IELTS Preparation Series 3, Episode 6: Question Tasks and Topics in Writing
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Hello, and welcome to Study English, IELTS Preparation. I'm Margot Politis.
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Today we'll look at question tasks and topics in the essay section of the IELTS test.
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Both IELTS tests - the academic and the general - require you to write a short essay.
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What are the questions likely to be about?
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Media: censorship; privacy;
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or the influence of advertising.
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Education: testing; computers;
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public and private education.
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Environment: eco-tourism; global warming;
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pollution.
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Health: obesity; alternative medicine; exercise;
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diet.
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Communication: the internet; mobile phones.
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Society: youth issues; juvenile delinquency;
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ageing populations.
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There are two parts to an essay question.
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First, there is the question topic, a statement like this:
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Internet access should be under government control to avoid any potential harm to children.
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And second, there is the question task, which will be something like:
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To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
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OR
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Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of government controlling Internet access.
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OR
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What are the reasons for government control? What other measures could be taken to deal
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with this problem?
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The purpose of the different question tasks is to test a range of writing skills.
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They can test your ability to identify causes and effects. You could be asked "What are
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the causes …" or "What are the effects …"
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Or they are designed to see how well you can present a solution to a problem. For example:
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What measures could be taken to deal with this problem?
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Here you would need to say what can be done to stop children being harmed by material
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on the internet, such as using software that prevents children accessing harmful sites
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or keeping computers out of children's bedrooms where they are not supervised by a parent.
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Often the question task tests whether you can present two sides of an issue, compare
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opinions and justify your view, such as these:
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To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
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OR
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Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of government control.
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OR
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What is your opinion?
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Here's the question topic again:
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Internet access should be under government control to avoid any potential harm to children.
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Let's look more closely at some question tasks for it. First:
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To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
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Here you would need to decide how much you agree or disagree with the issue of governments
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controlling Internet access and give your opinion.
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