(IELTS ESSEY):Is it good for children to start using computers from an early age and spend long hours on them? Discuss the advantages and disadvantages.

 ​Q :Is it good for children to start using computers from an early age and spend long hours on them? Discuss the advantages and disadvantages. 

Answer:

In recent years, children, like adults, have become increasingly exposed to computers. While some child psychologists have claimed that this is a good thing, others have claimed that it has an overwhelmingly detrimental impact on children. In this essay, I shall draw upon a number of studies in cognitive science and industrial psychology that reveal the positive and negative aspects of this phenomenon. 

To begin with, clearly there are reasons why computers do not allow children to develop long attention spans. This is because computers are packed with many supposedly child-friendly games that require minimal levels of concentration in order to be enjoyed. For example, a study by the New York Child Learning Association found that children who read from picture books were 50% less likely to get distracted than children who played educational computer games. Therefore computers almost certainly have a negative impact on young children. 

However, since the world has become heavily reliant on computers, there are also clear advantages to exposing children to computers. This is because children with such exposure will stand a better chance of finding employment. For example, after being interviewed by Yale psychologists, over 70% of young office workers admitted that they had spent long hours on computers in their middle and late childhood years. Therefore it is clear that computer exposure can be beneficial to children. 

In conclusion, there are advantages and disadvantages to early computer exposure. However, if, in the future, the quality of educational gaming is increased, there is good reason to believe that these negative consequences will fall entirely away. 

Q: In today’s job market it is far more important to have practical skills than theoretical knowledge. In the future, job applicants may not need any formal qualifications. To what extent do you agree or disagree? 

Answer:

Practical skills are very important and it could be argued that they are as important as academic qualifications when it comes to getting a job. Nevertheless, it is unlikely that academic qualifications will ever become unnecessary. 

There are certain manual jobs such as cleaning and laboring where formal qualifications are less important. Employers in these industries are more likely to employ people with a good working knowledge of the job and what it entails. However, even in these jobs it is important for these people to have a minimum level of education, especially if they want to rise above the lowest working level. How can a person without good writing and mathematical skills balance a budget or manage staff? How can such a person make informed decisions about which product to use or safety issues in the work place? 

Having said this, a student graduated from university with the highest level of qualifications, but limited practical skills, still has a great deal to learn. None of us would expect or want a doctor without many years of practical experience to perform an essential operation. Students from all disciplines need to understand that entering the job market with a degree in management, for example, does not automatically qualify them for a managerial role. 

Clearly, education is important in teaching the theoretical side of any profession. This theoretical knowledge forms an important basis for practical skills which are also essential. In truth, neither one nor the other is dispensable when it comes to getting a job. 

Q:THESE DAYS, IN MANY COUNTRIES, FEWER AND FEWER PEOPLE WANT TO BECOME TEACHERS, PARTICULARLY IN SECONDARY SCHOOL. 

WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR THIS, AND HOW COULD THE PROBLEM BE SOLVED? 

Answer:

A generation ago,  teaching in a high school was considered an extremely well-respected and popular job,  and in some countries this is still true.  However,  in many parts of the world,  there has been a sharp drop in the number of young people who want to become high-school teachers. This essay will look at the reasons for this and propose some solutions.

    

One of the main causes of the problem is that teachers'  salaries are lower than many other jobs.  Teachers' pay has not kept pace with that of other professions,  such as law or medicine.  In the UK,  for example,  a doctor with five years'  experience will earn far more than a teacher with the same experience.  The solution is for the government to raise teachers'  pay signifieantly,  which would attract more people into the profession. 

     

Another problem is that many children do not behave well in class. That is to say,  teachers often have to deal with pupils who disobey them which often causes them to give up teaching. This tends to put off potential teachers as well. To tackle this issue,  parents must give their children a sense of respeet for teachers,  in order to make children behave better in class. 

        

A third cause of the problem is that teachers often have too much work to do.  Most teachers are snowed under with marking and paperwork which means that they have to stay late at school and work at home in the evening.  As a result,  many teachers are tired and stressed,  and their job has a negative effect on their family life.  The way forward could be to cut teachers hours,  and to take on more teaching assistants,  which would make teaching an easier job. 

To sum up,  teaching has become a much less popular job in many countries,  due to reasons such as the salary.  the working hours and pupils behaviour.  This is a serious problem,  and unless we can get more talented young people to become teachers,  the education of our children will suffer.  My view is that the main responsibility for solving the problem lies with parents and the government.