IELTS Writing Task 2: 'family history' topic

Today I'm attaching a document about the 'family history' question in last week's lesson. Open and download it to see some tips and my full essay plan.

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Comments

[Shelly]

Dear Simon,
i have just received my Ielts results, and i would like to thank you for your useful web site. I did EXACTLY what you instructed in wrting 1 and 2, and got Writing 8.0!! just before the test i went over your notes and structure of Task 2, and did it in the exam.
you are the best!! keep on helping other students.
i got Listening 7.5, Reading 8.5, Writing 8.0 and Speaking 7.5.

[ttrung]

congratulate Shelly.you are a good sudent who i admire a lot.

[qimtiaz]

CUE CARD

Describe a comic actor who is popular in your country. You should say:
- who this person is
- how you know him/her
- what kind of person he/she is * (or, how he/she is funny) *
and explain why he/she is popular in your country.

[Kausar Halim]

Dear Simon and IELTS teachers,
I wonder if you remember my earlier posts. I told you I was almost a native English speaker and took IELTS in Karachi in April. The score I got was listening 9 reading 8 writing 6.5 and speaking 6.5. I was shocked by these results.
I sent them for remark and my EOR has come back with writing increased to 7 and speaking increased to whopping 8.I had told you they asked me about local comedian and I did not say anything as I do not know any Urdu comedians.I thought this is why they gave me 6.5. But the examiners in UK have increased my speaking marks to 8.
I am very concerned about people taking IELTS at Karachi British council center.Is it at all possible to put me in touch with senior IELTS people who can initiate an enqeury into marking practices at Karachi center. If they gave me such low marks although I had worked and lived in UK and USA for over a decade, I don't know how low they mark other deserving people.
I also had to repeat the IELTS test before EOR came, and got 9,8.5, 7.5 in writing and 7 in speaking.I strongly believe even these marks are too low.
I want to help other people who take IELTS at this center and is there any way you can advise to have this center checked.
Thanks
Kausar

[kainat]

It is a growing trend, these days, among individuals of various countries to learn about their family’s past and trace their lineage. In my opinion, it is beneficial for person to know about their ancestors for several reasons.
There are many motives for individuals to find out about their family’s tree. Firstly, it has several medical advantages. If individuals know about their predisposition to develop certain diseases and cancers, which are common amongst people of certain ethnic background, they can be diagnose and treated on time. For example, thalassemia is a blood disorder prevalent in some families of Mediterranean origin and South East Asians. Advancement in treatment and detection of breast cancer are also possible through genetic mapping and pattern of gene inheritance through generations. Secondly, rightful heirs receive their unclaimed properties as many people die without leaving a will for their assets. Finally, long lost relatives reunite with each other and people get chance to meet and help members of distant family.
It must be a gratifying experience to know about ones’ personal family records. It helps medically in detecting many diseases as well as treating them before it is too late. It also give self satisfaction and inner peace to individual to be aware of the fact from where they truly belong, it bring families closer and could even help financially by increasing value of person’s wealth.
In conclusion, there are many medical as well as social advantages for a person to spend time in tracing their family’s records.

[hellcha]

Hi,

This is my writing. Any feedback is welcomed

Recent decades have witnessed a significant increase in the economy worldwide and there has been a growing prevalence of studying the thorough background of a particular family in some regions of the world. One reason for this is because it could help the research on a society. Personally, I think this trend is bringing more negative impacts.

It is commonly known that families are the basic unit of a society and a nation. Therefore, studying a typical family could give some ideas about the historical, cultural and social context of a society, community and even a country. This could enhance the understanding of a country’s history. Moreover, it seems to be an obligation for researchers to learn about an influential ancestry of a nation. For example, scientists tend to conduct research on a monarch’s lineage because it is one major factor that shaped the nation before.

Despite some benefits, there are also several disadvantages of this trend. First, money should be spent on more alarming issues nationally and globally at the present. For instance, in some parts of the world, it is the most crucial to spend money on education, healthcare or entertainment. This raises the standard of living and overall welfare of people, contributing to making a better world. Furthermore, a country comprises of many types of family from a variety of classes and backgrounds. Thus, studying some stereotypical families will result in little knowledge.

To conclude, it is clear that some people prefer to spend their wealth on learning about their ancestors. However, to my way of thinking, the detriments outweigh the advantages

(265 words)

[Giang]

Nowadays, some people are increasingly interesting in tracing their roots. There are several reasons why they want to find out the history of their own family but in my opinion, this is a positive trend.
On the one hand, there are some reasons that motivate people to learn about their own history. Firstly, some people desire to know more about themselves, for example, the personality traits that they inherited from their ancestors, places that their ancient family members had lived and worked. Secondly, the development of Internet and a wide range of it searching tools make it easier to do a research in genealogy. There are even advertisements to encourage us in tracing family tree. Finally, out of curiosity, some persons start searching for informations of their family members who lived for a long time ago. They might secretly hope that they have a famous or wealthy ancestor.
In my opinion, studying family tree has positive impact. Beside other kinds of entertainment, this is a nice way to spend leisure time on discovery interesting things about our roots and talking to members of our family and friends. Furthermore, I believe it would be become a good way to teach children about history, for instance, the method that the earlier generations lived and worked. Those lessons would be more exciting and realistic to young children because they relate directly to them. And in certain opportunity we may find family members that have lost for a long time or even meet some distant relatives.
In conclusion, people may want to know about their ancestors for a range of reasons but for me it is a good tendency.

[Giang]

Nowadays, some people are increasingly interesting in tracing their roots. There are several reasons why they want to find out the history of their own family but in my opinion, this is a positive trend.

On the one hand, there are some reasons that motivate people to learn about their own history. Firstly, some people desire to know more about themselves, for example, the personality traits that they inherited from their ancestors, places that their ancient family members had lived and worked. Secondly, the development of Internet and a wide range of it searching tools make it easier to do a research in genealogy. There are even advertisements to encourage us in tracing family tree. Finally, out of curiosity, some persons start searching for informations of their family members who lived for a long time ago. They might secretly hope that they have a famous or wealthy ancestor.

In my opinion, studying family tree has positive impact. Beside other kinds of entertainment, this is a nice way to spend leisure time on discovery interesting things about our roots and talking to members of our family and friends. Furthermore, I believe it would be become a good way to teach children about history, for instance, the method that the earlier generations lived and worked. Those lessons would be more exciting and realistic to young children because they relate directly to them. And in certain opportunity we may find family members that have lost for a long time or even meet some distant relatives.

In conclusion, people may want to know about their ancestors for a range of reasons but for me it is a good tendency.

[ziaul huda]

Here is my response.
Today, it has become increasingly popular to trace the family cycle. People do investigate the past of their family just to know more about themselves and their ancestors, and in my view it is a positive development.
On the one hand, there are various different reasons for knowing one’s own family record. Firstly, people examine about the family tree just to be aware of their fore fathers. Where they came from? What did they do to earn their livings? Secondly, examining one’s roots helps us to get the proper treatment for various diseases. For example, if you are visiting a neuron surgeon and suspecting to be suffered from any neurological disorder, the doctor might ask you whether any family member had a history of migraine, vascular head and multiple sclerosis or not. Another reason to figure out the family account is that sometimes you may discover yourself the inheritor of some asset left by a deceased person.
In my view, it is undoubtedly a positive development for variety of reasons. It is a good topic to talk with friends and relatives, especially if we discover any well known ancestor. It is a good way to teach children history. How primitive generations lived? Researching family’s roots also helps find the missing family members and cut off relatives.
In conclusion, investigating family history provides information about the life style of ancestors, and it is believed that it is entirely a positive development.

[Lily]

Dear Simon
I did this question on my second attempt on 10 July, and I got 7 on writing part. It is a huge progress for me compared with 5.5 on my first attempt on 24 May. I just followed your instruction and studied sample essays given by you to prepare for the test during the period. I also followed your advice to find the keywords in reading practice and got 8 compared to 6.5 on the first attempt.
Thank you so much for sharing valuable techniques with us. Thank you so much for your contributions to help IELTS test takers. Wish all the best to you and your family.

[Hardin]

I got6.5 in writing I did spelling mistakes , is spelling mistakes effect ur scores , I am in dilemma I don't know how can I improve no doubt this site is very helpful but alas ! I miss by.5 in writing and speaking target of 7

[Hardin]

Hey I need ur valuable suggestions help I need 7 for my registration at any cost

[MIF]

Thank you so much for your useful advices
i got my targeted result

L 7.5, R 8 , W 7, S 7.5

[ttrung]

Nowadays, there are more and more people who want to discover about their ancestors or roots. In my opinion, I think that they have many honest reasons to know about their family tree, and it is a positive trend in many cases.
On the one hand, there are many different reasons to people who want to know about their family tree. Firstly, they want to research about themselves and their roots, where they come from, whether their ancestors had similar personality traits that they inherited from their ancestors, finding the places where their ancestors lived and worked. Secondly, the development of the Internet makes it is easier to do this research in genealogy, for example, they hear from others who have done it and often talked about the results of this research, this thing encourages their finding. Finally, they could hope that their ancestors might have famous or wealthy person that they might be proud of others.
In my opinion, researching about the history of a family is a positive thing. This is a fascinating hobby, we could spend free time to find our roots. It is a good talking story with friend and family if we could find particullarly interesting research. In addition that, this is a good way to teach children who is really good to know about their history, how earlier generations lived. Furthermore, we might even find some far relatives that we might have a chance to meet them.
In conslusion, it is necessary to research the history of own family, and this thing could bring many positive influences on our lives.

[ziaul huda]

I have re written my rsponse. need feed back, specially from Maha.
Today, exploring family history has become a fast growing and increasingly popular hobby. People do investigate the past of their family just to know more about themselves and to trace ancestor, and in my view it is a positive development.
On the one hand, there is range of reasons for figuring out one’s own family record. Firstly, people do research to trace ancestry, and find out where, when and how primitive generations lived, and where they came from. Thanks to the internet, examining family tree these days has become much easier. Secondly, examining one’s roots helps us to get the proper treatment for various diseases. For example, if you are visiting a neuron surgeon and suspecting to be suffered from any neurological disorder, the doctor can ask you whether any family member had a history of migraine, vascular head and multiple sclerosis or not. Another reason to carry out experimentation on the family cycle is that sometimes you may be discovered as one of the inheritor of some asset left by a deceased person.
In my view, it is undoubtedly a positive development for variety of reasons. It is a good topic to talk with friends and relatives, especially if we discover any well known ancestor. This is considered to be the best approach to teach children history. This makes students more knowledgeable and more caring towards the society where they grow up. Researching family’s roots also helps find the missing family members and cut off relatives with whom we want to live.
In conclusion, researching family history provide information about relatives as well as about yourself. For me, it is a purely positive development..

[gurpreet singh]

In some parts of the world it is becoming popular to research the history of one's own family. Why might people want to do this? Is it a positive or negative development?

Genealogy is a realm for the people from centuries though it was to savvy about the birth or existence of human. Recently, however, in certain of the countries it seems to be increasingly popular and in my opinion it is a positive evolution which is attributed to some general reasons.
For various reasons, people are interested more in family history or family tree. First and foremost is the inquisitiveness to know about themselves and their roots, origin and native place that their forefathers owned. For example, in Punjab (India) many people discover that where their family members were living before the bifurcation of 1947. The second reason is the internet which, makes easier to do this research, we hear about others who have done it and even the advertisements relating to this encourage us to do this. Besides this, it is not merely a curiosity; I think we might secretly hope that we have famous or wealthy ancestors and start to delve deeply into past generation’s life.
I think it is a fascinating hobby, nice way to spend leisure time and a good talking point with family and friends because one has to talk in family and with different people when searching for a particular ancestor. It is also a good way to keep the children attached with the bloodline and teach them that how past generations lived. We may even find a long lost relative. So, all in all, it would be a positive development.
In conclusion, the reasons to explore family history are different from person to person possibly that is why this phenomenon is getting enough popularity and in my view generally it proves appealing and pleasing trend.

[gurpreet singh]

gurpreet singh...
sir simon please check my essay ..how it seems...

[ziaul huda]

Hi,
Lilly
As you write to Simon that you did this task in your exam, and you got 7. Can you post your wtiting on this topic.

[abdullah]

Ziaul huda, I dont know wot Maha would have to say about your essay, but I liked your essay. It deserves a good score. :))

Gurpreet singh i liked your essay too!

Thanks for sharing your essays.

[ziaul huda]

HI,
Simon
You wrote an essay in Aprail 2014 on salary.
You wrote diagree type essay. It was Personally, i disagree, and you mentioned both sides.
Can I write the introduction in this waY?
When choosing a job, the salary is the most important consideration. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Now days, many people choose a career on the basis of the job offer. While I agree that salary is the key concern when choosing a job, I believe that other factors are equally important too.
Please answer.

[Ali]

Hi guys I took ielts on 19th July and waiting for result atm..I wrote essay pretty good (8 -8.5 band) for task 2 but i did worse in task 1(5 band)...so dont know how they assessing paper...i reckon task 2 much more important than task 1 so i m expecting 6.5 or 7...if anyone know about that pls reply me back..thanks

[maha]

HI ZIAUL HUDA, your essay is pretty good. You organised your paragraphs very well and coherently. You developed your ideas in detail. I have tried to correct the very few mistakes that I could clearly spot- as i m myself not an expert on that!
I have highlighted the corrections in CAPITALS.

I have re written my rsponse. need feed back, specially from Maha.
Today, exploring family history has become a fast growing and increasingly popular hobby. People do investigate the past of their family just( I M NOT SURE ABOUT THIS, BUT I WOULDN'T USE 'JUST') to know more about themselves and to trace (THEIR )ancestor(S), and in my view it is a positive development.
On the one hand, there is (A) range of reasons for figuring out one’s own family record. Firstly, people do research to trace ancestry, and find out where, when and how primitive generations lived, and where they came from. Thanks to the internet, examining family tree these days has become much easier. Secondly, examining one’s roots helps us to get the proper treatment for various diseases. For example, if you are visiting a neuron surgeon( NEUROSURGEON) and suspecting to be suffered/ SUFFERING from any neurological disorder, the doctor can ask you whether any family member had a history of migraine, vascular head/ VASCULAR HEADACHE and multiple sclerosis or not. Another reason to carry out experimentation on the family cycle is that sometimes you may be discovered as one of the inheritor(S) of some asset left by a deceased person.
In my view, it is undoubtedly a positive development for (A) variety of reasons. It is a good topic to talk with friends and relatives, especially if we discover any well known ancestor. This is considered to be the best approach to teach children history. This makes students more knowledgeable and more caring towards the society where they grow up. Researching family’s roots also helps find the missing family members and cut- off relatives with whom we want to live (WITH).
In conclusion, researching family history provide(S) information about relatives as well as about yourself. For me, it is a purely positive development..
PS. After reading lots of essays on this topic , it has intrigued me to join people carrying out this research. Hopefully, I would learn how to enjoy such a research.

[Skeet]

This is my essay

A Family is one of the natural masterpieces and an essential cell of every society. Genealogy reflects lifestyle of our ancestors and group belonging. The main idea of these researches is providing people with curiosity facts about their social origin. Some skeptics consider this activity as waste of time, but the advocates recon, that it can change an attitude towards your life.

History helps to build bridges between ancient and present times, moreover this is a cognitive activity. There are a rich variety of reasons for searching for family roots. Some people are interested in this pastime out of curiosity, and this is their hobby. Perhaps, they secretly hope that they have famous or wealthy ancestors. Moreover, making investigations allows to spend quality time with family members and to educate children. For the others, this occupation is walk of life. Surfing the Internet, users may stumble on an irritating advertisement that offer their service to find long-lost or distant relatives. From my point of view, such agencies present people lost chance on reunification. Also, there are many rich people who find an eminent forefather to raise their social status among high society.

In addition, one more positive aspect of history is broadening outlook, because looking for information makes a brain promote logical thinking and other mental skills.

In a nutshell, the modern world has gotten stuck in material values and forgotten about true sense of existence, in my opinion doing such discoveries would help people to be closer and on the same wave.

[Lili]

Dear Simon, thank you very much for your useful website and daily lessons. I followed your technique advice and ideas and I got L9, R9, W7.5, S7.5. Thank you very much.

[ding dong]

How about this essay
Searching for Family history is a hotly debated issue these days. People do it for various reasons.Although, I do not agree with those who think it is a negative trend, I would have to support them to some extent.

On the first hand, firstly,some people think it can be useful in order for them to socialise. They can make some good friends.
Secondly, it can be very useful to know if one finds out about some important ancestor , for example a wealthy or famous person in his lineage. Last but not least, people do it to know about the medical and genetic history of their family, because it can help some people, if they go to a neurologist for example in order to detect some neurological problems, such as various headaches.

On the second hand, some negative minded people think that it is a waste of time,as they place more importance on worldly accumulations. They think that they should be more concerned about creating fortunes as going up the social ladder is the only objective that we should long for. They argue that we should only utilize our time to improve our academic qualifications, as it can help us to earn a great deal of wealth, which is the hallmark of a true success in a person's life. They also suggest,and I agree with them that the people who become our friends by listening to our tales, they are more like spectators. True friends do not need any tales.Friends that we win by some kind of show off, are mere shallow minded people , and it is better to be alone than accompanied by such people.
In the end I would suggest it is a positive trend in many ways , but its worth to consider just few points made by the opponents.

[ziaul huda]

I have tried to write another essay based on the main ideas taken from Simon;s essay.
When choosing a job, the salary is the most important consideration. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
These days, many people choose their career on the basis of job offer they receive. While I agree with the idea that money is the key concern when choosing a profession, I believe that other factors are equally important too.
On the one hand, money is required for population in order to meet their everyday expenditure. For example, everyone need money to pay for food, housing, utility bills, health care and education. They prioritize the money because it will allow them to afford at least a good hose, and to have a better life style. If people choose their career based on the interest, pleasure, and non-funding factors, they might fail to support themselves. There is a good illustration of poets and street singers who stay in these jobs just because they are admired of it. Thus, it can be concluded from this example that money need to be taken into consideration.
On the other hand, there is a range of reasons other than money that are extremely important in choosing a career. Firstly, Relationship in work place is a considerable factor. For example, a younger brother of mine is working as an electrical engineer in a software company. He is having very friendly relations with Commanding Officer and his colleagues, and this makes the working atmosphere harmonious and relieves the work stress at a greater extant. Secondly, many people give priority to job satisfaction that come from personal arduous effort. Finally, some individuals choose a work because they want to help needy people in social context.
In conclusion, while salary has been a key concept in selecting a job, I believe that money does not outweigh the other upside opportunities.

[D. Margaret Sophy]

Dear Sir, I did around 10 times in Ielts academic reading, all of the 10 times i got 6.5. i do no what is my problem. please guide and suggest me how i can get 7 band. Even i was so confident that i will get 7 in my exam but i cant, but atlast i get only 6.5. please help me to improve and how to improve. awaiting for your comments

[sami]

there are several reasons why people want to equiped with the knowledge of their history. Firstly , people might have a curiosity to get to know from where they have come from, or whether they have identical personality traits to their ancestors or not. in particular , when someone bears a resemblance to passed people in a family potrait. Secondly, most people secretely hope of having ancestor who made any achievment such as a medal or a victory. As a result, it will instill a pride in them by relating to those famous personalities. it would be a great contentment in such people by showing off their rich ancestors. Finally, some may want to preserve their traditional values through studying their histories. for example, some familiea may contributed in producing imformative thing fot example a family recipie book.

[Ben]

Dear Mr Simon and peers,

I need to score 7 in the writing test in Ielts, can anyone suggest on my essay.

Thank you for your time.

Regards,

Ben

Nowadays, people are increasingly interested in the history of their families. Personally, I believe that this is a positive development.

There are several reasons to account for this trend. Firstly, everyone probably would like to know where he comes from, and what his ancestors did in the past. We now have sufficient resources such as technology and money allowing us to make the family history research possible. For example, we can trace where our ancestors migrant from through the genes project. Secondly, we want to learn ourselves and our family more. We all inherited some customs and culture from the family such as the way of speaking and interests in a particular kind of food or activity. Tracing family history can help us understand how these have been developed. Finally, the history of family sometimes can enlighten and encourage the present generation.

For a variety of reasons, the society would benefit from these family history studies. A good example would be study of American African’s family roots, which has been conducted by an American TV programme. It has revealed the life and destination of that particular population in that history period. Without this study, some facts would not be known by the public for ever. At the same time, family history research also helps the study of certain diseases. Some diseases such as cancer or inabilities are inherited from previous generations. The root study helps researchers to better understand these diseases and develop the relevant medicines.

In conclusion, people have the motivations to understand their family backgrounds these days, and I believe that this trend would have positive effects to society culturally and economically.

(274 words)

[khushbakht]

ielts.english9 is my I'd if some one want to practice with me, add me on Skype for practice

[Hui]

Hi Simon,
Could you please revise my writing? Thank you a lot.

Recently, it is popular for some people to chase their family history. They study the origin, the culture, the activities of their family and so on. Even though people have different purposes in doing so, I consider it a fascinating experience.

There are various reasons for those people engaging in the research. Some of them do it just for fun. They think it interesting to know who are their ancestors, where they are from or what they have achieved. They enjoy the process of searching material and hope to get surprise findings during the study. Some people, by contrast, do it for practical purposes. By learning the family history, they might know many more relatives and friends, which can expand their personal network. They can seek help from those people if necessary, or they can promote their business. For example, an insurance agent can benefit from doing this kind of work.

In general, I cannot see any negative development for people doing this work. People may know more about their own culture and others proving that their seniors are from other regions. It is a good source for educating younger generations. Furthermore, people can recognize the success and failure stories from their ancestors. They can expand the horizons and then make better choices for their life. For the societies, it might promote the communication among different regions, and perhaps can stimulate the economy and culture development.

In conclusion, there are kinds of reasons for people to study their own family history. It is benefit for not only the individuals and the societies.

[Sunny]

Hi Simon
My name is Sunny. I took the ielts test thrice and got R 8.5, L 8.5, S 8.5 and W 7.0 in the last GT IELTS Exam. I wish to get 8 in writing as well. Kindly guide and help me get the desired score.
Thanks.
Sunny