In this post: The most common mistakes with their fixes, an FAQ, a 30-minute writing plan built around the matching table, a self-check list and three practice exercises with answers.
Problems/solutions essays · 3 parts
- 1. Variants, matching table, concrete solutions
- 2. My essays, frames and demo
- 3. Mistakes, plan and practice (you are here)
✦ In this post
7. Common mistakes and FAQ
| Common mistake | Example | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| Solutions do not match the causes / problems | The cause is lack of exercise; the solution is a healthy-eating campaign | Draw a matching table first: one to one, same order |
| Solutions are too vague | The government should solve this problem. | Add who acts, how, and why it works |
| Both solutions are “the government” | The government should… The government should also… | Switch to schools, employers, parents or individuals |
| A cause too narrow to explain a trend | Using one writing competition to explain “more and more people” | A cause should affect many people; turn narrow events into examples |
| An effect that rephrases a cause | Cause: wanting flexibility; effect: being able to organise your time freely | Write the new changes the trend brings, split into individual / society |
| Answering a causes question with solutions to the consequences | The cause is too many private cars; the solution is buying air purifiers | If the question asks about causes, target the causes; deal with consequences only when it asks about problems |
| A new solution in the conclusion | “International cooperation”, never mentioned in the body, suddenly appears | The conclusion only summarises the solutions already in Body B |
| A wrong mechanism | Income is unstable because of a lack of stakeholders | Check that the cause-and-effect link really holds, and write it in the simplest words |
FAQ
Do I have to write exactly two causes and two solutions? Not necessarily, but two is just right. With three causes, Body B needs three solutions, each getting only a sentence, and the “why it works” sentence is usually the first thing to be sacrificed.
Can one solution solve two problems at once? Yes, but you need to show clearly how it answers each problem separately. In the exam, one to one is still the safer choice, because it makes the match easiest for the reader to see.
Do I need to give my opinion in a Problems & Solutions essay? If the question does not ask for your opinion, you do not need I firmly believe. Use a preview-style second sentence in the introduction, and in the conclusion summarise the problems and the solutions once each.
Can a solution be at the individual level? Yes, for example “parents limit screen time”. But if both solutions are individual, the argument looks too small in scope. One institutional solution (government, schools, employers) plus one individual solution is usually the most complete.
8. A 30-minute writing plan
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 0–2 min | Identify the variant: Causes & Effects, Causes & Solutions or Problems & Solutions; mark Q1 and Q2 |
| 2–7 min | Draw the matching table: write the two causes / problems first, then a solution or effect for each, and fill in “who acts, how, why it works” |
| 7–8 min | Check: any cells that do not match? Do both solutions have the same actor? Can the causes explain a trend? |
| 8–11 min | Introduction: paraphrase the question + the framework’s second sentence |
| 11–24 min | Body A and Body B; hook every solution in Body B back to A with To tackle… / Since… |
| 24–27 min | Conclusion: condense A’s two points and B’s two points once each |
| 27–30 min | Check negatives (not), singular/plural, and whether should is overused |
The five minutes spent on the matching table are the most valuable. Compare my two essays: in Essay 23 the four points cover time, achievement, income and risk, and there are causal links between the causes and the disadvantages. In Essay 17 the second cause is too narrow; it looks as if I first thought “there is a competition I can use as an example” and then wrote the example as a cause. At the table stage, asking “can this cause explain many people?” would have caught it.
9. Self-check list
- I identified the variant: does Body B answer causes, answer problems, or describe effects?
- I drew a matching table before writing, and Body A and Body B match one to one in the same order.
- Every point in Body B has a hook sentence (To tackle… / As for… / Since…).
- Every solution says who acts, how, and why it works.
- The two solutions do not have exactly the same actor.
- My causes can explain “more and more people”, not just a minority.
- My effects do not rephrase my causes, and at least one effect is at the society level.
- No new solution appears in the conclusion.
- I have checked not, singular/plural and how often I use should.
10. Practice (with answers)
Exercise 1: find what does not match
Question (my paraphrase): In many countries the proportion of older people is rising. What problems does this cause, and how can they be solved? A student wrote the outline below. What does not match, and how would you fix it?
| Body A: problems | Body B: solutions |
|---|---|
| ① Healthcare and long-term care costs rise, putting pressure on government finances | ① Encourage young couples to have more children |
| ② The working population shrinks and many industries face labour shortages | ② Build more care homes |
Show answer
The two solutions are in the wrong places, and each only half fits. “Having more children” only produces workers twenty years later, so it is closer to problem ②, but far too slow. “Building more care homes” increases spending, which actually makes problem ① worse.
| Body A: problems | Corrected solutions |
|---|---|
| ① Rising healthcare and long-term care costs | The government promotes preventive healthcare (free health checks, community exercise classes) to extend healthy life expectancy and reduce the need for long-term care |
| ② A shrinking working population | Employers offer flexible or part-time roles so that older people who want to work can retire later; the government relaxes rules on foreign workers in specific industries |
Exercise 2: make a vague solution concrete
Original sentence: The government should solve the problem of plastic waste. Rewrite it to show who acts, how, and why it works.
Show answer
Demo: One practical measure would be for governments to charge a small fee for every plastic bag and bottle sold in shops. This would encourage shoppers to bring their own bags and reusable bottles, so the amount of plastic thrown away each day would fall significantly.
Who acts: governments. How: a small charge on every plastic bag and bottle. Why it works: it encourages people to bring their own, so less is thrown away.
Exercise 3: draw a Causes & Effects matching table
Question (my paraphrase): In big cities, more and more people choose to live alone. What are the causes, and what effects does this have on individuals and society?
Show answer
| Cause | Effect | |
|---|---|---|
| ① | More people marry late or not at all (changing social attitudes) | Individual: more freedom, but less support when they are ill or in difficulty |
| ② | Jobs are concentrated in big cities, so young people leave home and rent alone | Society: more demand for small flats and rising rents; growth of food delivery, single-portion meals and similar services |
Check: effect ① is not a rephrasing of a cause such as “people can live freely”; it states the price of that freedom. Effect ② is at the society level, and the four points cover attitudes, work, personal life and the housing market.
Further reading
- How to Write an IELTS Two-Question Essay: One Question, One Paragraph, Two Points
- The IELTS Task 2 Essay Framework: Introductions, Topic Sentences, Logic Chains and Conclusions
- IELTS Task 2 Band 7.5 Sample: Why Owning a Home Matters, a Two-Question Essay with GRA 8
- IELTS Task 2 Band 6.5 Sample: Are Entertainers Paid Too Much? Off-Topic Points
- IELTS Outweigh Essays: Four or Five Paragraphs, the Concession and Weighing Both Sides
- Paraphrasing in IELTS Writing Without Losing Marks: Synonyms, Background Sentences and Words to Avoid
- The tutor who helped me cut my essays from 400 to 300 words (in Chinese)
- All my IELTS preparation notes (in Chinese)
This is the last part of “Problems/solutions essays”. To start again, go back to Part 1.
IELTS Notes in English · Task 2 Structure (post 7 of 9)
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Task 1 Structure · Task 2 Structure · Topic Guides · Writing Language · Band Score Samples · Practice Methods · Speaking & Study Tips
✦ Target Your Future
Some days you practise for hours and the score still does not move. I hope these notes remind you that the setbacks are part of the road: every recording you replayed, every essay you rewrote and every sentence you finally dared to say is progress you have already made.
I wrote this down so the next person can take fewer detours. You do not have to follow my method exactly. Find a rhythm that works for you, rest when you need to, and come back for the next small step.
I hope what you take away is more than a number on a score report: a little more confidence in yourself, and the courage to step a bit closer to the world.
— Ting
← Back to IELTS notes in English
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