WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT IN IELTS WRITING TASK 2?
Most students primarily associate paraphrasing with the use of synonyms, although there are other forms of paraphrasing that don’t include word changes. These include altering the sentence structure, utilizing different clauses to change the verb form, changing the word form, and switching from active to passive phrases using the passive voice. Make the most of these strategies to improve your IELTS score.
We’ll examine three principle paraphrasing strategies:
Use of synonyms
Verb transformation
Sentence restructuring
Secondly, we will apply these techniques to examples of writing task 2 in the IELTS exam. Writing skills in this component of the exam include:
– giving an opinion
– discussing causes and suggesting solutions
– discussing arguments for or against an idea or situation
– discussing advantages and disadvantages
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT
When you are sure you understand all three techniques, choose another IELTS test writing question and try to paraphrase it by yourself.
Strategy 1: use of synonyms
Let’s start with our first strategy: the use of synonyms.
First, read and understand the question.
Use a highlighter to highlight the keywords in the question.
Select synonyms to replace those keywords.
Let’s take an example. Read and understand the title of this writing task 2:
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT
Unemployment is one of the most serious problems facing developed nations today. What are the advantages and/or disadvantages of reducing the working week to thirty-five hours?
This essay title asks the writer to provide the advantages and disadvantages of an idea or solution.
In your opening introduction, you should not immediately provide an opinion on the essay topic.
– Instead, paraphrase two sentences, using our 3-step strategy.
– First, read and understand the question:
– Unemployment is one of the most serious problems for developed nations.
– A 35-hour working week is a possible solution to unemployment.
– Use a pen to highlight or underline the keywords in the question:
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT
Unemployment is one of the most serious problems facing developed nations today. What are the advantages and/or disadvantages of reducing the working week to thirty-five hours?
Select synonyms to replace those keywords.
You can alter the keywords while maintaining the same general sentence structure. Just be careful not to paraphrase a predefined expression without carefully examining it; for instance, “high unemployment” cannot be altered to “high lack of jobs”; rather, it should refer to a serious lack of jobs or a lack of jobs across the country.
unemployment = lack of jobs
serious problems = grave issues
developed nations = industrialized countries
advantages and/or disadvantages = pros and/or cons
working week = professional schedule
Strategy 2: verb transformation
Let’s take the same essay topic example and apply our second strategy to it: verb transformation.
In this strategy, we:
Highlight the key verbs
Select new verbs or synonyms OR transform the verb
Unemployment is one of the most serious problems facing developed nations today. What are the advantages and/or disadvantages of reducing the working week to thirty-five hours?
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT
Facing = confronting
Reducing = lessening
Many countries are faced with the problem of unemployment.
Unemployment, which many countries are facing, is a serious problem in the modern world.
Strategy 3: sentence restructuring
Let’s apply our third strategy to the same essay topic. Sentence restructuring is using a new sentence format, based on the writing skill. In this example, the writer is expected to explain the advantages and/or disadvantages of an idea.
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT
What are the advantages and/or disadvantages of reducing the working week to thirty-five hours?
The sentence can be paraphrased as
Let’s examine the pros and/or cons of …
Let’s look at the pros and/or cons of …
Okay! Let’s now put our 3 strategies together to write sentences with our new synonyms to create an introduction:
Lack of jobs is indeed a grave issue confronting industrialised countries at this time. Let’s examine the pros and/or cons of lessening professional schedules to thirty-five hours.
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT
IELTS Writing Task 2: How to write a good introduction
Tip 1: Review the question, classify it, and highlight the keywords.
Tip 2: Write brief ideas by brainstorming the topic.
Tip 3: Select the best and easiest to explain ideas.
Tip 4: Write a general statement by paraphrasing, followed by your position.
Tip 5: Explain how you plan to develop your essay. Review your introduction.
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT
WHY IS PARAPHRASING IMPORTANT