Some universities offer online courses as an alternative to classes delivered on campus.

Do
you think this is a positive or negative development?

S1:
In the contemporary era, modern technology has been integrated into learning, which has led
to several changes in the way students learn. One of the most significant improvements that can
be mentioned is the development of many online learning platforms created by universities all
around the world to replace traditional face-to-face classes. Although there are many limitations
to online learning, I believe that this development has more positive impacts.
It is justifiable that taking online classes has some drawbacks. One of the most significant
downsides can be attributed to the lack of face-to-face interaction between students and
teachers in virtual classrooms. To elucidate, for students, without interacting with teachers and
friends, they can easily lose their concentration on the lessons, which leads to a decrease in the
effectiveness of their learning. From the teachers’ perspective, it is more difficult for them to
manage students’ learning as they cannot capture everyone properly when teaching in virtual
classes. Lecturers may also find it quite challenging to deliver full knowledge and interact with
their students through these online platforms. As a result, both students and teachers may have
a negative experience while studying.
In contrast, online learning has several merits that cannot be denied. First and foremost,
because online courses’ schedules are not permanent, they can be a suitable option for
students who work and study at the same time. For instance, employees who go to work most
of the time can have a flexible timetable when taking online courses as they can choose to study
whenever they have free time without worrying about disturbing other students. Another
remarkable upside that can be mentioned is that they can easily access several learning
materials on the Internet while participating in online classes. This can help them to learn more
effectively and reduce the time that they have to spend in libraries searching for their needed
information.
In conclusion, I personally think that the development of online courses has certain advantages
for students in terms of their flexibility and abundance of learning materials and resources.

S2:
It is true that online courses are becoming a common feature of university education. Although
there are some drawbacks of Internet-based learning, I would argue that there are far more
benefits.
The main drawback of the trend towards online university courses is that there is less direct
interaction. Students may not have the opportunity to engage face-to-face with their teachers,
and will instead have to rely on written forms of communication. Similarly, students who study
online do not come into direct contact with each other, and this could have a negative impact
on peer support, discussion and exchange of ideas. For example, whereas students on
traditional courses can attend seminars and even discuss their subjects over coffee after lessons,
online learners are restricted to chatting through website forum areas. These learners may also
lack the motivation and element of competition that face-to-face group work brings.
Despite the negatives mentioned above, I believe that online university courses are a positive
development for various reasons. Firstly, they allow learners to study in a flexible way, meaning
that they can work whenever and wherever is convenient, and they can cover the material at
their own pace. Secondly, the cost of a university education can be greatly reduced, while
revenues for institutions may increase as more students can be taught. Finally, online learning
offers open access to anybody who is willing to study, regardless of age, location, ability and
background. For example, my uncle, who is 65 years old, has recently enrolled on an online
MBA course in a different country, which would have been impossible in the days before
Internet-based education.
In conclusion, while I recognise the possible disadvantages of online learning, I consider it to be
a positive development overall.
The chart illustrates the proportion of people visiting a cinema during seven days of the week in
a European nation from 2003 to 2007.
It is clear that there were only small fluctuations in people’s preference of which day to go to
the cinema over the examined period. People in this country tended to go to the cinema on the
weekend rather than on Monday to Friday.
In 2003, 40% of people went to cinemas on a Saturday, compared to 30% on Friday or Sunday
each. On the other days, the proportion of movie-goers was higher on Tuesday, at 20%, while
the lowest figure can be seen on Monday, at only 10%.
Over the next four years, the percentage of people going to the cinema on weekends increased
slightly to 45% 35% for Saturday and Sunday respectively. Similarly, Thursday and Monday
became more popular among cinema-goers, with about 2% more people choosing these days.
However, fewer people went to see movies on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the figures falling
to 19% and 9% respectively. Finally, the proportion of movie-goers choosing to go to the cinema
on a Friday remained at 30% during the three examined years.
The bar chart illustrates the proportion of global population in four
nations in two years 1950 and 2002, and also predictions for 2050.

It is clear that while the percentages of population in India

increases, the reverse is true for the other countries over the period
shown. Additionally, China and India have highest proportions of
population, whereas the figure for Japan is by far lowest during the
research period.

In 1950, China was the most populous nation with the figure
registering around 23%, while the Indian population accounted for
15% of world population. In contrast, about 7% of people in the
world were from the USA, compared to only less than 5% from
Japan. In 2002, the rate of the Indian population rose slowly, while
China, the US and Japan all saw declines in their figures.

In 2050, India is predicted to have the largest population as

illustrated by an increase to nearly 20%. By contrast, the
proportions of population in China and Japan are projected to
decrease to 15% and about 2% respectively. Meanwhile, the figure
for the USA is likely to remain the same, at 5%.
The bar chart compares the percentage of car trips made by male and female drivers for eight
different purposes in 2005.
It can be seen that commuting to work was the most common reason for car travel for both
males and females. Meanwhile, visiting town, recreation, going to the bank, running errands,
and visiting friends were the reasons for car travel that saw the biggest difference between the
percentages of men and women doing these activities.
In 2005, 52% of men traveled to work by car, which was about 13% higher than that of women
for the same purpose. By contrast, slightly more women than men went on car trips for
shopping, with 16% and 10%, respectively. Similarly, the percentages of men and women driving
to courses were fairly similar, at 8% and 12% respectively.
The percentage of each gender was considerably different with regards to other purposes. The
percentage of men who made car trips to visit town, at 9%, and for recreation, at 11%, were
nearly three times more than that of women for each purpose. While cars were used by around
8% to 10% of women for going to the bank, running errands, and visiting friends, approximately
4% of men used a car for the same purpose.