Writing Task 2: Discussion (Both Views) Essay: Question 7
Syllabus W.task2
Some people believe that professional sports clubs should focus mainly on developing young players from their own local area. Other people believe that clubs should instead prioritise signing established star players from elsewhere.
Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words.
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Worked solution
Examiner notes: why this is a band 9 response
Task Response
The introduction paraphrases both views precisely and states a clear position (“homegrown development as the core strategy, using occasional star signings only to fill a specific gap”) that is sustained, not softened, in the conclusion. Both body paragraphs are genuinely developed with a specific, concrete example (Ashvale United; Riverport City) rather than one side being explored and the other merely mentioned, satisfying the “discuss both views” instruction in full before the candidate’s own opinion is given comparable weight.
Coherence & Cohesion
Each body paragraph opens with a topic sentence that signals whose view is being presented (“Those who favour developing local talent argue that…”, “Advocates of signing established stars counter that…”), making the two-sided structure immediately clear to the reader. Cohesion relies on referencing (“this connection”, “the resulting sponsorship income”) rather than a mechanical string of linking words, and “on balance” cleanly signals the move into a resolved conclusion.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is precise and topic-appropriate throughout: “academy graduates”, “escalating transfer fees”, “proven player”, “sponsorship income”. Near-synonyms avoid repetition (e.g. “local talent”, “homegrown development”, “academy pathway” all referring to the same idea), and collocations are used accurately (“sense of ownership”, “accelerate progress”).
Grammatical Range & Accuracy
The response shows confident control of complex structures: a non-defining relative clause implied through apposition (“Ashvale United, a mid-table club in my home region…”), a “since” clause of reason, and a long, correctly punctuated final sentence joining two contrasting ideas. There are no errors of tense, agreement or word form anywhere in the response.
Common pitfalls specific to this task
See commonMistakes above: at foundation level, the most frequent failure is producing what is really a one-sided “benefits of youth academies” essay, giving the case for signing established stars only a token sentence instead of a properly reasoned paragraph.