Plan this advantages and disadvantages essay about science with the ideas and outline below, write it on a 40-minute timer, then compare it with a band-8 model answer.
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
Ordinary people are increasingly taking part in scientific research, for example by recording wildlife sightings or testing air quality with simple devices.
Do you think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
GoPrep wrote this practice question in the style of the exam. It is not an official IELTS question.
Pick two or three points from one or both columns. You do not need all of them, and your own examples score better than memorised ones.
Spend the first few minutes planning, then write.
0 words of 250 minimum
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Write your own answer first, then compare: how it answers the exact question, what each paragraph does, and which phrases you could borrow.
Ordinary people are increasingly taking part in scientific research, for example by recording wildlife sightings or measuring air quality with simple devices. I believe the advantages of this development outweigh the disadvantages.
The greatest advantage is the scale of data collected. A university team cannot observe every garden or river, but thousands of volunteers can. In the annual Big Garden Birdwatch in the United Kingdom, hundreds of thousands of participants count the birds they see, giving scientists information about population changes that would otherwise be impossible to gather. Such projects also save money, allowing limited research budgets to be used for analysis instead of fieldwork. In addition, participation educates the public. People who measure pollution in their own street understand the problem better, and this can prompt them to change their behaviour or press local authorities to act. Science also becomes more open and trusted when people feel involved rather than excluded.
On the other hand, there are drawbacks. Volunteers are not trained scientists, and their equipment may be inaccurate, so the quality of the data can be uneven. Mistakes in identifying species or reading instruments can lead to false conclusions, and some participants may record results carelessly or exaggerate sightings. There are also privacy questions when location data from members of the public is collected and stored.
These risks can be reduced. Researchers can give clear instructions, test the instruments, compare volunteers' records with professional ones and use statistical methods to filter out errors. With such checks, the information becomes reliable enough to be useful.
In conclusion, although citizen science raises concerns about accuracy, its ability to gather large amounts of data and to engage people in science makes it a positive development overall.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| citizen science | research done with public help |
| data collection | gathering information |
| volunteer | person helping without pay |
| peer review | expert checking of research |
| accuracy | correctness |
| public participation | involvement of ordinary people |
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