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IELTS Model Essay -Two Questions Essay Type

The IELTS Writing Task 2 Two Questions Essay: Causes & Positive/Negative Trends .

There are a number of different types of IELTS essay questions. There are Opinion Essays, Discussion Essays, Advantage/Disadvantage Essays, Solution (including Cause/ Solution) Essays and there are Direct Question Essays (such as the Two Question Essay). However, please note that different teachers use different names for essay types.

The model essay below looks at the Direct Question Essay which contains Two Questions.

IELTS Essay Question – Computer Games

More and more adults are playing computer games. Why is this happening? Is it a positive or negative trend?

The main topic in the essay question is Technology and the specific topic is Computer Games. It is a current essay question because it is about a current trend in the world today. I’ve provided a list of tips to help you tackle this type of essay question.

Points to Consider

There is only one issue to tackle : computer games. This is lucky. It is an easy essay question. Some essay questions are more complex and have two separate issues to tackle.
There are two questions to answer . I call this type of question a “Direct Question Essay”. The first question is about causes of the trend. The second question is about evaluating whether it is good or bad. Whenever you are asked to choose, it means you must give your opinion.
Pay attention to the wording of the essay topic . This is about adults, not children. It is about computer games which some people consider are for children. Always pay attention to all keywords in the essay question when you brainstorm or you will go off topic. Ask yourself questions to stimulate ideas. Why are adults playing games on a computer? We know that children like to do this, but why are adults doing this? And is this good? Is it good that adults are playing computer games? If it is bad, why?
Next think about the concept of “computer games”. Spend time analysing the issue given . We often consider computer games to be silly entertainment fore children. But is that correct? Are all computer games actually silly? If we think about this carefully, we will realise that actually some computer games are complex and strategic. Some games require skill and intelligence to play. This means that the issue of computer games is not a simple one. Computer games are varied. Does this essay question apply to childish computer games or complex games? The answer is – it applies to both. So, now we know we can tackle this issue at a level of more depth. Getting to the depth of the issue is essential for a high score. So, while we can see there is only one issue (computer games) that single issue is complex and can be divided into different aspects.
After you brainstorm, choose the ideas that are the most relevant and the easiest to explain well. You don’t get a high score because you have lots of ideas. You get a higher score for presenting specific ideas which are well developed and highly relevant.
If you have two questions to cover. It is logical to have two body paragraphs . Being logical in your choice of paragraphing is important.
Provide a clear position in your introduction as to whether you think this is a positive or negative point. Being clear in the introduction helps the examiner follow your body paragraphs more easily and this will increase your score. If you think it is positive – make it clear. If you think it is negative – say so. If you think “it depends” – make sure you word it clearly and explain it clearly in the body paragraphs. The easiest approach is a positive or negative one (a one-sided approach). The “it depends” approach is harder and requires stronger language skills.

Model Essay: Computer Games (2024)

It seems that the current trend is for an increasing number of adults to enjoy playing computer games in their free time. With the development of game technology, it is hardly surprising that adults are playing games, but whether it is positive or negative depends on the games played and the time spent on them.

In terms of why so many adults are choosing to spend time playing computer games, it is mainly because the technology behind the games is becoming more sophisticated. Initially, when games first came out, they were very simplistic and appealed mainly to children. However, things have moved on since then and games have become visually appealing, very absorbing, require great dexterity and some also have a strategic challenge to them which adults particularly like. Such games can attract professional adults looking to hone tactics and skills to other adults wishing just to relax and switch off.

However, whether this trend in adults towards computer games is beneficial or not can be challenged. Some adults use complex, challenging games as a form of escapism which keeps their mind sharp and helps them relax at the same time. As long as the time spent on such games is balanced with other healthier pursuits, it can be constructive. Unfortunately, adults who ignore their physical health and spend too much time on mindless, repetitive games develop a sedentary lifestyle which can be detrimental to their wellbeing.

In conclusion, computer games have become more fascinating and tempting to adults. While games that help develop tactics and knowledge might be advantageous, no game, particularly senseless games, should be played to excess and certainly should not replace healthier leisure activities.

Word count = 276

IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Essays & Tips

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This is awesome, there are so much new vocabulary that I can learn from. Thank you Liz! And I wanna ask if all model essays are in the “model essay” category? I’m a new comer and I’m looking for as many well-written writings as possible, like yours!

There are a lot of model essays online. I do not know their quality or how safe they are to use a models. Not all websites are written by professional, experienced teachers who have completed the IELTS examiner training. The models on my essay are safe to use as a guide.

I received my IELTS result today and I scored 7.5 overall band score. I can’t thank you enough for your valuable help and guidance.

More than IELTS, I’m more confident than ever and look forward to continuing this learning further.

Thanks again and take care.

Best Regards, Kamlesh

I’m so pleased for you, Kamlesh! Very well done to you!! I do hope you continue learning. One day I plan to start an English Liz Youtube channel so that people can keep learning beyond their IELTS test 🙂

That would be perfect <3

Thank you so much, Liz. I really appreciate your fantastic work.

You’re welcome 🙂

Good evening Liz. I’m grateful for your guidance and tutelage as I scored 7.5 in my writing, 7.5 in speaking, 7.0 in listening and 6.0 in reading after just a short time with you. I’m optimistic in my next attempt I should get the desired scores. You’re a great teacher ma’am.

I wish you lots of luck in your next test 🙂

Rituparna Saha says April 5, 2024 Thank you Liz for all your support and guidance on Writing Task 2. I greatly appreciate your efforts.

I took my IELTS test a few days ago. The results are out and I got a band 7 in writing with an overall band 7.5 in just a week. For writing I only watched your videos and took notes of all the points you taught. I did not even practice writing much, just referred to your videos and read all the materials on the website. Your content is pure gold and you are an amazing teacher. Ilysm

Very well done with your results!! Many people struggle to hit band 7 in writing. Congrats!

this is Soo nice Liz I have been following you and your materials are helpful kindly would like to know where I can download the Cambridge book or if you can share any regards Hellen

The IELTS Cambridge Test Books are copyrighted so I can’t share them. However, you can find new as well as second hand copies on Amazon or possibly in a local educational store.

I don’t feel the introduction is clear, and there is no clear opinion.

“it depends” indicates the opinion. It shows that the writer intends to be specific about when it is positive and when it is negative because their opinion covers both. This can often be the case with IELTS essays that require an opinion. You do not have to choose positive or negative and be 100% on one side. It is 100% acceptable in IELTS but it is a more difficult opinion to create if one’s English language isn’t strong.

Hello Liz, is it okay to write a contrast (one point) before the conclusion paragraph in agree or disagree essay? Thank you.

This is not an agree/disagree essay. The Opinion Essay is an agree disagree essay which requires you to agree, disagree or have a partial agreement with an opinion given by IELTS. That essay is not an Opinion Essay because you aren’t being asked to respond to an opinion given by IELTS. This essay is a Direct Questions Essay which may or may not require an opinion depending on the questions you are given. In an Opinion Essay, you introduce your opinion in the introduction and the whole essay explains your opinion. You can’t suddenly put a different opinion further down the essay. Your opinion must be consistent throughout the whole essay. I recommend you get my advanced lessons because they explain in detail how to tackle an Opinion Essay. You can find them in my online store: https://elizabethferguson.podia.com/

Thanks a lot liz.

Hi dear Liz. Hope you are fast recuperating. I have written the following intro. ” There is a growing propensity among the youth to play computer games. This is due to indulgence of parents and can have possible detrimental effects.” I know you don’t comment on write ups, but this is with a hope, in case…

I’ll just make one comment. I made a list of points to consider. Point 3 was important. This isn’t about youths. It’s about adults, which means people in their early 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s etc. And because it is about adults, it cannot be related to “indulgence from parents”. If you make this mistake, most of your essay will be off topic. That is the reason I wrote point 3. Take a look again because it’s an important lesson to learn.

This writing test sample answer makes a whole lots of sense to me. Well appreciated 👍👍👍.

I’m glad it made sense. IELTS isn’t difficult once you understand more about the test and the aims you should have.

Hi, Due to the financial crisis, I lacked many things like IELTS practice/preparation classes and missed many classes from a good teacher like you.

therefore, if you have any better offer like a full free studentship & give me the opportunity. Thank you in advance for your kind coope

This website has hundreds of page of free practice lessons, tips, topics, videos, advice, information, model answers etc. Use them well. Learn from each page and take your time. Then use the IELTS Cambridge test books for full test practice at home.

Thank you so much Liz for your valuable tips and techniques 🙏❤️

I’m glad it was helpful 🙂

Thank you for this it’s very helpful Liz. I greatly appreciate your efforts

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IELTS Writing: Agree or Disagree Lesson with Sample Answer

Agree or disagree essays: ielts writing task 2 lesson.

This lesson will teach you how to write ‘agree or disagree’ or ‘opinion’ IELTS task 2 essays that could score a Band 7, 8 or 9.

Agree or disagree question types are among the most common on the IELTS writing paper, so you must learn how to write them properly.

In this post, we will look at:

Deciding Opinion

Idea generation.

Writing an Effective Introduction
Writing Supporting Paragraphs
Writing a Conclusion

We will use a question from an IELTS past paper to help us understand the task.

Many students fail to do well in this type of question because they do not have a clear opinion and they do not use an appropriate structure .

The best structure you can use for this type of essay is:

Paragraph 1- Introduction

Sentence 1- Paraphrase Question

Sentence 2- Thesis Statement

Sentence 3- Outline Statement

Paragraph 2- Supporting Paragraph 1

Sentence 1- Topic Sentence

Sentence 2/3- Explain Topic Sentence

Sentence 3/4- Example

Paragraph 3- Supporting Paragraph 2

Paragraph 4- Conclusion

Sentence 1- Summary and reiteration of your opinion.

That’s it! Four paragraphs.

Note : You don’t have to use this structure; other structures can get you a high score. However, this structure has been approved by IELTS examiners to allow you to write a clear and cohesive essay. This structure will allow you to focus on generating your ideas and then writing an effective essay.

In this essay, IELTS examiners want you to give a clear opinion, so you must decide when you read the question. You will also need to do this to write an effective thesis statement.

Let’s look at an example:

In some countries, many people suffer from health problems due to eating too much fast food. It is, therefore, necessary for governments to impose a higher tax on this kind of food.

Do you agree or disagree?

With this type of essay, we have two choices:

We agree with the statement or;
We disagree with the statement

Some teachers advise you to partly agree and disagree. However, I would NOT recommend this because it often leads to an essay with NO clear focus and a CONFUSING structure.

Therefore, for this agree or disagree essay, you can say either:

This essay agrees that governments should tax fast food or;
This essay disagrees that governments should tax fast food

I think I will have more ideas for A, so I’m choosing that one. Always choose the one you feel comfortable writing about – even if you don’t feel that way. You don’t get extra marks for writing about how you feel; you want to give the examiner what they need to score your essay a Band 7+.

Now we have to think of ideas for why governments should tax fast food.

Here are some:

Cigarettes and alcohol are taxed in the same way
The money raised could be used to treat people with health problems
Fast food companies should be punished for selling unhealthy food to people
Making the food more expensive would stop people from eating it
The money raised could be used to educate people about healthy eating

We don’t need to use all of these, just two for our supporting paragraphs. I will pick the first and the fourth ones because I know a little about these two and feel confident I can expand on them with explanations and examples. Remember, the examiner wants you to fully support your arguments, not just list many ideas.

Now we have two supporting ideas; we can move on to our introduction.

Introduction

As previously stated, we will use the following structure:

For a more detailed explanation, please see our post on writing an effective introduction.

To paraphrase the question, we restate it with a different meaning using synonyms. I will also reorder the question. Here is the question again:

In some countries, an increasing number of people are suffering from health problems due to eating too much fast food. It is, therefore, necessary for governments to impose a higher tax on this kind of food.

Paraphrased: It is argued that governments should levy a tariff on junk food because the health risks associated with consuming this kind of food are rising.

This is our first sentence.

We now need to write our thesis statement. This is our opinion in one sentence. This essay will agree with the above statement and will, therefore, look like this:

This essay agrees that a higher rate of tax should be paid by fast-food companies.

This is our second sentence.

We now need to write our third and final sentence, which is the outline sentence . This sentence outlines what you will write about in the main body paragraphs.

Firstly, alcohol and tobacco companies already pay higher taxes; secondly, higher taxes could raise prices and lower consumption.

So our full introduction will look like this:

It is argued that governments should levy a tariff on junk food because the number of health risks associated with consuming this kind of food is on the rise. This essay agrees that a higher rate of tax should be paid by fast-food companies. Firstly, alcohol and tobacco companies already pay higher taxes; secondly, higher taxes could raise prices and lower consumption.

We now need to write our supporting paragraphs for our agree or disagree essay:

Supporting Paragraph 1

This paragraph should include:

Topic Sentence
Explanation

A topic sentence tells the examiner about the rest of the paragraph. In other words, it is a summary of your first idea. It should look something like this:

Higher excise on liqueur and cigarettes has proven to curb the harm caused by these substances.

We now need to expand on this point a little. A good way of doing this is to assume that the examiner does not know this subject, and you must explain clearly what you mean. Here is what this could look like:

This revenue has been used to treat health problems associated with these products and has proven useful in advertising campaigns warning people about the dangers of alcohol and tobacco abuse. Tax from fast food could be used in the same way.

We should now think of an example to support our point. Think about any recent news stories, studies or adverts. If you can’t think of one, make one up. The examiner won’t check if it is real or not.

The United Kingdom is a prime example, where money from smokers is used to treat lung cancer and heart disease while at the same time, pumped into health campaigns in schools to warn children about the dangers of smoking.

That’s it. Four sentences. The full paragraph should look like this:

Higher excise on liqueur and cigarettes has proven to curb the harm caused by these substances. This revenue has been used to treat health problems associated with these products and has proven useful in advertising campaigns warning people about the dangers of alcohol and tobacco abuse. Tax from fast food could be used in the same way. The United Kingdom is a prime example, where money from smokers is used to treat lung cancer and heart disease.

Supporting Paragraph 2

We now repeat the same formula with our second supporting point- higher taxes will increase prices and reduce consumption.

Our topic sentence:

Increasing taxes would raise prices and lower consumption.

Explaining this further:

Fast food companies would pass on these taxes to consumers in the form of higher prices, leading to people not being able to afford junk food because it is too expensive. Junk food would soon become a luxury item, and it would only be consumed occasionally, which would be less harmful to the general public’s health.

We now support our point with an example:

For instance, the cost of organic food has proven prohibitively expensive for most people, and that is why only a small percentage of the population buys it regularly.

The full paragraph would look like this:

Increasing taxes would raise prices and lower consumption. Fast food companies would pass on these taxes to consumers in the form of higher prices, leading to people not being able to afford junk food because it is too expensive. Junk food would soon become a luxury item, and it would only be consumed occasionally, which would be less harmful to the general public’s health. For instance, the cost of organic food has proven prohibitively expensive for most people, and that is why only a small percentage of the population buys it regularly.

Four sentences.

Conclusion

As stated before, a good conclusion for agree or disagree essays should include:

Sentence 1- Summary of main points

Sentence 2- Your opinion

Don’t write any new ideas in this paragraph.

A good conclusion should restate your thesis statement and your main supporting points.

In conclusion, junk food should be taxed at a higher rate because of the good precedent set by alcohol and tobacco and the fact that the increased cost should reduce the number of fast-food people buy.

Agree or Disagree IELTS Sample Essay

In conclusion, junk food should be taxed at a higher rate because of the good precedent set by alcohol and tobacco and the fact that the increased cost should reduce the amount of fast-food people buy.

I hope you found this ‘agree or disagree’ essay IELTS lesson useful.

About Christopher Pell

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I started IELTS Advantage as a simple blog to help 16 students in my class. Several years later, I am very humbled that my VIP Course has been able to help thousands of people around the world to score a Band 7+ in their IELTS tests.

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Agree Disagree Essays in IELTS

Updated On Oct 13, 2023

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IELTS Writing Task 2 Agree or Disagree Essay

The agree or disagree essay questions are the most commonly asked in the IELTS examination . They are also called as argumentative essays. In this type of essays, you are asked to give your opinion, whether you agree or disagree on the particular sentence that is given. You are given 40 minutes to complete the 250-word essay. Most of the students find it easy because you only have to agree and disagree with the sentence given. You have to support only one opinion.

Tips to write Agree Disagree Essays

There are few tips which will help you to write about IELTS agree disagree essay questions, which are as follows:

When you get these type of questions, it is advisable to completely agree or completely disagree with it. You have to support only one point of view and not both.
By doing this, the essay will be more clear and structured and can be easily understood by the examiner.
You can support the other side of the statement if you want to, but make sure that you do it in a positive way and also say it, only in one or two sentences.
While writing the essay, make sure that the explanation given doesn’t hurt the feelings of the other person.
The choice of agreement or disagreement has to be made carefully. You need to choose the side which has more supporting points and which you can illustrate with examples so that the answer that you write is voluminous. Please note that you have to either agree or disagree and cannot do both.
Also, ensure that the introduction of the topic is not too long. The question should be paraphrased to form the introduction.
The explanation that you give regarding the topic should match with the introduction and the conclusion given.
There will be two or three body paragraphs, make sure that each paragraph has a central topic.
The body paragraphs should include the main features that have to be explained and also your overview and an in-depth explanation of your opinion.
You have to compulsorily write the conclusion. If you do not have time to complete the essay, make sure you at least write 2 or 3 sentences of conclusion, but the conclusion should be included.

IELTS Agree Disagree Essay Structure

In all the sections of the IELTS examination, structure plays a very important role because it will be easy for the test taker to write the answer. Also, the examiner will find it easy to evaluate the answer. So here is the structure that you can follow while writing an agree/disagree essay:

Paragraph 1: Introduction

How to start an agree disagree essay?

First of all, like any other section, the first sentence must be a paraphrase of the question that is given. In the second sentence, you can state your opinion regarding the topic. In the third sentence, you can write on what you are going to explain in the forthcoming paragraphs.

Paragraph 2: Body paragraph

In the second paragraph, the first sentence should be explaining the central idea. In the second sentence, explain in detail, assuming that the examiner doesn’t know anything about the topic. In the third sentence, you can give examples which support the sentence. In the last sentence, you can give the opposing point of view, but in a positive manner.

Paragraph 3: Body paragraph

The third paragraph is very similar to the second paragraph. The first sentence should explain the central idea. The second sentence, should include supporting details and the third sentence, examples which support the idea.

Paragraph 4: Conclusion

In the last paragraph, you have to write a summary of the essay. In the first sentence, you can sum up the body paragraphs and rephrase your opinion.

Sample Checklist for Agree/Disagree essays:

Agree disagree essay topics:.

Some people who have been in prison become good citizens later. Some people think that inviting these people to talk to school students is the best way to tell them about dangers of committing a crime. Do you agree or disagree?
The only way to improve road safety is to give much stricter punishments on driving offenses. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
It is generally accepted that exercise is good for children and teenagers. Therefore, physical education and sport should be compulsory for all students in all schools. What do you think?

Take a look at some IELTS Agree/Disagree Essay sample answer

Also check :

IELTS Writing tips
IELTS Writing recent actual test
IELTS Writing Answer sheet
IELTS map vocabulary

Frequently Asked Questions

Can agree/disagree essays be called as opinion essays?

Can I partially agree?

Can I skip the conclusion part if I’m running out of time. What weightage does that one liner consist of?

Can I use the word “I” such as ” I agree” or “I disagree”?

What is the structure of Agree/Disagree essays?

Practice IELTS Writing Task 2 based on Essay types

Start Preparing for IELTS: Get Your 10-Day Study Plan Today!

Janet had been an IELTS Trainer before she dived into the field of Content Writing. During her days of being a Trainer, Janet had written essays and sample answers which got her students an 8+ band in the IELTS Test. Her contributions to our articles have been engaging and simple to help the students understand and grasp the information with ease. Janet, born and brought up in California, had no idea about the IELTS until she moved to study in Canada. Her peers leaned to her for help as her first language was English.

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How to Write “Agree or Disagree” Essays for IELTS

Posted by David S. Wills | Jan 15, 2021 | IELTS Tips , Writing | 1

There are various types of essay that you may be asked to write in task 2 of the IELTS writing test, but one of the most common ones is the “agree or disagree” question. This will provide some kind of statement and then ask you whether (or to what extent) you agree or disagree.

In this article, I will tell you everything you need to know about writing an agree or disagree essay .

What is an “Agree or Disagree” IELTS Question?

There are various kinds of questions in IELTS writing task 2, and one of them is called “agree or disagree” because that is precisely what you are asked to do. The question will normally contain those words although there are slight variations:

Do you agree or disagree?
To what extent do you agree or disagree?

This question will follow a statement and your task is to give your reaction to that statement. As long as you can understand the precise nature of the statement, this question is quite to understand.

Note that some people would call this an “opinion essay” but I would disagree with that label. Whilst it is certainly a type of opinion essay, there are other question types that require your opinion, so this is a problematic label. Here’s my guide to opinion essays.

How Should I Answer an “Agree or Disagree” Question?

The important thing about this sort of IELTS question is that you answer the question directly . In other words, you should state whether you agree , disagree , or neither agree nor disagree .

Some people wonder whether it is possible to give a balanced answer and others seem to think that you must always give a balanced answer, but the truth is simple:

You can agree, disagree, or neither agree nor disagree. Any of these is acceptable.

Just pay attention to the exact wording of the question. If it asks “to what extent…?” then you should clearly state the extent to which you agree/disagree:

Completely agree
Partially agree
Neither agree nor disagree
Partially disagree
Completely disagree

If it just says “Do you agree or disagree?” then you don’t necessarily need to give the degree and you could just say “I agree” or “I disagree.” However, it is better to provide more explanation and detail.

If you want a more in-depth discussion of the issue of balanced answers, you can read this article .

Structuring “Agree or Disagree” Essays

Some kinds of IELTS essay are easy to structure. For example, “ Discuss both views ” and “ Advantages and disadvantages ” questions can easily be answered with a predictable four-paragraph structure. However, “agree or disagree” questions require a little more thought. Sometimes it can be a little difficult to find the right structure.

Generally, I recommend writing four or five paragraphs and preferably just four. As such, here are two possibilities for structuring your “agree or disagree” essay:

As you can tell, the second structure is more complicated and thus there is more scope for mistakes in terms of Task Response or Coherence and Cohesion . However, if you do this right it can provide a more interesting and developed answer.

In any case, the important thing to know is that your structure should be coherent and logical. Your reader should never feel confused. If you make a plan before writing, this will really help you to stay on topic and deliver your views effectively.

Let’s look at an example:

Some people argue that the government should give every unemployed person a mobile phone and should make sure they have access to the Internet. They believe this is the best way of using public money to reduce the problem of unemployment. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

To answer this question, I would firstly decide the extent to which I agree or disagree. I disagree that it is the best use of public money, so I would structure my essay thusly:

Now let’s look at how I would write that essay:

Sample Band 9 Answer

It has been suggested that governments should give jobless people phones and internet access to alleviate the unemployment problem. This essay will argue that, whilst this may be a good idea, it is certainly not the best way of using public money to solve the problem.

To begin with, it could be seen as a positive step to give unemployed people phones and internet access. This would certainly help improve their lives in a small way and may give them the ability to hunt down job leads. However, it is not a guaranteed method of finding employment. For one thing, phones are severely limited in comparison with computers, which would be far more useful for jobseekers. A computer is more appropriate for writing CVs and scrolling through lists of adverts. As such, perhaps public funds would be better spent on computers rather than phones.

In addition, the idea of just giving unemployed people technology in order to solve their problems seems a little wishful. The fact is that most people have phones and internet access in 2021, suggesting that this is not what prevents them from finding work. Perhaps the money would be better spent on job fairs, counselling, benefits, or even investment in local businesses to spur the hiring process. Indeed, whilst none of these is a perfect solution, they all seem rather more realistic and preferential than buying thousands of phones and internet contracts.

In conclusion, while it may be a good idea to give all jobless people a phone and internet access, it is almost certainly not the best use of public funds in terms of tackling unemployment.

Language for Agreeing and Disagreeing

Once you have figured out the structure for your essay, you need to have the right language to accurately and effectively express your ideas. Most of the grammar and vocabulary you need will be dependent upon the topic , but there are some useful words and phrases to know for all “agree or disagree” essays.

Giving Purpose and Position

In your introduction, you need to clearly state your position vis-à-vis the question. You can also state what you will do in this essay.

Here are some great phrases:

This essay will…

To avoid being overly personal or informal, you can speak as though your essay is writing itself. This might seem a little strange, but it is perfectly normal. It is a great idea to use this for the overview section of your introduction to say “This essay will argue that…” or “This essay will agree with the idea that…”

Alternatively, you can include yourself:

In this essay, I will…

The use of the personal pronoun is a little informal but these questions are directly asking for your opinion and so there is nothing really wrong with it. This is a good way of stating your intentions clearly from the offset.

Just be careful to avoid redundant phrasing here, like “In my opinion, I think that…” It is not necessary to say both “In my opinion” and “I think” because they both express the same basic meaning.

It is also worth making sure that you completely understand how to use the words “agree” and “disagree.” This probably sounds very easy, but many people make mistakes. I have a full article on it here .

One of the biggest mistakes is saying, “I agree to the idea.” Instead, you need to say “I agree with the idea.” The preposition here is a huge difference and completely changes the meaning of “agree.”

Language for Structuring your Ideas

You can use some cohesive devices when explaining your ideas but be careful not to over-use them and make sure that each one is used accurately. For example, the phrases “On the one hand” and “On the other hand” are really useful here but many people make mistakes by saying “On one hand” or “One the other hand.”

You can also use words like “Firstly” and “Finally” to order your ideas but remember that having every sentence start with the same sort of word sounds repetitive, so don’t use these too much.

Some other useful phrases are:

The first reason why I think/believe that [summarise view] is…”

In this case, we are directly communicating to the reader that this is the first (and therefore most important) reason to support our opinion. To remove the personal pronoun, simply change to:

The first reason why [summarise view] is…

Here are two examples:

The first reason why I think that families should take care of their elderly relatives is that it allows more freedom for the individual.
The first reason why families should take care of their elderly relatives is that it allows more freedom for the individual.

Should You Totally Avoid Personal Pronouns?

personal pronouns for agree/disagree essays

For IELTS, some people say that you should always avoid personal pronouns but other people suggest that they are acceptable. It is true that they are acceptable because some questions directly ask for your opinion and experiences. However, it is also true that an advanced writer can answer these questions without personal pronouns, thereby increasing the level of formality .

Take a look at this question:

Rich countries often give money to poorer countries, but it does not solve poverty. Therefore, developed countries should give other types of help to the poor countries rather than financial aid. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

It is clearly asking for your personal opinion, so it would be fine to say “I think…” or “I believe…” However, we could definitely answer it in a more detached, formal sense.

To give my opinion, I will say:

this essay will argue that giving money is not simply enough and that more nuanced, long-term solutions are necessary

Later, in the conclusion, I will use similar language to affirm my view:

whilst it may seem reasonable to donate money to poor countries, it would be far better to help them through education

Here is the full essay:

The topic of international aid is incredibly controversial and there are no simple solutions. However, this essay will argue that giving money is not simply enough and that more nuanced, long-term solutions are necessary.

To begin with, it is important to acknowledge that poor countries need some form of aid and that money is better than nothing. Wealthy countries give vast sums of money, but there are numerous problems that emerge. Firstly, this money usually has strings attached, meaning that the poor countries often end up owing favours or debts, which exacerbates their problems. Secondly, poor countries are typically poor because of endemic corruption, and money donated is usually embezzled immediately after receipt. As such, giving money is understandable but problematic, and other forms of aid are thus preferable.

Nowadays, many people realise that it is better to provide poor countries with the means to help themselves. This can be done in various ways, including education. As such, perhaps the best way to help these nations is to provide them with teachers and educational facilities. This can allow them to raise a generation of intelligent, motivated people who will shape the future. It can clearly be seen that the education of women is of particular importance, as this lowers the fertility rate, further stopping other problems that contribute to poverty. Therefore, the education of young women should be made a top priority.

In conclusion, whilst it may seem reasonable to donate money to poor countries, it would be far better to help them through education.

Writing an essay for an IELTS “agree or disagree” question is probably a little more difficult than writing one for other question types. However, it is not much more difficult and if you follow the advice above, you can definitely create a wonderful essay that will get a high score. Just remember to answer the question directly and also to use appropriate language throughout.

About The Author

David S. Wills

David S. Wills is the author of Scientologist! William S. Burroughs and the 'Weird Cult' and the founder/editor of Beatdom literary journal. He lives and works in rural Cambodia and loves to travel. He has worked as an IELTS tutor since 2010, has completed both TEFL and CELTA courses, and has a certificate from Cambridge for Teaching Writing. David has worked in many different countries, and for several years designed a writing course for the University of Worcester. In 2018, he wrote the popular IELTS handbook, Grammar for IELTS Writing and he has since written two other books about IELTS. His other IELTS website is called IELTS Teaching.

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thanks for such great help.

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IELTS Writing Agree/Disagree Essay Topics [Task-2]

IELTS agree/disagree essay types are commonly asked topics in Writing Task – 2 . For these type of questions you can either agree or disagree with the statement, or you can adopt a balanced approach.

IELTS Writing Agree/Disagree Essay Topics [Task-2]

In this lesson, you will learn how to write a band 7+ answer using THREE sample questions and their model answers. We will adopt the following structure which has proven to be the most suited for agree or disagree essay questions. Practice this structure on the PDF version of the IELTS Writing Task 2 answer sheet .

INTRODUCTION (Choose an opinion; whether you agree or disagree?)
BODY PARAGRAPHS (Write relevant ideas with examples to support your viewpoint)
CONCLUSION (Summarise your writing and provide a logical conclusion)

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. Write at least 250 words.

Essay Topic #1 – Euthanasia

Euthanasia or Mercy Killing is the need of modern life. Do you agree or disagree? Give relevant ideas in support of your point of view.

RELATED: IELTS Discuss Both Views Essay Structure With Sample Answers

Essay Topic #2 – Sedentary Lifestyle

Modern lifestyle has become sedentary. Many people believe that sedentary lifestyle is the mother of all diseases. Do you agree or disagree? Write relevant examples to support your position on this.

Essay Topic #3 – Non Violence

Some people say that non-violence has lost its relevance in the modern world. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Give examples to strengthen your point of view.

I hope you learnt well about band 7+ structures and vocabulary for these IELTS Writing Task – 2 Agree/Disagree Essay Topics.

All the best !

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IELTS Writing Task 2 – Topic: AGREE – DISAGREE

ielts writing topics 2019

1. As well as making money, businesses also have social responsibilities. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Sample Answer

Businesses have always sought to make a profit, but it is becoming increasingly common to hear people talk about the social obligations that companies have. I completely agree with the idea that businesses should do more for society than simply make money.

On the one hand, I accept that businesses must make money in order to survive in a competitive world. It seems logical that the priority of any company should be to cover its running costs, such as employees’ wages and payments for buildings and utilities. On top of these costs, companies also need to invest in improvements and innovations if they wish to remain successful. If a company is unable to pay its bills or meet the changing needs of customers, any concerns about social responsibilities become irrelevant. In other words, a company can only make a positive contribution to society if it is in good financial health.

On the other hand, companies should not be run with the sole aim of maximising profit; they have a wider role to play in society. One social obligation that owners and managers have is to treat their employees well, rather than exploiting them. For example, they could pay a “living wage” to ensure that workers have a good quality of life. I also like the idea that businesses could use a proportion of their profits to support local charities, environmental projects or education initiatives. Finally, instead of trying to minimise their tax payments by using accounting loopholes, I believe that company bosses should be happy to contribute to society through the tax system.

In conclusion, I believe that companies should place as much importance on their social responsibilities as they do on their financial objectives.

(285 words, band 9)

2. Some people think that instead of preventing climate change, we need to find a way to live with it. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Climate change represents a major threat to life on Earth, but some people argue that we need to accept it rather than try to stop it. I completely disagree with this opinion, because I believe that we still have time to tackle this issue and reduce the human impact on the Earth’s climate.

There are various measures that governments and individuals could take to prevent, or at least mitigate, climate change. Governments could introduce laws to limit the carbon dioxide emissions that lead to global warming. They could impose “green taxes” on drivers, airline companies and other polluters, and they could invest in renewable energy production from solar, wind or water power. As individuals, we should also try to limit our contribution to climate change, by becoming more energy efficient, by flying less, and by using bicycles and public transport. Furthermore, the public can affect the actions of governments by voting for politicians who propose to tackle climate change, rather than for those who would prefer to ignore it.

If instead of taking the above measures we simply try to live with climate change, I believe that the consequences will be disastrous. To give just one example, I am not optimistic that we would be able to cope with even a small rise in sea levels. Millions of people would be displaced by flooding, particularly in countries that do not have the means to safeguard low-lying areas. These people would lose their homes and their jobs, and they would be forced to migrate to nearby cities or perhaps to other countries. The potential for human suffering would be huge, and it is likely that we would see outbreaks of disease and famine, as well as increased homelessness and poverty.

In conclusion, it is clear to me that we must address the problem of climate change, and I disagree with those who argue that we can find ways to live with it.

(322 words, band 9)

3. Most people have forgotten the meaning behind traditional or religious festivals; during festival periods, people nowadays only want to enjoy themselves. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

Some people argue that we no longer remember the original meaning of festivals, and that most of us treat them as opportunities to have fun. While I agree that enjoyment seems to be the priority during festival times, I do not agree that people have forgotten what these festivals mean.

On the one hand, religious and traditional festivals have certainly become times for celebration. In the UK, Christmas is a good example of a festival period when people are most concerned with shopping, giving and receiving presents, decorating their homes and enjoying traditional meals with their families. Most people look forward to Christmas as a holiday period, rather than a time to practise religion. Similar behaviour can be seen during non-religious festivals, such as Bonfire Night. People associate this occasion with making fires, watching firework displays, and perhaps going to large events in local parks; in other words, enjoyment is people’s primary goal.

However, I disagree with the idea that the underlying meaning of such festivals has been forgotten. In UK primary schools, children learn in detail about the religious reasons for celebrating Christmas, Easter and a variety of festivals in other religions. For example, in late December, children sing Christmas songs which have a religious content, and they may even perform nativity plays telling the story of Jesus’ birth. Families also play a role in passing knowledge of religious festivals’ deeper significance on to the next generation. The same is true for festivals that have a historical background, such as Bonfire Night or Halloween, in the sense that people generally learn the stories behind these occasions at an early age.

In conclusion, although people mainly want to enjoy themselves during festivals, I believe that they are still aware of the reasons for these celebrations.

(296 words, band 9)

4. The money spent by governments on space programmes would be better spent on vital public services such as schools and hospitals. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Governments in some countries spend large amounts of money on space exploration programmes. I completely agree with the idea that these are a waste of money, and that the funds should be allocated to public services.

There are several reasons why space programmes should be abandoned. Firstly, it is extremely expensive to train scientists and other staff involved with space missions, and facilities and equipment also come at a huge cost to the government. Secondly, these programmes do not benefit normal people in our daily lives; they are simply vanity projects for politicians. Finally, many missions to space fail completely, and the smallest technological error can cost astronauts their lives. The Challenger space shuttle disaster showed us that space travel is extremely dangerous, and in my opinion it is not worth the risk.

I believe that the money from space programmes should go to vital public services instead. It is much cheaper to train doctors, teachers, police and other public service workers than it is to train astronauts or the scientists and engineers who work on space exploration projects. Furthermore, public servants do jobs that have a positive impact on every member of society. For example, we all use schools, hospitals and roads, and we all need the security that the police provide. If governments reallocated the money spent on space travel and research, many thousands of people could be lifted out of poverty or given a better quality of life.

In conclusion, my view is that governments should spend money on services that benefit all members of society, and it is wrong to waste resources on projects that do not improve our everyday lives.

(275 words, band 9)

5. Some people who have been in prison become good citizens later, and it is often argued that these are the best people to talk to teenagers about the dangers of committing a crime. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

It is true that ex-prisoners can become normal, productive members of society. I completely agree with the idea that allowing such people to speak to teenagers about their experiences is the best way to discourage them from breaking the law.

In my opinion, teenagers are more likely to accept advice from someone who can speak from experience. Reformed offenders can tell young people about how they became involved in crime, the dangers of a criminal lifestyle, and what life in prison is really like. They can also dispel any ideas that teenagers may have about criminals leading glamorous lives. While adolescents are often indifferent to the guidance given by older people, I imagine that most of them would be extremely keen to hear the stories of an ex-offender. The vivid and perhaps shocking nature of these stories is likely to have a powerful impact.

The alternatives to using reformed criminals to educate teenagers about crime would be much less effective. One option would be for police officers to visit schools and talk to young people. This could be useful in terms of informing teens about what happens to lawbreakers when they are caught, but young people are often reluctant to take advice from figures of authority. A second option would be for school teachers to speak to their students about crime, but I doubt that students would see teachers as credible sources of information about this topic. Finally, educational films might be informative, but there would be no opportunity for young people to interact and ask questions.

In conclusion, I fully support the view that people who have turned their lives around after serving a prison sentence could help to deter teenagers from committing crimes.

(287 words, band 9)

6. The older generations tend to have very traditional ideas about how people should live, think and behave. However, some people believe that these ideas are not helpful in preparing younger generations for modern life. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this view?

It is true that many older people believe in traditional values that often seem incompatible with the needs of younger people. While I agree that some traditional ideas are outdated, I believe that others are still useful and should not be forgotten.

On the one hand, many of the ideas that elderly people have about life are becoming less relevant for younger people. In the past, for example, people were advised to learn a profession and find a secure job for life, but today’s workers expect much more variety and diversity from their careers. At the same time, the ‘rules’ around relationships are being eroded as young adults make their own choices about who and when to marry. But perhaps the greatest disparity between the generations can be seen in their attitudes towards gender roles. The traditional roles of men and women, as breadwinners and housewives, are no longer accepted as necessary or appropriate by most younger people.

On the other hand, some traditional views and values are certainly applicable to the modern world. For example, older generations attach great importance to working hard, doing one’s best, and taking pride in one’s work, and these behaviours can surely benefit young people as they enter today’s competitive job market. Other characteristics that are perhaps seen as traditional are politeness and good manners. In our globalised world, young adults can expect to come into contact with people from a huge variety of backgrounds, and it is more important than ever to treat others with respect. Finally, I believe that young people would lead happier lives if they had a more ‘old-fashioned’ sense of community and neighbourliness.

In conclusion, although the views of older people may sometimes seem unhelpful in today’s world, we should not dismiss all traditional ideas as irrelevant.

(299 words, band 9)

7. Wild animals have no place in the 21st century, so protecting them is a waste of resources. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Some people argue that it is pointless to spend money on the protection of wild animals because we humans have no need for them. I completely disagree with this point of view.

In my opinion, it is absurd to argue that wild animals have no place in the 21st century. I do not believe that planet Earth exists only for the benefit of humans, and there is nothing special about this particular century that means that we suddenly have the right to allow or encourage the extinction of any species. Furthermore, there is no compelling reason why we should let animals die out. We do not need to exploit or destroy every last square metre of land in order to feed or accommodate the world’s population. There is plenty of room for us to exist side by side with wild animals, and this should be our aim.

I also disagree with the idea that protecting animals is a waste of resources. It is usually the protection of natural habitats that ensures the survival of wild animals, and most scientists agree that these habitats are also crucial for human survival. For example, rainforests produce oxygen, absorb carbon dioxide and stabilise the Earth’s climate. If we destroyed these areas, the costs of managing the resulting changes to our planet would far outweigh the costs of conservation. By protecting wild animals and their habitats, we maintain the natural balance of all life on Earth.

In conclusion, we have no right to decide whether or not wild animals should exist, and I believe that we should do everything we can to protect them.

(269 words, band 9)

8. Families who send their children to private schools should not be required to pay taxes that support the state education system. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Some people believe that parents of children who attend private schools should not need to contribute to state schools through taxes. Personally, I completely disagree with this view.

For a variety of reasons, it would be wrong to reduce taxes for families who pay for private education. Firstly, it would be difficult to calculate the correct amount of tax reduction for these families, and staff would be required to manage this complex process. Secondly, we all pay a certain amount of tax for public services that we may not use. For example, most people are fortunate enough not to have to call the police or fire brigade at any time in their lives, but they would not expect a tax reduction for this. Finally, if wealthy families were given a tax discount for sending their children to private schools, we might have a situation where poorer people pay higher taxes than the rich.

In my opinion, we should all be happy to pay our share of the money that supports public schools. It is beneficial for all members of society to have a high quality education system with equal opportunities for all young people. This will result in a well-educated workforce, and in turn a more productive and prosperous nation. Parents of children in private schools may also see the advantages of this in their own lives. For example, a company owner will need well qualified and competent staff, and a well-funded education system can provide such employees.

In conclusion, I do not believe that any financial concessions should be made for people who choose private education.

9. Nowadays celebrities are more famous for their glamour and wealth than for their achievements, and this sets a bad example to young people. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

It is true that some celebrities are known for their glamorous lifestyles rather than for the work they do. While I agree that these celebrities set a bad example for children, I believe that other famous people act as positive role models.

On the one hand, many people do achieve fame without really working for it. They may have inherited money from parents, married a famous or wealthy person, or they may have appeared in gossip magazines or on a reality TV programme. A good example would be Paris Hilton, who is rich and famous for the wrong reasons. She spends her time attending parties and nightclubs, and her behaviour promotes the idea that appearance, glamour and media profile are more important than hard work and good character. The message to young people is that success can be achieved easily, and that school work is not necessary.

On the other hand, there are at least as many celebrities whose accomplishments make them excellent role models for young people. Actors, musicians and sports stars become famous idols because they have worked hard and applied themselves to develop real skills and abilities. They demonstrate great effort, determination and ambition, which is required for someone who wants to be truly successful in their chosen field. An example is the actor and martial artist Jackie Chan, who has become world famous through years of practice and hard work. This kind of self-made celebrity can inspire children to develop their talents through application and perseverance.

In conclusion, although it is hard to argue that there are still people who are famous for their notorious behavior, the majority of celebrities nowadays demonstrate healthy personal images, which the public can learn from.

10. Foreign visitors should pay more than local visitors for cultural and historical attractions. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

It is sometimes argued that tourists from overseas should be charged more than local residents to visit important sites and monuments. I completely disagree with this idea.

The argument in favour of higher prices for foreign tourists would be that cultural or historical attractions often depend on state subsidies to keep them going, which means that the resident population already pays money to these sites through the tax system. However, I believe this to be a very shortsighted view. Foreign tourists contribute to the economy of the host country with the money they spend on a wide range of goods and services, including food, souvenirs, accommodation and travel. The governments and inhabitants of every country should be happy to subsidise important tourist sites and encourage people from the rest of the world to visit them.

If travellers realised that they would have to pay more to visit historical and cultural attractions in a particular nation, they would perhaps decide not to go to that country on holiday. To take the UK as an example, the tourism industry and many related jobs rely on visitors coming to the country to see places like Windsor Castle or Saint Paul’s Cathedral. These two sites charge the same price regardless of nationality, and this helps to promote the nation’s cultural heritage. If overseas tourists stopped coming due to higher prices, there would be a risk of insufficient funding for the maintenance of these important buildings.

In conclusion, I believe that every effort should be made to attract tourists from overseas, and it would be counterproductive to make them pay more than local residents.

11. When choosing a job, the salary is the most important consideration. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Many people choose their jobs based on the size of the salary offered. Personally, I disagree with the idea that money is the key consideration when deciding on a career, because I believe that other factors are equally important.

On the one hand, I agree that money is necessary in order for people to meet their basic needs. For example, we all need money to pay for housing, food, bills, health care, and education. Most people consider it a priority to at least earn a salary that allows them to cover these needs and have a reasonable quality of life. If people chose their jobs based on enjoyment or other non-financial factors, they might find it difficult to support themselves. Artists and musicians, for instance, are known for choosing a career path that they love, but that does not always provide them with enough money to live comfortably and raise a family.

Nevertheless, I believe that other considerations are just as important as what we earn in our jobs. Firstly, personal relationships and the atmosphere in a workplace are extremely important when choosing a job. Having a good manager or friendly colleagues, for example, can make a huge difference to workers’ levels of happiness and general quality of life. Secondly, many people’s feelings of job satisfaction come from their professional achievements, the skills they learn, and the position they reach, rather than the money they earn. Finally, some people choose a career because they want to help others and contribute something positive to society.

In conclusion, while salaries certainly affect people’s choice of profession, I do not believe that money outweighs all other motivators.

12. Some people believe that hobbies need to be difficult to be enjoyable. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Some hobbies are relatively easy, while others present more of a challenge. Personally, I believe that both types of hobby can be fun, and I therefore disagree with the statement that hobbies need to be difficult in order to be enjoyable.

On the one hand, many people enjoy easy hobbies. One example of an activity that is easy for most people is swimming. This hobby requires very little equipment, it is simple to learn, and it is inexpensive. I remember learning to swim at my local swimming pool when I was a child, and it never felt like a demanding or challenging experience. Another hobby that I find easy and fun is photography. In my opinion, anyone can take interesting pictures without knowing too much about the technicalities of operating a camera. Despite being straightforward, taking photos is a satisfying activity.

On the other hand, difficult hobbies can sometimes be more exciting. If an activity is more challenging, we might feel a greater sense of satisfaction when we manage to do it successfully. For example, film editing is a hobby that requires a high level of knowledge and expertise. In my case, it took me around two years before I became competent at this activity, but now I enjoy it much more than I did when I started. I believe that many hobbies give us more pleasure when we reach a higher level of performance because the results are better and the feeling of achievement is greater.

In conclusion, simple hobbies can be fun and relaxing, but difficult hobbies can be equally pleasurable for different reasons.

(266 words, band 9)

13. Some people think that all teenagers should be required to do unpaid work in their free time to help the local community. They believe this would benefit both the individual teenager and society as a whole. Do you agree or disagree?

Many young people work on a volunteer basis, and this can only be beneficial for both the individual and society as a whole. However, I do not agree that we should therefore force all teenagers to do unpaid work.

Most young people are already under enough pressure with their studies, without being given the added responsibility of working in their spare time. School is just as demanding as a full-time job, and teachers expect their students to do homework and exam revision on top of attending lessons every day. When young people do have some free time, we should encourage them to enjoy it with their friends or to spend it doing sports and other leisure activities. They have many years of work ahead of them when they finish their studies.

At the same time, I do not believe that society has anything to gain from obliging young people to do unpaid work. In fact, I would argue that it goes against the values of a free and fair society to force a group of people to do something against their will. Doing this can only lead to resentment amongst young people, who would feel that they were being used, and parents, who would not want to be told how to raise their children. Currently, nobody is forced to volunteer, and this is surely the best system.

In conclusion, teenagers may choose to work for free and help others, but in my opinion we should not make this compulsory.

(250 words, band 9)

14. We cannot help everyone in the world that needs help, so we should only be concerned with our own communities and countries. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Some people believe that we should not help people in other countries as long as there are problems in our own society. I disagree with this view because I believe that we should try to help as many people as possible.

On the one hand, I accept that it is important to help our neighbours and fellow citizens. In most communities there are people who are impoverished or disadvantaged in some way. It is possible to find homeless people, for example, in even the wealthiest of cities, and for those who are concerned about this problem, there are usually opportunities to volunteer time or give money to support these people. In the UK, people can help in a variety of ways, from donating clothing to serving free food in a soup kitchen. As the problems are on our doorstep, and there are obvious ways to help, I can understand why some people feel that we should prioritise local charity.

At the same time, I believe that we have an obligation to help those who live beyond our national borders. In some countries the problems that people face are much more serious than those in our own communities, and it is often even easier to help. For example, when children are dying from curable diseases in African countries, governments and individuals in richer countries can save lives simply by paying for vaccines that already exist. A small donation to an international charity might have a much greater impact than helping in our local area.

In conclusion, it is true that we cannot help everyone, but in my opinion national boundaries should not stop us from helping those who are in need.

(280 words, band 9)

15. In recent years, there has been growing interest in the relationship between equality and personal achievement. Some people believe that individuals can achieve more in egalitarian societies. Others believe that high levels of personal achievement are possible only if individuals are free to succeed or fail according to their individual merits. What is your view of the relationship between equality and personal success?

In my opinion, an egalitarian society is one in which everyone has the same rights and the same opportunities. I completely agree that people can achieve more in this kind of society.

Education is an important factor with regard to personal success in life. I believe that all children should have access to free schooling, and higher education should be either free or affordable for all those who chose to pursue a university degree. In a society without free schooling or affordable higher education, only children and young adults from wealthier families would have access to the best learning opportunities, and they would therefore be better prepared for the job market. This kind of inequality would ensure the success of some but harm the prospects of others.

I would argue that equal rights and opportunities are not in conflict with people’s freedom to succeed or fail. In other words, equality does not mean that people lose their motivation to succeed, or that they are not allowed to fail. On the contrary, I believe that most people would feel more motivated to work hard and reach their potential if they thought that they lived in a fair society. Those who did not make the same effort would know that they had wasted their opportunity. Inequality, on the other hand, would be more likely to demotivate people because they would know that the odds of success were stacked in favour of those from privileged backgrounds.

In conclusion, it seems to me that there is a positive relationship between equality and personal success.

(260 words, band 9)

16. Universities should accept equal numbers of male and female students in every subject. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

In my opinion, men and women should have the same educational opportunities. However, I do not agree with the idea of accepting equal proportions of each gender in every university subject.

Having the same number of men and women on all degree courses is simply unrealistic. Student numbers on any course depend on the applications that the institution receives. If a university decided to fill courses with equal numbers of males and females, it would need enough applicants of each gender. In reality, many courses are more popular with one gender than the other, and it would not be practical to aim for equal proportions. For example, nursing courses tend to attract more female applicants, and it would be difficult to fill these courses if fifty per cent of the places needed to go to males.

Apart from the practical concerns expressed above, I also believe that it would be unfair to base admission to university courses on gender. Universities should continue to select the best candidates for each course according to their qualifications. In this way, both men and women have the same opportunities, and applicants know that they will be successful if they work hard to achieve good grades at school. If a female student is the best candidate for a place on a course, it is surely wrong to reject her in favour of a male student with lower grades or fewer qualifications.

In conclusion, the selection of university students should be based on merit, and it would be both impractical and unfair to change to a selection procedure based on gender.

(265 words, band 9)

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IELTS Agree or Disagree Essay

Opinion Essays
Discussion Essays
Problem Solution Essays
Advantages & Disadvantages Essays
Double Question Essays

Example of IETS Opinion essay

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write at least 250 words.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your knowledge or experience.

Structure of IELTS Opinion Essay

Paragraph 1: Introduction
Paraphrase the Essay Topic
Thesis Statement
Paragraph 2: Supporting Paragraph #1
Topic Sentence
Support (Example or Experience)
Explanation
Paragraph 3: Supporting Paragraph #2
Paragraph 4: Conclusion
Restate Thesis/Summarize your ideas

To what extent..

Example vocabulary and phrases: stating your opinion.

In my opinion I believe that education should be free because it helps move society forward.
As far as paying for education is concerned, I believe that you should have to pay because it creates competition which helps to develop stronger institutions.
My impression is that education should require a cost whether it be through tax payer money or private institutions.
Most institutions require tuition to attend. However. I believe that education should be free because it helps move society forward.

Example Vocabulary and Phrases: Arguing Your Point

This proves that free education can provide many opportunities for those who cannot afford it.
According to this, it can be argued that financial aid is a way to support students who cannot afford to pay for education.

Example Vocabulary and Phrases: Adding Adverb

Beginning of the sentence, middle of the sentence.

Clearly, this is an example of numerous afford a proper education.
This is definitely true because there are many students who are unable to attend school because they cannot afford it.
Deciding whether education should be free is absolutely a major challenge to consider.
The right to receive an education is substantially more important than earning money.

Example Vocabulary and Phrases: Verbs

I disagree that education should cost students.
I believe that education should be free.
I have no doubt that society will benefit with free education.
I think that education should be free.
It cannot be denied that education costs money because teachers, faculty, and staff all need to be paid.
As I see it, education has costs, so someone needs to pay for it.

Before You Start

Think about how you will plan to write your essay.
Brainstorm and generate ideas.

Outline structure for IELTS Essay

________________________________

Outline structure for IELTS Opinion Essay

Paragraph I: Introduction
Paraphrase the Essay Topic - I believe that everyone should have access to free education without limitations.
Thesis Statement - Education is a valuable resource and it advances society.
Education is tool that helps us succeed
Germany - Free education
Same philosophy - society advances
Paying for education helps drive competition between institutions, but I believe this restricts social mobility.
Student cannot afford education
If every person of society is allowed to move forward, then all of society will benefit.
In conclusion education is essential to any society
By restricting access to it because of tuition limits societal advancements, it is important that we eliminate sort of barriers to education, Including costs.

Example Essay

Thesis Statement - Education is a valuable resource and it advances society. If there are certain barriers to receiving education like costs, many students would lose the opportunity to pursue an education because of this.
Education is a tool and it advances society and with free universal access to education, there are no limits to what a country and what a society can obtain.
A perfect example of this Is Germany, where universities are now tuition-free.
If all countries developed the same philosophy towards education as German. I have no doubt that society will benefit.
Some may argue that paying for education helps drive competition between institutions and helps to develop stronger schools. However. 1 completely disagree because I believe this restricts social mobility.
In other words, if a student who would like to pursue a degree In higher education, but cannot afford the high tuition rates then he or she will be unable to further their education.
On the other hand, If every person of society is allowed to move forward, then all of society will benefit.
In conclusion education is essential to any society.

Example Essay in color

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Academic practice
General practice
Task 1 Academic
Task 1 General
Task 2 (essay)

To what extent you agree or disagree essay

This lesson will guide you how to write essays in IELTS Writing that ask you to what extent you agree/disagree . Such questions are very common for IELTS Writing task 2 . In such essays your task is to say whether you:

completely agree with a given statement
completely disagree with a given statement
partly agree / disagree

and justify your opinion .

In this lesson you will see IELTS writing task 2 sample question + model answer . Also, you will learn the following points:

how to decide on your opinion
how to generate ideas to justify your opinion
how to give a band 9 answer for agree/disagree question

To what extent you agree/disagree question sample

Let’s look at an example of IELTS writing task 2:

The government's investment in arts, music and theatre is a waste of money. Governments should invest these funds in public services instead.

To what extent do you agree with this statement?

Choose your opinion & generate ideas

Unlike classic agree/disagree questions, to what extent you agree or disagree questions do NOT ask you to clearly determine whether you agree or disagree with the given statement.

In fact, you have 3 major options for your opinion :

AA : You completely agree (provide 2 ideas that strengthen the statement) DD : You completely disagree (provide 2 ideas that weaken the statement) AD : You agree or disagree partly (provide 1 idea that strengthens the statement and 1 idea that weakens it)

After you’ve decided your opinion, generate 2-3 supporting points for it .

Now let’s generate supporting points for each of the opinions:

AA: Investment in arts, music and theatre is a waste of money

Art, music and theatre don’t help to solve urgent problems of the society
Art and music can develop as hobbies, and saved money can be directed towards urgent needs of the society
If artists and musicians were employed at more traditional jobs, there would be a great benefit for science and industry

DD: Investment in arts, music and theatre is NOT a waste of money

The arts and music preserve unique culture and heritage, passing nation’s cultural character and traditions to future generations
Arts, music and theatre are an integral part of the society’s cultural and intellectual development and amusement
A strong arts, music and theatre sector is an economic asset that creates new jobs and attracts tourism revenue

For this opinion, just combine ideas from the previous points.

For our essay, we’ll choose the last opinion - partially agree / disagree (AD).

Band 9 answer structure

There are a lot of ways to structure your essay, but we’ll use a structure that has been approved by many IELTS examiners to be high-scoring and coherent. Band-9 essay structure :

Introduction

Body paragraph 1 - the 1st supporting point

Body paragraph 2 - the 2nd supporting point

As you already know, you can write the supporting points of your body paragraphs in the following ways: agree + agree, disagree + disagree, agree + disagree. We’ll use the last option as our opinion is partially agree / disagree .

Let’s take a look at each of these sections in detail.

Sentence 1 - paraphrase the statement (you can use ‘ it is argued/considered/thought that ’ to start):

It is often argued that the government should finance public services instead of spending its budget on arts, music and theatre.

Sentence 2 - give your opinion :

Although I agree that government’s investments in public services play a very important role, I think that proper funding of arts sector is also crucial for the society.

Sentence 1 - state the first reason you agree/disagree .

This sentence should contain the main idea of the whole 1st paragraph. In our case we’ll use the reason A: why it is important to finance public services. As we’ll be considering opposite opinions, it is a good idea to use a collocation on the one hand to introduce the first reason:

On the one hand, the government should definitely allocate a large part of its budget on public services.

Sentences 2-3 - explain the reason .

To explain the reason effectively, you can imagine that your examiner didn’t understand what you were talking about and you have to explain every detail:

This economic sector determines the overall quality of life, ensuring that some basic services, like schools, hospitals and roads, are available to all citizens irrespective of their income or social status. Public services satisfy the primary needs of the society and thus need a proper funding, while artists and musicians are not curing diseases or building houses, so their role is secondary.

Sentence 4 - example .

It’s always good to give examples in your body paragraphs, even if you’re not asked to do it (like in our case):

For example, any country can live without music concerts, but absence of medicine will create significant problems.

Sentence 5 - a short summary of your ideas in this paragraph :

That’s why the government should adequately finance public services in the first place.

Body paragraph 2 - the 2nd reason you agree/disagree

Sentence 1 - state the second reason you agree/disagree .

This statement should contain the main idea of the whole 2nd paragraph. This time we’ll use the reason D: why it is important to finance public services. As we are considering opposite opinions, it is a good idea to use a phrase on the other hand to introduce the second reason:

On the other hand, arts, music and theatre are not a waste of money, since they are an integral part of the society’s cultural and intellectual development and amusement.

Sentences 2-3 - explain the reason (assume that your examiner doesn’t understand the topic at all):

Firstly, art and music draw people’s attention to diverse phenomena and represent the inward significance of things. Quite often a single drawing, piece or song can exhort myriads of people to reconsider their attitude towards some situation. This way, art serves as a major source of nation’s personal and intellectual development. Moreover, visiting museums, watching movies and listening to music are common ways of relaxation and entertainment.

Sentence 4 - support your idea with an example :

The question doesn’t ask us to give examples, plus we’ve already written a lot in this paragraph, so we’ll skip this point.

Sentence 5 - a short summary of your thoughts in the 2nd paragraph .

Thus, art sector is also important for the society and should not be neglected.

You can write the conclusion in one sentence that summarizes your opinion + 2 reasons for it :

To conclude, though I agree that the government should allocate a large part of its budget on such urgent needs of the society like public services, I think that arts, music and theatre should also be financed since they play an important role in people’s development and entertainment.

DO NOT write new ideas in the conclusion!

Model answer

This is a full band-9 answer for to what extent you agree or disagree IELTS Writing question above:

It is often argued that the government should finance public services instead of spending its budget on arts, music and theatre. Although I agree that government’s investments in public services play a very important role, I think that proper funding of arts sector is also crucial for the society.

On the one hand, the government should definitely allocate a large part of its budget on public services. This economic sector determines the overall quality of life, ensuring that some basic services, like schools, hospitals and roads, are available to all citizens irrespective of their income or social status. Public services satisfy the primary needs of the society and thus need a proper funding, while artists and musicians are not curing diseases or building houses, so their role is secondary. For example, any country can live without music concerts, but absence of medicine will create significant problems. That’s why the government should adequately finance public services in the first place.

On the other hand, arts, music and theatre are not a waste of money, since they are an integral part of the society’s cultural and intellectual development and amusement. Firstly, art and music draw people’s attention to diverse phenomena and represent the inward significance of things. Quite often a single drawing, piece or song can exhort myriads of people to reconsider their attitude towards some situation. This way, art serves as a major source of nation’s personal and intellectual development. Moreover, visiting museums, watching movies and listening to music are common ways of relaxation and entertainment. Thus, art sector is also important for the society and should not be neglected.

IELTS Writing Task 2: Agree/Disagree Sample Essay

Person holding 2 thumbs up to represent IELTS agree disagree essay

IELTS Writing Task 2 asks you to give your opinion on an important social issue. In this particular opinion essay IELTS sample, the question type is called “agree/disagree.” Agree/disagree essays want you to take a position on an issue that is stated. From there, it’s your job to say if you agree or disagree with the initial statement, supporting your own opinion with examples and details. For more details on this and other question types for the second part of the IELTS Writing section, check out our complete guide to the most common IELTS Writing Task 2 questions .

Below, we’ll look at a model essay, based on an example question. The question is original to Magoosh, but is patterned closely off of real IELTS questions. The model essay is based on an excellent IELTS Writing template for Task 2 created by Rachel, one of Magoosh’s top IELTS experts. Note that this essay is at band 9, the highest IELTS Writing score you can receive. More information on why this is a band 9 response can be seen below the essay.

Agree/Disagree Sample Essay

First things first! Let’s look at the sample prompt.

Example Agree/Disagree IELTS Writing Task 2 Prompt

It is now possible to order almost any item over the Internet and have it delivered to one’s home. As a result, people are no longer patient or careful in their shopping habits. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Get a higher IELTS score? Start your online IELTS prep today with Magoosh.

Write at least 250 words.

Example Response

Online shopping and home delivery causes concerns that consumers may become more hasty and less cautious. However, I do not believe that online shopping has this effect. In fact, I would say that the opposite is true. In this essay, I will discuss the reasons that online shopping actually helps shoppers make smarter choices.

Internet shopping actually makes people more patient while they shop, not less patient. This is because, even with home delivery, online shopping is actually less “instant” than traditional shopping in stores. After all, if someone goes into a store, they can leave minutes later with the items they purchased. However, even the fastest delivery methods for online goods take at least a day. As a result, people are actually more accustomed to longer waits before they receive something they’ve bought.

Not only does online shopping make buyers more patient, it also facilitates careful, informed choices for buyers. This is because there is more competition between different sellers online than there is in a single store. If someone goes to a store in person, they will see a relatively small range of brand names, and they certainly won’t see the offerings of other stores. In contrast, online customers can compare just about every brand of any given product and browse the websites of multiple stores. This gives customers all the information they need to make the best possible purchases.

When shopping on the Web, customers can learn patience because they must wait for their items to be delivered to them, and even more importantly, customers can access all of the information they need to choose the right items. Ultimately, online shopping is truly a positive development, not a negative one.

Word count: 283

Why This Essay is Band 9

This is a very strong essay because it satisfies the level descriptors in the official IELTS Writing Task 2 rubric . Read that official score guide carefully and compare it to this essay, and you’ll see why the example above scored so well. Also, for a more detailed band 9 level score report from Magoosh, see the scorer commentary immediately below.

Scorer Commentary (agree/Disagree IELTS Essay, Band 9)

This score report is patterned after the official level descriptors for IELTS Writing Task 2 . This report also looks a lot like the Magoosh IELTS essay scoring service .

Overall Band Score: 9

What was done well in the essay:

This essay is above the 250 word minimum. (This is very important for getting full points!)
The writer does a good job of meeting the task requirements. They take a clear position where they favor online shopping and disagree with the claim that it makes people less careful or patient.
The paragraphs are well organized. The introduction and conclusion clearly preview the essay and give good final thoughts, respectively. The body paragraphs each have their own well-organized topics. The first body paragraph provides good explanations and examples to show that online shopping doesn’t make people less patient; the second paragraph provides comparable support to the idea that online shopping allows people to be more careful.
There are some nice key phrases to tie ideas together. Examples include “however,” “in fact,” “actually,” and “not only.”
Vocabulary and grammar show no serious errors, and a good variety of word choice and structure.

Magoosh’s Other Sample IELTS Writing Task 2 Essays

We have model essays for each of the question types for the second IELTS Writing task. Click the links below to access our other sample essays:

Advantage/Disadvantage Essay
Two-Part Question Essay
Causes/Solutions Essay
Discussion Essay

Want more sample essays? Magoosh has you covered!

To read out model essays for the other Task 2 IELTS Writing question types, click the links below:

David is a Test Prep Expert for Magoosh TOEFL and IELTS. Additionally, he’s helped students with TOEIC, PET, FCE, BULATS, Eiken, SAT, ACT, GRE, and GMAT. David has a BS from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and an MA from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. His work at Magoosh has been cited in many scholarly articles , his Master’s Thesis is featured on the Reading with Pictures website, and he’s presented at the WITESOL (link to PDF) and NAFSA conferences. David has taught K-12 ESL in South Korea as well as undergraduate English and MBA-level business English at American universities. He has also trained English teachers in America, Italy, and Peru. Come join David and the Magoosh team on Youtube , Facebook , and Instagram , or connect with him via LinkedIn !

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4 responses to “IELTS Writing Task 2: Agree/Disagree Sample Essay”

How many paragraphs are there in to what extent agree or disagree essay as some says that there are 5 para 2 on which we are agree and one Disagree. What is the best structure to get 7 or above for this essay type. Please let me know as my exam in next month.

Hi Sheetal!

Some people might write 3, 4 or even 5 paragraphs–there is no strict requirement. It is important to organize your essay well, however, and ensure that your use of paragraphs makes sense for the content of the essay. Additionally, remember that you need to write at least 250 words for a Task 2 essay, and most students who score the highest are closer to the 300-400 mark. So you should aim for that amount of words if you want a 7+ score. I’d recommend taking a look at more sample Task 2 essays to see how they are structured, and that should help! Best of luck on your test. 😀

in the introduction part, writer mentions his/her own opinion, is it correct we write our own idea in the introduction part?

Yes, that is correct because the IELTS Writing Task 2 asks you to give your opinion on an important social issue. Additionally, note that this question directly asks “To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.”

I recommend reading over several sample Task 2 essays so that you can get a better idea of what they should include/how they should be written. Additionally, be sure to check out our Complete Guide to IELTS Task 2 .

Happy studying! 😀

How to Plan & Write IELTS Opinion Essays

IELTS opinion essays, also known as ‘agree or disagree’ essays, come up frequently in the writing exam. In this lesson, I’m going to show you how to plan and write them step-by-step.

Here’s what we’ll be covering:

3 Common mistakes
Essay structure
How to plan
How to write an introduction
How to write main body paragraphs
How to write a conclusion

Click the links to see lessons on each of these Task 2 essay writing topics.

Once you understand the process, practice on past questions. Take your time at first and gradually speed up until you can plan and write an essay of at least 250 words in the 40 minutes allowed in the exam.

The Question

The first part of the question for an IELTS opinion essay will be a statement. You will then be asked to give your own opinion about the statement. Here is some typical wording that might be used:

What is your opinion?
Do you agree or disagree?
To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Want to watch and listen to this lesson?

Click on this video.

Here's a question from a past test paper.

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

I’ll be using this question to guide you through the process of planning and writing an IELTS opinion essay.

3 Common Mistakes

These three errors are common in IELTS opinion essays.

Not stating an opinion.
Giving arguments for both views.
Not supporting your opinion with clear reasons.

The most common mistake that students make is not giving an opinion. The question will clearly state that you must choose one side of the argument. If you fail to do this, you will get a low score for task achievement.

It doesn’t matter which side of the argument you take or even, that you agree with it. Choose the one you can develop the best argument for.

Make sure that you don’t change your opinion part way through the essay, and don’t give reasons for the opposing view.

Essay Structure

Now let’s look at a simple structure you can use to write opinion essays. It’s not the only possible structure but it’s the one I recommend because it’s easy to learn and will enable you to quickly plan and write a high-level essay.

1) Introduction

Paraphrase the question
Give your opinion
State two supporting reasons

2) Main body paragraph 1

Topic sentence – outline 1st reason for supporting this view
Explanation – explain this idea
Example – give an example or expand the idea

3) Main body paragraph 2

Topic sentence – outline 2nd reason for supporting this view
Example – give an example or expand the idea

4) Conclusion

Summarise opinion and key reasons

This structure will give us a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs.

We now need some ideas to add into the structure and we’ll have everything we need for our essay.

How To Plan IELTS Opinion Essays

# 1 decide on your opinion.

The question I've chosen to work on is quite straightforward and easy to understand so we don’t need to spend time analysing it. The first task, then, is to decide on our opinion.

Here’s the question again:

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?

For this essay, I’m going to disagree with the statement and argue that job satisfaction is more important than a big salary.

# 2 Generate ideas

The second task is to generate some ideas to write about.

Since I‘m going to argue that job satisfaction is more important than a large salary, I need ideas to support this view.

There are several different ways to think up ideas. I cover them fully on the IELTS Essay Planning page.

With this particular question, I immediately thought of a couple of examples of situations where job satisfaction did prove to be more important than a high salary, so I’m going to use the ‘example method’ of generating ideas.

Once you’ve thought of an example or two, ideas to include in your essay should come to you easily.

You might want to try this yourself before reading on for my ideas.

Here are my examples and some ideas they generated.

Both the examples are partly true but I've adapted them to better fit the essay. It's fine to do this as the examiner won't check your facts.

Uncle Barry – boasted about high salary but hated his job. Nervous breakdown – lost job & can’t work.
Me – gave up teaching. Now enjoy my work and am much more relaxed and happy even though I earn much less money.
High-salary jobs are generally more stressful
Stress leads to ill health, both mental and physical
40 hours a week at work – a third of the day
Money doesn’t bring happiness
Better quality of life
Sense of fulfilment
Less stressed – healthier and happier

I’ve got more ideas here than I need so I’m going to pick two to develop in the essay – one for each of the main body paragraphs.

Idea 1 – High-salary jobs are generally more stressful and can lead to ill health.

Idea 2 – Job satisfaction gives a sense of fulfilment.

We’re almost ready to start writing our IELTS opinion essay but first, we have one other small task to do.

# 3 Vocabulary

In an IELTS essay, it’s important to be able to say the same things in different ways, either by paraphrasing and/or using synonyms. During the planning stage, quickly jot down a few synonyms of key words you could use to save you having to stop and think of the right language while you’re writing.

For example:

satisfaction – fulfilment, achievement, sense of accomplishment, content, sense of well-being

salary – income, wages, pay, earnings

important – significant, valued, has more meaning

job – work, employment, position

With that done, we can focus on the first paragraph of the essay – the introduction.

How To Write an Introduction

A good introduction has a simple 3 part structure:

1) Paraphrased question

2) Thesis statement

3) outline statement.

An introduction should:

Have 2-3 sentences
Be 40-60 words long
Take 5 minutes to write

1) Paraphrase the question

Start your introduction by paraphrasing the question.

Question: A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?

Paraphrased question:

It is argued that earning lots of money has more significance to people than being content in their work.

Note that I’ve used some of the synonyms I listed, although it’s fine to repeat one or two words if you need to. Above all, your language must sound natural.

In IELTS opinion essays, the thesis statement is where you state your opinion. For example,

Thesis statement:

This essay totally disagrees with that statement.

That’s all you need to say.

If you decided to agree with the statement, you would write:

'This essay completely agrees with that statement.'

Finally in the introduction, you must outline the two main points (ideas 1 and 2 above) that you’ll cover in the rest of the essay. Do it in one sentence, or you can add them onto the end of the thesis statement if appropriate.

Outl ine statement:

I believe that people are increasingly concerned about the risk of stress-related ill-health frequently experienced by people in highly paid positions and they care more about feeling fulfilled at work.

So, let’s bring the three elements of our introduction together.

Introduction

This introduction achieves three important functions:

It shows the examiner that you understand the question.
It acts as a guide to the examiner as to what your essay is about.
It also helps to keep you focused and on track as you write.

The two ideas in your introduction will become your two main body paragraphs.

Main body paragraph 1 – concerns about the risk of stress-related ill-health

Main body paragraph 2 – a sense of fulfilment at work

How To Write Main Body Paragraphs

The structure of a good main body paragraph has 3 parts:

Topic sentence
Explanation

If you can’t think of an example, you can add further supporting ideas but we already have our two examples so that’s not an issue here.

A common problem when writing main body paragraphs for IELTS opinion essays is having too many ideas. Again, we have already chosen the two ideas we are going to develop, so we are all set to start writing.

You can see how important the planning stage is and how it makes the actual writing of the essay far quicker and easier.

Main Body Paragraph 1

The topic sentence summarises the main idea of the paragraph. That’s all it needs to do so it doesn’t have to be complicated.

It plays an important role in ensuring that your ideas flow logically from one to another. It does this by acting as a signpost for what is to come next, that is, what the paragraph will be about.

If you maintain a clear development of ideas throughout your essay, you will get high marks for task achievement and cohesion and coherence.

We’ll now take the idea for our first main body paragraph and create our topic sentence.

Main idea 1 – concerns about the risk of stress-related ill-health

Topic sentence:

Employees earning a large income are generally under significant mental and emotional pressure to perform well and achieve targets.

Next, we must write an explanation sentence . This explains to the examiner what we mean. It expands on our first idea.

Explanation sentence:

This causes many individuals to suffer high levels of stress which can result in both mental and physical health problems.

Finally, we add an example to support our main point. I thought of this in the planning stage so I have it ready to use.

If you can’t think of a real example, it’s fine to make one up, as long as it’s believable. The examiner isn’t going to check your facts.

Example sentence:

This happened to my uncle. He used to boast about his huge salary but the boss kept increasing his sales targets and in the end, the stress became too great and he had a nervous breakdown. Now he regrets being driven by the money.

That’s the 3 parts of our first main body paragraph complete. Here’s the finished paragraph.

We now follow the same process for our second main body paragraph.

Main Body Paragraph 2

Main idea 2 – Job satisfaction gives a sense of fulfilment.

First, we write the topic sentence to summarise the main idea.

Topic sentence:

Having a job that they enjoy doing, and in which they feel valued, is a major concern for most of the modern workforce.

Now for the explanation sentence to explain this idea.

Explanation sentence:

A significant number of people are giving up well-paid positions to do jobs which pay less but that they find more enjoyable and less stressful.

Finally, an example to support our main point. As before, I thought of this in the planning stage so just need to form it into a couple of sentences.

I am an example of this myself. A year ago I left the teaching profession because the workload had become too great and I am now a gardener. I feel really fulfilled in this work and I am much more relaxed and happy even though I earn far less money.

That’s the 3 parts of our second main body paragraph complete. Here’s the finished paragraph.

Now we need a conclusion and our IELTS opinion essay is done.

How To Write a Conclusion

Conclusions to IELTS opinion essays should do two things:

Summarise the main points
State your opinion

This can generally be done in a single sentence.

If you are below the minimum 250 words after you’ve written your conclusion, you can add an additional prediction or recommendation statement.

Our essay currently has 233 words so we’re on target and don’t need this extra sentence but you can learn more about how to write a prediction or recommendation statement for IELTS opinion essays on the Task 2 Conclusions page.

The conclusion is the easiest sentence in the essay to write but one of the most important.

A good conclusion will:

Neatly end the essay
Link all your ideas together
Sum up your argument or opinion
Answer the question

If you achieve this, you’ll improve your score for both task achievement and cohesion and coherence which together make up 50% of the overall marks. Without a conclusion, you’ll score below band 6 for task achievement.

You can start almost any final paragraph of an IELTS opinion essay with the words:

In conclusion

To conclude

Now all you need to do is briefly summarise the main ideas into one sentence.

Here’s a top tip . Go back and read the introduction to the essay because this is also a summary of the essay. It outlines what you are going to write about.

To create a great conclusion, you simply have to paraphrase the introduction. Let’s give it a go.

Introduction:

Here is the same information formed into a conclusion:

That’s it. We’ve completed our essay. Here it is with the 4 paragraphs put together.

Question:

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?

Finished IELTS opinion essay.

Go through this lesson as many times as you need to in order to fully understand it and put in lots of practice writing IELTS opinion essays from past exam questions. Practice is the only way to improve your skills.

5 More Model IELTS Opinion Essays

This pack contains another step-by-step lesson and model essay. P lus 4 additional opinion essay questions with model answers.

Carefully created to help you achieve 7+ in your Writing test.

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More help with ielts opinion essays & other task 2 essays.

IELTS Writing Task 2 – T he format, the 5 question types, the 5 step essay writing strategy & sample questions. All the key information you need to know.

The 5 Types of Task 2 Essay – How to recognise the 5 different types of Task 2 essays. 15 sample questions to study and a simple planning structure for each essay type.

Understanding Task 2 Questions – How to quickly and easily analyse and understand IELTS Writing Task 2 questions.

How To Plan a Task 2 Essay – Discover why essay planning is essential & learn a simple 4 step strategy, the 4 part essay structure & 4 methods of generating ideas.

How To Write a Task 2 Introduction – Find out why a good introduction is essential. Learn how to write one using a simple 3 part strategy & discover 4 common mistakes to avoid.

How To Write Task 2 Main Body Paragraphs – Learn the simple 3 part structure for writing great main body paragraphs and also, 3 common mistakes to avoid.

How To Write Task 2 Conclusions – Learn the easy way to write the perfect conclusion for a Task 2 essay. Also discover 4 common mistakes to avoid.

Task 2 Marking Criteria – Find out how to meet the marking criteria in Task 2. See examples of good and poor answers & learn some common mistakes to avoid.

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How to write an agree/disagree essay for IELTS Writing Task 2

Date Published

01 February 2023

This article was first published on WeLoveIELTS.org (this website is now closed)

Knowing how to write an agree or disagree essay is very important because if you get this type of task question in the test and you don't know how to approach it, you might not get a very high score. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

An agree/disagree question is very similar to the one above. Let’s look at two typical agree/disagree essay questions:

Some people believe that nowadays we have too many choices. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
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?

Can you see how these are similar to my question at the beginning? Both include a statement (= a sentence expressing an opinion) and ask you to what extent (= how much) you agree or disagree with it.

OK, so what are you going to do first? Start writing? Absolutely not .

After you’ve carefully read the task question and understood the topic, the first thing to do is to ask yourself to what extent you agree or disagree with the statement. There are three possible cases:

You agree completely
You disagree completely
You partially agree (which means you also partially disagree)

Next, ask yourself: ‘ Why do I think that?’ This is a very useful question because by answering it you will start generating ideas that you will then include in your essay.

How many ideas should you come up with? In all three cases the secret is that less is more, so I recommend having no more than four in total.

Let’s have a look at an example from Cambridge IELTS 11:

Governments should spend money on railways rather than roads. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

I’ve read the question and now I’m going to make some notes before I start writing. Here are my notes:

Partially agree - Both needs funding Why?

Safety reasons
Taxpayers expect government investment in both

Two main ideas. Now we have some direction and know where we are going with our essay. Should you now start writing? Not yet. You’ll need to develop these ideas, and the best way to do this is to give explanations, details, reasons and examples. Let’s add these to the notes.

Safety reasons - Both roads and trains are widely used / all ages / need to be kept in good condition / if not, risk of crashes / example: Ponte Morandi collapse 2018 – Italy / lots of casualties / could have been avoided with more funding - maintenance / Trains are crowded at rush hour -> a railroad accident might be a terrible tragedy
Taxpayers expect government investment in both - governments need to provide good services / citizens pay tax for this / example: train commuters pay to have efficient trains / if not – disruptions - late for work / same is true for road users / example: opening a new highway -> less traffic

Notice that I didn’t write full sentences but notes. Keep your full sentences for the essay! If you don’t do this brainstorming exercise before you start writing, the risk is that you’ll write whatever comes to your mind, and your essay will probably be confusing to read.

Top Tip: Think of how you’re going to structure your text. Keep life simple and always aim at four paragraphs: introduction, two body paragraphs and conclusion.

Introduction

Two sentences are enough here. In the first sentence you should paraphrase the task question. In the second sentence say if you (partially) agree/disagree so you immediately let the reader know what you think.

Two main paragraphs

Why these paragraphs? A paragraph contains ideas about a single subject and using them will make your essay organised, structured and easy to read. When writing an agree/disagree essay there are, again, three possible options:

You completely agree - First paragraph: reasons why you agree. 2nd paragraph: other reasons why you agree.
You completely disagree - First paragraph: reasons why you disagree. 2nd paragraph: other reasons why you disagree.
You partially agree - First paragraph: reasons why you agree. 2nd paragraph: reasons why you disagree.

Remember: it’s much better to have few well-developed ideas than a lot of poorly developed ones , so when you write the paragraphs make sure to give reasons, examples and details. All these must be relevant to the reason you agree/disagree.

Again, keep life simple and write one or two sentences only. You should briefly repeat and summarise your answer to the question. Don’t introduce information that you didn’t mention in your paragraphs before. We need a conclusion to conclude right? So, don’t introduce other reasons or topics at the end of your text.

Read the topic of the question and make sure you understand it
Ask yourself if you agree or not with the statement in the question
Brainstorm ideas before you start righting
State your opinion in the introduction
Use four paragraphs
Logically organise the main paragraphs (for example, one for reasons why you agree and the other for reasons why you disagree)
Extend and develop your ideas with reasons, examples and explanations
Write a short conclusion.
Start writing immediately
Include too many different ideas. Less is more!
Introduce more information in the conclusion.

Hope this helps you with your writing. Good luck!

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25 agree/disagree opinion essay topics for 2024: ielts writing task 2.

An agree/disagree opinion essay for IELTS Writing Task 2 is a type of essay where you are presented with a statement or assertion, and you are required to express whether you agree or disagree with the statement. Additionally, you are expected to provide supporting arguments and examples to justify your stance.

Here’s a breakdown of the components typically found in an agree/disagree opinion essay:

Introduction: Begin by paraphrasing the given statement and clearly stating your position (whether you agree or disagree). Provide a brief overview of the main points you will discuss in the body paragraphs.
Body Paragraphs: Present your main arguments and supporting evidence. Each body paragraph should focus on a single point and provide specific examples or reasons to support your opinion. It’s essential to structure your arguments logically and coherently.
Counterargument (optional): Acknowledge the opposing viewpoint and briefly explain why you disagree with it. This demonstrates a nuanced understanding of the issue and adds credibility to your argument.
Conclusion: Summarize your main points and restate your opinion. You can also provide a closing thought or recommendation related to the topic.

Remember, the key to a successful agree/disagree opinion essay is to express a clear and well-supported opinion while addressing all parts of the prompt and demonstrating critical thinking skills.

Government Should Provide Free Healthcare for All Citizens.”
“Prison Sentences Should Be Replaced with Rehabilitation Programs.”
“Education Should Be Free for Everyone, Regardless of Income.”
“Social Media Has More Negative Than Positive Effects on Society.”
“Individuals Should Be Allowed to Own Guns for Self-Defense.”
“Climate Change Is Primarily Caused by Human Activity.”
“Universities Should Focus More on Practical Skills Than Theoretical Knowledge.”
“Animal Testing Should Be Banned Worldwide.”
“The Death Penalty Should Be Abolished in All Countries.”
“The Legal Drinking Age Should Be Lowered to 18.”
Government Funding Should Prioritize Environmental Conservation Over Economic Growth.”
“Telecommuting Is a More Effective Work Arrangement Than Traditional Office Settings.”
“High School Students Should Be Required to Learn a Second Language.”
“Social Media Platforms Should Implement Stricter Regulations to Combat Cyberbullying.”
“The Legalization of Marijuana Would Have More Benefits Than Drawbacks.”
“Public Transportation Should Be Free to Encourage Environmental Sustainability.”
“Schools Should Teach Financial Literacy as a Core Subject.”
“The Internet Has Done More Harm Than Good to Society.”
“Society Should Embrace Renewable Energy Sources and Phase Out Fossil Fuels.”
“Artificial Intelligence Poses a Greater Threat Than Benefit to Humanity.”
“Children Should Be Allowed to Choose Their Own Gender Identity.”
“Standardized Testing Does More Harm Than Good in Education Systems.”
“Censorship Is Necessary to Protect Society from Harmful Content.”
“Companies Should Be Held Responsible for Environmental Damage Caused by Their Operations.”
“Universal Basic Income Would Help Reduce Income Inequality and Poverty.”

Tips for crafting an effective agree/disagree opinion essay for IELTS Writing Task 2.

Let’s break them down:

Concise Introduction: Begin your essay with a brief introduction that paraphrases the essay question and clearly states your opinion. Avoid unnecessary elaboration or background information that does not directly contribute to your argument.
Consistent Opinion: Ensure that your opinion remains consistent throughout the essay. Your arguments and examples should support the opinion expressed in the introduction. Avoid contradicting or changing your stance midway through the essay.
Reasoned Body Paragraphs: Each body paragraph should present a distinct reason or argument supporting your opinion. Provide relevant details, examples, or evidence to illustrate your points and strengthen your argument. Structuring your essay in this way enhances clarity and coherence.
Detailed Explanation: Elaborate on your views with sufficient detail in the body paragraphs. Avoid making vague or unsupported assertions. Instead, provide specific examples or explanations to clarify your reasoning and demonstrate a deeper understanding of the topic.
Concluding Paragraph: Conclude your essay with a succinct summary of your main points and a restatement of your opinion. Keep the conclusion brief but ensure that it provides closure to the essay and reinforces your argument.
Partial Agreement: While the task requires you to express a clear opinion, it is acceptable to acknowledge nuances or alternative perspectives. If you believe that sports lessons are a beneficial solution but not the most effective one, you can express a partial agreement in your essay. Be sure to explain your reasoning and justify why you consider another solution to be more effective.

Mastering IELTS Writing Task 2: Tips, Lessons & Models

Top 10 tips for organizing your response effectively in ielts writing task 1.

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Agree Disagree Type IELTS Essay Questions

by Alex (Ziimbabwe)

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to IELTS Academic Writing Task 2 Forum .

Help to Understand a Question

Here is the question: Foreign visitors should pay more than local visitors for cultural and historical attractions. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion? Shall I focus on should, shouldn't or both sides on these types of questions. Help will be greatly appreciated thanks.

Agree or disagree question

In an essay about "If mothers have to get salary from government" It was an 'agree/disagree' question. Not 'To what extent do you agree'. But I approached the theme as partially agreeing from both sides. Will loose a lot of grades?

What is the difference between these agree / disagree IELTS prompts?

by Shaon Paul (Sydney NSW Australia)

Hi, i would like to know the difference between the questions "do you agree or disagree?" and "to what extent do you agree or disagree?" Some experts say that i have to just support one aspect in the first one and both aspects in the 2nd question. So i am little confused.

Giving Pros and Cons

by naila khalil

What if a statement is given, then it is asked to what extent do you agree or disagree with it? And what are the advantages and disadvantages of this development? In case I totally disagree with the statement, then should I go for both advantages and disadvantages of the development?

Do I have to fully agree or disagree?

by Nahla (Riyadh )

Hello there, I had my test today, and it was an agree/disagree essay. The question was: People argue that team sports should be a part of the school timetable for children rather than individual sports such as swimming or running. Do you agree or disagree? I wrote that I don’t think any of them should be disregarded as they both have many benefits for students. Would that make me lose band scores because I didn't fully agree or disagree with a certain aspect?

Can we write about both sides?

by Tanuj (Noida)

I am confused of when to write both sides especially in opinion essay. For example in below topic: "Some people say that it is possible to tell a lot about a person's culture and character from their choice of clothes. Do you agree or disagree?" In this can i write as below: - Introduction: I agree that culture & character affects clothes - Body Para 1: I will explain why culture & character affects clothes - Body Para 2: I will explain why there culture & character don't affect clothes - Conclude: I agree again that culture & character affects clothes with touching other side Is above approach is fine or should i only write about only one standpoint, that culture & character affects clothes in both Body Para? Please reply. Appreciate in advance!

Completely Disagreeing

by Brendon (Pakistan)

I appeared in my IELTS exam 2 days ago. There i got an agree disagree essay: Some people believe that shops should sell local food products whenever possible rather than selling imported products from other countries. Do you agree or disagree. In response to this essay i wrote that i disagree because importing food products from different countries produces new job positions, provides a variety of food options to customers and strengthens the bond between countries. I want to ask if it is okay that i completely disagreed with this essay topic? And are my reasons fine?

Task 2 task achievement possibly not met

by Norma (Zimbabwe)

Hi, Wrote my Ielts academic test today. Just realised i did not answer task 2 correctly. The question asked do you agree or disagree and in the introduction and conclusion i stated that i did not agree. But then in body paragraph 1 I went on to talk about the side i did not agree with and in paragraph 2 wrote the points about not agreeing. Will this greatly affect my score?

Misunderstood Question

hello ielts buddy Yesterday was my ielts test and in writing task 2. i wrote agree disagree essay instead of discuss both views with your opinion Question told me to wrote discuss both views but i wrote agree disagree. Please can you tell me how much it will effect my band score.

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IELTS Agree Disagree Essay Sample Answer
For an IELTS agree disagree essay you can either agree with the statement, disagree with the statement or give your opinion which contains a balanced approach to the issues in the statement. ... Hi Liz !thanku so much for your topic they are all very useful. I think I got a high band score for writing task 2 thankuuuuu sooo much dear. Reply ...
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IELTS Preparation with Liz: Free IELTS Tips and Lessons, 2024. Hi, I'm Liz. Welcome! Enjoy learning IELTS for free. ... Speaking Part 3 Topics; 100 Essay Questions; On The Day Tips; Top Results ... yes you can have a partial agreement on an agree/disagree essay. Reply. Nina says November 22, 2017 at . Yesssss! Got it! Reply. Tien says November ...
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The Opinion Essay is an agree disagree essay which requires you to agree, disagree or have a partial agreement with an opinion given by IELTS. That essay is not an Opinion Essay because you aren't being asked to respond to an opinion given by IELTS. This essay is a Direct Questions Essay which may or may not require an opinion depending on ...
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This is a band 9 guide to writing agree/disagree essays in IELTS Writing. Agree or disagree essay questions are very common for IELTS Writing task 2. ... Sentences 2-3 - explain the reason (assume that your examiner doesn't understand the topic at all): In other words, there is a strong relation between job satisfaction and productivity. ...
Agree or Disagree Essay- Complete 2023 IELTS Lesson
This lesson will teach you how to write 'agree or disagree' or 'opinion' IELTS task 2 essays that could score a Band 7, 8 or 9. Agree or disagree question types are among the most common on the IELTS writing paper, so you must learn how to write them properly. In this post, we will look at: We will use a question from an IELTS past ...
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The agree or disagree essay questions are the most commonly asked in the IELTS examination. They are also called as argumentative essays. In this type of essays, you are asked to give your opinion, whether you agree or disagree on the particular sentence that is given. You are given 40 minutes to complete the 250-word essay.
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As such, here are two possibilities for structuring your "agree or disagree" essay: Introduction. Introduce the topic. State your position ( essay outline) Body paragraph #1. Main argument #1. Support with explanation and example. Body paragraph #2. Main argument #2.
IELTS Writing Agree/Disagree Essay Topics [Task-2]
Last updated: November 20, 2023. IELTS agree/disagree essay types are commonly asked topics in Writing Task - 2. For these type of questions you can either agree or disagree with the statement, or you can adopt a balanced approach. In this lesson, you will learn how to write a band 7+ answer using THREE sample questions and their model answers.
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Learn how to write an agree / disagree essay for IELTS Writing task 2 and get a band 9! In this lesson you will see: - sample IELTS task 2 question (agree o...
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Sample Answer. 15. In recent years, there has been growing interest in the relationship between equality and personal achievement. Some people believe that individuals can achieve more in egalitarian societies. Others believe that high levels of personal achievement are possible only if individuals are free to succeed or fail according to their ...
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IELTS Agree or Disagree Essay. For IELTS Writing Task 2 you can receive one of five different essay types. Much of the structure for each type is similar, but there are some differences that you need to pay attention to and learn if you want to succeed on the writing section of the exam.
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Paragraph 2 (body 1) Explain and support your first reason why rail is more important. Paragraph 3 (body 2) Explain and support your second reason why rail is more important. Paragraph 4 (conclusion) Re-state your overall opinion (rail is more important) and summarise your main reasons. 2.
To what extent you agree or disagree essay
This lesson will guide you how to write essays in IELTS Writing that ask you to what extent you agree/disagree. Such questions are very common for IELTS Writing task 2. In such essays your task is to say whether you: completely agree with a given statement. completely disagree with a given statement. partly agree / disagree.
IELTS Writing Task 2: Agree/Disagree Sample Essay
IELTS Writing Task 2 asks you to give your opinion on an important social issue. In this particular opinion essay IELTS sample, the question type is called "agree/disagree.". Agree/disagree essays want you to take a position on an issue that is stated. From there, it's your job to say if you agree or disagree with the initial statement ...
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IELTS opinion essays, also known as 'agree or disagree' essays, come up frequently in the writing exam. In this lesson, I'm going to show you how to plan and write them step-by-step. Here's what we'll be covering: 3 Common mistakes. Essay structure. How to plan. How to write an introduction. How to write main body paragraphs.
How to write an agree/disagree essay for…
You partially agree - First paragraph: reasons why you agree. 2nd paragraph: reasons why you disagree. Remember: it's much better to have few well-developed ideas than a lot of poorly developed ones, so when you write the paragraphs make sure to give reasons, examples and details. All these must be relevant to the reason you agree/disagree.
IELTS Task 2 Question Types: Opinion Essays (Agree or Disagree)
Here I have collected actual IELTS opinion essays (agree or disagree question) from the last several years - enjoy learning about this task type! Enjoy and consider signing up for my Patreon Ebooks here. Dave. IELTS Task 2 Question Types: Opinion Essays (Agree or Disagree) Individual greed and selfishness have been the basis of modern society.
25 Agree/Disagree opinion Essay Topics for 2024: IELTS Writing Task 2
An agree/disagree opinion essay for IELTS Writing Task 2 is a type of essay where you are presented with a statement or assertion, and you are required to express whether you agree or disagree with the statement. Additionally, you are expected to provide supporting arguments and examples to justify your stance.
Agree Disagree Type IELTS Essay Questions
1) Agree 100% and argue why they SHOULD pay more throughout your essay. 2) Disagree 100% and argue why they SHOULD NOT pay more throughout your essay. 3) Examine both sides, looking at why they SHOULD pay and why they SHOULD NOT pay. Have a look at some of the model essays on the site and lessons to see some examples.

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