IELTS essay on neighborhood I managed to write this with my laptop within 40 minutes. I still need to work on the efficiency because I will be required to write with a pencil during a real test and my handwriting is slower than typing. Please help me point out the expressions you find wrong, unnatural or awkward. Thanks a lot. == THE TOPIC == There are an increasing number of people who do not know their neighbors. What causes this situation? How to solve? == THE ESSAY == It is not uncommon today that neighbors do not know each other although they may have many chances to run into each other. Personally I believe the busy lifestyle many people live with and the fact that people spend more time at home have contributed to this phenomenon; and this can be solved by creating more opportunities for neighbors to meet each other. In my opinion, there are two reasons for increasing strangeness in the neighborhood. The most important one is largely due to most people’s busy lifestyle today. The technological advances in both communication and transportation have greatly speeded up the rhythm of people’s life. Compared to their parents, many people spend less time with their families because they have to spend more time working. These people are unlikely to have the time to make acquaintance with their neighbors. Another reason is that most people spend more time at home after work today; they may choose to do things like playing video games or watching online TV shows in order to relax. Because they do not go out as much as their parents used to, there are less chances for them to know their neighbors. Neighbors can get more familiar with each other if more opportunities are created for them to meet each other. Many people get to know their neighbors while they take their children out for walking. It is a good idea to organize a kids’ play day in the community so that children can have more playmates and parents can talk. Parents tend to have a lot of topics in common, so having their children play together is a great chance for them to know each other. In my community, we also have events such as barbeques and badminton matches occasionally for neighbors to spend weekends together. Many of my neighbors find it a pleasant way to meet other people. In conclusion, it seems to me that neighbors no longer know each other because of the changing lifestyles; however, events that bring people together can help them to know others in the neighborhood. (346 words)

IELTS ESSAY ON AMBITION This is another tough topic for me. It took me 50 minutes to write it down with a pencil before typing it into the computer. Please help me find out mistakes and awkward expressions. Thanks a lot. == THE TOPIC == Ambition is being emphasized in today’s society. How important do you think it is for those who want to succeed in their life? Is it a positive or negative characteristic? == THE ESSAY == People are often encouraged to be ambitious when they are given career advice. Personally I believe ambition can be very important to people’s career success. However, it may have a negative impact on their happiness. In my opinion, ambition is important to people’s success for two reasons. Firstly, it takes years of efforts for people to become successful in their jobs, and so they need to be highly motivated and persistent with their goal. It is impossible to have such motivation and persistence without being ambitious. Secondly, ambition sometimes can lead to much greater success. Without Mark Zuckerburg’s ambition, Facebook would not become a trillion dollar company today. During the early days of Facebook, its marketing manager tried to persuade Zuckerburg to put advertisements on the website in order to make profits. But Zuckerburg had a more ambitious goal for the website and refused it. Today he has proven right, and it is safe to say that Facebook’s huge success is largely because of Zuckerburg’s initial ambition. Although ambition can be fairly positive from a professional perspective, it may be the opposite to people’s happiness. This is because being ambitious makes it more difficult for people to be satisfied. Ambition is what makes people have higher expection from their job or life. However, it does not necessarily lead to the success these people want. While happiness often comes from a sense of satisfaction or accomplishment, ambitious people are less likely to have such fulfillment. They may therefore be less happy than others. In conclusion, ambition can be an important factor of people’s success. At the same time, it may also a cause of unhappiness in life. (276 words)

IELTS essay on young people following traditions My test is due Saturday so I try to practice as much as I can these days. I felt a bit awkward while trying to write this one. Again, any help will be appreciated. Thanks. == THE TOPIC == Some people think that young people should follow traditions from their society; other people think that young people should be free to behave as individuals. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. == THE ESSAY == People have different views on whether the younger generation should follow traditions or they should be given the freedom to behave as individuals. Personally I believe this is not an either-or situation. While good traditions should be passed on and young people should respect these traditions, I believe they should also be allowed to behave as themselves. On the one hand, many traditions are worth following. There are many kinds of traditions, from national traditions such as celebrating the Spring Festival and the Moon Festival in China, to family traditions or even school traditions. Traditions are often linked to delicious food, arts, bright clothing, family reunion, happiness, cultural heritage, cultural identity, and so forth. They are what make one nation, one family, or one group of people distinct from the other. It is important for young people to follow these traditions so as to make sense of their cultural identity, remember where they are from and have a sense of belonging. On the other hand, I also believe that young people should be allowed to behave as themselves and be different. Young people are at their most energetic and creative age, and they are in the process of finding out who they are. Therefore, instead being asked to watch their every step and follow the code of traditions, they should be encouraged to express themselves freely, choose their own paths, visit different parts of the world and learn new things. In this way, young people can explore and develop their true potential. In fact, many innovations take place because some young people are not satisfied by simply following traditions. In conclusion, I believe that many traditions should be kept and followed, but at the same time, young people should have the right to behave as themselves while they are still searching for their own personal identity.

IELTS essay on development of technology and life == THE TOPIC == Some people think that the development of technology has made our life more complex, and the solution is to live a simpler life without that technology. To what extent do you agree or disagree? == THE ESSAY == The advances of technology have greatly changed the way we live. Some people believe that our life is too complex compared to our ancestors’, and so they suggest that we go back to the life of the pre-technology era. Personally I disagree with this view. In my opinion, the technological development does not complicate our life, but instead it makes our life much simpler under many circumstances. While there are plenty of examples of this, the way that e-commerce has changed our life may be best to describe it. In the past we had to travel long distances to stores in multiple locations in order to purchase the items we wanted. Today online shopping has made it possible for us to sit at home and buy almost everything we want with just a few clicks. There are other examples such as tele-conferences which save the trouble to bring people from difficult parts of the world together, and software like Skype and Facetime which allow users in different places to communicate “face-to-face”. In fact, the goal of new technolgoies is to simplify people’s life instead of complicating it. On the other hand, although I agree that it sometimes a good idea to live without some technology for a while, it is not a solution to get the simpler life people want. It is not rare to see people who choose to get away from the online social network for some time. Their feedbacks are generally positive but eventually they all come back because simply living without the technology is not the solution. It is not hard to imagine if we give up technology development and innovation, human societies will move backwards rather than forward. In conclusion, it seems to me that the purpose of technology is not to make life complex, the quite the opposite, to solve problems in our life and make life easier. Therefore, giving up technology is not the way to have a simpler life. Instead, we should push forward technology innovation and make technology more user-friendly. (339 words.. too long)

IELTS essay on globalization == THE TOPIC == Some people think the spread of multinational companies and globalization produce positive efforts to everyone. Do you agree or disagree? == THE ESSAY == It is clear that globalization has become a trend because of technology advances in both communication and transportation in the past decades. Many large companies have established multiple branches in other countries across the world. While I believe that this trend is generally positive, I disagree with the view that it will benefit everyone. Globalization and the growing number of multinational companies have been proved to be beneficial to the many countries and their people, as well as the companies themselves. By opening offices and factories in other countries, these companies can expand their markets and increase their revenues. In the meantime, they are normally important job creators that can create large numbers of jobs for local people. This will reduce local unemployment rates and help to boost local economies. Local governments can also expect significant amounts of corporate income taxes from the multinational companies. These taxes can be used to improve public services such as education, health care, and publish transport, which can in turn benefit many people. However, since multinational companies will also bring competition to local companies of the same industry, some people’s life may be severely affected by the arrival of multinational companies that are often leaders in their industries. Supermarket giants like Wal-Mart have sprawling global resources that make it possible for them to offer lower prices than local small shops can, and they are willing to sacrifice the margins to eliminate local competitors. As a result, small shops lose their customers and go bankrupt. For the owners of small businesses, multinational companies can be damaging to their lives. In conclusion, although globalization has a positive impact on the economy and many people can benefit from it, it is wrong to assume that this is the case for everyone. (294 words)

IELTS essay on health care == THE TOPIC == Some people think that good health is a basic human need，so medical service should be run by the government instead of profit-making companies. Do you think the disadvantages of private health care outweigh the advantages? == THE ESSAY == It is believed that every individual has the right to live a healthy life, some people therefore suggest that public healthcare service should be provided by the government rather than private sectors. This essay will look into the advantages and disadvantages of having private companies as the health care provider. Many countries that are in favor of private hospitals or clinics to provide medical service believe that private service providers can be more efficient and provide their customers with better service. Some developed countries, such as Japan and Germany, allow their citizens to choose private medical facilities over government-owned hospitals and still get their medical expenses covered by national health insurance plans. With this freedom of making choices, patients can simply go to a nearby clinic or hospital and get treatment immediately, without having to drive a long way to a government-funded hospital or wait in lines before getting the medical service they need. On the other hand, people are concerned about using private medical service mainly because privately owned medical facilities normally require higher costs. This is especially true today when medical service often involves examinations that require high-tech equipment. Since the investment in the infrastructure can be extremely expensive, in many countries private companies charge much more than government funded hospitals in order to make profits. In conclusion, I personally believe that it is generally a better and more efficient model to allow private companies to provide medical service for the people if the government makes policies that will help with controlling the medical cost under an affordable level for the health insurance system. (266 words)

An IELTS essay on university students spending their time. == THE TOPIC == Full-time university students need to spend a lot of time studying, but it is essential to involve other activities. To what extent do you agree or disagree? == THE ESSAY == Study is widely considered as undergraduate students’ most important task which requires a significant amount of their time. However, in order for students to be fully prepared for their future life, they should also participate in other activities. Personally I completely agree with this view. On the one hand, many students go to the university to get educational qualifications that will hopefully lead to better career prospects. A lot of effort is required for this goal to be achieved. In order to get their degrees, students have to meet the academic requirements set their universities by acquiring a given amount of credit hours. In this way, a computer science student will be equipped with knowledge covering a wide range of topics on computer science, such as mathematics, the fundamental principle of computer architecture, the design and analysis of algorithms, the design and implementation of operating systems, when they graduate. It requires hard work and most of the students’ time to master knowledge of such a broad range. On the other hand, study should not be the only thing for students to do in universities. Students need to relax after study because they are not machines, and the time students spend in university should be memorable because it may be the most precious time in life when they are young and energetic without burdens such as mortgage payments and office politics. So besides hard study, students should enjoy time with their classmates and friends, have some hobbies, and take part in sports activities. Those are also important things to do in life, and how a lot of people find their lifelong friends in university. In conclusion, I agree that students should spend most of their time studying, and I also believe that they should take part in non-study activities.

IELTS eassy: the unhappy young generation == THE TOPIC == In some countries, young people are not only richer, but also safer and healthier than ever before. However, they are less happy. What is the main reason about this? What can be done for this? == THE ESSAY == It is a surprising fact in some countries that young people are not as happy as before, even though they are wealthier, safer and healthier than their parents were. This essay will look at the reasons behind this and suggest some possible solutions. In my opinion, young people are unhappy mainly because they do not have enough challenges in their lives, and some of them may have problems finding out the purposes of their lives. People feel happy for many different reasons. The most important one is a sense of accomplishment, which comes from conquering challenges or fulfilling purposes. Unlike their parents, most young people today do not have to fight for a better life since they already have almost everything needed for a decent life. It is therefore easy for many young people to constantly indulge in meaningless activities, which may lead to a huge waste of time and feelings of loss and regrets. There are a number of ways that can help the young generation to find passion and purpose in life, which will in turn improve their wellbeing. The best way is to travel and know more about the world. While wonders of the world such as the Great Barrier Reef amaze people, young people may also learn that not everyone in this world lives a life as good as theirs. In some countries in Africa, for example, there are people who are still struggling to survive. It sometimes can change one’s life just to see a different part of the world, because it inspires people to rethink about the meaning of life. There are many other ways to help young people to find the right track and improve their happiness. The key is to get inspired and put the thoughts into action. In conclusion, there are reasons why there is a decline in young people’s wellbeing, and it is import for the young generation to find out what they want in their lives and go for it. (331 words. I know it's too long)