Some feel that students should not have to take standardized tests in school. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Reasons to agree:
- formal exams do not reflect a child's achievements adequately
- they put unnecessary pressure on children to memorize large portion of text
Reasons to disagree:
- formal examintions ensure that all students are assessed uniformely
-formal exams help to keep students focused
1. Government
investment in the arts, such as music and theatre, is a waste of money.
Governments must invest this money in public services instead. To what
extent do you agree with this statement?
2. Some think that quality art can be made by anyone while others think that it requires special talent and ability. Discuss both views and give your opinion.
3. Some people believe that government money should be spent on important things than arts such as painting and music. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
4. Some people say that art subjects such as music, drama and creative writing are an essential part of education, and every school should include them in its syllabus. Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give your opinion and examples from your own experience.
5. In today’s world of advanced science and technology, we still greatly value our artists such as musicians, painters, and writers. What can the arts tell us about life that science and technology cannot?
6. Some people believe that the government should provide financial assistance to all artists including painters, musicians and poets. Others think that it is a waste of money.
As we notice, in most of the topics presented, the main questions are, "why government should spend money on art and artists" and "why government should not invest money on arts".
Economic benefits: Arts create jobs, attract tourism, and increase tax revenue
Health and wellness benefits: Works of art have the power to foster the physical and mental health of people
Educational benefits: Arts can act as great educational tools
Social benefits: Arts can act as civic catalysts, encouraging exchange of ideas
Cultural benefits: Art works preserve cultural legacies for generations ahead
It is an illiquid asset: The money spent on art is not easily and quickly returned to a society but investment in other areas like education, health, and public infrastructure will have quicker and more noticeable results.
Art only has a secondary role: Compared to areas like education, health, and industries, arts only have a secondary role to play in the growth of a society.
What arts achieve that science and technology cannot:
Art touches the spiritual realm while technology cannot: While technology deals with the physical realm, arts have the ability to touch one's emotions.
Art enables us to express and appreciate feelings: Art offers numerous ways of expressing and understanding thoughts and feelings.
Art makes life beautiful: It is art that gives everything, including technology, an appearance that appeases our senses. For example, a beautifully designed building, a user-friendly website, and so on.
1. A
growing number of people feel that animals should not be exploited by people
and that they should have the same rights as humans, while others argue that
humans must employ animals to satisfy their various needs, including uses for
food and research. Discuss both views and give your opinion.
2. A
zoo has no useful purpose. Do you agree or disagree with the statement?
1. Today people are surrounded by advertising. This affects what people think is important and has a negative impact on people’s lives. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
2. Some of the methods used in advertising are unethical and unacceptable in today’s society. To what extent do you agree with this view?
3. Some people say that advertising encourages us to buy things that we really do not need. Others say that advertisements tell us about new products that may improve our lives. Which viewpoint do you agree with?
4. Today, the high sales of popular consumer goods reflect the power of advertising and not the real needs of the society in which they are sold. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
As you notice most of these IELTS essay topics need you to understand the impact of advertisements on individuals, businesses, and the society as a whole. Let us find out a few relevant points.
+ Acts as an important source of market education for people
+ Makes purchasing decisions easier and more effective
- Creates a feeling of missing out when people fail to buy the latest launched products
- Entices people into buying products
- Creates wrong ideals for people to follow
= promotes consumerism
= makes people pay higher prices due to the increased expenditure on advertising
- exaggerated statements and outright lies regarding the quality of products and services
- today's advertising tries to warn people of the consequences of not using their products
- today's advertising targets vulnerable demographic groups like children
(Source: https://unsplash.com/s/photos/writing)
Well, you are not alone! There are many students having the same doubt. There is no single answer to this question because the impact of using a template on your essay depends on various factors. Let me point out some of these factors for your consideration.
The Pros
IELTS essay template makes writing easy: Yes, with a template readily available, you will find it easy to write the essay because they contain an instant beginning, a number of sentences to advance your essay, and even transition words. Therefore, simply filling the gaps will produce an IELTS essay!
IELTS essay template keeps your writing disciplined: This is obviously another benefit. Students who are not used to planning and writing essays are likely to face difficulty organizing and developing ideas in a cohesive and coherent way. In such a situation, the template can act as a boundary or signal post within which you will be forced to limit your essay.
IELTS essay templates reduce grammatical errors: Grammar is a major problem faced by many students, especially when they write complex and compound sentences. When you use a template on a regular basis, you master it easily. Without a template to follow, you are more likely to try different varieties of sentences, which could, obviously, increase the chances of grammatical errors.
Well, so is it OK to use a template for my IELTS essay? Wait and see the other side before you take a decision.
The Cons
Memorized essays invite penalty: Yes, IELTS does not allow memorized essays. A template usually contains a number of "any essay sentences" and "pre-learnt portable phrases". Your chances of getting caught varies from examiner to examiner. What escapes the attention of one examiner may be identified and penalized by another examiner. Therefore, when you use a template, you bear the risk of penalty for writing memorized "any essay sentences".
There is a possibility of mismatch: The fact is, you cannot create a template that suits every situation. A template that goes well with a particular topic will be a total mismatch for another topic. The problem worsens when a candidate tries to convert a topic to fit the available template. For example, there are questions, asking "what are the advantages and disadvantages?" and there are questions asking "do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?". If the candidate fails to understand the difference and tries to use the same template for both, the result will be tragic: the band score will be far less than what the candidate could score writing their own sentences!
It does not blend well easily: The irony of the situation is, if you want to use the template in an effective way, you should be exceptionally good at English, and if you are good at English, you are in no need of a template. In case you are weak in English, you will fail to use the template in an effective way so that the templates merges naturally with your essay. In this case, your theft is more likely to be detected and punished.
So what is the way out?
If you are a weak student and aims to achieve a band score of about 6 band in a very short time with less effort, using templates might help you. If you aim high score in IELTS writing, the IELTS essay template can affect your score negatively. Finally, if you are good at English, always try to write on your own.
