Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 1

SEKOLAH TOEFL HANDBOOK

“Jangan biarkan keterbatasan membuatmu tidak mampu

berbuat lebih dari yang orang lain pikirkan..”

STRUCTURE
Week 4
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 2

Ingat dan laksanakan selalu …

6 Kewajiban Siswa Sekolah TOEFL
1. Siswa “WAJIB” mendownload dan mengerjakan Handbook Mingguan. Tidak boleh minta
handbook dengan siswa yang lain.

2. Siswa “WAJIB” merespon “Questions of the Day” yang diberikan di Facebook Group
setiap 2 hari sekali. Questions of the Day juga dapat diaksses di blog sdsafadg.com
dibagian QOTD.

3. Siswa “WAJIB” mengikuti Temu Online setiap hari Minggu pukul 20.00 – 22.00 WIB di
Facebook Group masing-masing. Bila siswa berhalangan hadir, inbox mentor Budi
Waluyo.

4. Siswa “WAJIB” menge-like atau komen postingan yang disebar saat Temu Online sebagai
indikasi kehadirannya.

5. Siswa “WAJIB” menge-like atau komen setiap kali ada postingan informasi yang disebar
di Grup FB agar keaktifan grup terjaga.

6. Siswa “WAJIB” menjaga handbook dan materi lainnya yang dibagikan di Sekolah TOEFL.
Tidak membagi atau menggunakannya untuk kepentingan yang lain.

Kontak Mentor Assistant (MA)

 Jika punya pertanyaan seputar materi yang dipelajari, silahkan kirim pesan
WhatsApp ke salah satu kontak MA dibawah ini.
 Mohon, perkenalkan diri dan gunakan Bahasa yang santun dalam bertanya ke
MA. Para MA ini sukarela membantu proses pembelajaran anda, tanpa dibayar.
 Usahakan memberitahu MA bila pertanyaannya sudah terjawab.
 Hindari “mengetes” kemampuan MA untuk hal-hal yang merendahkan/ negatif.

1. Rahma : +62 821 3599 8523 7. Retty : +62 87887002181

2. Ratih : +62 856 5884 7567 8. Selvi : +62 812 9818 2289
3. Henny : +62 813 6325 7395 9. Nida : +62 857 3078 0781
4. Rini : +62 812 8818 7820 10. Yusup : +62 856 2425 9906
5. Diah : +62 857 2951 17868. 11. Vicky : +62 857 3184 4126
6. Ariesta : +62 856 5520 3030
Tanya Mentor ke sosmed:

@Line: @zux2328h | Instagram: @sdsafadg | Twitter: 01_budi

 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 3

* Tiga Pilihan *

Misal, ada 3 orang yang diberikan uang dengan jumlah yang sama: 20 ribu rupiah. Orang pertama
memutuskan untuk memasukkan uang itu kedalam tabungannya. Dia ingin punya uang yang banyak,
maka menurutnya menabung adalah kuncinya. Orang kedua memilih pergi ke tempat makan dan
menghabiskan uang yang didapat. Menurutnya, hidup itu harus dinikmati; mumpung sedang ada uang,
gunakan untuk menyenangkan diri sendiri. Perkara besok bagaimana, nantilah berfikirnya. Orang yang
ketiga membagi uang yang didapat menjadi dua lembar 10 ribu. Satu lembar 10 ribu dia berikan pada
seorang pengemis yang terlihat kelaparan. Satu lembar lagi dia gunakan untuk membeli makanan.

Apa yang dilakukan ketiga orang ini hanya gambaran kecil tentang bagaimana respon orang-orang ketika
mendapatkan sesuatu, baik itu uang atau pun sebuah prestasi.

Orang pertama adalah gambaran untuk menyimpan apa yang didapat untuk dirinya sendiri, kemudian
kembali bekerja untuk mendapatkan sesuatu yang baru lagi. Orang kedua adalah gambaran untuk
menikmati apa yang didapat untuk diri sendiri; toh, ini didapat dengan usahanya sendiri. Bagaimana nanti
ya dipikirkan nanti. Apa yang dilakukan orang pertama dan kedua ini ada satu kesamaan, yaitu berhenti
pada dirinya sendiri.

Orang yang ketiga adalah contoh seseorang yang ketika mendapatkan sesuatu langsung berpikir
bagaimana agar yang didapat ini bisa dibagi ke orang lain. Jadi, yang menikmati apa yang didapatnya
menjadi dua orang; dia dan si pengemis yang sedang kelaparan.

Nah, ibaratkan anda mendapatkan sebuah beasiswa ke luar negeri, entah untuk sebuah degree atau pun
exhange, atau sebuah prestasi berhasil memenangkan sebuah kompetisi. Pertanyaan saya, apa yang
akan anda lakukan setelahnya?

Anda akan menjadi orang pertama yang setelah berhasil, simpan untuk diri sendiri, tidak mau membagi
ke orang lain karena mungkin takut tersaingi. Kemudian, lanjut berusaha keras untuk mendapatkan
prestasi yang lainnya.

Atau anda akan menjadi orang kedua, menikmati semuanya sendiri, pamer foto-foto di tempat-tempat
kebanyakkan orang bermimpi ingin kesana, dan semacamnya.

Atau menjadi orang ketiga, langsung berpikir bagaimana agar yang saya dapatkan ini bisa ditularkan ke
orang lain; bagaimana agar bisa membantu orang lain meraih apa yang sudah saya raih sekarang;
bagaimana agar pengalaman yang saya dapat ini bisa menjadi pelajaran untuk orang lain, dan
seterusnya.

Tidak ada pilihan yang salah diantara ketiga pilihan itu. Hanya, kalau kita melihat orang-orang yang
namanya masih hidup dan diingat hingga sekarang, tidak ada satu pun yang menyimpan apa yang
didapat untuk dirinya sendiri; mereka selalu membaginya dengan orang lain.

Nikmat itu baru terasa nikmat ketika dibagi, bukan dengan menyimpannya untuk diri sendiri.

Yuk, mulai menebar manfaat. Kita tidak pernah tahu kebaikan yang mana yang akan menolong kita
disaat kesulitan.

- - - - Budi Waluyo

Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value”. ---- Albert Einstein

 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 4

W
eek 4
Reduced Clauses

Skill 13: Menggunakan klausa adjective yang dikurangi (reduced adjective

clauses) dengan benar.

 Di skill tentang penghubung klausa kata adjective, dijelaskan bahwa ada

connector seperti which, who, dan that yang kemudian diikuti oleh verb atau
tobe. Disini which, who, dan that berfungsi sebagai connector dan subject.
 Di skil ini, kita akan membahas bagaimana penghilangan connector terjadi
dalam klausa adjective. Artinya, kalian tidak akan melihat adanya connector,
tetapi kalimat tersebut memiliki dua klausa, hanya saja connector dan verb
dihilangkan, disebut dengan reduced adjective clauses.

Contoh:

The woman who is waving to us is the tour guide.

 Kalimat ini adalah kalimat sebenarnya, tidak ada pengurangan apapun. The
woman sebagai subject, who sebagai connector dan subject, is waving sebagai
verb dari connector, dan is adalah verb dari subject woman.
 Bila di reduced (dikurangi), kalimat ini akan menjadi:

The woman waving to us is the tour guide.

 Terlihat di kalimat diatas bahwa who dan is dihilangkan. Ini yang disebut dengan
bentuk reduced adjective clause. Didalam soal, yang muncul bisa jadi bentuk
kalimat yang sudah direduced. Pola ini juga sebenarnya sama dengan bentuk
kalimat present participle yang dibahas di skil sebelumnya dimana -ing disana
bukan kata kerja melainkan adjective.

Contoh lainnya:

The letter which was written last week arrived today.

 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 5

Menjadi: The letter written last week arrived today.

The pitcher that is on the table is full of iced tea.

Menjadi: The pitcher on the table is full of iced tea.

 Perlu diingat, dalam kalimat yang klausa adjective sudah dikurangi hanya
memiliki satu subject dan satu verb.
 Tetapi, kalimat yang bisa di reduced hanyalah yang memiliki connector yang
berfungsi sebagai conenctor dan subject. Untuk kalimat yang connector hanya
berfungsi sebagai connector dan didepannya ada subject, tidak bisa di reduced.

Contoh:

The woman that I just met is the tour guide.

The letter which you sent me arrived yesterday.

 Dua kalimat ini tidak bisa di reduced karena ada subject setelah
connector.

Ada dua aturan membentuk reduced adjective clause:

1. Bila kalimat berbentuk kalimat aktif (active sentence) atau menggunakan

tobe tetapi masih dalam bentuk active sentence, maka yang dilakukan
adalah: connector dibuang, tobe dihilangkan, kalau ada verb dijadikan
bentuk -ing tanpa ada tobe didepannya.

Contoh:

The man who is sitting at the front seat is my father.

Menjadi: The man sitting at the front seat is my father.

The lady who brought me here is my mother.

 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 6

Menjadi: The lady bringing me here is mother. (kata brought adalah verb 2 dari bring, di
bentuk reduced dijadikan verb 1 ditambah -ing).

The glass that is on the table is empty.

Menjadi: The glass on the table is empty.

2. Bila kalimat berbentuk pasif (passive sentence), maka yang dilakukan

adalah: connector dan tobe dihilangkan.

Contoh:

The white house which is located in Washington is the home of the president.

Menjadi: The white house located in Washington is the home of the president.

 Bentuk active sentence dan passive sentence yang di reduced ini sama dengan
bentuk present participle dan past participles yang dibahas sebelumnya.
 Juga, bentuk kalimat yang sudah direduced bisa diletakkan ditengah atau diawal
kalimat sama seperti appositive yang dibahas di skil sebelumnya. Contoh:

On the table, the glass is empty.

Located in Washington, the white house is the home of the president.

Bringing me here, the lady is my mother.

 Contoh soal:

……….. on several different television programs, the witness gave conflicting accounts of
what had happened.

(A) He appeared

(B) Who Appeared

(C) Appearing

(D) Appears
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 7

Di soal ini, the witness sebagai subject dan gave sebagai verb. Sudah ada kalimat
sempurna. Kalau kalimat sebelumnya mau dijadikan klausa, berarti harus ada
connector, subject dan verb. Lihat dipilihan. Bila tidak ada ketiga hal ini, berarti kalimat
dalam bentuk reduced adjective clause. Lihat bentuk reduced adjective yang aktive atau
passive yang muncul.

Pilihan (A) salah, karena tidak ada connector. Pilihan (B) salah, karena adjective lause
connetcor tidak bisa muncul di kata pertama dalam kalimat.

Pilihan (C) benar, karena bentuk reduced. Pilihan (D) salah, karena hanya kata kerja
saja. Kata kerja tidka bisa berdiri sendiri.

Kalimat ini aslinya adalah: The witness who appears on several different television
programs gave conflicting accounts of what had happened.

Connector who dihilangkan dan appear menjadi appearing (bentuk aktive sentence),
jadinya:

The witness appearing on several different television programs gave conflicting accounts
of what had happened.

atau di soal diletakkan dimuka:

Appearing on several different television programs, the witness gave conflicting

accounts of what had happened.

Kerjakan Exercise 13 dibawah ini dan siapkan saat Temu Online dengan
Mentor.

Note:

 Maksimal salah 2. Jika lebih dari 2, ulangi baca materi kemudian kerjakan
kembali latihan.
 Siapkan exercise yang sudah dikerjakan saat Temu Online untuk dikoreksi
bersama.
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 8

Exercise 13

 Petunjuk: Setiap kalimat dibawah ini memiliki complete adjective clause atau
reduced adjective clause. Tentukan yang mana subject dan verb utama dalam
kalimat, dan adjective clausenya. Kemudian, tentukan apakah kalimat tersebut
secara Grammar: Benar (B) atau Salah (S).

Contoh:

1. We will have to return the merchandise purchased yesterday at the broadway.

Answer: Subject = we. Verb = will have. Reduced adjective clause = purchased
yesterday, Kalimat benar.

2. The children sat in the fancy restaurant found it difficult to behave.

Answer: Subject = children. Verb = found. Adjective clause = sat in the fancy restaurant.
Kalimat salah. Reduced adjective clause seharusnya: sitting in the fancy restaurant.

3. Serving a term of four years, the mayor of the town will face reelection next year.
Answer:
4. The brand new Cadillac, purchasing less than two weeks ago, was destroyed in the
accident.
Answer:
5. The fans who supporting their team always come out to the games in large numbers.
Answer:
6. The suspect can be seen in the photographs were just released by the police.
Answer:
7. The food placing on the picnic table attracted a large number of flies.
Answer:
8. Impressed with everything she had heard about the course, Marie signed her children
up for it.
Answer:
9. The passengers in the airport waiting room, heard the announcement of the canceled
flight, groaned audibly.
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 9

Answer:
10. Dissatisfied with the service at the restaurant, the meal really was not enjoyable.
Answer:

Skill 14: Menggunakan klausa kata keterangan yang dikurangi (reduced

adverb clauses) dengan benar.

 Konsep pengurangan (reduced) pada klausa kata keterangan hampir sama

dengan konsep pengurangan pada klausa kata sifat (adjective) sebelumnya.
Bedanya, di klausa kata keterangan setelah connector ada subject dan verb,
keduanya dihilangkan, dan jenis conector dalam klausa kata keterangan berbeda
dengan yang digunakan dalam klausa kata sifat.
 Aturan reduced dalam klausa kata keterangan juga ada dua dan sama terdiri dari
active dan passive sentences.

1. Bila kalimat berbentuk kalimat aktif (active sentence), tiga hal yang bisa
dilakukan:

- Jika kalimat memiliki tobe + verb-ing, hilangkan subject dan tobe, sedangkan
connector tetap digunakan.

- Jika kalimat memiliki kata kerja 1 dan 2 tanpa tobe, hilangkan subject dan verb
jadikan verb-ing, connector tetap digunakan. Kalau kalimat menggunakan verb 2, rubah
ke bentuk verb1+ing, tanpa tobe di depannya.

- jika kalimat hanya menggunakan tobe sebagai predikat, hilangkan subject dan to be,
connector tetap digunakan.

 Contoh 1:

Although he is rather unwell, the speaker will take part in the seminar.

Di kalimat ini, hanya ada tobe sebagai predikat, maka subject dan to be dihilangkan,
sedangkan connector tetap digunakan. Kalimatnya menjadi:

Although rather unwell, the speaker will take part in the seminar.
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 10

 Contoh 2:

Although he feels rather sick, the speaker will take part in the seminar.

Di kalimat ini, digunakan verb 1, maka subject dihilangkan dan verb dijadikan verb-ing
dengan tanpa tobe di depan. Kalimatnya menjadi:

Although feeling rather sick, the speaker will take part in the seminar.

 Contoh 3:

Although he is having a problem with his health, the speaker will take part in the
seminar.

Di kalimat ini, digunakan tobe + verb-ing sebagai predikat, maka subject dan to be
dihilangkan. Kalimatnya menjadi:

Although having a problem with his health, the speaker will take part in the seminar.

2. Bila kalimat berntuk kalimat pasif (passive sentence), satu hal yang bisa
dilakukan, yaitu hilangkan subject dan tobe.

 Contoh:

Once it is submitted, your thesis will be reviewed.

Di kalimat ini, ada tobe + verb 3 digunakan sebagai predikat, maka hilangkan sbject dan
tobe. Kalimatnya menjadi:

Once submitted, your thesis will be reviewed.

 Penting: bentuk pengurangan ini hanya bisa dilakukan bila saubject di dua
klausa sama. Perhatikan disemua contoh diatas, pada dasarnya subject di klausa
pertama dan kedua sama atau satu klausa menjelaskan klausa yang lainnya.
 Berikut daftar connector yang digunakan dalam klausa kata keterangan:
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 11

 Note: When juga bisa digunakan untuk reduces in active.

Kerjakan Exercise 14 dibawah ini dan siapkan saat Temu Online dengan
Mentor.

Note:

 Maksimal salah 2. Jika lebih dari 2, ulangi baca materi kemudian kerjakan
kembali latihan.
 Siapkan exercise yang sudah dikerjakan saat Temu Online untuk dikoreksi
bersama.

Exercise 14

 Petunjuk: Tentukan adverb connectors dan reduced clauses dalam kalimat

dibawah ini. Kemudian, tentukan apakah kalimat tersebut secara Grammar:
Benar (B) atau Salah (S).

Contoh:

1. If not completely satisfied, you can return the product to the manufacturer.

Answer: Adverb connector = if. Reduced adverb clause = if not completely satisfied.
Kalimat benar.

2. Steve has had to learn how to cook and clean since left home.
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 12

Answer: Adverb connector = since. Reduced adverb clause = since left home. Kalimat
salah. Seharusnya reduced adverb clause berbentuk aktif = since leaving home.

3. The ointment can be applied where needed.

Answer:
4. Tom began to look for a job after completing his master’s degree in engineering.
Answer:
5. Although not selecting for the team, he attends all of the games as a fan.
Answer:
6. When purchased at this store, the buyer gets a guarantee on all items.
Answer:
7. The medicine is not effective unless taken as directed.
Answer:
8. You should negotiate a lot before buy a new car.
Answer:
9. Once purchased, the swimsuits cannot be returned.
Answer:
10. Though located near the coast, the town does not get much of an ocean breeze.
Answer:
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 13

Latihan

 Latihan-latihan dibawah ini diberikan untuk mengingatkan kembali

tentang skil-skil yang sudah dipelajari sebelumnya.
 Kerjakan dengan baik dan usahakan salah maksimal 2 untuk setiap
latihan sebagai indikasi sudah memahami skil yang telah dipelajari.
 Bila salah lebih dari 2, baca kembali skil sebelumnya atau tanya pada
Mentor nanti.

Exercises (skills 13-14)

 Petunjuk: Tentukan yang mana reduced clause dalam kalimat dibawah ini.
Kemudian, tentukan apakah kalimat tersebut secara Grammar: Benar (B) atau
Salah (S).

1. Though was surprised at the results, she was pleased with what she had done.
Answer:
2. Wearing only a light sweater, she stepped out into the pouring rain.
Answer:
3. The family stopped to visit many relatives while driving across the country.
Answer:
4. The company president, needed a vacation, boarded a plane for the Bahamas.
Answer:
5. When applying for the job, you should bring your letters of reference.
Answer:
6. She looked up into the dreary sky was filled with dark thunderclouds.
Answer:
7. Feeling weak after a long illness, Sally wanted to try to get back to work.
Answer:
8. Before decided to have surgery, you should get a second opinion.
Answer:
9. The construction material, a rather grainy type of wood, gave the room a rustic feeling.
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 14

Answer:
10. The application will at least be reviewed if submitted by the fifteenth of the month.
Answer:

TOEFL Exercise (Skills 13 – 14)

 Petunjuk: Pilih jawaban yang benar.

1. When _____ nests during spring nesting season, Canadian geese are fiercely
territorial.
(A) building
(B) are building
(C) built
(D)are built

2. In 1870, Calvin, along with Adirondack hunter Alvah Dunning, made the first known
ascent of Seward Mountain, _____ far from roads or trails.
(A) a remote peak
(B) it is a remote peak
(C) a remote peak is
(D)which a remote peak

3. Kokanee salmon begin to deteriorate and die soon _____ at the age of four.
(A) they spawn
(B) after spawning
(C) spawn
(D)spawned the salmon

4. _____ behind government secrecy for nearly half a century, the Hanford plant in
central Washington produced plutonium for the nuclear weapons of the Cold War.
(A) It is hidden
(B) Hidden
(C) Which is hidden
(D)The plant is hiding

5. Until _____ incorrect, astronomers had assumed that the insides of white dwarfs
were uniform.
(A) they
(B) their proof
(C) the astronomers recently proven
(D)recently proven
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 15

6. _____ artifacts from the early Chinese dynasties, numerous archeologists have
explored the southern Silk Road.
(A) They were searching for
(B) It was a search for
(C) Searched for
(D)Searching for

7. ln Hailey, the best-known lecturer was women’s rights activist Abigail Scott Duniway
of Portland, Oregon, who could usually be persuaded to speak _____ town visiting
her son.
(A) she was in
(B) while in
(C) while she was
(D)was in

8. The National Restaurant _____ Washington, says that federal efforts to regulate
workplace smoking would limit restaurants’ ability to respond to the desires of their
patrons.
(A) Association in
(B) Association is in
(C) Association which is in
(D)Association, based in

9. _____ in North American waterways a little over a decade ago, zebra mussels have
already earned a nasty reputation for their expensive habit of clogging water pipes in
the Great Lakes area.
(A) The first sighting
(B) Although first sighted
(C) Zebra mussels were first sighted
(D)First sighting

10. Small companies may take their goods abroad for trade shows without paying foreign
value-added taxes by acquiring _____ an ATA carnet.
(A) a document calls
(B) a document called
(C) calls a document
(D)called a document
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 16

TOEFL Review Exercise (Skills 1 – 14)

 Petunjuk: Pilih jawaban yang benar.

1. In the United States _____ approximately four million miles of roads, streets, and
highways.
(A) there
(B) is
(C) they
(D) there are

2. _____ twelve million immigrants entered the United States via Ellis Island.
(A) More than
(B) There were more than
(C) Of more than
(D) The report of

3. The television, _____ so long been a part of our culture, has an enormous influence.
(A) has
(B) it has
(C) which
(D) which has

4. Psychologists have traditionally maintained that infants cannot formulate long-term

memories until _____ the age of eight or nine months.
(A) they
(B) they reach
(C) to reach
(D) reach

5. _____ a cheese shop has since grown into a small conglomerate consisting of a
catering business and two retail stores.
(A) In the beginning of
(B) It began as
(C) Its beginning which was
(D) What began as

6. Primarily a government contractor, _____ preferential treatment from government

agencies as both a minority-group member and a woman.
(A) receives Weber
(B) Weber receives
(C) the reception of Weber
(D) according to Weber‘s reception
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 17

7. Because the project depends on _____ at the federal level, the city and county may
have to wait until the budget cutting ends.
(A) it happens
(B) which happening
(C) what happens
(D) that it happens

8. _____ definitive study of a western hard-rock mining community cemetery appears

to have been done is in Silver City, Nevada.
(A) Most
(B) The most
(C) Where most
(D) Where the most

9. One of the areas of multimedia that is growing quickly _____ is sound.

(A) yet is easily overlooked
(B) is easily overlooked
(C) it is easily overlooked
(D) that is easily overlooked

10. _____, early approaches for coping with workplace stress dealt with the problem only
after its symptoms had appeared.
(A) Although well-intending
(B) Although it is a good intention
(C) Although a good intention
(D) Although well-intended
 Handbook ini hanya untuk siswa Sekolah TOEFL 18

Tugas Baca esai (TBE) 4

Petunjuk:

 Baca esai dibawah ini

 Komentari isi esai dalam Bahasa Inggris. Minimal sebanyak 2 kalimat dalam Bahasa
Inggris.
 Komentar diberikan lewat status di social media masing-masing siswa.
 Komentar dapat berupa update status atau pun video singkat.
 Tag salah satu social media:

Line ID: @zux2328h | Twitter @01_budi dan @SekolahToefl |

Instagram: sdsafadg dan Sekolah_TOEFL
#learnforthefuture #ST
The Passion of the Applicant

In the 1970s nostalgia film The Last Days of Disco, Alice, a quintessential ingénue played by a young
Chloë Sevigny, frets about how to seduce the boy she likes. Her friend Charlotte recommends that, at
some point during their date, she strategically refer to something as “sexy.” The object of sexiness might
be a movie, a song, a skyscraper — whatever. The boy will get the hint.

Alice seizes her moment when the topic of Walt Disney movies comes up. “There’s something really sexy
about Scrooge McDuck,” she observes. Because this is a Whit Stillman movie and not, say, a Farrelly
brothers movie, her forced come-on resounds with awkwardness. If you know anything about Scrooge
McDuck, you know he’s not exactly sexy.

The boy knows that she’s speaking nonsense. Then they dance.

***

As distant as this scenario may be from an acceptable application essay topic, Alice holds an important
lesson for college applicants. Just as Charlotte encouraged Alice to be indiscriminately sexy — rather
than rely on her natural charm — colleges have been pushing an unsettlingly similar notion: passion.

Colleges aren’t looking for that type of passion. At least not unless an applicant promises to be the next
Danielle Steele. They’re looking for other types of passion. We know them as enthusiasm, energy,
dedication, and engagement. For whatever reason, passion is the descriptor that has won the day.
Colleges want to see it in spades: they want students to be dripping with, drenched in, and breathless
with passion.

Having attended recent presentations from college reps, my students have dutifully set out to ensure
that their applications convey passion. Yet, despite being strong applicants, many have been frustrated
to the point of distress. When they see their lives (or at least the slices that they’ve written about) on
paper, their essays don’t always convey the idealized version of passion that colleges say they want.
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An applicant might be smart. She might be thoughtful. She might be personable. She might be sincere.
She might be, god forbid, a regular kid. But passionate? In reality, it’s a rare duck.

Is Kobe Bryant passionate about basketball? Is Meryl Streep passionate about acting? Is your doctor
passionate about medicine? Is Lloyd Blankfein passionate about running the world? Who knows. And,
really, who cares? What we do know is that each of them is manifestly dedicated and incredibly
competent (or, in the case of your doctor, we hope they are). Asking most people - kids included - to
demonstrate passion is like asking Donald Trump to demonstrate modesty.

***

If they must buy into this passion thing, students must realize that there are countless versions of and
applications for passion. They can be passionate about obvious things like community service, scientific
research, or political causes. But they can also be passionate about academics and ideas. They can be
passionate about family or politics. They can be passionate about nature or art. They can also be pretty
passionate about, say, shoplifting, bullying, and social climbing. Passion alone is neither good nor bad.

Even then, having passion doesn’t mean that an essay needs to be written in neon or with the caps lock
on. Unless you’re the head cheerleader or the lead in an opera, an essay that shouts “passion!” will be
annoying. Too many students confuse passion with ebullience. (And you thought “SAT words” were
useless?)

If students are truly passionate about something, they can tell their stories, and passion will be implicit.
The moment they try to testify to their own passion, well, that’s when the reader knows they’re being
put on — Scrooge McDuck-style. (The best way to reveal passion is to let someone else do it for you.)

***

I suspect that the fixation on passion actually represents a lack of passion: on the part of admission
offices.

Nearly every admission rep from nearly every college uses the same rhetoric when they visit high
schools and give presentations. That rhetoric almost invariably involves “passion.” They follow their
scripts and propagate clichés. One of those clichés is tell applicants to “be themselves.” In other words,
“be yourself — but only if you’re passionate!” An admission rep who is truly “passionate” about his
school and about kids would come up with more expansive, honest, and nuanced ways to describe the
applicants whom they admire.

Of course, colleges don’t want un-passionate students. They’d like to avoid pot-smoking laggards and
psychopathic career strivers. But a more nuanced view of college (and life) reveals an infinite array of
virtues that are at least as good — and must exist in concert with — passion.

Think about a few alternatives. How about intellect? How about dedication? How about morality? How
about cooperation, spirituality, eloquence, awareness, worldliness, maturity, curiosity, creativity....? I
could go on forever. Passion is all right. But it’s hardly the ne plus ultra of virtues.

***

Passion also has little to do with the reality of adolescence.

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As business writer Lisa Heffernan wrote recently in a New York Times piece on this same topic:

For most children, childhood isn’t about passion, but rather about exploration. Our job as parents is to
nurture that exploration, not put an end to it. When we create an expectation that children must find
their one true interest so early in life, we cut short a process of discovery that may easily take a lifetime.

Passion is thus a red herring. Applicants should not fixate on only one virtue, and definitely not on a
narrow conception thereof. The strongest applicants should remain open to exploration, not dedicated
immutably to a particular idea or cause. They should consider all of their attributes - including flaws -
and present them with thoughtfulness, sincerity, and appropriate degrees of enthusiasm.

Josh Stephens, College counselor and specialist in college application essays.

----- End of Week 4 -----

Mohon, handbook ini tidak diberikan

atau dishare kepada siapapun.

References:

Deborah Philips, The Huffington Post, dan beberapa sumber lain.