IELTS essay sample 2

Modern lifestyles mean that many parents have little time for their children. Many children do not get as much attention from their parents as children did in the past.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

One common concern nowadays is how modern lifestyles can have a negative effect on family life. A particular worry is that parents no longer are able to provide sufficient care and support for their children. My own view is that this is generally true, but not always so.

If we look at the past, the traditional family structure was the husband was the head of the family and his duty was to provide for his immediate family by going out to work. His wife’s role was to stay at home and bring up the children. In this situation we should note that the children frequently did not see much of their father during the working week.

In the present day, that traditional structure has changed in many cultures. One reason for this is that it is more and more common for the wife to go out to work because it is now accepted that woman have as much right to work as men. A consequence of this is that many children do not see their mother as often as they would have done in the past. A second reason is that divorce has increased and in single-parent families children only ever see one parent.

We should also consider, however, that these changes are not the same for all families. In low income families, for instance, it has always been normal for both parents to work. Likewise, if the family is close-knit, the parents will still spend time with their children even though they both work.

My conclusion is that generally most children see less of their parents and this is due to changing lifestyles. However, this is not always the case.