Some people worry that not enough of the waste from homes is recycled. They say that the only way to increase recycling is for governments to make it a legal requirement. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Sample Response
Waste recycling is a widely discussed issue, but even after numerous initiatives and ongoing announcements, people seem to react whimsically to this. Many opine that people tend to abide by something only when there are rules and legal obligations. I agree with the opinion expressed as I think that waste recycling should be made a law and mandatory to adhere to.
To begin with, if every homeowner takes the responsibility to participate in waste recycling, waste management as well as preserving a green environment would become easier. However, this is not the case since people tend to ignore many voluntary tasks. So when legal obligations and punishment for an act are in place, the number of participants will increase dramatically. For instance, when crossing busy streets instead of using the underpass in some cities has been made a legal offence, the number of road accidents decreased significantly over time. Similarly, when the government would make recycling mandatory by imposing laws, people would participate more in this.
Moreover, the main objective of the law is to deter people from doing something bad and punish offenders. Since waste recycling is directly related to our environment and the well-being of ours, and future generations, we should make it a legal responsibility so that people do not ignore this important task. If littering in a public place is a criminal offence, not participating in recycling initiatives should also be so.
In conclusion, laws and rules exist to encourage and sometimes force people to adhere to good tendencies and avoid bad practices. Since people are not spontaneously participating in waste recycling, the amount of garbage they produce is increasing. So the government must have defined rules and legislation to control it for the benefit of all.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Clarify inconsistent response Original: react whimsically to this Suggested revision: respond inconsistently to it Why it matters: “Whimsically” suggests playful imagination rather than irregular compliance.
- 2. Use natural reporting phrase Original: Many opine that Suggested revision: Many people argue that Why it matters: The revision is more natural and identifies the people holding the view.
- 3. Clarify compliance object Original: abide by something Suggested revision: comply with a practice Why it matters: People comply with a required practice, whereas “something” is too vague.
- 4. State agreement concisely Original: I agree with the opinion expressed as I think Suggested revision: I agree because I believe Why it matters: The revision removes repetitive reporting of the same personal stance.
- 5. Fix legal requirement structure Original: made a law and mandatory to adhere to Suggested revision: required by law Why it matters: The original coordinates incompatible complements and leaves the object of “adhere to” unclear.
- 6. Fix responsibility complement Original: takes the responsibility to participate Suggested revision: takes responsibility for participating Why it matters: “Take responsibility” takes “for” followed by a gerund.
- 7. Keep coordinated forms parallel Original: waste management as well as preserving Suggested revision: waste management and the preservation of Why it matters: The coordinated elements need parallel noun forms.
- 8. Use formal result marker Original: So when Suggested revision: Therefore, when Why it matters: “Therefore” states the result link more formally and requires a following comma.
- 9. Use enforcement terminology Original: punishment Suggested revision: penalties Why it matters: “Penalties” is the appropriate plural term for sanctions enforcing obligations.
- 10. Fix time clause tense Original: when the government would make Suggested revision: when the government makes Why it matters: A future time clause uses the simple present rather than “would.”
- 11. Specify recycling participation Original: participate more in this Suggested revision: participate more actively in recycling Why it matters: The revision replaces the vague pronoun and states the degree of participation naturally.
- 12. Match two legal aims Original: objective Suggested revision: objectives Why it matters: The sentence names two objectives—deterring misconduct and punishing offenders—so the noun should be plural.
Suggested Rewrites
- react whimsically to this respond inconsistently to it
- Many opine that Many people argue that
- abide by something comply with a practice
- I agree with the opinion expressed as I think I agree because I believe
- made a law and mandatory to adhere to required by law
- takes the responsibility to participate takes responsibility for participating
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response maintains a clear position and develops a logically organized case for making household recycling compulsory, with relevant explanation and an illustrative comparison. The main limitation is that some claims are asserted too broadly and several awkward expressions or grammatical constructions interrupt otherwise effective communication. The highest priority is to sharpen the argument about why legislation is uniquely necessary while improving sentence-level accuracy.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
A clear agreement position is sustained and supported with relevant reasons, though the claim that legislation is the only effective solution is not fully examined.
Explicitly compare legal compulsion with voluntary alternatives to justify more convincingly why law is necessary.
Coherence and Cohesion
Ideas progress logically through well-focused paragraphs, and cohesive devices generally make the argument easy to follow.
Strengthen internal progression by linking each example more directly to the precise claim it is intended to prove.
Lexical Resource
The response uses a reasonably broad academic vocabulary, but several choices such as "react whimsically" and "good tendencies" are imprecise or unnatural.
Favor precise, conventional collocations and check that less common words express the intended meaning naturally.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A range of complex structures is used with generally clear meaning, although errors in clause construction, conditionals, and possessive phrasing recur.
Revise complex sentences for complete clause structure, especially constructions beginning with "when" and phrases showing possession.
Write this task while it is fresh
Try the same task now. It helps you remember the feedback and write better next time.
IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people worry that not enough of the waste from homes is recycled. They say that the only way to increase recycling is for governments to make it a legal requirement. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.