Sample Answer for Task 1

The charts illustrate the number of undergraduates in the UK, government spending on each student from 1991 to 2001, and compare the percentages of students from different family economic backgrounds in 1991.

Overall, in 1991, the majority of undergraduates came from middle-income families. Also, in contrast to the increased number of university students, government spending decreased toward the end of the period.

The proportion of university students whose family financial background fell into the middle-income category was just over 60%, approximately twice as much as that of students from high-income families. Meanwhile, only 8% of UK undergraduates were from low-income families in 1991.

There was a moderate rise in the number of undergraduates from over one million in 1991 to more than two million in 1999. This figure then slightly declined to precisely 2,000,000 two years later.

Despite the overall increase in student numbers, government budgets allocated to support those students fell substantially from £6,500 to around £4,700, a decrease of £1,200 in only five years. After that, the figure experienced almost no change until the end of the period.

(188 words)

Sample Answer for Task 2

Childhood obesity has become a typical sign of deteriorating public health worldwide, especially in Western countries, where large amounts of unhealthy food are consumed daily. Some people believe governments should do whatever is needed to improve this situation. However, I believe that governments should not be solely responsible for combating the childhood obesity crisis.

The role of a competent and responsible government is to ensure the well-being of its people. This means that if there is a serious threat, such as childhood obesity, the government should acknowledge it and implement effective solutions. However, beyond encouraging regular exercise and healthy eating habits, I do not believe the government has a further role to play.

The responsibility to combat childhood obesity should primarily fall on parents, who have a greater influence on their children’s lives. Obese children are often malnourished due to poor dietary choices made by their parents. This suggests that parents can directly improve their children’s health by selecting diets with less sugar and fat. Additionally, obesity is often caused by a lack of physical activity, exemplified by the sedentary lifestyles favored by many young people today. Parents are the ones who can encourage or enforce more physical activities or exercise for their children.

In conclusion, while governments should take steps to curb the obesity epidemic, parents bear the primary responsibility for their children’s unhealthy conditions and must take action to address them.

(316 words)