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CAE TESTBOOK – TEST 1 – QUESTION 1: AN ESSAY

Your class has listened to a radio discussion on how more young people can be encouraged
to study science. You have made the notes below:

Ways of encouraging people to study science:

 advertising
 school programmes
 government grants

Some opinions expressed in the discussion:

“You never see positive images of young scientists on TV, just pop stars or actors.”

“Science lessons should be more practical and fun.”

“If young people see science as a career, they’ll want to study it.”

Write an essay discussing two of the points in your notes. You should explain which way
would be more effective in encouraging young people to study science, providing
reasons to support your opinion.

You may, if you wish, use the opinions expressed in the discussion, but you should use your
own words as far as possible.

How can young people be encouraged to study science?


(original text by Berta Álvarez)

It is undoubtedly the case that science plays a great role in our everyday
lives. Much has been said about the sciences lately, as many students feel
discouraged to choose scientific degrees when it comes to deciding their
future. Given the importance of scientific development, it would be key for
societies to motivate future generations to support the sciences. The
question now is: how can young people be encouraged to study science?

First and foremost, advertising has proved to be highly effective on


students, as the media has always had the power of persuasion on people,
especially youngsters. Thanks to the media, students can keep updated on
the latest discoveries in science through different ways, such as newspapers
or the radio.

Nevertheless, television, which has the greatest influence on teenagers,


never deals with science-related topics. What is more, nowadays it seems
that the only thing television programmes care to discuss are celebrity
gossip, which is not only off-putting, but also poor in terms of its
educational value.

Moreover, school programmes are another way to encourage pupils to study


science. Traditionally, science programmes have always been believed to be
not only boring, but also overly theoretical. Therefore, students do not feel
motivated in terms of studying. However, a survey conducted recently on
how to improve science lessons showed that the more experiments and
practical workshops are carried out during a science lesson, the more the
students’ involvement increases and thus the more interested and
motivated they are. In other words, were school programmes to be
redesigned so as to take a much more hands-on approach, they would
doubtless spark students’ interest in science far more than they currently
do.

To sum up, it appears that school programmes are the key to stimulate
students’ interest in science as a field with great potential for their future.
Hopefully, in the coming years, we will see an increase in the number of
science graduates across university campuses, which will definitely have a
positive impact on society.

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