IELTS Writing: Task 2 (Achieve Band 7+ in 5 Hours)

Mastering IELTS Writing: Task 2 (Achieve Band 7+ in 5 Hours)

Welcome to mastering IELTS writing task 2 where you will learn how to write an essay for task 2 of the IELTS writing exam which needs band 7 requirement and above.

I will be guiding you through this course.

This course has been designed for students who are aiming to achieve a band 7 and above but also it is going to be extremely useful for those who are aiming to achieve a 6.5.

by the end of this course You will be able to create coherent and cohesive essays with fully developed and relevant paragraphs.

You will be able to use a range of vocabulary fluently flexibly and with precision and you will be able to create a variety of grammatical constructions with accuracy.

The course has been divided into seven sections that the bulk of the course is made up of four sections each relating to a different band descriptor category, task achievement, coherence and cohesion, lexical resource and grammatical range and accuracy.

I have designed the course in this way because I believe it best helps students to appreciate what the examiners are looking for and therefore gives them the best preparation in terms of understanding what they need to do to achieve their target scores.

You do not need to know about the IELTS exam before you begin this course as that is covered in Section 1.

What you'll learn in this course :

• Approach any topic or question type in IELTS Writing Task 2.
• Write high-quality introductions and conclusions quickly and efficiently.
• Write in a coherent and cohesive way, and link ideas with a sense of clear, logical progression.
• Use grammatical constructions which will improve your score in Grammatical Range and Accuracy.
• Think like an IELTS examiner, and apply this thinking in the writing test.
• Structure your essay according to band 7+ requirements.
• Manage IELTS Task 2 time constraints calmly and effectively.
• Build a high-scoring body paragraph with well-developed ideas and arguments.
• Use a vast array of new vocabulary - both common and academic - to boost your Lexical Resource.
• Apply my 'secrets of success', which have helped many students jump from band 6 to band 7.5.
• Feel confident and self-assured heading into your IELTS exam, and when writing essays in the future for work or university.

This course will teach you how to write what the IELTS examiners want to read in IELTS Writing Task 2. It is aimed at students who are trying to achieve Band 7, but will also be extremely valuable for any students aiming for Band 6 or Band 8. Even Band 9 students will learn something new here!

You might think that the IELTS examiners only care about a wide range of vocabulary, correct spelling, and accurate grammar. This is wrong. These are all important, but there is so much more you can do to boost your score.

Mastering IELTS Writing: Task 2 tells you exactly what you need to know to succeed in this English language exam.

During this course, you will:

understand how the IELTS exam, and the writing test in particular, is structured and how it should be approached

learn how to write an answer to any Writing Task 2 question after learning how to recognize different question types

learn how to manage your time wisely, how to plan your essay effectively, and how to structure your writing appropriately

learn how to create 'flow' in your essays so that you can begin to write like a native

find out how to increase your range of vocabulary quickly and effectively

study the steps you need to take in order to achieve grammatical range and accuracy

learn many of the 'secrets of success' that will help you to get the best score possible

learn an effective 3-step formula for writing introductions and conclusions, so more time can be spent on the body of the essay

begin to feel confident, assured and increasingly prepared for the writing test in your next IELTS exam

Writing Task 2 Academic: Practice Tasks

What you must know about WRITING Task 2:

Task Description:

Task 2 is an essay (about 250 words) on a given topic. There is no choice of topic. It generally involves discussing an issue and giving your own opinion. You should spend around 40 minutes on Task 2, which has a heavier weighting than Task 1.

There are 4 grading criteria for Task 2:

1. Content: addressing the question appropriately, supporting or justifying opinions, giving personal examples, etc.
2. Cohesion and coherence: how your content is organized; whether it 'flows', paragraphs, etc.
3. Vocabulary: (range and accuracy).
4. Grammar: (variety, accuracy, and complexity of sentence structure, etc.).

Skills Tested:

1. Presenting differing points of view and supporting these with your own ideas and supporting evidence.
2. Communicating your ideas and opinions clearly and fluently.
3. Using a range of grammar and vocabulary.
4. Organizing your ideas and sticking to the point.

What you should do?

• Practice writing timed essays of about 250 words before the exam so you are confident and not rushed. When you have completed a piece of writing, you can take it to one of the services in CILL for feedback on grammar, structure, and cohesion (but remember, ELC teachers are not there to proofread scripts).
• Spend a couple of minutes planning the structure of your essay before you start to write. 250 words are around 5 short paragraphs. The first of these should introduce the topic or pose the problem. The next 3 should develop relevant points or arguments, or give your own opinion, with support. The conclusion should summarise the points and restate your view or main argument.
• Individual paragraphs generally have a 'topic sentence' stating the main point. This is often the first sentence. The rest of the paragraph supports this and the final sentence should lead to the next paragraph or prepare for the next topic sentence.
• Cohesion is important: this is the way your writing 'hangs together'. Use linking words and phrases, relative clauses, transition and ordering phrases that emphasize the relationship between sentences, paragraphs, and ideas. (For practice in 'cause and effect' phrases, click on the CILL link below).
• The basic layout for a 'for and against' type of essay could be:

• Examiners are looking for a range of grammatical structures and vocabulary, so let them see what you are capable of. Use interesting and varied vocabulary and a variety of sentence structures including more complex ones.

Practice Tasks:

You should spend 40 minutes on one task.

Present a written argument or case to an educated reader on one of the following topics: NB in the exam, you will be given ONE topic only: there is no choice.

1. Recent advancements in technology have led to many changes in our daily lives, but some people would argue that we are becoming too dependent on technology and that not all these changes are beneficial. Give your opinion and support your argument.

Download Possible answer 1

Download Possible answer 2

2. In many developing countries, children work in some form to bring in the necessary income from an early age. In the first world, many people think this is damaging and wrong but others would argue that their work brings them a sense of contributing, belonging and responsibility. What is your opinion?

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Download Possible answer 2

3. "Fundamental changes are taking place in the structure and habits of Asian families". Do you think this statement is true and if so, do you think it is beneficial or detrimental to family members?

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Download Possible answer 2

4. "Professional sportsmen and women give millions of people a great deal of pleasure and fully deserve the extremely high salaries they earn." Do you agree or disagree with this statement?

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Download Possible answer 2

5. Attempts have been made to measure the happiness of individuals and nations. What is happiness, and are people in richer countries happier than people in poorer countries? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Download Possible answer 1

Download Possible answer 2 (high level)

6. Many countries around the world are losing their cultural identity and are beginning to appear the same. What are the possible reasons for this? Do you think this is a positive or negative development? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Download Possible answer 1

Download Possible answer 2

Download Possible answer 3 (high level)

Writing Task 1 Academic: Practice Tasks

What you must know about WRITING Task 1:

Task Description:

Task 1 (of 2) is a short piece of writing (around 150 words) describing data or information given on the question paper. This information can be in the form of graphs (bar or line), pie charts, tables, maps or process diagrams. Two or more different sources may be given. You should spend no more than 20 minutes on task 1.

 There are 4 grading criteria for the first writing test:

1. Content: describing the graphical data clearly and accurately.
2. Cohesion and coherence: how your content is organized; whether it 'flows', paragraphs, etc.
3. Vocabulary: (range and accuracy).
4. Grammar: (variety, accuracy, and complexity of sentence structure, etc.).

Skills Tested:

1. Describing data or information objectively.
2. Using appropriate language to describe trends, quantities, processes, degree etc.
3. Structuring a report and deciding what is relevant and what is unnecessary.
4. Comparing and contrasting the data as required.

What you should do?

1. Spend a minute or two planning your writing before you begin to write. It should contain an introduction, the main descriptive section, and a conclusion.
2. Check that the length is acceptable: remember, a little longer than 150 words is OK but if you are under the word requirement you will be heavily penalized.
3. You are not asked to give your opinion in Task 1. Keep your description objective and relevant to the data given.
4. In the introduction, define what the chart is about. What does it measure? Over what time period? Remember that copied sentences will not be marked, so don't take the exact wording from the question paper, but do use text given to check spelling, etc.
5. You may also indicate the main trends in the introduction.

Example:

Graph 1

Example introductory paragraph:

The first graph shows the global cumulative number of SARS cases over a period of 105 days. Cumulative death and recovery numbers are also given. The second graph shows the daily numbers of new SARS cases from January to April 2003, around the same time period as graph 1.

     6. The main section should be a more detailed description of the information given. If there are 2 graphs, compare or contrast where appropriate. You don't need to include every numerical detail but all major trends should be covered. You need to decide on the clearest way to present the material: line graphs often present data chronologically; bar graphs and pie charts vary depending on data. What is the most important?

     7. Use a variety of words and phrases and sentence structures: see language tips below.

Graph 2

Example paragraph:

Graph 1 shows that there were around 8,500 SARS cases in total in 2002-3. Slightly less than 1,000 proved fatal. Active cases peaked at day 56 when 3,750 people were affected, before declining. This (blue) line correlates with data given in graph 2, showing daily new SARS cases. Day 56 was around late March when new cases increased very sharply and peaked before declining equally dramatically.

The second graph shows the fluctuation of daily new SARS cases. Numbers varied, starting low in January but rising to 60 cases per day in mid-February and again in mid-March, falling to below 20 in between. Cases peaked in late March, with the maximum number totaling 120 in one day. Numbers then fell equally sharply, with 2 slight fluctuations, to just 1 or 2 cases by the end of April.

      8. The conclusion can be a sentence or two to summarise findings, emphasize the main point deduced from the graph(s) or point out a final piece of relevant information or observation.

Example conclusion:

To conclude, new cases fluctuated globally during the period but peaked in March. After that cases declined dramatically and the recovery rate rose steadily from then until the end of the threat.

Language Tips for Task 1:

1. Describing Trends:

a) Verbs and nouns:

Trends are movements and can basically go up, down or stay the same.

Example sentences:

Sales expanded during the first decade of the twenty-first century.

There was a growth in sales in the first decade of the twenty-first century.

b) Adjectives and adverbs:

These describe the degree or speed of the trend or movement.

Example sentences:

Sales expanded sharply during the first decade of the twenty-first century.

There was a sharp growth in sales in the first decade of the twenty-first century.

2. Using Verb Tenses:

What verb tense would you use to

1. Define the parameters of the graph?
2. Describe information gathered over a previous period of time?

Use the present tense for the first sentence defining the graph(s). Use the past tense to discuss findings from previous years. If no date is given, presume data is current and use present tenses.

The present perfect is used for unfinished actions and can contrast with the simple past (finished actions). The present continuous (progressive) is used to describe things in the process of happening, and the future with "will" is commonly used for predictions.

3. Comparatives and superlatives:

Comparatives contrast 2 things.

Generally speaking, short words (1 syllable, 2 syllables ending in 'y') take the suffix 'er'. e.g: higher/ faster/ lower/ smaller/ prettier/ bouncier than...

Longer words (2-3 + syllables) are preceded by 'more'. e.g: More awful/ drastic/ dramatic/ interesting/ unstable/ impressive than...

 Superlatives describe the most extreme of 3 or more things.

Short words take the suffix 'est' preceded by 'the'. e.g: The highest/ lowest/ brightest/ smallest...

Longer words are preceded by 'the most'. e.g: The most dramatic/ dynamic/ unstable/ fluctuating...

If adding a suffix would change the pronunciation of a word, the middle consonant is doubled. e.g: bigger/ redder/ hottest...

4. Prepositions of position, expressing a proportion:

When comparing or contrasting graphs or data, prepositions are useful e.g: above, below, around, about, (nearly/not) as ... as.

Fractions or percentages can also express comparative proportions e.g: a half/ a third/ a quarter/ 60%/ around 20% of...

LET'S START PRACTICING:

Download Task 1 Practice 1 Topic
Download Possible answers and comments

Download Task 1 Practice 2 Topic
Download Possible answer 1
Download Possible answer 2
Download Possible answer 3
Download Possible answer 4 (high level)

Writing Academic Test Overview

WRITING

You have one hour for the IELTS Writing test. You need to produce two pieces of writing. First, download and watch this video to get an overview and top tips of the test.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE VIDEO

Task 1 is a short piece of writing (at least 150 words) using data or information given on the question paper. This information is in graphical form and could be any of the following: graphs (bar or line), pie charts, tables, maps or process diagrams. Two different sources may also be given. You should spend around 20 minutes on task 1.

Task 2 is an essay (at least 250 words) on a given topic. There is no choice of topic, but it generally involves discussing two points of view and giving your own opinion. You should spend around 40 minutes on task 2, which has more influence on your final band score than task 1. Both tasks are discussed in detail below, but here are a few general tips:

GENERAL Tips:

Before the test: 

• Scientists and statisticians usually prefer Task 1; humanities students Task 2. It is very important to practice BOTH types of the task until you are confident; however, during the test, you could start with the type you are most familiar with. That way, if you finish it with time to spare, you have more time to spend on your least favorite. Conversely, maybe it's better to do the most difficult first, on the grounds that you can produce the other more easily!
• When reading English, notice useful vocabulary and phrases and pay attention to the grammatical structure of sentences and the way in which sentences are linked in longer paragraphs. Use good reading text as a model for your own writing.

During the test:

• Use full sentences and structure your writing into paragraphs. Don't use WhatsApp or text messaging style English.
• Spend a minute or two before you start writing to make a basic plan or outline, especially for Task 2. If you are short of time, this stops you from getting flustered and keeps you on track as you write.
• NB: If your text is shorter than the number of words required (Task 1 = 150 words or more, Task 2 = 250 words or more), then you will be penalized. Practice writing by hand (maybe you haven't for a while) and count the average number of words you write per line. That way, you know how many lines you need to produce in the test.

This IELTS RESOURCES writing website focuses on specific language items relevant to each task as well as strategies and advice for structuring your writing and tips and techniques for doing your best in the exam. 

PRACTICE Tasks:

Now let's move on to the practice exercises for Task 1, click the start now button below to start the practice tasks:

Now let's move on to the practice exercises for Task 2, click the start now button below to start the practice tasks: