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Consider this statement:

Progress often complicates as much as it simplifies.

Write a unified essay in which you perform the following tasks. Explain what you think the above

statement means. Describe a specific situation in which progress might simplify more than it

complicates. Discuss what you think determines whether progress complicates or simplifies.

Sample Essay #1Progress often complicates as much as it simplifies is a true statement. If a person

wants to progress in life they need to simplify things, not make them more complicated

Many times people cant progress because there are so many complicated things to thin

about and the person cant achieve their goals due to the things. But sometimes

progress is able to make life simpler. It all depends on what a person wants.

SCORE = 1

Explanation of score:This response provides no coherent explanation of the prompt statement, no description of a situatio

that runs counter to the statement, and no discussion of factors that help determine when one or the

other of the conflicting perspectives might hold true. Thus, the response fails to demonstrate an

understanding of the rhetorical assignment or an ability to organize a response. Its brevity also

prevents a reasonable evaluation of the writers ability to use language effectively.

Sample Essay #2

The statement progress often complicates as much as it simplifies means that

progress can bring unanticipated problems to our lives when it is supposed to make lifeeasier. For instance, if you are used to paying bills online and your computer crashes or

gets a virus then you cant use this technology or progress to make your life run more

smoothly. Instead you have to write out the check, and mail the payment in. This takes

time that could be better spent doing other things, so life is more complicated now

because you expect your technology to work and it cant.

Progress simplifies our lives if we can do things in fewer steps and with less effort.

Back when there was no electricity or gas to use for stoves, women had to spend mostof their day preparing food and tending to wood- burning fires to keep the heat up in

the house and for cooking. Meals had to be gotten ready for, and as soon as one meal

got eaten the next one had to be prepared. With the invention of gas-burning stoves,

womens labor lessened and they did not have to spend their entire lives in preparation

or in clean up. This is an example of when progress definiteily simplified life.

The determining factor of whether progress complicates as much as it simplifies

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depends on how much a person comes to rely it. If a person is used to paying bills onlin

and he or she is no longer able to do so because of some kind of system crash, then he

or she has complicated his or her life. On the other hand, if a person has progress

introduced into his or her life, as in the case of time and labor-saving appliances, then

they have actually simplified life. It all really depends on the situation and kind of

progress.

SCORE = 3

Explanation of score:

This response is organized, for the most part clearly written, and attends to all three of the writing

assignments tasks. It falls short of adequate mainly in the development and reconciliation of its idea

The first paragraph uses online bill-paying as an illustration of technological progress intended to

simplify life, but describes a scenario in which this ostensible advance might actually make a simple

task more complicated. The writers Task 2 counter example is that of the gas stove, which greatly

simplified meal preparation. But the writer fails to consider what happens when the stove fails.

Doesnt life go back to being complicated, just as it does when the computer crashes in the firstexample? How is this example of life-simplifying technological progress different from the example

is meant to contravene?

The writer deserves credit for providing two vivid examples to illustrate these points, but the failure

think through both scenarios renders the essay only somewhat satisfying, particularly in the final

paragraph. More development of the Task 1 and Task 2 discussions might have fleshed out their

implications, uncovered some fundamental differences between the two examples, and provided the

writer with a more plausible perspective for Task 3 that could address the conflicting ideas inherent

the writing tasks. As it stands, the lack of development substantially undermines the essays overall

effectiveness.

The conclusion is likewise only somewhat satisfying, because of the logical flaw at the essays core.

Both computers and gas stoves are labor-saving devices that simplify life; if they fail, life goes back

being complicated again. Given this presentation of ideas, there is really nothing for the writer to

resolve in Task 3.

Sample Essay #3

On the face of it, progress is supposed to be a good or helpful force in peoples lives

However, the statement asserts--perhaps rightfully--that progress or evendevelopment, the building of one thing upon another, may actually complicate or

entangle peoples lives the more intent they are on progressing or developing. With mor

and more so-called expedited means of communication, for instance, we are constantly

at the beck and call of our technology, whether its a tweet, a text, an email available

through our cell phones, or even a now-quaint phone message. Such availability does not

make our communications any simpler, let alone better. Instead, we are constantly

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having to monitor these devices just to keep up with our busy lives. Maybe if we turned

off some of these apparatuses we might have a simpler and therefore better time of

it?

To be fair though, for every Luddite grumbling about the simpler times of days gone b

there is a counter example demonstrating that the complexity often accompanying

progress is not inherently troubling or troubled. This generation of children and colleg

students dont know life before ipods, texting, video-streaming, and the like. Are we

unable to focus because of the many demands so-called instant communication places

upon us? Not necessarily. Perhaps the person who is busy texting at dinner while

listening to a harangue from her parent at the same time, has a leg up on the person

who can only hear the dog barking. The multi-tasking teen has in essence unconsciously

adapted to take in multiple sensory details at once and to prioritize some while filterin

out others. This is a complex way of living, sure, but it is something we all do. New

communication devices and modes simply emphasize this everyday filtering on a new

level.

The key to determining the relationship between complexity and progress depends on

the extent to which an individual can accommodate and incorporate complexity as a par

of their daily fabric. For some people complexity is a negative to be avoided, and

therefore so must progress. Its only progress if it moves people in a forward directio

if it makes peoples lives better. For those who find complexity to be a hindrance rathe

than a challenge to be embraced, progress will likely pass them by and good riddance to

it. By contrast, for those who can take on new technologies, progress engenders

forward movement and development. That we do this almost unthinkingly over the

course of a lifetime may be the most complicated feat we accomplish collectively, and

hasnt been bemoaned as overly laborious. Instead, its called life.

SCORE = 5

Explanation of score:

One key element of the scoring rubric that distinguishes a 5 essay from a 4 essay is the presence of

some clearly communicated complexity and depth of ideas. This response achieves such complexity

by challenging a basic presupposition of the prompt statement: the notion that the simple is always

preferable to the complicated. This writer makes us think twice about that hidden assumption by

suggesting that the complications created by all the new gadgets in our lives may help us develop ne

skills, and in some measure improve us. Contrary to the prompts assumption, there is no reason to

take as given that simpler is better.

In addition to uncovering some of the prompts complexity, the writer provides a cohesive, organize

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Learning how to count to ten seems like a great accomplishment to young children. However, as children progress throughschool and are exposed to more information and facts, the seemingly overwhelming amount of knowledge can lead tocomplication in a student's life. At the time when the average student is graduating from high school, he or she will be faced witcomplicated decisions such as whether or not to pursue further schooling as well as what type of career choice he or she wouldultimately like to have. Such complicated decisions may have a long-lasting impact on the life of student.

Conversely, as adults progress through life, decisions seem to be simplified and have much less of an impact of his or her life.For those who have already retired from their careers, whether to play golf and relax by the swimming pool seems to be the daidecisions that must made by such adults. Accordingly, as adults progress through life, decisions are simplified and people get trelax and enjoy "easy living."

Whether or not progress complicates or simplifies one's life depends on the age of that person, and at what stage he or she is intheir life. For children, progress often tends to complicate life and leads to important decisions that will have a long-lastingeffect. On the other hand, progress most often simplifies life for adults and generally leads to decisions that affect them on a

daily basis. Although progress in life may seem overwhelming at times, life will eventually be simplified so "easy living" can beenjoyed as people age.

and focused essay. Some sentences are flawed (For some people complexity is a negative to be

avoided, and therefore so must progress), but overall the writing is vivid and clear. Furthermore, th

writer exhibits a lively vocabulary (Luddite grumbling, harangue, bemoaned, etc.). Essays tha

earn a score of 5 or 6 typically succeed in communicating nuanced ideas through the proficient use o

language.

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