IELTS Opinion Essay

 

What is an opinion essay?

An opinion essay is an essay where the writer forms an opinion about a topic, often in the form of an answer to a question, and uses factual and anecdotal evidence to support that opinion. The purpose of this essay type is to elicit your opinion on particular topics and issues. An opinion essay is basically a formal piece of writing. In this, you are required to express your viewpoints along with good arguments and justified reasons.

You can express your opinion in the fowling ways: 

,In my opinion,

Personally, I think/ I believe (that)

I strongly believe that….

It is clear (to me) that

I (completely) agree/disagree with …

It seems to me that…

As I see it, …

In my view, ...

From my point of view, …

As far I am concerned, ...

I am sure/ convinced that………..

I (dis)agree with the statement, because …

Structure

1) Introduction
Paraphrase the question

Give your opinion

State two supporting reasons

2) Main body paragraph 1

Topic sentence – outline 1st reason for supporting this view

Explanation – explain this idea

Example – give an example or expand the idea

3) Main body paragraph 2
Topic sentence – outline 2nd reason for supporting this view

Explanation – explain this idea

Example – give an example or expand the idea

4) Conclusion
Summarise opinion and key reasons

Sample 1

In some countries, an increasing number of people are suffering from health problems as a result of eating too much fast food.
It is, therefore, necessary for governments to impose a higher tax on this kind of food.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?
You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and relevant evidence.

In many nations, there are a number of people who are facing issues related to their health because they eat junk food daily. Thus, governments should levy a high tariff on food fast items. This essay agrees with this statement because a higher cost can result in lower consumption of fast food and extra taxes collected can be used to treat sick people.

Firstly, a higher tax on fast food eatables will make these items costly, and it would not be feasible for many people to afford this kind of food. This will result in many people deter to eat junk food on a daily basis and lower consumption of this kind of food. For example, a recent study by Cambridge University found that if prices of fast-food items increased by 10% of their current value, nearly 30% of people will stop eating junk food regularly.

Secondly, many people are suffering from health-related issues such as obesity, immune system and so on due to eating fast food, this will put a financial strain on the healthcare system. Money collected by imposing higher taxes can be used to treat sick people. This will lessen the financial burden on the annual budget spent on the healthcare system. To illustrate, in Britain, the authorities have imposed 12% more tax on junk food, and higher prices of this kind of food resulted in lower consumption of fast food.

In conclusion, higher taxes on fast-food items is required to reduce its consumption because it will make this kind of food costly and funds collected from taxes can be used to treat sick people. ( 269 words)

Sample 2

Most artists earn low salaries and should therefore receive funding from the government in order for them to continue with their work

TO WHAT EXTENT DO YOU AGREE?

It often said that the income of almost artists is relatively low. Thus, they should be given funding from government to maintain their work. From my perspective I completely agree with this point of view for the following reasons.

Nowadays many gifted artists are facing financial strain and wondering whether they should follow their enthusiasm in art or doing something else to make out money. Funding for artists is a best solution for them to clear their way and work on art continuously. Doing this means artists no longer have to work on two more extra jobs to cover their personal expense. Working regardless of money must give them a fresh mind that could produce fascinating and creative concepts that could be priceless.

Another good point to support artists is that it will benefit society in long run. Talented artists would create a work of historical or cultural art which are used as an educational resource that help people to approach them effectively. Moreover, utilizing art is the most effective way to maintain history and culture of a country which every country is trying to reserve. In addition, art galleries are the epitome of artists' production that attract enormous tourists around the world every year generating a considerable revenue in return. Obviously, it boosts national tourism industry.

In conclusion, even though funding for artist takes a part government's budget away but it definitely is worthy. It not only gives artists a huge support to build their career but benefit the country itself. (252 words)

Sample 3

Some people believe that violence on television and in computer games has a damaging effect on the society. Others deny that these factors have any significant influence on people's behaviour. What is your opinion?

Choose your opinion & generate arguments

These days, the amount of violence in media is growing. While some people argue that this trend will undoubtedly lead humans to dangerous future, others claim that it has no damaging effect on the society. I believe that in most cases media violence doesn't affect people's behavior.

Firstly, I think that people act from their motives, regardless what they see on the television. That is to say, if someone intends to do harm to somebody, that is not because of watching TV or playing computer games, but due to that person's character and education. Although it is generally considered that violent media accustoms viewers to cruelty, I doubt this opinion. In my view, reasonable and intelligent people treat others humanely irrespective of what they see or hear in fictional stories.

Moreover, video games and television may even reduce social violence by providing a safe outlet for aggressiveness. In other words, truculent people may fight in virtual reality instead of evincing their combative spirit in real world. This may not only help those people, but also reduce the level of social violence in long-term perspective.

Finally, despite many claims and assumptions about negative effects of television and computer games I have never seen any proven connection between violent media and illegal activities in social life.

Taking everything into consideration, I would say that violence in contemporary media has no substantial influence on people's behavior. Television and computers are not the main factors that shape personal character, and they can even be useful in reducing the level of violence. (257 words

Sample 4

In the future, it seems more difficult to live on Earth. Some people think more money should be spent on researching other planet to live on, such as Mars. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? OR

In the future it may be necessary for us to live on other planets. For this reason, some people believe that we should spend money now to research other planets, such as Mars. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Some people argue that living on earth is becoming more and more difficult. Therefore, we have to research for another planet to live. In my opinion, although I believe that it will be hard to live on earth in the future, the searching for the new planet is not necessary.

On the one hand, there are mainly two reasons why life on earth will be unsustainable. One obvious problem is that the rising level of pollution in the land and the ocean which leads to the disproportionate number of the population in these areas. For example, with the polluted ocean, there will be no fish to catch. As a result, fishermen and people who live near the beach will have to move to other areas to survive. Another factor is the overconsumption of natural resources. When the fossil fuels such as oil and coal are exploited to meet the mass demand for energy, they will quickly run out. Unfortunately, it takes ages for these resources to recover

On the other hand, I believe that discovering the new planet is a waste of money. There are various urgent problems which directly affect people's lives that we should consider. One of which is to improve the advances of technology in farming and therefore to reduce the risk of famine. Furthermore, people still have enough time to save the earth, by replacing fossil fuels with environmental-friendly and renewable energy such as wind or solar power, we will reduce the rate of global warming. Take Rex hotel as a simple example; they are now using trucks with the oil made from corns to minimize the number of emissions.

In conclusion, although it is getting harder and harder to live on the earth, I still believe that there are many ways to deal with this problem rather than to search for another planet to live.

Sample 5

Students in schools and universities learn more from their teachers than through other means such as the Internet, libraries, and TV. To what extent you agree or disagree?

Nowadays, new technologies, such as the Internet and television, has made great changes in education. In spite of this, many people still believes that traditional education system is more useful when it comes to impart knowledge on students. In my personal opinion, although the role of teachers in the classroom is undeniably essential, we still cannot ignore other sources of learning.

Teachers cannot only inculcate theoretical knowledge to students, but also instill high moral values and give students inspiration and encouragement. In other words, teachers serve as a guide for students, by showing them the path, give them the interpretation, encourage them to think critically and correct the misunderstandings. However, it is also true that not all teachers are qualified and not everyone can go to schools and universities. For instance, some students are afraid of entering the classroom because of the bad impression of teachers or some others, due to personal or economic reasons, cannot attend universities.

For those kinds of students, they might feel more comfortable learning with the Internet or television. The easy access to other learning resources has allowed students to learn any subject they are interested in at any time of the day. Moreover, stimulating and complementing the learning experience by employing different sources of information is also beneficial for students. For instance, by doing research as an assignment for school or university, pupils are forced to read additional material of the topic in order to complete the task, and this kind of extra material are mostly available online. Thus, they are learning with other sources.

In conclusion, the important role of educators is acknowledged due to their irreplaceable contribution in any student's learning journey. But equal importance should be given to alternative sources of information during children's development.

Sample 6

Some people believe that international trade and communication with other countries is a positive trend, while others think it is harmful to nations and they might lose their identities. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give your own opinion and relevant examples.

In recent years, the issue of whether trading and interaction between nations is harmful to countries or not has become a contentious issue. Despite the arguments of some people that international trade is undermining people's recognition of their identities, it is my personal belief that interaction between different regions in the world are unavoidable, meanwhile, facilitate nations' development.

For a start, the notions of international communication and trade are prevalent that no one is able to avoid it. Cooperating with other regions on business in the world manages to fill the lacks of resources such the newest medicine, advanced technology and meager sources. even the isolated country, North Korea need to conduct some commercial exchanges with China or other related countries to consolidate their own powers in different fields. other parts of the world are not able to stop the connection with other countries as their power will be significantly sabotaged without international trade. As a results, it is of paramount importance to maintain an interaction or trading with other countries in order to enhance the competitiveness in the world.

However, someone may worry that this kind of globalization is detrimental to nations that it will be at the expense of citizens' nation identities. it seems to me that one's identities cannot be altered easily as the cultures and languages are something that have already adopt. When foreign cultures are received by the locals, it will be only a recognition of a new culture but do not affect their identities of their own cultures and nations. In addition, even though without international exchanges, public can access others' cultures through internet or other paths, therefore, it is not effective to isolate themselves for protection countries' own identities.

In conclusion, I once again reaffirm my view that international trade and communication is worthwhile. Not only do it underpin a country's power, but it also is an unavoidable trend.

Sample 7 

Some people think that men and women have different qualities. Therefore, some certain jobs are suitable for men and some jobs are suitable for women.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Some people think that women and men have different strengths and weaknesses and as a result of that some certain jobs are suitable for men and some certain jobs are suitable for women. I do not agree with this opinion.

Before the Second World War, the labour force was dominated by the males. Female workers could find a very little area in the job market to work but during and after the Second World War producers needed waste amount of labour force to keep their facilities running. Because of a certain number of men was in the military services, they started to hire female workers. Especially in the USA. This was the first time which the female workers show they can do the same job with male workers. After the following years, female workers became more qualified and they started to penetrate higher positions. In the seventies and eighties, females were all over the job market and in any position. That shows us that if they have given opportunities, women can do any job which a man can do. Some people thought that the women have physical weaknesses according to men and that prevented to do jobs which need physical endurance. That opinion is old fashioned and wrong. In the times of Second World War nearly all the jobs which needed physical endurance were getting done by the women in the USA and also in the USSR- before the Soviet Union had collapsed, even the mining operations were getting done by the women. Another example in the same kind of situation is about the textile business. In the 19th century,  the labour force in textile works was dominated by the men but today women have outnumbered men in that area.

Other tan this opinion, some people believe that the man can't do the jobs which need gentleness. This idea is also wrong. The best example of the wrongness of this idea is kindergarten teachers and nurses. In the seventies and eighties, there were nearly no male kindergarten teachers or nurses, even in the well-developed countries like USA or Canada but after nineties men started to work as kindergarten teachers or nurses. Today, even in the developing countries like Turkey or Mexico you can see many male kindergarten teachers or nurses. In the republic of Ireland, a man who is a former tax lawyer is trying to be Olympic synchronized swimmer and that shows us the gender is not an issue about doing a job.

As a conclusion, in today’s world women and men can capable of doing any jobs. Excluding a male or a female from a certain profession because of his or her gender doesn't have any logical reason. Believing a gender is not a suitable for a certain job is just an out fashioned thought. There is no limitation for the men and women in the job market except prejudice.

Sample 8

Some people think that success is the best measure of intelligence, while others think that intelligence can be measured in other ways more effectively.

What is your opinion on this?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Intelligence is a multifaceted trait that can be difficult to quantify. While some individuals believe that success is the ultimate gauge of intelligence, others argue that there are more effective methods to evaluate it. In my view, intelligence can be measured through various means beyond achievement or success.

Undoubtedly, success can be an indication of intelligence, but it is not always a reliable measure. Take, for example, individuals born into affluent families, who may be able to achieve success through their wealth and connections rather than their intelligence. On the other hand, there are numerous individuals who do not have the same advantages but possess immense intelligence that is not reflected in their achievements.  Furthermore, intelligence can be measured in other ways that are more accurate and objective. For instance, an individual's cognitive abilities can be assessed through standardized tests that evaluate various aspects of intelligence, such as logical reasoning, spatial awareness, and verbal comprehension. Similarly, intelligence can be measured by analyzing an individual's problem-solving skills, creativity, and critical thinking abilities.

Moreover, intelligence can be demonstrated through individuals' ability to adapt to new situations and environments. This includes their capacity to learn from their experiences and apply their knowledge to different contexts effectively. A person's intelligence can also be reflected in their ability to empathize with others, understand their perspectives, and communicate effectively with them.

In conclusion, while success may be an indicator of intelligence, it is not the only measure. Intelligence can be measured in various ways beyond achievement, such as through standardized tests, problem-solving skills, adaptability, and interpersonal abilities.

Sample 9

"Prevention is better than cure."Out of a country's health budget, a large proportion should be diverted from treatment to spending on health education and preventative measures.

There is no denying the fact that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. This is why it is being argued these days that governments should invest a majority of their health budgets in creating awareness about preventative measures rather than providing a cure for diseases. Since health education and awareness about preventative measures offer more benefits than providing treatment, this essay agrees that nations must concentrate on preventative instead of curative measures.

 

There are several arguments to substantiate this viewpoint. First and foremost, investments made in the prevention of diseases will save people’s money. Treating any sickness is becoming increasingly expensive these days. For instance, the prices of several life-saving drugs are rocketing sky-high. Similarly, treatment of any illness requires diagnosis but, in many countries, doctors show reluctance to use their knowledge and expertise to diagnose even minor ailments and instead prescribe patients many unnecessary and costly tests. This has made the incredibly expensive health care beyond the reach of many ordinary people. Therefore, if the government channels most of its health funds in the prevention of diseases, people can be saved from enormous health bills. Likewise, spending money on creating awareness about health will also reduce the financial/ monetary burden on the government’s shoulders. As government has to spend its limited resources on various crucial aspects such as providing education, developing infrastructure and conducting social welfare schemes, providing treatment to a large number of people at affordable prices in state-funded hospitals will result in a severe shortage of funds. To generate more funds, the government will have to either levy heavier taxes or reduce its spending on other areas. In both scenarios, the one who will be at a disadvantage is the common man. For instance, a rise in the taxes will give birth to inflation which will make it extremely difficult for people to afford even the basic necessities of life. Similarly, if spending on other crucial areas is curtailed, many people, who rely on governmental help, will suffer a lot.

 

In addition, despite the existence of a cure, the treatment for a malady can make life inconvenient in several ways as it can cause needless pain and suffering. In exemplification, treating cancer using chemotherapy results in many side-effects such as loss of hair, nausea, vomiting, skin infection, fatigue and so on. On top of that, some diseases are incurable and most often result in a person’s demise. A perfect example of this would be HIV which has no viable cure as of yet. Sometimes, therapeutic and surgical intervention fails to produce the desired results. Such failures make people lifelong dependent on costly and unnecessary drugs and also exert an enormous emotional toll on the patient and his/her family. Absenteeism from school and work due to various ailments is another good example to justify the argument that prevention is much better than cure. Although it cannot be guaranteed that the funds directed towards prevention will yield fruitful results, it is undeniable that we need to try to implement such measures.

 

To conclude, a healthy citizenry is the real wealth of a nation. By preventing diseases, people can enjoy happy and peaceful life. In a world of scarce resources, spending money on developing costly diagnostic and therapeutic techniques is a waste as long as prevention of diseases is an achievable goal. Thus, it is far more judicious to spend money on prevention rather than cure.

Sample 10

It is inevitable that as technology develops so traditional cultures must be lost. Technology and tradition are incompatible - you cannot have both together.

To what extent do you agree with this view?

 

Technology, the buzzword of today, has improved the quality of life world over. It is true that technology is one of the reasons behind the abrupt destruction of our traditional culture. In my point of view, technology and our tradition go well together.

 

Firstly, traditional games from the bygone days have been evaded by the juvenile and by the grown-up. They are much attracted towards video games rather than ancient games. According to them, these are old-fashioned games. An axiom for this issue is to include traditional games into the video games so that younger generation will get exposure to it. In addition, traditional musical instruments such as banjos are being replaced by new innovations such as guitars, pianos and so on. Apart from this, the numbers of traditional performances organized have also been reduced due to the invention of idiot box which always broadcast a variety of TV shows and serials, making less importance to the traditional performance.

 

In this era of globalization, people prefer to live in modern apartments. So usages of traditional houses have become comparatively less. Unlike traditional houses, flats offering much secure environment. Moreover, apartment helps to reduce vicissitudes of our life. To have an ancient touch, one can include traditional concepts and furniture while building the apartments.

 

In conclusion, the strong current of technological advancement has indeed eroded some traditions; nevertheless, both of them are not mutually incompatible. We can preserve our traditions which reflect our origins and roots but at the same time manage to develop our country with full utilization of technology as it could be used to reinstate traditions.