Hello everyone, will appreciate if any of you guys could provide a rating for my AWA Responses. Did these while taking a Manhattan Mock Test. Thanks for the help!

ANALYZE ISSUE: Prompt: Mass media and the internet have caused people’s attention spans to get shorter. However, the overall effect has been positive: while people are less able to focus on one thing, they more than make up for it with an enhanced ability to sort through large quantities of information and find what’s important.
Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim. In developing and supporting your position, be sure to address the most compelling reasons or examples that could be used to challenge your position.

Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim. In developing and supporting your position, be sure to address the most compelling reasons or examples that could be used to challenge your position.

Response: The claim states that the presence of mass media and the internet have consequently resulted to the decrease of people's attention spans. However, the claim mentions that though this decrease may be perceived as a negative outcome, the net positives outweigh this phenomenon. On one hand, some may say that the overall effect of mass media and the internet is negative due to the increased circulation of fake news over the past few decades. On the other hand, the presence of these two avenues have more positive spillovers, which have ultimately helped shaped the world we lived in today - such as the art of "multi-tasking", something a lot of people consider a perfunctory part of their lies, as well as the rise of strong research, development, and innovation - which contributes in the world of science, journalism, business, and technology among many others.


Though it can be argued that yes, mass media and the internet may have contributed to the overall decrease in the attention spans of people, to say that its overall effect is negative may be a bit questionable. The diverse avenues of mass media, as well as the inclusive use of the internet across the world may be seen as one of the prime reasons to the spread of fake news, which may to some degree cause havoc to certain communities or societies. However, when looking at things at the bigger picture - one gets to realize that our world today would not be as advanced if it were not for both mass media and the internet.


First, the art of "multi-tasking", which may embody how the majority of society considers as an integral or normal part of their daily lives, whether it be in the office or at home - can be mentioned to be something brought about as well by the mass media and internet phenomenon. For example, a mother can be watching the daily news show, while watching over her children, as well as checking how her online store is doing - all at the same time. This ability may be argued to cause people's attention spans to be divided among two, three, or four different activities, but at the end of the day, but due to the constancy of this very routine, the art of mastering this "act" is not a rare sight. Thus, a lot of things get done at a faster pace, which contributes to more efficiency in the long run.


Second, the rise of strong research and development as well as innovation is also consequently brought about this heavily integrated mass media and internet society. Over the past few decades, we have seen numerous institutions, both in the public and private sectors that have increasingly placed more money for research and development, which consequently leads to innovation. The presence of the internet and mass media allows people today more and easy access to academic journals, scientific studies, publications, survey analysis and more to help in their research work, to consequently help mankind. One example could be in today's society, where the whole world is currently facing the COVID-19 pandemic. Governments and biotechnology firms such as AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, and more are increasingly placing more money to increased research and development to come out with a vaccine at the quickest possible time, in order to restore normalcy in the world. Without mass media and the internet, this feat would be tremendously more complicated, and would eventually lead to more delay/s in the positive medical feats the whole world is waiting for.


Clearly, mass media and the internet may have had a fair share of negative spillovers - such as the a decrease in people's attention span/s due to the many possibilities brought about by these two avenues. However, the net positives ultimately make the overall effect of mass media and the internet something that makes our world a better place, due to the increasing ability to do things at a quicker pace - whether it be only in people's homes or whether it be in a scientific lab where a cure of a pandemic is waiting to be created or finalized.


ANALYZE ARGUMENT: Prompt: Pirouettes Ballet School is the clear choice for any child. Of all the dance schools in Elmtown, Pirouettes has the most intensive program, and our teachers have danced in the most prestigious ballet companies all over the world. Many of our students have gone on to become professional dancers with top dance companies.

Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the recommendation and the argument on which it is based are reasonable. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the recommendation.

Response: The recommendation states that Pirouttes Ballet School is the clear choice for any child is a bit flawed. The assumption that there is a causation with the presence of teachers that have danced in the best ballet companies across the world to the ability of Pirouettes Ballet School to any child is highly questionable. Furthermore, the notion that the school produces many alumni that have become top dancers, which will then consequently lead to many future students following the same path also suffers from the problem of certain samples being representative of an entire population, which in the real world - may not ultimately be the case.


First, the causation assumption between highly-accomplished teachers to the ability of Pirouettes Ballet School for any child has a lot of loopholes, and can be refuted in a number of ways. In looking at this question, one may ask - to what extent can the teachers in Pirouettes Ballet School accommodate children with disabilities or special conditions? Yes, the teachers may be well-positioned to teach some children, but to say that this school is the clear choice or "no brainer" pick for any child is unsubstantiated. One example though not in a ballet setting could be in primary school. Yes, some families pay huge amounts to make their children go to the top private schools. On the other hand however, some families also pay huge amounts to particular schools, which are not necessarily the kind of schools mentioned earlier, but rather those educational institutions that cater or help students with disabilities - with the purpose as well of preparing these students to the best of their abilities. Thus, the causation mentioned in this recommendation is highly flawed.


Second, the flawed notion that since many of Pirouettes Ballet School's alumni have eventually lead to become professional dancers with numerous top dance companies is also not fully substantiated. The problem here of certain samples being representative of the whole and future population is clearly evident in this argument and recommendation. In rationalizing about this statement, one may ask - to what extent have the students who have become professional dancers stayed in Pirouettes Ballet School. Another question may be whether Pirouettes Ballet School was the only ballet institution attended by all of these professional dancers, or were there other ballet schools as well? The reason is because it seems like Pirouettes Ballet School is discounting the fact that there are several other factors that may have contributed to the success of their students, aside from the fact of the enrollment of these individuals in Pirouettes Ballet School. One example is that some students may have spent only 1-2 years in Pirouettes Ballet School, but eventually veered off and enrolled in another ballet school and stayed there for maybe 10-15 years. This possibility and longevity in the other school may in turn have contributed as well, if not more to the success of the professional dancer. Thus, this prime example alone sheds light on the answers this argument may need in pressing this certain point.


Taking the first two points into account, one way this recommendation could be considered more reliable is by presenting the different strengths of their teachers in the realm of ballet. The concept of professional teachers is a bit vague. Yes, these teachers may all be great, but numerous teachers have different abilities and specialties. Once this is resolved, and compared against other ballet institutions across town, then maybe then - Pirouettes Balance School could argue that this school is the clear choice of certain types of students. Furthermore, Pirouettes Ballet School could also send out and publish survey results to successful alumni who have gone off to the best dance companies. These surveys could shed light on the longevity of their stay in Pirouettes Ballet School, as well as the alumni's personal opinion on the contributions of his/her stay in Pirouettes that may be contributed to his/her eventual success in ballet. With this, the claims of the recommendation will not only be more detailed, but it will also be substantiated with information not only by the school itself (which may suffer from bias), but rather from alumni or third parties as well.


Clearly, the recommendation suffers from some flaws - such as assumptive causation between top teachers to every child, as well as samples presented discounting all other possible factors contributing to the success of professional alumni. The danger of these two flaws are significant, and may consequently lead to misinterpretations of the strengths and weaknesses, as well as abilities of the school to the entire population, among many others. Thus, once the recommendations presented above are established and carried out, then the recommendation may be in a position to present more substantiated information that would be less likely to mislead parents and children (all all kinds) that are interested in ballet.