Some people believe that using taxpayer funds to look for life on other planets is important. Others, however, think that it is a waste of public money because there are much more important issues requiring funding on our own planet. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

Some people believe that using taxpayer funds to look for life on other planets is important. Others, however, think that it is a waste of public money because there are much more important issues requiring funding on our own planet. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

- Now, this is wonderful. Once again IELTS examiners are just playing with words. This essay is a frequently repeated essay. This essay has been asked previously with different words but more or less with same task to respond.

Read the following titles, they all ask you to address almost same area of question.

1) Many people believe that spending money on space exploration is a waste, instead this should be used for the other social and basic needs. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

2) Some people believe that spending budget on space research is important. Others, however, think that this money should be spent on other priorities of society. Discuss both the views and give your opinion. 

3) Some people think that space exploration is a waste of resources while other thinks that it is essential for the human kind to continue to explore the universe in which we live. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

- Now let's write a sample response to our original question.

Some people believe that using taxpayer funds to look for life on other planets is important. Others, however, think that it is a waste of public money because there are much more important issues requiring funding on our own planet. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

"Discuss Both The Views" types of essays should have a structure which addresses both the sides of the question and gives opinion too. In the given question the two different sides are: 

1) To look for life on other planet is important with public fund

&

2) It is a waste of public money because there are much more important issues requiring funding on our own planet. 

Now, think about the way to address these two arguments.  Let's favour each of them with valid arguments/justification. 

1) Why is it important to spend money on finding life on other planet?

- It can be enormous help to human kind in emergency 

- It is important for the safety of entire globe due to climate change

2) Why it seems waste of money ?

- Basic needs like food and shelter for many people are more considerable priorities

- Pressing problems like climate change, unemployment and safety of common people need more attention  

To write this essay we'll use 15 sentence framework with total 4 paragraphs including two main body paragraphs and an introduction and a conclusion. 

Many of the IELTS candidates fail to show their position here in introduction. This may cause you a full band and such introduction without position does not fulfill TR and CC criteria beyond band 5. 

FORMAT FOR DISCUSS BOTH THE VIEWS ESSAYS 

FOR BAND 7+ RESPONSE

v Introduction (2-3 sentences / 40-50 words)

1. Topical Sentence to introduce the topic – you can simply rephrase the question to get one
2. Outline – A complex sentence with opposite view and your own position

 v Body Passage -1 (5-6 sentences / 90-100 words) (Other side view)

3. Opposite view with distancing language
4. Explain that view
5. Provide an example
6. One more argument against your view  
7. Explain it (Why/How it is believed so)

 v Body Passage -2 (5-6 sentences / 90-100 words) (Your own position)

8. State your own position strongly
9. Justify your argument with explanation
10. Provide a suitable example
11. One more argument to support your view
12. Explain it (Why/How do you think the mentioned argument is true)

 v Conclusion (2 or maximum 3 sentences)

13. Summarize both views (Use a complex sentence to do this)
14. Clearly reassert your own view 

SAMPLE ANSWER

Planning a balanced budget is one of the most significant jobs for any governments and hence it requires a well-balanced approach. While it is argued that funding spent on extra terrestrial researches is a waste of public money, I side with those who believe that this is quite important for two important reasons. 

(You must have noticed the way I made a complex sentence here which serves 3 different purposes: 1st is to paraphrase the questions with two sides 2nd Showing my position/opinion and 3rd is to provide outline of my response in brief.)

On the one hand, those who feel that such expenses on extra terrestrial  researches are a waste of public fund claim it serves no purpose to common man on the earth. They believe, instead, there are more pressing problems prevail on the planet earth which need more attention and budget. Since millions of people die of hunger on the earth even in today's time, spending money on finding a new evidence of life on the other planet, will not help humans as much as finding a new dish or a new way to feed human will help. A government scheme to provide jobs to the needy might be more helpful than a successful rocket launching for a nation.

On the other hand, I, however, feel that such experiments and funding to these projects are important not only for one nation or an individual but for the entire earth itself. As our habitat earth is getting more and more polluted day by day, soon there will be a time when we will need to find an alternate shelter in emergencies of natural calamities. We are living on a planet where the weather is getting unpredictable day by day which can put the existence of whole human race in danger, hence, finding a new hope of life on near by planet is worth spending millions of dollars for the sake of human survival. 

To sum up, although spending an exorbitant amount of public fund on space research might look unjustifiable due to prevailing pressing problems on planet earth, I still believe such expenses on are needed for the safety of human race against natural calamities and unpredictable weather. (325 words)