Inattentiveness of students in the classroom seems to be a universal problem. In this essay, I argue that the old-fashioned teaching methodologies are largely responsible for this and propose that schools should redesign their curriculum to counter this issue. Outdated approaches to education are the main reason in school. Grueling hours drain their attentional stamina and make them inattentive in class. Students around the world are assigned a schedule that resembles a nine-to-five workday, perhaps intentionally to correspond to their parents’ working hours. This situation is further aggravated by obsolete pedagogical practices which favor mechanical recitation and memorisation. It is common practice in some countries that schoolchildren from a young age are taught to memorise lengthy predetermined answers from the beginning of their course to prepare for exams. Gradually, this method makes the student mentally exhausted and it extinguishes any enthusiasm they have in the classroom. The aforementioned problems are the consequence of having a school system that has been virtually unchanged solving them requires innovative measures. While schools may not have to drastically reduce the hours, they should lighten the information load for their students. Redesigning the schedule necessitates the introduction of interactive exercises and games to the lessons, which have been verified by studies to stimulate students’ curiosity and thereby improve their attention span. Furthermore, being able to relate issues from their daily life also enhances concentration. Therefore, sessions in which students are forced to memorise and recite dull facts should be replaced by practicums which teach the students to find solutions for real life problems. In conclusion, replacing the outdated and ineffective teaching methods is fundamental to capture students’ attention and kindle their interest in learning. I firmly believe that the current school system needs to be changed dramatically.
Students Struggling to Focus at School
Many students find it difficult to focus or pay attention at school nowadays. What are the reasons for this? What can be done to solve this problem?
Annotated response
2 correction notes
Overall assessment
Why this response received Band 7.5
The response's strongest aspect is its precise, flexible vocabulary and clearly sustained argument about outdated teaching methods causing inattention. The main limitation is that ideas, while relevant and coherent, are developed with somewhat limited depth and would benefit from more concrete support and tighter expansion.
IELTS criteria
How each score was decided
Task Response
7.0The response addresses both questions directly with a clear position, relevant causes and solutions, and a consistent conclusion, though development of each idea remains somewhat general rather than fully extended.
Coherence and Cohesion
7.0Ideas progress logically across clear paragraphs with a range of cohesive devices used naturally, though some referencing and transitions are occasionally mechanical.
Lexical Resource
8.0Vocabulary is wide, precise, and natural, with idiomatic academic phrasing such as attentional stamina, obsolete pedagogical practices, and kindle their interest, and only minimal inaccuracy.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
7.0A variety of complex structures are used with flexibility and generally good control, with only occasional errors or awkward constructions that do not impede communication.