In this type of question, you are presented with an opinion and then asked to agree or disagree. Also, the phrase “to what extent” makes this type of question flexible, meaning that you can also have a balanced opinion.
In this article, I’m going to go through an example and write a high-scoring sample. I will walk you through all the steps so that you can develop a well-written essay too. The question is from IELTS past papers.
Here’s the essay question we’re going to work on:
Prevention is better than cure. Researching and treating diseases is too costly, so it would be better to invest in preventive measures. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
You can develop your essay in three ways. Depending on the question, choose the one that you’re most comfortable with. Keep in mind that your argument should be reasonable and examples specific.
Option 1: You completely agree with the opinion.
Medical research and treatment can be very expensive. Therefore, I completely agree that governments and medical organizations should focus on preventive healthcare instead.
Body Paragraph 1:
Explain why you think investing in research and treatment is not a good idea.
Body paragraph 2:
Explain why focusing on preventive measures is better. What are the benefits?
Conclusion:
Summarize your points in one complex sentence or two sentences.
Option 2: You completely disagree with the opinion.
It is argued that medical research and treatment are too expensive; therefore, preventive measures should be the focus of governments and medical organizations instead. I completely disagree with this idea and believe that allocating enough funds to the former is vital to save lives.
Body Paragraph 1:
Explain why you disagree with the idea. What adverse effects might that bring about?
Body paragraph 2:
Explain why you believe enough funds should be allocated to research and treatment. What are the benefits?
Conclusion:
Summarize your points in one complex sentence or two sentences.
Option 3: You take a balanced approach.
It is argued that preventive healthcare should be the main focus of the healthcare system instead of medical research and treatment due to the latter being too expensive. While I agree that preventive measures are necessary to stop diseases from spreading and lower healthcare expenditure, I also believe that allocating financial resources to research and treatment should continue despite their high costs.
For this question, I’ve chosen option 3 because it makes the most sense to me. However, you can go with the other options. No problem!
Step 1: As always, you should start with spending 2 minutes reading and understanding the question. Once you have fully understood what the question asks of you, you can move on to the next step.
Step 2: Now, it’s time for you to plan your whole essay. If you do this part properly, you will save time and produce a better and cohesive essay. This step should take about 8 minutes.
Here’s my plan:
Note: You may not understand some parts of my plan until you’ve read my full essay. That’s because my planning is my thinking process written fast using signs. It’s just to remind me what to write in my essay. I have included it just to show you how you can plan. You can also make yours even shorter by using more signs of your own.
Introduction: Paraphrase the question + your thesis statement
Paraphrase: It is argued that……main focus…. due to…. too expensive
Thesis statement: While I agree that….necessary, I also believe that ….. continue despite…
Body paragraph 1: Why I believe preventive measures are necessary.
Main idea: Taking precautions reduces the spending on healthcare by keeping people’s wellness under control and preventing diseases before they occur.
Support 1:
Example: vaccines create antibodies in healthy people→ no severe cases→hospital admissions decrease→costs go down
Support 2:
Other measures: exercising and keeping weight in check→ lower the chance of chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes, which… lifetime + expensive medications
… is definitely effective in lowering costs…
Body paragraph 2: Why I believe the funding for research and treatment should continue despite the high costs.
Main idea: Effective preventive measures wouldn’t exist without proper research. + treatment addresses a specific disease or problem that prevention can’t completely eliminate.
Support 1: Highly effective vaccines are developed after intense research on the virus or the bacteria.
Example: Pfizer, a private biopharmaceutical company, spend millions of dollars and several months on developing the most effective Covid-19 vaccines→no research funds, no vaccines.
Support 2: Preventive measures cannot address hereditary diseases like type 1 diabetes. No amount of exercise can keep people ….. The only way … right medicines, which can be expensive. → Treatment … expensive but vital.
Conclusion: Prevention is an effective way to keep people healthy and the costs down; however, research and treatment not only… necessary… but also irreplaceable.
Step 3: Write your full essay. This step should take about 25 minutes.
Here’s my full essay:
It is argued that preventive healthcare should be the main focus of the healthcare system instead of medical research and treatment due to the latter being too expensive. While I agree that preventive measures are necessary to stop diseases from spreading and lower healthcare expenditure, I also believe that allocating financial resources to research and treatment should continue despite their high costs.
On the one hand, taking precautions will reduce the spending on healthcare by keeping people’s wellness under control and preventing diseases before they occur. For instance, vaccines, one of the most used such measures, trigger the production of disease-fighting antibodies by the immune system and result in lower severe cases of illnesses and hospitalization, thus reducing the spending on healthcare. Other preventive methods also effectively lower the chance of chronic diseases such as type-2 diabetes, which are usually caused by a sedentary lifestyle and obesity. Simply put, if people exercise regularly and keep their weight in check, they will have much fewer health issues and consequently lower the expenditure on healthcare. Therefore, I believe that prevention brings nothing but benefits to people and the healthcare system.
On the other hand, some effective preventive measures wouldn’t exist without proper research. In addition, treatment sometimes addresses specific diseases or problems that prevention can’t eliminate. For example, a highly effective vaccine such as that of Pfizer, which was developed for Covid-19, takes a lot of research and millions of dollars worth of production equipment to be developed and finally available for public use. Furthermore, preventive healthcare cannot address hereditary diseases like type-1 diabetes. Such illnesses can only be treated with expensive medications. Therefore, I firmly believe that it is worth funding research and treatment projects.
In conclusion, prevention is an effective way of keeping people healthy and the costs down; however, research and treatment are not only needed to develop effective preventive measures but also vital for some people.
(314 words)
Step 4: Spend about 5 minutes to read your work and correct your mistakes.
Here’s the summary:
- Spend 2 minutes to understand the task completely.
- Spend 8 minutes planning your essay.
- Spend 25 minutes writing your essay.
- Spend 5 minutes to read your work and correct your mistakes.
