This essay is written by our student and may contain spelling and grammar mistakes. All band score predictions are approximate:

IELTS essay prompt

Some people think that the increasing use of computers and mobile phones has had a negative effect on young people’s reading and writing skills. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this?

Student’s response

Some people think that by being highly dependent on digital devices, young people are losing their reading and writing skills. I beg to differ! In my opinion, people get to read and write more by using these devices and “practice makes perfect!”

The digital world has made people to become more interconnected. Within minutes, one is able to send a handful of messages. This encourages people to write more to avoid wasting time on phone calls or face-to-face meetings. In fact, the diverse types of writing that we make can improve different aspects of our writing. For example, when we text our friends, we use informal language such as using contractions. However, we use a more formal tone when messaging our manager.

Similarly, digitized data enhances our reading skills. Day in and day out, we are bombarded by multitude of information in text form.  Thanks to social media, people would share anything interesting with everyone they know, and it would cost them almost nothing. Hence, most people prefer to read their cluttered inboxes or social media messages during any waiting time such as commuting or standing in a queue. Although they may not realize it, this time is actually being invested by strengthening many soft skills such as reading.

In short, contrary to the belief that interacting through screens harms our literary skills, I believe that by doing so we are effectively improving our reading and writing skills.

(238 words)