In some countries, young people are encouraged to work or travel for a year between finishing high school and starting university studies. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this idea.

 Taking a “gap year” off between high school and university has become a popular option among many young people. Although some argue students can use this opportunity to do something hands-on and refreshing which enables them to learn more about themselves, there are critics who believe drawbacks of such a gap outweigh its advantages.

The benefits of taking a year off are plentiful. On a personal level, students who travel away from home develop their independence and self-confidence. On a cultural level, they learn about viewpoints, traditions and perspectives different from their own. Professionally, students get a taste of diverse workplaces, which might inspire a possible career interest. Intellectually, they examine their own beliefs and ideas in relation to those of others in a new environment. All these advantages combine to make a strong case for taking the one-year break.

Nevertheless, there are also dangers involved in taking such a long break. Academically, the main drawback is that students can get sidetracked from their studies. A year is a long time and students could lose the good study habits and sense of discipline they had when they were in a formal academic structure. If they begin working, they could also be deluded into thinking that they’re making a lot of money as a result of which they could lose the benefit of college or university education and the chance to earn a higher income all their lives. An illustration of this is my uncle who would be a PhD holder now, had it not been for starting a business during the gap year.

In conclusion, whether to take a year-long break or not is an individual decision. What I personally assume is that each young person should consider his or her motivations carefully and decide on what’s most desirable. Time is a precious resource and people of all ages, including young people, should treat it with respect.

 Analysis

A. Task response:

1. This essay has covered all parts of the given topic most probably because the candidate has spent enough time on comprehending the topic before he/she started to write.

2. The candidate has stated his own opinion definitely regarding the topic.

3. The central paragraphs of the essay are not well-supported.

4. This candidate has applied 280 words, which is good.

B. Coherence & cohesion:

1. The candidate has managed to express his/her position clearly and successfully because of applying correct & appropriate linkers such as although, nevertheless, which, if , …

۲٫ This piece of writing is both coherent (ideas have been arranged logically) & cohesive.

C. Grammar:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of structures including adjective clauses, noun clauses, conditional, complex sentences, …; more importantly, they are correct which mean the candidate has shown an excellent command of English structures by making mistakes in neither basic ones advanced ones .

2. The candidate has paid special attention to punctuation.

D. Vocabulary:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of appropriate & different words whose collocations are correct, for instance enable, outweigh, intellectually, delude, discipline, …

۲٫ There is no sign of repetitive words or contractions in the essay; also, spelling and capitalization have been taken care of flawlessly.

 Examiner’s final comment:

Totally, this essay seems good enough to be worthy of IELTS Band 7+ because of the above-mentioned plus points.

Financial education should be mandatory component of the school program. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

 It is an obvious fact that financial aspects are a major part of daily life, as an adult and even as a young individual. Each and every one of us has to make financial decisions concerning recreation, health, education and more. The question is whether to start with financial education as part of school program or postpone it for a later stage in life.

 On the one hand, being able to understand the value of money, the way the economic system works and interpret financial news and its implications are all virtues without which an individual, and even a young one, might suffer, to some extent. For example, a child who doesn’t understand the concept of money might find it more difficult to be able to choose an expensive gift out of a couple of good presents. In addition, many adults are lacking financial analysis capabilities. Quite often, the reason can be a shaky basis or insecurity when it comes to financial terms and concepts. Starting from an early age, building a strong background, can very likely prevent such a situation.

  Nevertheless, financial education necessarily involves quantifying and setting prices and value for services and goods. It can be easily turn young people into cynical and materialistic human beings. Furthermore, a tendency to self-concentration and egoism might rise when one start measuring everything from a profit making perspective. Take my 17-year-old brother as an example whose attitude towards money varies that of mine, for he started to do business much earlier than me.

 In conclusion, financial education has both pros and cons. In my opinion, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, making financial education an advisable component of school program. The disadvantages should be thought of as a certain price that young people have to pay due to the characteristics of the world that we live in.

  Analysis

A. Task response:

1. This essay has covered all parts of the given topic most probably because the candidate has spent enough time on comprehending the topic before he/she started to write.

2. The candidate has stated his own opinion definitely regarding the topic.

3. The central paragraphs of the essay have been supported with a range of techniques like examples

4. This candidate has applied 320 words, which has far exceeded the mentioned standard

B. Coherence & cohesion:

1. The candidate has managed to express his/her position clearly and successfully because of applying correct & appropriate inkers such as on the other hand, however, for, nevertheless, furthermore,…

2. This piece of writing is both coherent (ideas have been arranged logically) & cohesive.

C. Grammar:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of structures including compound sentences, passive voice,…; more importantly, they are correct which mean the candidate has shown an excellent command of English structures by making mistakes in neither basic ones nor advanced ones.

2. The candidate has paid special attention to punctuation.

D. Vocabulary:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of appropriate & different words whose collocations are correct, for instance implications, concept, insecurity, perspective, egoism, …

۲٫ There is no sign of repetitive words or contractions in the essay; also, spelling and capitalization have been taken care of flawlessly.

 Examiner’s final comment:

 Totally, this essay seems good enough to be worthy of IELTS Band 7.5 because of the above-mentioned plus points.

Some people believe that pre-schools and kindergartens should start teaching children basic subjects such as math, writing even computers. Others think that these schools should mainly focus on activities such as games, painting, music, and play.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

 Nowadays, children formally start school around the age of six or seven, yet it is becoming more and more common for children younger than this to attend kindergarten or pre-school. Some parents hope that children in these schools will get a head start on important school subjects such as math and computers, still others simply want their children to have time to play with other pupils and do activities involving creative skills like painting and games.

 On the one hand, it is easy to see why parents might wish their children to start formal learning at an early age. Once children start at primary school, they will be required to start dealing with formal school subjects. If they have had exposure to these subjects while in pre-school, they will undoubtedly have an advantage over others who haven’t. Based on a survey done in the UK 43% of children with this advantage will achieve better grades and success, leading to higher achievement and confidence in their schoolwork.

 However, many parents also realize that children at a young age need time to play and explore their world. Activities involving art and music can develop children’s creativity and playtime can allow children to interact with other children and develop social skills. This is more than just having fun; by doing these activities, children are gaining valuable skills that will help them make friends, enjoy learning and solve problems later on in their school careers. Take my kid brother as an example who took up playing chess when he was 6 and not surprisingly he is a chess master now.

 To sum up, if I were supposed to choose a pre-school for my own child, I would look for a school whose curriculum includes mostly fun activities where children interact and enjoy themselves. This is not to say that formal subjects should not be approached, but they should not take up the majority of the school day and should be introduced in a fun and creative way.

When it comes to analyzing an essay, naturally we need to focus on the criteria based on which the IELTS examiners assess the piece of writing the most important of which are covering the topic thoroughly, conveying the message clearly, applying correct and varied structures in addition to using a broad range of  words.

 Analysis

A. Task response:

 ۱٫ This piece of writing has covered all parts of the given topic since the candidate has spent enough time on reading the topic before he/she started to write.

2. The candidate has stated their own opinion definitely regarding the topic not only in a separate paragraph (the 3^rd paragraph) but also in conclusion.

3. The central paragraphs of the essay are supported with a range of techniques, (the 1^st one with statistics, the 2^nd one with example).

Actually the candidate has applied this strategy:    Idea + a little explanation + support. These supports are essential since they contribute to transmitting the message to the reader more effectively & they help us to write unified paragraphs in order not to get off-topic.

  ۴٫ The essay is supposed to be minimum 250 and maximum 280 words professionally speaking. This candidate has applied 315 words, which has far exceeded the mentioned standard; consequently, it will be considered a weak point.

 B. Coherence & cohesion:

 ۱٫ The candidate has managed to express his/her position clearly because of using the correct format (introduction, 3 central paragraphs, conclusion)as well as applying correct & appropriate structures besides topic-based vocabulary.

2. This essay is both coherent (ideas have been arranged logically) & cohesive due to the fact that the candidate has applied cohesive devices such as still as well as transitions including however . Needless to say, well-supported paragraphs are bound to be cohesive. In other words, because candidate has supported his ideas in different paragraphs, all of them are arranged in a logical way.

  C. Grammar:

 ۱٫ This candidate has used a various structures including passive voice, conditional, complex sentences; more importantly, they are correct which means the candidate has shown an excellent command of written English by making mistakes in neither basic ones nor advanced ones.

2. The candidate has paid special attention to punctuation which is a contributing factor in adding to your score.

 D. Vocabulary:

 ۱٫ This candidate has used a wide range of appropriate & different words whose collocations are correct, for instance exposure, curriculum, interact

2. There is no sign of repetitive words or contractions in the essay; also, spelling and capitalization have been taken care of flawlessly.

 Examiner’s final comment:

Totally, this essay seems good enough to be worthy of IELTS Band 7+ because of the above-mentioned points.

 Nowadays environmental problems are too big to be managed by individual persons or individual countries. In other words, it is an international problem. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

 There is no cast of shadow that an essential problem of the 21st century is world pollution. Currently the environment is so contaminated that urgent measures should be taken to tackle the problem. A single individual cannot be blamed for the world pollution, which means it is vital that environmental issues are dealt with internationally. However, every person should take care of his or her habitat.

Lately, many presentations, conferences and international summits are held to deal with waste treatment, recycling, and soil and water contamination. For sure joint efforts and consolidation can only help in the mutual war towards the ongoing environmental disaster. For instance, governments should offer support to companies and organizations, involved in manufacturing, industry or agriculture in order to find environmentally-friendly approaches to get rid of their waste. These could be special law regulations, recycling programs, helping courses in order to implement ISO certificates and many more.

However, the influence of individuals over environment should not be ignored. If we do not confess that our planet is our home, we will never be able to take adequate care of it. We have to contribute every day to the preservation of nature and environment. For example, always remember to save energy by switching off lamps, computers and everything that we do not use. Our next obligation is to separate waste and throw bulk only in the designated areas. Driving vehicles can also be environmentally- friendly. For example, we have to avoid accelerating the engines too rapidly or using the air conditioning in the country, where it would be better to save energy and simply open the windows.

To sum up, environmental challenges should be met by local and international authorities as well as individuals. Every single person should take care of their environment; moreover, we have to bring up our children to be conscious citizens of a clean and preserved planet.

 Analysis

A. Task response:

1. This essay has covered all parts of the given topic most probably because the candidate has spent enough time on comprehending the topic before he/she started to write.

2. The candidate has stated his own opinion definitely regarding the topic.

3. The central paragraphs of the essay have been supported with a range of techniques like examples

4. This candidate has applied 350 words, which has far exceeded the mentioned standard

B. Coherence & cohesion:

1. The candidate has managed to express his/her position clearly and successfully because of applying correct & appropriate cohesive devices such as however, to sum up, …

۲٫ This piece of writing is both coherent (ideas have been arranged logically) & cohesive.

C. Grammar:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of structures including adjective clauses, compound/complex sentences; more importantly, they are correct which mean the candidate has shown an excellent command of English structures by making mistakes in neither basic ones nor advanced ones.

2. The candidate has paid special attention to punctuation.

D. Vocabulary:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of appropriate & different words whose collocations are correct, for instance summit, contaminating, consolidation, environmentally-friendly, contribute, …

۲٫ There is no sign of repetitive words or contractions in the essay; also, spelling and capitalization have been taken care of flawlessly.

 Examiner’s final comment:

Totally, this essay seems good enough to be worthy of IELTS Band 7+ because of the above-mentioned plus points.

Some say that the Internet is making the world smaller by bringing people together. To what extent do to you agree that the Internet is making it easier for people to communicate with one another?

 There is no cast of shadow that with the help of the World Wide Web we can do things that some years ago we could just see them in fiction movies. Although some people support the idea that the Internet has facilitated our communication, others argue its demerits should not be forgotten.

Not surprisingly electronic mail, instant messages, gadgets such as web cameras and microphones as well as cutting-edge technologies including video conferencing have made the presence of the other person more real. Who knows; with the help of visual reality you might even get a 3-D image of the speaker! I believe that the Internet is one the best inventions of the last century, you can hardly get to miss anyone and nobody is really out of reach. For instance, you could not keep in touch with your friends and would not be able to do your work from your bedroom in your pajamas if it weren’t because of the internet.

However, the internet can also be a major source of harassment. Spammers and hackers can invade your privacy and get personal/confidential information, which otherwise they will never get access to. You are never out of anybody’s reach, unless you make a conscious decision of not checking your email, there can be always more work waiting for you in your inbox and you might never have a moment to yourself. Worse yet, if you were a workaholic, you might never experience that stress-free vacation ever again in your life – take my older brother as an example who has his mobile workplace with him at all times.

In conclusion, I myself occasionally look forward to getting a letter in the snail mail, for the Internet gives me all what I dream of in terms of communication – the speed, reliability, and convenience of time and place. I can certainly tolerate its shortcomings any day, as long as it keeps me close to my loved ones.

 Analysis

A. Task response:

1. This essay has covered all parts of the given topic most probably because the candidate has spent enough time on comprehending the topic before he/she started to write.

2. The candidate has stated his own opinion definitely regarding the topic.

3. The central paragraphs of the essay have been supported with a range of techniques like examples

4. This candidate has applied 340 words, which has far exceeded the mentioned standard

B. Coherence & cohesion:

1. The candidate has managed to express his/her position clearly and successfully because of applying correct & appropriate linkers like although, not surprisingly, however, unless, ….

۲٫ This piece of writing is both coherent & cohesive.

C. Grammar:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of structures including conditionals, noun clauses, adjective clause,…; more importantly, they are correct which mean the candidate has shown an excellent command of English structures by making mistakes in neither basic ones nor advanced ones .

2. The candidate has paid special attention to punctuation.

D. Vocabulary:

1. This candidate has used a wide range of appropriate & different words whose collocations are correct, for instance demerit, gadget, cutting-edge,…

۲٫ There is no sign of repetitive words or contractions in the essay; also, spelling and capitalization have been taken care of flawlessly.

 Examiner’s final comment:

 Totally, this essay seems good enough to be worthy of IELTS Band 7.5 because of the above-mentioned plus points.