Theme : essay: writing about problems and solutions

# 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 chatting 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:
Cause:

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  Too many cars on the roads – increasing numbers of people own cars, more convenient than buses & trains
  

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  Inadequate public transport – crowded, old & dirty
  

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  Poor road layout
  

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  Rush hour traffic – most people travel to & from work at the same times each day
  

Solution:

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  Car sharing, park-and-ride scheme, congestion charge
  

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  Improve public transport – more frequent and better quality
  

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  Improve infrastructure – bus lanes, cycle lanes will make it safer for people to cycle
  

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  Flexible working hours
  

For each cause you think of, immediately write down a possible solution. This you will ensure that the problems and solutions you think of are linked.
You don’t need to spend long on this as you only need one or two ideas.
I’ve got more far more ideas here than I need as I spent more time thinking about it that I would in the real exam. I’m going to pick just one cause to develop in the essay and one or two solutions.
My advice on making your selection is to choose ideas you can quickly think of an example to illustrate.
Here are my choices:
Cause – Too many cars on the roads. Why? – increasing numbers of people own cars, more convenient than buses & trains
Solution – Park-and-ride schemes
We’re almost ready to start writing our IELTS problem solution essay but first, we have one more task to do.

Chapter II

2.1. Sample Essay Prompts and Essays
During the planning stage, quickly jot down some vocabulary that comes to mind as you decide which cause and solution 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 example:

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  traffic jam
  

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  heavy traffic
  

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  queue
  

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  vehicles
  

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  commute
  

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  rush hour
  

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  private transport
  

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  infrastructure
  

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