1. One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic congestion. What do you think the causes are? What solutions can you suggest?

Problem – I've missed the last bus home after visiting my friend for the evening.
Cause – I misread the timetable and thought the bus left at 22.45 when it actually left at 22.35.

The ‘cause’ is the reason for the ‘problem’. We’ll be looking at question analysis in more detail in a minute.

6 Common Mistakes
These six errors are common in IELTS problem solution essays.

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  Confusing problem and causes questions.
  

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  Having too many ideas.
  

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  Not developing your ideas.
  

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  Not developing both sides of the argument equally.
  

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  Not linking the problems and solutions.
  

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  Not being specific enough.
  

It is common for an essay to consist of a list of problems and solutions without any of them being expanded on or linked to each other. Sometimes, a student will focus on just the problem or only the solution which leads to an unbalanced essay. Both these issues will result in a low score for task achievement.
You must choose just one or two problems and pick solutions directly linked to them. Explain them and give examples.
Another serious error is to write generally about the topic. You need to be very specific with your ideas. Analysing the question properly is essential to avoiding this mistake. I’ll show you how to do this.



Essay Structure
Now let’s look at a simple structure you can use to write IELTS problem solution essays. It’s not the only possible structure but it’s the one I recommend because it’s easy to learn and will enable you to quickly plan and write a high-level essay.
1) Introduction

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  Paraphrase the question
  
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  State 1 key problem/cause and related solution
  

2) Main body paragraph 1 – Problem or Cause

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  Topic sentence – state the problem or cause
  
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  Explanation – give detail explaining the problem or cause
  
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  Example – give an example