Simone Braverman's Blog: IELTS-Blog.com, page 74
November 15, 2022
IELTS essay, topic: Newspapers have a significant influence on people’s ideas and opinions (reasons and solutions)
This essay topic was seen in a recent IELTS test in India
Newspapers have a significant influence on people’s ideas and opinions. Why is this happening? Is it a positive or negative situation?
Sample Band 8 Essay
Many people believe that newspapers play a pivotal role in shaping the way we think. There are numerous ways in which this affects our society, and I believe that this influence is mostly negative.
Newspapers have long been a source of valuable information that has kept societies abreast of the latest happenings in the world. Since the average citizen has minimal knowledge about the information in expert analysis articles, well-established newspapers are powerfully poised to form public opinion through attention-grabbing images and carefully worded commentary. This leaves the reader no choice but to trust the accuracy of what they have read.
Sadly, unbiased objectivity, which used to be the core idea behind journalism, seems to be a thing of the past. The arrival and spread of social media platforms has caused a gradual decline in print media subscriptions and their circulation, since readers tend to favor the internet and social media to stay informed about current affairs. This gave rise to a worrying trend of newspapers using sensationalist and controversial tactics to improve their sales. As a result, the constant barrage of bad news has led to a society that sees itself as more vulnerable and powerless than ever. To make matters worse, there are plenty of well-documented instances where newspapers have been used to spread false propaganda which is usually politically motivated.
All in all, although newspapers are our lifeline to the world around us, the recent trend of publishing misinformation has had a mostly negative impact on readers. It is my hope that newspapers will go back to publishing impartial accounts of the latest news in the future.
Click here to see more IELTS essays of Band 8
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November 14, 2022
IELTS test in Saudi Arabia – November 2022 (Academic Module)
Our lovely friend S. recently took IELTS in Saudi Arabia and remembered the following questions:
Writing test
Writing task 1 (a report)
The graphs below compare the percentages of people who travelled to work by public transport and private cars in 5 Australian cities between the years 2000 and 2010.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
* Note: these aren’t the actual graphs given in the test, they were recreated for demonstration purposes.
Writing task 2 (an essay)
Most companies use interviews as the only method to select a candidate for a job. Some people think that this is not the best way. Do you agree or disagree?
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IELTS Speaking test in Japan – November 2022
Thanks to the wonderful N.T. from Japan, today we are sharing these Speaking questions from her recent IELTS exam:
Speaking test
Part 1 (Interview)
– What is your full name?
– Do you work or study?
– Why did you choose this occupation?
– Where are you from?
– Let’s talk about gifts.
– In your country, when do people give gifts?
– Is it difficult for you to choose gifts for others?
– Do you give handmade gifts sometimes?
Part 2 (Cue Card)
Talk about something that you think needs to change in your hometown. You should say
– what needs to change
– how it can be done
– what problem it will solve
– and explain why you think it is important to make this change.
Follow up question: Do you think it is possible to change this?
Part 3 (Discussion)
– Let’s talk about community.
– Is there a popular place to meet your neighbors or friends in your area? What is it?
– Do you think it is important for a community to have such a place? Why?
– Do you think it is good to have a strong connection between neighboring communities?
– What are the disadvantages of a strong community?
– Do you think the disadvantages of a strong community outweigh the benefits?
November 9, 2022
IELTS test in the USA – October 2022 (Academic Module)
Our kind friend S. recently took IELTS in the USA and remembered the following questions:
Writing test
Writing task 1 (a report)
The charts below show the average hours worked last year by full time and part time employees in 3 countries.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
* Note: these aren’t the actual charts given in the test, they were recreated for demonstration purposes.
Writing task 2 (an essay)
Even though experts believe that walking is a great way to improve one’s health, very few people walk nowadays. Why aren’t people walking? What can be done to encourage them to walk more?
Speaking test
Part 1 (Interview)
– What is your full name?
– Where are you from?
– Did you learn geography as a child?
– Would you visit a country just because of its geographical location?
– Did you solve puzzles as a child?
– What kind, word or number puzzles?
– Do you think elderly people should be encouraged to solve puzzles?
– Do you solve number puzzles while commuting?
Part 2 (Cue Card)
Describe a photo you took that you are proud of. You should say
– When you took it
– Why you took it
– What is on the photo
– And explain why you are proud of this photo.
Part 3 (Discussion)
– Do you take selfies? Why?
– Is it a good way to capture some magical moments?
– Why do people take photos?
– Do you think old photos help us learn about history?
– Do you think that pictures from ancient time periods would be helpful enough to learn about the past?
– What would be more helpful, pictures or written eyewitness accounts, and why?
November 7, 2022
IELTS essay, topic: The best way to solve environmental problems is to increase the price of fuel (agree/disagree)
This essay topic was seen in a recent IELTS test in Taiwan
Some people believe that the best way to solve environmental problems is to increase the price of fuel.Do you agree or disagree?
Sample Band 8 Essay
Raising the price of car fuel is believed by some people to be an excellent method to solve the growing number of environmental issues. However, I strongly disagree with this idea, as doing so would make life difficult for lower-income households. While making fuel more expensive wouldn’t change the habits of wealthy families, switching to fossil fuel alternatives could prove to be much more beneficial for the environment.
The most compelling reason against raising the cost of fuel is that the upper classes of society will hardly be affected by rising fuel costs, as this only makes up a minor proportion of their expenditure. They will continue to use their personal vehicles as they wish without a thought for the environment or the higher fuel prices, even if their country has state-of-the-art public transportation.
Those who will feel the crunch of this decision are the middle-class and lower-income households, since travelling is a major part of most people’s routine, be it to work, school or shopping. Driving is almost unavoidable in many instances; therefore, raising the price of petrol would only serve to widen the gap between the rich and poor, and serve as an inadvertent form of discrimination.
Another reason why increasing the cost of fuel is far from the best way to deal with environmental pollution is that now there are much more viable alternatives. Due to the rapid advances in technology, scientists and engineers have been able to develop several alternatives to fossil fuel, such as cars powered by electricity or naturally produced biofuel. The move to adopt clean energy sources instead of fossil fuels is a much more promising alternative compared to simply making fuel more expensive.
In conclusion, I believe that governments of the world should invest more time and money in finding alternatives to fossil fuels that are more environmentally friendly, rather than simply raising the cost of petrol.
Click here to see more IELTS essays of Band 8
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IELTS test in Nigeria – October 2022 (Academic Module)
Our lovely friend M. recently took IELTS in Nigeria and remembered the following questions:
Writing test
Writing task 1 (a report)
The diagrams below show the layout of the town’s shopping centre at present and after a future redevelopment.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
* Note: these aren’t the actual plans given in the test, they were recreated for demonstration purposes.
Writing task 2 (an essay)
Some people believe that parents should choose the degree or the major for their child to study at university. Others feel that children should be able to choose their own degree. Discuss both views and give your opinion.
Speaking test
Part 1 (Interview)
– What is your full name?
– Do you work or study?
– What do you do?
– Do you write a lot?
– Do you like writing?
– What do you mostly write?
– Do you think your writing will change in the future?
– What name would you like to give your child, and why?
– Do people in your family have the same name as you?
– What’s the meaning of your name?
Part 2 (Cue Card)
Talk about a person who dresses very well. You should say
– who he/she is
– what he/she does
– what type of clothes he/she wears
– and explain why you like the way he/she dresses.
Part 3 (Discussion)
– Do you prefer buying clothes online or in store?
– Do you think online shopping will obliterate in-store shopping?
– What is the difference between how men and women dress?
– What would the world be like if everyone dressed the same?
November 4, 2022
IELTS Speaking test in India, with answers – October 2022
Recently we shared the questions from an IELTS exam in India. Here are some model answers, to show you a great way to respond to those questions:
Speaking test
Part 1 (Interview)
1. Do you like sports?
Yes, I’m an avid fan of football and have been since I was a kid. Apart from this, I enjoy quite a variety of other sports, but I gravitate towards team sports like soccer or basketball, mainly because I find that these types of games offer the most excitement and suspense, especially since we get to see different teams interact with each other. On the whole, these types of sports are just more engaging and fun in my opinion.
2. What do you like more, watching or playing sports?
Well, I love to actively participate in sports, especially football. As a teenager, I preferred playing soccer over basically anything else. However, these days I am more of a spectator since I barely have any free time. I have my hands full with my busy work schedule and family obligations.
3. With whom do you usually watch or play sports?
Well, as I mentioned before I hardly play any sports anymore, but if I do get a chance, I generally join some of my old college buddies for a game or two and our local recreational center. It’s nice to catch up with them and unwind after a stressful week at work. But, as I said, I most often just watch the games on TV with my kids at home. We prepare snacks and make an evening of it, especially if it’s an important match like a final.
4. Is there a sport you would like to play in the future?
Honestly, I have always wanted to try my hand at something adventurous like skydiving or parasailing. It would be amazing to get an actual birds-eye view of the world, but I don’t think I could ever work up the courage to try out something so extreme, and risky.
5. Do you keep things instead of throwing them away?
Oh, I am a hoarder of note! For some reason, I always believe that something as trivial as ketchup packets, shopping bags or bottles will come in handy later on, which is hardly ever the case. And I must add this habit is not just for little things, I love keeping mementoes of special family moments as well. So, to reiterate, I don’t usually discard things, I am too sentimental for that.
6. Which items do you usually keep? Why?
As I mentioned before, I generally try not to throw out anything, I believe that almost anything can be recycled and made useful again, and this is a habit that I try to inculcate into my family members as well. So, we reuse plastic packaging, and shopping bags and try to repair our garments instead of just disposing of them. Even fresh food waste like vegetable peels are used as fertilizer in our little food garden. Regarding the mementoes I mentioned earlier, I usually keep old invites, letters, and the adorable drawings by my kids. Literally, anything that can serve as a reminder of a happy time with family ends up being saved.
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IELTS Speaking test in Sri Lanka – October 2022
Our friend S.D. took IELTS in Sri Lanka and remembered the Speaking questions we’re sharing today:
Speaking test
Part 1 (Interview)
– What is your full name?
– What shall I call you?
– Can I see your ID?
– Do you work or study?
– Is your job hard?
– What kind of challenges are you facing at work?
– What is your home town?
– Are you thinking about moving away from your hometown in the future?
– Were you helping your mother with housework when you were a child?
Part 2 (Cue Card)
Talk about an English lesson you remember well. You should say
– when and where you had the lesson
– what you learnt
– who the teacher was
– and explain why you still remember the lesson.
Part 3 (Discussion)
– What are the advantages of learning a foreign language?
– What kind of qualities should a good teacher have?
– Do you think that speaking alone is enough to learn a language?
– Are reading and other skills necessary to learn a language?
– Is learning grammar important?
– Can teaching a foreign language be enjoyable?
November 1, 2022
IELTS Sample Letters of Band 8
Here you can find IELTS Sample Letters of Band 8, written by students and graded by an IELTS teacher.
Last updated: September 24, 2020
The topic of each letter appears when you hold the mouse over the link. Every letter is checked, marked, has comments and suggestions. Hold the mouse over to see suggested corrections. The teacher’s summary is at the bottom of each letter.
IELTS writing – sample letter 1
IELTS writing – sample letter 2
IELTS writing – sample letter 3
IELTS writing – sample letter 4
IELTS writing – sample letter 5
IELTS writing – sample letter 6
IELTS writing – sample letter 7
IELTS writing – sample letter 8
IELTS writing – sample letter 9
IELTS writing – sample letter 10
IELTS writing – sample letter 11
IELTS writing – sample letter 12
IELTS writing – sample letter 13
IELTS writing – sample letter 14
IELTS writing – sample letter 15
IELTS writing – sample letter 16
IELTS writing – sample letter 17
IELTS writing – sample letter 18
IELTS writing – sample letter 19
IELTS writing – sample letter 20
IELTS writing – sample letter 21
IELTS writing – sample letter 22
IELTS writing – sample letter 23
IELTS writing – sample letter 24
IELTS writing – sample letter 25
IELTS writing – sample letter 26
IELTS writing – sample letter 27
Note: the letters are checked by an IELTS teacher, not an IELTS examiner or examiner trainer. All the bands are approximate.
suggested corrections are in the windowRelated posts:IELTS Sample Letters of Band 7 Here you can find IELTS Sample Letters of Band 7,...IELTS Sample Reports of Band 7 Here you can find IELTS Sample Reports of Band 7,...IELTS Sample Reports of Band 8 Here you can find IELTS Sample Reports of Band 8,...IELTS Essay Samples of Band 5 Here you can find IELTS Essay samples of Band 5,...IELTS Essay Samples of Band 7 Here you can find IELTS Essay samples of Band 7,...
IELTS Letter, topic: writing to thank a bus company employee for helping you
The topic of this letter appeared in a recent IELTS exam in Kenya. Below is a sample response that is likely to score Band 8 or above in IELTS.
You lost an item while travelling on a bus. An employee of the bus company assisted you in recovering your lost item. Write a letter to the company manager to thank the employee. In your letter,
– Describe what you lost and how the employee helped you find it
– Say how you felt after recovering it
– Explain why it was important to you
Answer
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to express my gratitude for the kind and prompt assistance shown to me by one of your employees at the Durban Bus Station regarding an issue that I faced after an intercity trip on one of your buses.
About an hour after my trip, I realized that I had absent-mindedly left one of my carry-on bags on the bus. I panicked since that bag contained several confidential business documents. Upon making an enquiry to the station, I was reassured by one of your employees named Julie that they would do everything in their power to locate my missing luggage.
It was an immense relief for me to learn that the bag was found after only a few minutes. The documents in it were prepared for a crucial business meeting, scheduled later in the day. Thanks to the professionalism and courtesy of your employee the meeting was able to go ahead successfully.
Please pass on my sincere appreciation to Julie for making this possible.
Yours faithfully,
Melody Rose
Click here to see more IELTS letters of band 8
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