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How to Plan & Write IELTS Double Question Essays

IELTS double question essays are also known as ‘direct question’ or ‘two questions’ essays. They are distinguished by two characteristics:

• They have one statement with two different questions after it.
• The questions may or may not be linked.

Here are 3 examples:

1) Fossil fuels are essential for producing electricity, powering industry and fueling transportation. However, one day we will reach a point when all the world’s fossil fuels have been depleted.

How can we conserve these resources?

What are some alternatives to fossil fuels?

2) Some parents buy their children whatever they ask for, and allow their children to do whatever they want.

Is this a good way to raise children?

What consequences could this style of parenting have for children as they get older?

3) The arts, including art, music and theatre are considered to be important in society.

Do you think the arts still have a place amongst our modern lifestyles?

Should the arts be included in the school curriculum?

In this lesson, I’m going to demonstrate step-by-step how to plan and write IELTS double question essays.

Here’s what we’ll be covering:

• 3 Common mistakes
• Essay structure
• How to plan
• How to write an introduction
• How to write main body paragraphs
• How to write a conclusion

Want to watch and listen to this lesson?

Click on this video.

Click the links to see lessons on each of these Task 2 essay writing topics. 

Once you understand the process, practice on past questions. Take your time at first and gradually speed up until you can plan and write an essay of at least 250 words in the 40 minutes allowed in the exam.

3 Common Mistakes

These three errors are common in IELTS double question essays.

• Not answering both questions fully.
• Not outlining both answers in the introduction.
• Mistaking it for one of the other essay types.

Many students make the mistake of only answering one of the questions, or focusing more on one question than the other which leads to an unbalanced essay. Both these errors will seriously affect your score for task achievement.

You must outline everything you are going to write about in the introduction. This is your blueprint for the whole essay. I’ll show you how to do this and get your essay off to a great start.

It’s easy to mistake IELTS double question essays for one of the other four types of Task 2 essays, especially opinion or discussion essays. Each should be answered in a slightly different way.

Analysing the question properly is essential to avoiding this error. I’ll also show you how to do this and give you a simple 4 part structure for planning your essay.

Essay Structure

Let’s look at this essay structure straight away. You can use it to write any IELTS double question essay. It’s easy to learn and will enable you to quickly plan and write a high-level essay.

1)  Introduction  

•   Paraphrase the question 
•   Outline sentence – state your answer to both questions

2)  Main body paragraph 1 – Answer question 1

• Topic sentence – state your answer
• Explanation – develop the idea
• Example – give an example

3)  Main body paragraph 2 – Answer question 2

4)  Conclusion Summarise both questions and answers

This structure will give us a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs.

We now need some ideas to add to the structure and we’ll have everything we need for our essay.

How To Plan IELTS Double Question Essays

Here’s the question we’re going to be answering in our model essay followed by the 3 steps of the planning process.

Fossil fuels are essential for producing electricity, powering industry and fueling transportation. However, one day we will reach a point when all the world’s fossil fuels have been depleted.

• Analyse the question
• Generate ideas
• Identify vocabulary

# 1  Analyse the question

This is an essential step in the planning process and will ensure that you answer the question fully. It’s quick and easy to do. You just need to identify 3 different types of words:

• Topic words
• Other keywords
• Instruction words

Topics words  are the ones that identify the general subject of the question and will be found in the statement part of the question.

Fossil fuels  are essential for producing electricity, powering industry and fueling transportation. However, one day we will reach a point when all the world’s  fossil fuels  have been depleted.

So, this question is about ‘ fossil fuels ’.

Many people will do this first step of the process and then write about the topic in general. This is a serious mistake and leads to low marks for task achievement.

Now that we know what the general topic is, we need to understand exactly what aspect of fossil fuels we're being asked to write about.

The  other keywords  in the question tell you the specific things you must write about. For IELTS double question essays, these will often be in the instructions, that is, the actual questions.

How can we  conserve  these resources?

What are some  alternatives  to fossil fuels?

By highlighting these words, it’s easy to identify the topics. Your essay must only include ideas relevant to these ideas.

The  instruction words  are the questions themselves. These tell you exactly what type of information is required and each will become the topic for one of the two main body paragraphs.

The first body paragraph will answer the first question (How?) and the second body paragraph will answer the second question (What?).

# 2  Generate ideas

The next task is to generate some ideas to write about.

There are several different ways to think up ideas. I cover them fully on the  IELTS Essay Planning  page.

We’re going to use the ‘friends technique’. This is the method I prefer as it allows you to take a step back from the stress of the exam situation and think more calmly.

Here’s how it works. Imagine that you are in a casual conversation with a friend over a cup of coffee and they ask you this question. What are the first thoughts to come into your head? Plan your essay around these ideas.

Doing this will help you to come up with simple answers in everyday language rather than straining your brain to think of amazing ideas using high-level language, which isn’t necessary.

You might want to try this yourself before reading on for my ideas.

Here are my ideas as I thought of them:

How can we conserve these resources? 

• Become more energy conscious & more energy efficient
• Use more renewable energy sources – solar panels
• All new homes should be built with solar panels on
• Use car less – walk, cycle, public transport, only travel when really necessary
• Energy-efficient light bulbs
• Solar power
• Wave energy
• Tidal energy
• Biomass energy
• Geothermal energy

Don’t spend long on this as you only need one or two ideas.

There is so much to write about this topic that we have to be very careful we don’t try to include too many different ideas and just end up with a list for each question rather than a well-developed essay.

Choose one main idea for each part of the question. My advice on making your selection is to choose ideas that you can quickly think of examples for.

Here are my choices:

• Use car less – walk, cycle, public transport
• Natural forces – solar & wind power, wave & tidal energy

We’re almost ready to start writing our IELTS double question essay but first, we have one other small task to do.

# 3  Vocabulary

During the planning stage, quickly jot down some vocabulary that comes to mind as you decide which ideas you are going to write about, especially synonyms of key words. This will save you having to stop and think of the right language while you’re writing.

For the ideas I’ve chosen, useful words will include:

• sustainable  
• renewable energy
• energy-efficient

With that done, we can focus on the first paragraph of the essay – the introduction.

How To Write an Introduction

The best introductions to IELTS double question essays have a simple 2 part structure:

1)   Paraphrase the question

2)   Outline sentence – state your answer to both questions

• Have 2-3 sentences
• Be 40-60 words long
• Take 5 minutes to write

1)  Paraphrase the question

Start your introduction by paraphrasing the statement part of the question.

Question statement:

Paraphrased question:  

The world is currently reliant on oil, coal and natural gas for the majority of its energy requirements but there will come a time when these run out.

We are simply saying the same thing in a different way and using different vocabulary.

2)  Outline statement

Now we need to add an  outline statement  where we outline the two main points that we’ll cover in the rest of the essay, that is, the answers to the two questions.

We need to be very specific about what we are going to write about.

Here's a reminder of the ideas I’ve chosen to answer the two questions:

• Natural forces –solar & wind power, wave & tidal energy

Outl ine statement:  

This essay will discuss how we can help to prevent our non-renewable resources from becoming depleted by using our cars less frequently and it will name some natural forces that can be harnessed to generate power.

Note my use of synonyms to replace key words in the question. You don’t have to replace every key word but do so where possible whilst ensuring that your language sounds natural.

So, let’s bring the two elements of our introduction together.

     Introduction

This introduction achieves three important functions:

• It shows the examiner that you understand the question.
• It acts as a guide to the examiner as to what your essay is about.
• It also helps to keep you focused and on track as you write.

The two ideas in your introduction will become your two main body paragraphs.

Main body paragraph 1  –  Use car less – walk, cycle, public transport

Main body paragraph 2  –  Renewable energy / natural forces – solar & wind power, wave & tidal energy

How To Write Main Body Paragraphs

Main body paragraphs in IELTS double question essays should contain 3 things:

• Explanation –  develop the idea

Main Body Paragraph 1  – Answer question 1

The  topic sentence  summarises the main idea of the paragraph. That’s all it needs to do so it doesn’t have to be complicated.

It plays an important role in ensuring that your ideas flow logically from one to another. It does this by acting as a signpost for what is to come next, that is, what the paragraph will be about.

If you maintain a clear development of ideas throughout your essay, you will get high marks for task achievement and cohesion and coherence.

We’ll now take the idea for our first main body paragraph and create our topic sentence.

Main body paragraph 1  –  Use car less – walk, cycle, public transport, only travel when really necessary

Topic sentence:  

Conserving energy is a responsibility of every individual and an important way in which we can all do our bit is to use more energy-efficient means of transport. 

Next, we must write an  explanation sentence  that develops the idea.

Explanation sentence: 

The easiest way to do this is to leave the car at home and walk or cycle to our destination if it isn’t too far away, or take public transport for longer journeys. Another way to reduce our fuel consumption is to car share.

Finally, we add an  example  to support our main point. If you can’t think of a real example, it’s fine to make one up, as long as it’s believable. The examiner isn’t going to check your facts. Alternative, you could add another piece of information to support your idea but an example is better.

Example sentence:

Whenever my friends and I get together for coffee, we agree to meet up at a café that we can each get to without having to drive our cars there. We usually go on foot or ride our bikes. If everyone made small decisions like this, it would make a real difference.

That’s the 3 parts of our first main body paragraph complete. Here’s the finished paragraph.

We now follow the same process for our second main body paragraph.

Main Body Paragraph 2  – Answer question 2

Again, we’ll now take the idea I’ve chosen for this paragraph and create our topic sentence.

Main body paragraph 2  –  Renewable energy / natural forces –   solar & wind power, wave & tidal energy

Topic sentence:

The most sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels are the generation of power from natural forces such as the sun, wind and oceans.

Now for the  explanation  where we expand on this idea.

Explanation sentence:

S olar and wind power are already widely used across the world but it is wave power and tidal energy that have the greatest untapped potential to provide for our energy needs in the future.

Finally, an  example  to support our main point.

A report recently commissioned in the United Kingdom estimates that tidal energy could meet as much as  20% of the UK’s current electricity demands once the technology being developed is operational. Wave energy converters are expected to prove equally successful in the long-term.

That’s the 3 parts of our second main body paragraph complete. Here’s the finished paragraph.

Now we need a conclusion and our IELTS double question essay is done.

How To Write a Conclusion

The conclusion is a summary of the main points in your essay and can often be done in a single sentence. It should never introduce new ideas.

If you're below the minimum 250 words after you’ve written your conclusion, you can add a prediction or recommendation statement.

Our essay is already over the minimum word limit so we don’t need this extra sentence but you can learn more about how to write a prediction or recommendation statement for IELTS double question essays on the  Task 2 Conclusions  page.

The conclusion is the easiest sentence in the essay to write but one of the most important.

A good conclusion to an IELTS double question essay will:

• Neatly end the essay
• Link all your ideas together
• Sum up your argument or opinion
• Answer the question

If you achieve this, you’ll improve your score for both task achievement and cohesion and coherence which together make up 50% of the overall marks. Without a conclusion, you’ll score below band 6 for task achievement.

You can start almost any final paragraph of an IELTS double question essay with the words:

• In conclusion

        or

• To conclude

Now all you need to do is briefly summarise the main ideas into one or two sentences.

Here’s a top tip . Go back and read the introduction to the essay because this is also a summary of the essay. It outlines what you are going to write about.

To create a great conclusion, you simply have to paraphrase the introduction.

Introduction:

Here is the same information formed into a conclusion:

That’s it. We’ve completed our essay. Here it is with the 4 paragraphs put together.

Finished IELTS double question essay.

     (351 words)

Go through this lesson as many times as you need to in order to fully understand it and put in lots of practice writing IELTS double question essays from past exam questions. Practice is the only way to improve your skills.

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More help with ielts double question essays & other task 2 essays.

IELTS Writing Task 2  – T he format, the 5 question types, the 5 step essay writing strategy & sample questions. All the key information you need to know.

The 5 Types of Task 2 Essay   – How to recognise the 5 different types of Task 2 essays. 15 sample questions to study and a simple planning structure for each essay type.

Understanding Task 2 Questions  – How to quickly and easily analyse and understand IELTS Writing Task 2 questions.

How To Plan a Task 2 Essay  – Discover why essay planning is essential & learn a simple 4 step strategy, the 4 part essay structure & 4 methods of generating ideas.

How To Write a Task 2 Introduction  – Find out why a good introduction is essential. Learn how to write one using a simple 3 part strategy & discover 4 common mistakes to avoid.

How To Write Task 2 Main Body Paragraphs  – Learn the simple 3 part structure for writing great main body paragraphs and also, 3 common mistakes to avoid. 

How To Write Task 2 Conclusions  – Learn the easy way to write the perfect conclusion for a Task 2 essay. Also discover 4 common mistakes to avoid.

Task 2 Marking Criteria  – Find out how to meet the marking criteria in Task 2. See examples of good and poor answers & learn some common mistakes to avoid.

The 5 Task 2 Essay Types:

Step-by-step instructions on how to plan & write high-level essays. Model answers & common mistakes to avoid.

   Opinion Essays

   Discussion Essays

  Problem Solution Essays

  Advantages & Disadvantages Essays

  Double Question Essays

Other Related Pages

IELTS Writing Test  – Understand the format & marking criteria, know what skills are assessed & learn the difference between the Academic & General writing tests.

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• Essay Task 2

IELTS Writing Task 2: Double Question Essays Types

• Essay Types
• Double Question
• Advantage Disadvantage
• Problem Solution
• Essay Length

A double-question also known as a two-part IELTS essay has low occurrence as compared to other IELTS Task 2 Essay types. However, you must learn to identify this question type and how to deal with it accurately in the real IELTS exam.

We have created this guide to help you produce a high-level response to an IELTS writing task 2 double essay question. Read on for tips, useful language, and a sample double-question essay.

Table of Contents

1.1 understanding the question.

• 1.2 Example double question essay questions
• Essay Structure for Double Question Essays
• 3.1 Identify key words and phrases

3.2 Organise your ideas

3.3 identify vocabulary, 4.1 introduction, 4.2 main body paragraphs, 4.3 conclusion.

• 5.1 Complete the sample double question essay

5.2 Double Question Sample Essay

1. double question essay overview.

Double question essays, often referred to as two-part essay questions , are exactly what they say: instead of dealing with one IELTS question, you have to answer two .

Remember, there are five main types of writing task 2 questions:

• Advantage/disadvantage
• Double question
• Problem/solution

When answering a double question , you still have the same minimum word count ( 250 words ) and the usual time limit for IELTS writing task 2 ( 40 minutes ). You will just have to organise your essay in a slightly different way to other essay types.

It is essential that you address both questions in your introduction and conclusion and you should separate your main body paragraphs logically: focus on the first question in the first body paragraph and the second question in the second body paragraph.

One of the most common mistakes test takers make is that they only answer one question because they have not understood the question type. Make sure you take your time to identify the question type before writing your answer.

1.2 Example Double Question Essay Questions

Take a look at these example IELTS double question essay writing task 2 questions for a range of topics:

The internet is a good source of information and has opened up opportunities for people all over the world.

Is all the information reliable online?

What could be done to control information online?

Also, read the following IELTS Essay Writing Guides

• IELTS Discussion Type Questions
• Opinion-based Task 2 IELTS Guide
• IELTS Advantage Disadvantage Essay Type
• Problem Solution IELTS Writing Task Statement

Many people prefer to watch foreign films rather than locally produced films.

Why could this be?

Should governments give more financial support to local film industries?

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Nowadays, many people have easy access to computers and a large number of children play computer games.

What are the negative impacts of playing computer games?

What can be done to minimise these effects?

In spite of the advances in medicine, many people around the world still die from preventable diseases.

Why is this the case?

What can be done about this problem?

2. Essay Structure for Double Question Essays

Here is a clear and simple structure you can follow for any double-question IELTS writing task 2:

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3. Planning your Double Question Essay

Read on for some useful essay planning tips and techniques.

3.1 Identify keywords and phrases

By this point, you should have identified that you have been given a double question by looking at the instruction words in the question (the clue here is there are two sets of questions ).

The next step is to identify the topic words in the statement that will tell you the general topic of the essay and any other keywords that give you additional information.

Here is an example for our sample question where we have underlined the topic words and put other keywords in bold:

So the general topic here is the internet being a good source of information . Other keywords let us know we need to focus on the reliability of that information and whether controls need to be put in place.

Part of a good essay plan is writing down your ideas. You could do this as we have have done below using the essay structure:

Introduction – Opinion = Some information on the internet can be unreliable/ need some process of control (e.g. fact checking)

Main body paragraph 1 – Majority of information is reliable/ can be verified/ media outlets carry out fact checking

Main body paragraph 2 – Not all information is trustworthy/ misinformation can influence people/ elections can be swayed

Conclusion – Balanced view/ information can be trusted but organisations should be accountable/ government should intervene too much

Notice how we have not used full sentences to save time. You might also write down ideas that you do not use in your actual essay. Make sure to cross through any notes you make before the end of a paper based exam (so they will not be marked by the examiner).

While you are creating your plan, take a note of any useful vocabulary that comes to mind. Here is some that we thought of for the model double question answer:

• Misinformation
• Media outlets
• Accountability
• Fact checking

4. Writing your Double Question Essay

You should start your introduction to a double-question essay in the same way as all other IELTS task 2 essay types : Paraphrase the given IELTS statement .

Let’s look at the example from our sample essay:

Notice that we have mentioned both sides of the argument .

For a double-essay question, you should always include your opinion in the introduction. Here’s our opinion:

In my view, the majority of the information that can be found on the internet is reliable. However, some of this information may be unreliable and therefore, it is important to have some processes in place to carry out fact checking.

And lastly, you can give a brief outline statement that explains what your essay will do, for example:

This essay will explain my opinion in more detail.

Let’s remind ourselves of the suggested structure for your main body paragraphs:

One way of addressing each question, as well as increasing the grammatical range shown in your essay, is to use noun phrases . Using a noun phrase instead of a more standard verb phrase also makes your writing more academic and interesting. Compare the following sentence:

Verb phrase – One advancement in the internet is that t he amount of information available has increased .

Noun phrase – One advancement in recent years is the amount of information available .

You could also noun phrases to describe developments over time . Here is an example:

• In the last few years there has been (a rise/a fall/ an increase/ a decrease) in _____

Your supporting sentences should provide reasons for the opinions given in your topic sentences. You can also use noun phrases to do this.

Here are some sentence starters:

• As a consequence of…
• As a result of…
• Because of…

And here’s an example:

As a result of the wide availability of the internet, there has been an increase in the number of fake news stories.

You must always include a conclusion for any IELTS writing task 2 essay. For a double-question essay conclusion, you should do the following:

• Start with a linking phrase such as In conclusion,…,In summary,…or To sum up,…
• Mention both question from the IELTS statement/question
• Rephrase the opinion given in your introduction

Take a look at our example and try to identify each point:

In conclusion, my view is that although a lot of internet sources can be trusted, there should also be measures put in place to ensure organisations take accountability for spreading misinformation. However, I do not believe that governments should have complete autonomy and control over what adults read on the internet.

5. Example Double Question Essay and Exercise

Time to practise ! Here is the discussion essay that we have been using in this guide. We have removed some keywords so you can test your knowledge on discussion essays by selecting the correct missing word.

5.1 Complete the Sample Double Question Essay

As a result of the development of the internet, people can now access any information they need at the click of a button from anywhere in the world. In my view, the majority of the information that can be found on the internet is reliable. However, some of this information may be unreliable and therefore, it is important to have some processes in place to carry out fact checking. This essay will explain my opinion in more detail.

One reason why the majority of information on the internet can be deemed reliable is that it can be verified by various sources and people also have the opportunity to freely contest information they believe is fake news or untrue. To take one example, large media outlets not only fact check sources they find on the internet, but they also show this to the public and will issue a retraction if anything is found to be untrue.

On the other hand, not all information found online is trustworthy and, as a result, measures need to be put in place to control this misinformation. The biggest downside of  this misinformation is that it can be easier for groups to unfairly influence people in situations such as political elections. Therefore, I believe that there should be certain measures put in place to control internet sites. One way to do this is to implement fines to companies consistently spreading untrue information.

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IELTS Writing Task 2: How to Structure a ‘Two Question’ Essay

by Dave | Structuring your essay | 21 Comments

A lot of my IELTS students struggle with how many ideas they need and how to structure their essay.

This article with explain clearly what you need to do and why. read some real ielts essays that i wrote by clicking here ., let’s look at an example of this kind of question:.

Nowadays governments are investing more in public transport such as buses and trains rather than in building new roads. What are the reasons for this? Is this a positive or negative development?

Don’t miss out on my new Patreon exclusive essays here if you want to really improve on IELTS!

Clear position, for this kind of task you need to discuss both questions., in the first question, you are given a situation and asked to explain why., the second question requires a clear opinion so you must choose a side ., this is very important for your task response score., if you don’t choose a side and support that ‘position’ clearly, you will lose marks for your task response. you will get a maximum of a 5 for task achievement if you do not choose a side., it’s not important which side you choose as long as you choose one., here are the options for the second question:, 1) agree. you think it’s a positive development that governments are spending more money on public transport. you support r this opinion., 2) disagree. you think it’s a negative development that governments are spending more money on public transport. you support this opinion., clear essay structure, i always recommend to my students that they give their opinion in the introduction as well as the conclusion (for all ielts task 2 questions)., technically, it’s ok to write a very general introduction and leave your opinion to the end., but i strongly suggest that you don’t do this because it’s not as clear., also, you might run out of time before you’ve got to your conclusion, so overall it’s a risky strategy.  if you don’t choose a side and support that ‘position’ clearly, you will lose marks for your task response., therefore my suggested ielts task 2 essay structure is four paragraphs – an introduction, two main (or body) paragraphs and a conclusion., the opinion is presented in the introduction and re-stated in the conclusion., ideally each body paragraph should discuss one main idea., now let’s look at the options in more detail., possible essay structures, 1) agree – you feel it’s a positive development that governments are spending more money on public transport., you need at least one good reason why it’s happening and one good reason why it’s a positive development..

2) Disagree – you feel it’s a negative development that governments are spending more money on public transport.

You need at least one good reason why it’s happening and one good reason why it’s a negative development., only the parts highlighted below are different from the first essay.

Now it’s your turn! Put your answers in the comments.

Look at the question below then compare your ideas with this  sample answer (written by an ex-examiner)..

Check out our expert sample answer with line by line analysis and key vocabulary.

Living in large cities today poses many problems for people. What are these problems? Should governments encourage more people to live in smaller towns?

Brainstorm some main ideas:

What are the biggest problems for people living in a big city, what causes these problems what are the effects on people’s lives, do think think the government should help people to move out of big cities to live in smaller towns, is this a good or bad idea why, recommended for you.

Latest IELTS Writing Task 1 2024 (Graphs, Charts, Maps, Processes)

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These are the most recent/latest IELTS Writing Task 1 Task topics and questions starting in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and continuing into 2024. ...

Recent IELTS Writing Topics and Questions 2024

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IELTS Writing Task 2 Sample Answer: Foreign Languages (Cambridge 13)

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IELTS Writing Task 1: Bar Chart Owned and Rented Households (IELTS Cambridge 13)

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IELTS Writing Task 2 Sample Answer: Environmental Problems Plants and Animals (IELTS Cambridge 14)

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This is an IELTS Writing Task 2 Sample Answer from IELTS Cambridge 14 about environmental problems effecting plants and animals and it is an interesting question. ...

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Those who live in big cities face by far more challenges and difficulties compare to town residents. Traffic congestion and high property taxes can be considered as the main reasons of this reality. In my opinion, local authorities may persuade residents to move their residency to the outskirts.

Traffic jam is a well-known trait of any major city worldwide. This reality is highly annoying during rush hours. As a result, people, especially working ones, spend hours on ends stuck in traffic, wasting precious life time, not to mention that arriving late for work is a guarantee. Another reason why living in a major city is anything but fulfilling is the huge amount of money paid for having a own house. In Toronto city, for instance, residents pay three times more property taxes than those who lives in Winnipeg, a rural area located just 30 minutes away. This mandatory expense prevents families to earn money and live without financial worries.

Based on the above negative factors, governments should convince citizens to settle down into the nearby towns. One persuasive argument that can be used by politicians would be that both families and their children will have more green areas to play and relax, with the additional fresh air to breath in. Furthermore, since smaller cities have, by nature, less public services, the amount of taxes due will be considerable lower, which allow residents have extra money to invest in other priorities. These wise strategies can be run at any time by the authorities, which in the end will benefit the community as a whole.

In conclusion, living in cities is increasingly getting tougher; however, I firmly believe that local governments can run convincing campaigns to seed a need in their citizen to move out, helping people enhance their life.

Sorry I didn’t notice this before! Great work!

Great essay! well done..

Population migrating from small towns to live in big cities is growing substantially every decade, which poses many problems such as shrinking living space and public health concerns. However, I personally disagree with the suggestion of reversing this trend because apparently individuals receive higher education and have more job opportunities in big cities.

It is true that people who live in large cities have to sacrifice personal living space due to the sky-rocket price of residential products. In some popular neighborhood, the average sale price of the apartments or condos has reached recorded high of over $100,000 per ft2. A lot of families could only afford to buy small apartments. Worse still, tight living space encourages disease transmission caused by human contacts. For instance, influenza and the late Covid-19 coronavirus has caused tens of thousands of deaths in the world’s largest cities, such as New York and London.

Even though living in big cities could create lots of issues, the advantages still overweighs disadvantages. The most straight-forward benefit is that individuals living in urban areas enjoy way more high-quality education and work opportunities than those in suburban areas. Megacities are not only located with more universities and colleges but also head quarters of international businesses, which provides a better chance for its population to receive higher education and thrive in their professional careers.

In conclusion, with more people migrating to large cities the average living space as well as public health of those cities could suffer, on the other hand, big cities provide training and opportunities which are not available in small towns. Therefore, I do not think it is sensible to encourage moving out of cities for the problems mentioned previously. (284 words)

Really well argued and written!

Be careful in your 3rd paragraph – tie it back more clearly to the overall essay question that this is why governments should not encourage people to live in the countryside.

Thanks Dave! I see why paragraph 3 seems loosely connected. Rewriting P3…

Despite the relatively small living space and the potential health thread, big cities offer way more high-quality education and work opportunities compared with suburban areas. This is because mega cities are located with most universities, colleges and the head quarters of international businesses, which provides a better chance for its population to receive higher education and thrive in their professional careers. Those who live in the countryside, on the other hand, encounter greater challenges as they pursuit education and career. Therefore, the government should help people maximize their potentials and realize themselves in the cities rather than encouraging them to move to the countryside.

Much much better!

Thank you Dave! I sat my second IELTS academic on May 14th, and my writing score has not improved, still at 6.5. L8 R8 W6.5 S7.5

Writing task one was analyzing a bar chart, which compares the sales of five different consumer products one US department store from winter to Autumn in 2002.

I paraphrased the question and wrote in overall description. However, I am sure I made a critical mistake in the end when I described the fluctuations of the two lowest categories. I said. “Finally, the sales of sportswear and jewelry experienced relatively minimal fluctuations throughout the year, at below 200,000 and just above 200,000 respectively.” What I meant was actually, “despite of minimal fluctuations, the sales of these two categories remained well below and just a little over 200,000 (only in Autumn).”

Task two: Some people consider the increasing business and cultural contacts are positive, while others argue that it causes the loss of cultural identities. discuss both sides and give your opinion.

I was prepared with this topic. I wrote globalization can boost world economy by enabling the share of natural resources and human resources among participating countries,but it can also cause some nations to eliminate their uniqueness to fit in, and pose threat to travel destinations, because there is no point to visit other countries if they are similar to our own. My opinion is globalization is a positive development if closely supervised and regulated by the government. For one thing, very few countries nowadays can afford to lose supply or market. For another, it is up to each country to decide what it want to adopt. I wrote 325 words in total, but still got 6.5.

I feel my writing level is decreasing. This is probably because I spent the last month and a half preparing for TOEFL. However, I feel more familiar and confident with IELTS, and all I need is a leap from 6.5 to 7.0 in writing. I have decided to focus on IELTS.

How much more time should I spend before sitting another test? I wish I can score 7 this time, since it has already taken over 5 months.

Sorry to hear about the writing score, Jing.

That is really common for a lack in writing and based on the level of your other scores it could have been a bit of bad luck but probably also related to task achievement. Your language ability is good enough to get a higher score so task achievement is the most likely problem.

The mistakes you describe for your graph doesn’t sound like the biggest problem. What was your overview?

For your task 2, it might be wiser to have a firmer opinion, just to be safe in case if that was the issue.

Since you are so near to your score, I think you don’t need much time to reach band 7 with your writing and cleaning up small mistakes with grammar/vocabulary and making sure your TA is strong should get you there.

If you want more detailed corrections, you can consider: https://course.howtodoielts.com/band-scores-corrections

A country’s economy is directly related to its infrastructure. Governments these days are spending a major portion of their budget on increasing the capacity of public transport instead of building new roads. This easy will discuss the reasons for it, and also elaborate that on the whole, this is a very welcome development.

Firstly, the reason for increasing the number of buses and trains is that the public transport system is one of the major sources of traveling in any country. For instance, a large number of people in cities travel daily to their jobs using local transport. Another main reason is the rapid growth of the population which is generating huge pressure on each economic sector. Major cities, for instance, are over-crowded due to this phenomenon.

Increasing the capacity of public transport is a prudent and positive development by the Governments in many ways since it is one of the cheapest sources to travel within a country. People, for instance, from middle and lower-middle-class backgrounds mostly use public transport. As a result, it can intrigue positive sentiments as their government is spending money on them. Furthermore, a good and huge transport system can play a vital role in energy-saving and pollution control. For example, people instead of using their cars will prefer to travel locally if they can have a comfortable journey. This leads to the reduction of traffic on roads and ultimately less fuel consumption.

In conclusion, while the increase in the number of trains and busses ensures cheap traveling, it can save energy and control pollution (noise, dust) as well.

Well written Hasad! Make sure that you add a final thought to your conclusion. Also try to limit your body paragraphs to one main idea, fully developed with a specific example!

Nowadays governments are investing more in public transport such as buses and trains rather than in building new roads. What are the reasons for this? Is this a positive or negative development? Nowadays, people are moving from rural areas to cities in search of a better environment, jobs, and homes. As a result, cities are getting more and more crowded. The government is putting money into the infrastructure of cities and making more buses and trains available to its denizens. In awe of making more public transport available, authorities are forgetting that they also need to spend money on building new roads. This easy will discuss the reasons for it before reaching a conclusion in the upcoming paragraph. To commence with the reasons, the population in the urban areas is increasing at a significant rate as people are moving from rural areas to urban areas because there are better education and job opportunities in the urban areas as well as the infrastructure is far more attractive and accommodating than that of in the rural area. Government is investing more in public transport because it is the need of the hour. In order to accommodate the increasing population, more buses and trains are required. I vehemently believe that this is a positive development because more public transport is always better than more private transport on the road. On the other hand, I also want to point out that the government should at least spend the appropriate amount of the budget on the maintenance of the roads. As more people will start using public transport, traffic jams in busy cities will fell to considerable levels and also the pollutions will decrease significantly. All in all, citizens of the nation should see it as an opportunity to contribute toward the environmental health of the planet and encourage themselves as well as others to use public transport. It is no one else’s but our responsibility to save our planet. If the government is doing their part, instead of finding negatives we should look for positives and do our best.

It’s a good start, Mannat!

I don’t have time to check writing this week but you can sign up for some corrections here: course.howtodoielts.com/band-scores-corrections

Keep up the the good effort!

(Here we go. My first ever essay. My writing is crap and I hate it, But I did this to better remember your structure. Thanks for sharing it with us. <3 )

Life in the big cities is accompanied by a variety of issues, many of which, are unheard of in small towns. In this essay, I will be discussing some of these difficulties and the reason why I believe governments should encourage people to move into small towns.

There is no doubt that life as we know it has changed dramatically over the last 100 years, forcing many people to move out of their quiet towns and into the cities in search of employment, introducing a new and seemingly more advanced lifestyle. People were instantly drawn to the hustle and bustle of big cities, and life as we’ve known it has changed forever. The most noticeable change being the lost sense of community. People no longer felt the need to socialise like they used to, the endless chase after monetary gain and constant changes left people in a loop of feeling hollow, alone and anxious. This followed by a variety of health complications, that people in small towns have never experienced before. Last but not least, it has introduced a new financial crisis, raising taxes and increasing the cost of living, higher than it has ever been before.

While initially this move has been supported by the government, it should now focus on encouraging people to relocate into small towns, and change back life to the way it was, before moving to the big cities. One of the ways to do that would be to introduce more job offers in small towns, improve living conditions and advertising campaigns glorying the life away from the city.

To summarise, City life has proven to be more harmful than beneficial, bringing forward a variety of health issues, isolating communities and introducing a financial burden, which I believe should prompt the government to encourage people to move into small towns.

That’s a great way to remember the structure, Lena. I hope a lot of other students copy your approach!

Your writing is really high level though the 3rd paragraph needs more detail.

What score are you going for?

Hi Dave, thank you so much for the reply I wasn’t expecting it! I’m hoping for no less than 6.5. I’ve actually edited it after I posted because I realised I forgot to mention the the reasons, I’ll need to practice a bit more. By more details, do you mean elaborate on how these changes will be done, rather than just say what they are? I wasn’t sure how to phrase it. Thanks again!

There are some little issues with formality related to academic writing that could hold you back but you are firmly in that range.

I meant that in the 3rd paragraph you need to write 4-5 sentences and include more detail. The best way to do that would be with a specific example, fully developed.

That will help your task achievement and cohesion/coherence scores a lot! A specific example will also bring out a lot of high level vocabulary – practice your examples!

For several decades, the total ratio of people living in big cities has been inclined rapidly which causes the emergence of new problems that have holistic negative impacts. According to many urban planners and environmentalists human flow to big cities needs to be reverted. In this essay I will explain the issues inhabitants of big cities face while questioning whether the government should encourage people moving to smaller cities.

First of all, it is inevitable that there are immense amount of problems that the majority of the people living in big cities complain about. Two of main problems big city inhabitants from all around the world express is level of crowdedness, and pollution. As a person living in Istanbul, I need to confess that living in a big city makes me exhausted especially in times I spent in public transit and as well as in center. It is clear that people living in big cities are more tend to suffer from pollution since more people means more source of pollution. These are only a few problems people in big cities face.

To mitigate the problems people face in big cities, governments needs to endorse people planning to move smaller cities. Establishing policies and implementations that will restrict human flow to big cities is essential for handling the problems and recovery. To give an example, people who lost their job in big cities due to economical crisis and planning to get into farming profession could receive incentives from government so that they will feel enough courage to live and earn their bread in a rural land. In that way, improvement in rural economies is highly viable. To conclude, there are a bunch of reason why government should support human flow to smaller towns.

To conclude, in this essay the urgent problems of big cities has been explained and the question whether the government should encourage migration to smaller cities has been examined. In my opinion government needs to support depopulation of big cities via human movement to smaller towns  since it can even lead to economical improvement in agricultural sector. However, to weigh two sides, there need to be further research to reveal actual impact of the argument.  

Hello Dave Can you evaluate my work? I will have my real test next month and I have been learning in this website for so long. I hope I will have great score

Some people feel that entertainers such as film stars, pop musicians are paid too much money. Do you agree or disagree? Which other types of job should be highly paid?

An argument around the notion of whether artists, musical performers are highly paid is a debatable issue. I suppose these occupations should have a moderate payment, whereas doctors and nurses, who have experiences and values cannot be replaced in our society, should be more rewarded. In this essay, I am going to clarify and strengthen this opinion by related reasons and examples.

First and foremost, the payments for those artists are considerably high in comparison to their contributions for the society. It is said that because the purposes of these jobs seem to solely aim for entertainment and do not generate any other crucial values for people. Specifically, these artists cannot heal people and make surgeries to save lives or provide useful knowledge. Pop stars, for instance, recently earn rocketing salaries due to their popularity, that has been raised inequality for those who generate useful services for citizens when people are in need.

Hence, the money overpaid for entertainment occupations should be used for maintenance community services and pay for people who have a vital role in society, particularly doctors. They are capable of doing medical treatments in order to improve people’s health and they have significant contributions in social healthcare. The reason why doctors deserve a higher salaries derives from their endeavor. A doctor had to suffer many years in both theoretical and empirical training before being able to treat real patients, while these artists do not need to take such efforts in order to become famous. Therefore, the increase in salaries could encourage doctors and nurses in raising their enthusiasm, giving them desire to dedicate more for the society.

In conclusion, although the contributions of artistic jobs cannot be denied, they are far more behind the role of medical occupations. The higher reward deserved for doctors, the more valuable society for people to live in.

Hi Minh Quang – good luck on your test!

Your intro is a bit long and the 2nd paragraph could be a little longer. Really strong use of vocabulary, grammar, and examples- keep writing those detailed hypotheticals!

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IELTS Writing Task 2

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IELTS Double Question Essay

IELTS double question essays are also known as ‘direct question’ or ‘two questions’ essays. They are distinguished by two characteristics:

• They have one statement with two different questions after it.
• The questions may or may not be linked.

IELTS Preparation

Essay#78 | undervalued jobs, essay#40 | studying abroad.

Increasing numbers of students are choosing to study abroad. To what extent does this trend benefit the students themselves and the countries involved?

Essay#29 | Increasingly Dependent on Computers

We are becoming increasingly dependent on computers. They are used in businesses, hospitals, crime detection and even to fly planes. What things will they be used for in the future? Is this dependence on computers a good thing or should we he more auspicious of their benefits?

Essay#28 | Childhood Diseases

Should parents be obliged to immunise their children against childhood diseases? Or do individuals have the right to choose not to immunise their children?

Essay#20 | Success

When talking about success, we often think of people who are rich or famous. In your opinion, what are the qualities that characterize a successful person? Why do you think these should be the criteria?

Essay#6 | Computers

We are becoming increasingly dependent on computer-based technology. How do you think it will change in the future? Is it good for us to rely so much on computers?

IELTS Sample Charts (IELTS Academic Writing Task 1)

IELTS Writing Task 1 – Academic

The Writing Task 1  of the  IELTS Academic test  requires you to write a summary of at least 150 words in response to a particular graph (bar, line or pie graph), table, chart, or process (how something works, how something is done). This task tests your ability to select and report the main features, to describe and compare data, identify significance and trends in factual information, or describe a process.

IELTS Writing Task 2 (IELTS Sample essays)

IELTS Writing Task 2  requires you to write at least 250 words. You will be presented with a topic and will be tested on your ability to respond by giving and justifying an opinion, discussing the topic, summarizing details, outlining problems, identifying possible solutions and supporting what you write with reasons, arguments and relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

The assessment of Task 2 carries more weight in marking than Task 1. Writing scripts are marked by trained and certificated IELTS examiners, who all hold relevant teaching qualifications and are recruited as examiners by the test centres and approved by British Council or IDP: IELTS Australia.

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IELTS Writing Task 2 – Double Question Essay

This type of question is sometimes called a double question or direct question essay. there is always a statement followed by 2 questions, these questions may be linked or completely different..

This post will give you examples of this type of question and talk about how to plan an answer.

Later I will explain the most common mistakes when writing this type of essay and show you how you can plan a Double Question essay.

Examples Of Double Question

It is predicted that robots are going to become increasingly important in our lives.

How could robots be used in the future? Will this development be a positive or negative development?

Success is often measured by wealth and material possessions.

Do you think wealth is the best measure of success? What makes a successful person?

Nowadays governments are investing more in public transport such as buses and trains rather than in building new roads.

What are the reasons for this?

Is this a positive or negative development?

In education and employment, some people work harder than others.

Why do some people work harder? Is it always a good thing to work hard?

Happiness is often considered difficult to define.

Why is this? What factors determine happiness?

Common Mistakes

The most common mistakes that students make when writing this type of essay are:

• Not answering one of the questions
• Not addressing both questions in the introduction
• Thinking it is another type of essay

Lots of students either only answer one question or focus too much on answering one question leading to a partially complete essay. Either of these will negatively affect the Task Response score.

Introducing the things that you will talk about in the introduction is vital. It tells the reader what to expect and reminds you of what is important in your essay.

Analysing the question properly and planning the essay in advance should reduce the risk of making any of these errors.

Planning An Answer

Introduction  

•   Paraphrase the question 
•   Outline what the essay will include – state your answer to both questions

Main body paragraph 1 – Answer question 1

• Topic sentence – State your answer
• Explanation – Develop the idea
• Example – Give an example/consequence

Main body paragraph 2 – Answer question 2

• Topic sentence – Give your answer

Conclusion  

• Summarise both questions and answers

As you can see, planning a Double Question Essay is quite easy and is very similar to planning other types of IELTS Writing Task 2 essays. However, care must be taken to address each question fully or your overall score may suffer.

Make sure that you practice answering each type of essay so that you are ready for the test.

For information about the other IELTS Writing Task 2 question types see below:

Opinion essay

Advantages and disadvantages essay

Discussion essay

Problem solution essay

Double question essay

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IELTS Double Question Essay: Everything that you need to know

Ielts double question essay: top tips.

If you’ve been preparing for IELTS for a while, you’re probably familiar with the different Task 2 essay types. If you’re just starting out or if your test is in a couple of nights of sleep, you might be feeling a bit stressed about all the possible questions and topics you might encounter on test day. It can be daunting! You might get an essay topic asking for your opinion on taxes , or a question about the causes and solutions of city traffic , or perhaps an IELTS Double Question essay on robots…

Well, there’s good news and bad news.

The bad news is that you can really never know what topics and what questions you’ll get on the day…

The good news is, there’s one simple rule to follow, regardless of the topic or the question type:

Answer the question/s.

Simple, right? Obvious, right?

In fact, many candidates forget this basic principle and the result can be disastrous. If, for instance, you’re asked to discuss the causes and solutions of city traffic, but you only deal with the causes, you cannot score above band 5 in Task Response:

See! Disaster. Luckily, it’s easy to avoid that.

Ok, so you need to answer the question or questions. The question (so many questions!) now is: how?

The IELTS ‘Double Question’ : 

Let’s look at a ‘Double Question’ essay topic:

Before you race off to write down everything you know about robots, take a moment and look really carefully at the task. There are 2 completely separate questions:

• How could robots be used in the future?
• Will the increasing use of robots be a positive or negative development?

In other words, how are we going to use robots in the future and will this be good or bad?

Notice that the first question is asking you to suggest or imagine some ways robots can be used while the second question is asking for your opinion. You should structure this essay in the normal way , dealing with question 1 in body paragraph 1 and question 2 in, you guessed it, body paragraph 2.

The brainstorm

Before you start writing though, spend a bit of time (3-5 minutes) thinking about the question, brainstorming and planning. Keep looking back at the questions to make sure you aren’t drifting off-topic (and into the disaster zone!).

Here’s an example of a brainstorm for this double question:

Notice that there is a very clear opinion: positive. Yes, it’s possible to feel both positively and negatively about this topic but keep in mind that if the examiner thinks you have not presented a clear position (ie. opinion), you could score band 3 in Task Response:

So, unless you’re a super strong writer and can convey a nuanced opinion clearly and within the time limit, we suggest taking a strong position and sticking with it in the IELTS Double Question Essay. Your real opinion doesn’t matter; this is about getting a good IELTS score.

 The structure

From here, you put your IELTS Double Question essay together, following the trusty E2 structure, like this:

And you’re ready to write! Check out a sample written by one of our IELTS experts below.

A sample essay

Check out a sample answer by one of our IELTS experts:

In the last 100 years, technology has advanced at an unprecedented rate. Although robots are already a part of our lives, experts predict that they will become even more prevalent in the coming years. This essay will outline some possible uses of robots in the future and explain why this development will be a positive one for humanity.

It is highly likely that robots are going to play a more major role in many fields but two important ones are dangerous jobs and healthcare. Whereas currently, it is humans that are sent to war or to fight fires or explore space, in the future, these tasks could be performed by robots. In addition to such roles, robots could also become more commonplace in hospitals and aged care facilities. Not only could they be used to perform surgery in remote locations, but, as artificial intelligence advances, they may also be able to interact with and support patients when nurses or carers are in limited supply. Indeed, such developments are already underway.

Clearly, these advancements in robotics and AI will have a positive impact on society. By outsourcing hazardous tasks, human workers will be less prone to injury or death. If robots are able to extinguish fires or disarm bombs efficiently, society too will be safer. In the health sector, even though some may worry that robots lack the empathy and understanding of a human worker, the fact is that demand for healthcare workers exceeds supply in many places, which means there is a dire need for extra help. This demand could well be met by robots with artificial intelligence in the decades to come.

In conclusion, the potential of robotics is unimaginable. This essay discussed just a few areas in which this technology could benefit us. While some caution is needed, ultimately, robots may enhance our lives beyond expectations.

To learn more about how you can effectively write a ‘double question essay’ and ace IELTS Writing, become an E2Laguage student today! Try our materials and practice tests for FREE, visit www.e2language.com now.

Written by Alex

Saddam says:

You are sucha great teacher no doubt.

Emmanuel says:

This is an articulate writing exposition. You are awesome.

Obaid gullo says:

It really helped me alot in writting task I appreciate your services

Thank you so much Obaid :)

Mahfuzur Rahman says:

I like this format. It will really be helpful for me organise my essay writing..

Thank you so much.

All the best!

Haseeb khan says:

the crime rate nowadays is decreasing compared to the past due to advance technology which can prevent and solve crime do you agree or disagree?

agree police and armed forces are now using latest equipments to track criminals greater source of communication within law enforcement agencies .Such as, walkie talkie sensors to detect offenders

are these ides relevant?kindly guide me

Saira shah says:

This essay widened my sphere of mind more than before . Thanks for the efforts , Keep helping us .

Azizbek says:

Good advice

Mitzie Brueeissen says:

I like your post. Thanks for sharing the amazing info.

Hi, im am a keen learner from iran. It was an example of well organized essay that in my opinion, will definitely give band score 9. It was a pleasure to read it and it was really useful for me. I wish someday, I will be able to write like this. Tank you very much.

E2Language Team says:

Hello Reza,

That’s great to hear, I’m glad you enjoyed the article! For more help with IELTS, you can sign up for a free IELTS E2Language account here: https://www.e2language.com/ .

Best wishes, Maree from your E2 team

Mehedi Hasan says:

Abhinav Agrawal says:

You are amazing.

Nodirbek says:

I like this post thanks for sharing

Dilrabo says:

It helped me a lot. I am from Uzbekistan. I have had full information. Thanks for everything.

Siobhan MacDonald says:

You’re welcome!

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IELTS Double Question Essay: Overview, Structure And Tips

1. ielts double question essay overview.

Also known as Direct Question or Two-Question or Two-part Question essay, IELTS Double Question Essay can be distinguished from other question types by its own characteristics:

• One statement only with two different questions 
• Two questions are sometimes not related to each other

An IELTS problem solution essay question includes typically 3 parts:

• 1st part: a statement (e.g. Many people decide on a career path early in their lives and keep to it. This, they argue, leads to a more satisfying working life.)
• 2nd part: two questions (e.g. To what extent do you agree with this view? What other things can people do in order to have a satisfying working life?)
• 3rd part: requirement for the time and word limit (e.g. You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words.)

Below are some double question essay IELTS samples:

• Many people decide on a career path early in their lives and keep to it. This, they argue, leads to a more satisfying working life. To what extent do you agree with this view? What other things can people do in order to have a satisfying working life?
• Money is important in most people’s lives. Although some people think it is more important than others. What do you feel are the right uses of money? What other factors are important for a good life?
• In recent years, the family structure has changed, as well as family roles. What are the changes which have occurred? Do you think these changes are positive or negative?

>>> Read more: IELTS Writing Task 2

2. IELTS Double Question Essay Structure

Double question essay IELTS structure still follows three parts with four different paragraphs:

2.1. Introduction

– Paraphrase the question: 

(e.g. It is true that some people know from an early age what career they want to pursue, and they are happy to spend the rest of their lives in the same profession.)

– Thesis statement / Outline sentence: discuss both 2 questions and/or state your view (e.g. While I accept that this may suit many people, I believe that others enjoy changing careers or seeking job satisfaction in different ways.)

– Body paragraph 1: Answer the first question

• Topic sentence: state your answer to the first question (e.g. On the one hand, having a defined career path can certainly lead to a satisfying working life.)
• State and explain the first problem: elaborate on your answer to the first question (e.g. Many people decide as young children what they want to do as adults, and it gives them a great sense of satisfaction to work towards their goals and gradually achieve them.)
• Example: support your answer to the first question with an example (optional) (e.g. For example, many children dream of becoming doctors, but to realise this ambition they need to gain the relevant qualifications and undertake years of training. In my experience, very few people who have qualified as doctors choose to change career because they find their work so rewarding, and because they have invested so much time and effort to reach their goal.)

– Body paragraph 2: Answer the second question

• Topic sentence: state your answer to the second question (e.g. On the other hand, people find happiness in their working lives in different ways. )
• State and explain the second problem: elaborate on your answer to the second question (e.g. Firstly, not everyone dreams of doing a particular job, and it can be equally rewarding to try a variety of professions; starting out on a completely new career path can be a reinvigorating experience. Secondly, some people see their jobs as simply a means of earning money, and they are happy if their salary is high enough to allow them to enjoy life outside work. Finally, job satisfaction is often the result of working conditions, rather than the career itself. )
• Example: support your answer to the second question with an example (optional) (e.g. For example, a positive working atmosphere, enthusiastic colleagues, and an inspirational boss can make working life much more satisfying, regardless of the profession.)

2.3. Conclusion

– Summarize both questions and answers:

(e.g. In conclusion, it can certainly be satisfying to pursue a particular career for the whole of one’s life, but this is by no means the only route to fulfillment.).

– Give recommendations (optional).

If you are planning to take the IELTS, let’s start practicing with our free  IELTS online test  to get ready for your exam.

3. IELTS Double Question Essay Strategy

3.1.  analyse ielts problem solution essay questions.

This type of question may be confusing compared to others, especially IELTS problem solution essay or IELTS discussion essay. However, the two questions you will have to figure out are not linked to each other. As a result, before writing your IELTS double question essay, don’t forget to analyze the question carefully. Highlight or underline keywords based on the two following parts: 

• Main topic (e.g. Many people decide on a career path early in their lives and keep to it. This, they argue, leads to a more satisfying working life. To what extent do you agree with this view? What other things can people do in order to have a satisfying working life?)
• Instructions (e.g. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. 

Write at least 250 words.)

3.2. Make an outline

There will be two different questions to think about within an IELTS double question, hence, you need to make this step so quick that you can save time for the next step – writing an essay. Just choose the main ideas for each question and outline those in the form of a mindmap, a table, or bullet points. 

3.3. Write a complete IELTS problem solution essay

With the range of vocabulary related to the topics, grammar structures you have obtained, and the outline you’ve generated, it’s time for you to write an IELTS double question essay.

3.4. Double-check your IELTS problem solution essay

Don’t forget to leave at least 3 to 5 minutes to check your essay at least once before it is handed in. You should take grammar, spelling, and vocabulary mistakes into consideration when doing this step.

Practice now: IELTS Writing Practice Test

4. IELTS Double Question Essay Tips

• Pick up the main idea for each question that you can think of any reasonable explanation and/or example for it.
• Imagine the issue stated in the IELTS double question essay just like a situation happening in the reality and you may find it much easier to generate ideas.
• Try to jot down some vocabulary related to the topic given, especially synonyms for the keywords in the question and you can think of the correct language quickly while writing.
• Spend around 40 minutes with 250-290 words writing your essay.
• Remember to use properly linking words to make your writing both cohesively and coherently.

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IELTS writing: model answer on accommodation.

Ielts two-part question essay on renting or owning a home..

Updated : November 9th 2022

A two-part question essay is pretty straightforward. Simply answer the first question in main body one, explain and give an example and then answer the second question in main body two. In the thesis statement briefly answer both questions. See the structure and the model answer below. The task is from Cambridge IELTS 15.

It is very important to spend a couple of minutes analysing the task question to understand the general topic as well as the specifics of what you need to write about. Set aside 10 minutes to plan and get ideas for an IELTS essay. Leave a few minutes at the end to check the essay for mistakes such as spelling etc.

IELTS two-part question essay structure.

Model Answer

In some countries, owning a home rather than renting one is very important for people. Why might this be the case? Do you think this is a positive or negative situation?

It is argued that in some nations owning a property is much more important than renting. This is mainly because owning a home gives a feeling of security, stability, and the freedom to renovate it. In my view, this is a positive development as homeowners can make money if they sell their house in the future.

To begin with, if people own their own home they do not have to worry about paying monthly rent and are less anxious about restrictions on decorating the interior. In other words, they tend to feel more stable and comfortable than if they were renting. This enables them to renovate and decorate their abode according to their desires, without the worry of a landlord complaining. For instance, recent research has shown that in the UK the vast majority of new homeowners feel that owning a home is an investment, so they spend most of their income on DIY projects, interior goods, and decorating.

I believe that there is a huge advantage to owning a home because it is an investment where the value of the house increases every year. That is to say, when someone buys a house and installs a new kitchen, or bathroom, and redesigns the interior, the value of the property rises considerably. For example, in England people who rent their homes will never get that money back, whereas those who buy a property can sell it for a considerable profit after just a few years, even in a tough economic situation.

In conclusion, owning a house or flat gives one a sense of security and the choice to redecorate. In my opinion, this is a great benefit because people who invest in their home can sell it later on at a profit.

In IELTS the examiner is not marking your essay on your ideas, rather they mark you on your ability to state an idea, explain and develop the essay, paragraphing, grammar, and vocabulary.

For example, in main body two at the end, I wrote: ‘those who buy a property can sell it for a considerable profit after just a few years, even in a tough economic situation’ . .T his is debatable because with the current economic situation people could lose their investment. However, the examiner is not marking you on this.

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IELTS Writing Task 2: Two-Part Questions

Posted by David S. Wills | Jul 18, 2018 | IELTS Tips , Writing | 1

Today we’re going to look at an IELTS writing task 2 question that often makes students a little worried: the two-part question . This is also sometimes referred to as “the direct question” as it is more direct than other types of writing questions, such as advantages and disadvantages or causes and solutions .

In this lesson, I will show you what this question looks like and explain how to answer it.

Table of Contents

What is a two-part question, two-part question examples, analysing the question, structuring a two-part question essay, sample answer.

In IELTS writing task 2, there are different sorts of questions you may be asked. One of them is called the two-part question (or sometimes “the direct question”). It is most commonly called a two-part question because it contains two distinct questions.

Of course, some other questions also contain two parts. For example, a problem and solution essay is two parts. However, what we mean by a “two-part question” is one that contains two questions . The reason this is sometimes called a “direct question” task is that the questions themselves are more direct than other IELTS writing task 2 question types, which instruct candidates to explore an idea. This is rather vague , whereas the two-part question is very specific .

To understand this idea better, let’s look at an example two-part question:

In education and employment, some people work harder than others. Why do some people work harder? Is it always a good thing to work hard?

Ok, the first thing that you may notice is that there are three parts to this question! However, the first part is actually a lead-in statement. It is not particularly important. The parts that you need to address in your essay are the two questions. This is why some people say “two-part question” and others say “direct question”.

Here is another example:

Happiness is often considered difficult to define. Why is this? What factors determine happiness?

Here the first question contains a pronoun, “this”, which refers back to the idea in the first sentence. In other words, the first question is “Why is it often considered difficult to define happiness?”

Finally, here is one more example question:

Success is often measured by wealth and material possessions. Do you think wealth is the best measure of success? What makes a successful person?

As you can see by now, each question has three parts: an introductory statement and two individual (but related) questions. You will see this exact format used with numerous IELTS topics .

Sometimes the lead-in statement will be very long, and sometimes the questions are quite closely linked. Other times the statement may be short or the questions ask quite different things.

How to Answer Two-Part Questions

The first thing to remember is: DON’T PANIC! Two-part questions often make students a bit nervous, but really they are not so bad. They are no more difficult to answer than the other IELTS task 2 question types.

In fact, this type of question may even be the easiest one to answer!

Although the questions themselves are sometimes a bit challenging, they are direct questions . This means that it is less likely you will stray off-topic while writing. In other words, your task is actually more straightforward than it would be with an agree/disagree question, for example.

Let’s look at an example question so we can analyse it. This is the first thing you should do in any IELTS writing task 2 essay, and it’s important to spend a minute or two thinking carefully about it.

Some parents buy their children whatever they ask for, and allow their children to do whatever they want. Is this a good way to raise children? What consequences could this style of parenting have for children as they get older?

We can take three steps to analyse this question.

• Let’s look at the first sentence: What is it about? It is about permissive parents – ie parents who give their children too much (or who give in to their child’s demands) and let them do too many things.
• Next, the first question contains a pronoun (“this”) which refers to the ideas in the first sentence, and asks if it’s good or not.
• The second question talks about the consequences – not for the parents, but for the children.

I have deliberately chosen a slightly difficult question here in order to show you how to answer it. Usually, the questions are a little more direct and obvious, but here you need to consider the three sentences in order, making sure to understand each fully.

In a situation like this, if you make an incorrect assumption about the first or second parts of the sentence, it may cause a serious lack of coherence and cohesion , in addition to poor task achievement .

For example, if you thought it was just about children not being made to study enough, you might write the next paragraph all about a lack of studying and the following one may come back closer to the correct idea because of the more specific question. This would look bad, indicating a lack of unity in your writing.

Thankfully, it is not difficult to create a perfect two-part essay structure. In fact, it is very easy!

Here is a basic essay template:

In a previous article, I talked about whether to use a 4 or 5 paragraph essay . This is one case when you definitely want to use a four-paragraph essay.

Here’s the video, if you want to review it:

I have lots more posts on the topic of IELTS essay structures. Here are a few: 

• IELTS Writing Task 2 Essay Structures
• Planning IELTS Writing Task 2 Structure
• How to Structure a Paragraph

In this section, I will give you my sample answer to the above question, using the basic four-paragraph structure that I mentioned. Obviously, my ideas will be different to yours, but the structure which I outlined can be used 100% of the time.

In today’s society, some parents are becoming increasingly permissive. They do not impose sufficient discipline on their children, and in some cases buy them too many things. This essay will explore why this is not a good way to raise children and why it will have negative impacts upon them in future. While it is understandable that parents want to give their children expensive toys and let them run freely in the streets, this is actually not really an appropriate method of parenting. Having too many toys encourages children to be materialistic and does not offer them the same change to develop social skills like sharing. Furthermore, when children have asked for the toys, it gives them a sense of entitlement and even power over their parents. As for giving children too much freedom, there are obviously a great many dangers in this world from which they need to be kept safe. Children also need rules and boundaries to encourage them to develop into mature and responsible adults. If parents insist on this permissive style of parenting, their children will grow up with very different values from those of stricter parents. Children who were never forced to study will end up with poorer grades in school, and those who were given everything they wanted as children will expect everything to come easily as adults. In short, they will lead difficult and disappointing lives, in contrast with what their parents hoped. In conclusion, although it is tempting to give children whatever they want, parents ought to set rules and boundaries, and to be careful with how they reward children. If parents fail to impose a basic level of discipline, children may grow up with a poor attitude that will cause them and others to suffer.

There are really no words or phrases that are unique to the two-part question essay. Just use regular academic English as with any other IELTS task 2 question, and of course stick to the topic.

For my essay, I used the word “permissive.” It means allowing too much and not setting enough rules. You could use similar words like “liberal,” “easygoing”, “live and let live”, and so on, although they vary slightly in precise meaning.

Here are some more useful terms that you can use to talk about parents:

As always, remember to avoid IELTS phrases and other cliches. Learn new vocabulary by topic and in collocations rather than isolation.

Tips for Two-Part Questions

Finally, a few tips to remember:

• Practice this question type often before the exam – it’s pretty common!
• Make sure you understand each part of the question before answering.
• Always use the four-paragraph essay structure.
• Work on idea generation at home in order to come up with good, on-topic answers.

I made this article into a short video. Please give it a ‘LIKE’ and subscribe to the channel if you find it useful.

About The Author

David S. Wills

David S. Wills is the author of Scientologist! William S. Burroughs and the 'Weird Cult' and the founder/editor of Beatdom literary journal. He lives and works in rural Cambodia and loves to travel. He has worked as an IELTS tutor since 2010, has completed both TEFL and CELTA courses, and has a certificate from Cambridge for Teaching Writing. David has worked in many different countries, and for several years designed a writing course for the University of Worcester. In 2018, he wrote the popular IELTS handbook, Grammar for IELTS Writing and he has since written two other books about IELTS. His other IELTS website is called IELTS Teaching.

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could someone evaluate this and give the band score it deserves? here is my writing of the given topic….. In education and employment, some people work harder than others. 1. Why do some people work harder? 2. Is it always a good thing to work hard?

ans : It is often seen that some people put in more effort than others in the field of education and employment . The possible reasons could be due to the workload pressure or genuine passion .While passion for accomplishing task is a good thing, working hard due to constant pressure and other circumstances could be a problem . This essay explores the potential reasons as to why some work more than others and also discusses whether it is good to do so or not.

While students work hard due to their caliber and interest in studies working people work hard due to circumstances .Although there are a few students who study due to constant nagging by mentors or parents, most of them develop a genuine interest towards the subjects. Employers, on the other hand, work up to their innate potential to make both ends meet. For example, some workers work overtime that is for longer hours in order to earn higher salary or during the weekends to cope with the pending works . Sometimes they complete their tasks in advance in case they have any upcoming projects or plans outside the workplace to compensate for the missing working days.

Whether it is a good thing or a bad thing completely depends on the situation. Any work, no matter how important and urgent, if done against will and under high pressure will never give good outcomes . Instead it will lead to anxiety and stress if not accomplished on time. But if one is passionate and hungry for success and enjoys pursuing their interest, it will undoubtedly bear fruits and their hard work will eventually pay off.

All things considered, hard work is the key to success with respect to both education and employment. But it is important to make a note that one should have a great deal of passion and sincerity to achieve success and should not be forced to work due to helplessness or under pressure.

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Two-Part Essay Questions in IELTS Writing Task 2

Learn how to answer Two-part essay questions in IELTS writing Task 2 with an overview, recommended approach and practice question. by Tim Martyn

Example question

Recommended approach, practice question.

Two-part essay questions are a common question type in IELTS writing Task 2. You’ll be presented with a statement about some kind of trend or phenomenon. There will be two direct questions, which could ask for reasons, effects, solutions, advantages and disadvantages, or your opinion.

Here are some key points about Two-part essay questions:

• You should spend no more than 40 minutes on the task.
• You should write at least 250 words – you’ll be penalised if your answer is too short.
• Task 2 is worth two thirds of your total writing mark; Task 1 is worth one third.
• You must write in full sentences, not bullet points or note form.

Here’s an example Two-part essay question.

Write about the following topic: In many countries, it has become difficult for young people to afford to buy their own home. Why is this the case? What can be done about this problem? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Here’s my recommended approach for answering Two-part essay questions. We’ll use the example question to go through the steps you need to take.

IMPORTANT: The overall approach is the same for all  Task 2  question types (i.e. discussion, opinion, advantages–disadvantages and two-part essay questions). This is important because, on test day, you could get a question that doesn’t fall neatly into any of these categories. However, if you learn and practise applying the overall approach, you should be able to respond flexibly to any question you’re presented with. Also, while I generally recommend writing 4-paragraph essays, there are other structures you can use to write an effective essay.

Step 1  >  Analyse the question

The first step is to analyse the question. This is crucial – if you don’t take the time to analyse the question properly, you may misunderstand what it’s asking you or fail to respond to key parts of the question. Here’s our question prompt again.

You can see that we’ve been presented with a straightforward statement (i.e. that it has become difficult for young people in many countries to afford their own home), and then there are two direct questions. The direct questions are asking us to:

• give the cause(s) of the problem;
• suggest one or more solutions.

Notice that the question doesn’t actually use the words cause(s) or solution(s) . Because there are no plural or singular forms used, you’re free to include as many causes and solutions in your essay as you like (even just one of each). However, if the question uses plural forms (e.g. causes , effects , solutions ), you’ll need to include more than one of each.

Step 2  >  Think of ideas

Once you fully understand the question and what you’re required to do, the next step is to spend a few minutes thinking of ideas for your essay. Don’t try to brainstorm as many ideas as you can – all you need is a few good ideas. If you’re having trouble coming up with ideas, try asking yourself these questions:

• What are the most obvious ideas?
• If you asked 100 people for their ideas, what do you think most of them would say?

For Two-part essay questions, you need to think of ideas for the first direct question as well as for the second direct question. Again, pay attention to the wording of the question – if plural forms are used (e.g. solutions ), you’ll need to think of more than one.

Step 3  >  Make a plan

Once you’ve thought of some ideas, it’s time to make a plan. I’d recommend that you spend about 5 minutes on your plan. It doesn’t need to be very detailed, but it’s important to think about what examples you’ll use and how you’ll explain your points. If you think of these things in advance, you’ll be able to connect your ideas more effectively when you’re writing your essay. Don’t try to write in full sentences – you can use symbols and abbreviations. The important thing is just to get your ideas down on paper. The plan for this essay might look something like this.

Step 4  >  Write the introduction

Now that you’ve thought of ideas for your essay and made a plan, it’s time to write the introduction. IELTS doesn’t specify what you need to include in your introduction, but for Two-part essay questions, I recommend that you include:

• a paraphrase of the statement given in the question;
• a statement to show that your essay will cover both aspects of the question.

Let’s look at each of these parts one by one.

1. A paraphrase of the statement given in the question

An easy and effective way to start your introduction is to paraphrase the statement given in the question. At this stage, don’t mention the specific focus of the question (i.e. the two direct questions) – we’ll do that in the second part of the introduction. Keep in mind that you mustn’t copy the exact wording used in the question. Instead, you need to use synonyms and other forms of paraphrasing. You won’t be able find synonyms for everything. In fact, some words shouldn’t be replaced because doing so would change the meaning. Our paraphrase could be something like this: In many parts of the world, it has become very challenging for younger generations to be able to purchase a home of their own.

2. A statement to show that your essay will cover both aspects of the question

In the second part of the introduction, you should add a statement to show that your essay will cover both aspects of the question. For our question, we could write something like this: There is a variety of reasons for this, but steps can certainly be taken to tackle the issue.

If we put the two parts of the introduction together, this is what we have.

In many parts of the world, it has become very challenging for younger generations to be able to purchase a home of their own. There is a variety of reasons for this, but steps can certainly be taken to tackle the issue.

Step 5  >  Write the body paragraphs

The next step is to write the body paragraphs. Your first body paragraph should answer the first direct question, and your second body paragraph should answer the second direct question. This particular Two-part essay question doesn’t explicitly ask for our opinion, so it’s best to avoid phrases such as I think and In my opinion . However, other Two-part essay questions may ask for your opinion, in which case it’s appropriate to use such phrases. Here are some possible body paragraphs for our example.

Several factors are to blame for the financial difficulty young people face when trying to buy a home. Firstly, population growth in many countries has led to greater competition among buyers, which drives up prices. In parallel, there is often too little construction taking place, which makes the situation worse as supply cannot keep up with demand. In many countries, interest rates are also much lower than their long-term averages, which encourages people to borrow more and more money to outbid other buyers. As prices have increased, it has become increasingly difficult for younger buyers to save for a deposit, which effectively locks them out of the housing market. There are ways that this issue could be addressed. One solution is for governments to offer young people grants to help them afford their first home. Governments could place conditions on any such grant. For example, they could require that the property be a newly constructed one or that the money only be used to purchase a property in a regional area. Another way to deal with this issue is for governments to release more land for residential construction and offer builders financial incentives. This would help with the supply side of the equation. If there were more properties available, prices would inevitably come down.

Step 6  >  Write the conclusion

The next step is to write the conclusion. Here you need to summarise your answers to the two direct questions. Don’t just copy the words you used in other parts of the essay – use synonyms and paraphrasing as much as you can. Start your conclusion with In conclusion or To conclude . Here’s a possible conclusion for our example.

In conclusion, young people find it difficult to afford their own home primarily due to supply and demand factors. Unless governments take action by offering grants to young buyers or by releasing more land for new homes, the problem is unlikely to go away.

Step 7  >  Check your work

The final step is to check your work. At this stage, you won’t have time to make any major changes, but it’s still an important step. Things to check for:

• whether you’ve used an adequate range of grammar and vocabulary;
• your word count.

Now it’s your turn to practise. Try the Two-part essay question below using the approach outlined above.

Write about the following topic: In many countries, people from rural areas have been relocating to cities. Why is this the case? Do you think this is a positive or a negative development? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

↕  scrollable window

Click below for a sample answer.

Cities around the world have been growing as rural residents move to them in ever-increasing numbers, and there are several explanations for this. Overall, I see the trend towards urbanisation as a negative development.

People choose to relocate to cities for a variety of reasons. Economic opportunity plays a significant role as cities usually offer a wider array of jobs and industries. The limited opportunity in rural areas often means that people have no choice but to move to a city if they wish to improve their career prospects and earning potential. In addition, the range of services and amenities in cities can be strong incentives. For example, cities generally have better healthcare facilities, so those with health issues may decide to relocate to a city in order to have access to such facilities. Most urban centres also have a vibrant cultural and social scene, with diverse entertainment options including restaurants and nightclubs, which tends to attract younger people from rural areas.

I mostly see the phenomenon of people relocating to cities as a negative development. Rapid growth can place significant strain on a city’s infrastructure. For example, as more and more people move to a city, the number of vehicles on the road tends to rise significantly. This can lead to traffic congestion, longer commute times and deteriorating road conditions. Environmental degradation is another major issue associated with urbanisation as it contributes to air and water pollution and encroaches on natural habitats, which can lead to the extinction of animal species.

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IELTS Writing Task 2/ Essay Topics with sample answer.

Ielts academic and gt essay/ writing task 2 sample.

IELTS Writing Task 2 ( also known as IELTS Essay Writing ) is the second task of your IELTS Writing test. Here, you will be presented with an essay topic and you will be scored based on your ability to respond to the topic.

You need to write at least 250 words and justify your opinion with arguments, discussion, examples, problem outlining, proposing possible solutions and supporting your position. You will have approximately 40 minutes to finish your Essay Writing. IELTS Writing Task 2 carries more weights than Writing Task 1.

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IELTS Writing Task 2 – Topic: TWO – PART QUESTION

ielts writing topics 2019

1.  News editors decide what to broadcast on television and what to print in newspapers. What factors do you think influence these decisions? Do we become used to bad news, and would it be better if more good news was reported?  

Sample Answer

It is true that editors have to make difficult decisions about which news stories they broadcast or publish, and their choices are no doubt influenced by a variety of factors. In my opinion, we are exposed to too much bad news, and I would welcome a greater emphasis on good news.

Editors face a range of considerations when deciding what news stories to focus on. Firstly, I imagine that they have to consider whether viewers or readers will be interested enough to choose their television channel or their newspaper over competing providers. Secondly, news editors have a responsibility to inform the public about important events and issues, and they should therefore prioritise stories that are in the public interest. Finally, editors are probably under some pressure from the owners who employ them. For example, a newspaper owner might have particular political views that he or she wants to promote.

It seems to me that people do become accustomed to negative news. We are exposed on a daily basis to stories about war, crime, natural disasters and tragic human suffering around the world. I believe that such repeated exposure gradually desensitises people, and we become more cynical about the world and more sceptical that we can do anything to change it. I would prefer to see more positive news stories, such as reports of the work of medical staff after a natural disaster, or the kindness of volunteers who help in their communities. This kind of news might inspire us all to lead better lives.

In conclusion, it must be extremely difficult for editors to choose which news stories to present, but I would like to see a more positive approach to this vital public service.

 (285 words, band 9)

2.  Economic progress is often used to measure a country’s success. However, some people believe that other factors are more important. What other factors should also be considered when measuring a country’s success? Do you think one factor is more important than others?   

The relative success of different countries is usually defined in economic terms. There are several other factors, apart from the economy, that could be used to assess a country, and in my opinion education is the most important of all.

Standards of education, health and individual human rights should certainly be considered when measuring a country’s status. A good education system is vital for the development of any nation, with schools, colleges and universities bearing the responsibility for the quality of future generations of workers. Healthcare provision is also an indicator of the standard of living within a country, and this can be measured by looking at average life expectancy rates or availability of medical services. Finally, human rights and levels of equality could be taken into account. For example, a country in which women do not have the same opportunities as men might be considered less successful than a country with better gender equality.

In my view, a country’s education system should be seen as the most important indicator of its success and level of development. This is because education has a considerable effect on the other two factors mentioned above. It affects people’s health in the sense that doctors and nurses need to be trained, and scientists need to be educated to the highest levels before they can carry out medical research. It also affects the economy in the sense that a well-educated workforce will allow a variety of companies and industries to flourish, leading to trade with other countries, and increased wealth.

In conclusion, nations can be assessed and compared in a variety of ways, but I would argue that the standard of a country’s education system is the best measure of its success.

 (288 words, band 9)

3.  Many people prefer to watch foreign films rather than locally produced films. Why could this be?Should governments give more financial support to local film industries?

It is true that foreign films are more popular in many countries than domestically produced films. There could be several reasons why this is the case, and I believe that governments should promote local film-making by subsidising the industry.

There are various reasons why many people find foreign films more enjoyable than the films produced in their own countries. Firstly, the established film industries in certain countries have huge budgets for action, special effects and to shoot scenes in spectacular locations. Hollywood blockbusters like ‘Avatar’ or the James Bond films are examples of such productions, and their global appeal is undeniable. Another reason why these big-budget films are so successful is that they often star the most famous actors and actresses, and they are made by the most accomplished producers and directors. The poor quality, low-budget filmmaking in many countries suffers in comparison.

In my view, governments should support local film industries financially. In every country, there may be talented amateur film-makers who just need to be given the opportunity to prove themselves. To compete with big-budget productions from overseas, these people need money to pay for film crews, actors and a host of other costs related to producing high-quality films. If governments did help with these costs, they would see an increase in employment in the film industry, income from film sales, and perhaps even a rise in tourist numbers. New Zealand, for example, has seen an increase in tourism related to the ‘Lord of the Rings’ films, which were partly funded by government subsidies.

In conclusion, I believe that increased financial support could help to raise the quality of locally made films and allow them to compete with the foreign productions that currently dominate the market.

 (294 words, band 9)

4.  These days more fathers stay at home and take care of their children while mothers go out to work. What could be the reasons for this? Do you think it is a positive or a negative development?

It is true that men are increasingly likely to take on the role of househusband, while more women than ever are the breadwinners in their families. There could be several reasons for this, and I consider it to be a very positive trend.

In recent years, parents have had to adapt to various changes in our societies. Equal rights movements have made great progress, and it has become normal for women to gain qualifications and pursue a career. It has also become socially acceptable for men to stay at home and look after their children. At the same time, the rising cost of living has meant that both marriage partners usually need to work and save money before starting a family. Therefore, when couples have children, they may decide who works and who stays at home depending on the personal preference of each partner, or based on which partner earns the most money.

In my view, the changes described above should be seen as progress. We should be happy to live in a society in which men and women have equal opportunities, and in which women are not put under pressure to sacrifice their careers. Equally, it seems only fair that men should be free to leave their jobs in order to assume childcare responsibilities if this is what they wish to do. Couples should be left to make their own decisions about which parental role each partner takes, according to their particular circumstances and needs.

In conclusion, the changing roles of men and women in the family are a result of wider changes in society, and I believe that these developments are desirable.

 (274 words, band 9)

5.  Happiness is considered very important in life. Why is it difficult to define? What factors are important in achieving happiness?

It is no doubt true that the majority of people would like to be happy in their lives. While the personal nature of happiness makes it difficult to describe, there do seem to be some common needs that we all share with regard to experiencing or achieving happiness.

Happiness is difficult to define because it means something different to each individual person. Nobody can fully understand or experience another person’s feelings, and we all have our own particular passions from which we take pleasure. Some people, for example, derive a sense of satisfaction from earning money or achieving success, whereas for others, health and family are much more important. At the same time, a range of other feelings, from excitement to peacefulness, may be associated with the idea of happiness, and the same person may therefore feel happy in a variety of different ways.

Although it seems almost impossible to give a precise definition of happiness, most people would agree that there are some basic preconditions to achieving it. Firstly, it is hard for a person to be happy if he or she does not have a safe place to live and enough food to eat. Our basic survival needs must surely be met before we can lead a pleasant life. Secondly, the greatest joy in life is usually found in shared experiences with family and friends, and it is rare to find a person who is content to live in complete isolation. Other key factors could be individual freedom and a sense of purpose in life.

In conclusion, happiness is difficult to define because it is particular to each individual, but I believe that our basic needs for shelter, food and company need to be fulfilled before we can experience it.

 (292 words, band 9)

6.  Many people decide on a career path early in their lives and keep to it. This, they argue, leads to a more satisfying working life. To what extent do you agree with this view? What other things can people do in order to have a satisfying working life?

It is true that some people know from an early age what career they want to pursue, and they are happy to spend the rest of their lives in the same profession. While I accept that this may suit many people, I believe that others enjoy changing careers or seeking job satisfaction in different ways.

On the one hand, having a defined career path can certainly lead to a satisfying working life. Many people decide as young children what they want to do as adults, and it gives them a great sense of satisfaction to work towards their goals and gradually achieve them. For example, many children dream of becoming doctors, but to realise this ambition they need to gain the relevant qualifications and undertake years of training. In my experience, very few people who have qualified as doctors choose to change career because they find their work so rewarding, and because they have invested so much time and effort to reach their goal.

On the other hand, people find happiness in their working lives in different ways. Firstly, not everyone dreams of doing a particular job, and it can be equally rewarding to try a variety of professions; starting out on a completely new career path can be a reinvigorating experience. Secondly, some people see their jobs as simply a means of earning money, and they are happy if their salary is high enough to allow them to enjoy life outside work. Finally, job satisfaction is often the result of working conditions, rather than the career itself. For example, a positive working atmosphere, enthusiastic colleagues, and an inspirational boss can make working life much more satisfying, regardless of the profession.

In conclusion, it can certainly be satisfying to pursue a particular career for the whole of one’s life, but this is by no means the only route to fulfilment.

 (310 words, band 9)

7.  There are many different types of music in the world today. Why do we need music? Is the traditional music of a country more important than the international music that is heard everywhere nowadays?

It is true that a rich variety of musical styles can be found around the world. Music is a vital part of all human cultures for a range of reasons, and I would argue that traditional music is more important than modern, international music.

Music is something that accompanies all of us throughout our lives. As children, we are taught songs by our parents and teachers as a means of learning language, or simply as a form of enjoyment. Children delight in singing with others, and it would appear that the act of singing in a group creates a connection between participants, regardless of their age. Later in life, people’s musical preferences develop, and we come to see our favourite songs as part of our life stories. Music both expresses and arouses emotions in a way that words alone cannot. In short, it is difficult to imagine life without it.

In my opinion, traditional music should be valued over the international music that has become so popular. International pop music is often catchy and fun, but it is essentially a commercial product that is marketed and sold by business people. Traditional music, by contrast, expresses the culture, customs and history of a country. Traditional styles, such as …(example)…, connect us to the past and form part of our cultural identity. It would be a real pity if pop music became so predominant that these national styles disappeared.

In conclusion, music is a necessary part of human existence, and I believe that traditional music should be given more importance than international music.

 (261 words, band 9)

8.  Nowadays the way many people interact with each other has changed because of technology. In what ways has technology affected the types of relationships that people make? Has this been a positive or negative development?  

It is true that new technologies have had an influence on communication between people. Technology has affected relationships in various ways, and in my opinion there are both positive and negative effects.

Technology has had an impact on relationships in business, education and social life. Firstly, telephones and the Internet allow business people in different countries to interact without ever meeting each other. Secondly, services like Skype create new possibilities for relationships between students and teachers. For example, a student can now take video lessons with a teacher in a different city or country. Finally, many people use social networks, like Facebook, to make new friends and find people who share common interests, and they interact through their computers rather than face to face.

On the one hand, these developments can be extremely positive. Cooperation between people in different countries was much more difficult when communication was limited to written letters or telegrams. Nowadays, interactions by email, phone or video are almost as good as face-to-face meetings, and many of us benefit from these interactions, either in work or social contexts. On the other hand, the availability of new communication technologies can also have the result of isolating people and discouraging real interaction. For example, many young people choose to make friends online rather than mixing with their peers in the real world, and these ‘virtual’ relationships are a poor substitute for real friendships.

In conclusion, technology has certainly revolutionised communication between people, but not all of the outcomes of this revolution have been positive.

 (257 words, band 9)

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IELTS Two-part Question Essay Sample (Corrected)

Millions of people every year move to english speaking countries such as australia, britain or america, in order to study at school, college or university..

Why do so many people want to study English?

Why is English such an important international language?

English speaking countries like Australia, the USA and Britain are becoming a more popular destination destinations for students to study English. In this essay, I will discuss why English is such a n important language and why so many people want to study this language it .

English is a door - opener to well - paid jobs and the most used language among travellers, that's which is why so many students desire to study English as a second language. Many international companies require English skills as a minimum requirement for a job. A lot of people are studying English just to have a better change chance to get a well - paid job. Travelling is another reason why many people study English ; to travel without English skills can be very challenging, especially with customs on in airports. English is quite handy in a globalised world where English is the standard.

But However , English is not just important for individuals . it It is also a very important language for since and worldwide operating companies . For example, scientific research is done in English, so that the research can be published easier more easily to a global audience. Without a global audience, only a fraction of scientists would be able to finance themself themselves .

To sum up, without English the world would be running less smoothly from applying for a n international job to travelling : everything would be much harder. Scientific progress and international companies would be almost not possible impossible . I think English is irreplaceable for our society irreplaceable .

(233 words)

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• You must write at least 250 words.
• The task asks two questions and wants reasons. Not just one reason.

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100 IELTS Essay Questions

Below are practice IELTS essay questions and topics for writing task 2. The 100 essay questions have been used many times over the years. The questions are organised under common topics and essay types. IELTS often use the similar topics for their essays but change the wording of the essay question.

In order to prepare well for writing task 2, you should prepare ideas for common topics and then practise applying them to the tasks given (to the essay questions). Also see model essays and tips  for writing task 2.

Below you will find:

• Essay Questions By Topic
• Essay Questions by Essay Type (for example Opinion, Discussion etc)

Please also note that my new Grammar E-book is now available in my store along with my Ideas for Essay Topics E-book and Advanced Writing Lessons. To visit store, click here: IELTS LIZ STORE

1) Common IELTS Essay Questions

IELTS practice essay questions divided by topic. These topics have been reported by IELTS students in their tests. Essay questions have been recreated as accurately as possible.

• Art   (5 essay questions)
• Business & Money   (17 essay questions)
• Communication & Personality   (20 essay questions)
• Crime & Punishment   (12 essay questions)
• Education   (17 essay questions)
• Environment   (12 essay questions)
• Family & Children   (8 essay questions)
• Food & Diet (13 essay questions)
• Government (6 essay questions)
• Health   (9 essay questions)
• Housing, Buildings & Urban Planning (8 essay questions)
• Language (6 essay questions)
• Leisure (1 essay question)
• Media & Advertising   (12 essay questions)
• Reading  (5 essay questions)
• Society   (10 essay questions)
• Space Exploration (3 questions)
• Sport & Exercise   (6 essay questions)
• Technology  (6 essay questions)
• Tourism and Travel   (11 essay questions)
• Transport  (7 essay questions)
• Work (17 essay questions)

2) IELTS Essay Questions by Essay Type 

There are 5 main types of essay questions in IELTS writing task 2 (opinion essays, discussion essay, advantage/disadvantage essays, solution essay and direct question essays). Click on the links below to see some sample essay questions for you to practice with at home.

• Opinion Essay Model Answer with Useful Tips
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• Solution Essay Model Answer with Useful Tips
• Direct Questions Model Essay 
• Adv/Disadv Model Essay with Useful Tips

3) Recent Essay Topics

You can also track recent essay topics on this page: IELTS ESSAY TOPICS 2024

Note: you must also prepare all other topics on the page above because questions are recycled each year.

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Double Question Sample IELTS Essay – Technology

Nowadays the way people interact with each other has changed because of technology. 

In what ways has technology affected the types of relationships people make? 

Has this become a positive or negative development?

Modern advancements have altered the way we communicate with one another. This essay will discuss how we can now form bonds with people all over the world, and then state that on the whole, this is a very welcome development.

For the first time in human history, people can communicate with someone they have never met before, in a country they have never been to, through the internet. These may not be the same kind of friendships we traditionally form face-to-face, but it is hard to dispute that they are not ‘relationships’. Social media, such as Facebook and Instagram, provide a platform that allows us to chat and comment on someone else’s life instantaneously. For example, there are now IELTS groups on Facebook where students can help and support each other by providing helpful resources and feedback on essays.

Overall, this new phenomenon has great benefits, principally encouraging tolerance of other cultures. Before computers we hardly ever came across someone from another culture, let alone people from a myriad of different places in one Facebook group. This has led to people understanding that we are all mostly the same and you should not judge someone because they were born in a different place. For example, thousands of Palestinians and Israelis have joined the same online groups that show support for peace and solidarity, something that would not have been possible 25 years ago.

In conclusion, the web has changed our interactions forever, making the world a global village where people can freely chat and form lasting connections and this essay only sees this as a good thing that will continue to bring citizens of the world together.

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How to Identify & Answer Two-part Question Types in IELTS Writing Task 2

In this article, we'll discuss Two-part question types and look at how to identify them and what essay structure you should use to answer them. After learning about this question type, you'll get a chance to look at some practice questions and a complete sample essay.

• How to identify Two-part question types in IELTS Writing Task 2
• The essay structure for the Two-part essay
• Free IELTS Writing Task 2 Two-part Sample Questions and Model Essays
• More IELTS Writing Task 2 Two-part Practice Questions

How to Identify IELTS Writing Two-part Question Types

In an Two-part question type, you will be given two questions and you will need to answer both questions. The two questions will be different. For example, you might need to assess the importance of an idea or action (e.g. How import is it?) and say whether you agree or disagree (e.g. Do you agree or disagree?). Here is an example question:

In education and employment, some people work harder than others. Why do some people work harder? Is it always a good thing to work hard?

Now let's look at how to structure your essay for a Two-part question.

IELTS Writing Task 2 Essay Structure - Two-part

Since you will have two questions to address, this is the best way to map out your ideas for the This is the best way to map out your ideas for the Two Part Essay: I. Introduction II. First Question III. Second Question IV. Conclusion

Below, we will detail how each paragraph should be written.

Introduction - In general, you will need 2-3 sentences for this paragraph. Since this is the first paragraph of your essay, you should paraphrase the questions that were given to you. In other words, rewrite the questions in your own words using synonyms. This will help you in a few ways. First, it will guarantee that your essay is on target and following the theme given to you in the questions. Secondly, it will give you a chance to show the examiners that you have a wide range of vocabulary and can call upon synonyms when necessary. The second sentence will introduce the specific topics that you plan to discuss in your main body paragraphs. Therefore, your introduction paragraph should look like:

• Rewritten Questions - Paraphrasing both questions (1-2 sentences)
• Outline/Opinion Sentence - This is where you will outline the essay. Remember: Your opinion will be embedded throughout the essay, but this is not an opinion essay.

First Question - This paragraph should be about 4-5 sentences long. In this paragraph, you will describe the specific views with explanations, details, or examples. The paragraph should look like this:

• Topic Sentence - This will introduce the first question.
• Explanation/Detail of First Question
• Result - This is where you answer the question.
• Example to Support the Result

Second Question - This paragraph should be about 4-5 sentences long. In this paragraph, you will describe the specific views with explanations, details, or examples. The paragraph should look like this:

• Topic Sentence - This will introduce the second question.
• Explanation/Detail of Second Question

Conclusion - This paragraph will wrap everything up, and it is not the time to add any new information into your essay. This paragraph should be around 2-4 sentences , and include the following information:

• Summary of the Main Points (1-2 sentences)
• Recommendation or Prediction (1-2 sentences)

In short, here is what the final Paragraph Planner would look like for this outline:  

IELTS Writing Two-part Sample Question and Model Essay

Introduction:

These days, the relationship people have with each other has been affected by advancements in technology. There are several ways in which relationships have been negatively affected by technology. (29 words) Paragraph 1:

Technology has greatly impacted relationships. One of the major ways is that nowadays, people have more acquaintances and fewer close friends. For example, many people may have hundreds and thousands of friends on social media websites like Facebook as it is easy to connect through these websites. Thus, technology has led to less face-to-face interaction between people. Because using social media sites has become an integral part of the lives of many people these days and connecting with others has become so much easier as a result of such sites, most people spend more time online chatting with their friends than actually meeting them face-to-face.    (105 words) Paragraph 2:

I believe that the above changes have been negative. Firstly, people now feel lonelier as they spend more time with the computer rather than with other human beings. Studies have shown that people need real face-to-face interaction if they want to remain emotionally healthy, and the lack of such communication has made many people become lonely and even depressed. Consequently, many people who use technology to communicate with others are gradually losing important social skills. These days, it is very common for people to communicate and express themselves using emoticons or other forms of expression that are common online. However, an unfortunate consequence of all this is that people do not know how to express themselves properly using their body language or tone of expression. (124 words) Conclusion:  

To sum up, people have fewer close friends and have less direct contact with people due to technology. This development is negative as it is easier for people to feel lonely because of this and they are becoming less adept in social situations. Given this situation, it is recommended that people should seek to spend less time on electronic devices in order to improve their relationships with others. (68 words) Total Word Count:   326 words Note: This type of essay will most likely have the highest amount of words. Why? Because you are fully answering two questions.

This section presents a list of common IELTS Writing Task 2 - Two-Part Question questions. If you want to prepare for the IELTS Writing Test, these questions are a must study.

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