Writing Task 2 – Checking and Correcting
In this unit you will practise developing your ideas clearly, grammatical accuracy, checking and correcting, using correct punctuation, and assessing your language level.
Developing your ideas clearly
When you have completed your writing, make sure you allow at least three or four minutes to check and read through your answer. First check your ideas against your plan:
- Did you include all of your ideas?
- Are your ideas organised and connected logically?
Test Tip The examiner will assess the Grammatical Accuracy of your answer. They will judge how accurate your sentence structures are, and also whether you have shown a range of structures and not limited yourself to basic ones. Make sure you vary your sentences in the exam.
1.1Read the answer to this Writing Task.
‘The internet allows us to stay connected with each other no matter where we are. On the other hand, it also isolates us and encourages people not to socialise.’
To what extent do you agree or disagree with these statements?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
The candidate's answer
The internet is a wonderful tool that helps us to keep in touch wherever we are. However, I do think that some people can find 1it quite addictive. Progress often comes at a price, and there are many who is concerned about the impact the internet has on our daily life.
First, let us consider the benefits the internet brought. Undoubtedly, the greatest of 2these is the ease with wich 3it allus to make contact with people anywhere in the world. Noudays, the business world makes use of this every day. Without the internet, companies would find it extremely difficult to expand or meet the needs of 4their customers. This same ability to keep in touch extends into our personal lives. For example, when my cousins were backpacking around the world 5they were able to reassure thier family and friends that all was well and also share memories almost immediately, using social networking sites.
Progress comes at a price, however, and there is another side to the coin. 6This convenience that the internet brings means that our work is only ever a mouse click away. Consequently, many people find it difficult to ever escaping from work. In addition, the websites that encourage us to keep in touch may, ironically, lead to anti-social behaviour in some users. 7These people end up with more virtual friends than actual friendships. In reality, 8their feeling of connectedness may only be an illusion as 9they become more and more isolated in their homes.
To summarise, I completely agree that, although there are clear benefits to the internet, there are also certain risks. Having said that, I belive that 10thesecan be minimise through education. As far as I'm concern, something that can bring the world into the home of a person who is disabled and essentially housebound, is more indispensable than intrusive.
1.2Before checking the spelling and grammar, consider the ideas and organisation of the answer.
Practice 1.2 (1)
Look at the underlined words 1-10 in the answer. Match each one to the idea it refers back to. (The writer uses these words to avoid repetition and link ideas together.)
You may use any letter more than once.
1 it (… can find it quite addictive)
2 these (the greatest of these)
3 it (the ease with which it allows …)
4 their (the needs of their customers)
5 they (when my cousins … they were able)
6 This convenience (that the internet brings)
7 These people (end up with more virtual friends)
8 their (their feeling of connectedness)
9 they (as they become more isolated)
10 these (these can be minimised)
Practice 1.2 (2)
Find a word or phrase in the answer that is used to do each of these things.
a introduce what you want to talk about first
b introduce a contrasting idea
c add a supporting idea
d show you are giving an example
e show you are giving a personal opinion
f explain the result of an action or situation
g introduce a summary of the ideas in the answer
Practice 1.2 (3)
Write the plan the candidate might have used before beginning to write. Then reveal a suggested plan to compare.
There is no single correct plan — compare yours with this reconstruction of the candidate's organisation.
1Introduction
2Body paragraph 1 — benefits
3Body paragraph 2 — the other side
4Conclusion
Study Tip We use handwriting less and less these days, so make sure that you practise writing quickly and neatly. Ask others to read your writing to make sure it is legible. There may not be time in the exam to write and then rewrite your answer. It is better to spend time planning and then checking at the end.
Grammatical Accuracy
To achieve a high band score in the IELTS test, you need to show a range of vocabulary and grammatical structures and use them accurately.
2.1Look again at the answer and find the mistakes.
Practice 2.1 (1)
Find and correct the four common spelling mistakes in the answer.
Type the correct spelling for each misspelled word, then press Check.
Practice 2.1 (2)
Find and correct the five problems with verbs. Edit each sentence to fix the verb.
Edit each sentence to fix the mistake, then press Check.
Practice 2.1 (3)
Find the phrase that is repeated, and decide which one to delete. Reveal the suggested answer.
1Which phrase appears twice in the answer? It opens the first body idea (‘Progress often comes at a price’) and reappears at the start of the next paragraph (‘Progress comes at a price, however’).
Checking and correcting
When you are writing quickly, it is easy to make silly mistakes. Use the final few minutes to carefully check what you wrote. Check:
- your spelling – Check for careless spelling mistakes.
- your grammar – Check verb and subject agreement and check your tenses.
- your punctuation – Have you marked the end of a sentence with a full stop? Do any of your words need a capital letter?
- your handwriting – Are any words unclear that you need to write more clearly?
Practice 2.2
These are some of the words most commonly misspelt by IELTS candidates. Correct the spelling of each one.
Look at each word for a moment, then type the correct spelling and press Check. The parts that often cause problems are the ones to watch.
Using correct punctuation
Don't forget to check your punctuation. The most common mistakes are with capital letters, full stops and commas.
Practice 2.3
Correct the punctuation in these sentences. Edit each one to fix the mistake.
Edit each sentence to fix the mistake, then press Check.
Study Tip Students often repeat the same mistakes. Get to know your own common mistakes and make sure you deliberately practise these – especially if the mistakes are spelling mistakes you repeatedly make.
Assessing your language
3.1To help you try to assess the different band scores on the IELTS Writing paper, read these features of Bands 4, 6 and 8.
Band 4
- ideas are clear but there may be a lot of repetition
- uses only basic vocabulary which may be used repetitively
- uses only a very limited range of grammatical structures and rarely accurately
- makes frequent spelling mistakes
- errors may cause problems for the reader
Band 6
- organises information and ideas clearly
- uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task
- uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms
- attempts to use less common vocabulary but with some mistakes
- makes some errors in grammar, punctuation and spelling but they don't cause problems for the reader
Band 8
- uses a wide range of vocabulary fluently and flexibly
- uses a wide range of structures and the majority of sentences are accurate
- makes only very occasional mistakes
- skilfully uses uncommon vocabulary but there may be occasional mistakes
- errors in spelling are rare
3.2Now look at these extracts from three different Writing Task 2 answers. Read each one, then match extracts A–C to the band score you think they received.
Extract A
Television in general is one of the most important tools of our daily life now. From children to adults, every age group enjoys watching the television programmes of their interest. TV in its early days was mainly used for news broadcasting and other important awareness for the public. But now it heavily influences our lives and it almost became an addiction.
In today's world, with the discovery of satellite television, almost every channel reaches our home and we have plenty of choice. In my opinion TV plays a great role in our lives as its a major source of information of happenings around the world and one has enough information about another country before they have a chance to visit the place physically. In today's household one keeps track of programmes and can record them to watch it at a later more convenient time. So TV is not only a great tool for the enhancement of knowledge on every subject but also its an entertainment package as without it life would be very dull and monotonous.
Extract B
Nowdays, with the developing of science and technology, more an more people use computers, computers are getting popular, people use computer to tapy their essaies, get information from internet, and computers are used in everywhere such as bank supermaket and so on. however, it has been widely noted that some people don't know how to use computers. it make them inconvenient and uncomfortable in their lives. people who do not know how to use computer are become more and more disadvantaged. Some people believe that goverment should make means to solve this problem. In my opinion, people who don't know how to use computers make them disadvantaged in three ways.
Extract C
Nowadays, technology is an essential part of education. The use of computers in a classroom is so common that it is almost impossible to students follow their studies if they do not have computer skills. However, if the computer dominate the major role of education, what should be done with the teachers?
Firstly, not all schools can provide computers for their students. In this case, colleges situated far away from big center or better, in small towns, depend on teachers as the main source of knowledge for their children. Another point to be considered is the fact that not all the students are keen on working with computers or have enough skills to work with these modern machines.
Practice 3.2
Match each extract to the band score you think it received.
Extract A — fluent and well organised, a mix of structures, but with some errors and informal touches
Extract B — basic vocabulary, repetition, run-on sentences, frequent spelling and grammar errors
Extract C — wide range of structures and vocabulary, mostly accurate, only occasional mistakes
3.3Look again at the band score descriptions. Which do you think is closer to a description of your own writing? Note your honest self-assessment and one thing to improve.