Signup for a WB Games account and get a free golden age batsuit

Sign Up

Ielts Liz Writing Task 2

Liz always advises spending up to 5 minutes planning. You must organize your ideas before you write.

  • Body Paragraph 1 (Main Idea: Detrimental to students):
  • Body Paragraph 2 (Main Idea: Quality of work):
  • Conclusion:

    • | Time | Activity | |------|-----------| | 5 min | Analyze question (underline keywords). Brainstorm 2–3 main ideas. Plan paragraph topics. | | 30 min | Write essay (Intro → Body 1 → Body 2 → Conclusion). | | 5 min | Proofread (spelling, grammar, word count, task response check). |

    Liz’s rule: If you spend 10 minutes planning, you are overthinking. If you spend 0 minutes planning, your essay will be disorganized. ielts liz writing task 2

    Before diving into Liz’s methods, let’s clarify the weight of Task 2. It contributes twice as many marks to your final Writing band score as Task 1 (Letter/Report). If you perform poorly here, even a perfect Task 1 cannot save your score.

    IELTS Liz often emphasizes this point: “Task 2 is the priority. Do not spend more than 20 minutes on Task 1 if you want to succeed in Task 2.” Liz always advises spending up to 5 minutes planning

    Topic: Some people believe that unpaid community service should be a compulsory part of high school programs (for example, working for a charity, improving the neighborhood, or teaching sports to younger children). To what extent do you agree or disagree?

    Liz categorizes Task 2 questions into 5 main types, each requiring a specific essay structure. Body Paragraph 1 (Main Idea: Detrimental to students):

    | Question Type | Key Phrasing | Recommended Structure (4–5 paragraphs) | |---------------|--------------|------------------------------------------| | Opinion (Agree/Disagree) | Do you agree or disagree? To what extent? | Introduction → Body 1 (Why agree/not) → Body 2 (Further reason) → Conclusion | | Discussion + Opinion | Discuss both views and give your opinion. | Intro → View 1 → View 2 → Your opinion + Conclusion | | Problem/Solution | What are the causes/solutions? | Intro → Problem/Cause 1 → Problem/Cause 2 → Solutions (or separate paragraph) → Conclusion | | Advantage/Disadvantage | Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages? | Intro → Advantages → Disadvantages → Your balanced opinion → Conclusion | | Two-Part Question | Why is this? Is it a positive or negative development? | Intro → Answer Part 1 → Answer Part 2 → Conclusion |

    Critical Rule (Liz): Do not memorize fixed phrases for every essay type. Instead, learn the structure and adapt your ideas.

    Liz emphasizes that all preparation must target these four areas:

    | Criterion | Weight | Liz’s Key Advice | |-----------|--------|------------------| | Task Response (TR) | 25% | Answer all parts of the question fully. Do not go off-topic. Present a clear position throughout. | | Coherence & Cohesion (CC) | 25% | Logical paragraphing. Use linking words (e.g., however, furthermore, as a result). No overuse of “firstly, secondly, finally.” | | Lexical Resource (LR) | 25% | Use less common vocabulary (e.g., “mitigate” instead of “reduce”). Avoid repetition. No memorized “band 7” lists. | | Grammatical Range & Accuracy (GRA) | 25% | Use a mix of simple and complex sentences (e.g., subordinate clauses). Minimize errors (subject-verb agreement, articles, punctuation). |