IELTS Writing Tasks 2

To get high marks in IELTS Writing Task 2, two things are essential. You
need to:

• Understand what the examiner is looking for.

• Learn the right techniques to write an effective essay.

 The Format

The format of Task 2 questions is always the same:

• You will be given a statement on a topic of general interest.

• The statement will be a specific point of view, problem or

argument related to the topic.

Here is a typical Task 2 question:

 Nowadays, more people are choosing to socialise online rather

than face to face.

Is this a positive or negative development?

 The 5 Question Types

There are 5 different types of Task 2 essays that you could be asked
to write:

• Opinion Essays – Agree or Disagree

• Discussion Essays

• Problem Essays – Causes & Solutions

• Advantages & Disadvantages Essays

• Double Question Essays

Key Information

1) You are required to write 250 words or more.

If you write less than 250 words, you are unlikely to get more than a
band 5 for ’task achievement’ as you won’t have fulfilled the marking
criteria.

2) You should use a formal style of writing.

3) You have around 40 minutes to plan and write your essay.

4) Task 2 contributes twice as many marks to your overall score as

Task 1.

5) It is recommended to do Task 2 first.

Most people do Task 1 first and overrun on the 20 minutes it should take
them. This doesn’t leave them enough time to do Task 2 properly. Since
Task 2 is worth double the marks, they are, in effect, throwing away
valuable marks.

 How To Write an Effective Task 2 Essay

As the question format is the same for all questions, you can use the
same basic technique to write any Task 2 essay.

Here is the recommended 5 step approach.

Step-By-Step Strategy

This 5-step strategy can be used for any question.

1. Analyse the question

2. Plan your answer

3. Write the introduction

4. Write 2 main body paragraphs

5. Write the conclusion

Once you fully understand the question:

• You will know how to structure your essay.

• You will know what language to use.

• Both the planning & writing stages will be quicker & easier.

• You will give the examiner exactly what they want.

 Understand and Analyse Task 2 Questions

A key reason for low scores in Writing Task 2 is the failure to answer the
question properly. This can lose you several band scores. Whilst your
language skills may be good enough to earn you a Band 7 or 8, not fully
answering the question could reduce your score to a Band 6 or even
lower.

Students regularly make these 4 mistakes:

1) They don’t spend time carefully reading and analysing the

question.

2) They fail to recognise the type of question being asked.

3) They don’t fully understand the question.

4) They write about the general topic rather than answering the
specific question.

Points 2-4 are all a consequence of point 1 – not spending time carefully
reading and analysing the question.

The good news is, it’s quick and easy to analyse and understand task 2
questions once you know how. You just need to identify 3 different types
of words:
1. Topic words
2. Other keywords
3. Instruction words

 Analysing Task 2 Questions

So, let’s look at a typical Task 2 question.

Sample question:

Students perform better in school when they are rewarded rather

than punished.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

The format of Task 2 questions is always the same:

• You will be given a statement on a topic of general interest.

• The statement will be a specific point of view, problem or

argument related to the topic.

• You will be asked to respond to that statement.

Now we’ll identify the 3 different types of words in our sample question.

1. Identify the topic words

The topics words are the ones that identify the general subject of the
question.

Students perform better in school when they are rewarded

rather than punished.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

So, this question is about ‘how students perform in school’.

Many students do this first step of the process and then write about the
topic in general. This is a serious mistake and leads to low marks.

What we need to do now that we know the general topic, is to

understand exactly what aspect of student performance we are being
asked to write about.

2. Identify other keywords

The other keywords in the question tell you the specific topic you must
write about. They define the opinion or opinions stated in the statement.

Students perform better in school when they are rewarded

rather than punished.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

By highlighting these words, it’s easy to see that you are being asked
your view on whether reward or punishment leads to better student
performance. Your essay must only include ideas relevant to these
keywords.

Now for the instructions on the type of essay you should write.

3. Identifying the instruction words

The instruction words tell you exactly what the examiner wants you to
do. 25% of your marks are determined by how well you answer the
question.

So, even if you have Band 8 language skills, you could drop down to a
Band 6 overall score for failing to follow the instructions.

The instruction words are all the words that come after the question
statement.

Students perform better in school when they are

rewarded rather than punished.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Our sample question is an ‘advantages and disadvantages’ question. It

requires you to write about ideas related to both sides of the
argument and to state your own opinion on the topic.

That’s it. We have analysed the question and know what specific
questions we need to answer in our essay.

Here are the 3 different types of words highlighted together.

Students perform better in school when they are

rewarded rather than punished.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

This process should take you no more than 2 minutes in your exam.
Make it the first thing you do. The more you practice it before your test,
the quicker and easier it will become.

Task 2 Practice Questions

Question 1
Some people think that one of the best ways to solve environmental problems is to
increase the cost of fuel for cars and other vehicles.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Question 2
Nowadays, people have developed poor eating habits and do not eat a balanced
diet.

What are the reasons behind this?

Question 3
Some people think that the internet has brought people closer together while others
think that people and communities are becoming more isolated.
Discuss both sides and give your opinion.

Answers

Did you identify these words?

Topic words

Other keywords

Instruction words

Question 1

Some people think that one of the best ways to solve

environmental problems is to increase the cost of fuel for cars and
other vehicles.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Question 1 is about ‘environmental problems’ and, more specifically, the
idea that increasing the cost of fuel will help to solve them.

In your essay, you must either agree or disagree with this statement.
You are not required to discuss both sides of the argument.

Question 2

Nowadays, people have developed poor eating habits and do not

eat a balanced diet.

What are the reasons behind this?

Question 2 is about ‘poor eating habits’ and, more specifically, the

relationship between poor eating habits and an unbalanced diet. In your
essay, you must say how these two things are related.

You are not required to state whether or not you agree with this
statement, but to take the view that it is true.

Question 3
Some people think that the internet has brought people closer
together while others think that people and communities are
becoming more isolated.

Discuss both sides and give your opinion.

Question 3 is about ‘the internet’ and, more specifically, whether it brings

people closer together or makes them more isolated. In your essay, you
must write about both sides of the argument and say which view you
believe to be true.

If you didn’t identify the same keywords as me, spend a few minutes
going through this section again to be sure that you fully understand it.

How To Generate Ideas

With only a few minutes to come up with the ideas to write about, you
need an idea generation strategy that works well for you and that you
have practiced beforehand.

We all think in slightly different ways so what works for one person might
be completely the wrong method for someone else. Different techniques
can also work well for different question types so it’s worth having two
methods that you can use confidently. You’ll then be ready for whatever
type of question you get.

There are 4 main techniques for generating ideas for your Task 2 essay:

 Brainstorming

 Mind-mapping

 Friends technique

 Examples method

Brainstorming

This is where you analyse the question and quickly jot down as many
related ideas as come into your head as possible.

The drawback with this method is that you can end up with lots of ideas
but not enough time to sort them and pick out the most relevant ones
before you have to start writing.

Mind-mapping

Mind-mapping is similar to brainstorming but will help you to organize

your thoughts as they come to you by relating each though to a specific
part of the question.

You can still have the problem of too many ideas but many students use
this method successfully, especially those who already have experience
of creating mind maps.
Friends Technique

Friends Technique allows you to take a step back from the stress of the
exam situation and think more calmly.

Here’s how it works. Imagine you are chatting with a friend and they ask
you the question in a casual conversation. What answers would you give
them off the top of your head? Plan your essay around these ideas.

Doing this will help you to come up with simple answers in everyday
language rather than straining your brain to think of amazing ideas using
high level language, which isn’t necessary.

Example method

Sometimes you can use this technique on its own but for many
questions, it’s a method that will help you generate ideas to support the
main points in your essay. Examiners love relevant examples.

All you do is to think of specific examples related to the question. These

can come from your own experience or be something you’ve read or
heard about. You should be reading newspapers, magazines and topical
websites as part of your general exam preparation so you may well have
seen an article, study or report that you could use as an example.

You can even make up examples or tweak real examples to better fit the
question. The examiner isn’t going to check your facts but they must, of
course, be plausible.

Vocabulary for Your Task 2 Essay

Before I move on to talking about the structure of your Task 2 essay, I

want to look briefly at vocabulary.

You need to cover as much as possible in the planning stage and this
includes vocabulary. You don’t want to be searching your brain for the
right words while you’re writing your essay. The writing stage is the time
for focusing on grammar and linking your ideas.

You don’t need to use complex, high-level words and phrases to get a
high mark but you do need to use appropriate, topic-related vocabulary
and to avoid repeating the same words many times over.

This is particularly true of the vocabulary included in the question. So,

you need to think about possible synonyms you could use. I’ll use our
sample question as an illustration. I’ve added the colour coding again
because it’s the key words that you’ll want to find alternatives for.

Sample question:
In some poorer areas of large cities people are too afraid to leave
their houses at night time due to a fear of crime.

What are the causes of crime in those areas and what can be done to
tackle those problems?

Here are just a few relevant synonyms:

poor area– deprived neighbourhood, impoverished locality

city– metropolis, urban area

night time– after dark

cause– reason for, source of, origin of

what can be done– solution, answer to the problem

Write down synonyms as you analyse the question and choose which
ideas to include in your essay.

 How to Structure Your Essay

The final step in the planning process is to set out the structure, that is,
to organise your ideas so that they flow logically from one to the next
and answer all parts of the question.
  Task 2 Marking Criteria

To get a high score in the IELTS Writing exam, you need to know
exactly what the examiner wants. So, the first step to achieving success
is to understand the marking criteria.

Once you understand this, you can focus on developing the rights skills
and techniques needed to meet the criteria.

The 4 Marking Criteria:

• Task Achievement

• Coherence and Cohesion

• Vocabulary (Lexical Resource)

• Grammar

Each carry 25% of the marks.

Task Achievement

Task achievement is your ability to answer the question properly.

To score well for task achievement, you must do 3 things:

• Answer the actual question asked (i.e., don’t just write generally,
about the topic).

• Answer all parts of the question.

• Clearly express your opinion and support it with well- developed

ideas and, ideally, examples.

The easiest way to understand these criteria is through some examples.

Sample question:

Some people think that newspapers are the best

way to learn news. However, others believe that
they can learn news better through other media.

Discuss both views and give your opinion.

1) You are required to write about the two opposing views on the best
way to learn news. Do not write about news in general.

2) You must answer all parts of the question, that is, you must write
about both views and also give your own opinion. If you don’t fully
cover all these elements, your mark could drop to as low as a
Band 5.

3) Your own opinion on the best way to learn news must be clearly
stated in your essay and supported with relevant ideas and/or
explanations. Include specific examples if you can.

 Cohesion and Coherence

Cohesion and Coherence are your ability to organise and present your
ideas so that your essay is easy to read and understand.

To score well for Cohesion and Coherence, you must do 4 things:

• Write an essay with clear ideas that are easy to understand.

• Organise ideas and information logically.

• Progress clearly from one idea to another.

• Use cohesive devices to link ideas, sentences and paragraphs.

Note: Cohesive devices are words like 'For example', 'In conclusion',
'however' and 'moreover'.
It can be helpful to look at the two parts of this marking criteria
individually to give a better understanding of their significance.

Coherence refers to how well the examiner can understand what you
write.
Several things can affect this, such as,

• Grammar mistakes

• Use of inappropriate words and phrases

• Illogical ordering of sentences and ideas

If the examiner can’t easily read your essay and follow your ideas, you
will get a low mark for coherence. Poor paragraph structure, with ideas
set out seemingly randomly, is a common and serious mistake made by
many students.

Cohesion refers to your ability to link ideas, sentences and paragraphs

using cohesive devices.

These are linking words and phrases such as:

• also
• furthermore
• for example
• such as
• as well as
• because
• although
• however
• especially
• therefore
• in contrast
• similarly

A mistake that many students make in their Writing exam is to overuse

cohesive devices, thinking that using them in every sentence will gain
them marks. This is wrong. It leads to them being used inappropriately
which results in a loss of coherence. This is as serious a problem as
underusing them.
  Vocabulary / Lexical Resource

Lexical Resource means vocabulary so refers to the words and phrases

you use in your essay.

To score well for Lexical Resource you must:

• Use a wide range of vocabulary.

• Use it correctly and appropriately.
• Use topic specific vocabulary.

Many students make the mistake of thinking that you need to use long,
complicated words to score well. This is not the case. You just need to
use the right words correctly. You must also be able to spell them
correctly.

 Writing the Introduction

For a great score in the Writing test, you need to impress the examiner

from the very first sentence.

 Why the Introduction Is So Important

Beginning your essay well will immediately start stacking up the marks
for both Task Achievement and Coherence and Cohesion.

A good introduction does several things:

• It gives an excellent first impression.

• It shows the examiner that you understand the question.
• It gives the examiner a brief overview of what you’ll cover in
the rest of the essay.
• It focuses your thoughts and keeps you on track while writing.
The 3 Part Structure

A good introduction has a simple 3-part structure:

• Paraphrased question
• Thesis statement
• Outline statement

This structure can be used for any type of question. It should:

• Have 2-3 sentences

• Be 40-60 words long
• Take 5 minutes to write

Before I show you how to write good introductions, I want to flag up

some common errors students make to help you avoid them.

How To Write a Great Introduction

Here’s a reminder of the 3-part structure you should use for all task 2
Writing tasks.

• Paraphrased question
• Thesis statement
• Outline statement

Paraphrased question

Start your introduction by paraphrasing the question.

Question:

Some young people are leaving the countryside to live in cities and
towns, leaving only old people in the countryside.
Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

Example: The migration of the younger generation to urban areas is

leaving many rural locations populated predominantly by the elderly.

Note the use of synonyms for many of the keywords, e.g.

• young people– younger generation

• countryside– rural locations
• cities and towns– urban areas
• leaving– migration
• old people– the elderly

You don’t have to replace them all but do so where possible without
making the sentence sound awkward.

It’s fine to repeat one or two words. Don’t spend too much time trying to
think of synonyms or use ones you are not 100% sure are correct.

Thesis statement

The thesis statement states your opinion on the topic. In most instances,
you simply need to decide whether to agree or disagree with it and to
reiterate the main idea of the statement.

Example: This essay argues that the loss of young people from the rural
landscape has problematic consequences.

This thesis statement states the opinion of the writer and paraphrases
the question again in a way that makes this view clear.

Outline statement

Finally in the introduction, you must outline the two main points that
you’ll cover in the rest of the essay. This acts as a guide to the examiner
and also helps to keep you focused and on track as you write.

Do it in one sentence, or you can add them onto the end of the thesis
statement if appropriate.
Example: The two most serious are, the depletion of the rural workforce
and the loss of local education facilities.

These two ideas will become your two main body paragraphs.

• Main body paragraph 1– the depletion of the rural workforce.

• Main body paragraph 2– the loss of local education facilities.

 The Finished Introduction

Now, let’s pull the whole introduction together.

Question:
Some young people are leaving the countryside to live in cities and
towns, leaving only old people in the countryside.

Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

Introduction:

The migration of the younger generation to urban areas is leaving many

rural locations populated predominantly by the elderly. This essay
argues that the loss of young people from the rural landscape has
problematic consequences. The two most serious are, the depletion of
the rural workforce and the loss of local education facilities.

These three sentences exactly follow the 3-part structure and also
avoid the common mistakes.

This short paragraph would be an excellent introduction to an essay on

this topic.

 Writing the Main Body Paragraphs

Task 2 essays should be made up of 4 sections:

1) Introduction
2) Main Body Paragraph 1
3) Main Body Paragraph 2
4) Conclusion

The 3 Part Structure

Each of the 4 sections of a Task 2 essay has an easy to remember

structure that will help you to write high-scoring essays. An important
part of your preparation for the exam is to learn these structures so that
they come quickly to mind in the test.

For Task 2 main body paragraphs, the structure has 3 parts:

• Topic sentence
• Explanation
• Example

If you can’t think of an example, you can add a further explanation

instead, but be aware that examiners do love examples.

Outline statement:
The two most serious are, the depletion of the rural workforce and the
loss of local education facilities.

It outlines the two main points that will be covered in the rest of the
essay.

These two ideas will become the two main body paragraphs.

• Main body paragraph 1– the depletion of the rural workforce.

• Main body paragraph 2– the loss of local education facilities.

Topic Sentence

The topic sentence plays an important role here. It states the main idea,
acting as a signpost for what is to come next, that is, what the
paragraph will be about.
That’s all it needs to do so it doesn’t need to be complicated.

Let’s look at our question again and the topic we identified as the main
idea for main body paragraph 1.

Some young people are leaving the countryside to live in cities and
towns, leaving only old people in the countryside.

Do you think this is a positive or a negative development?

• Main body paragraph 1– the depletion of the rural workforce.

You will already have your ideas ready from when you planned your
essay. Now they need to be formed into a sentence.

Here’s an example topic sentence for main body paragraph 1.

Topic sentence 1:
When 18–30-year-olds move to towns and cities in search of new
opportunities, they leave behind an ageing population to do all the work

The idea of the rural workforce being depleted is expressed clearly in

simple language. This is all that’s required.

Now for the second paragraph. Here's the main idea and an example
topic sentence.

• Main body paragraph 2– the loss of local education facilities.

Topic sentence 2:

In many rural areas, there is no longer a village school for the local
children to attend.

Again, the main idea is stated clearly and simply.

 Explanation Sentences & Examples

These ideas now need to be developed with an explanation and,

ideally, an example.
We’ll start by developing the idea in topic sentence 1.

Topic sentence 1:

When 18–30-year-olds move to towns and cities in search of new

opportunities, they leave behind an ageing population to do all the work.

Explanation and example 1:

Most employment in the countryside involves manual labour. This can

be difficult for older people to manage as it is far more suited to fit and
healthy young adults. A government survey carried out over the past
decade, reveals that the number of
family farms being sold off to developers is increasing year by year. The
main reason given for this is that the parents can no longer manage to
do all the hard work themselves and their sons and daughters have
moved to urban areas to seek new
opportunities.

Here we have two sentences giving more detail on the idea and two
sentences setting out an example.

Examples can come from many sources including personal experience,

news reports and articles or academic studies you’ve read.

Don’t worry if you can’t think of a real example. It’s fine to make one up,
as this one is, as long as it’s believable.

If you really can’t think of an example, add another piece of information

to support your idea instead.

Next, we need to develop topic sentence 2.

Topic sentence 2:
In many rural areas, there is no longer a village school for
the local children to attend.

Explanation and example 2:

With fewer young families living on the farms and in the villages, there
are not enough kids to keep the local primary schools
open. This is a big loss to rural communities as it means that
children still living in the countryside often have to travel a long
way to school each day. In the region of Devon where I live,
every village had its own school just forty years ago. Now only a
handful of them still exist. Most have been converted into
houses or holiday cottages.
Again, we have a couple on sentences containing extra information to
support the main idea and an example which, in this instance, is true.
So, let’s bring our two main body paragraphs together.

Finished Main Body Paragraphs

When 18-30 year olds move to towns and cities in search of new
opportunities, they leave behind an ageing population to do all the
work. Most employment in the countryside involves manual labour. This
can be difficult for older people to manage as it is far more suited to fit
and healthy young adults. A government survey carried out over the
past decade, reveals that the number of family farms being sold off to
developers is increasing year by year. The main reason given for this is
that the parents can no longer manage to do all the hard work
themselves and their sons and daughters have moved to urban areas
to seek new opportunities.

Furthermore, in many rural areas, there is no longer a village school for

the local children to attend. With fewer young families living on the
farms and in the villages, there are not enough kids to keep the local
primary schools open. This is a big loss to rural communities as it
means that children still living in the countryside often have to travel a
long way to school each day. In the region of Devon where I live, every
village had its own school just forty years ago. Now only a handful of
them still exist. Most have been converted into houses or holiday
cottages.

Note that I've added the word ‘furthermore’ to the beginning of the
second paragraph as a cohesive device to link the two ideas.

Summary
As you can see, you don’t have time to include many ideas. Here’s a
summary of what each main body paragraph includes:

• A topic sentences
• An explanation
• An example

With the introduction and body paragraph complete, we just need to

add a conclusion and our essay is finished.
Writing the Conclusion

If your introduction and main body paragraphs are structured correctly,

writing a conclusion to your Task 2 essay will be very simple.

A good conclusion will:

• Neatly end the essay

• Link all your ideas together
• Sum up your argument or opinion
• Answers the question

If you do this well, you’ll improve your score for both task achievement
and cohesion and coherence which together make up 50% of the
overall marks.

Without a conclusion, you’ll score below band 6 for task achievement.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

First, let’s consider what you should not do when writing a conclusion.
You should not:

• Introduce new ideas.

• Introduce new evidence or examples.
• Write too much.
• Be too general

The Structure of a Good Conclusion

The ideal conclusion has 1 or 2 sentences:

• Sentence 1 – a summary of your main ideas.

• Sentence 2 – a prediction or recommendation statement.

(optional)

This second sentence is optional but perfectly acceptable if you do

want to add one. It is useful if you find that you’re just below the word
limit when you finish your essay and need one more sentence to get
you over the minimum 250 words.

If your essay is already long enough, leave it out as it won’t earn you
extra marks. Your time will be better spent checking your grammar
and spellings.

The first few words of a summary sentence are extremely important.

The good news is that you can use the same phrase for almost any
Task 2 essay. I recommend that you use:

• In conclusion
or
• To conclude

These cohesive devices do two jobs:

• They link this final paragraph to what has been written previously.
• They make it clear to the examiner that you are about to
summarise your answer to the question.

There’s another piece of good news. If you followed all the instructions
on how to write a good introduction, your introduction will be a summary
of what your essay is going to include.

Since your conclusion is about what the essay did include (your opinion
and the main points), all you need to do now is to paraphrase this same
information.

Here's the introduction:

Introduction:
The migration of the younger generation to urban areas is leaving many
rural locations populated predominantly by the elderly. This essay
argues that the loss of young people from the rural landscape has
problematic consequences. The two
most serious are, the depletion of the rural workforce and the loss of
local education facilities.

Here's the same information formed into a conclusion:

Summary sentence:
In conclusion, the significant rise in the average age of people living in
rural areas has resulted in a lack of suitable people to fill the workforce
and the closure of the majority of village schools, causing hardship to
local communities.
Study the way I've used synonyms and a different sentence structure to
form this conclusion from the introduction. This really is all you need to
do.

The Prediction or Recommendation Sentence

Finally, let’s consider the optional prediction or recommendation

sentence. What do these two words mean?

• A prediction is a statement about what you think will happen in

the future.

• A recommendation is a statement about what you think should

happen in the future.

Here are examples of each type of sentence that you could use for this
Task 2 essay:

It is predicted that there will be a steady increase in young families

moving to country locations in the coming decade as parents seek
a more relaxed lifestyle for themselves and their children.

• It is recommended that governments should improve public

transport and provide affordable village housing to encourage
young people back to rural areas.

Sometimes it will be appropriate to use ‘I predict that…’ or ‘I recommend

that…’.

With our conclusion written, the essay is complete. It is well over the 250
minimum word limit so; no prediction or recommendation sentence is
needed.

Finished essay
The migration of the younger generation to urban areas is leaving many
rural locations populated predominantly by the elderly. This essay
argues that the loss of young people from the rural landscape has
problematic consequences. The two most serious are, the depletion of
the rural workforce and the loss of local education facilities.

When 18–30-year-olds move to towns and cities in search of new

opportunities, they leave behind an ageing population to do all the
work. Most employment in the countryside involves manual labour. This
can be difficult for older people to manage as it is far more suited to fit
and healthy young adults. A government survey carried out over the
past decade, reveals that the number of family farms being sold off to
developers is increasing year by year. The main reason given for this is
that the parents can no longer manage to do all the hard work
themselves and their sons and daughters have moved to urban areas
to seek new opportunities.

Furthermore, in many rural areas, there is no longer a village school for

the local children to attend. With fewer young families living on the
farms and in the villages, there are not enough kids to keep the local
primary schools open. This is a big loss to rural communities as it
means that children still living in the countryside often have to travel a
long way to school each day. In the region of Devon where I live, every
village had its own school just forty years ago. Now only a handful of
them still exist. Most have been converted into houses or holiday
cottages.

In conclusion, the significant rise in the average age of people living in

rural areas have resulted in a lack of suitable people to fill the workforce
and the closure of the majority of village schools, causing hardship to
local communities.

(315 words)

Learning to write good Task 2 essays takes a lot of practice. Use this
lesson and the two on introductions and main body paragraphs to learn
the technique then, do as much practice as you can on all five questions
types.
  The 5 Types of Task 2 Essay

Here’s a reminder of the 5 main types of essays:

1) Opinion Essays
2) Discussion Essays
3) Problem Solution Essays
4) Advantages & Disadvantages Essays
5) Double Question Essays

Most questions fit one of these categories. However, questions can be

written in many different ways which can make it difficult to determine
which type they are.

 How To Write Opinion Essays

IELTS opinion essays, also known as ‘agree or disagree’ essays, come

up frequently in the writing exam. In this chapter, I’m going to show you
how to plan and write them step-by-step.

The Question
The first part of the question will be a statement. You will then be asked
to give your own opinion about the statement. Here is some typical
wording that might be used:

• What is your opinion?

• Do you agree or disagree?
• To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Sample Question:

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant

examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

3 Common Mistakes

These three errors are common in opinion essays.

• Not stating an opinion.

• Giving arguments for both views.
• Not supporting your opinion with clear reasons.

The most common mistake that students make is not giving an opinion.
The question will clearly state that you must choose one side of the
argument. If you fail to do this, you will get a low score for task
achievement.

It doesn’t matter which side of the argument you take or even, that you
agree with it. Choose the one you can develop the best argument for.
Make sure that you don’t change your opinion part way through the
essay, and don’t give reasons for the opposing view.

Essay Structure

Now let’s look at a simple structure you can use to write opinion
essays. It’s not the only possible structure but it’s the one I recommend
because it’s easy to learn and will enable you to quickly plan and write
a high-level essay.

This structure will give us a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs.

We now need some ideas to add into the structure and we’ll have
everything we need for our essay.

1) Introduction
• Paraphrase the question
• Give your opinion
• State two supporting reasons

2) Main body paragraph 1

• Topic sentence – outline 1st reason for
supporting this view
• Explanation – explain this idea
• Example – give an example
3) Main body paragraph 2
• Topic sentence – outline 2nd reason for
supporting this view
• Explanation – explain this idea
• Example – give an example

4) Conclusion
• Summarise opinion and key reasons

This structure will give us a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs.

How To Plan IELTS Opinion Essays

1) Decide on your opinion

The question I've chosen to work on is quite straightforward and easy to

understand so we don’t need to spend time analysing it. The first task,
then, is to decide on our opinion.

Here’s the first part of the question again:

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?

For this essay, I’m going to disagree with the statement and argue that
job satisfaction is more important than a big salary.

2) Generate ideas

The second task is to generate some ideas to write about. Since I ‘m

going to argue that job satisfaction is more important than a large salary,
I need ideas to support this view.

There are several different ways to think up ideas as mentioned above.

• Brainstorming

• Mind-mapping

• Friends technique
• Examples method

With this particular question, I immediately thought of a couple of

examples of situations where job satisfaction did prove to be more
important than a high salary, so I’m going to use the ‘example method’ of
generating ideas.

Once you’ve thought of an example or two, ideas to include in your

essay should come to you easily.

Examples:

 Uncle Barry – boasted about high salary but hated his job.

Nervous breakdown – lost job & can’t work.

 Me – gave up teaching. Now enjoy my work and am much

more relaxed and happy even though I earn much less money

Ideas:

• High-salary jobs are generally more stressful

• Stress leads to ill health, both mental and physical
• 40 hours a week at work – a third of the day
• Money doesn’t bring happiness
• Better quality of life
• Sense of fulfilment
• Less stressed – healthier and happier

I’ve got more ideas here than I need so I’m going to pick two to develop
in the essay – one for each of the main body paragraphs.

Idea 1– High-salary jobs are generally more stressful and can

lead to ill health.

Idea 2– Job satisfaction gives a sense of fulfilment.

 3) Vocabulary

In an IELTS essay, it’s important to be able to say the same things in

different ways, either by paraphrasing and/or using synonyms. During
the planning stage, quickly jot down a few synonyms of key words you
could use to save you having to stop and think of the right language
while you’re writing.

For example:

satisfaction– fulfilment, achievement, sense of accomplishment,

content, sense of well-being

salary– income, wages, pay, earnings

important– significant, valued, has more meaning

job– work, employment, position

With that done, we can focus on the first paragraph of the essay – the
introduction.

Finished Opinion Essay

Question:

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?

It is argued that earning lots of money has more significance to people

than being content in their work. This essay totally disagrees with that
statement. I believe that people are increasingly concerned about the
risk of stress-related ill-health frequently experienced by people in
highly paid positions and they care more about feeling fulfilled at work.

Employees who earn a large income are generally under significant

mental and emotional pressure to perform well and achieve targets.
This causes many individuals to suffer high levels of stress which can
result in mental health problems. This happened to my uncle. He used
to boast about his huge salary but the boss kept increasing his sales
targets and in the end, the stress became too great and he had a
nervous breakdown. Now he regrets being driven by the money.
Having a job that they enjoy doing, and in which they feel valued, is a
major concern for most of the modern workforce. A significant number
of people are giving up well-paid positions to do jobs which pays less
but that they find more enjoyable and less stressful. I am an example of
this myself. A year ago, I left the teaching profession because the
workload had become too great, and I am now a gardener. I feel really
fulfilled in this work and I am much more relaxed and happier even
though I earn far less money.

In conclusion, for a high percentage of the population, earning a

substantial wage is less important than job satisfaction because of the
negative effects of work-related stress and the desire to feel happy and
fulfilled at work.

(272 words)

 How To Write Discussion Essays

The Question

The first part of the question will be a statement containing two opposing
views.

You will then be asked to discuss both sides of the argument and give
your own opinion. Here is some typical wording that might be used:

• Discuss both views and give your opinion.

• Discuss both these views and then give your own opinion.
• Discuss both sides of this argument and give your own opinion.

Here's a question from a past test paper.

Some people think that zoos are cruel and should be closed down.
Others, however, believe that zoos can be useful in protecting wild
animals.
Discuss both views and give your opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples
from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

The key to identifying this type of question is the fact that you are
required to discuss BOTH views. This is different to opinion questions
where you must decide between two opposing views and make an
argument to support your own opinion.

Common Mistakes

These three errors are common in discussion essays.

• Not stating your opinion.

• Not giving arguments for both views.
• Not developing both sides of the argument equally.

The most common mistake that students make is not giving their
opinion. The question will clearly state that you must choose one side of
the argument to agree with. If you fail to do this, you will get a low score
for task achievement.

It doesn’t matter which side of the argument you take or even, that you
actually agree with it.

However, you must give equal attention to both sides. A common error
is to provide a stronger argument for the view you favour. This leads to
an unbalanced essay and a low score for task achievement.

Essay Structure

Now let’s look at a simple structure you can use to write you essay. It’s
not the only possible structure but it’s the one I recommend because it’s
easy to learn and will enable you to quickly plan and write a high-level
essay.

1) Introduction
• Paraphrase the question
• State two supporting reasons
• Give your opinion

2) Main body paragraph 1

• Topic sentence – outline the view you don’t agree with
• Explanation – explain why this view is held by some
people
• Example – give an example
3) Main body paragraph 2
• Topic sentence – outline the view you do agree with
• Explanation – explain why this view is held by some
people
• Example – give an example

4) Conclusion
• Summarise the key points and state your opinion

This structure will give us a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs. We

now need some ideas to add into the structure and we’ll have everything
we need for our essay.

How To Plan IELTS Discussion Essays

1) Analyse the question

This is an essential step in the planning process and will ensure that
you answer the question fully. It’s quick and easy to do. You just need
to identify 3 different types of words:

1. Topic words
2. Other keywords
3. Instruction words

Topics words are the ones that identify the general subject of the
question.

Some people think that zoos are cruel and should be closed down.
Others, however, believe that zoos can be useful in protecting wild
animals.
So, this question is about ‘zoos.

The other keywords in the question tell you the specific topic you must
write about. They define the opinions stated in the statement.
Some people think that zoos are cruel and should be closed
down. Others, however, believe that zoos can be useful in
protecting wild animals.

2) Decide on your opinion

Instructions: Discuss both views and give your opinion
 3) Generate ideas

The next task is to generate some ideas to write about. There are
several different ways to think up ideas.

• Brainstorming
• Mind-mapping
• Friends technique
• Examples method

Here are my ideas:

Cruel – closed down:

• Cramped cages – animals distressed
• Unnatural environments
• Most animals not endangered
• Animals become a public spectacle for entertainment

Useful – protect wild animals:

• Research work to learn more about wild animals
• Breeding programmes for endangered species
• Some species saved from extinction
• Seeing wild animals close up inspires people to want to help protect
them.

I’ve got more ideas here than I need so I’m going to pick two to develop
in the essay – one for each of the main body paragraphs.

Idea 1– Cramped cages & unnatural environments, animals

distressed.

Idea 2– Breeding programmes for endangered species, some

species saved from extinction.

We’re almost ready to start writing our essay but first, we have one other
small task to do.
 4) Vocabulary

In an IELTS essay, it’s important to be able to say the same things in

different ways, either by paraphrasing and/or using synonyms. During
the planning stage, quickly jot down a few synonyms of key words you
could use to save you having to stop and think of the right language
while you’re writing.

For example:

zoos– animals in captivity, collections of wild animals, menagerie,

wildlife park

cruel– to cause suffering, inhumane

protect– safeguard, preserve

animals– creatures, species

With that done, we can focus on the first paragraph of the essay – the
introduction.

Finished Discussion Essay

Question:

Some people think that zoos are cruel and should be closed down.
Others, however, believe that zoos can be useful in protecting wild
animals.

Discuss both views and give your opinion.

Some people argue that zoos help to preserve wild creatures, while
others say that they are inhumane and should be abolished. While the
development of breeding programmes contributes to the preservation of
endangered species, I believe that the poor conditions that many
animals
held in captivity are kept in make the existence of zoos unacceptable.

On the one hand, there are many projects in existence in zoological

parks around the world where species facing extinction have been
successfully bred in captivity and their numbers increased substantially.
This is important for ensuring the survival of animals under threat from
poaching and the destruction of their natural environments. A good
example of this is the golden lion tamarin from Brazil which nearly died
out because of logging and mining activities which are destroying its
habitat. Today, a third of wild golden lion tamarins were raised in
captivity.

On the other hand, a significant percentage of zoos house their animals

in cramped cages with very little space to move around or behave
naturally. This can lead to them becoming distressed and depressed as
well as suffering physically through lack of exercise. A friend of mine
recently visited a wildlife park while on holiday abroad and was very
upset to see the lions pacing up and down in a narrow, bare pen and
eagles in enclosures so small that they were unable to fly.

In conclusion, although zoos do help to safeguard dwindling populations

of particular species, the suffering experienced by many captive
creatures due to unsuitable living conditions amounts to cruelty and they
should not be allowed to exist.

 How To Write Problem Solution Essays

In these types of Questions, you’ll be asked to write about both the
problem, or cause, and the solution to a specific issue. Sometimes,
however, you will only be required to write about possible solutions.

The 3 essay types:

• Problem and solution

• Cause and solution
• Just the solution

The Question
Here are two typical problem solution essay questions. They consist of a
statement followed by the question or instruction.

1. One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic congestion.

What do you think the causes are? What solutions can you
suggest?

2. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the number of

endangered species has increased significantly and we have
 witnessed more mass extinctions in this period than in any other
period of time.

State some reasons for this and provide possible solutions.

These are some examples of different ways in which questions can be

phrased. The first half of the questions relate to the problem or cause,
the second half to the solution.

• What issues does this cause and how can they be addressed?
• What are some resulting social problems and how can we
deal with them?
• What problems arise from this and how can they be tackled?
• Why is this? How might it be remedied?
• What are the reasons for this, and how can the situation be
improved?
• Why is this happening, and what measures can be taken to
tackle this problem?

And here are a few questions where you only have to write about the
solution.

• How can this situation be improved?

• What solutions can you suggest to deal with this problem?
• How can this problem be solved?
• What measures could be taken to prevent this?

It’s important that you are able to recognise the common synonyms,
words and phrases used in problem solution questions. Here are the
key words and their synonyms used in the questions above.

• Problem– issues, resulting, situation

• Cause– reasons, why

• Solution– deal with, be addressed, be tackled, be remedied, be

improved, measures taken, be solved, prevent

Before we move on to some common mistakes, I want to quickly

explain the difference between a problem and a cause.
Read the following examples.
Problem– I missed the last bus home after visiting my friend for the
evening.

Cause– I misread the timetable and thought the bus left at 22.45
when it actually left at 22.35.

6 Common Mistakes

These six errors are common in IELTS problem solution essays.

• Confusing problem and causes questions.

• Having too many ideas.
• Not developing your ideas.
• Not developing both sides of the argument equally.
• Not linking the problems and solutions.
• Not being specific enough.

Essay Structure

Now let’s look at a simple structure you can use to write problem
solution essays. It’s not the only possible structure but it’s the one I
recommend because it’s easy to learn and will enable you to quickly
plan and write a high-level essay.

1) Introduction
• Paraphrase the question
• State 1 key problem/cause and related solution

2) Main body paragraph 1 – Problem or Cause

• Topic sentence – state the problem or cause
• Explanation – give detail explaining the problem or cause
• Example – give an example

3) Main body paragraph 2 – Solution

• Topic sentence – state the solution
• Explanation – give detail explaining the solution
• Example – give an example

4) Conclusion
• Summarise the key points
This structure will give us a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs.

One Problem/Cause & Solution or Two?

Most questions will state problems, causes and solutions in the plural,
that is, more than one. However, it is acceptable to write about just one.

This will give you an essay of just over the minimum 250 words. To
write about two problems/causes and solutions will require you to write
between 350 and 400 words which are a lot to plan and write in the 40
minutes allowed.

It is better to fully develop one problem/cause and solutions than

ending up with one idea

How To Plan IELTS Problem Solution Essays

Here’s the question we’re going to be answering in our model essay

followed by the 3 steps of the planning process.

One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic congestion.

What do you think the causes are? What solutions can

you suggest?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant

examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

• Analyse the question

• Generate ideas

• Identify vocabulary
 1) Analyse the question

This is an essential step in the planning process and will ensure that
you answer the question fully. It’s quick and easy to do. You just need
to identify 3 different types of words:

1. Topic words

2. Other keywords

3. Instruction words

Topics words are the ones that identify the general subject of the
question and will be found in the statement part of the question.

One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic congestion.

So, this question is about ‘traffic congestion’.

Many students will do this first step of the process and then write about
the topic in general. This is a serious mistake and leads to low marks
for task achievement.

What we need to do now that we know the general topic, is to

understand exactly what aspect of traffic congestion we're being asked
to write about.

The other keywords in the question tell you the specific topic you must
write about.

One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic

congestion.

By highlighting these words, it’s easy to see that you are being asked to
write about the problem of traffic congestion in large cities. Your essay
must only include ideas relevant to these ideas.
The instruction words are the question itself. These tell you the type
of problem solution essay you must write. This is a ‘causes and
solution’ question.

What do you think the causes are? What solutions can

you suggest?

2) Generate ideas
The next task is to generate some ideas to write about. There are
several different ways to think up ideas. We looked at the four main
ones.

• Brainstorming
• Mind-mapping
• Friends technique
• Examples method

You might want to try this yourself before reading on for my ideas. Here
are my ideas:

Cause:
• Too many cars on the roads – increasing numbers of people own
cars, more convenient than buses & trains
• Inadequate public transport – crowded, old & dirty
• Poor road layout
• Rush hour traffic – most people travel to & from work at the
same times each day

Solution:
• Car sharing, park-and-ride scheme, congestion charge
• Improve public transport – more frequent and better quality
• Improve infrastructure – bus lanes, cycle lanes will make it safer
for people to cycle
• Flexible working hours

3)Vocabulary

During the planning stage, quickly jot down some vocabulary that
comes to mind as you decide which cause and solution you are going
to write about, especially synonyms of key words. This will save you
having to stop and think of the right language while you’re writing.
For example:
• traffic jam
• heavy traffic
• queue
• vehicles
• commute
• rush hour
• private transport
• infrastructure

With that done, we can focus on the first paragraph of the essay – the
introduction.

Finished Problem Solution Essay

Question:
One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic congestion.
What do you think the causes are? What solutions can you suggest?

One of the most serious issues facing the majority of large urban areas
is traffic jams. The main reason for this is that there are too many private
cars on the roads these days and a viable solution is to introduce more
park-and-ride schemes.

The number of people owning cars increases year on year, with most
families now having more than one car. Most people like the
convenience of travelling at the time they want to rather than being
restricted to public transport timetables, so they prefer to drive
themselves around rather than taking the bus or train. This is despite the
fact that they frequently have to sit in long traffic queues as they near the
city center. Whenever I have to attend a meeting in the city, I always
drive because it means that I can leave home when I want to rather than
getting stressed about getting to the station in time to catch the train.

A solution that is proving successful in many areas is park-and-ride

schemes. This is where you park your car for free in a large car park on
the outskirts of the city and take a bus for the final part of your journey.
The fee you have to pay for the bus trip is usually very small and this
public transport system is generally very regular, running every ten
minutes or so. A survey carried out in the city of Exeter showed that the
rush hour congestion decreased by 10% when the council set up a park-
and-ride scheme to the north of the city. There was an additional drop of
another 10% in traffic volume when a second scheme began operating
to the south.

To conclude, the major urban problem of traffic congestion caused by

the excessive number of private cars on city roads can be partly
alleviated by the introduction of park-and-ride systems on city fringes. I
would certainly, use one if it was introduced in my area.

 How To Write Advantages and Disadvantages

Essays
Questions for IELTS advantages and disadvantages essays can be
worded in several different ways. Here is some typical wording that
might be used:

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of….?

• Do you think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?

• Discuss the advantages and disadvantages and give your

opinion.

It is also common for synonyms of ‘advantages’ and ‘disadvantages’ to

be
used, such as ‘benefits’ and ‘drawbacks’, as can be seen in this sample
question.

A lot of places in the world rely on tourism as a main source of

income. Unfortunately, tourism can also be a source of problems
if it is not well-managed.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of tourism in the

modern world? Do you think that the benefits of tourism
outweigh its drawbacks?

The Question
Advantages and disadvantages essay questions fall into two mains
categories:
• Questions that ask for your opinion.

• Questions that do not require you to state your opinion.

The first part of the question will always be a statement. You will then be
asked to write about both the advantages and disadvantages of the
idea
stated. You may also be required to state your opinion.
Here are two more sample questions for illustration. For the first one,
you
must give your opinion but in the second, you should not.

1. Small businesses are disappearing and being replaced by

large multinational companies.
Do the advantages of this outweigh the disadvantages?

2. Most career choices demand vocational skills or specialist

knowledge. However, despite this, most schools still teach
academic subjects such as history or social studies.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this?

Essay Structures

Now let’s look at two simple structures you can use to write advantages
and disadvantages essays. They not the only possible structures but
are ones I recommend because they are easy to learn and will enable
you to quickly plan and write a high-level essay.
These structures will give you a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs.

One Advantage and Disadvantage or Two?

The question will state 'advantages' and 'disadvantages' in the plural,

that is, more than one. However, it is acceptable to write about just one.
This should give you an essay of just over the minimum 250 words. To
write about two advantages and disadvantages will require you to write
nearer 400 words which are a lot to plan and write in the 40 minutes
allowed.

It is better to fully develop one advantage and one disadvantage than

ending up with your second idea missing an explanation or an example
because you run out of time, but you can write about two if you feel
able to or more comfortable doing so.

How To Plan IELTS Advantages and Disadvantages Essays

The planning process only takes around 5 minutes but it is essential as

it will save you time overall and will result in a far better essay and thus,
higher marks.
There are the 3 things you need to do:

• Analyse the question

• Generate ideas
• Identify vocabulary

1) Analyse the question

Analysing the question will ensure that you answer it fully. It’s quick and
easy to do. You just need to identify 3 different types of words:

• Topic words
• Other keywords
• Instruction words

Topics words are the ones that identify the general subject of the
question and will be found in the statement part of the question.

Here is the question we’re going to be working on. I’ve highlighted the
topic words in blue.

A lot of places in the world rely on tourism as a main

source of income. Unfortunately, tourism can also be
a source of problems if it is not well-managed.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of tourism in

the modern world? Do you think that the benefits of
tourism outweigh its drawbacks?

So, this question is about ‘tourism’.

Many students do this first step of the process and then write about the
topic in general. This is a serious mistake and leads to low marks for
task achievement.

What we need to do now that we know the general topic, is to

understand exactly what aspect of tourism we're being asked to write
about.

The other keywords in the question tell you the specific topic your
essay must be about.

A lot of places in the world rely on tourism as a main

source of income. Unfortunately, tourism can also be
a source of problems if it is not well-managed.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of tourism

in the modern world? Do you think that the benefits of
tourism outweigh its drawbacks?

By highlighting these words, it’s easy to see that you are being asked to
write about the conflicting issues of tourism being ‘a main source of
income’ in many places, yet also being ‘a source of problems.
Your essay must only include ideas relevant to this aspect of tourism.

The instruction words are the question itself. They tell you exactly what
to include in your essay.

A lot of places in the world rely on tourism as a main source of

income. Unfortunately, tourism can also be a source of problems if
it is not well-managed.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of tourism in the

modern world? Do you think that the benefits of tourism outweigh
its drawbacks?

Here, we are required to write about:

• The advantages of tourism in relation to income generation.
• The disadvantage of tourism in relation to problems it can
cause.
• Our opinion as to whether the advantages outweigh the

Note the use of the synonyms ‘benefits’ and ‘drawback’ in the second
sentence of the question.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of tourism

in the modern world? Do you think that the benefits of
tourism outweigh its drawbacks?

2) Generate ideas
The next task is to generate some ideas to write about. There are
several different ways to think up ideas.
• Brainstorming
• Mind-mapping
• Friends technique
• Examples method

Here are my ideas using the friend’s technique:

Advantages of tourism – source of income:

• Provides jobs for local people

• Opportunities for local entrepreneurs

• Tourist spending boosts both national & local economy

• Brings improvement in local infrastructure & facilities which benefit

whole community

• Helps maintain traditions & culture

Disadvantages of tourism – the problems:

• Money goes to wealthy business owners not local people

• Increased crime

• Illegal activities, e.g. drugs

• More pubs & clubs – changes the local culture Increase in

property values

• Destruction of the natural environment to build hotels, airports &

other facilities

• Displacement of indigenous people

There are far too many ideas here to include in an essay of just over
250 words. Think up a few then pick one advantage and one
disadvantage that you think you can develop well.
3) Vocabulary
During the planning stage, quickly jot down some vocabulary that comes
to mind as you decide what you're going to write about, especially
synonyms of key words. This will save you having to stop and think of
the right language while you’re writing.

Finished Advantages and Disadvantages Essay

Question:
A lot of places in the world rely on tourism as a main source of
income. Unfortunately, tourism can also be a source of problems
if it is not well-managed.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of tourism in the
modern world? Do you think that the benefits of tourism outweigh
its drawbacks?

Although holidaymakers contribute hugely to the economies of many

popular destinations, the influx of tourists can also cause serious
issues. This essay will demonstrate how tourism can transform the
economy of poor areas but will show that it can also lead to a marked
increase in crime. Although this problem is a significant one, the essay
argues that the advantages of tourism do outweigh the disadvantages.

One of the main advantages is the number of jobs the tourist industry
creates for local people. The many hotels, restaurants, shops and other
facilities provide employment for the residents. A good example of a
country that is taking full advantage of a booming tourist industry is
Thailand. Regions that were once dominated by poor fishing villages
are now full of thriving holiday resorts. With everyone now having a job,
the general standard of living has greatly increased. The economic
boost to these local communities has also had a massive impact on the
national economy which is growing year on year, largely due to tourism.

However, an increase in holidaymakers can lead to some worrying

issues. One of the most serious of these is an escalation in the local
crime rate. This is a particular problem in popular party destinations
such as Ibiza where illegal drug taking and the excessive consumption
of alcohol, which leads to unruly behaviour, are an important part of the
holiday experience for many visitors. The affected areas, which were
once quiet coastal towns and villages with very little crime, now require
a large police presence to tackle these problems.

In conclusion, although mass tourism can result in a rise in criminal

activity, it greatly improves the lives of most local inhabitants as well as
contributing significantly to the national economy. Hence, the positive
effects of the tourist industry definitely outweigh the drawbacks.

 How To Write Double Question Essays

IELTS double question essays are also known as ‘direct question’ or
‘Two questions’ essays. They are distinguished by two characteristics:

• They have one statement with two different questions

after it.

• The questions may or may not be linked.

Here are 3 examples:

1) Fossil fuels are essential for producing electricity, powering

industry and fueling transportation. However, one day we will
reach a point when all the world’s fossil fuels have been depleted.
How can we conserve these resources?
What are some alternatives to fossil fuels?

2) Some parents buy their children whatever they ask for, and
allow their children to do whatever they want.
Is this a good way to raise children?
What consequences could this style of parenting have for children
as they get older?

3) The arts, including art, music and theatre are considered to be

important in society.
Do you think the arts still have a place amongst our modern
lifestyles?
Should the arts be included in the school curriculum?

It’s easy to mistake double question essays for one of the other four
types of Task 2 essays, especially opinion or discussion essays. Each
should be answered in a slightly different way.
Analyzing the question properly is essential to avoiding this error. I’ll
also show you how to do this and give you a simple 4-part structure for
planning your essay.

Essay Structure

1) Introduction
• Paraphrase the question
• Outline sentence – state your answer to both questions

2) Main body paragraph 1 – Answer question 1

• Topic sentence – state your answer
• Explanation – develop the idea
• Example – give an example

3) Main body paragraph 2 – Answer question 2

• Topic sentence – state your answer
• Explanation – develop the idea
• Example – give an example

4) Conclusion Summarise both questions and answers

How To Plan Double Question Essays

Here’s the question we’re going to be answering in our model essay

followed by the 3 steps of the planning process.

Fossil fuels are essential for producing electricity, powering industry and
fueling transportation. However, one day we will reach a point when all
the world’s
fossil fuels have been depleted.

How can we conserve these resources?

What are some alternatives to fossil fuels?

• Analyse the question

• Generate ideas
• Identify vocabulary
 1) Analyse the question

This is an essential step in the planning process and will ensure that you
answer the question fully. It’s quick and easy to do. You just need to
identify
3 different types of words:

• Topic words
• Other keywords
• Instruction words

Topics words are the ones that identify the general subject of the
question and will be found in the statement part of the question.
Fossil fuels are essential for producing electricity, powering
industry and fueling transportation. However, one day we
will reach a point when all the world’s fossil fuels have been
depleted.

So, this question is about ‘fossil fuels’.

Many students will do this first step of the process and then write about
the topic in general. This is a serious mistake and leads to low marks
for task achievement.

Now that we know what the general topic is, we need to understand
exactly what aspect of fossil fuels we're being asked to write about.
The other keywords in the question tell you the specific things you
must write about. For double question essays, these will often be in the
instructions, that is, the actual questions.

Fossil fuels are essential for producing electricity, powering

industry and fueling transportation. However, one day we
will reach a point when all the world’s fossil fuels have been
depleted.
How can we conserve these resources?
What are some alternatives to fossil fuels?

By highlighting these words, it’s easy to identify the topics. Your essay
must only include ideas relevant to these ideas.

The instruction words are the questions themselves. These tell you
exactly what type of information is required and each will become the
topic for one of the two main body paragraphs.
How can we conserve these resources?
What are some alternatives to fossil fuels?

The first body paragraph will answer the first question (How?) and the
second body paragraph will answer the second question (What?).

2) Generate ideas

The next task is to generate some ideas to write about.

Here are my ideas as I thought of them:

How can we conserve these resources?

• Become more energy conscious & more energy efficient
• Use more renewable energy sources – solar panels
• All new homes should be built with solar panels on
• Use car less – walk, cycle, public transport, only travel when
really necessary
• Energy-efficient light bulbs

What are some alternatives to fossil fuels?

• Solar power
• Wind power
• Wave energy
• Tidal energy
• Biomass energy
• Geothermal energy

Choose one main idea for each part of the question. My advice on
making your selection is to choose ideas you can quickly think of an
example to illustrate.

3) Vocabulary
During the planning stage, quickly jot down some vocabulary that
comes to mind as you decide which ideas you are going to write about,
especially synonyms of key words. This will save you having to stop
and think of the right language while you’re writing.
For the ideas I’ve chosen, useful words will include:
• sustainable
• renewable energy
• energy-efficient
Finished Double Question Essay

Question:

Fossil fuels are essential for producing electricity, powering

industry and fueling transportation. However, one day we will
reach a point when all the world’s fossil fuels have been depleted.

How can we conserve these resources?

What are some alternatives to fossil fuels?

The world is currently reliant on oil, coal and natural gas for the majority
of its energy requirements but there will come a time when these run
out. This essay will discuss how we can help to prevent our non-
renewable resources from becoming depleted by using our cars less
frequently and it will name some natural forces that can be harnessed to
generate power.

Conserving energy is a responsibility of every individual and an

important way in which we can all do our bit is to use more energy-
efficient means of transport. The easiest way to do this is to leave the
car at home and walk or cycle to our destination if it isn’t too far away, or
take public transport for longer journeys. Another way to reduce our fuel
consumption is to car share. Whenever my friends and I get together for
coffee, we agree to meet up at a café that we can each get to without
having to drive our cars there. We usually go on foot or ride our bikes. If
everyone made small decisions like this, it would make a real difference.

The most sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels are the generation of

power from natural forces such as the sun, wind and oceans. Solar and
wind power is already widely used across the world but it is wave
power and tidal energy that have the greatest untapped potential to
provide for our energy needs in the future. A report recently
commissioned in the United Kingdom estimates that tidal energy could
meet as much as 20% of the UK’s current electricity demands once the
technology being developed is operational. Wave energy converters are
expected to prove equally successful in the long-term.
In conclusion, our earth’s reserves of fossil fuels will not last forever
and we need to be continually developing new technologies to enable
us to produce energy from renewable sources such as the sun, wind
and water. In the meantime, we can help to slow the rate of depletion
by leaving the car at home and using more energy-efficient forms of
transport whenever possible.