This is an IELTS writing task 2 sample answer on the topic of online materials from the real IELTS test/exam.

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Before you read, you can practice your listening skills with the audio file below – take some notes on my ideas and vocabulary then check with the sample answer:

IELTS Writing Task 2 Sample Answer: Online Materials (Real Past IELTS Tests/Exams)

Many people feel that students should learn from online materials while others feel that it is better to use printed materials.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Real Past IELTS Tests

There have been recent calls for schools to phase out printed materials and take better advantage of online resources. Although printed materials enable important cognitive returns, schools should adopt online materials almost exclusively to protect the environment.

Printed materials encourage children to develop good thinking habits. Children and teenagers will of course spend an outsized amount of time on the internet, through smartphones and computers, as they grow up. This not only impacts their attention span and brain chemistry but also makes them susceptible to worryingly unreliable online information. Printed materials, on the other hand, are written by well-regarded authors, thoroughly researched, and students cannot get distracted by the lures of the internet while reading a physical book.

Nonetheless, online materials present an opportunity to protect the world’s trees at a time when they are under great threat. Take the typical lifecyle of a school’s coursebooks for example. Hundreds of students in a single grade are given a dozen books for various subjects every year. The books tend to be reused for several years but they later must be replaced with newer editions, necessitating more trees be cut down. Using online materials does not entail the same level of environmental costs. Textbooks can be easily updated and no trees have to be chopped down to create the devices in the first place. Over time, this will have a dramatic impact on tree populations around the globe and help mitigate the looming damage of climate change.

In conclusion, administrators should make every effort to replace the outdated medium of paper with their electronic equivalent. This is merely one step, but a still crucial one, in saving the earth from imminent catastrophe.

Analysis

1. There have been recent calls for schools to phase out printed materials and take better advantage of online resources. 2. Although printed materials enable important cognitive returns, schools should adopt online materials almost exclusively to protect the environment.

1. Write the topic for the whole essay.
2. Give your opinion – make it 100% clear.

1. Printed materials encourage children to develop good thinking habits. 2. Children and teenagers will of course spend an outsized amount of time on the internet, through smartphones and computers, as they grow up. 3. This not only impacts their attention span and brain chemistry but also makes them susceptible to worryingly unreliable online information. 4. Printed materials, on the other hand, are written by well-regarded authors, thoroughly researched, and students cannot get distracted by the lures of the internet while reading a physical book.

1. Write a topic sentence with the main idea at the end of the sentence.
2. Begin to develop your main idea with specific examples/support.
3. Continue with the same main idea. Don’t switch. Develop it specifically.
4. Draw conclusions/conclude your paragraph.

1. Nonetheless, online materials present an opportunity to protect the world’s trees at a time when they are under great threat. 2. Take the typical lifecyle of a school’s coursebooks for example. 3. Hundreds of students in a single grade are given a dozen books for various subjects every year. 4. The books tend to be reused for several years but they later must be replaced with newer editions, necessitating more trees be cut down. 5. Using online materials does not entail the same level of environmental costs. 6. Textbooks can be easily updated and no trees have to be chopped down to create the devices in the first place. 7. Over time, this will have a dramatic impact on tree populations around the globe and help mitigate the looming damage of climate change.

1. Write another topic sentence with a new main idea.
2. Begin a specfic example.
3. Start developing the example.
4. Add as much detail to your example as possible.
5. I compare the example of physical books with online ones in this sentence.
6. The more detail the better!
7. Conclude your paragraph by talking about the result and tieing it back to your main idea.

1. In conclusion, administrators should make every effort to replace the outdated medium of paper with their electronic equivalent. 2. This is merely one step, but a still crucial one, in saving the earth from imminent catastrophe.

1. Repeat your opinion.
2. Add an extra detail/final thought.

Vocabulary

Figure out what the words in bold below mean:

There have been recent calls for schools to phase out printed materials and take better advantage of online resources. Although printed materials enable important cognitive returns, schools should adopt online materials almost exclusively to protect the environment.

Printed materials encourage children to develop good thinking habits. Children and teenagers will of course spend an outsized amount of time on the internet, through smartphones and computers, as they grow up. This not only impacts their attention span and brain chemistry but also makes them susceptible to worryingly unreliable online information. Printed materials, on the other hand, are written by well-regarded authors, thoroughly researched, and students cannot get distracted by the lures of the internet while reading a physical book.

Nonetheless, online materials present an opportunity to protect the world’s trees at a time when they are under great threat. Take the typical lifecyle of a school’s coursebooks for example. Hundreds of students in a single grade are given a dozen books for various subjects every year. The books tend to be reused for several years but they later must be replaced with newer editions, necessitating more trees be cut down. Using online materials does not entail the same level of environmental costs. Textbooks can be easily updated and no trees have to be chopped down to create the devices in the first place. Over time, this will have a dramatic impact on tree populations around the globe and help mitigate the looming damage of climate change.

In conclusion, administrators should make every effort to replace the outdated medium of paper with their electronic equivalent. This is merely one step, but a still crucial one, in saving the earth from imminent catastrophe.

Answers

recent calls demands

phase out get rid of

take better advantage use more often

enable allow for/encourage

cognitive returns benefits for the brain

adopt begin to use

exclusively entirely

outsized too large

attention span the amount of time you can focus on one thing

brain chemistry how your brain works

susceptible vulnerable to

worryingly unreliable can’t be trusted

on the other hand however

well-regarded authors good writiers

thoroughly researched checked completely

distracted pulled away from

lures something to tempt you away

nonetheless regardless

present an opportunity gives the chance to

under great threat disappearing

lifecyle full life of

grade class

dozen 12

reused used again

newer editions more recent copies

necessitating requiring

cut down chop down

entail require

chopped down cut down

in the first place to begin with

mitigate lessens the impact of

looming damage upcoming hurt

administrators those in charge

make every effort try hard

outdated medium of paper antiquated books

electronic equivalent new technology

merely only

crucial important

imminent catastrophe coming disaster

Pronunciation

ˈriːsnt kɔːlz 
feɪz aʊt 
teɪk ˈbɛtər ədˈvɑːntɪʤ 
ɪˈneɪbl 
ˈkɒgnɪtɪv rɪˈtɜːnz
əˈdɒpt 
ɪksˈkluːsɪvli 
ˈaʊtsaɪzd 
əˈtɛnʃ(ə)n spæn 
breɪn ˈkɛmɪstri 
səˈsɛptəbl 
ˈwʌriɪŋli ˌʌnrɪˈlaɪəbl 
ɒn ði ˈʌðə hænd
wɛl-rɪˈgɑːdɪd ˈɔːθəz
ˈθʌrəli rɪˈsɜːʧt
dɪsˈtræktɪd 
ljʊəz 
ˌnʌnðəˈlɛs
ˈprɛznt ən ˌɒpəˈtjuːnɪti 
ˈʌndə greɪt θrɛt
lifecyle 
greɪd 
ˈdʌzn 
riːˈjuːzd 
ˈnjuːər ɪˈdɪʃənz
nɪˈsɛsɪteɪtɪŋ 
kʌt daʊn
ɪnˈteɪl 
ʧɒpt daʊn 
ɪn ðə fɜːst pleɪs
ˈmɪtɪgeɪt 
ˈluːmɪŋ ˈdæmɪʤ 
ədˈmɪnɪstreɪtəz 
meɪk ˈɛvri ˈɛfət 
aʊtˈdeɪtɪd ˈmiːdiəm ɒv ˈpeɪpə 
ɪlɛkˈtrɒnɪk ɪˈkwɪvələnt
ˈmɪəli 
ˈkruːʃəl 
ˈɪmɪnənt kəˈtæstrəfi

Listen and repeat:

Vocabulary Practice

Remember and fill in the blanks:

There have been ______________ for schools to ______________ printed materials and ______________ of online resources. Although printed materials ______________ important ______________, schools should ______________ online materials almost ______________ to protect the environment.

Printed materials encourage children to develop good thinking habits. Children and teenagers will of course spend an ______________ amount of time on the internet, through smartphones and computers, as they grow up. This not only impacts their ______________ and ______________ but also makes them ______________ to ______________ online information. Printed materials, ______________, are written by ______________, ______________, and students cannot get ______________ by the ______________ of the internet while reading a physical book.

______________, online materials ______________ to protect the world’s trees at a time when they are ______________. Take the typical ______________ of a school’s coursebooks for example. Hundreds of students in a single ______________ are given a ______________ books for various subjects every year. The books tend to be ______________ for several years but they later must be replaced with ______________, ______________ more trees be ______________. Using online materials does not ______________ the same level of environmental costs. Textbooks can be easily updated and no trees have to be ______________ to create the devices ______________. Over time, this will have a dramatic impact on tree populations around the globe and help ______________ the ______________ of climate change.

In conclusion, ______________ should ______________ to replace the ______________ with their ______________. This is ______________ one step, but a still ______________ one, in saving the earth from ______________.

Listen and check:

Listening Practice

Review the topic with the video below: