IELTS, Writing a report

IELTS 1, Practice Test 3, Writing Task 1



The chart above shows the amount of money per week spent on fast foods in Britain.  The graph shows the trends in consumption of fast foods.

Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information shown above.



Letter-writing

Developing skills, page 19

Write a letter of about 80 words to an acquaintance whom you do not know very well asking him to lend you a book you know he possesses.  Supply a suitable Introduction and Conclusion.

Use the following ideas to write your Purpose: ask for a loan of book – its title – why you want it – how longyou will keep it – you will take good care of it.

Why some women cross the finishline ahead of men

Let's practice reading:

A: Women who apply for jobs in middle or senior management have a higher success rate then men, according to an employment survey. But of course far fewer of them apply for these positions. The study, by recruitment consultants NB selection, shows that while one in six men who appear on interview shortlists get jobs, the figure rises to one in four for women.

B: The study concentrated on applications for management positions in the $45,000 to $ 110,000 salary range and found that women are more successful that men in both the private and public sectors. Dr Elisabeth Marx from London-based NB Selection described the findings as encouraging for women, in that they send a positive message to them to apply for interesting management positions. But she added, ‘We should not lose sight of the fact that significantly fewer women apply for senior positions in comparison with men.’

C: Reasons for higher success rates among women are difficult to isolate. One explanation suggested is that if a woman candidate manages to get on a shortlist, then she has probably already proved herself to be an exceptional candidate. Dr Marx said that when women apply for positions they tend to be better qualified than their male counterparts but are more selective and conservative in their job search. Women tend to research thoroughly before applying for positions or attending interviews. Men, on the other hand, seem to rely on their ability to sell themselves and to convince employers that any shortcomings they have will not prevent them from doing a good job.

D: Managerial and executive progress made by women is confirmed by the annual survey of boards of directors carried out by Korn/Ferry/Carre/Orban international. This year the survey shows a doubling of the number of women serving as non-executive directors compared with the previous year. However, progress remains painfully slow and there were still only 18 posts filled by women out of a total of 354 non-executive positions surveyed. Hilary Sears, a partner with Korn/Ferry, said, ‘Women have raised the level of grades we are employed in but we have still not broken through barriers to the top.’

E: In Europe a recent feature of corporate life in the recession has been the delay ring of management structures. Sears said that this has halted progress for women in as much as de-layering has taken place either where women are working or in layers they aspire to. Sears also noted a positive trend from the recession, which has been the growing number of women who have started up on their own.

F: In business as a whole, there are a number of factors encouraging the prospect of greater equality in the workforce. Demographic trends suggest that the number of women going into employment is steadily increasing. In addition a far greater number of women are now passing through higher education, making them better qualified to move into management positrons.

G: Organizations such as the European Women’s Management Development Network provide a range of opportunities for women to enhance their skills and contacts. Through a series of both pan-European and national workshops and conferences the barriers to women in employment are being broken down. However, Ariane Berthoin Antal, director of the International Institute for organizational change of Archamps in France, said that there is only anecdotal evidence of changes in recruitment patterns. And she said, ‘it’s still so hard for women to even get on to shortlists there are so many hurdles and barriers.’ Antal agreed that there have been some positive sings but said ‘Until there is a belief among employers, until they value the differences, nothing will change.’

A letter from a new student

Dear  Sue,

 I am Khashayar Daneshfar. I am 14 years old. I want to study phyisics and mathematics in high school. Now, I am learning English with Mr. Taghdarreh. I have been learning English with Mr. Taghdarreh for about 2 weeks, and I have been studying English for about 2 years.  

  I was (use 'am' here.  It goes better with the other verb in the sentence (cannot) convinced that the language schools cannot teach English well, because, their teachers teach different English books on the same level.

  We have four people in our family and I have one sister. We live in Tehran near Mr. Taghdarreh.   

   I go to a football club on even days and on odd days, I come to my English class with Mr. Taghdarreh. I will try to connect my internet but for now, I go to my friend’s house and send my latters to you. I hope I will succeed in learning the English language .

       Yours friendly

                         Khashayar Daneshfar

The Dance

Had to save this before I lost it.  So simple, so true. 

by Humberto Ak'Abal
translated by Ilan Stavans

All of us dance
on a cent's edge.

The poor—because they are poor—
lose their step,
and fall

and everyone else
falls on top.

It's So Simple

Gradually it was disclosed to me that the

line separating good

and evil passes not through states,

  not between classes, nor between

political parties – but right through

every human heart –

and all human hearts.

            --Alexander Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago, 1974

No Man Is An Island

No man is an island

No man is an island entire of itself; every man
is a piece of the continent, a part of the main;
if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe
is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as
well as any manner of thy friends or of thine
own were; any man's death diminishes me,
because I am involved in mankind.
And therefore never send to know for whom
the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

John Donne

John Donne was an English poet who was born in 1531 and this is one of my favorite poems. Rumi could have written the same poem for the thoughts are universal.