ESSAY TOPICS

1. Is global climate change man-made? 2. Is the death penalty effective? 27. Should creationism be taught in public schools? 3. Is our election process fair? 28. Are beauty pageants exploitive? 4. Do colleges put too much stock in standardized test scores? 5. Is torture ever acceptable? 6. Should men get paternity leave from work? 7. Is a lottery a good idea? 8. Do we have a fair taxation system? 9. Do curfews keep teens out of trouble? 10. Is cheating out of control? 11. Are we too dependent on computers? 12. Are parents clueless about child predators on the Internet? 13. Should animals be used for research? 14. Should cigarette smoking be banned? 15. Are cell phones dangerous? 16. Are law enforcement cameras an invasion of privacy? 17. Are test scores a good indication of a scholars competency? 18. Do we have a throw-away society? 19. Is child behavior better or worse than it was years ago? 20. Should companies market to children? 21. Should the government have a say in our diets? 22. Does access to condoms prevent teen pregnancy? 23. Does access to condoms irresponsible, dangerous, or bad behavior? 24. Are actors and professional athletes paid too much? 25. Are CEOs paid too much? 30. Should the racing industry be forced to use biofuels? 31. When should parents let teens make their own decisions? 33. Should the military be allowed to recruit at high schools? 34. Should the alcoholic drinking age be increased or decreased? 35. Does age matter in relationships? 36. What age is appropriate for dating? 37. Should gay couples be able to marry? 38. Are there benefits to attending a single-sex school? 39. Does boredom lead to trouble? 40. Does participation in sports keep teens out of trouble? 41. Is competition good? 42. Does religion cause war? 43. Should the government provide health care? 44. Should girls ask boys out? 45. Is fashion important? 46. Are girls too mean to each other? 47. Is homework harmful or helpful? 48. Should students be allowed to grade their teachers? 49. Is the cost of college too high? 50. Is college admission too competitive? 29. Should English be the official language in the United States? 26. Do violent video games cause behavior problems?

Argument Essay Topics

1. We are becoming increasingly dependent on computers. They are used in businesses, hospitals, crime detection and even to fly planes. What things will they be used for in future? Is this dependence on computers a good thing or should we be more suspicious of their benefits? In what ways has information technology changed work and working practices in the past 10 years? 'Telecommuting' refers to workers doing their jobs from home for part of each week and communicating with their office using computer technology. Telecommuting is growing in many countries and is expected to be common for most office workers in the coming decades. How do you think society will be affected by the growth of telecommuting? Technology is making communication easier in today's world, but at the expense of personal contact as many people choose to work at home in front of a computer screen. What dangers are there for a society which depends on computer screens rather than face-to-face contact for its main means of communication? banned smoking in all public places. Do you agree or disagree? Give reasons.

2. 3.

4.

5. Some businesses now say that no one can smoke cigarettes in any of their offices. Some governments have
6. 7. Should the same laws which prohibit the sale and consumption of heroin be applied to tobacco? To what extent is the use of animals in scientific research acceptable? needs from meatless products and meatless substances. A vegetarian diet is as healthy as a diet containing meat. Argue for or against the opinion above.

8. Human beings do not need to eat meat in order to maintain good health because they can get all their food

9. Forests are the lungs of the earth. Destruction of the world's forests amounts to death of the world we
currently know. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

10. Are our zoos cruel to wild animals? Discuss.

11. Zoos are sometimes seen as necessary but not poor alternatives to a natural environment. Discuss some of the arguments for and/or against keeping animals in zoos. 12. To what extent should economic planning be influenced by the need of environmental conservation?

13. Damage of the environment is an inevitable consequence of worldwide improvements in the standard of
living. Discuss. 14. The rising levels of congestion and air pollution found in most of the world cities can be attributed directly to the rapidly increasing number of private cars in use. In order to reverse this decline in the quality of life in cities, attempts must be made to encourage people to use their cars less and public transport more. Discuss possible ways to encourage the use of public transport.

15. Education is the single most important factor in the development of a country. Do you agree?
16. What are factors which are related to academic success in high-school students? 17. Do the benefits of study abroad justify the difficulties? What advice would you offer to a prospective student?

18. The idea of going overseas for university study is an exciting prospect for many people. But while it may offer
some advantages, it is probably better to stay home because of the difficulties a student inevitably encounters living and studying in a different culture. To what extent do you agree or disagree this statement? Give reasons for your answer.

19. Write a report to your sponsoring agency describing the English-language skills overseas students require.
Make any recommendations you feel are necessary. would you offer?

20. What kind of listening challenges do overseas students face in tertiary education? What recommendations 21. Write a report to your sponsoring agency describing the accommodation problems faced by foreign students
in Britain/US/Australia, etc. Make any necessary recommendations. 22. Education is recognized as vital to the future of any society in today's world. Governments throughout the world should make education compulsory for all children between the ages of 5 and 15. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

23. Foreign language instruction should begin in kindergarten. Discuss.

24. Children should never be educated at home by their parents. Do you agree or disagree? 25. Children learn best by observing behavior of adults and copying it. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

26. To what extent should universities function as training grounds for employment? 27. To what extent should university courses be geared to the economic needs of society? 28. Should wealthy nations be required to share their wealth among poorer nations by providing such things as food and education? Or is it a responsibility of the governments of poorer nations to look after their citizens themselves? 29. To what extent will migration from the developing world to the developed world become a social and political issue in the 21st century?

30. The dominance of black people in US sport is due to sociological rather than physiological factors. Discuss. 31. In Britain, when someone gets old, they often go to live in a home with other old people where there are
nurses to look after them. Sometimes the government has to pay for this care. Who should be responsible for our old people? Give reasons.

32. In some countries the average worker is obliged to retire at the age of 50, while in others people can work
until they are 65 or 70. Until what age do you think people should be encouraged to remain in paid employment? Give reasons for your answer.

33. In your opinion should government intervene in the rights of the individual with regard to family planning? 34. To what extent has the traditional male role changed in the last 20 years?

35. Many people believe that women make better parents than men and that this is why they have the greater
role in raising children in most societies. Others claim that men are just as good as women at parenting. Write an essay expressing your point of view. Give reasons for your answer.

36. The first car appeared on British roads in 1888. By the year 2000 there may be as many as 29 million vehicles
on British roads. Alternative forms of transport should be encouraged and international laws introduced to control car ownership and use. What do you think?

37. The best way to reduce the number of traffic accidents is to make all young drivers complete a safe driving education course before being licensed to drive.

38. The rising levels of congestion and air pollution found in most of the world cities can be attributed directly to
the rapidly increasing number of private cars in use. Discuss possible ways to encourage the use of public transport.

39. The threat of nuclear weapons maintains world peace. Nuclear power provides cheap and clean energy. The
benefits of nuclear technology far overweigh the disadvantages. Do you agree or disagree? Give reasons for your answer.

40. News editors decide what to broadcast on TV and what to print in newspapers. What factors do you think
influence their decisions? 41. Do we become used to bad news? Would it be better if more good news was reported?

42. TV: could you be without it? Discuss. 43. The mass media, including TV, radio and newspapers, have great influence in shaping people's ideas. To what
extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give reasons for your answer.

44. Tourism is becoming increasingly important as a source of revenue to many countries but its disadvantages
should not be overlooked. What are some of the problems of tourism? 45. Are women are better parents than men?

49. Will the Internet bring people of the world

closer together? 50. Does foreign aid helps donor countries more than the recipients? 51. Are zoos are necessary for education? 52. Is animal testing necessary?

46. Should children be taught sex education in

schools? 47. Should money be spent on space exploration?

48. Should rich countries forgive all debts for poor

countries? 53. Should rich countries pay more for environmental damage? 54. Should retirement be compulsory at 65 years of age?

55. Most high level jobs are done by men. Should the government encourage a certain percentage of these jobs to be reserved for women? 56. Are famous people treated unfairly by the media? Should they be given more privacy, or is the price of their fame an invasion into their private lives?

57. Should developing countries concentrate on improving industrial skills or should they promote education first? 58. Safety standards are important when building people's homes. Who should be responsible for enforcing strict building codes - the government or the people who build the homes? 59. Does modern technology make life more convenient, or was life better when technology was simpler? 60. In your opinion what factors contribute to a good movie? 61. Does travel help to promote understanding and communication between countries?

62. If children behave badly, should their parents accept responsibility and also be punished?
63. What should a government do for a country to become successful? 64. Should sports classes be sacrificed in High School so students can concentrate on Academic subjects?

65. Nowadays doctors can become very rich. Maybe they should not focus on profitable activities such as plastic

surgery or looking after rich patients and concentrate more on patients health, no matter how rich they are?

66. Will modern technology, such as the internet ever replace the book or the written word as the main source of information? 67. Discuss the advantage and disadvantage of giving international Aid to poor countries.

68. Should criminals be punished with lengthy jail terms or re-educated and re-habituated, using community
service programs for instance, before being reintroduced to society? 69. Computers can translate all kinds of languages well. Do our children need to learn more languages in the future?

TOEFL Essay Writing Topics

1) It is acceptable for parents to use physical force to discipline their children. 2) Scientific and technological advances are always good. 3) Life is easier today than it was 500 years ago. 4) It is important to keep up with the latest fashions. 5) It is not possible to eliminate poverty. 6) A job that requires a lot of thinking is more difficult than a job that requires no thinking. 7) It is more important to study science and technology than to study the arts and humanities. 8) The cheapest product is always the most economical product. 9) A successful life is a happy life. 10) Poor people have more difficult lives than rich people. 11) Making a bad decision is better than

making no decision. 12) It's better to work for someone than to work for yourself. 13) Money can't buy happiness. 14) Police officers should not carry guns. 15) There should be no minimum age for drinking alcohol. 16) Large cities should ban cars from the city center. 17) Learning from experience is better than learning from a book. 18) It's better to find information in a library than on the internet. 19) Television violence contributes to violence in society. 20) An intelligent person is an educated person. 21) There will always be violence in the world. 22) Medical care should be free for everybody. 23) It is sometimes good to lie.

24) A good teacher is a strict teacher. 25) It is impolite to criticize other people. 26) Immigrants to a country should be forced to learn that country's language. 27) Animals should be free; people should not keep them in zoos. 28) The government should pay for colleges and universities--education should be free for everybody. 29) Religion should not be taught in public schools. 30) It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. 31) It is important to know how to play a musical instrument. 32) Military service should be compulsory. 33) It is possible to know something about a person by the way he or she dresses. 34) Governments should limit foreign imports in order to protect jobs. 35) Extroverts are better leaders than introverts. 36) Women are better teachers than men. 37) It is not important to know about what a politician does in his personal life. 38) The best way to motivate people is through money. 39) The best jobs are the ones that pay a lot of money. 40) Computers have complicated people's lives. 41) Boys are most influenced by their fathers; girls are most influenced by their mothers. 42) People have too much free time nowadays. 43) It is better to have many acquaintances than to have only a few close friends. 44) Learning new things should always be fun. 45) Success is only achieved through discipline and hard work. 46) A written test can never measure a person's intelligence. 47) Animals should never be used to test new drugs or medical treatments.

48) Watching television is a waste of time. 49) Some people have too much money. 50) A person always acts in his own selfinterest. 51) It is important to be actively involved in your community. 52) All politicians are corrupt. 53) The best teacher a person will ever have is a parent. 54) Not everything that is learned is contained in books. 55) Movies and television negatively influence the way people live and behave. 56) Success comes from hard work--there is no luck involved. 57) It is better to live in a small town than in a big city. 58) University students should be required to attend all their classes. 59) It is better to learn by yourself than with a teacher. 60) It is better for children to grow up in the countryside than in a big city. 61) It is good to work while attending school. 62) People should sometimes do things that they do not enjoy doing. 63) Television, newspapers, and magazines pay too much attention to the lives of famous people. 64) It is better to live in one place your entire life than to live in several different places.