This IELTS Writing Task 2 sample answer is from a past paper and was published in Cambridge 13.
The topic is foreign languages and it falls in the ‘social problems’ category of IELTS.
Read on for a sample answer from a former IELTS examiner (that’s me, Dave!), analysis, vocabulary practice, notes, links and more!
Here is another sample answer for IELTS Cambridge 13: IELTS Cambridge 13: Choice.
You can read my other sample answers here for Task 2 writing.
Here are my task 1 writing sample answers and here are the most recent questions on IELTS from 2019.
Be sure to avoid the mistakes that most students make on writing by signing up for my exclusive IELTS Ebooks here on Patreon.
Dave
IELTS Examiner Sample Answer: Foreign Languages (by Dave)
Living in a country where you have to speak a foreign language can cause serious social problems, as well as practical problems. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
One of the biggest social and practical challenges that people living abroad face is the language barrier. I believe that this can lead to very serious social problems in many countries but technology has made the practical issues less relevant over the last several decades.
The main reason that having to speak a foreign language can cause social problems is through the breakdown in understanding between people of different cultures. The most salient example of this is in the United States where there has been an influx of Hispanic immigrants, especially along the Southern border. These immigrants are typically able to integrate well if they learn English but those that have not learned have provoked social problems and even violent reactions. Many English speaking residents resent the immigrants failure to integrate and this has resulted in discriminatory practices and widespread racism towards Hispanics. This in turn has caused many Hispanics to develop an antipathy towards other residents and segregate themselves in homogeneous neighborhoods.
There are comparatively fewer practical problems caused by not knowing the language of the country where you live because of the development of technology in general and smartphones in particular. Computers have made it much easier to look up directions, find important information and get quick translations. Smartphones have made this even easier. If someone doesn’t know the language of the country where they live, they can still find restaurants to their liking on Facebook and get simple directions through Google Maps. They can even order food online without having to use another language at all. If they need to communicate with someone who does not speak their language they can simply take out their phone and use Google translate to slowly, but effectively, convey a message. The problems that not knowing the language of the country where you live causes are therefore minimal and easily overcome.
In conclusion, I only partly agree with the statement in question. Not knowing a language when living abroad can cause social unrest but pragmatic concerns have been mitigated by recent technology. In the future, it will become even less important to know the language of the country where you live although there is great potential for increased social unrest and heightened tensions in many parts of the world.
IELTS Examiner Sample Answer Analysis
One of the biggest social and practical challenges that people living abroad face is the language barrier. I believe that this can lead to very serious social problems in many countries but technology has made the practical issues less relevant over the last several decades.
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My first sentence simply paraphrases the question and topic. Write this sentence fast as it isn’t that important.
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My second sentence states my opinion and includes the main reason why (technology).
The main reason that having to speak a foreign language can cause social problems is through the breakdown in understanding between people of different cultures. The most salient example of this is in the United States where there has been an influx of Hispanic immigrants, especially along the Southern border. These immigrants are typically able to integrate well if they learn English but those that have not learned have provoked social problems and even violent reactions. Many English speaking residents resent the immigrants failure to integrate and this has resulted in discriminatory practices and widespread racism towards Hispanics. This in turn has caused many Hispanics to develop an antipathy towards other residents and segregate themselves in homogeneous neighborhoods.
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My first sentence is a topic sentence that states why not knowing the language of the country where you live can be a problem.
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My second sentence gives an example in the United States.
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My third sentence further explains this example.
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My fourth sentence states the results of this (in the United States).
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My fifth sentence further describes the results and continues to develop the same example. Pick one great example and develop it with 3 – 4 sentences.
There are comparatively fewer practical problems caused by not knowing the language of the country where you live because of the development of technology in general and smartphones in particular. Computers have made it much easier to look up directions, find important information and get quick translations. Smartphones have made this even easier. If someone doesn’t know the language of the country where they live, they can still find restaurants to their liking on Facebook and get simple directions through Google Maps. They can even order food online without having to use another language at all. If they need to communicate with someone who does not speak their language they can simply take out their phone and use Google translate to slowly, but effectively, convey a message. The problems that not knowing the language of the country where you live causes are therefore minimal and easily overcome.
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My first sentence is a topic sentence that states why not knowing the language of the country where you live isn’t much of a problem anymore because of technology.
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My second sentence explains how computers have made it easier to get translations.
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My third sentence extends this to smartphones.
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My fourth sentence gives two specific examples of Facebook and Google Maps helping people.
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My fifth sentence gives another example – ordering food online.
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My sixth sentence gives another example of using Google translate to have a conversation.
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My seventh sentence concludes that technology has made it easier to communicate with people who speak another language.
In conclusion, I only partly agree with the statement in question. Not knowing a language when living abroad can cause social unrest but pragmatic concerns have been mitigated by recent technology. In the future, it will become even less important to know the language of the country where you live although there is great potential for increased social unrest and heightened tensions in many parts of the world.
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My first sentence summarizes my position and makes it completely clear. It can never be too clear!
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My second sentence summarizes my argument that technology has done enough to overcome this problem.
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My third sentence extends my opinion by talking about how in the future this will be even less of a problem. I add the caveat that I may be wrong about certain parts of the world.
Sample Answer Vocabulary
What do the phrases highlighted below mean in your own words?
One of the biggest social and practical challenges that people living abroad face is the language barrier. I believe that this can lead to very serious social problems in many countries but technology has made the practical issues less relevant over the last several decades.
The main reason that having to speak a foreign language can cause social problems is through the breakdown in understanding between people of different cultures. The most salient example of this is in the United States where there has been an influx of Hispanic immigrants, especially along the Southern border. These immigrants are typically able to integrate well if they learn English but those that have not learned have provoked social problems and even violent reactions. Many English speaking residents resent the immigrants failure to integrate and this has resulted in discriminatory practices and widespread racism towards Hispanics. This in turn has caused many Hispanics to develop an antipathy towards other residents and segregate themselves in homogeneous neighborhoods.
There are comparatively fewer practical problems caused by not knowing the language of the country where you live because of the development of technology in general and smartphones in particular. Computers have made it much easier to look up directions, find important information and get quick translations. Smartphones have made this even easier. If someone doesn’t know the language of the country where they live, they can still find restaurants to their liking on Facebook and get simple directions through Google Maps. They can even order food online without having to use another language at all. If they need to communicate with someone who does not speak their language they can simply take out their phone and use Google translate to slowly, but effectively, convey a message. The problems that not knowing the language of the country where you live causes are therefore minimal and easily overcome.
In conclusion, I only partly agree with the statement in question. Not knowing a language when living abroad can cause social unrest but pragmatic concerns have been mitigated by recent technology. In the future, it will become even less important to know the language of the country where you live although there is great potential for increased social unrest and heightened tensions in many parts of the world.
Answers:
that people living abroad: people who live outside the country where they were born
language barrier: the challenge of talking to people who don’t speak your language
less relevant: not as important or related
breakdown in understanding: inability to understand
the most salient example: the best example, the one that stands out the most
influx: big rush of something
Hispanic: relating to Spain or to Spanish-speaking countries, especially those of Latin America
to integrate well: to become part of a group, community, or nation
provoked social problems: causes social problems
resent : feel angry towards
failure to integrate: inability to join a group, community, or nation
discriminatory practices: doing things to keep certain genders or races out/away
widespread racism: lots of people disliking an ethnic group or race
this in turn: this causes
antipathy: hatred
segregate: to separate or stay apart
homogeneous neighborhoods: communities with only 1 ethnic group
comparatively fewer: less of something compared to something else
in particular: this one area emphasized or standing out
look up directions: find the way to get somewhere
at all: in any way or completely
take out: to remove something from a pocket or somewhere else
convey a message: communicate something
minimal: negligible or little impact
easily overcome: not hard to get over
I only partly agree: agree to some extent but not 100%
pragmatic concerns: practical issues/questions
mitigated: make less severe or serious
great potential: a very good chance or possibility
social unrest: social problems
heightened tensions: stressful relationships between people or groups of people
Vocabulary Practice
One of the biggest social and practical challenges ____________________ face is the ____________________. I believe that this can lead to very serious social problems in many countries but technology has made the practical issues ____________________ over the last several decades.
The main reason that having to speak a foreign language can cause social problems is through the ____________________ between people of different cultures. ____________________ of this is in the United States where there has been an ____________________ of ____________________ immigrants, especially along the Southern border. These immigrants are typically able ____________________ if they learn English but those that have not learned have ____________________ and even violent reactions. Many English speaking residents ____________________ the immigrants ____________________ and this has resulted in ____________________ and ____________________ towards Hispanics. ____________________ has caused many Hispanics to develop an ____________________ towards other residents and ____________________ themselves in ____________________.
There are ____________________ practical problems caused by not knowing the language of the country where you live because of the development of technology in general and smartphones ____________________. Computers have made it much easier to ____________________, find important information and get quick translations. Smartphones have made this even easier. If someone doesn’t know the language of the country where they live, they can still find restaurants to their liking on Facebook and get simple directions through Google Maps. They can even order food online without having to use another language ____________________. If they need to communicate with someone who does not speak their language they can simply ____________________ their phone and use Google translate to slowly, but effectively, ____________________. The problems that not knowing the language of the country where you live causes are therefore ____________________ and ____________________.
In conclusion, ____________________ with the statement in question. Not knowing a language when living abroad can cause social unrest but ____________________ have been ____________________ by recent technology. In the future, it will become even less important to know the language of the country where you live although there is ____________________ for increased ____________________ and ____________________ in many parts of the world.
Links
Overcoming the Language Barrier Tips
Comment below – are there a lot of people who live in your country who can’t speak the national language?
Well, where I live…
It’s a bit of a mix actually in …
Honestly, it’s a huge problem in …
Frankly, we don’t really have to deal with this issue much in ….
Kindly take a look at my answer:
It is true that communicating in a different language than a local one is a requirement and lifestyle for people in some nations. However, different kinds of problems can arise out of any issues, and there is no exception to this one.
One obvious problem that the society should look at is how an older generation views this development. For one reason, old people tend to frown upon something they are not comfortable with. For example, in a society with a deeply ingrained conventional point of view, people are more likely to disapprove of how a younger generation uses a foreign language in a normal conversation, while the local one would do the job. However, in the meantime, people can also enjoy the diversity and beauty of the language which gives them a chance to express themselves in a new way they want. So, people of the previous generation might not appreciate the use of a foreign language, while younger people see it as an advantage.
Nevertheless, the actual problem can be an identity crisis as well. The truth is if there is an ever growing number of people using a foreign language, perhaps they will feel more comfortable with the new language than their own. Take English as an example. In my experience, I have seen people expressing themselves very well in English but in many occasions are stuck at communicating in a local one due to an inadequate amount of vocabulary. However, in this globalisation era, this trend cannot be completely avoided. As suggested by the definition, globalisation demands us to redefine how jobs, communications and developments should be done, and a foreign language is part of this. Therefore, if we want to go global, a foreign language will be what it takes, but less attention might be paid to the local identity.
In conclusion, I agree that a foreign language can certainly bring about problems for the society and how it functions. However, the benefits it brings should be taken into account as well. So, while being faced with the problems, we can also benefit from some accompanying advantages too.
Wow! Well done! Here are some corrections:
Paragraph 1: ‘from the local one’ requirement isn’t quite the right word… doesn’t make sense exactly ‘lifestyle choice’ don’t use phrases that are too general like ‘different kinds of problems can arise out of any issues, and there is no exception to this one’ try to write something that responds to this specific question.
Paragraph 2: ‘the older generation’ I don’t understand exactly why older people would be against this – be clearer – is it because they don’t have the opportunity or ability at their age to learn a language?
Paragraph 3: Very good! very specific and I understand your point exactly. The only issue is that it is unlikely people actually forget their native language – but it is more likely that they are more interested in culture in English – music, movies, etc and that changes their national identity.
Conclusiong: You must choose a side! This will get a 5 for task achievement because you didn’t choose a side.
Hope that answers your questions – let me know if you have any others!
Kindly take a look at my answer: There are an increasing number of people learning and using a foreign language in a different country. Owing to the fact that they might use it improperly which can lead to significant social problems and also practical problems. This social pheromone has increasing people’s concern.
From my point of view, I agree with it. For the reason that there are certain culture difference between countries. There is no doubt that people from various culture background will view one thing from different perspective, as a result, they might misunderstand each other. Asian people tend to refuse a gift to show their humbleness, however, American can fail to understand and thus feel upset about being rejected. It is also hard to social if you are not capable of using local language. This is especially common to find in foreign students. For example, most Chinese students are good at paper work but are too shy to speak and consequently, they tend to hang out with other Chinese students.
As for practical problems, it seems more serious because you may break the law. Take my friend as an example, he once smoked under a ‘Smoking Free’ sign since he thought it means smoking freely. Under this situation, he was faced fine even sent to jail.
Overall, if one hold the foreign language poorly, they will be faced with all kinds of dilemma in daily life: misunderstanding others, having trouble making friends with local people, etc. In the practical aspect, they will have the risk of disobeying the registration as well as break the law.
Sure! Some corrections ‘in different countries, The fact that they might use it improperly could lead to…, phenomenon is a great concern for many people, I agree with this view because…, cultural backgrouns, many different perspectives, are more likely to refuse, Americans, the local, this is more serious, since he thought it meant he could smoke freely, In this case, he could face a fine or even jail time, dilemmas, if one has poor command of a language, people, and so on, In terms of its practical aspects, risk of being rude as well as breaking the law.’ The gift one doesn’t work because it is not related to language – also take a look at the structure above and try to follow it more strictly! Good effort though!
I will be very appreciated if you check my essay and give a score
kind regards.
One of the social and practical challenges that people who live in a foreign country face is the language barrier. In my point of view, language is the main factor which should be taken into consideration when someone tries to adapt to a new nation and country. In this essay, I will try to address these problems.
Communication has a crucial role when a person settles to a new country and adapting a nation. For example, if we come across with conflict situations we should better explain ourselves in appropriate ways. At this point, being deprivation of speaking foreign language accurately would cause misunderstandings. Many immigrants are not integrated easily in their new societies unless able to talk and understand their tongue. Besides, unfortunately, there are still lots of racist minded groups around the world which making problems harder.
In addition to the social facts, lack of language has significant impacts on practical areas such as workplaces, educational institutions etc. For instance, even though English is valid and widely used at almost every university today, knowing the native language makes a great difference in many times. According to my experiences, majority of the teachers prefer their native language frequently. As a result of this most of foreign students couldn’t understand lessons efficiently during class.
In conclusion, I completely agree with that statement in the question. While living abroad, it is vital to know the language of the country which is for overcoming social and practical problems. Somehow people need to recognize this and therefore ought to improve themselves
Sure!
One of the biggest social and practical challenges that people who live in a foreign country face is the language barrier. In my point of view, language is the main factor which should be taken into consideration when someone tries to adapt to a new nation and country. In this essay, I will try to address the chief problems.
Communication plays a crucial role when a person settles to a new country and begins adapting. For example, if we come across conflicts we can better explain ourselves in an appropriate way. At this point, being unable to speak a foreign language accurately could cause misunderstandings. Many immigrants do not integratd easily in their new societies unless they are able to talk and understand others. Besides, unfortunately, there are still lots of racist groups around the world making problems harder.
In addition to the social facts, lack of language has a significant impact on practical areas such as the workplace, educational institutions and so on. For instance, even though English is valid and widely used at almost every university today, knowing the native language makes a great difference in many situations. In my experiences, the majority of the teachers prefer their native language . As a result of this most of foreign students cannot understand lessons effectively during class.
In conclusion, I completely agree with the statement in the question. While living abroad, it is vital to know the language of the country which is for overcoming social and practical problems. Somehow people need to recognize this and therefore ought to improve themselves.
Great work! If you need more help: course.howtodoielts.com
Kindly take a look at my answer;
Due to the spread of globalization, there has been a tendency that more and more people are starting to immigrate to the other country nowadays. Some people argue that living in a foreign country where you have to speak an additional language can cause not only serious social problems but also practical issues.
I agree with that idea the lives in a country where we do not well unable us to communicate with others spontaneously. There are two reasons why I agree with this idea
First of all, immigrants cannot understand how native speakers feel perfectly during the conversation with them. In my own experience, when I talk with English native speakers, I can understand what they are talking about, but I cannot make myself understood the subtle difference of word’s nuance such as “see”and “watch” specifically. Therefore, the perfect mutual understanding may be needed when we talk with foreigners
In addition, immigrants are not able to do work efficiently in a foreign country rather than their nationality. For example, immigrants from Japan are capable of doing both of presentation and tasks smoothly because they can utilize their mother language. On the other hand, immigrants from Japan is forced to speak foreign language such as English, French and Chinese in foreign countries, which can cause them to slow down their product efficiency because they are only permitted to speak additional languages.
To sum up,there is a possibility that a little difference between native speakers and immigrants can cause big problems. Perhaps it is needed to learn foreign languages more careful in case we do not face the bad situations.
Good work! The conclusion is a bit long – try to limit it to a maximum of 3 sentences and spend more time supporting your main ideas – that is much more important! ‘Cannot grasp the full meaning of what…, understood in terms of the subtle differences betweeen nuanced words such as…’ this paragraph could develop moreso or give a better example of the repercussions of not understanding such as when you are in a shop or talking to a teacher, something with greater stakes.
‘in a foreign country. are forced, which can slow their, only understood when speaking these languages’ This main idea and support is ok but would be better with a more specific example – what job exactly?
Good conclusion! (differences can lead to, to make life easier)
Hi, could you please take a look at my essay? I would really appreciate your help! :
“These days, many people seeking work and better life opportunities, decide to leave their home country and emigrate abroad. Very severe social issues and practical obstacles may appear when we live in a foreign country in which we can not use our mother tongue. This essay will argue that knowledge of different languages is essential for people who moved abroad to be able to communicate with the other members of society to avoid problems in everyday life.
Some people believe that it is not necessary to learn languages in case we want to change the place of living. There are some foreign- countries around the world, and Taiwan is a good example. Taiwanese and Chinese are the languages most frequently used on this island, however, it is not necessary to know them before we visit this place. The reason why is that most of the names of public sites, menu in restaurants and other signs are translated to English so it makes it easier to travel around the island and stay there. Communication skills consist not only of speech and the very important part of interacting with other people is body language which can help us to solve many problems even if we don’t know the language.
On the other hand, when we are able to communicate in a foreign language it can prevent us from having difficulties in many situations. Not being able to talk in the official language, can make life more complicated and mastering this skill in the new country is crucial to avoid difficulties in everyday life including social and practical part of it. Although there are some countries that help foreign when they have problems with communication in common situations, the majority of them is not that keen to help. Poland is one of the places which can be a source of frustration for those people who don’t know Polish. Even in the immigration centers, workers don’t have basic English knowledge and that makes dealing with office issues very complex for foreigners. People can not make relationships, as well as meet new friends when they are not able to communicate with others. When people want to stay longer in this new place and be a part of it, this is not possible to fully understand the culture and heritage of a foreign country without knowing the language.
This essay argued that however some people it is not necessary to learn a new language before emigration abroad, it makes life more difficult and many obstacles can appear when we can not communicate with foreigners in their mother tongue. I fully agree that knowledge of foreign languages is essential and can prevent many problems when people want to change their place of living for a longer time.
Good work Ewa! Here is some feedback by paragraph:
Introduction: great introduction – clear opinion, with your main ideas. The only issue is that it (and the whole essay) is too long. If you can do it in 40 minutes, it is fine though!
Paragraph 2: This paragraph is good because you have specific examples but would be a bit stronger if you last sentence was more specific and related more to your example of Taiwan/China. For example, a situation where body language would be helpful when living there.
Paragraph 3: The beginning of the paragraph is a little general – try to get to your example faster. The whole paragraph is a little general and would be better with more detail on the specific issues that foreigners face at the immigration centres – almost there!
Conclusion: Good conclusion!
Overall: Try to be more specific with your examples, you are very, very close to an ideal IELTS essay!
Kindly take a look at my writing :
Many people wish to live in a foreign country dreaming about perfect weather, exotic foods, meeting new people and learning new culture. However, in reality, living in a foreign country could be challenging, especially when you don’t speak their language. It could cause not only social problems but also practical problems.
First, from social perspective, it is hard to get into community. Language is the most important key for communication. If you don’t speak same language with others, it is extremely hard to communicate as well as get along with them. For instance, when I used to work as an English teacher in Korea, there was an English teacher who came from America. He didn’t speak Korean at all when he first came to Korea. He had trouble communicating with other teachers and students. Therefore, I had to be around him all the time to help him out at work. Also, out of work, he had a hard to time to make friends or enjoy social life because of language issue. He usually stayed at home after work.
Second, practically, it could be hard to perform basic living activities. Things that we do very easily every day can become very tough when you don’t know the language including buying groceries, asking for different color of pants, or opening a new account at a bank. In addition, it is challenging to get a job without speaking language. The opportunities probably limited to the jobs that don’t necessarily require language such as cleaning workers or physical labors. Most likely, those jobs can only earn minimum wages, which could lead to financial problems depending on personal situation.
In conclusion, language is very important to live a normal life. Therefore, living in a foreign country without speaking the common language can cause various problems including lack of social connections and unsatisfied basic living performance.
Hi Reina! Thanks for putting in the hard work on that answer.
Some of the things that you did well:
Your example in the second paragraph is excellent – very well developed!
The second paragraph also has a long, well-argue example.
You focus on paragraph on the social problems and the other on the practical ones – excellent!
What you could improve on:
The first sentence is a bit irrelevant.
The final detail/thought sentence at the end is too repetitive.
Great work overall!
Thank you so much for your help!
You’re welcome!
Hi dear Dave! Would you please take a look also at mine and specify some of my mistakes?
Thanks a lot.
Q:
Living in a country where you have to speak a foreign language can cause serious social problems, as well as practical problems. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
A:
Many believe that people who immigrate to a foreign country, where the prevalent language is different from their mother tongue, will confront difficulties dealing with others in public and also face troubles in practice. I agree with this claim because the cultural differences and practical experiments of individuals who come from different backgrounds could come with a lot of troubles.
An individual grown up with a particular language contex will most probably possess some cultural specifications different from the host country. This also goes for the language details which may lead to mutual misunderstanding. For example, a foreigner may face severe difficulties making friends with native residents. Take for instance, he or she is more likely going to misinterpret others when they are trying to tell a joke and consider them offensive, comparing that with their own ethnic culture or may not fully understand what others are trying to explain because of the small items they do not thoroughly understand.
Some other nuisances that one may deal with as a new immigrant to a country with a different language would be fulfilling practical tasks. Take for instance, creating a bank account to deposit some deal of money in, as a basic practical experience. A recent survey found that more than 80 percent of Iranian master students in Canada did not initially have any idea how they can have a credit card and they were not aware that not only they are not going to receive a profit for the deposit they are making in a bank, but they would be charged for protecting their cash and other monetary services offered by those financial foundations.
In conclusion, I agree with the idea that an stranger would normally have to tackle problems pertaining to language differences both in social and pragmatic situations. And such inconveniences are mostly provoked by misunderstandings due to lacking a common cultural background and the differences of some typical social experiments any two countries have.
Hello! That’s a nice piece of writing.
Some feedback:
Careful using words you aren’t totally sure about
Good examples!
Your opinion is really clear and you main ideas relevant
Careful with modal verbs
Keep it up!
Thanks for your time and attention.
But could your feedback kindly be a bit more specific?
like:
Naming some words you thing I am not totally sure about but are still used?
Some modal verbs that are not used properly.
and:
Would it be considered as a band +7 or not?
Thanks again dear Dave
Hi Saneed!
For more specific feedback, you can see my correction service here: https://course.howtodoielts.com/band-scores-corrections
Hope it helps you out!
Thanks.
You’re welcome, Saeed!
Thanks it’s so help for me it’s contains all which I need eg. Links, vocabulary and whole explanation ✌️✌✌❤️
Happy to hear that – keep up the hard work!
Hi! I used to go to school in the us, and that’s where I learned to write essays. I’m currently back in my home country though, and I’m taking Ielts in a couple months. When I learned to write essays in the us, they taught us to write more formally and not at straightforward as the Ielts essays I’ve seen so far.
For example, we were taught to avoid writing in first person using “I” unless specified, and to never clearly and plainly state our claim, but rather to word it in such a way that made it clear and understandable what our stance was.
In all of my practice so far, I’ve been writing my essays like this, and I was wondering if that is all alright? My main concern is that the examiners reading and checking the essays comment on mine saying that it has unnecessary detail and information, or that not all of the sentences relate to the topic (for example, if I started an essay with the above foreign language topic by saying how many people of the younger generation feel pressure and stress from today’s technology, thus making more and more of them want to travel the world to both take a break from social media and to create their own adventures and memories. Then I tied that into how those planning to go to foreign countries may face a variety of issues. How would that sound?). Do you know anything about this? Thanks so much!
Yes, there are some differences depending on the country and school and so on when it comes to academic writing.
‘I’ is absolutely fine in these essays and IELTS states that themselves on their website. Because there are a number of standards depending on the country, IELTS is a little more flexible about academic writing.
Otherwise, it wouldn’t be fair to candidates.
Your opening sounds slightly irrelevant so I would advise you stick to a stricter paraphrase of the topic. But if you quickly relate it back to the topic and stick to it, then that wouldn’t be a big deal.
Is that clear?
Yeah, I can see how it’s a little off topic now. Thanks so much for the info!
No problem, keep up the hard work, whoever you are!
Hi,Dave. Could you please take a look at my essay? I really appreciate your work!
It is often thought that living in a foreign nation where you are required to speak a different language will have negative effects both socially and practically. Personally, I agree with this opinion because this makes people have difficulty in handling daily tasks and integrating into the local community.
Firstly, language barriers can cause problems for people who live overseas in their everyday lives. If they were not able to speak the local language, they would find it hard to deal with daily routines ranging from paying bills, making reservation for health check to studying and working. This is because all these activities make demands on good communication with other people. In other words, you have to get across your ideas by using the foreign language. For those who cannot speak foreign languages well, they may suffer from this. For example, students may have poor academic performance because they could not understand the classes or lectures delivered in the foreign tongue and they might even end up dropping out of school.
Another issue is that people who want to settle in a foreign country will find it extremely hard to integrate into the local community. This is because all relationships are based on communication, which means that if these individuals cannot strike up a smooth and engaging conversation with others, they will be unlikely to build rapport with foreigners. As a result, the languages becomes a hindrance for them in making friends with local residents and they will not feel a sense of belonging without socializing with others. Instead of feeling warm and accepted, they will go through loneliness and isolation, which may take a toll on their mental health and even leads to depression.
In conclusion, I strongly agree that studying or working in a foreign country can cause both social and practical problems. Therefore, it is necessary to think twice before going abroad.
j
Thanks for commenting!
And great work on the essay, Alice!
Great main ideas – and well developed as well.
Careful with your modal verbs – keep your claims weak and defensible!
Hi, I think it’s cool you are giving feedback and stuff. Would you mind to look at my answer too?
One of the frustrating things of living in a foreign country is language barrier. I totally agree with the given idea that living in a country where you struggle with the language barrier may result in some problems such as communicating with people or expressing yourself and other practical problems.
To begin with, it is quite a challenge to make a conversation with people and share your opinion during your time in a different country when you can’t speak fluently its language. As an effect, it may make it difficult to build a friendship. For instance, seven out of ten children whose family suddenly moved to an another country can’t easily make a new friend since they can’t speak any language other than their mother language. Consequently, they begin to build low self-esteem and grow up to be someone unsocial. Aristotle, the legendary Greek philosopher, said “Man is by nature a social animal.” So being unable to communicate properly with others is like forcing a fish to live on land.
Another point to consider is that incapability of reading in a foreign language, especially with Asian characters, is time and money consuming. To illustrate, here is an example of my distant relative who lived in China for a short period of time due to his work. As he can’t speak nor read in Chinese, he couldn’t find the right train to his destination. Therefore, he got lost and was late for his meeting. After that, in a Chinese restaurant, he ordered cuisine that he was not quite fond of and pretty much expensive. So he ended up spending a lot of money on that day.
In general, to live or to travel, whatever the reasons might be, going to a country without acquiring the language indeed result in severe social and practical difficulties.
Sure, Mino!
Try to write shorter topic sentence and make your writing a little more formal – no contractions and fewer quotes!
Hi! It would be highly appreciated if you could check my essay too.
Thank you in advance.
There is a widely held belief among people living in another country can be problematic due to language differences. In other words, when people have to speak the language of a foreign country which are living in it, they can be led to various problems referring to society and daily routines. I fully agree with the statement due to several reasons arising from cultural and lingual aspects of the specific country such as struggling with culture shock (social problems) and career fulfillment (practical problems) which are going to be fully explained in this essay.
It is clearly obvious that the most vital issue that a non-native person should cope with is culture shock. It is defined as a situation in which a person encounters a state of confusion in terms of communication. It causes a lack of adequate interaction with native people. As a result, the person might be face up to social isolation and eventually become homesick and frustrated. For instance, a friend of mine who has migrated to Denmark experienced the problem of not being able to get on well with the Danish people. So after a while, he came back to his origin country because he couldn’t tolerate such a situation.
Another potential difficulty refers to job opportunities and careers. It is crystal clear that a person can not utilize his/her full potential in a workplace unless he/she is capable of speaking fluently in order to convey the right message to his/her colleagues. To clarify, one of the most underlying reasons for everyone with regards to developing the career is to have the ability of an appropriate interaction at the workplace in order to be considered a reliable person. The fact is that people should improve their linguistic command not only to do their job tasks sufficiently but also to broaden job opportunities for themselves. The best example in this term is my aunt who found herself in such a condition. She had to change her job numerous times because of her lack of English command when she had just immigrated to the US.
To summarize, living in a country whose language is different from your mother tongue has been always fraught with a lot of challenges. The inability of establishing a cross-cultural relationship and losing job opportunities are two types of the most significant problems which should be solved in order to achieve what we deserve.
Good job, Kiarash!
Some really nice ideas though there are a lot of informal expressions and lack of academic style. Work on that!
Hi Dave, could you please take a look at my essay?(I really need you help)
Q= is the same question in the below
It is argued that being in a none-native country requires people to speak an unfamiliar language which causes social and practical challenges. This essay agrees with the statement below because it’s difficult for people to apply for a job, and also it would be difficult to make friends.
Firstly, people who immigrate to foreign lands for business purposes or study often face difficulties to find a job. The reason behind this is that local companies and businesses mostly hire native speakers, who don’t struggle with language barriers, so the employers don’t have to spend extra hours on training employees’ language. For example, Indian scientists look down on Spanish students speaking Indian poorly and coming to Indian to conduct a research project on scientific studies, as they cannot easily define scientific concepts for none native pupils, as they don’t speak the Indian language at an appropriate level.
Secondly, engaging with people in a foreign country is difficult skill for an immigrant to learn. The primary reason is because students or immigrated people lack the ability to interact with none native people because they didn’t overcome their language barriers and improve their language enough. Moreover, some people have acts of racism, and they don’t accept foreigners very easily especially when it coms to specific countries. An ample evidence could be American people who blame Hispanic immigrants’ accent and language, and therefore Spanish people are frequently encountered violent reactions by English speaking residents. Clearly these reasons cause difficulties for foreigners to form a friendship with local people.
In conclusion, based on the examples, conversing in an entirely unknown language will cause problems for those who live abroad, such as finding a job and developing a friendship with new people.
Nice job Ani! Your ideas are good and you develop them really well!
There are a lot of little mistakes with grammar and vocabulary, though.
Please, kindly, take a look at my answer, too.
Thanks in advance.
Living abroad and having to speak and communicate in a language other than your own can be tremendously beneficial in one’s life journey and self-growth. I strongly disagree that such an experience can be problematic.
Having a chance to live in a foreign country can open many doors to one’s personal life journey. First, it provides the realization that how much variety is there on this planet, various cultures, customs, foods, and cuisines. Second, exposing to a completely new language and culture provides a more dynamic, flexible, and adaptive life perspective. One of my closest friends who had to live and work in South Korea for two years explains it as a breakthrough in her life, and a very precious experience that helped her become more accepting and grateful for everything life reveals to her no matter where she lives, what language she has to communicate through, and what circumstances are.
However, living in a foreign country and communicating in a totally new language can be quite challenging, and lead to misunderstanding sometimes but the fact is that this whole experience can be dramatically different depending on the personality and the motivations why one is undertaking such an experience. A friend of mine who is Irish didn’t know even a tiny word in my first language, Farsi, and completely unknown to Iranian culture and customs, however, could survive and even now explains it as a thought-provoking experience. He says he wishes he had known about the Iranian culture beforehand but the leading factor that worked for him was his ability to adapt to the new environment and his flexibility to accept the new rules and norms. Thus, this experience can vary according to one’s personality and purpose.
To sum up, I personally believe that living in a foreign country and having to speak in a foreign language can be quite life-changing but not dramatically problematic depending on one’s personality.
Good try Gh!
Nice examples though be careful with using too many personal examples. Technically, they should not hurt your score but some examiners may be strict on them…
Hi Dave. when we want to specify the main topic of this question as you taught us, we should consider it as “foreign language and language barrier” or “living in another country”. I ask this question because I feel confused.
This one is about the language barrier so it should be focused on that. It highlights for you the part of living in a foreign country that you should focus on.
Is that clearer, Razieh?
Please I need your valuable feedback which will help me lots to improve my writing too.
Living in a country where you have to speak a foreign language can cause serious social and practical problems. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
When anyone has to talk in another language but he does not know so this situation may create severe social and practical troubles. As a rule, language is used as a medium to communicate with people, if they are not well in the use of this specific tool as per the country, it can be turned into the worst situation. I am in favor of this statement and I will highlight some important points in favor of my agreement.
There are two key points that need to be understood accurately. First of all, in English, there are many words that are the same in sound but in spelling, they are different as well as meanings that are different too, such as see and sea, two or too, same, and shame. I will explain that if a person does not know the right pronunciation of same and shame and he says to his boss or customer that “you shame as like my brother” instead of “you are same as like my brother” so this situation can create a worse condition.
2nd reason, in many languages the same words has a different meaning and social value.
To illustrate, In England, the rubber word is used for the eraser which can remove the pencil writing but in America, the word rubber is used for the popular contraceptive. For example, there is a man in the office in America, he is not aware of the actual meaning of rubber and if he asked rubber from a female colleague so this situation can make him embarrassed and even he could be in an investigation.
In Conclusion, language can be creating a social and practical problem if people do not know the appropriate word or accent of any specific society. It is really very significant to learn the language of the country where the person needs to go for any reason.
Can you please have a look at my essay and give me a score?
Kind Regards.
Some people believe that in order to fully integrate in a country abroad, they need to learn the local language otherwise they will find themselves facing social and practical problems. In my opinion, people who do not familiarize themselves with the native language, experience a certain amount of difficulty when dealing with the residents on different levels.
Firstly, language barrier makes people feel ignored and isolated. This is because it easier to communicate with someone who understands and can speak a language rather than someone who can hardly utter a few words. For example, many foreign students find themselves unable to make friends with the locals because they cannot master the language. Some may even feel that they are laughed at when trying to have a conversation in a foreign language. At times, this can have a very detrimental effect on the mental health of the students. They may even get suicidal thoughts, especially because they are already undergoing a lot of pressure of being away from home and coping with their studies.
Secondly, interacting with the locals may prove to be very challenging. The reason being that if someone is unable to read or understand a foreign language, he or she might be conned by local merchants. For example, someone who has no knowledge of the Chinese language may be easily tricked into paying for something twice or thrice the actual amount. Tourists often find themselves victims of such incidents.
To conclude, I firmly believe that unless foreigners can speak the language of the country they live in, it is very probable that they will face some types of difficulty. Whether it be on a social basis or in the practical world. Hence, it is important to learn the language to be able to interact with the natives.
hi
Great explanation ..
Thank you, Ginimol!
Well, National language isn’t really a big problem in China, most of the people can speak
Mandarin,expect for some senior citizens residing in provincial areas. But what’s really urgent is that village tones are dying out: In where a I live, lots of My generation(incluing myself) living in city can’t speak in the local accent which is quite different from Mandarin and have some invaluble folklores and adages, we can still understand it though.But think about the next few generations whose lives will be completely devoid of their local dialect, then a language now used by millions of people will vanish into thin air.
That’s really interesting – thanks for sharing!