You are unhappy about a plan to make your local airport bigger and increase the number of flights. You live near the airport. Write a letter to your local newspaper. In your letter: - explain where you live - describe the problem - give reasons why you do not want this development
Sample Response
Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing to express my disagreement with the decision to expand Miami International Airportthe Miami International Airport as it has many detrimental consequences. My home is situated on Callos Streetstreet - next to the airport, and I am hoping that you willwould publish an editorial opposing the developmentto protest the development. The residents are constantly confronted with the noise and vibrationnoise and turbulence problems, created by the flights arriving at and departing from the airportarriving and departing the airport. This is a significant issue as a large proportion of local residentsa major part of our population comprises schoolchildrenyoung school children. The nuisance does not allow older residentsthe old people a peaceful night either. Moreover, the commotion caused by flights sometimes resultthe flight sometimes results in cracks or even broken glass doors and householdhouse cabinets. Given the situationNow given the situation, I believe that Miami is not among the leading airportsfront line airports of the country and there is a restriction imposed by the government on the number of flights operated daily. I would like to plea to the president an obstruction on this plan because an expansion of the airport will aggravate the problems in our community. An increase in the number of flights will cause more turbulence and nuisance, which is clearexplicit. I am not against any development in our country and I believe it would be ideal if the authoritiesauthority could come up with an alternate approach to this issue. FinallyLast but not least, I would request your editorial section to publish a report on this importantmoot issue. In anticipation of your favourable action. Yours faithfully, Jones Nathan
Why this response received Band 6.5
The letter establishes the writer's location and objection clearly, supports the complaint with several effects on local residents, and uses a suitably formal tone. Its impact is weakened by a dense single-paragraph structure and by several imprecise or unnatural expressions that make parts of the argument less convincing. Prioritise clear paragraphing and more accurate wording when explaining the consequences and proposed action.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The location, existing problems, and reasons for opposing expansion are all addressed with relevant supporting detail and a clear request to the newspaper.
Keep the reasoning focused by clarifying or removing the confusing reference to airport status, government restrictions, and a plea to the president.
Coherence and Cohesion
The argument has a recognisable progression, but it is presented in one long paragraph and the middle section shifts between points somewhat unevenly.
Group the location, current effects, consequences of expansion, and requested newspaper action into separate paragraphs.
Lexical Resource
The letter demonstrates a broad vocabulary, but frequent imprecise collocations such as "turbulence problems," "front line airports," and "plea to the president an obstruction" reduce clarity.
Choose simpler, accurate phrases such as "aircraft noise and vibration," "major airports," and "appeal to the authorities to block the plan."
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A range of complex sentences is used with generally clear meaning, although agreement, article, modifier, and sentence-completion errors remain noticeable.
Proofread clause boundaries and agreement, including "flights sometimes cause" and a complete closing sentence instead of "In anticipation of your favourable action."
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You are unhappy about a plan to make your local airport bigger and increase the number of flights. You live near the airport. Write a letter to your local newspaper. In your letter:
- explain where you live
- describe the problem
- give reasons why you do not want this development
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.