Simon’s ielts writing task 2

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Simon
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IELTS Writing Task 2
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Wednesday, August 13, 2014 
IELTS Writing Task 2: can you see the problem? 
Imagine that the question asks "to what extent do you agree or disagree?". Can you see the problem 
in the type of essay outlined below? 
..... 
Paragraph 1
Introduce the topic, then answer that you completely disagree 
Paragraph 2
Give the other side of the argument e.g. "On the one hand, many people believe..." 
Paragraph 3
Give your side of the argument e.g. "On the other hand, in my opinion..." 
Paragraph 4
Summarise the reasons why you disagree 
..... 

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Compiled by Diyorbek Hayitmurodov ielts-simon.com Page 100 
Many students make the mistake of writing their "agree / disagree" essays in this way. Can you see 
what's wrong and where the problem is? 
I think several people have summed up the problem well: it's the use of "many people believe" in 
paragraph 2. 
For "agree / disagree" essays, make sure that the whole of the essay is about YOUR opinion, not the 
opinion of other people. It's fine to have a balanced view, but you should show that it's YOUR 
balanced view e.g.: 
2) On the one hand, I accept that... 
3) On the other hand, I also believe that... 
Posted by: Simon | 
Friday, August 15, 2014 at 12:55
 
Wednesday, August 20, 2014 
IELTS Writing Task 2: do YOU agree? 
In last week's 
lesson
I asked whether you could see the problem with an essay outline. The problem 
was the use of "many people" in paragraph 2. 
If the question asks whether YOU agree or disagree, don't write a paragraph about what other people 
think. The whole essay should be about YOUR views. 
Click 
here
to see how I wrote a 'balanced opinion' essay. Notice that the opinions expressed are all 
my own; I don't mention what other people think.