Some people say that the government should pay the costs of running universities so that a university education will be free for anyone who wants it. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?
Sample Response
Education is the backbone of a nation, and the development of a country largely depends on its educational policy. The high cost of university education is still a reason many talented individuals cannot afford a university degree, and I strongly believe that it should be the government’s responsibility to make university education free for all.
First, the government has a huge budget for the development of the education sector, and the money could be better utilised by ensuring university education for talented individuals. The difficult admission process at the university level selects only talented students to take part in university education, and they should be backed up by government funds to let them concentrate on their studies. In order to encourage graduate students and professionals to further their education, the government should pay for their courses as it would bring more benefits in the future for the country. Many European countries have already implemented this method, and they have a huge number of skilled professionals who not only serve the country but also the whole world.
More importantly, when citizens are assured that the government will bear the cost of their children’s university education, they are generally more interested in preparing their children for the university degree rather than sending them to work and earn. This would have a significant positive effect on the education level of the whole country. By supporting university course fees, the government would create more skilled professionals, and without them, the development of the nation is quite impossible in this ever-accelerating era of science and technology.
In conclusion, paying for the university course fees by the government is indeed an effective measure for ensuring quality education for talented individuals and for an overall progress of a nation. So I reaffirm that university education costs should be paid by the government.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use formal quantity Original: huge Suggested revision: substantial Why it matters: “Substantial” is more precise and formal than the general adjective “huge.”
- 2. Clarify funding action Original: better utilised by ensuring university education Suggested revision: better used to fund university education Why it matters: The revision states directly how the budget would support higher education.
- 3. Use academic collocation Original: take part in university education Suggested revision: pursue university education Why it matters: Students naturally “pursue” education rather than “take part in” it.
- 4. Use funding collocation Original: backed up by government funds Suggested revision: supported by government funding Why it matters: “Supported by funding” is the natural formal expression for financial assistance.
- 5. Name the policy Original: implemented this method Suggested revision: adopted this policy Why it matters: Government funding is a policy rather than a method, and policies are commonly adopted.
- 6. Remove incorrect article Original: preparing their children for the university degree Suggested revision: preparing their children for university Why it matters: The intended destination is university generally, not a specific degree already identified.
- 7. Complete the expression Original: sending them to work and earn Suggested revision: sending them to work and earn money Why it matters: The transitive verb “earn” needs an object to complete the intended meaning.
- 8. Use concise phrasing Original: the education level of the whole country Suggested revision: the country's overall level of education Why it matters: This revision expresses the nationwide measure more naturally and precisely.
- 9. Use funding verb Original: supporting university course fees Suggested revision: funding university tuition fees Why it matters: Governments fund fees, while “supporting fees” is not a natural collocation.
- 10. Use concise purpose phrase Original: for the development of the education sector Suggested revision: to develop the education sector Why it matters: The to-infinitive states the budget's purpose more directly.
- 11. Use concise academic wording Original: The difficult admission process at the university level Suggested revision: The rigorous university admission process Why it matters: The revision removes unnecessary wording and uses a more precise adjective for a selective process.
- 12. Clarify purpose clause Original: to let them concentrate Suggested revision: so that they can concentrate Why it matters: A purpose clause states the intended result of financial support more clearly.
Suggested Rewrites
- huge substantial
- better utilised by ensuring university education better used to fund university education
- take part in university education pursue university education
- backed up by government funds supported by government funding
- implemented this method adopted this policy
- preparing their children for the university degree preparing their children for university
Why this response received Band 7.5
The response presents a clear, consistent position and develops a logical case around access, parental incentives, and national development, with generally strong control of complex sentences. Its main limitation is that repeated emphasis on talented students narrows the task's proposal of free education for anyone and leaves parts of the justification somewhat general. The highest priority is to reconcile that scope and support each claim with more precise reasoning or evidence.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The position is clear throughout and supported by relevant arguments, but the focus on talented students only partially aligns with the proposal of free access for anyone.
Clarify whether funding should be universal or merit-based and develop the chosen position with more specific evidence.
Coherence and Cohesion
The essay progresses logically from funding to individual and national benefits, with clear paragraphing and generally well-managed cohesion.
Reduce repeated references to government and education by using tighter referencing and more varied sentence openings.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is broad and appropriate for the topic, although repetition and a few awkward collocations limit precision.
Replace repeated general terms with precise expressions for access, public funding, educational attainment, and workforce development.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex structures is used flexibly and accurately, with only occasional minor article and phrasing errors.
Refine article use with abstract and countable nouns while preserving the strong variety of sentence structures.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people say that the government should pay the costs of running universities so that a university education will be free for anyone who wants it. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.