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IELTS Band 9 essay, topic: Some schools insist that students have laptops in class (advantages / disadvantages)

This is a model response to a Writing Task 2 topic from High Scorer’s Choice IELTS Practice Tests book series (reprinted with permission). This answer is likely to score IELTS Band 9.

Set 2 General Training book, Practice Test 7

Writing Task 2

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Write about the following topic:

Some of today’s schools insist that all students have their own laptop computer in class to assist in their education.

Do you feel that this would be an advantage to students’ education or would it be an unnecessary complication?

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

You should write at least 250 words.

Answer

Several schools around the world insist that all students should bring their own private laptop to class to assist in their education. Technology has become a significant component of educating children and is considered beneficial in many ways. Nonetheless, there are likewise many disadvantages to using private technological equipment in classrooms.

Bringing a private laptop to class offers a variety of benefits for students. Firstly, laptops can be used to take notes in classes where teachers sometimes speak at a high speed. Many children find that they can type faster than they can write by hand and therefore prefer typing their notes in class so as to not miss any important information. Teachers could furthermore make use of learning programs and websites during class, as students would have the possibility of using these websites on their private laptops. Moreover, students can use periods meant for working on assignments effectively, because they can work on their assignments digitally right away and not have to type up handmade notes later on. Information can additionally be distributed more easily to students, as for example hand-outs can simply be emailed or shared electronically and do not have to be printed.

Although bringing private laptops to class offers these various advantages, it also creates several disadvantages. Laptops firstly are fairly expensive, meaning that families with more than one child will have to spend a large amount of money to purchase laptops for all their children. Furthermore, laptops can easily be damaged during class and outside of class as well as stolen, which could create future costs for families. During class laptops can also distract students, because they can surf the Internet or look at non-class-related work during class periods. The amount of time students are exposed to technological equipment is also increased by incorporating laptops into classrooms, which can result in several health-related problems.

In conclusion, bringing a private laptop to class involves several advantages and disadvantages. Nonetheless, I personally believe that if used wisely, a laptop is an extremely useful tool in lessons and therefore I would support this initiative.

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5 thoughts on “IELTS Band 9 essay, topic: Some schools insist that students have laptops in class (advantages / disadvantages)”

  1. How can I improve my writing skills.I really do not have many ideas regarding environment, technology, science and other things that we mostly have to write in IELTS easy topics.Can you guide me what is the best way to improve my writing skills?How can I merge different ideas in whole easy.And how can I think more about things smoothly and write it immediately.

  2. It seems as though lack of ideas and vocabulary for those ideas is the main issue, the reason why it is hard for you to write. Reading high-scoring essays on these problematic topics should help with both ideas and expressions to use in your own essays. I recommend starting with a list of topics that you would consider hard, and writing just essay plans for them. An essay plan can consist of just 4-5 items – what would you talk about in the introduction? in the 1st body paragraph? the 2nd body paragraph? and so on. If you can write a plan, that means you have enough ideas to talk about. Then you need to check if you have the appropriate vocabulary, and if you don’t – research it. I hope this help!

  3. In this modern world, many educational institutes emphasise students use their own laptops during the study. However, it is caused a burden on the students. To my opinion in this matter is that there are various benefits for students of holding a laptop while taking classes.

    Students should bring their electronic devices to the lectures because they become familiar and used to with these technologies. For example, some students follow the instructions of the professor when they are attending lectures. This could make it more convenient to use and understand. Furthermore, some class activities require networking devices for doing experiments. If a learner has access to gadgets, they could do some experiments and analyze the results. Hence, the learning process of the student could be faster and adoptable.
    There are some other advantages of carrying a laptop in the university, such as working on different projects and assignments. In other words, many students utilize their free time to work on paid projects to expand their knowledge. Similarly, they also work on class assignments while they are free lectures during study hours. The most important point is that students can save time if the library laptop is occupied. Thus students have the independency of whether to work on the previous lecture or continue to work on the last project. I am convinced that using their laptop in class has significant positive points.

    To conclude, many universities are forced to buy laptops for class work; however, it has many justifications. Considering the benefits, I personally believe that using computers during lectures definitely assists learners in following tutors’ instructions.

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Simone Braverman is the founder of IELTS-Blog.com and author of several popular IELTS preparation books, including Ace the IELTS, Target Band 7, the High Scorer's Choice practice test series, and IELTS Success Formula. Since 2005 her work has helped 100,000's of students worldwide achieve their target IELTS scores and live their dream lives. When Simone isn't working on her next IELTS book, video lesson, or coaching, she enjoys playing the guitar or rollerblading.