Some People Think That Parents Should Teach

Lilie King
Written by Lilie

Scored a 7 twice in the writing test

June 13, 2021

Some people think that parents should teach children how to be good members of society. Others, however, believe that school is the place to learn this. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

This essay question is from Cambridge IELTS 8 Test 1 Writing Task 2.

Sample Essay

Some people argue that parents should be responsible for teaching children to become good members of society, while others claim that school is where they should learn this. I agree with the former point of view because children’s behavior mirrors that of their parents.

On the one hand, it can be argued that school provides an ideal environment in which to foster good behavior. There, children learn that good acts get rewarded, whereas bad ones get punished. For example, if a child is always helpful to others, they in turn would reciprocate when the child needs a favor. By contrast, bullies would be criticized by their teachers and avoided by their peers. However, I do not think this is a good way for children to learn the difference between right and wrong because, at their age, they may feel overwhelmed by the bad consequences their misbehavior brings.

On the other hand, children tend to imitate their parents’ behavior. Thus, if parents set good examples, moral values and good behavior would come naturally to children. For instance, when a child sees their parents always give a hand to the elderly couple next door, they would pick up on this and help them as well. I think this method is preferable because it creates a loving and caring environment for children to learn to become good community members.

In conclusion, parents should take responsibility for teaching their children to become good members of society, because their behavior is always a reflection of their upbringing. (252 Words)

How to Paraphrase the Question Statement

It’s very difficult to change the individual words in the question statement. Note how I used different grammar to paraphrase it.

Original:
Some people think that parents should teach children how to be good members of society. Others, however, believe that school is the place to learn this.

My Paraphrase:
Some people argue that parents should be responsible for teaching children to become good members of society, while others claim that school is where they should learn this.

6 CommentsLeave A Comment

  1. On the one hand, it can be argued that school provides an ideal environment in which to foster good behavior. Why “in which” ? On the one hand, it can be argued that school provides an ideal environment to foster good behavior.

    1. ‘In which’ is necessary since things happen in an environment. I believe you can find many example sentences about this usage online.

  2. Thank you, Lilie. Do you think using ‘to become a good citizen’ would be a good idea in this writing to give it more variety?

    1. Hi Basira, I think you can use citizen in your body paragraphs but not in your paraphrase in the introduction. I think that being a good member of society is more than just being a good citizen.

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