WRITING TASK 2 SAMPLE FOR IELTS GENERAL TRAINING


We already had two writings checked and corrected. Now it's time to try writing Task 2 of the IELTS test. Look at this topic below.
Wealth does not necessarily guaranty happiness.
To what extent do you agree with this statement?
Provide reasons for your answer. Include relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience and write at least 250 words.

First of all, remember that you have to include five points mentioned below:

1. Overview, consists of orientation derived from paraphrasing the original title

For example:

Being rich doesn't necessarily make someone live a happy life. Happiness can be defined by other things that are not related to wordly possession. But wealth is one factor that affects other definitions of happiness, especially when the world is becoming more and more materialistic.

2. State your basis of argument, in which you have to answer the answer regarding the exteng of your agreement or disagreement with proposed idea

For example:
I personally agree that being wealthy can support our life in various aspects and hence makes us happy.
3. Give balanced argument, arguments of those confronting your your belief. Give examples and explanations why some people take this stance. This needs to be a whole paragraph so make sure you provide both topic sentence, supporting sentences, and concluding sentences

For example:
Some people argue that more and more rich people now become insecure with their properties. The first and most scariest thing for most wealthy people is tax. Huge amount of spending on tax haunts them bacause it potentially harms them financially. Rich people are also afraid of their safety, they really have problems securing their belonging so that thieves, robbers, or looters do not lay hand on them. Consequently, rich people will always have to bother dividing their wealth in cash, deposit, or any other kind of saving and this really sometimes distract them from other happiness such as spending time with family, or socializing with other people.

Note: You need to add a connecting sentence that contrasts your idea and the opposite ideas (balanced argument). This also makes your writing more coherence.

For example:
However, all these negative sides of being rich are compensated because rich people have their live insured.

4. Explain your argument. This is where you explain your stance so give profound explanations by providing reason and example. This point also has to be a whole paragraph so make sure you provide both topic sentence, supporting sentences, and concluding sentences

For example:
They have health insurance, and this is one thing that can be enjoyed throughout their life. Rich people are also well accepted by the general population, and sometimes they even influence the society with their role, leadership, and fame. One thing that can only be enjoyed by the rich is education, either for themselves or for their kids. While the poor are struggling really hard just to pay the mortgage or even sell their belongings just to pay their son's and daughter's student loan, rich people are able to sleep over it for they have more than enough money for tuition and world wide networking to get their accepted in most prestigious college and schools.

5. Give conclusion and solution if possible. Make a sentence that depicts your ideas thoroughly. Remember! You are not supposed to introduce any other ideas at this point. It has to be the end of writing and everything is supposed to be settled already.

For example:
It can be concluded that being a wealthy person is good as long as there is a balance between material happiness and other happiness such as life satisfaction, family, social engagement, and chance to enjoy other little things in life.

Another Note on the template:
You have to master all the points above. If you don't, please refer to the previous, more complete and more comprehensive by tapping this link below


You can also take a look at previous example of writing task 2 by tapping this link:



When combined, those building blocks will look pretty much this way:

Being rich doesn't necessarily make someone live a happy life. Happiness can be defined by other things that are not related to wordly possession. But wealth is one factor that affects other definitions of happiness, especially when the world is becoming more and more materialistic. I personally agree that being wealthy can support our life in various aspects and hence makes us happy.
Some people argue that more and more rich people now become insecure with their properties. The first and most scariest thing for most wealthy people is tax. Huge amount of spending on tax haunts them bacause it potentially harms them financially. Rich people are also afraid of their safety, they really have problems securing their belonging so that thieves, robbers, or looters do not lay hand on them. Consequently, rich people will always have to bother dividing their wealth in cash, deposit, or any other kind of saving and this really sometimes distract them from other happiness such as spending time with family, or socializing with other people.
However, all these negative sides of being rich are compensated because rich people have their live insured. They have health insurance, and this is one thing that can be enjoyed throughout their life. Rich people are also well accepted by the general population, and sometimes they even influence the society with their role, leadership, and fame. One thing that can only be enjoyed by the rich is education, either for themselves or for their kids. While the poor are struggling really hard just to pay the mortgage or even sell their belongings just to pay their son's and daughter's student loan, rich people are able to sleep over it for they have more than enough money for tuition and world wide networking to get their accepted in most prestigious college and schools.
It can be concluded that being a wealthy person is good as long as there is a balance between material happiness and other happiness such as life satisfaction, family, social engagement, and chance to enjoy other little things in life.

Note:
The biggest challenge of this writing is the topic itself in which the discussion is a little bit abstract. What I mean by abstract is, the fact that happiness is a concept and not a tangible thing. The good things is, the fact that people have different definition of happiness and this gives the chance to explore your ideas better. People in general also have different standard of how happy their life is so it will not be too difficult when writing the balanced argument in point number 3.

Note: Strategies used to cope with abstract topic:
1. Use your imagination
Pretend that you are a rich person, what is the first and the biggest problem you will ever face in your life?

2. Provide examples
Just in case you find trouble applying the first strategy, give a real example of what happens around you. Examples from real life experiences help you to look for more concrete explanation, rather than trying to grab the idea by using imaginative approach.

After reading the material, give it a try by doing an exercise, and evaluating your work, now let's try another 'abstract' and 'controversial' topic.Take a look at this topic:

Some people argue that it is better to educate boys and girls in separate schools. Meanwhile, others believe that boys and girls benefit more from attending mixed schools.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Give reason and any relevant examples from your own knowledge and experience where possible
Write at least 250 words.

KESALAHAN YANG SERING DILAKUKAN SAAT TES LISTENING TOEFL


Halo good people. Hari ini kita akan kembali membahas tips pengerjaan soal TOEFL. TOEFL adalah tes yang menguji seluruh kemampuan bahasa kita, dan Listening adalah salah satunya. Listening sendiri memiliki proporsi poin yang paling tinggi jika dibandingkan dengan Reading maupun Structure. Perbandingan skor Listening, Structure, dan Reading dapat dijelaskan sebagai berikut:




Jika dilihat dari tabel konversi tersebut, untuk setiap satu jawaban benar sobat akan mendapatkan 25 poin di Listening, 22 poin di Reading, dan hanya 20 poin di Structure. Jadi, dapat disimulkan bahwa sobat harus memaksimalkan Listening Section untuk mencapai skor yang tinggi di tes TOEFL.
Pun demikian, banyak sekali kesalahan yang masih dilakukan oleh sebagian test takers. Demikian penjelasan mengenai kesalahan apa saja yang sering terjadi dan bagaimana mengatasinya:

Kesalahan Mendasar

1. Tidak mencoba memprediksi jawaban
Sebelum pergantian dari soal nomor sekian dan soal nomor selanjutnya. Ada jeda beberapa detik yang dapat digunakan untuk memprediksi jawaban secara gramatikal maupun kontekstual. Namun, sebagian orang tidak melakukan langkah prediksi ini dan hanya mengandalkan kemampuan mendengarkan secara real time, padahal tidak semua soal akan bersifat literal dan jawabannya dapat ditemukan secara gamblang hanya dengan mendengarkan saja. Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:

Audio is yet to start....
a. She said some terrible things
b. She didn't say anything nice
c. She didn't have any nice things
d. She said really wonderful things

Dari keempat pilihan jawaban tersebut, sobat bisa melakukan prediksi kontekstual dengan mengeliminasi dua pilihan yang memiliki 'sense' yang sama, positif atau negatif. Jawaban a dan b sama-sama memiliki sense negatif (tidak mengatakan sesuatu yang baik) dan kemungkinan besar salah (salah karena tidak mungkina ada dua jawaban sekaligus untuk satu pertanyaan) sehingga dapat langsung dieliminasi.
a. She said some terrible things
b. She didn't say anything nice
c. She didn't have any nice things
d. She said really wonderful things

Sekarang sobat tidak harus berkonsentrasi pada semua jawaban dan cukup fokus di dua jawaban terakhir. Audio untuk pertanyaan ini berbunyi:

Woman: Did Sally say something about the job I did?
Man: She couldn't have said nicer thing
Narrator: What does the man mean?

Ini adalah tipe soal negative with comparison dan jawabannya biasanya adalah pernyataan positif. She couldn't have said nicer things means "she cannot say anything nicer than what she said, simply because what she said was already nice".
Jawaban untuk pertanyaan ini adalah d. She said really wonderful things

2. Mengira listening hanya menguji kemamuan mendengar
Listening di TOEFL bukan hanya tentang mendengar dan menjawab pertanyaan. Anda juga harus membuat asumsi dari perkataan speaker dan mencoba untuk menemukan jawaban yang cukup logis (terutama pada pernyataan yang tidak ''straightforward''). Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:
Man: I need to grab my bag
Woman: You better be quick. Take five minutes more and you will miss the bus.
Narrator: What does the woman mean?

a. The man should hurry
b. The man has missed the bus
c. The bus has departed
d. The man should wait for five minutes

Jika melihat dari statement "...you will miss the bus", dapat diasumsikan bahwa sebenarnya si laki-laki belum terlambat, namun juga tidak memiliki banyak waktu karena bis nya akan segera berangkat. Pilihan b dan c tidak sesuai dengan asumsi diatas sehingga dapat langsung dieliminasi.

a. The man should hurry
b. The man has missed the bus
c. The bus has departed
d. The man should wait for five minutes

Jawaban untuk soal ini adalah c, karena asumsi awal tadi mengatakan he better make it quick, atau dengan kata lain the man should hurry.
3. Membiarkan ada jawaban yang kosong tidak terisi
Perlu diketahui bahwa jika sobat menjawab sebuah soal TOEFL dan jawabannya salah, maka poinnya adalah nol. Begitu juga ketika sobat memilih untuk tidak menjawab soal tersebut, maka poinnya juga nol. Lebih baik isi semua jawaban, siapa tau memang benar. Gambling dengan kans 1 banding 4 masih lebih baik daripada membiarkan jawaban kosong sama sekali.

Kesalahan Strategi

Tidak menerapkan strategi pengerjaan Listening yang banyak dijelaskan di buku materi
Ada beberapa strategi yang dijelaskan di banyak buku materi, dan akan sangat membantu dalam pengerjaan Listening karena dengan menguasa strategi ini, sobat tidak saja mengandalkan kemampuan mendengar. Beberapa yang sering dijelaskan diantaranya adalah:

1. Focus on the last line
Untuk setiap pertanyaan di Listening Section, sebuah jawaban kemungkinan besar akan berada di pernyataan pembicara kedua. Fokus lah pada pernyataan second speaker karena sobat akan menemukan jawaban disini. Perhatikan contoh berikut:

Man: I need to find a typist to type my essay
Woman: Why not do it yourself?
Narrator: What does the woman mean?

Seperti yang sobat lihat, jawaban untuk pertanyaan ini mengacu pada apa yang dikatakan oleh si wanita sebagai pembicara kedua.

2. Avoid Similar Sounds
Yang dimaksud disini adalah suara yang terdengar sama di pilihan jawaban. Bagi sebagian besar test takers, pilihan dengan suara yang mirip dianggap sebagai pilihan yang paling benar. Contoh, ketika audio menyebutkan kata "flight", test takers akan cenderung mengasosiasikan suara yang sama ini dengan jawaban yang benar karena mereka mengira suara itu lah yang paling relevan dengan soal. Perlu diketahui bahwa pilihan dengan suara yang terdengar sama di audio dan di pilihan jawaban kemungkinan besar adalah pilihan yang salah. Pilih jawaban yang terdengar paling berbeda dengan terlebih dahulu memahami inti dari percakapan. Jadi jika ada pilihan jawaban yang terdengar mirip, bisa langsung dieliminasi saja. Berikut ini contohnya:
a. Few minutes ago, the flight departed
b. The fight will start in a while
c. They are frightened about the departure
d. The plane is going to take off soon

3. Choose answers with synonyms
Selalu pilih jawaban yang merupakan sinonim maupun parafrase dari sebuah kata. Misal, dalam soal yang disebutkan di poin ke-2 diatas, pilihan yang harusnya dipilih adalah pilihan yang mengandung sinonim/parafrase dari kata "depart" yakni "take off". Percakapannya kurang lebih seperti ini:
Man: I'm tired of just sitting here
Woman: Relax, I'm sure that the plane will depart within a few minutes
Narrator: What does the woman mean?

a. Few minutes ago, the flight departed
b. The fight will start in a while
c. They are frightened about the departure
d. The plane is going to take off soon

4. Draw conclusion about who, what, and where
Untuk menemukan jawaban yang tepat bagi sebuah pertanyaan di listening section, test takers harus mendapatkan informasi yang memadai tentang siapa yang berbicara, dimana pembicaraan tersebut berlangsung, dan apa yang sedang dibicarakan. Perhatikan contoh berikut:
Woman: I took a day off and I'd like to turn in several homework and a quiz that I missed yesterday.
Man: Yes, but I need to check your permission letter in the academic office
Narrator: Who is the man?
a. A police officer
b. A teacher
c. A newspaper editor
d. A student
Dapat disimpulkan bahwa percakapan tersebut adalah percakapan antara seorang murid dan seorang guru. Seorang murid ingin mengumpulkan tugas dan kuis karena kemarin izin sakit. Namun sang guru harus mengecek surat ijin di kantor akademik terlebih dahulu. Jawaban yang paling tepat adalah b. A teacher.

5. Listening to negative expressions

Negative expression ini sangat menjebak sehingga test takers harus sangat berhati-hati dalam berasumsi dan membuat kesimpulan. Menjebak disini lebih kepada pemaknaan negative expression itu sendiri, dimana sesuatu yang diungkapkan dengan nada negative, belum tentu memiliki sense negatif. Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:

Woman: How could you manage to get here only in two hours?

Man: We know our way around the city and we didn't drive slowly
Narrator: What does the man mean?
a. They can't find a way to turn around
b. They drove rather quickly
c. They decided to go around the city
d. They didn't drive to the city

Jika sobat perhatikan, kata "didn't" yang ber-sense negatif di soal tersebut berubah maknanya menjadi kata ber-sense positif drove rather quicklyIni adalah contoh negative expression yang tidak dapat dipahami hanya dengan menggunakan patokan bentuk negatifnya saja, namun harus dipahami secara menyeluruh.


6. Listen to double negative expressions

Ini adalah contoh lain dari penggunaan kalimat negatif, dimana ada dua bentuk negatif yang justru membuat sebuah kalimat menjadi kalimat yang memiliki sense positif. Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:
Man: I'm not really confident with my test result and I don't think I'll make it to the next stage
Woman: You should never say impossible
Narrator: What does the woman mean?
a. He shouldn't take the test
b. The test was impossible
c. The test is on the next stage
d. Everything is possible

Dari percakapan diatas, dapat dilihat bahwa ada dua bentuk negative yakni

Woman: You should never say impossible
dan karenanya, pilihan yang paling tepat adalah pilihan yang mengandung sense positif. Jawaban a dan b bisa langsung dieliminasi karena ber-sense negatif.
a. He shouldn't take the test
b. The test was impossible
c. The test is on the next stage
d. Everything is possible

Karena jawaban c tidak diterangkan di pembicaraan, maka pilihan yang paling tepat adalah pilihan d. Everything is possible yang memiliki sense positif.


7. Listening to almost negative expression

Yang dimaksud almost negative disini adalah suatu keadaan dimana suatu pernyataan masih memiliki sense positif namun hanya selangkah saja menuju negatif. Almost negative biasanya menggunakan kata-kata seperti hardly (hampir tidak), scarcely (hampir tidak ada), barely (hampir tidak), dan sebagainya. Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:
Woman: The calculus exam was so difficult, don't you think?
Man: I could hardly figure out the answers
Narrator: What does the man mean?
a. The man could not do the exam
b. The exam was impossible to do
c. He only answered few questions
d. Exam was not the problem

Jika dilihat dari contoh diatas, maka dapat disimpulkan bahwa kita harus memilih jawaban yang berada diantara positif dan negatif sense. Ada dua pilihan yang memiliki sense negatif dan karenanya dapat dieliminasi

a. The man could not do the exam
b. The exam was impossible to do
c. He only answered few questions
d. Exam was not the problem

Jawaban bagi pertanyaan ini adalah c, dimana the man sebenarnya menjawab beberapa pertanyaan (sense positif), namun ada lebih banyak pertanyaan yang tidak terjawab (sense negatif).


7. Listening to negative with comparatives

Kalimat ini biasanya membandingkan sesuatu dengan menggunakan statement ber-sense negatif. Jawaban yang dibutuhkan adalah statement dengan sense positif. Perhatikan contoh berikut:

Man: Sarah is a prodigy in math, isn't she?

Woman: Yes, no one is more intelligent than her.
Narrator: What does the woman mean?
a. Sarah is smart
b. Sarah is not more intelligent than any other students
c. Sarah does not like math
d. The students are more intelligent

Dari pilihan diatas, silahkan eliminasi kalimat ber-sense negatif.

a. Sarah is smart
b. Sarah is not more intelligent than any other students
c. Sarah does not like math
d. The students are more intelligent

Tersisa dua jawaban setelah proses eliminasi, yakni antara jawaban a dan d yang sama-sama memiliki sense positif. Meski demikian, kita dapat menyimpulkan bahwa jawaban a adalah yang paling sesuai dengan isi percakapan di audio. Jawaban bagi pertanyaan ini adalah a. Sarah is smart.


8. Listening to Expression of Agreement

Yang dimaksud disini adalah ketika pembicara kedua setuju dengan statement pembicara pertama. Perhatikan bahwa jawaban dari statement pembicara pertama tidak akan diartikan secara literal, sehingga ada beberapa variasi jawaban yang mungkin muncul dan mungkin sobat perlu mengingatnya. Banyak sekali cara untuk mengungkapkan persetujuan seperti.


  • So am, So do I (untuk statement positif), Neither do I dan I don't [...] either (untuk statement negative)
  • isn't it?
  • I'll say
  • You can say that again
  • Me too
Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:
Woman: The traffic is terrible out there
Man: You can say that again
Narrator: What does the man mean?
a. The man wants the woman to repeat what she says
b. The woman shouldn't say anything
c. There's nothing to say about the traffic
d. He agrees with the woman

Dari keterangan diatas, dapat kita simpulkan bahwa jawaban paling tepat untuk pertanyaan ini adalah d. He agrees with the woman.

9. Listening to uncertainty and suggestions
a. Listening to uncertainty
Disini, sobat akan mendengar bagaimana pembicara kedua menyatakan ketidakyakinan kepada pembicara pertama. Ada beberapa expression yang biasanya umum digunakan seperti:
  • "think", for example: I think we'll have to exam tomorrow
  • "might", for example: We might have visitors
  • "isn't it", for example: The price is affordable, isn't it?
  • As far as I know
  • As far as I can tell, dsb.
Perhatikan contoh dibawah ini:
Woman: When is the due date of the paper?
Man: I think it's due next week
Narrator: What does the man mean?
a. He will submit the paper soon
b. The paper is not submitted
c. He needs to change the due date
d. The paper should be turned in next week

Dari soal diatas, pembicara kedua mengatakan bahwa paper seharusnya dikumpulkan minggu depan. Jawaban yang paling tepat adalah d. The paper should be turned in next week.
b. Listening to Suggestion
Disini, pembicara kedua akan memberikan saran kepada pembicara pertama yang biasanya diungkapkan dengan:
  • You better..., seperti pada You better clean the room before mother gets home
  • I suggest...seperti pada I suggest you to take this course instead
  • why not...seperti pada why not find other place to stay?
Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:
Man: I couldn't stand living in that small apartment
Woman: Why not rent a bigger house?
Narrator: What does the woman mean?

a. The apartment is better than a house
b. The man should find her apartment
c. It's hard to find his house
d. The man should try to find another place to stay

Jawaban yang paling sesuai dengan saran pembicara kedua dan karenanya tepat untuk pertanyaan tersebut adalah d. The man should try to find another place to stay

10. Listening to emphatic expression of surprise
Emphatic expression digunakan untuk mengutarakan keterkejutan. Ketika seorang pembicara menggunakan emphatic expression, sebenarnya dia does not expect something to be true. Untuk pembagiannya dapat dilihat di tabel berikut ini:



Jawaban untuk pertanyaan ini selalu merupakan kebalikan dari dugaan awal pembicara kedua. Perhatikan contoh berikut:

Man: I can't go with you on Saturday, I have to go to the tennis court
Woman: So you do play tennis?
Narrator: What does the woman mean?
a. The man is a pro tennis player
b. She wants to play tennis
c. The man shouldn't do tennis
d. The man does not play tennis

Jawaban yang tepat adalah jawaban yang merupakan kebalikan dari pernyataan pembicara pertama yaitu pilihan d. The man does not play tennis.

11. Listening to wishes
Disini sobat akan dihadapkan pada ungkapan mengenai harapan yang tidak benar-benar terjadi. Perhatikan tabel berikut:



Soal seperti ini membutuhkan jawaban yang bertolak belakang dengan apa yang dikatakan oleh pembicara kedua, karena memang hanya merupakan sebuah perandaian. Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:

Woman: When will you do your room?
Man: I wish I didn't have to do my room
Narrator: What does the man mean?
a. He has to clean the room
b. The woman should do the room
c. He asks the woman to go to the room
d. She doesn't know where the room is

Jawaban yang paling tepat adalah yang merupakan kebalikan dari harapan si laki-laki yakni pilihan a. He has to clean the room

12. Listening to phrasal verb
Phrasal verb adalah verb yang memiliki dua kata namun dihitung sebagai sebuah kata yang sama, biasanya terdiri dari sebuah verb dan sebuah preposition dan sifatnya sedikit idiomatic.
Beberapa contoh phrasal verb diantaranya:
look after=merawat
call off=membatalkan
dan sebagainya.

Perhatikan contoh berikut ini:
Woman: What took you so long to come here?
Man: I ran into my cousin at the bar
Narrator: What does the man mean?
a. He ran with his cousin at the bar
b. He was ran over by someone at the bar
c. He has to run
d. He unexpectedly met one of his relatives

Jawaban yang paling tepat adalah d. He unexpectedly met one of his relatives, dan run into sendiri artinya adalah "secara tidak sengaja bertemu".

13. Listening to idioms
Idiom adalah penggunaan bahasa yang sangat identik dengan kebudayaan tertentu. Penggunaan idiom adalah arbitrary dimana tidak ada aturan khusus yang menentukan penggunaannya, namun lebih ditentukan oleh bagaimana sebuah pernyataan digunakan oleh seorang penutur asli. Perhatikan contoh berikut:

Man: You seem to have some troubles fixing the car
Woman: Oh, it's as easy as pie
Narrator: What does the woman mean?
a. She wants to have some pie
b. She needs some pie to fix the car
c. The car was not so hard to fix
d. The woman shouldn't use the car

Dari arti as easy as pie yaitu "something that can be done very easily", kita dapat menyimpulkan bahwa jawaban yang paling tepat untuk pertanyaan ini adalah c. The car was not so hard to fix.

Demikian beberapa jenis soal listening yang selalu muncul di tes TOEFL serta cara pengerjaannya. Semoga bermanfaat.

-Ross