IELTS Essay Types (Part 2)
In a previous blog post, we examined two essay types that IELTS teachers commonly teach their students – Analysis and Opinion.
Here are three more types that frequently appear in IELTS Writing.
Type 3: Discussion Essay
This variety gets test takers to discuss in-depth two sides of a topic. For instance, the question might get you to discuss the advantages and disadvantages, or the benefits and drawbacks, of a situation or development.
Example Task
Shopping has developed from a necessary activity to a kind of entertainment.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of this development?
Test Tip
Remember that when answering this type of an essay, it would be folly to fully develop just one side, leaving the other side underdeveloped. In order for you to meet the requirements of the task, it’s important that both sides are sufficiently developed.
Type 4: Discussion plus Opinion Essay
Here, test takers need to not only discuss two contrastive views on a topic, but also provide their own opinion. A variant of this type asks the test taker to decide whether the advantages of something outweigh its disadvantages.
Example Task
The heads (CEO, Director, etc) of companies are paid a lot more money as salary than ordinary workers. Some people say this is necessary, whereas others say it is unfair.
Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
Test Tip
You may lose bands if you only briefly state your opinion without making an effort to substantiate what you’ve said.
Type 5: Hybrid Essay
At first glance it’s easy to confuse this type with an Analysis Essay, because both of them follow the two-part question pattern. However, the key difference is that one of the two questions in a Hybrid Essay tends to look for the test taker’s opinion on the topic.
Example Task
An increasing number of advertisements these days are being aimed at children.
What are the effects of this on children? Should such advertisements be controlled in any way?
Test Tip
To ensure that you adequately answer all parts of the task, it’s best to dedicate one paragraph to each question.
Now that you’ve become familiar with some of the IELTS essay types, draw up strategies for each so that Task 2 will be a breeze on test day.