Overpopulation is increasing at an irreversible pace

everywhere in the world. In order to control this, it is

high time governments started imposing monetary fines
on people having more than one child.
Do you agree or disagree with this?

There is no doubt that overpopulation is one of the most

pressing problems that many countries are facing these days.
However, I do not agree with the statement that the
governments must impose financial penalties for having more
than a certain number of children.

To begin with, imposing monetary penalty will end up in an

imbalanced sex ratio. Because of the traditional preference for
male heirs, many couples might abort female fetuses with the
hope of having a boy in a subsequent pregnancy. What
happened in China in the past few decades is the best example
of such screwed up male-female ratio just because of the
Chinese governments one-child policy.

In addition, monetary penalty may also trigger some other

social problems in society. The penalties such as seizure of
property, steep fines and so on will make people financially
over-burdened. The lower-income brackets will be the worst-hit
segment if such policies are enforced. Further, families that do
not comply with the policy will not get all the benefits that
other families do. These benefits include free health care,
unemployment wages and so forth. When citizens are denied
such fundamental rights, they might turn hostile to their own
country which in turn could affect the integrity of a nation.

To recapitulate, instead of trying to control population through

some unethical and impractical measures, governments must
think about some practical solutions such as the empowerment

of women, and education and awareness of the masses. Thats

what those in power have to do immediately to regulate
overpopulation.

Modern technology plays a vital role in preventing and

solving crimes in society.
Do you agree or disagree?

Prevention and detection of crime has always been a matter of

great concern for various agencies invested with the
responsibility of maintaining law and order in different parts of
world for centuries. Therefore, I agree with the statement that
latest technology does play a pivotal role in preventing and
solving crimes.

First off, the high-end CC cameras that are set to work round
the clock both at public places such as airports, traffic signals,
stadiums, ATMs and private establishments like hotels,
shopping malls and even homes enormously help in monitoring
dubious individuals and suspicious activities day in and day out.
They help in two ways: while criminals who are aware about
such technology may refrain from committing an act of crime,
those alien to these developments will be caught red-handed.
In addition, the deployment of sophisticated bio-metric
paraphernalia at various places and in various procedures is
another blessing that technology has bestowed on us to deal
with crime. They are used in the form of fingerprint scanners,
iris scanners and so on to prevent unauthorized access to
certain places of strategic importance and to fight identity
theft, impersonation or such frauds.

Apart from this, polygraph, which scientifically analyses the

respiration rate, blood pressure and stress response of a
person, helps forensic experts to determine if the accused in a
case is telling a lie. Even some latest innovations in
telecommunication technology aid the law enforcement
agencies to track a callers location which in turn will help them
to nail the offender.

To sum, I tend to think that the technology is of extreme help

both in deterring and detecting crimes and atrocities; hence
more effort and resources should be channelled in this direction
to make society crime-free.

Many people are of the opinion that putting criminals in

prison is not severe enough as a form of punishment.
Others, however, believe that imprisonment is one of
the most effective ways of punishing wrong-doers.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of giving
imprisonment as punishment.

Imprisonment is one of the oldest forms of punishing a person

who has committed an illegal act of crime. While it has
numerous advantages, it can also be argued to have a number
of disadvantages.

On the one hand, the biggest advantage of imprisonment is the

possibility to rehabilitate the perpetrators and put them back to
a normal life. The harsh life in prison with just basic amenities is
quite enough for many a prisoner to mend their ways and
become law-abiding citizens. In addition, the vocational skills of
jail inmates can be utilized to compensate for the expenses of
keeping them in jail. This is also helpful in keeping them busy
thereby reducing their stress levels of being confined to four
walls of prison.

On the other hand, the strongest argument against

imprisonment is the expenditure involved in accommodating
the increasing number of wrong-doers. Running prisons across
the width and breadth of a country incurs huge amounts of
money which is collected from public through taxes. Secondly,
the illegal nexus between politicians, jail authorities and
inmates is no more a top secret these days. Notorious jails in
many countries like India, Mexico and so on are classic
examples for this. Last but not least, many prisons these days
are labelled as universities of crime in which the inmates
acquire new habits like bullying, drug addiction besides
involving in many other immoral acts.

To conclude, although life in prison may lead a hard-core

criminal back into a normal life, it can sometimes have worse
ramifications too.

Collocations for 7 band Essay....

Do you want a list of words which will help you notch up 7
bands in IELTS writing? Dude, its already there right on your

study table. Your dictionary! Kidding apart, many students think

that there might be an exclusive collection of words which will
enable them to get 7 bands in IELTS writing. Unfortunately it is
almost impossible to compile such a unique and handy list.
Huh, no way out? Wait. Its not words but the way you put them
together that will enable you to get 7 bands or above. One type
of such paired use of words is called collocations.
A collocation is a sequence of words or terms that co-occur
more often than would be expected by chance. Many students
memorize a number of synonyms of ordinary words and use
them wherever they like. Though I dont discourage learning as
many synonyms as possible, make it a point that you use the
right word in the right place, that too, in the right context.
For example strong tea is an accepted collocation in English
while powerful tea is not accepted as Standard English despite
the fact that strong is synonymous with powerful.
Now, look at the following sentence:
[Unless governments take some action against consumerism,
the future generations will have to face the consequences.]
This sentence is a correct sentence but now lets see how we
can improve the effect of this sentence with the help of some
collocations:
[Unless governments take some stringent action against
excessive consumerism, the future generations will have to
face the dire consequences.]
In the modified sentence, I used some collocations with
actions, consumerism and consequence. When they are
modified with collocating words, see how impressive they
sound just like you change your casuals and put on some
formals! This is one of the features that the examiners consider
when they mark you on vocabulary. In addition, using a few
collocations can add a few more words to your essay which will
lengthen your work. A little relief for those who find it difficult to
write at length, isn't it?

This is just an example of how to use collocations. It does not

mean that the particular sentence given above (without
collocation) cannot be a part of a 7 band essay. A good essay
consists of simple sentences, compound sentences and
complex sentences. Such a response includes both sentences
with collocations and those without them.
A word of caution: by saying use collocations in your essays, I
do not mean that you must use rare difficult words; collocations
are the most-frequently appearing word pairs in good pieces of
writing by expert writers. If you are a good reader, you will
definitely be able to use them at will.
There are several different types of collocation.
Collocations can be:
1. adjective + noun
2. adverb + adjective
3. verb + noun
4. verb + expression with preposition
5. verb + adverb etc.

Collocations with adjective + noun:

Incredible performance/tale/wealth/talent etc
Stringent action/steps/guidelines/measures/punishment etc
Unwanted consequences
Dire consequences
Inevitable consequence
Utter failure
Sheer ignorance
Grave negligence
Adequate resources
Appropriate action/solution
Workable solution
Fruitful results
Unexpected results/outcomes/consequences
Adverse effect
Unpardonable offence
Punishable act
Devastating effects/impact/consequence

Invaluable contribution
Unchallenging faith
Unprecedented growth
Undesirable results/consequences/effects
Enviable growth
Multifaceted career
Ruthless crimes
Cold-blooded murder
Unending options
Thoughtless acts
Burgeoning price/demand
Ever-growing trend
Trendy accessories/clothes
High-end products/computers/gadgets/gizmos
Relentless enthusiasm/zest/hard work/ spirit
Uphill/Herculean task
Innate abilities
Acquired abilities
Civilized societies/citizens/people
Established customs/practices/organizations
Tech-savvy generation
Deplorable condition
Inadequate facilities
Exorbitant rates/prices
Cold-blooded murder
Hardcore criminals
Aspiring singers/performers/sportsmen
Demoralizing impact/effect
Excruciating pain
Unbearable poverty/heat
Underprivileged people
Handsome salaries/remuneration/rewards
Unbridgeable gap/divide
Immense courage/wealth
Irreversible change/damage/trend
Cultural degeneration
Anti-social elements
Toxic fumes/gases
Excessive consumption
Underrated film/person/society/field
Tremendous amounts of time
Substantial sums/amounts

Collocations with adverb + adjective:

Entirely different
Physically challenged
Utterly stupid
Practically impossible
Virtually everywhere
Deeply motivated
Richly decorated
Fully aware
Completely ignorant
Meticulously calculated/planned
Beautifully crafted/designed/planned
Cleverly devised
Totally confused
Totally alien
Heavily armed/guarded
Perfectly arranged
Thoroughly damaged
Deeply attached
Readily available
Widely used
Hideously bad
Finely/perfectly/delicately balanced
Extremely beneficial/dangerous/useful/important
Heavily built
Elegantly designed/crafted
Highly recommended
Deeply conservative
Highly contagious/critical/controversial/acclaimed
Hotly debated
Seriously/badly/severely damaged
Highly/quite delighted
Sharply/strongly criticized
Deeply distressed/depressed
Highly/fully/well developed
Completely/ entirely/ totally/ utterly/ significantly/ markedly/
subtly different
Bitterly/ deeply/ terribly/ extremely disappointed
Highly educated
Badly affected
Poorly designed
Highly effective

Highly enjoyable
Perfectly fitting
Heavily polluted
Extremely/fairly/highly flexible
Utterly futile
Perfectly genuine
Totally harmless
Perfectly healthy
Widely held
Seriously/ critically/ gravely/ terminally ill
Utterly/ almost/ nearly/ practically/ seemingly/ virtually
impossible
Totally incompetent
Actively/ deeply/ heavily involved
Highly/ hardly likely
Totally logical/illogical
Entirely loyal
Grossly/ highly/ seriously misleading
Entirely/ painfully/ totally/ immediately/ fairly/ extremely/
perfectly obvious
Deeply offended
Bitterly/ completely/ diametrically opposed
Completely overlooked
Perfectly rational/reasonable
Widely recognized
Highly relevant
Incredibly/extremely rich
Completely/perfectly right
Utterly ruthless
Perfectly safe
Totally/ hardly surprising
Highly technical
Seriously threatened
Highly toxic
Utterly/painfully tragic
Highly trained
Totally/highly/entirely unaccepted
Seriously undermined
Perfectly understandable
Desperately unhappy
Totally unjustified
Completely untenable

Highly valuable
Highly volatile
Terribly worried
Highly significant
Fairly/ quite/ broadly/ roughly/ remarkably/ strikingly similar
Heavily/ densely/ highly/ thickly/ sparsely/ lightly/ thinly
populated
Highly/fully/ suitably/ well qualified
Collocations with verb + noun:
Take exercise
Make mistake
Commit crime
Commit suicide
Make a speech
Give a presentation
Draw salary
Take exam
Achieve target
Curb global warming
Gain weight
Lose weight
Set a record
Break a record
Hike price
Exercise franchise
Devote time
Thwart a plan/an attempt
Take/make a decision
Eradicate poverty
Uproot social evils
Aid the poor
Amend law
Devise a plan
Worsen a situation
Mitigate a problem
Resolve an issue
Replenish energy
Delay a process
Endanger life/ wild life
Take action
Invite danger

Hamper the progress

Overcome a difficulty
Fix a problem
Script success
Make effort
Oppose a suggestion/idea/plan
Cultivate good habits
Spruce up the city
Speed up a procedure
Hurt somebodys feelings
Ensure safety
Refute a theory/statement/claim/argument
Instill courage/confidence
Inculcate good manner
Rectify a situation/ones ways
Belittle ones skills/ability
Exploit nature
Cash in on an opportunity
Spring to action
Initiate a process/an action
Prolong a decision
Curtail ones liberties
Collocations with verb + adverb
Act accordingly
Bleed profusely
Act instantly
Rise steeply
Fail badly
Spend lavishly
Invest wisely etc
Exercise:
Underline some collocations in the following paragraph.
In order to curb drugs, the authorities need to take action
against the sale and purchase of illegal drugs in every country.
Drug dealers must be given punishment. In addition, the
governments should make people aware about the bad effects
of drug use on their health, career and social life. Besides,
those who are already using drugs need to be rehabilitated so
that they can function well in the society.

Answers:
curb drugs
take action
illegal drugs
drug dealers
make people aware
bad effects
social life
function well etc
Well. The paragraph given above is already a good paragraph.
However for further practice on using collocations, see how I
have rewritten it with some modifications:
In order to curb the menace of drugs, the authorities need to
take stringent action against the widespread sale and purchase
of illegal drugs in every country. Drug dealers must be given
exemplary punishment. In addition, the governments should
make people well aware about the undesirable consequences
(bad effects) of drug use on their health, career and social life.
Those who are already addicted to (using) drugs need to be
entirely rehabilitated so that they can function smoothly (well)
in the society.
Now, fill in the blanks of the following paragraph with
meaningful collocating words:
In addition, the _______________ pollution can also be attributed
to the _______________ popularity of private cars. The
_______________ quantities of _______________ fumes emitted by
them _______________ affect not only the humans but also the
flora and fauna. Furthermore, 99 percent of the motor vehicles
in the world run with the help of fossil fuel. If used
_______________, the day is not so far when the natures
storehouse of fossil fuel dries up completely.
Hope the lesson was helpful.
Happy learning!