Lessondownloads>IELTSAcademicModulepreparation>Writing>Lesson3

Introduction
Inlesson2welookedmoreathowtodescribetablesfortask1oftheIELTSwritingtest.Youalso
learnedsometipsonhowtoorganiseanadvantagesanddisadvantagestypediscursive
composition.Inthislesson,welltakeafirstlookatanothercommonkindoftask1:describingcharts.
Thenwellexaminemorewaysofdevelopinganargumentfortask2compositions.
Inthislessonyouwill

learnaboutdifferenttypesofchart.
practisegettinginformationfromcharts.
learntorecognisestaticanddynamiccharts.
reviewsimpleverbtensesfordescribingcharts.
learnhowtoorganiseabalanceddiscussion.
becomemoreawareofformallanguageforcompositions.

IELTSWRITINGTASK1:CHARTS
Activity1>Typesofchart>8minutes
Numbersandstatisticscanbeshowninmanydifferenttypesofchart.Dontworrytoomuchifyouare
notusedtoreadingcharts.Thechartsinthetestwillnotbecomplicated.However,youdoneedto
knowhowtoreadandunderstandthesebasiccharttypes:
1Barchart
2Proportionalbarchart
3Piechart
4Linegraph
a)Matchthefourtypesofchartwiththechartsshownhere.
b)Whichofthechartsshow(s)
1thesituationatonepointintime.
2changeovertime.
3howatotalfigureisdividedintoparts.
4comparisonsfordifferentgroups.
5howonevaluechangesovertime.
6howseveralvalueschangeovertime.

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Activity2>Understandingcharts>10minutes
ThefirstthingsyoushoulddowhenyouattemptIELTStask1are

readthequestiontwiceverycarefully.
lookatthetableorchartverycarefullyuntilyouaresurewhatitshowsandwhatitdoesnt
show.

Therearethreeimportantthingstolookatinachartbeforeyouwrite

thetitleofthechartthiswilltellyouwhatisbeingshownoverall,anditusuallygivesthetime
periodthatitrepresents(e.g.19802000)
thetitlesoftheverticalandhorizontalaxesthesewilltellyouwhattheunitsofmeasurement
are(e.g.centimetres,kilos,euros)andwhatgroupsarebeingcompared
thekeyorlegend(ifthereisone)thiswilltellyouwhatgroupsortimeperiodsareshown.

[Tip:Thetitlesandlabelsonthechartalsogiveyouusefulvocabularytouseinyourdescription]
Lookatthischartanddecideifthestatementsbelowaretrue(T)orfalse(F)accordingtothe
informationshown,orifitisimpossibletotell(I).

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InflowofforeignworkersintoAustralia19922001
50
45
40
Permanentsettlers
Temporaryworkers

Thousands

35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001

ThisinformationisfromtheOECDstatisticswebsite:
http://www.oecd.org/statsportal/0,2639,en_2825_293564_1_1_1_1_1,00.html
Specifically:http://stats.oecd.org/WBOS/default.aspx?DatasetCode=CSP6

1ThechartshowshowmanyAustralianstravelledabroadforworkbetween1992and2001
2ThechartshowsthenumbersofworkersimmigratingintoAustraliabetween1992and2001
3ThetotalnumberofimmigrantsintoAustraliain1992wasabout54thousand
4Thechartcomparestwotypesofforeignworker.
540percentofforeignworkerswhocametoAustraliain1992werepermanentsettlers.
6ThetotalnumberofpermanentforeignworkersinAustraliain1995wasabout34thousand.
7Justunder15thousandtemporaryforeignworkersenteredAustraliain1992.
8In2001fewertemporaryworkersarrivedthanworkerswhowerepermanentsettlers.

T/F/I
T/F/I
T/F/I
T/F/I
T/F/I
T/F/I
T/F/I
T/F/I

Activity3>Understandingcharts>10minutes
Describingachartissimilarinlotsofwaystodescribingatableoffigures.Rememberthatyouhave
todothefollowingwhenyoufirstlookatatable:

checkdatestoseewhatthetimeperiodis
checkwhattheunitsofmeasurementare
decidewhatthemostimportantinformationis
decidewhatdetailsarenotsoimportant
makecomparisonsbetweenimportantfigures
roundfiguresupordownwhenpossible

Youshoulddothesamethingswhenyoustudyachart.
a)Lookatthepiechartbelowandlookforallthethingsinthelistabove.

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ImmigrantlabourforceinAustraliabyregionorcountryof
birth,1991(thousands)

3%

5%

4%
Europe
9%

Asia
NewZealand

17%

62%

NorthAfricaandtheMiddle
East
America
Other

ThisinformationisfromtheOECDstatisticswebsite:
http://www.oecd.org/statsportal/0,2639,en_2825_293564_1_1_1_1_1,00.html
Specifically:http://stats.oecd.org/WBOS/default.aspx?DatasetCode=CSP6

b)Nowcompletethetextwithphrases,wordsandnumbersfromthebox.
1991 afifth atenth four majority secondlargest smallersmallest thethirdlargest three
(x2) twothirds
ThechartshowsthedifferentnationalitiesthatmadeuptheimmigrantworkforceinAustraliain
1.. .Itsclearfromthechartthattherewere2.maingroupsofworkers:Europeans,
AsiansandNewZealanders.Onlyarelativelysmallnumberofworkerswerefromotherregions.
The3.offoreignworkerscamefromEurope.Infact,nearly4.ofallimmigrant
workerswereofEuropeanorigin.The5..groupofforeignworkersinthelabourforcewere
Asians.Theyrepresentedjustunder6..oftheimmigrantlabourforce.NewZealanders,who
madeupalmost7oftheforeignworkforceinthatyear,were8group.
Thenumberofworkersfromothernationalitieswasmuch9.WorkersfromNorthAfrica
andtheMiddleEast,forexample,wereonly10..percentofthewholeforeignlabourforce.
The11..nationalitygroup,however,wereAmericans.Theserepresentedonly12..
percentofallforeignworkersinAustraliain1991.

Activity4>Staticanddynamiccharts>10minutes
Thepiechartinactivity3showedthesituationatonepointintime.Thiskindofchartiscalledastatic
chart.Whenyoudescribeastaticchart,youonlyneedtousesimpletenses(presentsimpleorpast
simple,forexample).
a)LookagainatthedescriptionyoucompletedinActivity3andunderlinealltheverbsinpastsimple.
Nowlookatthechartbelow.ItcomparesthesizeoftheimmigrantworkforceinAustralia1991with
thatof2001.Inotherwords,itshowschangeovertime.Thiskindofchartissometimescalleda
dynamicchart.Todescribedynamiccharts,youneedtouseavarietyoftenses,suchas:

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simplepast Between1991and2001,thepopulationincreased.
pastperfectBy2001,thepopulationhadincreased

ImmigrantlabourforceinAustraliabyregionorcountryof
birth(19912001)
2500

172.5

2000

101.6
75.6
94.4

America

119.6

NorthAfrica
NewZealand

251.1

187.3

1500

Other

99.9

Asia
Europe

378.0

Thousands

582.1

1000

1332.1
1142.1
500

0
1991

2001

ThisinformationisfromtheOECDstatisticswebsite:
http://www.oecd.org/statsportal/0,2639,en_2825_293564_1_1_1_1_1,00.html
Specifically:http://stats.oecd.org/WBOS/default.aspx?DatasetCode=CSP6

b)Nowcompletethedescriptionofthechartbelowbyputtingtheverbsinthecorrecttense.
ThebarchartcompareshowtheimmigrantlabourforceinAustralia1(change)between
1991and2001. Thefirstthingtonoteisthatthetotalnumberofimmigrantworkers2
(increase)overthisperiodbyabout200,000.However,there3(be)otherimportantchanges
inthemakeupoftheimmigrantworkforce.By2001,forexample,thenumberofEuropeanimmigrant
workers4(fall)byalmost200,000.Incontrast,thenumberofallothernationalitiesinthe
workforce5(rise).In1991thenumberofAsianworkers,forinstance,6(stand)at
around380,000.Tenyearslater,thisfigure7(go)uptoover580,000.

Activity5>Moreaboutdynamicchartsandverbtenses>10minutes.
Somedynamiccharts,liketheoneinActivity4,showachangeinvaluesfromonetimeinthepastto
anothertimeinthepast.Othercharts,however, maycomparethepastwiththepresent.
Occasionally,chartsevenshowpredictionsaboutthefuture.Ineachcase,youneedtomakesure
thatyouareusingthecorrectverbtensestodescribethechart.Forexample,youcoulduse

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Presentperfect:Thepriceofoilhasrisenby0.10everymonthsinceJanuary.
Presentperfectcontinuous:Averagetemperatureshavebeenincreasingsincethebeginningofthe
century.
Futureperfect:Thepopulationwillhavereachedsixtymillionby2030.
a)Rememberthatitisimportanttousethecorrecttimephraseswiththetenseyouareusing.
Choosethephraseswhichcangointhegaps(theremaybemorethanone):
1.pricesfell.
AIn2005
BBy2005
CAfter2005
DSince2005
2..priceshadfallen.
AIn2005
BBy2005
CAfter2005
DSince2005
3.priceshavefallen
AIn2005
BBy2005
CAfter2005
DSince2005
4.priceshavebeenfalling.
AIn2005
BBy2005
CAfter2005
DSince2005
5.priceswillhavefallen.
AIn2015
BBy2015
CAfter2015
DSince2015

b)Nowlookatthechartbelowandcompletethedescriptionwiththecorrectverbtense.

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Ratioofthepopulationaged65andovertothelabourforce
70%
60%
50%
40%

2000

30%

2020

20%
10%

It a
ly

H
un
ga
ry

Ko
re
a
C
an
ad
a
Au
st
U
ni
ra
te
l ia
d

Ki
ng
Sl
ov
do
ak
m

R
ep
C
ze
ub
ch
lic

R
ep
ub
lic

Po
la
nd

Ja
pa
n
Fr
an
ce

Tu

rk
ey

0%

ThisinformationisfromtheOECDstatisticswebsite:
http://www.oecd.org/statsportal/0,2639,en_2825_293564_1_1_1_1_1,00.html
Specifically: http://stats.oecd.org/WBOS/default.aspx?DatasetCode=CSP6

Thechart1..(show)theratioofthepopulationaged65andovertothelabourforceoftwelve
differentcountries,andhowthis2.. (change)by2020.
Itisclearfromthechartthatin2000somecountriesalreadyhadahighratio.InItaly,forexample,the
populationaged65andover3.. (be)over40%ofthesizeoftheworkingpopulation.Hungary
also4.. (have)ahighratioin2000.Itsretiredpopulationwasover30%thesizeofitsworking
population.However,thefigurevariedalotbetweencountries.InTurkeyandKorea,forexample,it
5.. (be)onlyjustover10%.
Thechartalso6.. (make)predictionsabouthowthisratio7.. (change)inthefuture.It
isclearthatallthecountriesshownhaveanagingpopulation.Hungary8.. (have)thebiggest
change.By2020theratioofretiredpeopletoworkers9..(reach)almost60%.Thisisan
increaseofalmost25%.EveninKoreatheratio10..(increase)toover30%by2020.

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IELTSWRITINGTASK2:DEVELOPINGANARGUMENT
Activity6>Analysingthequestion>7minutes
Inpart2oftheIELTSwritingtestyoumaybeaskedtoexpressyouropinionaboutacontroversial
issueordebateinotherwords,asubjectforwhichpeopletendtohavestronglyopposingopinions.
Heresanexample:
Presentawrittenargumentorcasetoaneducatedreaderwithnospecialknowledgeofthe
followingtopic.
Relyingonfossilfuelssuchasoilandcoalforourenergyneedsisbecomingincreasingly
impractical.Therisingcostanddecreasingsupplyofthesefuels,alongwithconcerns
abouttheglobalwarmingtheycause,meanswemustfindanalternative.Theonlyrealistic
alternativeisnuclearenergy.
Towhatextentdoyouagreeordisagree?
Youshoulduseyourownideas,knowledgeandexperienceandsupportyourargumentswith
examplesandrelevantevidence.
Asalways,beforeyoustartwriting,spendafewminutesthinkingaboutwhatthequestionasks,and
whatthebestwaytoansweris.Readtheexamplequestionaboveonemoretime,andthendecide
whetherthestatementsbelowaretrueorfalse.
1Thequestionaskswhetherornotfossilfuelsareimpractical.
2Youshouldgiveadetaileddescriptionofhowfossilfuelscauseglobalwarming.
3Thequestionaskswhethernuclearenergyisagoodalternativetofossilfuels.
4Youshoulddiscusstheargumentsforandagainstnuclearenergy.
5Youshoulddiscusstheargumentsforandagainstfossilfuels.
6Youshouldmentionotheralternativeenergyresources.
7Youshouldgivedetailedhistoricalaccountsofnucleardisasters.
8Youshouldonlymentionyouropinions.
9Youshouldexpressyouropinions,butshowawarenessofothers.
10Youshouldincluderelevantfactsthathelptosupportyouropinions.

T/F
T/F
T/F
T/F
T/F
T/F
T/F
T/F
T/F
T/F

Activity7>Gettingideas>5minutes
Theexamplequestionyousawinthepreviousactivityinvitesyoutoexpressyouropinionabout
nuclearenergy.Onewaytodothisistodiscussargumentsforandagainstthisenergysource.
a)Takeafewminutestojotdownargumentsforandagainsttheuseofnuclearpower.

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b)Herearesomeideaswethoughtof. Whichofthesepointsareforandwhichagainst?WriteF
(for)orA(against) nexttoeachpoint.
Allwasteiscontainedinsteadofgoingdirectlyintotheatmosphere.
Theminingofuraniumcausesenvironmentaldamage.
Modernnuclearpowerstationsaredesignedwithmanysafetyfeatures.
Thereisalwaysadangerthathumanerrorornegligencecouldcauseanaccident.
Nationsthathavenooilandgasreservescanproducetheirownenergyindependently.
Nuclearpowerstationscouldbetargetedbyterrorists.
Nuclearpowerisamuchmoreeconomicalwaytoproduceenergy.
Safelydisposingofradioactivewasteisexpensive.
Thereareotheralternativestofossilfuels,suchaswindandsolarpower,whichposefewerrisks.
Nuclearpoweroffersanalmostlimitlesssupplyofenergy.
Nuclearpowerstationsaresaferplacesforpeopletoworkthancoalfiredpowerstations.
Thereisthedangerofahugeenvironmentaldisaster.
Nuclearpowerstationsdonotproducegreenhousegases.
Radioactivewasteposesadangerforcenturies.
.

Activity8>Organisingabalanceddiscussion>10minutes
Onewaytoorganiseabalanceddiscussionissimplytodividetheargumentsforandthearguments
againstintotwoseparatecentralparagraphs.Youwouldneedtoconnectideasusingwordsand
expressionssuchasthoseyoulearnedinLessons1and2.
a)Connecttheideasintheexampleparagraphbelowwithwordsfromthebox.
AsaresultFinallyFirstofallFurthermoreInsteadSecondly
Whatarethefactorsinfavourofnuclearpowerasanenergysource?[1].,itisan
economicalsourceofenergy.Thepowergeneratedbynuclearpowerstationscostsmuchlessto
producethanfromcoaloroilfiredstations.[2].,unliketraditionalpowerstations,nuclear
powerplantsdonotpollutetheatmospherewiththeirwaste.[3].,thewasteisstoredinsafe
containersdeepunderground.[4].,amovetonuclearpowerwillreducegreenhousesgases
thatareresponsibleforglobalwarmingintheatmosphere.[5].,statisticsshowthatpower
stationsareactuallysaferplacesforpeopletoworkthancoalfiredpowerstations.[6].,
nuclearpowercanpotentiallysupplyallourenergyneedsformanycenturiestocome.

However,anothereffectivewaytoorganiseyourdiscussionistomatchargumentwithcounter
argumentinthesameparagraph.Thiscanoftenbeamorepersuasivewaytopresentyourviews.
Youdemonstrateawarenessofothersopinions,butatthesametimeyoushowwhytheseare
mistaken.Again,connectingwordsandphraseshelptoholdtheparagraphtogether.
b)Connecttheideasintheexampleparagraphbelowwithwordsfromthebox.
causingdespiteforinstance moreimportantlymoreover while

Theclaimsmadebythoseinfavourofnuclearpowerdonotstanduptocloseexamination.Itisoften
said,[1].,thatnuclearpowerdoesnotdamagetheenvironment.[2].itistruethat
greenhousegasesarenotproduced,miningforuraniumcausesrealdamagetotheenvironment.
[3]., manyreactorsuseriversforcooling.Thisraisestemperaturesintheriverwater,

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[4].harmtolifeinandaroundthoserivers.Itisalsoarguedthatthetechnologyofmodern
reactorsmakesaccidentsalmostimpossible.[5].theseclaims,accidentshavehappened
mostfamouslyatChernobyl.Noamountoftechnologycanpreventhumanerror,carelessnessor
laziness.Allofthesecancausedeadlyaccidents.[6].,nuclearpowerplantscouldbecome
thetargetofterroristattacks.Technologycoulddoverylittletopreventsuchanattack,andthe
consequencesareunthinkable.

Activity9>Developingamoreformalstyle>10minutes
Noticethatintheexampleparagraphabove,whichcontrastsargumentwithcounterargument,the
writerusesthepassivetointroduceideas:
Itisoftensaid.
Itisalsoarguedthat
Thisisonewaytogiveyourwritingamoreformalstyle.
a)Rewriteeachofthesesentencesbyputtingthemainverbinthepassive.
1Peoplesaythatwindpowerturbinesarecompletelyharmless.
Itissaidthatwindpowerturbinesarecompletelyharmless.
2Therearepeoplewhoarguethatsolarpowerwillneverreplacefossilfuels.
________________________________________________
3ExpertspredictthatverysoonChinawillbetheworldsleadingeconomicandpoliticalpower.
_______________________________________________
4ManypeopleregardtheInternetasagreatforcefordemocracyandfreedomofspeech.
_______________________________________________
5Researchershopethattheywillsoonfindavaccineforavianflu.
_______________________________________________
6Everyoneknowsthatheartdiseaseisthehighestcauseofdeath.
_______________________________________________

Thereareanumberofotherwaystomakeyourwritingmoreformalinstyle.Asageneralrule,
rememberthatformalwritingisdifferentfromspokenlanguage,andyourcompositionshouldnt
soundtoochatty.Hereanumberofthingsyoushouldavoid.
b)Matchtherulesontheleftwiththeexamplesontheright.

1Donotusecontractions
2Avoidusingphrasalverbs
3Avoidusingidioms
4Donotusetagquestions
5Donotuseironyorsarcasm
6Avoidconversationalstyle
7Avoidexaggeration

aOfcourse,weallknowwhatbignatureloverscarmanufacturesare.
bNobodywantswar,dothey?
cItisntonlythegovernmentwhoaretoblame.
dIfyouaskme,whatweshoulddois
eIfwekeeponlikethis,wewillhaveusedupallourresources.
fThereareloadsandloadsofreasonswhythiswillnotwork
gThatideaisjustapipedream.

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c)Nowrewritethesentencesfromexercisebinamoreformalstyle.
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
Activity10>Examplequestion>10minutes
Finally,hereisachancetoputwhatyouhavelearnedinthislessonintopractice.

Readtheexamplequestionbelowtwicetomakesureyouknowwhatitisasking(andisnt
asking).
Brainstormideasandopinionsorganisethemintoaforandagainstlist.
Decidehowyouwanttoorganisethewholecompositionmakeaparagraphplan.
Writeonlyoneparagraph,butusetheargumentandcounterargumentformat.
Checkthatyourparagraphusesappropriatelyformallanguageandstyle.
Whenyouvefinished,compareyourparagraphwiththeexampleanswerintheanswerkey.

Presentawrittenargumentorcasetoaneducatedreaderwithnospecialknowledgeofthe
followingtopic.
TheteachingofInformationTechnology(computers)hasbecomeastandardpartofthe
curriculuminmostsecondaryschools.Thesameisnowhappeninginprimaryschools,
wherechildrenasyoungassixarelearninghowtousecomputers.However,thereisa
dangerthatITskillsarebeingtaughtattheexpenseofmorebasicskills.
Towhatextentdoyouagreeordisagree?
Youshoulduseyourownideas,knowledgeandexperienceandsupportyourargumentswith
examplesandrelevantevidence.

LessonReview
Inthislessonyouhave:

learnedaboutdifferenttypesofchart.
practisedgettinginformationfromcharts.
learnedtorecognisestaticanddynamiccharts.
reviewedsimpleverbtensesfordescribingcharts.
learnedtwowaystoorganiseabalanceddiscussion.
becomemoreawareofformallanguageforcompositions.

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Lessondownloads>IELTSAcademicModulepreparation>Writing>Lesson3>Answerkey
Activity1
a)
1Barchart
B
2Proportionalbarchart D
3Piechart
C
4Linegraph
A
b)
1B,C
2A,D(however,barcharts(B)canalsobeusedtoshowchangeovertimebutnotinthisexample)
3C,D(wecouldalsoincludeBifthechartshowsalltypesoffruitsoldthatyear.)
4B,C,D
5A
6D
Activity2
1FThechartshowsworkerscomingintoAustralia
2T
3IThechartonlyshowsimmigrantworkerstheresnoinformationaboutotherimmigrants
4T
5FTheverticalaxisisthousandsnotpercentage
6IThechartdoesntgiveinformationabouttotalnumbersofforeignworkersinAustralia
7T
8FMoretemporaryworkersarrivedthanworkerswhowerepermanentsettlers.

Activity3
11991
2three
3majority
4twothirds
5secondlargest
6afifth
7atenth
8thethirdlargest
9smaller
10four
11smallest
12three
Activity4
a)
Thechartshowsthedifferentnationalitiesthat madeuptheimmigrantworkforceinAustraliain1991.
Itsclearfromthechartthattherewerethreemaingroupsofworkers:Europeans,AsiansandNew
Zealanders.Onlyarelativelysmallnumberofworkerswerefromotherregions.
ThemajorityofforeignworkerscamefromEurope.Infact,nearlytwothirdsofallimmigrantworkers
wereofEuropeanorigin.Thesecondlargestgroupofforeignworkersinthelabourforcewere
Asians.Theyrepresentedjustunderafifthoftheimmigrantlabourforce.NewZealanders,whomade
upalmostatenthoftheforeignworkforceinthatyear,werethethirdlargestgroup.

Page 12 of 15

Thenumberofworkersfromothernationalitieswasmuchsmaller.WorkersfromNorthAfricaandthe
MiddleEast,forexample,wereonlyfourpercentofthewholeforeignlabourforce.Thesmallest
nationalitygroup,however,wereAmericans.Theserepresentedonlythreepercentofallforeign
workersinAustraliain1991.
b)
1changed
2increased
3were
4hadfallen
5hadrisen
6stood
7hadgone
Activity5
a)
1A,C
2A,B
3D
4D
5B,C
b)
1shows
2willhavechanged
3was
4had
5was
6makes
7willchange/willhavechanged
8willhave/willhavehad
9willhavereached
10willhaveincreased
Activity6
1F Thequestionassumesthatthisisafact thisisnotthedebate..
2F Thisisnotnecessary.Thequestionisabouttheimpactofnuclearenergyasanalternative.
3T
4T
5F Again,thisisnotthedebatehere.Thequestionisabouttheprosandconsofthealternativesto
fossilfuels.
6TItisappropriatetomentionotheralternatives,becausethequestionsuggeststhatnuclearisthe
onlyrealisticalternative.However,themainfocusofyouranswercouldbetheprosandconsof
nuclearenergyinmoredetail.
7FSupportyourargumentswithhistoricalevidenceifyouknowany,butjustabriefcommentis
enough.
8FItisgoodtohaveaclearopinionofyourownontheissue,andyoucanorganiseyour
compositionaroundthisopinion.However,yououghttomentionotherviewsalso.
9T
10T
Activity7
For
Nuclearpowerstationsdonotproducegreenhousegases.
Nuclearpowerisamuchmoreeconomicalwaytoproduceenergy.

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Nuclearpowerstationsareactuallysaferplacesforpeopletoworkthancoalfiredpowerstations.
Nuclearpoweroffersanalmostlimitlesssupplyofenergy.
Modernnuclearpowerstationsaredesignedwithmanysafetyfeatures.
Allwasteiscontainedinsteadofgoingdirectlyintotheatmosphere.
Nationsthathavenooilandgasreservescanproducetheirownenergyindependently.
Against
Safelydisposingofradioactivewasteisexpensive.
Radioactivewasteposesadangerforcenturies.
Thereisthedangerofahugeenvironmentaldisaster.
Theminingofuraniumcausesenvironmentaldamage.
Nuclearpowerstationscouldbetargetedbyterrorists.
Thereisalwaysadangerthathumanerrorornegligencecouldcauseanaccident.
Thereareotheralternativestofossilfuels,suchaswindandsolarpower,whichposefewerrisks.
Activity8
a)
1Firstofall
2Secondly
3Instead
4Asaresult
5Furthermore
6Finally
b)
1forinstance
2while
3moreover
4causing
5despite
6moreimportantly
Activity9
a)
1Itissaidthatwindpowerturbinesarecompletelyharmless.(Example)
2Itisarguedthatsolarpowerwillneverreplacefossilfuels.
3ItispredictedthatverysoonChinawillbe
4TheInternetiswidelyregardedasagreatforcefor
5Itishopedthatavaccineforavianfluwillsoonbefound.
6Itiswidelyknownthatheartdiseaseis
b)
1c
2e
3g
4b
5a
6d
7f
c)
aCarmanufacturershaveshownlittleconcernfortheenvironment.
bNobodywantswar.
cItisnotonlythegovernmentwhoaretoblame.
dInmyview,peopleoughtto

Page 14 of 15

eIfthiscontinues,wewillhaveexhaustedallourresources.
fThereareanumberofgoodreasonswhythiswillnotwork.
gThisideaissimplynotfeasible.
Activity10
Exampleparagraph
TheargumentsthatareusedtosupporttheteachingofITskillsatprimaryschoolsarenotvery
convincing.Forinstance,itisoftenclaimedthatITskillsareessentialforsurvivalintodaysworld.
Thismaybetrueintheworldofwork,buttheseskillsareeasilylearnedlateroninlifewhenneeded.
Thereisnoneedtosacrificevaluabletimeatprimaryschoolforthis.Learninghowtousecomputers
isalsobelievedtobeanengagingandcreativeactivityforyoungchildren.Despitethepopularityof
thisbelief,nothingcouldbelessmotivatingorcreativethansittingpassivelyinfrontofacomputer
screen.Thisisnotwhatthespiritofprimaryschoolisallabout.Schoolisaboutbuildingrelationships
withothersandlearninghowtocommunicate.ITtrainingdoesneitherofthese.

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