In this unit you will review the following points:
- Useful vocabulary: Education
- Practising ellipsis
- Reference
- Pronouns: this/these and it/they
- Determiners: this/these and the
2. Text organisation.
Read the Task 2 question and then number the paragraphs of the sample answer in order.
Writing Task 2
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
All children should be educated together, regardless of their ability. Separating children according to their intelligence will only create social problems.
To what extent do you agree with this statement?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
5. Practising ellipsis.
Select the words which can be omitted to delete them. The number of words you need to delete is in brackets.
6. Reference.
TIP:
Referring to things already mentioned in your answer will make it more cohesive and easier to read and understand.What do the underlined words refer to?
8. Pronouns: this/these or it/they?
We can use it when what the pronoun is referring to is already the focus. If what is being referred to is not the focus we use this.
The alternative is to split students according to ability. This may mean having separate schools for more and less intelligent pupils, or it could mean streaming within the school, where students are put in different classes according to their ability.
Both this and it refer to split students according to ability. The difference is that in the first case split students according to ability is not the focus of the text. This moves split students according to ability into the focus, so in the next phrase we use it.
Choose the correct option to complete the sentences. The correct pronoun needs to refer to the part of the sentence in bold.
9. Determiners: this/these or the?
The is used to refer to something that is described or which is unique in some way. This is more limiting and describes a specific item or concept which is different from others. This and these always refer to something which has been previously mentioned. Compare:
Unfortunately, the reality is usually far removed from the ideal.
(the ideal = the perfect situation)
Unfortunately, the reality is usually far removed from this ideal.
(this ideal = the particular view of perfection which was previously described; NOT some other ideal)
Choose the correct option to complete the sentences.
10. Practice question.
Complete the sample answer with the expressions.
Read the instructions and write your answer. Remember to:
- use ellipsis and reference where appropriate.
- check your use of this/these/the and it/they when you have finished.
Writing Task 2
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
Universities should focus more on giving their students practical skills which will be useful for their jobs rather than just giving them theoretical knowledge.
To what extent do you agree with this statement?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
When you have completed the writing task, you can look at a sample answer. Compare the sample answer with your own.
Traditionally, universities have been a place for the elite. Highly intelligent, usually well-off people pondered the meaning of life and puzzled over difficult mathematical problems. However, as universities are becoming more and more open to the general population, people are starting to wonder if these institutions really do provide suitable training for their students' future.
After all, does sitting in a class with 200 other people, listening to a university lecturer describe theoretical situations really prepare tomorrow's engineers, economists and psychologists for the situations they will meet in their working lives?
Some argue that university is the ideal place to learn the theoretical side; practical skills can be better learned on the job. Others maintain that students should be taught practical skills at university so that they can start working immediately after graduating, rather than having to look for an employer who is willing to give them the necessary training to do the job.
Several years into their working lives many graduates say that they have never used anything that they learned at university, and I would count myself as one of them. So was it all a waste of time? Absolutely not. Hours spent battling with theoretical problems has given me the ability to think logically and solve problems – skills highly valued in any profession.
All in all, the balance between theoretical and practical skills needs to be considered for each course separately. Practical skills would certainly make graduates more employable, but we must not focus on them entirely at the expense of more abstract, transferable skills such as problem solving.