IELTS Writing Task 2 topics: Technology, with practice questions and ideas

Technology is a theme that Task 2 questions are commonly reported to touch: how it changes communication, learning and work, what it does to children, and what people give up in privacy to use it. IELTS publishes no list of Task 2 topics, and IELTS.org’s Academic Writing format page describes the task only as a point of view, argument or problem to respond to. The themes below are candidate-reported from practice material, so prepare by theme and by essay shape, and do not rely on predicting a single question.

The angles this theme comes up with

• Communication and relationships. A statement may say that messaging and social platforms have made people closer, or lonelier. You weigh ease of contact across distance against shallower conversation and time spent apart in the same room.
• Technology in learning. Questions ask whether online courses and educational apps can replace classroom teaching. You weigh flexibility and access against motivation, discipline and the value of a teacher present.
• Automation and jobs. A question may ask whether machines and robots will reduce the work available to people. You weigh safer, faster production against lost roles, and whether new kinds of work appear.
• Children and screens. Questions ask whether young people spend too long with phones and tablets, and who should limit it. You weigh learning and entertainment against sleep, exercise and face-to-face play.
• Privacy and data. A statement may say that people share too much personal information online. You weigh convenience and personal services against the risk of misuse, and who is responsible for protecting users.
• Artificial intelligence. Questions ask whether people rely too much on intelligent tools for writing, decisions or study. You weigh speed and support against weaker skills and unchecked mistakes.

Practice questions

These ten questions are invented for practice, in our own words. They are not copied from any list or past paper, and IELTS does not publish Task 2 questions. Each is labelled with the shape it takes in practice material, which is a planning convenience, not an IELTS category.

1. Modern communication technology has made people less able to hold a real conversation. To what extent do you agree or disagree? (agree or disagree)
2. Some people think online courses will eventually replace classroom teaching. Others believe students will always need to learn in person. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. (discuss both views)
3. More and more factories and offices are using machines to do work once done by people. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this development? (advantages and disadvantages)
4. Many young children now spend several hours a day on phones and tablets. What problems does this cause, and what can parents and schools do about it? (problem and solution)
5. People share more and more personal information online. Why is this happening, and is it a positive or negative trend? (two-part question)
6. Artificial intelligence tools make it unnecessary for students to learn to write well. Do you agree or disagree? (agree or disagree)
7. Some people say the internet has made it easier to find reliable information. Others say it has made it harder. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. (discuss both views)
8. Many people now work and study from home using video calls. Do the advantages of this outweigh the disadvantages? (advantages and disadvantages)
9. People increasingly depend on their phones for directions, memory and entertainment. What problems might this cause, and how can they be avoided? (problem and solution)
10. Technology is changing the way people spend their leisure time. Why is this, and what effects does it have on society? (two-part question)

Ideas for and against

Two or three reasons on each side, each with a consequence or example you could develop in a paragraph. These are starting points, not facts to quote.

Communication and relationships

• For closeness: a grandparent abroad can see a grandchild’s first steps on a video call, so family ties survive distance. Shy people may find it easier to start friendships in a text chat.
• Against: friends sitting together but looking at phones miss the tone and expression that build trust. Messages are easy to misread, so small arguments grow.

Technology in learning

• For online learning: a worker can follow a course in the evening without travelling, and a learner in a remote village can reach teachers who would otherwise be unavailable. Recorded lessons can be replayed until understood.
• Against: without a teacher in the room, many students lose motivation and do not finish. Practical subjects and speaking skills need live feedback, which a recording cannot give.

Automation and jobs

• For automation: machines take over dangerous or repetitive tasks, so fewer workers are injured. Output becomes steadier, and people can move into roles needing judgement.
• Against: a worker whose job disappears may not have the skills for the new roles, which leaves whole towns struggling. If tasks vanish faster than new work appears, inequality can widen.

Children and screens

• For use: educational games and videos can teach reading and languages, and a child can find answers to their own questions. Familiarity with devices is also a skill for school and later work.
• Against: long hours on screens replace outdoor play and sleep, which affects concentration the next day. Young children who rarely speak face to face may develop language more slowly.

Privacy and data

• For sharing: people accept the exchange to get useful services such as maps and personalised recommendations. Sharing a location can help a family keep a teenager safe.
• Against: information collected for one purpose can be sold, stolen or used to target someone. Once data is public it is very hard to remove, so a careless post can follow a person for years.

Artificial intelligence

• For use: a tool that explains a hard idea at once can help a learner who has no tutor, and professionals can spend saved time on more demanding work. Translation tools help people communicate across languages.
• Against: a student who lets a tool do the thinking never builds the skill, and the work shows it later. Tools can state errors confidently, so users who do not check them spread mistakes.

Vocabulary for this theme

A worked plan

Question 4: Many young children now spend several hours a day on phones and tablets. What problems does this cause, and what can parents and schools do about it?

• Position: the main problems are lost sleep and activity and weaker speech and attention; parents and schools can each set clear limits.
• Introduction: paraphrase the topic; state two problems and that parents and schools share the solution.
• Body paragraph one (problems): reason, screens replace sleep, play and conversation. Example, a child who watches videos late at night arrives at school tired and cannot concentrate. Consequence, weaker progress in class, and fewer chances to practise speaking with other children.
• Body paragraph two (solutions): reason, children follow the rules adults model and enforce. Example, a family that keeps phones out of the bedroom and off the dinner table. Consequence, better sleep and more conversation. Schools can add lessons without devices and teach children how to use technology for a purpose.
• Conclusion: restate problems and solutions in different words, with no new argument.

Check that both parents and schools appear in the solutions, since the question names both.

How the app marks it

IELTS Mentor AI marks a Task 2 essay on all four criteria, with a band for each and an Examiner’s Summary, followed by what worked and how to improve for each criterion. Write an essay on one of the questions above, then read the Task response comments first: they show whether your points about technology were explained and exemplified or only stated.

Where this fits

The general answer, what are common IELTS Writing Task 2 topics, lists all the themes and explains why IELTS publishes none. Each shape has a guide: agree or disagree, discuss both views, problem and solution, advantages and disadvantages and two-part questions. For finished examples, see an advantages and disadvantages essay at Band 6, 7 and 8. When you have written your own answer, the essay checker gives you feedback on it.