Inborn Talent vs Taught Skills in Sports and Music

It is generally believed that some people are born with certain talents, for instance for sport or music, and others are not. However, it is sometimes claimed that any child can be taught to become a good sports person or musician. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Annotated response

12 correction notes

Showing 12 correction notes.

Some would argue that certain fields, such as meant only for naturally talented children, while others believe that it is something which can be learned by anyone. While with the aptitude for certain skills are given a head start in life, this essay argues that such skill sets can be mastered by working hard.

On the one hand, children who are gifted with a particular often achieve their goal early in their lives. This is because when someone is very good at what they are doing, it usually does not take much effort for them to strive for excellence in that specific area. For instance, there are many talented singers who have already established a successful singing career before they even become teenagers. However, I believe that talent alone does not guarantee success in the , and that a person can only reach the highest level in their profession if they combine their innate ability with hard work.

On the other hand, many people think that anything is achievable in through practice and training. That is to say that it may take extra time and energy for an individual with average potential to a skill, but success is possible as long as one has the will, determination and the passion to work for it. For example, the world is filled with many star athletes who start off as in the beginning, but they challenge and push themselves to their limit, to attain the greatest version of themselves. I believe this view point is more practical of the people are born average, and hard work beats talent in many cases.

In conclusion, although it is easier for children with extraordinary ability to accomplish their dreams at the beginning of their lives, this essay finds that , even though time taking to master, can be by coaching and experience.

Overall assessment

Why this response received Band 7.0

The response fully addresses both views with a clear, consistent personal position and relevant, generally well-developed examples. Its strongest aspect is the coherent argumentative structure and flexible expression, while the main limitation is a handful of recurring grammatical slips in number agreement and article use that slightly reduce precision.

IELTS criteria

How each score was decided

Task Response

7.0

The essay discusses both views clearly, states a definite opinion from the outset, and supports it with relevant examples, though the second view could be developed slightly more deeply.

Coherence and Cohesion

7.0

Ideas are organised logically across clear paragraphs with a range of cohesive devices, and progression is generally smooth despite occasional slightly mechanical linking.

Lexical Resource

7.0

Vocabulary is flexible and mostly precise, using idiomatic items such as 'head start', 'harness a skill' and 'hard work beats talent', with only minor awkwardness like 'as a mediocre'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

7.0

A variety of complex structures are used with generally good control, though errors such as 'which ultimately help' and 'majority of the people' recur without impeding meaning.