An increasing number of professionals such as doctor and teacher are leaving their own poorer countries to work in developed countries. What problem does this cause? What can be done to deal with this situation? IELTS Writing Task 2 Sample Question

In the IELTS Writing Task 2, which is featured in both the Academic and General Training modules, candidates are required to craft an essay in response to a particular perspective, argument, or issue. This essay should be written in a formal style, contain at least 250 words, and be completed within a 40-minute timeframe. Your ability to address the given topic and arrange the ideas clearly with varied vocabulary will be assessed.
Marking Criteria for IELTS Writing Task 2
An IELTS candidate’s writing ability is evaluated based on the following parameters in the Writing Task 2 of IELTS:
Task Achievement
To effectively address the given question, try to provide a clear and relevant response. You can begin by directly answering the question posed, ensuring that you fully understand and do not divert away from the topic throughout your response. While presenting information in a well-organized manner, you must address all the aspects of the question and include paragraphs.
Coherence and Cohesion
For coherence and cohesion, the essay must be logically organized with separate paragraphs with smooth transitions of ideas. It is essential to not make unnecessary repetition of words and phrases. For better cohesion, transitional phrases and linking words should be incorporated so that your writing has readability and is easy to follow.
Lexical Resource
In terms of lexical resource, you should use precise and a varied range of vocabulary. This involves selecting words that accurately convey your meaning and avoiding common errors in spelling and word choice. You can indicate a strong command of language by using synonyms and avoiding repetitive terms.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Use a range of grammatical structures and tenses accurately. Ensuring proper subject-verb agreement, correct punctuation, and well-constructed sentences is essential. You should avoid complicated sentences at all costs, as they can lead to confusion. However, employing a combination of simple and complex sentences will help you present your ideas effectively.
Types of Essays in IELTS Writing Task 2
Primarily, six types of essays come in the IELTS Writing Task 2 where each type has its own unique structure, approach, and requirements. Before anything else, you must know the different types of essays that need to be attempted when sitting for the IELTS exam:
Discussion Essay: In a discussion essay, you will be given a particular argument or viewpoint, and you will be asked to examine and discuss both sides of it. This involves presenting arguments for and against the issue at hand. You may also be asked to share your personal viewpoint on one side of the argument. However, if the prompt does not clearly mention giving your opinion, you should never include it in your response.
Advantages and Disadvantages Essay: You will be required to explore the positive and negative aspects of a specific topic. Also, you will find ‘outweigh essays’ where you will be asked to analyze if the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. However, if your opinion is not solicited, then you should focus solely on discussing the advantages and disadvantages without including your personal stance.
Balanced Opinion Essay: It involves presenting a perspective that acknowledges both sides of a given argument. You must express a balanced view by agreeing with part of the argument while also recognizing the validity of the opposing side. For such essays, it is crucial to take a definitive stance on which side you support more strongly in the introduction and conclusion.
Two Questions or Direct Question Essay: In this format, you will be asked one or more specific questions that require direct responses. On top of that, your essay should clearly address each question, providing relevant examples and evidence to support your answers. You will write straightforward and focused answers to the questions posed in the prompt.
Opinion-Based Essay: You will be expected to present and elaborate on your personal views regarding a particular subject. You should clearly state whether you agree or disagree with the given argument and provide supporting reasons for your stance. You are expected to concentrate solely on your agreed-upon viewpoint and avoid discussing any opposing opinions.
Problem-Solution or Cause-and-Effect Essay: In such essays, the requirement is to analyze a specific problem by identifying its causes and proposing potential solutions. The prompt will outline a particular issue, and your task is to explore its origins and suggest possible ways to solve it.
Phrases to avoid in your IELTS essay
Learning words is evident among candidates but crafting your own sentences is the pivotal aspect for securing a high band score. Those sentences must also be relevant to the topic you are assigned. If you use memorized sentences, the examiner can make it out if the sentence you wrote is typical of your level of English.
“This essay will discuss both sides and give a final opinion at the end.”
This sentence contains the thesis statement but highlights no main points or adds any information which makes it poor. Even the sentence “I shall give my opinions and reasons in the subsequent paragraphs” lacks newness. Although it is used for an academic essay, it is not appropriate to be written in the IELTS writing test.
“….the aforementioned arguments offer insights into the repercussions/ advantages giving an impression that…”
While writing the conclusion, this sentence should be avoided. Rather, restating the main points without using learned phrases is encouraged.
“The crux of the discussion is…”
Instead of writing this typical sentence, it is ideal to begin with “the key aspect...”, and “one of the major issues is…” to keep it more natural.
“In a nutshell…”
While this idiom is used by many candidates, it is inappropriate and informal for incorporating in the IELTS essay writing task 2.
“it can broaden a person's horizons.”
This is an overused sentence written by many candidates in writing the essay. Rather than this, it is best to jot down “opening their mind to something”, or “gaining a deeper understanding of something” to make it seem natural instead of showing a few learned words.
An increasing number of professionals such as doctor and teacher are leaving their own poorer countries to work in developed countries. What problem does this cause? What can be done to deal with this situation?: Writing task 2 topic
Identifying the essay type
Before you start writing your essay, it’s important to go through the planning stage, where you’ll identify the type of IELTS Writing Task 2 topic by analyzing the instruction words following the statement or argument
In the given sample topic, the instructions are: "What problem does this cause? What can be done to deal with this situation?" These instructions indicate that the essay should be categorized as a problem/solution essay.
The first part, "What problem does this cause?" asks you to identify the problems emerging because of the emigration of professionals to developed countries. The second part, "What can be done to deal with this situation?" requires you to suggest solutions and measures to address and alleviate the problem and its consequences. Together, these components clearly define the essay as a problem/solution type.
Structure of problem/ solution essay:
Introduction: Paraphrase and state the background information that is given in the topic.
First body paragraph: Discuss the problem thoroughly and give examples to validate your logical explanation/ reasons.
Second body paragraph: State and discuss the solutions to the problem.
Third body paragraph (optional): Suppose you have lots of content to support the reasons for the problem, then you can extend that aspect into the second paragraph, and delineate the solutions in the third.
Conclusion: Recapitulate everything that has been argued.
Sample Answers
Band 6
Country with more standard of living brings more educated people from poor economic nations. This movement of individuals to develop nation causes overpopulation in other nations and less welfare in where they live earlier. And, to solve this thing, improvement and focus on original country and the country where they are going to needs to be made.
A lot of professional think that they are deserving and wanting best living condition which is why they should move abroad. This make them leave their home in search of best opportunity. Due to migrate, there is a reduction in number of skilled workers in the home land, which make a shortag of learned individuals. As a result, the nation which are poor lose educated people, but the rich country suffer coming of many qualifying professionals every day. The bad part is it gives rise to unemployment, and make their living condition bad as there is more and more competition but less vacancy. This may lead to the poverty of professional. There are places where the unemployment rate among professionals is more comparing to working class.
To adress issue of welfare and job, government needs to plan and act. In the poor country, the government can improv working condition and develop more sectors of industry to provide work to those that have less income. When the demand for employment is reached, people will not move to over populate other countries. Also, the developed region can create more strategies relating to expanding a sector or industries to meet increase demand for service.
To sum up, when skill individuals migrate, it slow development in the homecountry, and increase employment issue in new ones. Therefore, new opportunities should be must in both types of countries.
Views on the essay: In bold, there is an indication of cohesion and coherence, where such sentences can be improvised for clear flow, and appropriate linking words can be used. In italics, lexical resource criteria is stated in this essay where there are evident missing determiners, spelling, and word usage errors, eg. “overpopulate” should be overcrowded. Lastly, the combined italics and underlined highlights indicate that there are grammatical errors, such as punctuation, tense-based, and subject-verb agreement issues in the essay which has led to a low score in grammatical range and accuracy.
Band 7
Currently, there had been an evident increase in the no. of professionals, whether doctors, engineers, or educators, leave their homecountry and move to advance nation in search of high-level services. In this essay, there will be an exploration of potential issues emerge from the situation and discovering measures to lessen it.
Professionals move to developed nations very often for several reasons. The not-so-adequate money in homecountry is responsible for making finance-related challenges. Because of this, individual and families are forced for cutting consuming essential food, from food and healthcare, as they are in a low-salaried job and their working conditions differ. More than that, people live their original country because of inner conflict or insecurity. In area of violence like Afghanistan, individual are never willing to stay there and hence look to move away for safety and stable lives, to not fall victim into violent activities or avoid danger.
Subsequently, several measure can be taken to solve such issues. The government can increase money for those involve in education, and the medical sector so that it helps them meet basic needs. They also should try to give health insurance schemes to these professionals which will make it sure that easy access to health facility is achieved. It is govts responsibility to include security solution so that people do not think of moving somewhere else. There can be peace programs and dispute resolve initiative that educate people on the ill affects of violence, as well as provide a safe community.
In summary, the brain drain of recent time among professionals is happened because of less pay, conflict, and safety concerns, but with the help of government support, there can be important improvement in the living condition which will not make them move to some other place.
Views on the essay: Coherence and cohesion are quite unproblematic here keeping the flow intact and progression smooth, except for one place that is highlighted in bold. The supporting example has enriched the essay. Italicized fonts indicate that there are minor spelling issues and inappropriate word usage at places that come within the lexical resource. For grammatical range and accuracy, there are tense and subject-verb agreement mistakes in each of the paragraphs, highlighted in italics and underlined, which must be corrected.
Band 9
The migration of adept professionals from economically disadvantaged nations to more prosperous countries has become an increasingly common occurrence, resulting in a complex array of issues. This essay will first delineate the multifarious challenges arising from this trend and subsequently propose a range of strategic solutions to address these concerns.
The emigration of skilled professionals, including doctors and educators, contributes to exacerbating pre-existing disparities in healthcare and education of the nation. Once there is the departure of these professionals, it often results in diminished access to high-quality and sophisticated medical care and educational resources for local populations, leading to elevated morbidity rates and limited learning opportunities. Being particularly acute in developing and underdeveloped regions, this issue creates challenges in ensuring good healthcare infrastructure and fundamental services. Additionally, the dearth of expertise has been known to stifle productivity and innovation, eventually impeding a country's economic performance. There is a failure to retain talented professionals which do not propel innovation or aid in sustaining economic advancement.
To effectively counter brain drain, a refined strategy blending individual and systemic approaches is essential. It is the government’s responsibility to boost investments in healthcare and education by providing lucrative salaries and augmenting work conditions to retain skilled professionals. Concurrently, individuals should take part in international exchange programs to acquire and utilize advanced skills upon their return. Enhancing domestic incentives, forging strategic partnerships for knowledge exchange, and fostering a dynamic economic environment are vital to diminishing emigration and strengthening local expertise.
In conclusion, the migration of skilled workers to wealthier nations poses considerable challenges for their home countries. Therefore, it is essential to address this issue sustainably and develop and implement effective policies aimed at retaining talent and promoting progress of society.
Conclusion
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