Globalization
001.
Environmental problems are so big that they cannot be solved by any person or
country alone. Instead, it should be solved at an international level. To what
extent do you agree or disagree with this view? 4
002. In some
countries, it is now possible for people to buy products made in other
countries. To what extent do the benefits of this development outweigh the
drawbacks?
003. Some people
believe that charities should give aid to those who need the aid most, wherever
they live. Some people believe that charity organisations would better
concentrate on people in their own country instead. Discuss both views and give
your own opinion.
004. Rich
countries often give financial aid to poor countries, but it does not address
poverty effectively. For this reason, rich countries should give other types of
help to poor countries rather than financial aid. To what extent do you agree
or disagree?
005. To what
extent do you agree that countries benefit from international tourism?
006. More and
more students choose to go to another country for their higher education. Do
you think the benefits outweigh the problems associated with it?
007. English has
become a universal language. Discuss the positive and negative effects of this
trend.
008. Some people
think that it is necessary to travel abroad to learn about other countries. But
other people believe we can learn all the information on TV and Internet.
Discuss both opinions and give your own opinion.
009. When we
travel to foreign countries, we tend to see the same things as we see in our
home countries. What are the causes of this phenomenon and do you think this is
positive or negative?
010. Some people
think the increasing business and cultural contact between countries brings
many positive effects. Others say it causes the loss of national identities.
Discuss on both sides and give your opinion.
011. Some people
think visitors to others countries should imitate local customers and
behaviours. Some people disagree; they think the host country should welcome
cultural differences. Discuss the two views and give your opinion.
012. Some people
think that cultural traditions may be destroyed when they are used as
money-making attractions aimed at tourists. Others believe it is the only way
to save these traditions. Discuss on both sides and give your opinion.
013. Some people
think governments should introduce new technology to improve the lives in
developing countries while others think they should provide free education to
achieve that. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
014. Some people
think the foreign visitors should be charged more than the local visitors when
they visit the cultural and historical attractions in another country. To what
extent do you agree or disagree?
015. A country
should try to produce all the food to its people and reduce imports. Do you
agree or disagree?
016. Some people
think the government should spend money on measures to save some languages from
dying out. Others think it is a waste of financial resources. Discuss both
sides and give your own opinion.
017.
Multi-cultural societies, in which there is a mixture of different ethnic
peoples, bring more benefits than drawbacks to a country. To what extent do you
agree or disagree?
018. Exposure to
international media such as films, TV and magazines has a significant impact on
local cultures. What do you think has been the impact? Do you think its
advantages outweigh the disadvantages?
Science and Technology
019.
Technological progress in the past century has its negative effect, despite its
remarkable contribution. To what extent do you agree or disagree and what can
be done to reduce the negative effect?
020. Nowadays,
distance-learning programs are such common thing for us (the study material by
post, by internet), but some people argue that courses can never be taken as
good as those by attending a college or university in person. To what extent do
you agree or disagree?
021. Mobile phones
have made life easier: You can answer your phone at any place or any time. Dose
this development has more positive or negative effects on both individuals and
society? Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
022. People can
perform everyday tasks, such as shopping and banking as well as business
transactions, without meeting other people face-to-face. What are the effects
on an individual and the society as a whole?
023. Only
employees (but not employers) can benefit from working at home. Do you agree or
disagree?
024. Some people
support the developments in agriculture such as factory farming and creations
of new types of fruits and vegetables, while others oppose this view. Discuss
both views and give your opinion.
025. Maintaining
public libraries is a waste of money since the computer can now perform their
functions. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Environment Issues
026. Some people
think cheap air travel brings us benefits while others believe that
non-essential flights should be cut in order
to reduce environmental problems caused by cheap air travel. Discuss both views
and give your own opinion.
027. While it is
important to protect the environment, little effort has been made by
individuals. Why has this happened? What can individuals do to protect the
environment? 4
028. There are
many extinct animal species in the world nowadays. Some people say we should
protect these animals from dying out, while others say we should concentrate
more on problems of human beings. Discuss both opinions and give your personal
view.
029. Some people
think pollution and the damage to the environment have resulted from a country
developing and becoming richer, and this is unavoidable. To what extent do you
agree or disagree?
030. Many people
think that companies and individuals should pay for the pollution they have
produced while the government should not take any responsibilities. To what
extent do you agree or disagree?
031. Industries
and businesses should be moved from cities to small towns. To what extent do
you agree or disagree?
Social Value:
032. In many
countries traditional food is being replaced by international fast food. This
is has negative effects on both families and societies. To what extent do you
agree or disagree?
033.
Professionals such as doctors, nurses and teachers should be paid more than
sports and entertainment personalities. To what extent do you agree?
034. Economic
progress is one way to measure the success of one country, while some people
think there are other factors. What other factors should be considered? Within
these factors, do you think that any factor is more important than the others?
035. Many people
think that it is costly and time-consuming to preserve old buildings. We should
knock them down and replace them with modern ones. To what extent do you agree
or disagree?
Life Style
036. Many people
are moving from rural areas to big cities. Why has this happened? To what
extent do you think it is a good trend?
037. It is
argued that we are living in a throw-away society: people throw away what they
use in daily life, instead of recycling or reusing them. Why has this happened
and what are the effects of this trend?
038. The
perception of careers is changing rapidly. People hardly rely on one job for
life. Discuss the possible causes for this change and give your suggestions on
how people should prepare for work in the future.
Education Issues
039. Some people
think schools should only teach students academic subjects. Others think
schools should also teach students how to discriminate between right and wrong.
Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
040. Some
employers think that formal academic qualifications are more important than
life experiences and personal qualities when they look for an employee. Why is
it the case? Is it a positive or negative development?
041. Schools should
concentrate on teaching students the academic subjects that will be useful for
their future careers. Subjects such as music and sports are not useful. To what
extent do you agree or disagree?
042. Some people
think children should obey the rules set by their parents and teachers set, but
others think that less control will help children to deal with their future
adult life. Discuss both views and give your opinion.
043. Some people
think students should go to boarding schools instead of living at home. Do you
agree or disagree?
044. Some school
leavers tend to go travelling or work for a period of time before going to
university directly. What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages and
what is your own opinion?
045. Some people
think university education should prepare students for employment while others
think it should help students acquire theoretical knowledge. Discuss both views
and give your own opinion.
046. University
students always focus on one specialist subject, but some people think
universities should encourage their students to study a wide range of subjects
in addition to their own subject. To what extent do you agree or disagree with
this statement?
047. Some
teachers think it is effective for students to study in group while others
think it is better to study alone. Discuss both views and give your opinion.
048. Some people
think that schools should select pupils according to their academic abilities,
while others believe that it is better to have pupils with different abilities
study together. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
049. Some people
believe that some unpaid community service should be a compulsory part of high
school programmes. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
050. Some people
think that students benefit from going to private secondary schools. Others,
however, feel that private secondary schools can have a negative effect on
society as a whole. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Mass Media Issues
051. The government
should control the amount of violence in films and on TV can help to reduce
crime. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
052. Studies
suggest that children spend more time watching TV than they did in the past and
spend less on doing active or creative things. Why do you think it is the case?
What methods can be used to tackle it?
053. Today,
advertising has a powerful influence on our lives. Do you think the positive
effects of advertising overweigh the negative effects?
054. Nowadays,
advertising aimed at children should be banned. To what extent you agree or
disagree?
055. Newspapers
have a remarkable influence in people’s opinions and ideas. Do you think it is
a positive or negative change?
056. Detailed
description of crimes on newspaper and TV can have bad consequences on society,
so this kind of information should be restricted on the media. To what extent
do you agree or disagree with this statement?
057. A longer
prison term as a way of punishing those who break the law is not as good as
other methods. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Animal Issues
058. Some people
think zoos are cruel and all the zoos should be closed. However, some people
think zoos are useful to protect the rare animals. Discuss both these views and
give your opinion.
059. Some people
think it is necessary to use animals for testing medicines intended for human
use. Others, however, criticise this as animal cruelty. Discuss both of these
views and give you own opinion.
Social Issues
060. Women have
different qualities from men, so gender imbalance in some occupations is
acceptable. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
061. In many
countries，the proportion of older
people is steadily increasing. Does this trend make positive or negative
effects to society?
062. In many
parts of the world, teenagers and young people are committing more crimes. Why
is this happening? How to address this issue?
063. In some
countries, it is illegal for companies to reject job applicants on the grounds
of age. Is this a positive or negative development?
064. Discuss the
reasons why the youth unemployment has become an urgent issue and the methods
to address this problem.
Public Issues
065. Some people
think that good health is a basic human need, so the medical service should not
be run by profit-making companies. Do you think the disadvantages of the
private health care outweigh the advantages?
066. Some people
believe creative arts should get financial support from government. Others
think they should get support from other resources. Discuss both sides and give
your own opinion.
067. Housing
shortage in big cities has severe social consequences. Some people think only
the government action can solve this problem. To what extent do you agree or
disagree?
068. In today’s
world, private companies rather than the government pay for and carry out
scientific research. To what extent do you think the advantages outweigh the
disadvantages? 2
069. Some people
think that by paying taxes they have made enough contribution to their society,
others think there are more responsibilities than paying taxes. Discuss both
views and give your opinion. 2
070. Some people
believe that the improvement of public health relies on the number of sports
facilities; others believe that some other measures should be taken. Discuss
both views and give your opinion.
071. Some people
think it is more important to spend public money on promoting healthy lifestyle
in order to prevent illness than to spend it on the treatment for people who
are already ill. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
072. As the
number of cars increases, more money has to be spent on road systems. Some
people think the government should pay for this. Others, however, think that
the user should pay for the cost. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
Technical Issues
073. Some people
think that robots are very important to human’s future development. Others
think that they are dangerous and have negative effects on society. Discuss
both opinions and give your personal view.
074. There are
social, medical and technical problems associated with the use of mobile phones.
What forms do they take? Do you agree that the problems outweigh the benefits
of mobile phones?
075. In today's
society, more and more work is done by machines. Do you think the positive
effects of the development overweigh the negative effects on individuals and
society?
076. Today,
foods travel thousands of miles from the farm to customers. Why has this
happened? Is this trend positive or negative?
077. Some people
argue that technology such as the cell phone destroys social interaction. To
what extent do you agree or disagree?
078. In the past
century when a human astronaut first arrived on the Moon, he said, ‘It is a big
step for mankind.’ But some people think it makes little difference to our
daily life. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
079. The
development of technology has changed the way people interact with each other.
In which ways does it change the types of relationship that people make with
each other? Does it have a positive or negative effect on society?
080. Air travel
can only benefit the richest people in the world. Ordinary people can get no
advantage with the development of air travel. To what extent do you agree or
disagree?
081. Food can be
produced much more cheaply today because of improved fertilisers and better
machinery. However, some of the methods used to do this may be dangerous to
human health and may have negative effects on local communities. To what extent
do you agree or disagree?
082. Leisure is
a growing industry, but people no longer entertain themselves as much as they
used to because the use of modern technology has made them less creative. Do
you agree or disagree?
