while preparing for this video I checked through lots of reported Task 2 questions
as well as official IELTS publications such as the Cambridge Practice tests I was looking for
questions asked again and again in various forms but on one topic that would stand out to me I made
a note of each question looking for patterns and I found some this topic is social media let's
use it to understand all the IELTS question types the differences between them and what examiners
look for in each type to award a Band 7 or an even higher score it's Asiya let's get started
let's start off with a problem solutions task the use of social media is replacing
face-to-face interaction articulate among many young people this is our problem what are the
causes of this problem or what are the reasons for this why is this what can be done to solve
it or what are some of the solutions to answer these questions you need to offer several causes
and several Solutions the easiest way is to group all your causes in one body paragraph
and all these Solutions in the other it's also possible to present one cause and its solution
in one paragraph then the next cause and its solution in the next paragraph I'd say three
body paragraphs Max usually two how would you start your essay let's have a look at the first
paragraph the young especially teenagers spend far too much of their day using social media instead
of interacting with their peers offline it begins with a short topic sentence which simply informs
us of the situation there are many possible reasons for this among which are wider reach
fear of rejection and convenience the second sentence gives several reasons but there are
no details no examples whatever the reasons behind this phenomenon however it is clearly detrimental
to both their physical and mental health and should be addressed here we just mentioned that
the problem should be dealt with or our Solutions and there are TS in this paragraph We have what's
called a statement of opinion it is clearly which means it is clear to me but there is no actual
opinion we simply present the causes and solutions the next type of question is the direct opposite
agree disagree also known as an opinion essay here is our topic social media platforms such
as Instagram and Tik Tok have a negative impact on both individuals and Society therefore they should
be banned to what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement unlike the problem Solutions
essays we've just discussed where your opinion is not really required this task is all about
what you think should we ban Instagram and Tik Tok all together maybe as long as YouTube is not
banned why not seriously though different people may have different opinions on this you may agree
and argue that yes social media should be banned or disagree and say no everything should stay the
same or have an opinion somewhere in the middle a balanced opinion like they shouldn't be banned
but should be regulated better because there are clearly some problems there are many different
ways to organize this type of essay which will look much more in depth in my courses but let's
cover some of the options briefly you may give your opinion I agree in the introduction then
give two or three reasons why you agree in your body paragraphs this is the easiest way if you
have a balanced opinion you may describe what you agree with in one paragraph and what you disagree
with in the other but be careful you're not saying why you agree and why you disagree with the same
statement because that would make no sense rather which part of the statement you agree with and
which part you disagree with for example I agree that social media can impact us negatively L but
only if used too much so it should be regulated rather than simply band you may also add counter
arguments or things other people think which you disagree with and explain why you disagree with
them in this way you make your arguments stronger this is a more advanced version and you could get
a p seven without using it you know I work with several former examiners and they all very much
agree that with this type of essay you should State your opinion in the introduction right after
you paraphrase the question here is mine I would argue that social networking websites are not
necessarily harmful to anyone if used responsibly although serious issues may arise with excessive
use therefore social media should be regulated rather than banned in aats topics often involve
huge societal problems and you asked to solve them in a full paragraph essay but remember this is
not a school essay don't go for a smart opinion or try to explain what you really think because
it's probably quite complicated simplify it take several points and describe them logically and
clearly do you know the saying a confused mind says no in case of a examiners this is a no to
your band seven score okay problem and solutions and opinion essays are on the opposite sides of
the spectrum the form is just arguments the letter is just your opinion the rest of the essays are in
between moving on to our third type which we call two views and your opinion or a discussion ising
this is a common but trick type and a lot of test takers miss one of the key Parts in the answers so
let's look into it and which parts you absolutely must cover here is our task some people believe
that social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram prevent people from forming personal
relationships this is the first view others argue that these platforms bring people together this
is the second view discuss both these views and give your own opinion we have the two views and
you need to choose which one you agree with this is your opinion you may have a balanced opinion
just like in the agree disagree essay what's different is that in this type of essay you must
discuss both views you canot just say I agree with the first View and only talk about it to structure
your essay give your opinion in the introduction then present in turn the two sides along with your
opinion about them you may also choose to write a whole paragraph about what you think about those
two views this will be your third body paragraph and the final paragraph sums up everything you
must always pay attention to the question compare the exact wording of these two questions the
first opinion essay is more open we can choose between several interesting ideas to discuss are
we talking about time spent together online fake news uh lack of personal interactions or something
else it's up to you to choose it's so open that we need to narrow it down or we'll be writing all day
the second discussion is restrictive it's only about relationships it's too easy sometimes to
see a question without really reading it and jump in thinking great social media I know a
lot about it and then you're in danger of going off topic which would be very painful slow down
read the topic very carefully and then keep on reading it again while you're writing your essay
not to lose track of what's needed you've seen an example of an introduction now let me show
you a body paragraph I chose two ideas proponents of social media argue that these platforms play a
pivotal role in fostering relationships this topic sentence tells the reader what this paragraph is
going to be about now the first idea in many parts of the world families and friends find themselves
physically separated because of studies or the need to migrate for work being able to keep in
touch with the loved ones so easily through the platform of their choice makes a huge difference
to them the idea is that social media helps us maintain existing relationships now the
second idea is about forming new relationships moreover through these platforms individuals
can share common interests or experiences and form meaningful relationships with like-minded
peers these online connections May transition into offline friendships and collaborations
and now what I think about all this to wrap up the body paragraph I believe social media
platforms have great potential to facilitate personal relationships when people choose to
use them them this way the next type of task asks us to compare two sides the advantages and
disadvantages for example some argue that social media platforms encourage personal relationships
and the spread of knowledge others see them as socially isolating and a waste of time do the
advantages of using social media outweigh the disadvantages no different to the two views
type in the introduction present the topic and your opinion which are greater Pros or
cons in the body paragraphs discuss both the advantages and the disadvantages again just
like in the previous essay you must discuss both sides not just the side you agree with and in
the conclusion summarize your point of view and the main arguments so far I've been showing you
some paragraphs from each each type of essay now have a look at this idea where could we include
it most young people these days suffer because they lead a more sedentary lifestyle for example
children probably sit at home after school playing games chatting and looking at Tik Tok
or YouTube rather than playing with their friends outdoors in how many essays could we include this
could we included into a paragraph about the disadvantages yes in an agree disagree essay
to say that social media should indeed be banned Yes actually we could use it in all four essays
we've looked into so far because it refers to the negative impact of social media it all depends
on how we put our thoughts together now let's have a look at the conclusion to the advantages
disadvantages is essay to sum up I believe that when used appropriately social media platforms
can be of enormous value both for keeping in touch with friends and for educational purposes
however the amount of time people sometimes waste by staring at their smartphones engaged
in meaningless activities clearly demonstrates the downside of this technology so the first sentence
refers to the positives which I think outweigh the negatives when used appropriately but I mentioned
the drawbacks too the time will waste there's one more type of question two direct questions or a
twart question here's the task young people spend more and more time on social networks why is this
the case what are the disadvantages of this trend it appears to to be a little more straightforward
because in the introduction you paraphrase the two questions no opinion required and then you
answer each question in a separate body paragraph so you may need to express your opinion if one of
the questions is like do you agree in our case we need reasons and disadvantages that's it I
think there is more complexity in agree disagree to views and advantages disadvantages questions
however you should prepare for each type and if you'd like to learn in depth how to answer
each type of question how to express your opinion where to express it how to develop your ideas in
your body paragraphs how to select those ideas and all the other things we haven't done today
check out my online courses I do believe they can save you a lot of preparation time and help
you achieve better results and if you'd like a taster watch this indepth lesson on how to
write an introduction for each type of task to question it's coming from my courses and
thank you so much for watching me today good luck with your preparation and your exam bye