It is believed that people who read for pleasure develop their imagination more and acquire better language skills compared to people who prefer watching television. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Sample Response
Some people subscribe to the belief that reading helps enhance language skills and creativity, whereas watching television does very little for these abilities. Personally, I support this opinion for several reasons, which will be laid out in this essay.
As we all know, books use text to convey ideas and quite often there are no images or illustrations to picture the scenes described in the book; therefore, we have to use our own imagination while reading. For example, reading a fantasy novel that contains mythical creatures one would normally see the appearance of those characters in their mind while following the plot. In contrast, movie heroes on a TV screen are usually created for the viewer by directors and producers of the film. Watching TV substitutes the need to develop one’s own imagination because the characters and their surroundings are shown on the screen.
Furthermore, it is argued that reading is the best way to expand one’s vocabulary. The reader learns the correct spelling of a word by seeing it printed in a book, and they grasp its meaning from the context, without having to look it up in a dictionary. Not only new words but also numerous sentence structures can be learnt from books. To take advantage of these benefits English teachers in many schools use English novels as teaching materials. Students are asked to read the story and capture the keywords to answer the questions in the exam. In comparison, learning new words while watching a TV show isn’t always easy because the viewer’s attention is drawn to the action on the screen and if there are no subtitles, the spelling of the words is not obvious. All this makes a book a more effective tool for a language learner compared to TV.
In conclusion, I believe people who love to read tend to have a more active imagination and advanced linguistic comprehension than those who watch television, since readers are required to imagine the story in the book and learn the meaning of new words from the context.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use precise collocation Original: does very little for these abilities Suggested revision: does little to develop these abilities Why it matters: The revision states the effect on skill development more directly.
- 2. Reduce formulaic phrasing Original: which will be laid out in this essay Suggested revision: which I explain below Why it matters: The shorter clause previews the explanation without unnecessary passive wording.
- 3. Remove broad assumption Original: As we all know, books Suggested revision: Books Why it matters: The claim does not need an appeal to shared knowledge.
- 4. Correct verb choice Original: illustrations to picture the scenes Suggested revision: illustrations depicting the scenes Why it matters: Illustrations depict scenes, whereas readers picture them mentally.
- 5. Describe visual presentation Original: created for the viewer Suggested revision: visually presented to the viewer Why it matters: The revision more accurately expresses that television supplies the characters' appearance.
- 6. Correct the collocation Original: substitutes Suggested revision: removes Why it matters: Remove the need is the standard collocation for making an action unnecessary.
- 7. Add introductory comma Original: To take advantage of these benefits English teachers Suggested revision: To take advantage of these benefits, English teachers Why it matters: A comma should separate the introductory purpose phrase from the main clause.
- 8. Use natural collocation Original: capture the keywords Suggested revision: identify the key words Why it matters: Identify is the natural verb for locating important words in a text.
- 9. Complete the comparison Original: compared to TV Suggested revision: than television Why it matters: Than forms the direct comparison required after more effective.
- 10. Use clearer wording Original: advanced linguistic comprehension Suggested revision: stronger language skills Why it matters: The revision matches the essay's focus on vocabulary and language ability more clearly.
- 11. Sentence rewrite Original: For example, reading a fantasy novel that contains mythical creatures one would normally see the appearance of those characters in their mind while following the plot. Suggested revision: For example, when reading a fantasy novel that contains mythical creatures, one would normally picture those characters while following the plot. Why it matters: The rewrite supplies the missing clause link and removes the awkward expression see the appearance.
Suggested Rewrites
- does very little for these abilities does little to develop these abilities
- which will be laid out in this essay which I explain below
- As we all know, books Books
- illustrations to picture the scenes illustrations depicting the scenes
- created for the viewer visually presented to the viewer
- substitutes removes
Why this response received Band 8.0
The essay presents a clear, consistent agreement and develops both imagination and language learning through effective comparisons and relevant examples. Its organization and language are strong overall, though a few sentences contain awkward constructions or imprecise collocations that slightly interrupt the polish. Prioritize revising those locally strained sentences while preserving the focused comparative development.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The response fully addresses the claim with a consistent position and well-developed reasons covering both imagination and language skills.
Make the educational example more directly demonstrate lasting language acquisition rather than examination technique.
Coherence and Cohesion
The essay follows a clear progression, with focused body paragraphs and well-managed comparisons between reading and television.
Reduce slightly formulaic signposting and let the logical relationship between adjacent sentences carry more of the cohesion.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied, topic-appropriate, and generally precise, despite a few awkward collocations and some repetition of key terms.
Choose more idiomatic phrases for mental visualization and examination reading, and vary repeated references to words and books.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Complex sentences are frequent and mostly accurate, with only occasional awkward attachment and punctuation problems.
Recast the fantasy-novel example with a clear main clause and check commas after introductory phrases.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
It is believed that people who read for pleasure develop their imagination more and acquire better language skills compared to people who prefer watching television. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.