Practising Background Statements for IELTS Introductions

Below are four essay questions that appeared this month (December 2018) in IELTS writing task 2. Under each essay question are model background statements. You will see the different ways you can paraphrase the essay question.

All IELTS writing task 2 essay introduction paragraphs contain:

1. Background statement = a paraphrase of the essay question
2. Thesis statement = your position or main points

This lesson will give you practice at paraphrasing essay questions to make a background statement. Below you will find 4 essays with model background statements and a list of tips to help you.

IELTS Background Statement Practice

Paraphrase the essay questions below to create one background statement. The first one has been done for you as an example with three possible options. I would like you to write a background statement for questions 2-4.

Essay Question 1

Science will soon result in people living to an average of 100 years or more. Do you think this is a positive or negative development?

Model Background Statement for IELTS:

1. People’s lifespan is increasing due to developments in science and it is thought that people will soon have an average life expectancy of 100 years or longer.
2. Due to the development of science, people’s lifespans might be extended to 100 years or even longer.
3. People may one day live to be 100 years old or more owing to the development of science.

Essay Question 2

Some people prefer online classes, while others think it is better to be in a traditional classroom. Discuss both sides and give your opinion.

Model Background Statements:

1. While there are people who prefer to take part in online courses, others believe that traditional classroom teaching is by far superior.
2. Online course are very popular with some people, however others still consider teacher led classrooms as the most effective way to learn.
3. Although online courses are preferred by some people, there are others who firmly believe that learning should take place in a classroom face to face with a teacher.

Essay Question 3

Many people try to find a balance between their work and other aspects of their life. However, few actually achieve this. What solutions can you suggest?

Model Background Statements:

1. It is a common problem that people struggle to find a healthy balance between their work and other areas of their life.
2. Finding a balance between work and other areas of life can be a challenge that some people struggle with.
3. While many people wish for a healthy work-life balance, few are able to realise this.

Essay Question 4

There has been an increase in the number of children and youngsters committing crime. What are the reasons for this and punishments should they receive?

Model Background Statements:

1. The number of crimes involving children and adolescents has risen over recent years.
2. Children and teenagers appear to be involved in an increasing number of crimes.
3. It has been observed that juvenile crime is on the rise.

Tips for IELTS Background Statements

1. Don’t write a very long background statement. It doesn’t help your score to do that and wastes valuable time.
2. Try to write your background statement as one complex sentence. to do that, use a clause and correct linking.
3. Don’t paraphrase unless you are 100% sure your word is perfect. Not all words can be changed in English. Be selective when you paraphrase. Paraphrasing is a skill about when to change something and also when NOT to change something.
4. Don’t aim to impress – aim for accuracy instead.
5. You don’t always need to start your background with “some people..”. See all the options above.
6. You should not start your essay with overused expressions that are popular with low level English users, such as “In the modern era,” or “With the advent of modern technology..”
7. Avoid learning expressions which you think will impress the examiner “A hot debate..” / “a burning question..” “a highly controversial issue..”. The examiner is trained to spot these learned expressions. They don’t help your score and show a lack of individuality in your language. You need to write each sentence in your own words, unique to yourself.

I hope you found this lesson useful 🙂

All the best

Liz

The diagram below is an IELTS writing task 1 diagram about sand dune formation. This appeared in the IELTS test in December, 2018 (academic paper).

This diagram was particularly challenging because of the similarity in the three diagrams and the lack of words given. People were concerned about paraphrasing and repeating vocabulary. There is a link to download this in pdf below the diagram.

IELTS Diagram: Sand Dune Formation 2018

The diagram has not been published by IELTS, it was recreated by an IELTS candidate and also confirmed by another. This means it might vary from the actual diagram in the test but the essentials will be the same and it will still provide much needed practice with such diagrams.

• Source: IELTS Liz (reported by IELTS candidates)
• Download above diagram pdf: IELTS Diagram Sand Dunes 2018

Sand Dune Diagram Model Answer

The diagrams illustrate the formation of a sand dune from sand particles. Overall, the three stages of formation show that sand particles are driven by the wind over dry ground to gather on wet ground where they collect and create sand dunes.

The first diagram shows how sand particles are blown by the wind over the dry sandy ground and two areas of wet ground. This is then followed by the second diagram in which it can be seen that as particles of sand continue to be carried by the wind along the ground, some of the particles start to adhere to the first patch of wet ground in separate piles.

The sand particles which have been transported by the wind, as illustrated in the final diagram, eventually gather en masse over the area of wet ground, piling one on top of the other until they form a sand dune. The accumulation of so many sand particles is so large that the dunes, once formed, can deflect the wind, forcing it up one side of the dune and down the other. As this happens, particles of sand start gathering and piling up in the next area of wet ground.

Tips

1. Your overview must be clear and contain all key features. It is the most important statement in your whole task.
2. The overview contains key features and summarises the whole diagram into one statement. Take the keywords and create on long statement which explains the diagram.
3. The overview can be put together with the introduction in one paragraph, but it still forms a statement on its own. Do not split your overview. You cannot have an overview and another general statement in a different part of the report. You need to collect all summarising statements together and write them as one overview.
4. If you only state that there are three stages, this would be considered a limited overview which is a features of band 6 Task Achievement. You need to add more than just a number of stages.
5. You only paraphrase where possible. Some words cannot be paraphrased, such as sand, dune, wind etc. Words such as “blown by the wind” = “transported by the wind” & “carried by the wind”. Choose which words you will and won’t paraphrase.
6. You should be using a mixture of active and passive voice to describe a diagram or process.
7. Even though there are three diagrams, does not mean you need three body paragraphs. Be flexible.
8. The word count of this writing is 199. You do not need to write that much, but do make sure you write over 150 words.
9. Use linking and sequencing words: overall, followed by, as illustrated, eventually, as this happens

I hope you found it useful to see this diagram, model answer and tips 🙂

All the best

Liz