Reading

Listening

Speaking

Speaking part 1

Speaking part 2

Speaking part 3

Writing

Writing part 1

Bar chart essay

Writing part 2

General rules

  • Avoid putting cliches (overused phrases) in your introductions.
  • It is important to put your original thought in your writing.
  • It would rather use simple words appropriately and correctly than big words but bad collocations (words that never go together) or wrong spelling.
Introduction

This part constiutes two parts: paraphrasing the question and thesis statement.

Paraphrasing question

  • Go directly to the question, no need to be entertaining. It should be simple.

Thesis statement

Body
Conclusion

Agree or disagree essay

For a balanced position

Introduction

  • Starting phrases

It is thought by some people that …

It has been argued that …

  • Thesis statement

It is crucial to provide a clear position (balanced opinion or one-sided position). There are some points that we agree with and others not,…

While/Although I agree that …, I believe/disagree that …

I agree that … but I do not think that …

To a certain extent, I agree that …. However, I also think that …

In this eassy, I will discuss why such …

Body

Two paragraphs should be equally long since we are in a balanced position.

Paragraph 1

  • Topic sentence:

    On the one hand, I would agree that …

  • Explanation

    In other words, …

  • Example

    For example/instance, …

  • If not (to)

Paragraph 2

  • Topic sentence:

    On the other hand/ Nevertheless, I also think that ….

  • Explanation:

    First, … It means that ….

    Second, … In particular, ….

    Finally, … For example/instance, …

Conclusion

In conclusion, while …, I (do not) believe that …

For one-sided position

Introduction

Paraphrasing the statement

It is a fact that …

Personally, I completely agree/disagree with this idea.

From a strictly capitalist point of view, …

In my opinion, I am (not) in agreement with this idea.

In a narrow point of view, …

However, I am not in agreement with this idea (belief, argument, point of view, thought, perspective, position, standpoint).

Body

There are three ways to write body parts.

Method 1. Reason - Reason

The first reason for this is because … is … In other words, … For example, …

In addition to the above reason, I also believe that … If … For example,

Method 2. Reason - Benefits/Consequences

The first reason for … relates to … If … For example, …

There are benefits that people could gain from … First, … Second, … Finally, …

Method 3. Antithesis - Reason

Provide some arguments of the opposite side and refute it.

The argument in favour of …(the opinion of opposite side)… would be that …(some arguments support that idea)… However, I believe this to be unrealistic/ a very shortsighted view. If … For example, …

The main reason for … relates to … If … For example …

Examples

WRITING TASK 2

You should spend 40 minutes on this task.

Companies are responsible only for making money for their investors. Therefore, they should not be held accountable for the environmental and social costs of their business activity to society as a whole.

Businesses should do no more than concentrating on making profit.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words

From a strictly capitalist point of view, companies exist simply to make profits and there are businesses that focus on this aim regardless of social or environmental consequences. In this essay, I will discuss why such an approach to business is not only irresponsible but may be self-defeating, in that firms who continuously ignore such factors may even be harming their profits.

First of all, from a business point of view, public awareness of green issues is at an all-time high, and firms that are seen as working hard to restrict pollution and encourage recycling are often looked on more favourably by consumers. Therefore being environmentally friendly is not only better for the planet, it could also give companies an advantage over competitors. In addition, in many countries, there are government incentives for companies to lessen their environmental impact. For example, the introduction of carbon credits means that firms can protect the environment and receive tax credits in return, so clearly, there are also economic rewards to being environmentally friendly.

Equally, businesses who disregard public opinion or engage in socially irresponsible practices do so at great risk. They may find themselves subject to strikes and boycotts of their products, and firms who continuously provoke negative social reactions may eventually be barred from trading within certain markets. On the other hand, those businesses who work hard to maintain public trust are more likely to experience increased sales, leading to more revenue.

In summary, businesses should not be blinded by profits. They need to remember that they are subject to the will of the public on issues such as the environment and their social stance. If they want to succeed, these factors should not be ignored and, properly managed, could even help boost revenues.

Vocabulary

I divide vocab into two categories:

  • passive (): favors cardinality rather than quality. Those words are usually used in Reading and Listening. You should learn a huge amount of them and just need to understand the general meaning of words.
  • active (): used in Speaking and Writing. Thus requiring a deeper understanding of the words. Generally, it is important to learn active words with collocations (words that commonly go together), synonyms, antonyms, some example usages.

In what follows, I structure words according to the topic to which they commonly appear.

Active vocab

Agriculture

Passive vocab

Grammar