IELTS Tips: Problem/Solution Essays
In the IELTS writing test, section two of the test asks you to write a 250-word essay on a given question. These IELTS writing prompts come from a broad range of topics, for example: the environment, crime, food, culture, work, education, health, tourism, technology, etc. This can really throw you for a loop if you don’t know much about the topic you are given.
Something that can help you write more confidently about a random topic, is understanding that there are only five main types of essay that IELTS will ask you to write. No matter what topic you are given, the question will be asking you to write one of these five essay types.
In today’s post, we’ll take a look at one of these question styles: The Solution Essay
How do I know if it’s a solution essay?
When you first lay eyes on your IELTS writing prompt, you will recognize a solution essay because it will present you with a problem and ask you to suggest a solution.
This may be expressed with the word solution or solutions, or it may be words in the same family, like solve or solved. They may also ask what measures can be taken, or how the problem can be overcome, dealt with, or improved.
It’s important to recognize all these different paraphrases of “solution,” not only to identify your question type, but also so you can use these words in your own essay and improve your vocabulary score!
Problems? Causes? Or Just Solutions?
Now that we know it’s a solution essay, we need to recognize that not all solution essays are exactly the same, so be aware of what the question is asking you to do.
Take a look at these three examples:
A. People who are learning a foreign language can face a number of difficulties. What are some of these problems? In your opinion, what are the best ways to overcome these difficulties?
B. Global warming is one of the greatest threats to our planet. What are the main causes of global warming and what solutions are there to this problem?
C. Social media is giving more young people unsupervised access to the internet which can lead to potentially dangerous situations. What solutions can you suggest for dealing with this problem?
If we look closely at these three solution essay prompts, it’s clear that all of these questions are asking for solutions to different problems (learning a new language, climate change, danger of social media). However, there are important differences.
· Question A is asking us to describe the problem itself.
· Question B is asking us to give the causes or reasons for the problem.
· Question C is only asking for the solutions.
This small difference in wording is very important for your Task Achievement score. If you describe the problem instead of the cause, your score will be limited. Let’s take obesity as an example:
The problems associated with obesity include heart disease, diabetes, and risk of a stroke.
The causes of obesity include sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy diet, and overeating.
Clearly these two approaches would result in very different essays about obesity, so be sure to check what kind of solution essay you are given.
The Solutions
Now that we’ve addressed the problem in the correct way, the second half of your essay will need some solutions. The best solutions are tied directly to the problem, so whenever possible give a specific solution and describe how and why it will solve the problem.
Too many people smoking? Raise the price of cigarettes!
Young people leaving rural areas? Create more jobs in the countryside!
Animal species going extinct? Build a sanctuary to keep their habitat safe!
Remember that these solutions don’t have to be perfectly practical or realistic. Obviously, building an animal sanctuary or creating new jobs are difficult processes that would take a lot of time and money. That’s okay! In fact, it’s a good chance for you to write more about the solution and show off your vocabulary.
Finally, in some situations you might be completely at a loss for a solution. In these cases, remember these two backup solutions that can be applied to almost any problem:
· Government spending
· Promoting awareness
If you can’t think of anything else, these broad solutions can be useful in a pinch as nearly any social problem you can think of could be improved (even slightly) by making more people aware of the issue or by having the government address it in their budget.
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That’s all for today.’s post. I hope you understand a bit more about solution style essays.
Thanks for reading and come back next week for more IELTS tips!
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