WRITING TASK 2

DISCUSS BOTH VIEWS ESSAY

A. SAMPLE ANALYSIS

I. Sample
● Read the sample essay and answer the following questions

Some people think that all university students should study whatever they like. Others
believe that they should only be allowed to study subjects that will be useful in the
future, such as those related to science and technology.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

People have different views about how much choice students should have with regard to
what they can study at university. While some argue that it would be better for students
to be forced into certain key subject areas, I believe that everyone should be able to
study the course of their choice.

There are various reasons why people believe that universities should only offer subjects
that will be useful in the future. They may assert that university courses like medicine,
engineering and information technology are more likely to be beneficial than certain art
degrees. From a personal perspective, it can be argued that these courses provide more
job opportunities, career progression, better salaries, and therefore an improved quality
of life for students who take them. On the societal level, by forcing people to choose
particular university subjects, governments can ensure that any knowledge and skill gaps
in the economy are covered. Finally, a focus on technology in higher education could
lead to new inventions, economic growth, and greater future prosperity.

In spite of these arguments, I believe that university students should be free to choose
their preferred areas of study. In my opinion, society will benefit more if our students are
passionate about what they are learning. Besides, nobody can really predict which areas
of knowledge will be most useful to society in the future, and it may be that employers
begin to value creative thinking skills above practical or technical skills. If this were the
case, perhaps we would need more students of art, history and philosophy than of
science or technology.

In conclusion, although it might seem sensible for universities to focus only on the most
useful subjects, I personally prefer the current system in which people have the right to
study whatever they like.

Ms. Vân Vũ IELTS - 18 Tam Trinh - 0773 370 380

 (297 words, written by Simon)

II. Analysis
1. How many sentences are there in the introduction?
………2……………
2. What is the function of the first sentence in the introduction?
………context, discussed topic ……………
3. What is the function of the second sentence in the introduction?
………paraphrase the 2 given ideas + personal opinion ……………
4. How many sentences are there in the first body paragraph?
………5 sentences …………
5. What is the purpose of the first body paragraph?
………Explain 1st idea (the one that you disagree with) ……………
6. How many ideas are there in the first body paragraph?
………3 small arguments…………
7. Does the writer explain other people’s view?
………Yes …………
8. Does the writer explain his own view?
………No…………
9. How many sentences are there in the second body paragraph?
………4 sentences ……………
10. What is the purpose of the second body paragraph?
………Explain 2nd idea (the one that you agree with)……………
11. How many ideas are there in the second body paragraph?
………2 small arguments ……………
12. Does the writer explain other people’s view?
………No…………
13. Does the writer explain his own view?
………Yes…………
14. How many sentences are there in the conclusion?
………1-2 sentences……………
15. What is its content about?
………Summarise all the ideas and which one you support …………

Ms. Vân Vũ IELTS - 18 Tam Trinh - 0773 370 380

B. Production

I. Type
● Read the tasks below and underline the requirement of the task.

Tasks

1. Some people say that the main environmental problem of our time is the loss of
particular species of plants and animals. Others say that there are more important
environmental problems. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. (ko
mâu thuẫn → có thể agree with both)

2. Some people think international car-free days are an effective way of reducing air
pollution; however, others think there are some other ways. Discuss both views
and give your opinion. (ko mâu thuẫn → có thể agree with both)

3. Some people think that robots are very important to human's future development.
Others think that they are dangerous and have negative effects on society. Discuss
both opinions and give personal views. (ko mâu thuẫn → có thể agree with both)

4. Scientists generally agree that the consumption of junk food is detrimental to

health. Some people believe that the answer to this problem is education. Others
disagree, saying that it will not work. Discuss both views and give your opinion. (có
mâu thuẫn → chỉ có thể agree with 1 view)

5. As the number of cars increases, more money has to be spent on road systems.
Some people think the government should pay for this. Others, however, think
that users should cover the costs. Discuss both views and give your opinion. (ko
mâu thuẫn → có thể agree with both nhưng nhấn mạnh view 2 chỉ một số users
make profit từ transportation + damage road systems)

6. Some people think it is necessary to use animals for testing medicines intended for
human use. Others, however, think it is cruel to do that. Discuss both of these
views and give your own opinion. (ko mâu thuẫn → có thể agree with both)

7. Some people think that it is best to live in a horizontal city while others think of a
vertical city. Discuss both views and give your opinion. (CÓ MÂU THUẪN → chỉ có
thể agree with 1 view)

8. Some people say that history is one of the most important school subjects. Other
people think that, in today's world, subjects like Science and Technology are more
important than History. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. (ko mâu

Ms. Vân Vũ IELTS - 18 Tam Trinh - 0773 370 380

 thuẫn → có thể agree with both)

Since there are two views, you can choose to answer in one of the following ways:
- Agree with one view and disagree with the other (most common)
- Agree with both views (sometimes, if they are not contradictory)
- Disagree with both views (rarely happens)

● Decide which of the tasks from 1-8 above can be answered in the following ways:

Agree with one view and Agree with both views

disagree with the other

Alert!
● For the tasks which have comparisons (superlatives with words like “most”, “best”
and comparatives with words like “more”, “better”), it is almost impossible to agree
with both views because there can only be ONE best thing/ solution/option; or if
there are two options, there can only be ONE that is better than the other.
● Even when you disagree that “something is the best/ most important/…”, you can
still say that it is good/ important (but just NOT the best/ most important).

These three errors are common in IELTS discussion essays:

● Not stating an opinion (not stating whether you’re in favour of which view)
● Support both views even when they are contradictory
● Not supporting your opinion with clear reasons.

II. Introduction
The introduction paragraph should be able to paraphrase the task, answer the question by
giving your opinion directly.
● Here are some suggested sentences that you can use to give your opinion

Sentence for the introduction

a, While some argue that + a clause, I (personally) believe that + …..

b, Although it can be argued that + a clause, I believe that + …..

Ms. Vân Vũ IELTS - 18 Tam Trinh - 0773 370 380

 c, In my opinion, both of these views are right to some extent and my explanation will be
given below.

d, Even though the former/latter view is reasonable to some extent, I would rather
support the other viewpoint and my justification will be given below.

● Decide which sentence from a-d can be used for each viewpoint
Agree with one view and Agree with both views
disagree with the other

………a……b………d…… ……………c………………………………

→ You can state your reasons in a few words in the introduction or save it for the body
paragraphs later.

III. Body paragraph

1. Main idea
For this type of task, you will have to discuss each view in one paragraph:

BODY 1 - Discuss view 1 reasons why some people hold that view 1
→ you agree/disagree with that because…

BODY 2 - Discuss view 2 reasons why some people hold that view 2
→ you agree/disagree with that because…

Notice
● For the view that you disagree with: first tell a possible reason why some people hold
that viewpoint. But make sure to use such phrases as “some people might think
that…/ some people believe that… / other people argue that…” to assert this is
NOT your belief but your guess about other people’s reason. Then, give your reasons
why you disagree with that view.
● For the view that you agree with: just give your reasons why you agree with it.

Advice
● You should discuss the view that you disagree in the first body paragraph
● You should discuss the view that you agree in the second body paragraph

Ms. Vân Vũ IELTS - 18 Tam Trinh - 0773 370 380

If you arrange your idea in this way, you can use these suggested topic sentences in your
body paragraphs

BODY 1 - Discuss view 1 ● There are various reasons why people believe that …
● On the one hand, (I accept that) …

BODY 2 - Discuss view 2 ● In spite of these arguments, I believe that …

● On the other hand, I believe that…
● However, I agree that …
● However, I would argue that …

2. Structure
For each paragraph, there should be one topic sentence at the beginning to present the
main point of the whole paragraph. The following sentences should explain further and give
examples if necessary to demonstrate that idea more clearly.

Model P-E-E (Point-Explain-Example) should still be used for this type of essay.

P POINT

E EXPLAIN

E EXAMPLE

Read the paragraphs below and use a highlighter to highlight the topic sentence (point).
Use another highlighter to highlight the sentence(s) that explain the idea.
Use another highlighter to highlight the sentence(s) that give example(s) to demonstrate the
idea.

There are various reasons why people believe that universities should only offer subjects
that will be useful in the future. They may assert that university courses like medicine,
engineering and information technology are more likely to be beneficial than certain art
degrees. From a personal perspective, it can be argued that these courses provide more
job opportunities, career progression, better salaries, and therefore an improved quality
of life for students who take them. On the societal level, by forcing people to choose
particular university subjects, governments can ensure that any knowledge and skill gaps

Ms. Vân Vũ IELTS - 18 Tam Trinh - 0773 370 380

 in the economy are covered. Finally, a focus on technology in higher education could lead
to new inventions, economic growth, and greater future prosperity.

In spite of these arguments, I believe that university students should be free to choose
their preferred areas of study. In my opinion, society will benefit more if our students are
passionate about what they are learning. Besides, nobody can really predict which areas
of knowledge will be most useful to society in the future, and it may be that employers
begin to value creative thinking skills above practical or technical skills. If this were the
case, perhaps we would need more students of art, history and philosophy than of science
or technology.

❖ A common mistake of candidates is to list many ideas they can think of, but fail to
explain any of the ideas in detail and don’t include any examples.

→ Advice
Don’t list lots of ideas
Choose just one or two and develop them fully.

IV. Conclusion
❖ In your conclusion, you should provide a summary of what you have already said in
the body and restate your opinion.
Here is a suggested sentence that you can use as a conclusion for this type of task.

Suggested Conclusion

Although it might seem sensible that… , I personally prefer …

Ms. Vân Vũ IELTS - 18 Tam Trinh - 0773 370 380