It is argued that the arts are the other subjects, especially for primary school children. This essay agrees with that statement and will first discuss how some students flourish when studying music, art or drama and then talk about how maths and science are not crucial at primary level. Not everyone has a talent for mathematics, physics or languages and many students only do their best work when they can be creative. In fact, many pupils simply cannot focus on traditional subjects unless they are expressing themselves creatively through painting, song or dance. Take Gillian Lynne for example, who at a young age was told she had a learning difficulty, but in fact could not learn without moving. Gillian went on to become a world-class choreographer but a success without the encouragement of her dance teacher. would disagree with this view and say that art stops young children from spending enough time on the more ‘serious’ subjects and passing important exams. However, until children get to high school, it is more important for them to have . For instance, in Finland, primary school children do no tests at all and this has been shown to be one of the leading factors in the best education system in the world. In conclusion, painting, dance and acting should be given equal status in the primary classroom because they allow artistic children to learn more effectively and it is unwise to put pressure on children to pass maths and science exams at such a young age.
Sample response & feedback
Arts Education in Primary Schools
Question
Some say that music, art and drama are as important as other school subjects, especially at the primary level. Do you agree or disagree?
Annotated response
12 correction notes
Overall assessment
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response maintains a clear position in favour of equal status for the arts and develops relevant ideas about creative learning and exam pressure. However, saying that maths and science are not crucial goes beyond that position, and the individual and national examples need clearer links to equal curriculum importance. Vocabulary and complex grammar are generally effective, despite a few local errors.
IELTS criteria
How each score was decided
TR Task Response
7.0The position favouring equal status for the arts is clear and relevant ideas are extended with examples. However, the claim that maths and science are not crucial overreaches that position, and the discussion of testing does not fully establish why the arts deserve equal curriculum importance.
CC Coherence and Cohesion
7.0Ideas progress logically across well-managed paragraphs with a range of cohesive devices, although referencing and linking are occasionally slightly mechanical or faulty.
LR Lexical Resource
7.0Vocabulary is flexible and largely precise, with good awareness of style and collocation such as 'flourish', 'world-class choreographer', and 'equal status', with only rare imprecision.
GRA Grammatical Range and Accuracy
7.0A variety of complex structures is used with generally good control, but minor errors such as 'Other would disagree' and 'would have never have been' show accuracy is not consistently maintained.