How to Write an IELTS Essay

IELTS Writing Test Task Part B g@D Part B. Writing Your Essay eQ (30 to 35 minutes) Now you can write your essay. Model your answer on the structure shown on the next page, and remember, don't worry about trying to be original or different. Just follow the model and you will show balance (an awareness of both sides of the issue and not just your own), coherence and a clear, logical organisation which will get you the best bandscore possible. Model Organisation for Your Essay z Now, use the following organisation for your essay: Introduction interesting/complicated/difficult issue. One Side
Whether cars should be banned in all town centre is an There are some/many reasons why cars should be banned. Firstly,... Secondly,... (Kfor exampleKthereforeKin spite ofK) Finally,... However, there are some/many reasons why cars should not be banned. Firstly,... Secondly,... (Kfor exampleKthereforeKin spite ofK) Finally,... In my opinion, cars should (not) be banned because (expand a previous point).

Other Side

Conclusion

The words used above (that is, firstly, secondly, finally) can be repeated for every IELTS essay you write. This makes it the quickest and easiest way to write a good essay under exam pressure. Working Out the Two Sides of the Argument This is essential to using this organisation. Sometimes it is directly written in the IELTS question, sometimes it is obvious anyway, and sometimes it is not so clear. Here is a guide to working out the two sides. The Essay Argument One Side The Other Side
KshouldK.' 'To what extentK' '(Statement).' should to a great extent It is true. should not to a little extent It is not true.

Now try working out the two sides to the following essay titles.

If countries are serious about solving traffic problems, they should tax private cars very heavily and use the money to provide free or very cheap rail travel. Should scientists be left to work as they please or should they be made to develop programs decided by the government? To what extent is the continuous use of fossil fuels acceptable given the evidence of global warming? Too much education is dangerous. If people receive more education than they need to function in their job, it only breeds dissatisfaction. How far is it the responsibility of governments to reduce the number of road accidents which occur per year.
Sample Answer to Writing Task

g@G@d

Topic D: Whether cars should be banned in all town centres is a complicated issue, and one which many people have strong feelings about. You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. You should write at least 250 words. There are some reasons why cars should be banned. Firstly, it would reduce pollution greatly, which is especially important since town centres always consist of tall buildings and narrow spaces which often hold the pollution in one spot. Secondly, with less traffic there would be fewer accidents, and hence society would save money because of reduced medical expenses. Finally, with no cars in town centres there would be no need for large, ugly car parks and parking spaces. This would allow more space for buildings, houses, parks and the movement of buses and people, which could enhance a city greatly. However, there are some reasons why cars should not be banned. Firstly, it would make it very difficult for many people to travel to work. Most people would have to use public transport (trains and buses) which may become overcrowded and unable to cope with the additional commuters*. Secondly, many people prefer cars because of the freedom it gives them, so banning cars would not be popular, and hence very difficult to implement* since few politicians would support the idea. Finally, cars are sometimes necessary to travel to parts of a city where public transport does not go. Cars are a more flexible* transport, especially for the elderly or sick (or lazy). In my opinion, cars should be restricted from town centres but only during peak hours. It would be impractical and impossible to ban cars completely because they are such an essential part of modern city living, however the problems of pollution and traffic congestion* must be reduced. This solution is not perfect but the best we can do, and infact is done already in some major cities (for example, Melbourne,

Australia).

( 305 words )

When attempting a task 2 question it is a good idea to plan your answer first. Generally you should spend between 5 and 8 minutes on this.
"Should criminals be punished with lengthy jail terms or re-educated and rehabilitated using, for instance, community service programmes, before being re-introduced to society?"

@: (Suggestion)
When approaching Task II questions the first step is to look carefully at the question and make sure you understand what it is asking you to do. This will often involve underlining the key words and phrases. The key words in this case are "should", "or", "for instance" "before", and the topics- "lengthy jail terms" and "rehabilitated". The first three words are important because they point out the different parts of the question and how they fit together. "Should", of course, indicates that this is a question that is asking you to decide whether a particular action is good or not, and when it is combined with "or", you know that this decision is between two specified actions. In this case the actions are methods of dealing with criminals, which, naturally, are our two topics - "lengthy jail terms" and "rehabilitation". If you are not sure what "rehabilitation" means the clue is provided by the example linking word "for instance", which suggest that community service programmes are one form of rehabilitation (and re-education). "Before" is important because it defines the terms of the question by pointing out that the criminals will, eventually, be released from jail, and that this should be a basic assumption in your argument. So, this question is asking you to decide whether lengthy jail terms are better than rehabilitation, but it is up to you to define the terms of the argument and point out exactly what you understand the issue to be. The next stage is to brainstorm as many ideas on the topic as you can. Time is severely limited, so it is often a good idea to divide your ideas in a way that will help develop an argument, which usually means dividing the ideas into two groups, either into the two topics you must choose between, or arguments "for" and "against" the statement, or the "advantages" and "disadvantages" of an issue or topic. In this case the two topics "long term jail sentences" and "rehabilitation" form our group headings. Long Term Jail Sentences - Not as expensive as rehab - Criminals don't deserve special funding and education - Deters future crime - Satisfies the public - Criminals are inherently bad - they will always re-offend - Rehab programmes ineffective - criminals re-offend - Longer time before criminals get the chance to re-offend Rehabilitation - Keeping prisoners is expensive anyway - longer jail term higher the cost - Rehab progammes can be used to make or save money - eg. build things - Has been found that heavy sentences (and even death sentence) have no effect on crime rate

- Long-time inmates are most likely to re-offend - Rehab programme is better than nothing - Long term jail sentences create "us" and "them" situation - Crime and criminals are social problem, we have to try and re-integrate criminals into society, rehab tries to do this The next stage is to organise these ideas into an essay plan. It is helpful to use linking words in your plan. From the above ideas you might come up with a plan like this. Intro- rehabilitation a contentious issue. Opinion rehab still valuable. Arguments against rehab- not effective and too expensive - unfair that criminals receive funding and education. Though, some truth to these two points, neither offers better or cheaper solution. True rehab is expensive but, keeping prisoners for a long time is more expensive - furthermore, rehab programmes can be used to generate money eg Biblemum Track Also, true rehab is not always effective, but more effective than nothing + long time inmates more likely to re-offend It is unfair that criminals receive funding but no rehab- risk of "us" "them" situation Conclusion- social problem so rehabilitation required The next thing is to write the actual essay. The linking words in the essay in Sample A (on the next page) have been underlined.