Task 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The table gives information about the average hours spent on the Internet by European people of different age groups.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
The table shows the median number of weekly hours various age groups in Europe spend on the internet.
The most striking point to note is that Internet usage is at its highest for those aged between 16 and 20, with the figure for males being 19 hours and females just one hour less. These figures represent an increase of treble the previous age category for women and over two times more for males.
From 21 onwards, the hours spent reduced dramatically. By the ages of 26 to 30, males and females spend the same amount of time online with 4 hours each, after which females reportedly spend slightly longer online than males for the remaining two categories, falling to only 2 hours for men and 3 hours for women for those aged 51 or older.
Overall, it can be seen that the highest period of internet usage for both male and female was the age range of 16 to 20.
(160 words)
Task 2
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
In many countries, people do not recycle their rubbish as much as they could.
Why do you think this is? What can be done to change this?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
With an increasing world population and subsequent environmental concerns, it is important to dispose of trash in an eco-friendly manner, yet there are a significant number of places around the world that fail to do so.
There are a number of reasons that mean that recycling is not done as effectively as it could, the primary problem being the attitude of the general public. Lethargy or lack of knowledge leads people to throw all of their rubbish into one place, meaning that material that could have been sorted and reused is buried in landfills. In the UK, for example, over 20 million tonnes of waste is buried whilst less than 1 per cent of that amount is actively recycled. There is also the matter of availability, as there are situations in which recycling facilities are either extremely limited or nonexistent.
In order to combat these issues, the first step would be educating the general public about the facts of waste disposal and recycling, perhaps even enforcing participation by levying a fine against those who do not separate their rubbish into different types. Hand in hand with this, making recycling centres more available would also help, or perhaps adopting a system used in some Asian countries where households are given a number of different containers into which to sort their rubbish for collection.
Overall, it seems that a change of attitude is needed as well as more resources to manage different recyclable materials. This can be achieved through a combination of education and penalties, as well as ensuring better access to facilities.
(261 words)