Task 2: Opinion Essay
What the question looks like
An opinion question gives you a statement and asks what you think. The wording varies but the job is the same.
- To what extent do you agree or disagree?
- Do you agree or disagree?
- What is your opinion?
- Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?
The mistake that costs a band
Task Response is one of the four criteria, and this is where most answers lose it.
An opinion question wants your opinion, clearly, in the introduction, and held consistently to the end. A great many candidates write a balanced “some people think X, other people think Y” essay and never actually say what they think. That is a different question type, and answering it here caps your Task Response score however good the English is.
Decide in the first minute. You do not have to believe it - the examiner is marking your English, not your politics - and a clear position you can support beats an honest position you cannot.
A four-paragraph structure that works
You have 40 minutes. Do not invent a structure under exam pressure - walk in with this one.
- Introduction (2 sentences). Rephrase the question in your own words, then state your position directly.
- Body 1 (5-6 sentences). Your strongest reason. State it, explain it, then give one specific example.
- Body 2 (5-6 sentences). Your second reason, same shape. Or concede the other side, then explain why your view still holds.
- Conclusion (2 sentences). Restate your position in different words. Add nothing new.
Full model answer
Question: Some people believe unpaid community service should be a compulsory part of high school programmes. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
It is sometimes argued that secondary schools should require students to complete a period of unpaid work in their communities. I strongly agree with this view, both because it develops skills that classrooms cannot teach and because it benefits the wider community at very little cost.
The main reason I support compulsory community service is that it teaches responsibility in a way no lesson can. A teenager who has committed to being somewhere every Saturday morning, where other people are depending on them, learns something about reliability that cannot be delivered through a textbook. In my own city, a secondary school requires every sixteen-year-old to spend two hours a week for one term supporting a local literacy programme, and teachers there report that attendance and punctuality improve across all subjects afterwards.
A second argument is the benefit to the community itself. Charities and care homes are chronically short of volunteers, and many of the tasks they need doing - reading with children, serving meals, tidying public spaces - require willingness rather than training. Students are perfectly capable of this work, and the organisations gain a reliable supply of help that they could not otherwise afford.
It is true that some students will resent being forced to participate, and that unwilling volunteers can create more work than they save. However, this is an argument for supervising the scheme properly, not for abandoning it. Most young people who begin reluctantly report enjoying the experience by the end.
In conclusion, I firmly believe that compulsory community service should form part of the school curriculum, because the gains for both students and society clearly outweigh the practical difficulties involved.
Why that answer scores well
The four criteria are worth 25 per cent each. Here is where the marks in the model above come from.
Task Response
The position is stated in sentence two of the introduction, held in every paragraph, and restated at the end. Both reasons are developed with explanation and a specific example, not just asserted.
Coherence and Cohesion
Four clear paragraphs, one idea each. Linking is varied and natural - the main reason, a second argument, it is true that, however, in conclusion - rather than a mechanical firstly, secondly, thirdly.
Lexical Resource
Precise topic vocabulary used naturally: chronically short of volunteers, a reliable supply, resent being forced, outweigh the practical difficulties. Note that no word is repeated from the question prompt without being rephrased.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mixture of sentence types: relative clauses, a concession clause, a passive opening, and conditionals - all accurate. Range matters, but accuracy matters more. One complex sentence you control beats three you do not.
Five mistakes to avoid
Every one of these is common enough that examiners see it daily.
- Sitting on the fence. If the question asks your opinion, give one and keep it.
- Writing under 250 words. You are penalised directly, and there is no way to recover it.
- Memorised opening sentences. “In this modern era, since the dawn of time” scores nothing and wastes 20 words.
- Introducing a brand new argument in the conclusion. The conclusion restates - it does not add.
- Spending 30 minutes on Task 1. Task 2 carries more weight - give Task 1 its twenty minutes and move on.
Useful language for this lesson
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