Mastering the IELTS Discussion Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide

In this guide, we will go through a discussion essay step by step.

Have a look at the prompt:

“Online education is becoming more and more popular. Some people claim that e-learning has so many benefits that it will replace face-to-face education soon. Others say that traditional education is irreplaceable. Discuss both views and give your opinion.”

In this essay, you have to discuss both sides and give your opinion. We have discussed forming an opinion here already.

Let’s start!

Have a look at the prompt again:

“Online education is becoming more and more popular. Some people claim that e-learning has so many benefits that it will replace face-to-face education soon. Others say that traditional education is irreplaceable. Discuss both views and give your opinion.”

In this essay, you will discuss both sides of the argument but also give your opinion. My suggestion would be to choose one of the two sides given because choosing a third side as your opinion may become too much to handle.

For instance, here you could argue for some interaction between both education models as your opinion, but then you will have to sufficiently defend traditional classrooms, online education, and even their amalgamation. Too much, for sure!

⚠️ May I need to reiterate that you can lie in IELTS? Because you can. Just choose what makes things easier.

Writing an Introduction

A good introduction has three parts:
✔ Topic Sentence
✔ Paraphrase of the Question
✔ Thesis Statement

A good introduction consists of 2-4 lines. You should take no more than 10 minutes to write this part.

📌 Topic Sentence:

The topic sentence is the first sentence of your essay. It should be a general sentence regarding the topic of your essay.

✅ On the given prompt, we can write the following topic sentence:

“Education has undergone significant changes with the rise of online learning.”

This makes it clear that our essay will pertain to education, especially after the rise of virtual communication.

📌 Paraphrase the Question

Simply paraphrase the given prompt:

“Some argue that virtual education should replace traditional teaching, while others contend that physical classrooms are here to stay.”

💡 Tip: I have paraphrased the terms used in the prompt. For example:

• Online education → Virtual education

• Traditional education → Physical classrooms

✔ Show the examiner your range of vocabulary whenever you can!

📌 Thesis Statement

A thesis statement simply states your opinion and tells the reader what you are going to present in your essay.

✅ Our thesis statement:

“This essay will discuss both perspectives before presenting my view.”

To avoid making the introduction too wordy, I have refrained from presenting my view here. However, it is possible to do so.

For example, the thesis statement could be written as:

“This essay will discuss both perspectives before presenting my view that traditional teaching is irreplaceable.”

So, our final introduction is:

“Education has undergone significant changes with the rise of online learning. Some argue that virtual education should replace traditional teaching, while others contend that physical classrooms are here to stay. This essay will discuss both perspectives before presenting my view.”

Writing Main Body Paragraphs

Now, we will focus on paragraphs.

Our first paragraph will present the view that online education is the better form of education, while the second paragraph will focus on traditional classrooms being better.

Since we have to make our opinion clear, we will explicitly mention which side we support. Besides that, one important aspect is to make arguments against the side we did not choose.

In this essay, I am going against online education, so I need to present arguments against it.

✅ Two strategies for presenting counterarguments:
1️⃣ Include them in the paragraph discussing online education.
2️⃣ Include them in the paragraph supporting traditional classrooms, simultaneously putting down online education.

I will follow the latter strategy here.

💡 Key takeaway: Make your opinion very clear!

Paragraph Structure

Our paragraphs will include two arguments for each side.

✔ Topic Sentence
✔ Argument 1
✔ Explanation/Example
✔ Argument 2
✔ Explanation/Example

💡 Why choose between an explanation or an example?
Because we don’t have enough time for both! However, we can:
✅ Explain through an example or
✅ Suffice with just an explanation

The key is to make your position clear.

📝 First Body Paragraph (Online Education Supporters' View)

📌 Topic Sentence

“Those who support online education believe that it should replace physical classrooms due to its flexibility and accessibility.”

⚠ Note: Yes, those who support! We do not.

The topic sentence tells the reader two things:
1️⃣ What this paragraph is about
2️⃣ That we do not agree with this opinion

📌 Argument 1 + Explanation

“In an online setup, teachers can record their lectures, allowing students to access them anytime. These recorded lessons can also be paused and replayed, enabling learners to go through the material at their own pace.”

💡 We have simply presented a very common argument for virtual education.

📌 Argument 2 + Explanation

“Additionally, with the widespread availability of the internet and digital devices, online education appears even more advantageous. Anyone, regardless of location, can learn from world-renowned professors from the comfort of their home.”

✅ That’s it! That’s our first paragraph. Wasn’t it simple?

📝 Second Body Paragraph (Our Opinion: Traditional Education is Better)

📌 Topic Sentence

“However, in my opinion, no matter how beneficial online education seems, it cannot replace traditional teaching.”

✅ In this topic sentence, we are expressing our opinion very clearly.

📌 Argument 1 + Explanation

“Individuals learn not only from their teachers but also from their peers. Many great inventions result from teamwork rather than the isolated efforts of a single person. Online education renders these collaborations and discussions among classmates obsolete, as artificial intelligence-powered software can provide instant answers to questions.”

🚀 Key takeaway:
We are not only supporting traditional classrooms, but we are also criticizing online education. This makes our stance very clear!

📌 Argument 2 + Explanation

“Furthermore, online schooling is not as accessible as physical education. Many people around the world, particularly those in remote areas, lack internet access, making online education an unreliable option. For them, attending classes in person remains the only viable choice.”

✅ Again, we are actively proving why traditional teaching is better.

Our paragraphs end up being:

“Those who support online education believe that it should replace physical classrooms due to its flexibility and accessibility. In an online setup, teachers can record their lectures, allowing students to access them anytime. These recorded lessons can also be paused and replayed, enabling learners to go through the material at their own pace. Additionally, with the widespread availability of the internet and digital devices, online education appears even more advantageous. Anyone, regardless of location, can learn from world-renowned professors from the comfort of their home.

However, in my opinion, no matter how beneficial online education seems, it cannot replace traditional teaching. Individuals learn not only from their teachers but also from their peers. Many great inventions result from teamwork rather than the isolated efforts of a single person. Online education renders these collaborations and discussions among classmates obsolete, as artificial intelligence-powered software can provide instant answers to questions. Furthermore, online schooling is not as accessible as physical education. Many people around the world, particularly those in remote areas, lack internet access, making online education an unreliable option. For them, attending classes in person remains the only viable choice.”

Writing Conclusion

Mostly, we just paraphrase the thesis statement in the conclusion. However, we cannot do that here because our thesis statement only promised to give an opinion, but it did not state the opinion.

✅ What to do instead?

✔ Summarize, in a sentence or two, arguments for both sides
✔ Clearly state our opinion

📌 Conclusion Sentence

“To conclude, while online education has its merits, particularly in terms of flexibility, it cannot serve as a complete alternative to the collaborative and widely accessible learning experience offered by physical classrooms.”

✅ This completes our essay! 🎉

Have a look at the final product:

“Education has undergone significant changes with the rise of online learning. Some argue that virtual education should replace traditional teaching, while others contend that physical classrooms are here to stay. This essay will discuss both perspectives before presenting my view.

Those who support online education believe that it should replace physical classrooms due to its flexibility and accessibility. In an online setup, teachers can record their lectures, allowing students to access them anytime. These recorded lessons can also be paused and replayed, enabling learners to go through the material at their own pace. Additionally, with the widespread availability of the internet and digital devices, online education appears even more advantageous. Anyone, regardless of location, can learn from world-renowned professors from the comfort of their home.

However, in my opinion, no matter how beneficial online education seems, it cannot replace traditional teaching. Individuals learn not only from their teachers but also from their peers. Many great inventions result from teamwork rather than the isolated efforts of a single person. Online education renders these collaborations and discussions among classmates obsolete, as artificial intelligence-powered software can provide instant answers to questions. Furthermore, online schooling is not as accessible as physical education. Many people around the world, particularly those in remote areas, lack internet access, making online education an unreliable option. For them, attending classes in person remains the only viable choice.

To conclude, while online education has its merits, particularly in terms of flexibility, it cannot serve as a complete alternative to the collaborative and widely accessible learning experience offered by physical classrooms.”

Sometimes, similar type of question is asked but without opinion. Have a look at the given prompt:

“Online education is becoming more and more popular. Some people claim that e-learning has so many benefits that it will replace face-to-face education soon. Others say that traditional education is irreplaceable. Discuss both views.”

We will write the same essay, everything would be same, except we will support each side in turn equally. Have a look:

“Education has undergone significant changes with the rise of online learning. Some argue that virtual education should replace traditional teaching, while others contend that physical classrooms are here to stay. This essay will discuss both perspectives.

Those who support online education believe that it should replace physical classrooms due to its flexibility and accessibility. In an online setup, teachers can record their lectures, allowing students to access them anytime. These recorded lessons can also be paused and replayed, enabling learners to go through the material at their own pace. Additionally, with the widespread availability of the internet and digital devices, online education appears even more advantageous. Anyone, regardless of location, can learn from world-renowned professors from the comfort of their home.

However, others argue that no matter how beneficial online education seems, it cannot replace traditional teaching. Individuals learn not only from their teachers but also from their peers. Many great inventions result from teamwork rather than the isolated efforts of a single person. Online education renders these collaborations and discussions among classmates obsolete, as artificial intelligence-powered software can provide instant answers to questions. Furthermore, students report higher level of motivation and passion for learning in traditional classrooms. This could be due to the fact that people are highly competitive, and seeing a peer doing well in a discussion or giving an impressive presentation on a complicated topic can make them want to do the same thing.

To conclude, both online and traditional education has their merits. While online education offers flexibility and accessibility, traditional classrooms provide a collaborative environment that fosters motivation and deeper learning.”