed answers (based on the text read) can give a total of 10 primary points (twice as much as an essay), and formulating answers to them usually takes much less time than writing a mini-essay.

If you are “floating” in the topic and you feel that you cannot write an essay with maximum points - do this task anyway. Every point is important - and even if you only manage to correctly formulate the topic and give at least one example “from life” - you will receive two primary points for your social studies essay on the Unified State Exam, which is much better than zero.

Social studies is one of the most popular Unified State Exam subjects, because a certificate with good scores in this subject opens up wide opportunities for entry into highly ranked universities in a variety of faculties.

If you have confidently chosen social studies or decided to take tests in this discipline, considering it simpler than a number of other subjects in the school curriculum, we suggest you find out:

Although, for most schoolchildren, social studies seems to be a fairly simple subject, statistics on the results of the unified state exam indicate that not all test takers easily obtain high scores. Why?

If we ignore the fact that social studies is quite often chosen as a third subject by 11th graders who have not yet decided on the desired direction of further education, then there are three reasons for not being very successful in passing the exam:

The tickets cover a fairly large number of topics included in the course of such subjects as economics, politics, law, sociology and philosophy.
Many schoolchildren lack the ability to quickly work with information presented in the form of tables and graphs.
Problems with writing essays correctly.

It is a short argumentative essay, in which graduates need to not only reveal the meaning of the statement, but also argue their reasoning, skillfully using concepts from various topics based on personal experience, that causes difficulties for most graduates. But, in fact, everything is quite simple if you spend some time preparing for the Unified State Exam.

Where to begin?

Find out what essay topics will be offered at the Unified State Exam in Social Studies in 2018.
Work through each possible topic.
Create a basic plan that will help you quickly and competently write an essay on social studies and successfully enter your desired university in 2018.

Essay topics for the 2018 Unified State Exam in social studies

No one can say exactly what topic will be offered to graduates in 2018, since it is announced after the envelope is opened on the day of the Unified State Exam. But you can prepare well for the essay, because all possible topics are in the collection from which the tasks for the Unified State Exam in Social Sciences in 2018 will be taken.

You can familiarize yourself with the topics and issues of different modules included in social studies on the page of our portal or save the file in pdf format to your computer. You can open files of this format with special programs or simply through any browser installed on your PC.

Making a plan for an essay in social studies

Regardless of the direction and topic, the essay should have the following structure:

Main quote.
The problem and its relevance.
Revealing the essence of the statement.
The essay writer’s view of the problem being revealed.
Theoretical argumentation.
Examples from personal experience or social practice, history or literature.
Short conclusion.

Try to find quotes for each topic. But keep in mind that the choice of quotation must be justified and supported by further reasoning and examples.

To reveal the relevance of the problem, use cliche phrases:

To correctly disclose the content of the selected topic, you must:

periodically return to the topic at different points in the essay;
add brief information about the author of the statement;
try not to go beyond the topic;
do not dilute the text with facts and arguments that are not related to the chosen topic;
describe different views on the problem and existing solutions.

When taking the Unified State Exam 2018 in social studies, an essay plan will help you not to deviate from the intended path, according to which you can easily write an argumentative essay step by step.

When formulating the main idea, do not repeat the entire statement, but use the appropriate clichés:

“The meaning of the statement is that...”
“The author is absolutely convinced that...”
“By making a statement, the author tries to draw attention to the fact that...”

When expressing your opinion, do not rush to take the author’s side. You can agree with him only partially or even argue, providing compelling arguments in favor of your position. Depending on the chosen direction, the following phrases can be used in the block:

It is necessary to substantiate your opinion at the theoretical and empirical levels. Therefore, when drawing up your plan for the essay for the Unified State Exam 2018, be sure to prepare examples from life, theoretical material from various topics in social studies, as well as historical facts.

Conclusion is 1-2 sentences that summarize the reasoning.

Teacher's advice! While working through each topic, make yourself reference tables for each statement, in which write down 1-2 sentences for each point of the plan.

Grading essays in social studies

For a well-written argument, a graduate can receive a maximum of 5 points.

In total, when assigning points for an essay, the following are assessed:

Important! If the meaning of the statement is incorrectly revealed, then the essay is not further checked and 0 points are awarded for completing this task.

There is still quite a lot of time before the start of the Unified State Exam 2018, which means that learning how to correctly plan an essay and learn the theory of social studies is more than possible. The main thing is to set a goal and strive to achieve it through daily study and tireless training in writing quality essays.

Also look at video on changing the ESSAY in social studies:

The Unified State Exam essay in social studies is considered one of the most difficult tasks when passing the exam. According to statistics, only every sixth graduate copes with it. For completing the task you can score from 3 to 5 points. To avoid losing them, it is extremely important to carefully prepare for the written part of the exam. Let's look further at some examples of typical mistakes when performing this task.

Verification criteria

An essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies is written based on one of the selected statements. The assignment contains six quotes. Completed social studies essays are graded step by step. The very first and most important criterion is K1. The disclosure of the meaning of the selected statement is assessed. If the graduate does not identify the problem posed by the author, the examiner gives zero points for criterion K1. In such cases, finished social studies essays are not evaluated further. For other criteria, the reviewer automatically gives zero points.

Social studies essay structure

The task is performed according to the following scheme:

Quote.
Determination of the problem raised by the author and its relevance.
The meaning of the selected statement.
Expressing your own point of view.
Using arguments at a theoretical level.
Provide at least two examples from social practice, literature/history that confirm the correctness of the judgments made.
Conclusion.

Quote selection

When determining the topic on which an essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies will be written, the graduate must be sure that he:

Knows the basic concepts of the subject.
Clearly understands the meaning of the quote used.
Can express his opinion (partially or completely agree with the chosen statement, refute it).
Knows social science terms that are necessary to competently substantiate one’s own position at the theoretical level. Here it is necessary to take into account that the selected concepts should not go beyond the topic of the social studies essay. It is necessary to use appropriate terms.
Can support his own opinion with practical examples from social life or literature/history.

Problem Definition

Here we should immediately give examples. An essay in social studies (USE) can reveal problems from the following areas:

Philosophy.
Families.
Sociology.
Political Science.
Jurisprudence.
Economics, etc.

Problems in the philosophical aspect:

The relationship between consciousness and matter.
Development and movement as ways of existence.
The infinity of the cognitive process.
The relationship between nature and society.
Theoretical and empirical levels of scientific knowledge.
The spiritual and material aspects of social life, their relationship.
Culture as a transformative activity of people in general.
The essence of civilization and so on.

Social Studies Essay: Sociology

When writing, you can reveal the following problems:

Social struggle and inequality.
The relationship between subjective and objective factors that influence processes in people’s lives.
The meaning of material and spiritual values.
Maintaining stability in public life.
Features of the city.
Youth as a community.
The social nature of thinking, knowledge, and human activity.
Interaction between society and religion.
Features of socialization of younger generations.
Historical inequality between men and women.
organizations.
and so on.

Psychology

As part of writing a social studies essay, a person can act as a key object of study. In this case, problems such as:

Interpersonal communication, essence and tasks to be solved.
Psychological climate in the team.
Relationships between an individual and a separate group.
Norms, roles, personality status.
National identity.
The importance of the communication process.
The essence of social conflict.
Inconsistency between the aspirations and capabilities of the individual.
Sources of social progress.
Family.

A social science essay may also address specific functions of the science in question.

Political science

This social studies essay topic may cover the following issues:

Authoritarian regime.
Subjects of politics.
Places and roles of the state in the system.
Modern political interactions.
Totalitarian regime.
Relationships between politics, law and the economic sphere.
Origin of the state.
Political regime (through the disclosure of its concepts and features).
State sovereignty.
Civil society (through the disclosure of structure, characteristics, concepts).
Party systems.
Socio-political movements, pressure groups.
Essences of a democratic regime.
Mutual responsibility of the individual and the state.
Political pluralism.
Separation of powers as a principle of the rule of law.
and so on.

Economic system

Another common science that can address issues in a social studies essay is economics. In this case, questions such as:

The contradiction between the unlimited needs of people and the limited resources.
Production factors and their significance.
Capital as an economic resource.
The essence and functions of the monetary system.
Efficient use of existing resources.
The meaning of division of labor.
The role of trade in the process of social development.
Efficiency and production incentives.
The essence of market relations.
State regulation of the economy, etc.

Legal discipline

Within science, a number of key problems can be identified and any of them can be addressed in a social studies essay:

Law as a regulator of people's lives.
The essence and specific features of the state.
Social significance of law.
The political system and the definition of the role of the state in it.
Similarities and differences between morality and law.
Welfare state: concept and characteristics.
Legal nihilism and methods of overcoming it.
Civil society and the state.
Concept, signs and composition of offenses, classification.
Legal culture, etc.

Cliché phrases

In addition to revealing the problem, the structure of the social studies essay suggests an indication of its relevance in the modern world. To effectively implement this task, you can introduce cliche phrases into your text: “Given in the conditions ...

globalization of relations in society;
the controversial nature of inventions and scientific discoveries;
worsening global problems;
formation of a unified economic, educational, information field;
strict differentiation in society;
dialogue of cultures;
modern market;
the need to preserve traditional cultural values and the nation’s own identity.”

Important point

In an essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies, as well as in written assignments in other subjects, you should periodically return to the problem raised. This is necessary for its fullest disclosure. In addition, periodic mention of the problem will allow you to stay within the topic and prevent reasoning and the use of terms that are not related to the selected statement. The latter, in particular, is one of the common mistakes of graduates.

Main thought

In this part of the essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies, the essence of the statement should be revealed. However, it should not be repeated verbatim. You can also use cliche phrases here:

"The author is convinced that..."
"The meaning of this statement is..."
"The author focuses on..."

Determining your own position

In an essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies, you can agree with the author’s opinion partially or completely. In the first case, it is necessary to refute with reason the part with which the conflict of opinion arose. Also, the writer can completely deny the statement or argue with the author. You can also use a cliche here:

“I agree with the author’s opinion that...”
“I partly adhere to the expressed point of view regarding ..., but I cannot agree with ....”
the author clearly reflected the picture of modern society (the situation in Russia, one of the problems in the modern world)..."
“I beg to differ with the author’s position that...”

Arguments

An essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies must contain a substantiation of the writer’s expressed opinion. In this part, it is necessary to recall the key terms related to the problem and theoretical provisions. Argumentation should be carried out at two levels:

Theoretical. In this case, the basis will be social science knowledge (opinions of thinkers/scientists, definitions, concepts, directions of concepts, terms, relationships, etc.).
Empirical. Two options are allowed here: use events from your life or examples from literature, social life, history.

In the process of selecting facts that will serve as arguments for your own position, you need to answer the following questions:

Do the examples support the opinions expressed?
Do they agree with the thesis stated?
Can they be interpreted in a different way?
Are the facts convincing?

By following this scheme, you can control the adequacy of examples and prevent deviations from the topic.

Conclusion

He must complete the essay. The conclusion summarizes the main ideas, sums up the reasoning, confirms the correctness or incorrectness of the statement. He should not convey verbatim the quotation that became the topic of the essay. When formulating, you can use the following cliches:

"To summarize, I would like to note..."
"It can therefore be concluded that..."

Decor

We should not forget that an essay is a short composition. It must be distinguished by semantic unity. In this regard, a coherent text should be formed and logical transitions should be used. Also, we should not forget about the correct spelling of terms. It is advisable to break the text into paragraphs, each of which reflects a separate idea. The red line must be observed.

additional information

Your essay may include:

Brief information about the author of the quote. For example, information that he is an “outstanding Russian scientist,” “a famous French educator,” “the founder of an idealistic concept,” and so on.
Indication of alternative ways to solve a problem.
Description of different opinions or approaches to an issue.
An indication of the polysemy of concepts and terms that are used in the text with justification for the meaning in which they were applied.

Job requirements

Among the variety of existing approaches to writing technology, a number of conditions that must be met should be highlighted:

Adequate understanding of the meaning of the statement and the problem.
Correspondence of the text to the issue raised.
Identification and disclosure of key aspects pointed out by the author of the statement.
A clear definition of your own opinion, attitude to the problem, to the position expressed in the quote.
Correspondence of the disclosure of aspects to the given scientific context.
Theoretical level of substantiation of one's own opinion.
The presence of meaningful facts of personal experience, social behavior, public life.
Logic in reasoning.
Absence of terminological, ethnic, factual and other errors.
Compliance with language norms and genre requirements.

There are no strict limits on the length of the essay. It depends on the complexity of the topic, the nature of thinking, experience, and level of training of the graduate.

Mistakes in formulating the problem

The most common shortcomings are:

Misunderstanding and inability to identify the problem in a statement. On the one hand, this is due to an insufficient amount of knowledge in the discipline to which the statement relates, and on the other, to an attempt to fit previously reviewed, written or read works to the identified issue.
Inability to formulate the problem. This error is usually associated with a small vocabulary and terminology in basic sciences.
Inability to formulate the essence of a quote. It is explained by misunderstanding or incorrect understanding of the content of the statement and the lack of necessary social science knowledge.
Replacing the problem with the position of the author. This error occurs due to the fact that the graduate does not see or understand the difference between them. The problem in the essay is the topic on which the author discusses. It is always voluminous and extensive. Different opinions can be expressed on it, often completely opposite. The meaning of the statement is the author’s personal position on the issue. The quote is just one of many opinions.

Shortcomings in defining and justifying your position

The absence of arguments confirming the graduate’s position indicates ignorance or ignorance of the requirements for the structure of the essay. Frequent mistakes when using concepts are unjustified narrowing or expansion of the meaning of a term, substitution of some definitions for others. Incorrect handling of information indicates an inability to analyze experience. Often the examples given in the text are loosely related to the problem. The lack of a critical perception of information obtained from the Internet and the media leads to the use of unverified and unreliable facts as justification. Another common mistake is a one-sided view of certain social phenomena, indicating an inability to identify and formulate cause-and-effect relationships.