Plan this opinion essay about health 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:
Everyone should be required to do a minimum amount of exercise each week, either at school or at work.
Do you agree or disagree?
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
Your answer stays on this page only. Copy it before you leave.
Write your own answer first, then compare: how it answers the exact question, what each paragraph does, and which phrases you could borrow.
It has been suggested that everyone should be required to take a minimum amount of exercise each week at school or work. While regular activity is clearly valuable, I disagree that it should be compulsory for adults, though I accept the case for schools.
The argument in favour rests on health and economics. Inactivity contributes to heart disease, diabetes and depression, and these conditions are expensive for health services and reduce productivity when employees are ill. If everyone had to exercise, the population would probably be fitter, absence from work would fall, and children would build habits that last into adulthood. Physical education in schools is already standard in most countries for this reason, and I believe it should remain mandatory for pupils, who are still developing both their bodies and their attitudes.
For adults, however, a legal requirement raises practical and ethical problems. Adults are entitled to make decisions about their own bodies, and forcing exercise on them would feel intrusive. It would be hard to monitor and enforce, particularly for people with disabilities, long-term illnesses or physically demanding jobs who may not need or be able to follow the same rules. Resentment could also make the policy counterproductive, since people tend to enjoy activity more when they choose it themselves.
A better approach is encouragement. Employers can offer gym memberships, walking meetings or time for lunchtime sport, and governments can build cycle lanes and cheap community facilities. Several companies that have introduced such schemes report higher morale and fewer sick days, which shows that voluntary incentives can work without any penalty.
In conclusion, exercise should be required for schoolchildren but only promoted, not enforced, among adults.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| physical activity | movement that exercises the body |
| sedentary jobs | desk-based jobs with little movement |
| personal freedom | the right to choose |
| chronic disease | a long-lasting illness |
| lifelong habit | routine kept through life |
| incentive | reward that encourages action |
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