March & April IELTS Writing Task 2 Questions

by 59 Comments

Below you will find a list of IELTS writing task 2 questions which appeared in the IELTS test in the last two months: March and April IELTS writing task 2 topics, You can see some interesting trending topics.

The questions below have been reported by people taking their IELTS writing task 2 in March and April 2018.

Do IELTS repeat questions?

It is possible to have an essay question repeated. But it is more likely that topics will be repeated with questions written differently. You should prepare all topics below and also ALL common topics: 100 IELTS Essay Questions

March IELTS Writing Task 2

  1. Due to the use of the computers and mobile phones, letter-writing ability is disappearing. To what extent do you agree?
  2. Social media has replaced the traditional methods of communicating, and people use more and more social media to communicate, and to follow news and events. Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?
  3. Some people believe bicycles have a lot of advantages, whereas others believe bicycles have more disadvantages. Discuss both views and give your opinion.
  4. Some people prefer to plan activities for their free time very carefully, while others disagree. Discuss both views, and give you opinion.
  5. Some people think that the government should take care of disadvantaged people such as the unemployed and homeless people. Do you agree or disagree?
  6. Museums and art galleries should concentrate on local works of art, not showing the cultures or artworks from other countries. To what extent do you agree?
  7. Some people spend a lot of money on sports and cultural events. Do you think this is this good or bad?
  8. The government should provide free public transportation facilities 24/7 to reduce the traffic congestion. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
  9. Some people believe that robots are important for humans to develop their future, while others think that it is a dangerous invention that will impact society negatively. Discuss both sides and give your opinion.
  10. When designing a building the intended use of the building should be taken into account rather than its outward appearance. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
  11. Nowadays people show more anti-social behaviour and a lack of respect to others. What are the causes of this? How could we improve the situation?
  12. Some people believe that sleeping is the only method which allows people to get enough relaxation. Others believe that physical activities such as playing games and exercises also provide enough relaxation. Discuss both views and provide your opinion.
  13. Some people think that dangerous sports should be ban? Do you agree or disagree?
  14. In many countries, plastic shopping bags are the main type of rubbish. They cause water pollution and land pollution, so they should be banned. To what extent do you agree?
  15. Some people believe that houses should be built in same style as other houses in the area, while others believe people should be allowed by the council to build houses in any style they like. Discuss and give your opinion.

 

April IELTS Writing Task 2

  1. All fathers should be entitled to time off from work when their children are born. What is your opinion?
  2. Nowadays, a lot of movies and music are free to download online. Is it a negative development or a positive development?
  3. Some people prefer hobbies that require technology, while some people prefer hobbies that do not require technology. Discuss the both views and give your opinion.
  4. Pollution and other environmental damages are caused by a country developing and becoming richer. This problem cannot be avoided. To what extent do you agree?
  5. Organised tours are choosing more and more to go to remote places and communities. Do you think this a positive or negative development for the local people and the environment?
  6. The number of people interested in cosmetic surgery is increasing in order to improve their physical appearance. Why do people do operations to change the way they look? Do you think it is a positive or negative development?
  7. Some cities have vehicle free days where private cars, trucks and motorcycles are banned in city centres. Only bus, bicycles and taxis are permitted in the city centre. Do you think the benefits outweigh the disadvantages?
  8. In today’s world of advanced science and technology, people still value artists such as painters, musicians and writers. How can art make a difference in our society that science and technology cannot?
  9. In many societies, more and more people are choosing to live on their own. What are the reasons behind this? Is it a positive or negative trend?
  10. It is believed by some that people should take a yearly driving test in order to ensure safety on the roads, while others do not agree. Discuss both sides and give your opinion.
  11. Once children start school, teachers have more influence on their intellectual and social development than parents. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
  12. Some people think that people who are over 60 years old should not work and should be made to retire. To what extend do you agree or disagree?
  13. The key to solving the environmental problems is for the present generation to sacrifice their convenient lifestyle for the sake of future generations. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
  14.  It is important for public money to be spent on promoting healthy lifestyle to prevent illness rather than spending money treating people who are ill. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

 

 

Filed Under: IELTS Writing Task 2

Answers for Salt Listening Paraphrases

by 39 Comments

Below you will find:

  • the questions
  • the audio recording
  • the transcript
  • the answers

to the listening for paraphrases exercise about Salt.

Try listening to the recording again and read the transcript at the same time. If you can speak out loud by following my voice, it will help your speaking skills and pronunciation 🙂

Questions

Write down the paraphrases in the recording for the following words:

  1. acquired
  2. familiar with
  3. thousands of years
  4. animal skins
  5. limited
  6. originates
  7. world

Recording

Transcript

Early human hunters obtained their salt from eating animal meat. As they turned to agriculture and their diet changed, they found that salt (maybe as sea water) gave vegetables the same salty flavour they were accustomed to with meat. Over many millennia, they learned how salt helped to preserve food, heal wounds and also cure hides.  Nomadic bands would have carried salt with them and traded it with other bands for different goods. In Ancient Rome, salt was a scarce and expensive commodity, and soldiers were even partly paid in salt which is where the word “salary” comes from. The history of salt can be seen to have had a great impact on many aspects of life and culture across the globe.

Source: Adapted from http://www.saltassociation.co.uk/education/salt-history/

Answers

  1. acquired = obtained
  2. familiar with = accustomed to
  3. thousands of years = millennia
  4. animal skins = hides
  5. limited = scarce
  6. originates = comes from
  7. world = globe

Comments from Liz

I’m glad you found this lesson useful. The lesson had easy answers and also difficult answers, such as the word “hides”. I hope through these exercises, you will improve your ability to hear paraphrases and also develop your vocabulary. I will make more of these lessons for you 🙂

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Listening for Paraphrases

by 105 Comments

This is a new lesson which focuses on your ability to listen for paraphrases and synonyms. This is a skill which you need to do well in your IELTS listening test. This is a short listening practice to help you improve your vocabulary and listening ability. The topic of salt was in the IELTS listening test this month.

In the IELTS listening test, you can listening only once. However, with this practice lesson, you can listen twice if you need to.

The History of Salt: Listening Practice

Questions 1 – 7

Which words can you hear in the recording that have the same meaning as the words below?

Answers will come in order. Answers might be one word or more.

  1. acquired
  2. familiar with
  3. thousands of years
  4. animal skins
  5. limited
  6. originates
  7. world

Listening Practice: Recording

Let me know if you think this is a useful lesson – I’ll make more if it helps you 🙂

Answers

Click below to see the answers for this lesson:

Click here: Answers for Salt Listening Paraphrases

All the best

Liz

 

Filed Under: IELTS Listening

I Scored IELTS Band 9 Overall: My Tips

by 29 Comments

Mania achieved band score 9 overall in her IELTS test (academic).

You will see that IELTS Band Score 9 is possible!!!

Below she shares her tips for how she scored band 9.

Mania’s IELTS Results: Overall Band 9

  • Listening: 9
  • Reading: 8.5
  • Writing: 9
  • Speaking: 9

My test center was in San Francisco, CA, and I took the academic module.
Given that my English was already at a good level, it took me 5 days to study for the test, while working full-time. Please keep in mind I speak/write in English in my daily life, and had also acquired plenty of English degrees / certifications as a high school student; therefore there was no type of question in IELTS that I had never seen before.

IELTS Band Score 9 Tips

My tips for other individuals in my position are the following:

Listening: Probably the easiest part for all good language users. Your time should mostly be spent identifying the different question styles you might encounter. I took 1 practice test and looked at a couple more.

Reading: Remember that T/F/Not Given questions refer to what the text actually says, not what you think. The rest of the questions should be again very easy to handle for good language users. Again, I mostly spent time looking at question styles, rather than taking tests (only took 2 practice tests, mainly for the T/F/NG questions).

Speaking: My biggest fear was that the few minutes/seconds I had for each answer would not be enough to actually make a point (I talk A LOT). However, the examiner interacted with me to lead the discussion accordingly, which actually made it feel like an every day discussion. Fun fact: she kept me an extra 15 minutes after the recording for an actual conversation! In terms of practising, I looked at a few topics just to get an idea of what to expect, and then I just let the generic ones (hometown, family, profession etc) brew in my mind the days before the exam. Again, remember I speak English every day, and it does make a difference.

Writing: Of course, the fear for even the greatest language users is time. You might be able to compose your essays very fast, but in my opinion there is a risk of overthinking things, wanting to give more arguments and/or expand on sophisticated ideas the topic might trigger in your brain, which will actually cause you to lose valuable time. On the day of my exam, I met another woman who was an excellent speaker and had been living in the US for years – even had a green card. After the exam, she told me she ran out of time in the Writing section, what a pity! In a nutshell, look at Liz’s sample essays and identify how your ideal structure should be. When developing arguments, I prefer to stick to 2 arguments for each side of the topic, as I am able to expand on each one of them (it was actually impossible for me to stay under 300 words for Writing Task 2). The instructions Liz gives are super clear, just stick to the “approved” recipe! They don’t actually care how much of a thinker you are. Needless to say the Writing section is the one I focused my studying on. I wrote a total of 4 essays for each Writing task (not much more I could do in a week full of work!), and I self-corrected them in terms of how they could be more concise. After writing the first one and seeing I should write less, I studied the model essays provided here and then wrote the rest of my own; the improvement was significant.

Good luck to everyone! Once again, thank you, Liz!

Comments from Liz

Very well done Mania!! Band 9 is a Fantastic Result!

I agree very much with your preparation for listening and reading. Of course, it is important to do practice tests at home, but you also need to focus on question types. There are many different types of questions that involve different techniques and have different challenges – you need to be prepared for them all. Speaking is all about being ready for general topics and using ideas in a fluid way with different topics. The examiner is not marking your ideas, so you need to prepare your own memories and stories, and also think of your own opinions. Mania, you are spot on for writing 🙂

Filed Under: Uncategorized

IELTS Speaking: Should I use Sir or Madam

by 39 Comments

Hi guys,

Here are some tips about how to address the examiner. I asked you if you should use Sir or Madam when speaking to the examiner in your IELTS speaking test. You all had very different opinions about that. Let me explain.

Using Sir or Madam Tips

Informal

The IELTS speaking test is informal. This means you speak to the examiner in a friendly manner as through you were chatting to a friend. Yes, you should be polite, but you do not use Sir or Madam.

Referring to the Examiner

The only questions you might ask in the test are:

  • Could you repeat that please?
  • Could you explain what you mean please? (only in part 3)

When you ask these questions you do NOT use Sir or Madam. It is actually incorrect to do so. The word “please” is the polite way of asking, no titles are needed.

When is Sir or Madam Used?

Sir and Madam are mainly used:

  1. in the hospitality industry when you are working in a hotel, for example, and you speak to a customer
  2. in formal letter writing when you do not know the name of the person you are writing to.

You do not refer to people in the street or doctors or teachers or anyone else as Sir or Madam. You should not refer to me as Madam.

Using the Examiner’s Name

The examiner will introduce their name. You can use it or not use it – it’s up to you. It is certainly not necessary to use their name. If you use their name, then you will use their first name. For example, if the examiner’s name is Sarah Biggins, you will call the examiner Sarah.

Conclusion

You should NOT use Sir or Madam in the IELTS speaking test. Your politeness to the examiner is by smiling, looking them in the eye when they are talking to you and when you talk to them, and saying “please” when you ask a question.

Notice:

I wish to make it clear again.  I DO NOT OFFER A QUESTION/ANSWER SERVICE.

Always remember when you post a comment that I do not offer an answer service. I am sorry that many students will not receive a reply to their comments, but I work alone and cannot possibly reply to everyone. Always read comments written to other students in the past – you might find your answer there. This is not a conspiracy on my part, this is life – I can’t answer 2500 comments every month. Please do not get upset if your comment is not answered.

IELTS Liz website is to give you access to over 300 pages of lessons, tips, model answers and free video lessons. The materials on this site are extensive and you can learn a lot from them – this is the sole purpose of my site – to provide you access to my lessons. It is not my aim to provide an answer service.

Please enjoy the using and learning from my lessons and tips.

All the best

Liz

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

IELTS Complaint Letter: Model

by 72 Comments

Below is a model IELTS complaint letter which is estimated at band score 9. People taking the GT writing paper will be expected to write a letter for their writing task 1. That letter should be over 150 words. Complaint letters are one of the most common types of letters that you can be expected to write. This letter topic has appeared a number of times in the IELTS test.

You bought a TV a week ago but when you got home you discovered it did not work properly. You called customer service to report the problem but you have not yet received any help.

Write a letter to the company and in your letter:

  • introduce yourself
  • explain the problem
  • and state what action you would like from the company

Model IELTS Complaint Letter Band 9

The letter below will show you how to organise information into paragraphs and extent information to create a high band score IELTS complaint letter. Note that this is a long letter. People who are below band 9 should not aim for this. It is usually better to aim between 170 and 190 words. Long letters also don’t increase your score. However, I wanted to show you examples of how ideas can be expanded and for this reason, this sample letter is longer than normal.

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing this letter to report the faulty TV that I purchased from your company on Tuesday last week.

My name is John Davidson and I am one of your frequent customers. I live in Woodstock and have been using your services and buying your products for the last 11 years.

On Tuesday, 12th June, I visited your store to purchase a TV. I bought a Toshiba LED TV which has the code 40L675B40. On purchasing this TV, I was assured that this was the latest model and the best there was to buy. However, when I got home I discovered that not only did the remote controls not work but also the quality of the picture was not as good as promised, in fact it was quite blurry. I called your customer service department immediately on Tuesday and they assured me that my TV would be replaced or fixed within two days. I am disappointed to say that this has not happened and I have received no communication since then.

I am exceedingly displeased with both the quality of the product I purchased from your company as well as the poor  service I have received since. I hope this problem will be resolved promptly. I expect to receive a replacement TV or have my current TV repaired but only if it could be fixed within a day.

I look forward to hearing back from you immediately.

Yours faithfully,

Mr J H Davidson

Recommended for GT IELTS Writing Task 1

Click below:

Essential Tips for IELTS GT Letters: Writing Task 2

Practice IELTS Letters to practice at home

FREE SUBSCRIBE

Subscribe to get new lessons & tips by email.

.

Filed Under: IELTS Writing Task 1 Tagged With:

IELTS Speaking: Using Sir or Madam

by 118 Comments

Hi guys,

I have had many students asking me how to address the examiner during the speaking test. Let me check what you think and what you understand.

Question

  • Do you think it is ok to call the examiner “Sir” or “Madam” in the speaking test?

Answer

Post your answer below.

I’ll post my answer on tomorrow.

All the best

Liz

Notice: Please remember that I am actually on holiday until May for health reasons – I might extent that holiday if I am not well enough at that point. But this month I will post a couple of lessons for you. Also remember that I do NOT offer a question/answer service on this website. There are over 10,000 comments waiting approval – I can’t answer all questions.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking

Reminder

by 29 Comments

Hi guys,

I thought some of you would like to see this video about Overview or Conclusion I made a while ago. It is found on the main page for writing task 1 which you can access through the red bar at the top of the website.

[su_youtube url=”https://youtu.be/zjzuxyVlkR8″]

Hope you find the lesson useful 🙂

All the best

Liz

Filed Under: Uncategorized
error: Content is protected !!