IELTS Writing Task 2 – Causes and Effects (Moving to Cities)

Nowadays, a growing number of young adults are moving away from villages and small towns to settle in large cities. In my view, they leave mainly because rural areas offer few well-paid jobs or universities, so the countryside is left with an ageing population and fewer local services.

Young people leave the countryside for two main reasons. The first is a lack of well-paid jobs. Most rural work is in farming, which is hard and poorly paid. Consequently, ambitious young people look for office or technology careers in cities. For example, someone hoping to work in software design will find few openings in a farming village. The second reason is limited access to higher education. Universities are usually located in large cities, forcing school leavers to move away to continue studying. For instance, a village student training as a doctor in the capital often builds a life there rather than returning home.

This trend has two serious effects on rural areas. The first is that villages are left with an ageing population. When young people leave, fewer workers remain to run farms and local businesses, and many elderly residents have nobody nearby to help them. A typical case is an older farmer who must sell the land, as no one is left to take over. Another effect is the loss of local services. As the population falls, schools, shops and bus routes close for lack of pupils, customers and passengers, making rural life less attractive. This creates a cycle: if a village school closes, young families are unlikely to move there, which means the decline continues.

In conclusion, young people move to cities mainly for better job and study opportunities. As a result, the countryside is left with an older population and fewer services, and the decline tends to continue.

These days, both adults and children spend far more of their day sitting than previous generations did. In my view, this is mainly caused by office-based jobs and screen-based entertainment, and it leads to weight gain and back and neck problems.

There are two main reasons why people sit for longer than before. The first is the type of work that most people now do. Many jobs that once involved physical labour have been replaced by office work, so employees spend seven or eight hours a day at a desk, and they often sit in a car or on a train to get there. The second reason is the way people relax. Instead of playing outside or walking to see friends, many children and adults now spend their free time watching videos, gaming or scrolling on their phones, usually while sitting on a sofa.

This trend has two serious effects on people's health. The first is weight gain. When people move very little, they burn fewer calories, and over time this can lead to obesity and related illnesses such as diabetes. Another effect is pain in the back, neck and shoulders. Sitting in the same position for hours, often while looking down at a screen, puts strain on the spine. For example, many office workers in their twenties already visit a physiotherapist because of back pain, which was once mainly a problem of older people.

In conclusion, people sit more today mainly because of desk-based jobs and screen-based leisure. As a result, they are more likely to gain weight and suffer from back and neck pain.

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